Classnotes

• 1970+

  Juanita Wieczoreck ’77 has earned the position of business manager of Church Hill Theatre in Church Hill, Md.

  The Hon. Wendell R. Beitzel M’78/M’88 is being honored by the Garrett College Board of Trustees by renaming Garrett College’s Career Technology Training Center in Accident after him. Wendell retired from the Maryland House of Delegates on Jan. 11, 2023, after 16 years of service.

• 1980+
  

  Jill Jowdy Morrow ’80 has retired from teaching physical education. She taught at Dr. Thomas L. Higdon Elementary School in Newburg, Md., for 42 years.

   

  

  David L. Baden ’81 retired from NASA in 2021 after 38 years of service. His plans for the future include travel, golf and fishing.

   

  

  Ralph Sheaffer ’82 retired in 2020 from teaching Army JROTC in Garrett County, Md., a position he held after retiring from the U.S. Army in 2018.

   

   

  Phil E. Carr ’88 was inducted into the Maryland State Association of Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame. He was also honored by the Garrett County Board of Education for this accomplishment.

• 1990+
  

  Lisa E. Canas Garcia ’92, Sachs Media partner and chief operating officer, has been named one of the 2022 Top Women in PR nationally by PR News for excellence as a mentor. She is one of just 15 women around the nation to earn the PR News mentoring honor.

   

  

  Patricia E. Patchan Childs ’94 completed her Masters of Humanities in English degree online at Tiffin University located in Tiffin, Ohio. Now that she has completed her degree, she will begin teaching freshmen composition at Aiken Technical College in Graniteville, S.C., as well as at East George State College in Swainsboro, Ga.

   

  

  Alexander M. Giles ’94 was elected to become the membership secretary for the Maritime Law Association of the United States. Alex is the first person from the state of Maryland to serve as MLA’s membership secretary in its 123-year history.

   

  

  Jonathan T. Alloy ’95 was sworn in as justice of the peace for Westport, Conn. He also began a new job as vice president of Customer Experience and Innovation Consulting for Publicis Sapient, based in New York City.

   

  

  Amy L. Glotfelty Beeman ’96/M’05 was named Garrett County Public Schools Teacher of the Year for the 2022-2023 school year. Amy is a science teacher at Southern Garrett Middle School in Oakland.

• 2000+
  

  Joshua J. Grove ’00/M’05 accepted the position of director of IT at the University of Akron School of Law. His wife, Dr. Melinda Frazee Grove ’00/M’03, was also promoted to associate vice president, Student Affairs, and chief housing officer at the University of Akron.

   

  

  Amy S. Kozusko ’00 was promoted to a director position in Marketing Communications at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC). Amy leads strategic marketing initiatives for UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, one of the system’s largest service lines.

   

  

  Philip A. Stamper ’00/M’06 was promoted to executive director of Operations for the Office of University Branding at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va.

   

  

  Meghan R. Biss ’01 has been elected member of the firm at Caplin & Drysdale. She joins the firm after more than a decade with the Internal Revenue Service. She draws on that experience to help charities, other tax-exempt organizations and donors navigate IRS processes and achieve their programmatic and philanthropic goals.

   

  

  Mia R. Perlozzo Cross M’03 has joined Frostburg State University as the director of Communications. She was previously with the Allegany County Board of Education for 16 years as the public information officer.

   

  

  Emily L. Baranowski Khan ’03 joined the University School of Nashville’s Athletics Department as the Swim team’s head coach.

   

  Dr. Jon S. Wickert ’03/M’06 was named director of Career and Technical Education and STEM Initiatives Workgroup at the Delaware Department of Education. He is responsible for ensuring students graduate from high school and college and are career ready. He is also leading the expansion of the state registered apprenticeship system.

   

  

  Dr. Benjamin N. Norris ’04 was selected by NACADA The Global Community for Academic Advising as an emerging leader. Benjamin is an associate professor in the Department of Chemistry at Frostburg State University.

   

  

  Justin N. Gregory ’07 received a judicial appointment to the Garrett County Circuit Court from former Gov. Larry Hogan.

   

  

  Chris Schoenbauer ’07 has accepted the position of girls’ and boys’ head tennis coach at St. Mary’s Ryken High School in Leonardtown, Md. Chris is also an English teacher with St. Mary’s County Public Schools. He was a student-athlete at FSU and racked up impressive stats.

   

  

  Alexander Y. Wilkinson ’09 joined Leech Tishman as an associate in the Litigation & Alternative Dispute Resolution and White Collar Defense Groups. Before joining the firm, Alexander served as an assistant district attorney at the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office.

• 2010+
  

  Niki J. Davis ’10 was named one of the three 2022 Texas state finalists for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching. This is the highest award available nationally for math and science teachers.

   

  Robin L. Shaner M’12 has been the costume designer for Hagerstown Community College for almost 30 years. The Washington County Arts Council displayed her work in October 2022.

   

  

  Kellie J. Reese Flook M’13 was promoted to manager at SEK, CPAs & Advisors. Kellie will provide audit services to the employee benefit plan and manufacturing sectors.

   

  

  Brennan J. McCarthy M’13 notched his 141st career victory, becoming the all-time winningest basketball coach at Northamption Community College in Bethlehem, Pa. They are currently ranked No. 7 in the country with a 14-2 record for the NJCAA Division III (as of Jan. 23).

   

  

  Lindsey J. Fisher ’14 has been named the assistant volleyball coach at Allegany College of Maryland in Cumberland. She is also an inclusion teacher at Fort Hill High School.

   

  

  Brady M. Barnhart ’15/M’21 accepted the position of literacy achievement coordinator for Washington County Public Schools in Maryland. He had been the district literacy lead teacher for the county since 2018.

   

  

  Luke N. Schaeffer M’16 is the chief financial officer for Via of the Lehigh Valley, Inc., of Bethlehem, Pa.

   

  

  Alyssa M. Savage Tichinel ’16 is a full-time faculty member in the Biology Department at Garrett College in McHenry, Md. She has also been an adjunct faculty member at Garrett College; an imaging specialist/research assistant at West Virginia University in Morgantown, W.Va.; and taught science in Mineral County, W.Va, and Washington County, Md., Public Schools.

   

  

  Neil Epstein ’17 has been appointed head men’s basketball coach at Clinton Community College in Plattsburgh, N.Y.

   

  Dr. Jackson D. Hawkins ’18 earned his Doctor of Optometry degree from Southern College of Optometry in Memphis, Tenn.

   

  

  James R. Kirk ’18 received his Master of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Ind.

   

  David Shuster D’18 was named by the Appalachian Regional Commission as an Appalachian Leadership Institute fellow. David will represent Western Maryland in the intensive Regional Leadership Development program.

   

  

  Brittany N. Jackson M’19 was named head coach for Garrett College Women’s Volleyball team. Brittany previously worked at FSU as a graduate assistant for the Women’s Volleyball program.