For Immediate Release

Date:  December 19, 2006

BLOOMSBURG—Four Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania seniors were honored as the top academic honor graduates at BU’s winter commencement Saturday, Dec. 16. They are:

- Kim M. Price, Muncy Valley, College of Professional Studies. Price, who earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education, transferred to BU after earning an associate’s degree from Bucks County Community College. A volunteer with Big Brothers/Big Sisters for two years, Price worked at summer camps for the past six years, serving last summer as a unit head at a 4-H camp in Ashby, Mass. This fall, she completed student teaching in kindergarten and fourth-grade classrooms at Central Columbia Elementary School, Bloomsburg. She plans to seek a teaching position in Virginia Beach.

- Devon Marie Purington, Tannersville, College of Liberal Arts. Enrolled in BU’s Honors program, Purington earned a bachelor’s degree in English. She will return to BU in January 2007 to pursue a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction. Her goal of becoming a middle school English teacher is reflected in the focus of her Honors independent study, “Grammar and Sentence Diagramming in the Middle School Classroom.” As a BU undergraduate, she was a member of Sigma Tau Delta, the English honor society, and Alpha Phi Omega, the service fraternity. She has worked as a residence hall community assistant and will be a graduate hall director when she returns for the spring semester.

- Jennifer L. Perott, Sellersville, College of Business. Perott earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration/management from BU, where she was a member of the Society for Human Resource Management and Beta Gamma Sigma International Business Honor Society. She completed two internships, including one in BU’s Human Resources Office; received the Mitrani Academic Scholarship and the Mark S. Schweiker Scholarship; and passed the Professional in Human Resources certification exam.

- Joseph M. Sherry, Winfield, College of Science and Technology. Sherry, who earned a bachelor’s degree in geoscience/earth science, worked as a licensed biological technician before enrolling at BU. As a student, he conducted an independent study on acid mine drainage, “Microbial and Geochemical Environment of the Stirling Mine Discharge in the Middle Anthracite Field in Shamokin, Pa.” He presented his research findings at the Geological Society of America’s 2006 national meeting in Philadelphia.

Nearly 500 students received bachelor’s and master’s degrees during BU’s winter commencement in Haas Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall.

Bloomsburg University is one of 14 universities in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. The university serves approximately 8,000 students, offering comprehensive programs of study in the colleges of Professional Studies, Business, Liberal Arts and Science and Technology.