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Inside: Pharmacist Brooke van Eeghen ’00 finds her calling; Class Notes; Changing Lives Celebration honors three; college receives $50,000 gift for technology; spring sports results and more …

Volume 8, Number 5 Summer 2009 www.ccri.edu/alum

New book for sale chronicles CCRI history What did you wear to CCRI’s

annual Halloween Dance? Were you a member of the Shielders? Did you listen to Radio RIJC or pull a prank on Reverse Haze Day?

These events and organizations were a prominent part of student life in the early days of the Com-munity College of Rhode Island and, even if you don’t remember them, they are an important part of the school’s history – part of what CCRI was and has become for students, faculty and staff past and present.

That history is preserved in a new book, “Community College of Rhode Island: An Illustrated History, The Rhode Island Junior College Years,” which is on sale now in CCRI bookstores, through the Marketing and Com-munications Department on the Warwick campus and online at www.ccri.edu/illustratedhistory.

The book uses archival photos,

reminiscences and biographies of prominent figures in the college’s history to tell the story of CCRI’s founding in 1964 as Rhode Is-land Junior College through 1980 when it was given its modern name.

Authors Julie Novak and Rich-ard Coren, employees of CCRI’s Marketing and Communications Department, said they chose to focus their book on everyday student life during that trailblaz-ing era.

“The students got organized and went to the faculty to create dances, the basketball team, the student senate, they really considered themselves pioneers,” Coren said.

Readers of the illustrated his-tory will be able to see that spirit on display as the school evolves over 16 years and 48 pages from a small endeavor in a single building in Providence to a bus-tling college with thousands of

students on campuses throughout the state.

Over the years, many aspects of life at CCRI came and went, as did an ever-increasing number of graduates, which now totals more than 54,000. As the years passed and the school evolved, more alumni came to work for the college, joining ranks with the

Golf tournament is a day of fun, friendly competition

The Community College of Rhode Island Knights basket-ball team is in a junior college league, so its players don’t usually participate in the NCAA tournament. But last March, one Knight made it to the second round.

Ken McDonald ’90 has had a 20-year career in college basket-ball that started when he was a player at CCRI. He recently fin-ished his first season as a head coach at Western Kentucky Uni-versity (WKU), where he led the Hilltoppers into the second round of the NCAA tournament in an upset victory.

With a 25-8 season record, the Hilltoppers were in a strong po-sition going into the tournament, but were knocked out in the second round by a heartbreaking buzzer beater shot.

For the 38-year-old McDon-ald, a first-time head coach,

this is already an impressive basketball career, one that has gone from the Ocean State to the Big East.

McDonald’s breakthrough into college basketball came in 1988 when he enrolled at CCRI out of high school and joined the Knights as a shooting guard.

History book, page 8

Coach Ken McDonald ’90 has Rhode Island roots

McDonald, page 7

Class of 2009 joins the Alumni Association

Throughout much of the year, the classrooms of the Community College of Rhode Island’s Knight Campus serve as laboratories and lecture halls but on May 15, they were dressing rooms. Hundreds of graduates from the school’s 1,500-strong Class of 2009 gathered on the top floor of the Knight Campus megastructure to prepare for the 44th commencement ceremony.

The graduates donned their robes and adjusted their tas-sels in the rooms where they had studied literature, foreign languages, business and other subjects. In getting here, many faced challenges tougher than any exam question.

One of these students was Dhamarys Murillo, who will finish her last nursing class in August.

“I came to this country 20 years ago and I didn’t speak English,” she said. “To be able to graduate from an American college – I’m really proud.”

Behind every Community College of Rhode Island com-mencement are hundreds of faculty and staff who provided the graduates with their educa-tion and gave them the support they needed to succeed.

For these employees, watching CCRI’s students walk across the stage in the Vincent A. Cullen Field House is the most reward-ing moment of the year. More than 100 of CCRI’s faculty and staff have made this same walk themselves and several of them are involved with planning the commencement ceremony each year.

One is Linda Manish ’77, ad-ministrative assistant to Associ-ate Vice President for Student Services Ronald L. Shertz and commencement coordinator.

Manish is part of a committee

For alumni staffers, commencement brings back memories

Alumni staffers, page 4Commencement, page 4

Community College of Rhode Island alumni, staff and friends hit the links at Foster Country Club on June 17 for the college’s 7th Annual Alumni Association Golf Tournament.

A total of 88 golfers came to-gether to raise money for alumni programming and the Alumni Association Book Award, which gives a student a $250 credit to buy textbooks in the CCRI Bookstore.

Many of the course’s 18 holes had special prizes and functions, such as a Pot-of-Gold contest for getting your ball on the green, an award for being closest to the pin, and a 2009 Audi from Inskip Auto Mall for a hole-in-one on the 18th hole.

Unfortunately, none of the golf-ers was able to claim this prize.

While none of the prizes awarded was as spectacular as a free car, golfers were able to win donated raffle and silent auction prizes such as cases of wine, a

free gym membership, sports memorabilia and more.

Proceeds from a silent and live auction as well as the golfers’ registration fees helped give an even more valuable gift to CCRI students.

Sondra Pitts ’66, president of the CCRI Alumni Association,

said that the cost of textbooks can be a challenge for some students and is sometimes what pushes college just out of their fi-nancial reach. The Alumni Book Award, presented to financially challenged students twice a year,

Golf tournament, page 8

CCRI alumni Charlie Miller ’89 (left) and Michael Archetto ’75 wait for the shotgun start at the Foster Country Club during the 7th An-nual Alumni Association Golf Tournament on June 17.

Liston CampusOne Hilton StreetProvidence, RI 02905-2304

ALU

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money for tuition, van Eeghen enrolled in CCRI’s Respiratory Therapy program.

When she graduated from CCRI in 2000, earning the school’s Award for Clinical Excellence in Cardio/Respira-tory Care, van Eeghen was only beginning to push herself.

