Our Students

IUP students learn, lead, and succeed—with the help of professors and programs renowned for their teaching and mentoring. All 50 academic departments have student success stories to share; here are just a few.

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Philosophy Student Intrigued with Major that Refines Thinking, Speaking

As a dual major in both Philosophy and Biology with a minor in Religious Studies, Brett Kimmel takes joy in his learning experiences at IUP because he is encouraged to think critically in unconventional ways. Always up for a challenge, Brett is interested in a school of thought where the sky is the limit.

Posted on 8/7/2017 1:41:14 PM

Student by Weekday, Airman by Weekend

Caleigh Henry, who joined the Air Force part-way through her education at IUP, found professors to be understanding and supportive of her success in both pursuits.

Posted on 8/4/2017 4:39:12 PM

Summer Research Working Towards More Effective Drugs for Treatment of Addiction

Olivia Kalimon, who will be a junior biochemistry major this fall, is doing research with mice to see the effects of injections of certain chemicals that could lead her toward useful information in the fight against methamphetamine dependence in humans.

Posted on 8/4/2017 11:49:29 AM

Mapping a Path to Success: From Student Opportunities to Promising Career

If professional regional planner and IUP alumna Melina Fuchs ‘16 were to map out her college experience, her path to success would be one of leadership.

Posted on 4/14/2017 11:54:41 AM

IUP Criminology Student Working to Change Perceptions of Police Officers

Amirah Macon, a senior criminology major fromPhiladelphia, has spent this school year doing an internship with the localpolice force, where she learns how and why officers do what they do, which, shesays, has been an eye-opening experience.

Posted on 2/27/2017 2:28:00 PM

SGA President Gives Back in Many Ways

As the president of the Student Government Association at IUP, Brian Swatt helps represent the student voice of the university in all kinds of ways, and it’s a job that keeps him quite busy. But that’s the way he likes things—it’s a habit he developed long before he set foot on campus.

Posted on 12/19/2016 2:08:11 PM

IUP Student Collecting Books for Nigeria

During one of his classes last spring at the IUP Cook Honors College, Aaron Seidel’s professor passed out an article about the conditions in Nigeria, where insurgent group Boko Haram had taken over the central African nation. The article stated that the Nigerian children needed supplies so they could go to school, and Seidel knew he had to help.

Posted on 9/14/2016 3:03:22 PM

Student Helps to Improve Safety Practices at Tesla

Tyler Campbell, asenior at IUP majoring in Safety Health and Environmental Applied Sciences,spent the summer of 2016 as an intern for Tesla, the cutting-edge carmanufacturer. Working with Tesla’s safety engineers, Campbell helped Tesla improve its safetypractices for workers in many different departments.

Posted on 8/10/2016 3:41:28 PM

Biochemistry Major Working to Create Mental Health Drug Treatments Without Side Effects

Just four semesters into her college career, Chasity Hankinson is well on the path to making a difference. As a member of the IUP Research Experience for Summer Scholars (RESS) program, she’s spending her summer in the lab, doing research that could lead to the creation of drugs that would help with a variety of mental health issues—without giving negative side effects.

Posted on 7/31/2016 3:25:23 PM

Undergraduate Students Doing Graduate-Level Research Over the Summer

Aspart of her work in the Research Experience for Summer Scholars (RESS) program atIUP, Ashley Miller has spent time taking core samples from the bottom of nearbyBlacklick Creek, hoping to discover the long-term effects of the discharge ofwastewater from natural gas fracking operations into the freshwater stream.

Posted on 7/8/2016 1:57:11 PM

Summer Research Opportunities Prepare Geology Student for Graduate School

Allison Berry is taking part in the Research Experience for Summer Scholars (RESS) program at IUP, where she is able to get in a lot of the field work that will prepare her for graduate school. She's working in structural geology, learning about how and why the earth was formed, and what could happen to our planet in years to come.

Posted on 6/22/2016 11:06:37 AM

Former SGA President Has Eyes on a Different Presidency

Vincent Lopez held the office as the president of the IUP Student Government Association in the 2015-16 school year. He hopes to someday hold the office of another presidency.

Posted on 2/8/2016 12:23:36 PM

ROTC Student Finds Opportunities for Campus Leadership, Political Insight

Alyssa Dachowicz's IUP experience includes ROTC, IUP Pride Alliance, the Cook Honors College, and studying abroad in Israel.

Posted on 1/15/2016 6:12:39 PM

Helping Others is the Heart of the Matter for Food and Nutrition Student

A serious heart condition changed everything about Mia Wendt's life. In high school, Wendt was one of the top volleyball players in the state of Pennsylvania. She was so good that she was offered a full scholarship to an NCAA Division I college in New England.

Posted on 10/5/2015 2:40:12 PM

Student Tames the Flames, Secures a Job Before Graduating

Adam Young walked around the Safety Sciences Career Fair, stopping to talk to representatives of Georgia-Pacific. He was interested in their internship. They were interested in what he was learning in Safety Sciences at IUP and his experience as a local firefighter.