She immediately enrolled in pre-pharmacy courses at Rhode Island College and worked full-time as a respiratory therapist at Kent Hospital specializing in respiratory ailments.

van Eeghen worked the “grave-yard shift” from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m., treating patients of all ages with conditions from asthma to emphysema to trauma injuries. She was called into work the night of The Station nightclub fire, one of her most challenging shifts.

“You can imagine the kinds of things that went on there,” she said.

Despite her job’s challenges, van Eeghen said she enjoyed helping patients when they

needed it most.“I think I fell in love with the

hospital setting during the respi-ratory time so that was always my niche,” she said.

In 2003, van Eeghen enrolled at Massachusetts College of Phar-

macy and Health Sciences for an accelerated pharmacy doctoral program. She continued to work at Kent Hospital during this time, which led to a grueling schedule. When her shift ended just after dawn, she drove immediately from Warwick to Worcester for a day of classes.

“That was tough. Sometimes I would change in the bathroom at school out of my scrubs and into school clothes,” van Eeghen said.

At the end of the school day, van Eeghen drove back to her home in Cranston to be with her son. Her life became a matter of “stolen minutes,” napping in the basement of the college, study-ing between classes and during breaks on the night shift, and over meals. She slept about three hours a day, sometimes in her car on the side of the road on the way back home.

“Looking back on it now, peo-ple say, ‘How did you do that?’” van Eeghen said. “Now I look at it the same way, but it was just

To complete her education, CCRI graduate Brooke Marie van Eeghen ’00 held three full-time jobs; a respiratory therapist, a student and a mother. She worked a night shift at Kent Hos-pital and studied in a rigorous ac-celerated pharmacy program dur-ing the day, all while raising her son as a single parent. She spent eight years in higher education, balancing many obligations while pursuing her dream of working in medicine. That work has paid off for van Eeghen, who today is a pharmacist at Rhode Island Hospital. Looking back down a long road, one that began at CCRI, van Eeghen said with satisfaction that she “did what needed to be done.”

van Eeghen was first drawn to medicine by her grandmother, who was an Army nurse. After she finished Cranston West High School in 1994 – graduating on time after having a son at age 15 – van Eeghen began saving money for college. In 1998, when she had earned enough

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Editor in Chief: Marisa Albini, Director of Alumni AffairsManaging Editor: Julie NovakLayout: Richard CorenPhotographer: Dave Fischbach

Green and White Staff

ContributorsKristen CyrDan LaCorbiniereRobin McDuff ’98Dennis MooreRobert PreliascoEllen Schulte

Pharmacist Brooke van Eeghen ’00 found love of health care at CCRI

Carolyn BlumStanley ButterworthJohn ColeKimberly Crealey RouillierLeslie Faraone-WolffKerri-Ann GagnonWilliam JonesJoseph KoszelaJon LuLeigh MartinJeanne MullaneyEllen OgrodnikChristine PetersonWayne PierceDale PowisDonna RajotteNancy WyllieDenise Yordy

10 years

Vincent BalascoBruce BarrettKathleen BladeJanice BoninBeverly CarrionTerrie CelentanoRosemary CostiganAntone DeSouzaNancy-Lee DevaneElizabeth DowlingDonald FontesWilliam GearyKelly GregsonLynn Gudeczauskas

Hui-Ling HungTimothy LoganPaul MacarusoLisa MallozziAnne Marie MargeRobin McDuffBrenda McGillJanet NelsonGeraldine PeixotoRita PriceRena SalvasPatricia SimanskiRichard SwearingenAnn SweetDenise TurgeonGlenn Wolczak

ID card needed for CCRI facility use CCRI alumni who wish to use campus athletic facilities at the Knight Campus in Warwick and at the Flanagan Campus in Lin-coln at no charge are required to provide identification to the facility manager on duty. Clip and save the address label on page 1 of this issue to use as an ID card that identifies you as an alumnus. For more informa-tion about athletic facilities, including hours of operation, go to www.ccri.edu/athl/facilities.shtml.

Alumni Association gives 56 book awards

The CCRI Alumni Association granted $250 awards to help 56 students defray the cost of books they needed for class in the 2009 academic year. More than 100 students applied to re-ceive the award. To establish a book award for students, e-mail alumni@ccri.edu.

Raffle raises $2,000 for Alum-ni Association Book Awards

During March 2009, the CCRI Alumni Association awarded $1,000 in cash prizes to partici-pants in its annual Daily Raffle. Money raised from the promo-tion supports alumni programs and collegewide initiatives.

Save the dateThe 15th annual CCRI Fall

Golf Classic, which raises funds for student scholarship assis-tance, will be held on Monday, Sept. 21, 2009, at the Warwick Country Club. Since the event began, more than $300,000 has been raised for student schol-arship assistance. To make a reservation or to sponsor the event, call (401) 825-1218.

Honored for years of serviceCCRI recently recognized 106

employees for their years of service to the college. Recogni-tion for longevity was made in five-year increments starting with 10 years of service and ending with 40 years of service. Of those honored, 36 had more than 25 years of service, includ-ing seven who have worked for the college, which opened in 1964, for 40 years.

The employees are:

40 years

Randolph BlasingRichard CardinAlfred ColoniesSandra JohnsonJaclynne LaxonPatricia MannixEllen Willard

35 years

Terrie-Lynn BellRuth CrowtherMary FlynnJoseph GarveyJeanne NordquistBerthold Silverberg

30 years

Mona CoppolaPhilip GarofoliniPatricia LambrouNorman MageauThomas MorrisseyJoseph ParysWendy PeltoWayne Suits

25 years

Janet AndersonRobert BurrellDavid CarlinGail ErinakesTheresa LefebvreAntoinette LittlejohnTheresa MarzellaArthur Mossberg

John MowrySharon PerkinsDouglas PettisGerald RenzaTeresa SquizzeroJames StravatoIsabel Trombetti

20 years

Margaret ConnellRobert ConsidineStephanie CruzRobert DalyCarole DevineAntonio DiasRobin DonnellyDaniel DonovanGerald DoranPhilomena FayanjuolaJoanne GallianoDennis GrassiniJames IsherwoodWilliam JohnsonStephen LajoieMaureen McGarryLinda MeyerEllen MrozSusan SienkiewiczMelissa SullivanMaria Tamborelli

15 years

Maureen Abbate

what needed to be done.”In 2005, van Eeghen’s educa-

tion switched mostly to clinical work in hospitals. She was work-ing in an environment she loved and knew she was “home free.”

van Eeghen, now 32, said she is proud of her work and happy that she has been able to remain in the hospital setting, where she feels she can help patients more directly.

She said she never could have gotten here without the help of her friends and her family. Her parents are Mark van Eeghen, who played football for the Oakland Raiders and the New England Patriots, and Nancy of Cranston. She also credited the faculty and staff at the schools she has attended.

“I can’t give anything but praise to all three institutions,” she said. “I couldn’t have done it without all the teachers and staff and everybody.”

She added, “If it seems like a lot for one person it probably is. I had a lot of help along the way.”

Brooke van Eeghen ’00, a phar-macist at Rhode Island Hospital, was inspired to pursue a career in medicine by her grandmother, who was an Army nurse.

Three former college administrators were honored with emeritus status in recognition of their many years of service during the Annual Retirees Barbecue held at the Flanagan Campus in Lincoln on June 9. At left, President Ray Di Pasquale (left) recognizes Vincent A. Cullen as Athletic Director Emeritus. At center, John “Jack” White Jr. (left) is congratulated for being selected Executive Director Emeritus of the Liston Campus in Providence. At right, President Di Pasquale and Vice President for Academic Affairs Lela Morgan present Charles C. D’Arezzo with a certificate in recognition of his new distinction as Dean Emeritus.

News Briefs

Alumni Class Notes1967 and 2001

As a member of the Rhode Island Disaster Medical As-sistance Team, Ron Smith deployed in March to the Red River near Fargo, N. D., in an effort to save lives from flood-ing.

1969Geoffrey Aldrich served in

the Navy and returned to the Ocean State to attend Rhode Island Junior College. The col-lege inspired and motivated him to become an honor student and to continue his education at the University of New Hampshire, where he received a bachelor’s degree.

1973James Gray is working as an

industrial security specialist for the Boeing Co. in Huntington Beach, Calif.

1976Jeanne Brennan was named

2009 Quotarian of the Year by Quota International of Woon-socket.

1977Chris Semonelli was elected

to serve as president of the Town Council in Middletown.

1978Alfred DeCorte was appoint-

ed building official for the town of West Warwick.

Lilian Dolan started her own temporary employment busi-ness, Express Employment Professionals, in 1998.

Julia (Reardon) Kelly received a bachelor’s degree from Roger Williams College, graduating with the distinc-tion of summa cum laude in 1992. She earned a master’s of business administration from Providence College in 1996. She is a divisional manager for the Navy Exchange at the Naval Station in Newport.

1981 and 2008Mark St. Pierre retired from

the T.F. Green Airport Fire Department after more than 35 years of service. He works part time as fire chief for the Harrisville Fire District and is attending Providence College, pursuing a bachelor’s degree in history.

1982Joseph Hoppe and Donna

Chandler ’98 were married at St. Joseph’s Church in Burrill-ville on Dec. 13, 2008.

1984Steve Calenda graduated from

Rhode Island College in 1986. He joined the Bristol Police Department, where he was as-signed to various narcotic task forces and worked with the FBI, U.S. Marshals and U.S. Secret Service. He also served as a federal task force agent with the federal Drug Enforcement Administration. Calenda retired from the department on Feb. 1, 2009, with the rank of sergeant and accepted a job with MPRI, a defense contracting company, where he is assigned to the 1st Calvary Division as a member of the prosecution task force to locate and prosecute suspected terrorists in Baghdad, Iraq.

Ronald Gagne was appointed to the position of rescue deputy chief for the town of Lincoln.

Kerri Gordon and Christo-pher DeWitt were married at the Crowne Plaza in Warwick on June 20, 2008.

1989Candace Walker and Paul

Fritsche were married at Blessed Sacrament Church in Provi-dence on Sept. 20, 2008.

1990Lois Pirhala joined Home-

front Health Care as nurse man-ager. She will assist in manag-ing in-home health care staff in northern Rhode Island.

1992Charlene (Ferranti) Daven-

port was promoted to public re-lations officer for The Washing-ton Trust Co. in Westerly. She joined the bank in July 2006 and lives in Connecticut.

1993Jonathan Mendelsohn and

Robin Mathis were married in Providence on Nov. 24, 2008.

Kenneth Mallette earned a master’s of business adminis-tration from Johnson & Wales University in May 2009.

Aboud Saggal of Johnston, a correctional officer at the Donald Price Medium Security Facility, was presented with the 2008 Correctional Officer of the Year Award for outstand-ing performance at the Rhode Island Department of Correc-tions’ annual employee awards ceremony on Feb. 19, 2009.

1994Michael Martufi of Johnston,

a correctional officer captain at the John J. Moran Medium Se-curity Facility, was recognized with the 2008 Teamwork Award

for his outstanding contributions at the Department’s Annual Employee Awards Ceremony on Feb. 19, 2009.

1995Joseph Conti was promoted to

lieutenant for the Lincoln Police Department.

1996Christopher Bedard and

Lindsay McElroy were married at the State House in Providence on July 12, 2008.

Thomas Quinlan was ap-

pointed assistant vice president and business development officer of Bank Rhode Island’s small business division.

1997Nga Le was named Rookie

Realtor of the Year by the Northern Rhode Island Board of Realtors in 2000. She owns her own real estate franchise, Exit Realty the New Generation.

1998Donna Chandler and Joseph

Hoppe ’82 were married at St. Joseph’s Church in Burrillville on Dec. 13, 2008.

1999Christopher Polinik was

sworn in as a new recruit at the Pawtucket Police Department.

2000Kristen Palazzo and Joseph

Salvato were married at Holy Cross Church in Providence on Oct. 12, 2008.