Posted on 9/18/2015 2:27:17 PM

Football Player Putting the 'Student' in Student-Athlete

Walt Pegues is doing his part to erase the long-standing myth of the dumb jock. Yes, he's a key member of the IUP football team—and a good one at that. But football is only part of what Pegues is about.

Posted on 9/9/2015 2:27:29 PM

Healing Heart: Nursing Student Born with Heart Defect Spreads Message of Hope

An Indiana University of Pennsylvania nursing student has a true heart for helping others. Ellen Reinsburrow, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, a junior nursing student at IUP, was born with a heart defect.

Posted on 5/15/2015 2:54:52 PM

Students Create Life-Changing App: Team’s Web-Based Support System Wins Business Contest

Ryan Brannon came up with the My New Leaf App concept while a student at IUP. A seed grows into a tree to mark steps in recovering from addiction. It's just one feature of a web-based application designed by Ryan Brannon and fellow students from Indiana University of Pennsylvania recently to help people,

Posted on 5/7/2015 9:10:27 AM

Shelby Ledger: 2 Majors. 2 Minors. 2 Life-Changing Trips. One Amazing Undergraduate Experience.

Shelby Ledger is pursuing a dual baccalaureate degree in K-12 Spanish Education and Spanish, with minors in French, and Latin American Studies – a daunting task in itself. Yet, with the advisement and encouragement of her professors, she was able to study abroad...twice.

Posted on 1/30/2015 2:23:23 PM

Valuing the Greater Good: Volunteering, as Part of a College Requirement, Ignites a Passion for Helping Others and Offers a Chance to Gain Real-World Experience

From left: award recipients Shannon Kovalchick and Brandy Rummel, President Michael Driscoll and Ruth Riesenman Helping others proved to pay off for Shannon Kovalchick and Brandy Rummel. What started out as a requirement turned into a passion and a way to hone skills that may prove vital in their

Posted on 11/7/2014 3:08:12 PM

Keyed into Success: Computer Science Major Lojjik Braughler taps into what he's learned with an internship at wikiHow

Posted on 11/4/2014 1:58:37 PM

Her DIY Semester: English Major Laura Ragsdale Uses Independent Study to Build Cred for Career in Music Industry

At the start of spring semester 2014, senior Laura Ragsdale found she had to complete a few extra credits to graduate. Picking up a random class wasn't for her. Instead, she thought big—and the outcome attracted national attention in the industry she aspires to work in. An English major in the wr

Posted on 10/13/2014 2:12:49 PM

Discoveries in Madagascar: Anthropology Major Kyle Murray Finds Rare Lemur and New Career Path

Spotted! A rare golden bamboo lemur In the wilds of Madagascar, Kyle Murray lags behind the other students in the field school. He just wants one more photo, one more minute to observe the group of ring-tailed lemurs they encountered. The only anthropology major amidst biology majo

Posted on 10/3/2014 9:14:36 AM

From Class to Dot Com: Student Isaac Meals and Kyle Hurlbrink ’14 Tap Information Systems Courses to Co-Found Student Marketplace

Student Isaac Meals, an management information systems major, takes what he’s learned on both sides of his major—computer science and business—and puts it into action in developing and launching a marketplace site for students.

Posted on 9/25/2014 2:52:33 PM

Gig with a Superstar: Doc Severinsen Wows the Crowd at IUP, and Music Students Are Part of the Show

Legendary trumpeter Doc Severinsen opened the 2014–15 Lively Arts Ovations season on Tuesday, September 16, with an incredible show he invited students to be part of. The Grammy-award winner, known the world over for his musical acts on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson , invited faculty, alum

Posted on 9/22/2014 2:21:11 PM

Raven Sams: 5 Years, 3 Majors, One Sweet Job with Deloitte after Graduation

“I wanted to come out of IUP well prepared. That was my biggest drive,” says Raven Sams, who graduated from Eberly College of Business in August and will start a job at one of the top accounting firms in Pittsburgh in 2015. And prepared she was: Raven graduated with a

Posted on 9/5/2014 1:21:08 PM

Formula for Success: Minh Quan Dinh, Chemistry Major, Helps Design Innovative Lab Experiment for Other Students

Minh Quan Dinh, a BS in chemistry major , began doing research in his freshman year, working with Professor Justin Fair. While a junior, Minh helped design an innovative lab experiment for students in Organic Chemistry I. The experiment is the midsemester capstone,

Posted on 8/27/2014 1:37:08 PM

Chalk It Up to IUP: Recent Art Education Graduate Draws Crowds with Programs for Corps of Engineers

Chalk it up to what she’s learned at IUP: Recent Art Education graduate Olivia Mays ’14 is drawing big crowds with an annual sidewalk chalk-drawing contest she runs for the Army Corps of Engineers at Raystown Lake, Pa. This year's event, organized by Mays, takes place Saturday, Au

Posted on 8/20/2014 3:21:09 PM

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