2001Richard McKenna and Dan-

ikka Dillon were married at St. Philip Church in Greenville on Sept. 21, 2008.

2002Michael Oliveira and Bethany

Giammarco were married on at St. Luke’s Church in Pawtucket on Oct. 18, 2008.

2004Melissa Gadigian and Shane

Burt were married at St. Adal-bert’s Church in Providence on April 29, 2005.

Paula Chantre and Mark Car-

din were married at St. Teresa’s Church in Pawtucket on May 17, 2008.

2004 and 2006Shannon Sullivan and David

Laxon were married at Bella Restaurant in Burrillville on Nov. 15, 2008.

2004 and 2007Cara Carlson and David

Horta were married at Hope Congregational Church in East Providence on Aug. 16, 2008.

2005Marissa Cahill and Jonathan

Roberge were married during a sunset ceremony on the beach at Frigate Bay, St. Kitts, on June 23, 2008.

Sara Valletta and Nicholas Pella were married at Cathe-dral of Saints Peter and Paul in Providence on July 5, 2008.

2006Matta Ghobreyal will start

phamacy school in September 2009 at Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences in Vermont.

Kelly Pollard and Todd Searle were married at St. Barnabas Church in Warwick on Oct. 25, 2008.

Baseball pitcher Brad Hertz-ler signed with the Brockton Rox, a team in the Canadian American Association of Profes-sional Baseball League. He pitched in 2008 for the Kane County Cougars in the Oakland A’s organization.

2007Melissa Bibeault is the ninth

member of her family to enter the nursing profession. She works at St. Jude Hospital in Memphis, Tenn.

Ronald L. Grenier II and Alyssa Scungio were married at Holy Apostles Church in Crans-ton on Aug. 1, 2008.

Christopher Heon was pro-

moted to battalion chief for the West Warwick Fire Department.

Eric Zimmerman is a police officer for the Franklin, Mass., Police Department.

Sean Finneran received a bachelor’s degree in accounting in May 2009 from the Univer-sity of Rhode Island.

Joe Granata was accepted to the Berklee College of Music in Boston and made the dean’s list for the fall 2008 semester. He was named Guitarist of the Year by Limelight Magazine in Janu-ary 2009 and was listed on the prelimnary ballots for the 50th Annual Grammy Awards in four music categories for his work on his first CD, “A Long Road to Hell.”

Amber Williams and Doug-las Peluso were married at St. Mary’s Church in Cranston on Nov. 22, 2008.

What’s new?

Name Class

Address

City State ZIP

Phone number

E-mail

Is the above mailing address new? yes no

What’s new in your life?

Please send your information to:CCRI Office of Alumni Affairs1762 Louisquisset Pike, Lincoln, RI 02865 You may also fax your information to (401) 333-7111 or e-mail alumni@ccri.edu.

New job? Promotion? Retired? Relocated? Let your for-mer classmates know what’s new with you! Fill out this form so your Class Note may be included in a future edition of the Green & White.

3

of about 20 people, each with different responsibilities who, under the direction of Schertz, begins meeting in January each year. Different campus depart-ments meet to discuss their individual responsibilities, such as maintenance, security, diplo-mas, graduate honors, faculty marshals and others.

Manish’s job is to make sure that planning for commence-ment stays on schedule and that students are notified of graduation and that materials are ordered on time, including flowers, food, honor cords for the graduates and extra chairs for the hundreds of guests that the campus hosts during com-mencement.

Manish said that her job is one of the most rewarding at CCRI because she is able to see the moment that the hard work of students, staff and faculty comes to fruition.

She is reminded of her own graduation “every time I hear ‘Pomp and Circumstance.’

“You get that little twang of excitement and it brings a little bit of a tear to your eye some-times,” she said. “You think back on your own high school graduation and your own col-lege one. You hear the bagpipers and you think, ‘It’s been another year.’”

For Associate Registrar Cathy Tessier ’90, her work takes place behind the scenes. She is responsible for making sure the graduates’ names are spelled correctly and their honors and awards are included in the program. Like Manish, Tessier is responsible for ensuring the procession goes smoothly. She coordinates the marching lines of students and faculty marshals and the setup of the field house.

“We have students who show up the day of wanting to partici-

pate in commencement so we’re updating our lists and making sure everyone has a spot to go to on commencement day,” she said.

Tessier also processes all of the graduating students to make sure that they meet their program’s graduation require-ments. She was immediately hired to work for the dean of admissions after having been a student worker.

After a career spent at CCRI, commencement remains one of her favorite parts of the job.

“I enjoy working with the group. It’s nice to see the stu-dents and interact with them on commencement day,” she said.

Another CCRI alumnus, assis-tant building and grounds officer Michael Archetto ’75, returned to the college after holding various other jobs. “I wanted to work here because I have a lot of fond memories of CCRI,” he said. “It’s always been a passion of mine and I feel that we do make a difference here in young people’s lives.”

When the work of Archetto, Manish, Tessier and hundreds of CCRI employees comes togeth-er, it creates a wonderful event for the graduates to remember for the rest of their lives.

“It’s pretty special because it does bring back memories of your experiences here and your career here at CCRI,” Archetto said. “You can draw on the energies and the emotions, the happy feelings of being here and graduating. And you get to do it every year.”

Director of Alumni Affairs Marisa Albini, who is co-chair of the Commencement Com-mittee, said about 175 CCRI alumni work for the college. She said that all of CCRI’s behind-the-scenes employees deserve credit for their work, and it is their dedication and that makes alumni want to return.

“I think that people want to come back and they want to give back,” she said. “They had such a good experience at CCRI that they want to help other stu-dents get an education also.”

4

CommencementSome graduates, such as nurs-

ing student Nancy Sime, said they hoped their accomplish-ments would be an inspiration to important people in their lives. “I’m excited because I never did graduate from high school, I got my GED, so this is a great example for my kids,” she said. “I want to show them if you push yourself hard enough you can accomplish something worthwhile.”

Another student, Joseph Moore, used a unique venue to honor the people who he said helped him get where he is. The top of his mortarboard was decorated with photos of CCRI professors Joanne Orabone and Joann Warren, Moore’s boss from his job at Hasbro and two CCRI enrollment services of-ficers who helped Moore find a way to pay for his education.

“I put the five most impor-tant people who helped me get through college on my hat,” he said.

Moore has been working on his business degree since 2005 and is now the first person in his family to graduate from college in 20 years.

“If you stick through it, it’s the best feeling you’ll ever have,” he said.

General Studies graduate Danny Baker knows about stick-ing through it. Since he started taking classes in 2000, Baker gained a wife, two sons and a house – and saw them all taken away in a divorce and a fore-closure. Before his trials were over, a blood clot in Baker’s leg moved up into his lung, nearly killing him. Now 27, Baker is a college graduate who is inspired by his education and his experi-ences to go on to study nursing.

“It’s been a long time com-ing, it’s time to start something new,” he said.

Baker is a positive man. Despite his troubles, he smiled when he said, “I’ve got nothing but my education but no one can take that from me.”

When the students were ready, they marched through their new alma mater, briefly out under the warm sun of a spring afternoon, and into the Vincent A. Cul-len Field House. The graduates were led by commencement marshals, many of whom were the same professors who had led the graduates through their careers in higher education.

One marshal was Jim Essex, a retired social sciences faculty member who was the grand marshal for 22 of CCRI’s com-mencement ceremonies. He was present at all but one of CCRI’s commencements, including the first one, when the first students to graduate from Rhode Island Junior College walked across the steps of the Rhode Island State House.

Essex has continued to par-ticipate in commencement even after his retirement in 2002.

“I like the festive atmosphere and the fact that we’re recog-

nizing the accomplishments of 1,500 graduates,” he said.

His favorite part of the cer-emony, he said, is the awarding of degrees.

“That’s why we’re here,” he said.

Before Essex’s favorite part of commencement began, gradu-ates and parents heard remarks from Gov. Donald Carcieri, Lt. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts, Rhode Island State Treasurer Frank T. Caprio Jr., Chairman of the Board of Governors for Higher Education Frank Caprio, Com-missioner of the Office of High-er Education Jack Warner, CCRI President Ray Di Pasquale and Class of 2009 Student Speaker Reham Ali.

Retired R.I. Supreme Court Chief Justice Frank Williams delivered the commencement address.

In it, he urged the gradu-ates to face this uncertain time in our nation’s history with perseverance and integrity, the same virtues they had shown in achieving their degrees, and to help turn Rhode Island around.

“Class of 2009, you really are the future of Rhode Island. We need your talent and energy in our beloved state,” he said. Williams asked the graduates to serve their community in any way they can, be it through AmeriCorps, Teach for America, volunteer work in their neigh-borhoods, or the military.

“As new college graduates, you have the knowledge and the power to make a difference. Seize this opportunity,” he said. In closing, Williams said, “Class of 2009, I am here today be-cause I am supposed to inspire you, but to be quite frank, all of

you inspire me. I am inspired by your seemingly boundless energy. Hold onto it.”

In his address, CCRI Presi-dent Ray Di Pasquale shared many reasons to be inspired by the Class of 2009, relating the incredible stories of some of the school’s candidates for gradua-tion speaker.

They included Sergio Pratt, who grew up in children’s shel-ters and foster care and will go on to study law, Menlee Man-sue, a survivor of a genocide in Liberia, and Arabia Kopec, who has worked for humanitarian organizations all over the world.

Di Pasquale said that these are just some of CCRI’s standout students and that every single graduate has achieved some-thing special.

“Wherever I go in the commu-nity, I talk about all of your suc-cesses,” he said. “Even in these trying economic times, you have persevered by acquiring new knowledge and valuable skills at CCRI that will prepare you for your future.”

Warner’s address demonstrated the accomplishments of CCRI’s students.

“How many of you worked while you attended CCRI?” he asked.

Nearly all the graduates raised their hands.

“How many of you had family responsibilities? How many are the first in your family to earn a college degree?”

Many of the graduates contin-ued to raise their hands, a silent sign of their perseverance.

Whatever is in store for the Class of 2009, considering what they have overcome, they go toward it prepared.

Alumni staffersFrom page 1

From page 1

Above, President Ray Di Pasquale (left), Chairman of the Board of Governors for Higher Education Frank Caprio and Gov. Donald Carcieri congratu-late student speaker Reham Ali. At right, faculty marshals Kathy Gazzola (left), chair of CCRI’s Dental Health programs, and Maddie Josephs, program director of Clinical Laboratory Technology and Histotechnician programs, process to the com-mencement ceremony.

Associate Registrar Cathy Tessier ’90 (left), Assistant Building and Grounds Officer Michael Archetto ’75 and Administrative Assistant to the Associate Vice President for Student Services Linda Manish ’77 have fond memories of attending CCRI and enjoy volunteering to organize the college’s commencement exercises.

Linda Manish is reminded of her own graduation “every time I hear ‘Pomp and Circumstance.’

5

Society of the Knights, March 27, 2009

The CCRI Alumni Association inducted six alumni into the Society of the Knights as part of A Knight of Stars event on March 27 at Quidnes-sett Country Club in North Kingstown. This honor, which is given to alumni who have brought honor upon themselves and the college, was presented to Candy Castaldi ’80, senior vice president of the circulator division at Taco Inc.; David P. Monti ’72, senior vice president of RDW Group; Mary Ann Shallcross Smith ’82, CEO/president of Dr. Day Care Family; Anne M. Sliney ’78, director of clinical nursing and training at the William J. Clinton Foundation HIV/AIDS Initiative; and Sandy So-koll ’76 and ’01, chief accountant at the Community College of Rhode Island. Larry Gemma ’77 and GEM Plumbing, Heating and Electric were inducted as corporate honorees. The association also recognized two honorary alumni, Julie M. White, former CCRI dean of Institutional Advancement, and Ronald J. Caniglia, president of Stand Corp. The CCRI Alumni Association recognizes event sponsors GEM Plumbing, Heating and Electric, Taco Inc. and Stand Corp. for their contributions to this year’s A Knight of Stars event.

From left are: David P. Monti ’72, Sandy Sokoll ’76 and ’01, Mary Ann Shallcross Smith ’82, Anne M. Sliney ’78, Ronald J. Caniglia, Julie M. White, Candy Castaldi ’80, Larry Gemma ’77 and Edward Gemma.

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CCRI Foundation NewsEvent honors three for changing lives, achieves new fundraising success

The Alletta Morris McBean Charitable Trust has awarded the Community College of Rhode Island $50,000 to pur-chase wireless laptop computers and carts to integrate informat-ics into the existing health sci-ences curriculum at the Newport County Campus.

Informatics is the science of information and the practice of information processing. Health care informatics connotes much more, as lives are saved and op-erating costs are reduced when nurses and health care profes-sionals are trained to operate efficiently in modern, high-tech health care environments.

The federal government plans for most Americans to have an electronic health care record by 2014. In facilitating interaction and information-sharing among different health care institutions and providers, electronic health records will vastly improve the quality and efficiency of health care.

As phase one of the informat-ics implementation process

progresses, the college has begun requiring all nursing and health science students to sit for electronic, Web-based ex-aminations. The college also is shifting from paper patient care plans to electronic, e-mail-ready versions similar to those utilized in the clinical setting. Phase two will include instruction and experience with tutorial patient management software.

“The Alletta Morris McBean Charitable Trust has been a generous and longtime sup-porter of the college and clearly recognizes the importance and significance of the equipment necessary for the immediate and unilateral implementation of informatics for our nursing and health sciences students,” said CCRI President Ray Di Pasquale. “I am truly grateful for their support.”

The gift counts toward the college’s $5.5 million “Imagine: The Campaign for Endless Pos-sibilities.” This capital cam-paign is raising funds to support CCRI’s Allied Health programs,

build new state-of-the-art facili-ties, establish scholarships and enhance its athletics programs. To date, the college has raised more than $3 million toward its goal.

Gift will provide new technology at Newport County Campus

May 21 was a gala night for the Community College of Rhode Island. The CCRI Foundation hosted its annual Changing Lives Celebration at the Liston Campus, an event that raised more than $56,600 in total revenue for the college.

More than 200 people, includ-ing the mayors of Providence, Warwick and Newport, attended the event, which offered catered hors d’oeuvres and a live jazz band. Guests participated in a silent and live auction with all proceeds benefiting scholarships and collegewide initiatives.

CCRI Foundation President Mark Gim said, “Every year we do this, the tone of the event improves. It was particularly satisfying to see this level of participation and support for the college.”

Geraldine Peixoto, CCRI’s coordinator of special events and annual funds, said that this year’s celebration was the most successful to date. “Because of our generous sponsors, donors and volunteers, we raised more money this year than at past Changing Lives events,” she said.

Not all of the night’s suc-cess belonged to the college. The event also honored Rhode Island champions of educa-tion, business and community service, people who are truly changing lives.

The Business Champion award went to the employees

of Amica Mutual Insurance Co. for their participation in the company’s Citizenship Grant Program. Under this program, Amica makes donations to the charitable causes the company’s employees champion in their spare time – causes as diverse as lymphoma research to animal welfare. One such cause is the Community College of Rhode Island itself; Amica Account-ing Department Vice President Richard Edwards is also on the board of directors of the CCRI Foundation.

Amica has donated more than $100,000 to CCRI during the school’s various capital cam-paigns and the construction of the Newport County Campus and the Dental Hygiene Clinic at the Flanagan Campus.

The company also was the chief sponsor of the Changing Lives Celebration.

“We believe that the key to a strong economy is a very well educated work force,” said Robert DiMuccio, chairman, president and CEO of Amica, about his company’s support of CCRI.

Two individuals also were recognized, Karen Adams, WPRI 12 news anchorwoman, and Nancy Roberts, president and CEO of VNA of Care New England. Both women work to improve the lives of Rhode Is-landers and have been involved with the college.

Aside from Channel 12 TV

news, Adams is familiar to Rhode Islanders for her exten-sive charitable work. She is a board trustee with the Com-munity Preparatory School and Meeting Street, which she first became involved with in 1989 when she moved to Rhode Island.

Adams is also involved with the Friends of Lincoln School and Friends of Sophia Acad-emy, organizes charity walks and fundraisers, participates in charity golf tournaments, has donated her time to previous CCRI Changing Lives events and was the college commence-ment speaker in 2008.

It was after delivering the commencement address that Ad-

ams realized the role that CCRI plays in the state. For months afterward, she said, in public places and businesses of all kinds, she would run into CCRI graduates who remembered her speech. Adams said that seeing so many students of all ages in so many different places showed her that CCRI’s graduates make up a significant part of Rhode Island’s business and cultural fabric.

“I think that’s what’s very cool about CCRI,” she said. “I love the fact that they’re offering so many opportunities to so many different people on all different levels.”

Education Champion Nancy

Roberts has worked with the college more directly. As presi-dent and CEO of VNA of Care New England, she has worked with CCRI to design practicums for the college’s nursing stu-dents, giving them a rich experi-ence in their clinical trials. She also helped develop the Health Care Futures Initiative, designed to train more professionals in health care’s growing specialty areas, and the Summer Nursing Admissions Program.

Roberts also is the chair of the Newton-Routhier Nurse Scholarship Program and is con-sidered an expert on the nursing shortage in Rhode Island. In 2005, U.S. Sen. Jack Reed sought her expertise on the nurs-ing shortage and she was asked to provide expert testimony at a field hearing.

Her passion for home health care, education and mentoring has been widely recognized both locally and nationally – in-cluding the 2007 Dick Anderton Mentor of the Year Award, the highest national recognition that any individual employed for a visiting nurse agency may receive.

CCRI President Ray Di Pasquale called Roberts, “a tireless advocate working to provide educational opportuni-ties.”

At the end of the night, to rousing applause, Di Pasquale announced that the Changing Lives Celebration had surpassed its fundraising goal.

The CCRI Foundation’s Changing Lives Celebration at the Liston Campus in Providence raised money for scholarships and other initiatives and honored three “champions” for their work. Pictured are Robert DiMuccio (left), who accepted the Business Champion Award on behalf of all of the employees at Amica Mutual Insurance Co.; CCRI President Ray Di Pasquale; Karen Adams, who received the Community Champion Award; Providence Mayor David Cicil-line; and Nancy Roberts, who received the Education Champion Award.

For the latest news and updates about the CCRI Imagine campaign, go to www.ccri.edu/imagine. The site highlights the contribu-tions of campaign donors and includes information about new projects and initiatives at the campuses.

Visit the new Imagine campaign Web siteTwo critical

learning areas for students will be under construction this summer for improvements and technology upgrades made possible with money raised through CCRI’s capital campaign, “Imagine: The Campaign for Endless Pos-sibilities.” Using $500,000 in funds, the Knight Campus Library (top), as shown here from the second floor, will be transformed into a space with improved technology and improved lighting and seating for instruction and study. As part of the college’s $1.5 mil-lion campaign commitment to its Allied Health programs, CCRI is replacing outdated equipment with new, advanced technology in its Dental Assisting Lab at the Flanagan Campus in Lincoln (bot-tom). The next issue of the Green & White will include photos of the construction progress.

Transforming spaces

BaseballThe CCRI Knights baseball

team finished the season with a record of 32-11 after an ap-pearance in the East District Championship where they lost to Monroe Community Col-lege in the deciding game. The team earned the Sportsmanship Award for Region XXI and four players earned All-Region XXI honors. Joe Correia (Burrill-ville) was selected defensive player of the year, Kyle Borden (Lincoln) and Dave Krasnow-iecki (Cranston) earned first team honors and Lou Tarantino (Trumbull, Conn.) was named Region XXI Player of the Year.

GolfThe CCRI men’s golf team

finished the year 6-8 with wins over Dean College and Spring-field Technical Community College. They placed second in the Region XXI Tournament, falling to Holyoke Community College by 22 strokes. George Gingell (Burrillville), Nicklaus Oaklund (North Kingstown) and Matthew Phillips (Cranston) received All-Region honors for their contributions.

SoftballThe Lady Knights completed

an undefeated season for the second year in a row with a 10-0 record in Region XXI play and finished 14-4 overall, losing to Mercyhurst in the District Tour-nament. Six players earned All-Region XXI honors, including co-captain Julie Paradis (Lin-coln), Caitlin Montella (War-wick), Courtney St. Germain (Lincoln), who set the school shutout record, Nicole Kufel (Riverdell, N.J.), Kaela-Rose Gentile (Glocester) and Marian Long (Warwick).

Men’s tennisThe CCRI men’s tennis team

finished their season in fifth place at the 2009 NJCAA Divi-sion III Men’s Tennis Tourna-ment held May 9 to 14 in Allen, Texas. The team finished the regular season 7-2 and was ranked No. 6 in the country by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). The team’s record marks the Knights’ best finish since 1992 when they placed fourth at nationals. The Knights were led by co-captains Nate York (Smithfield) and Alex

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AthleticsSpring sports teams add to CCRI’s winning tradition

Cavanagh (Middletown), who were ranked in the top 10 in singles and doubles by the ITA.

Track and fieldThe CCRI outdoor track teams

finished in 11th place at the Northeast District Champion-ship and 16th at the NJCAA Track and Field National

He recalls his early years in basketball at CCRI as some of the sweetest of his career.

“I look back at that as one of the great experiences of my life, getting me ready for the chal-lenges that I had coming up,” McDonald said.

McDonald also appreciated the school’s academic environment.

“The teachers were outstand-ing. They really took an interest in us as people so every part of the experience was a fun one.”

On the court, McDonald learned under one of CCRI’s most famous educators, retired Athletic Director Vincent A. Cullen.

“He’s an incredible teacher and motivator, just a wonderful person, someone that every-one wanted to work hard for,” McDonald said about his former coach. “He’s touched a lot of lives over the course of his career.”

Cullen led the Knights to the National Junior College tourna-ment both years that McDonald was on the team, which Mc-Donald remembers as his finest accomplishment as a Knight.

“Being able to go play against the other best teams in country was a great experience,” he said.

McDonald had great per-sonal success with the Knights, graduating as a National Junior College Athletic Association All-American while setting season and single-game scoring

records. He racked up a total of 1,058 points during his CCRI career, making him the school’s No. 5 all-time leading scorer.

With an impressive résumé, McDonald was recruited to play for the Providence College Fri-ars after he left CCRI, fulfilling a childhood dream for the North Providence native.

“It was a great experience that way,” McDonald said. “Playing in the Big East was a dream of mine, growing up in Providence and seeing the success that the

Providence teams had.”McDonald graduated from

PC in 1992 wanting to coach basketball but unsure how to get there. He played in Ireland for a year and then put his business degree to use working for an ac-counting firm. In 1994, McDon-ald’s former Friars coach, Rick Barnes, offered him an assistant coaching position at Clemson University in South Carolina.

McDonald’s coaching career had begun. He went on to serve as an assistant at South Caro-lina, WKU, the University of Georgia and the University of Texas, where McDonald’s team went to the Elite 8 during the 2007-08 season. With a team like that, there was only one kind of offer that could pull McDonald away: Last year he was asked to return to Western Kentucky, this time as head coach.

“We put in a lot of hard work,” McDonald said about his sea-son. “The players did a good job working hard and getting better every day.”

McDonald’s team is ready to try again in the NCAA Tourna-ment, and there may even be a championship win in this former Knight’s future. This remains to be seen, of course, but McDon-ald said however his basketball career ends, he will always remember the way it began.

“One thing’s for sure,” he said. “At CCRI there’s a family atmosphere. It’s not like that everywhere.”

McDonald

Championship. Mike Fernandes (Providence) led the Knights placing fifth in the javelin and 20th in the 100m. Everett LaMountain (Smithfield) placed sixth in the 1500m, ninth in the 800m, and 12th in the 5,000m.

For team rosters and more information, go to www.ccri.edu/athl.

Dave Krasnowiecki of Cranston warms up before the Knights’ loss to Monroe Community College on May 18. Krasnowiecki earned first team All-Region XXI honors.

Lou Tarantino of Trumbull, Conn., was named Region XXI Player of the Year. (Photos by Dan Aurelio.)

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Coach Ken McDonald cuts the net after his team won the Sun Belt Conference Tournament Championship on March 10. (Mc-Donald photos by J S Robinson/MoonDog Digital Imaging.)

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school’s founding staffers. Novak and Coren are relatively

new to the college, joining the staff in 2007, with Novak starting out working part-time as a writer. In their everyday work, they meet CCRI faculty and staffers who had been with the college since its founding or were alumni from the school’s early days who had come to work for their alma mater.

“When I was part time and do-ing interviews I got to know a lot of people who have been here a long time,” Novak said. “It added to my perspective in approaching my job.”

Both keenly interested in gene-alogy, Novak and Coren noticed they had joined a sort of family.

As their curiosity about the school’s past grew, the pair de-cided to use their combined skills

in writing and graphic design to create an illustrated history of CCRI, one that would focus on the students, faculty and staff who had made the school what it is.

Coren and Novak applied for bonus project funding from the Community College of Rhode Island Professional Staff Asso-ciation, which paid for part of the printing of the book, and began staying after hours to write and research.

The authors sorted through thousands of historical docu-ments and photographs in the CCRI archive, maintained by Director of Technology Services John Collins, who had taken it upon himself to consolidate and preserve CCRI’s historical documents and artifacts lest they be lost.

Like Novak and Coren, Collins

History bookis a CCRI employee who became interested in the school’s history, which he said is greatly signifi-cant to the state of Rhode Island.

“For a lot of people it’s where they got started, or maybe they got off the track and it’s where they got back on. I think it’s a significant piece of Rhode Island history,” Collins said.

With the sheer volume of mate-rial in the CCRI archive, Novak and Coren decided to limit their book to the period of CCRI’s founding and early years and will possibly write a second volume covering 1980 to the present in celebration of the 45th anniver-sary of the college.

Novak and Coren said they hope their book will be able to share CCRI’s past with those who were not there to experience it or rekindle happy memories in those who were.

“Now there’s a lasting piece that will be here long after they’re gone,” Coren said, “long after Julie and I are gone.”

“Community College of Rhode Island: An Illustrated History, The Rhode Island Junior College Years” is available for $19.95 in CCRI bookstores or on the bookstore Web site (plus $3 ship-

ping). It can also be ordered by check through the Marketing and Communications Department. To do so, call (401) 825-1045 or visit www.ccri.edu/illustratedhis-tory for a printable order form. All proceeds will go toward establishing an annual scholar-ship to be awarded to a student in the arts.

From page 1

can help students make ends meet.

“Just a few dollars can make the difference between a student staying enrolled and having to leave,” she said.

Many golfers said that the chance to stay connected to their alma mater while contributing to a worthwhile cause makes the alumni golf tournament an attrac-tive event for them every year.

“It was a day of golf where you know you don’t have to take the game too seriously, you just

know you are here for a good reason,” said Richard DiGenn-aro, Class of 1979.

“I love the fact that I can come out here, play golf, have a great time and still be contributing.”

After he graduated from CCRI, DiGennaro became a certified public accountant and is a partner in his own accounting firm, Di-Gennaro & Palumbo, LLP, which has sponsored the alumni golf tournament every year.

“I believe that CCRI affords people an opportunity to better themselves and improve their

Golf tournamentlives. I know what it did for my life,” DiGennaro said about the reason for his sponsorship.

DiGennaro’s firm and Honey-well Inc. were the tournament’s biggest sponsors. Dozens of businesses throughout the state, individual alumni and CCRI staff members sponsored tee-signs, donated raffle items and silent auction items. CCRI staff also participated in the tournament and volunteered throughout the course to keep it running smoothly.

One volunteer was Solomon

A. Solomon, a retired CCRI professor and now a member of the Rhode Island Board of Governors for Higher Education. Solomon has volunteered at ev-ery alumni golf tournament and was inducted into the college’s Hall of Fame last year.

“The tournament brings people together. It brings alumni to-gether so they can stay involved and understand the impact the college has had on the state and the country,” he said.

“In my 42 years with the com-munity college I have seen its

From page 1 great value and how much it has touched my own life.”

Other volunteers formed the golf committee, which organized the tournament and selected the Foster Country Club out of many locations throughout the state.

Sandy Sokoll, a CCRI employ-ee and member of the classes of 1976 and 2001, has been the chair of the golf committee for two years. She said she considers the tournament a success.

“It was well-attended and it seems like everyone was smil-ing,” she said.

Tony Leone (left) and former CCRI Vice President for Student Affairs Joe Di-Maria travel under the covered bridge at the Foster Country Club to get to the next hole.

Richard Tessier takes a swing at the start of the course next to a 2009 Audi from Inskip Auto Mall, the prize for a hole-in-one on the 18th hole, which went unclaimed at this year’s tournament.

Meo Colantonio, CCRI’s director of community services in CCRI’s Center for Workforce and Commu-nity Education (right), holds a tuft of grass, the result of a divot, while his brother-in-law David Burr surveys the scarred area on the fairway.

Student Development Counselor Mike Basileo follows through on a drive.

Richard DiGennaro ’76 (left) and Mike Mesolella receive raffle prizes from Mary Pecchia, assistant to the dean of Administra-tion and tournament volunteer.

Ed Jacques, property control and supply officer in CCRI’s Physical Plant Department, takes a swing.

Sandy Sokoll ’76 and ’01, chair of the tourna-ment’s golf committee, putts as Heather Smith and Lucille Tefft ’01 look on.