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Winchester, Va.
Shenandoah announces 2026 orientation leaders
Shenandoah University has announced the 38 students who will serve as summer orientation leaders in 2026.
Those selected include:
– Layla Kurtz of Bellwood
– Alison Griffith of Alum Bank
– Madison Cavalet of Lilly
Orientation leaders serve as liaisons for new students as they arrive at Shenandoah, and play a vital role in helping incoming first-year and transfer students make the transition to SU by offering mentorship and guidance.
The 2026 head orientation leaders are Blain Griffin, Jailynn Rivera and Layla Kurtz.
Cedarville, Ohio
Tyrone student, Pink Ribbon Good advance cancer support
According to the American Cancer Society, one in eight women in the United States – 13% – will be diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetime.
As women navigate the emotional and physical challenges of the disease, undergraduate students from Cedarville University's School of Pharmacy are partnering with Pink Ribbon Good to conduct research aimed at improving patients' quality of life.
Pink Ribbon Good (PRG), a nonprofit based in Dayton, Ohio, collaborates with local and national healthcare providers to serve women and families affected by breast and gynecological cancers by offering free healthy meals, rides to treatment, house cleaning essentials and peer support.
The collaboration began when Dr. Rachel Parrill, a 1997 Cedarville University nursing alumna, reached out to Dr. Aleda Chen, professor of pharmacy practice about partnering on PRG's ongoing research efforts. Parrill, now the director of grants and foundation relations at PRG, connected Cedarville's pharmacy program with the organization to explore how its services may improve treatment adherence and quality of life for clients.
Through four group projects, pharmacy students are researching how PRG's transportation services, educational resources and overall support impact patients' cancer treatments and symptom management. These projects are ongoing and will continue throughout the fall and spring semester.
Project 1, a collaboration between PRG and Kettering Health through Brendan Rasor, Pharm.D, BCOP, manager of pharmacy infusion, Cedarville pharmacy students Eliya Craig of Tyrone and Noelle Straka of Wilkes Barre presented their research on the impact of PRG's transportation services at the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) annual meeting in Minneapolis on Oct 18.
SLIPPERY ROCK
Portage native takes first prize at national honors conference
Bella Bartoletti is establishing herself as an accomplished, rising voice in her field thanks to her experience at Slippery Rock University.
Bartoletti, a senior psychology major from Portage, took home the first prize for the Sloane Prize for Undergraduate Research in the Social and Behavioral Sciences category at the National Collegiate Honors Council Conference in San Diego, Nov. 6-9.
Bartoletti's research focus is sports psychology, an area that is close to home for her as a javelin thrower on the SRU track and field team. The research that she presented at the conference focused on the relationship between psychological strain and depression in collegiate athletes, examining how factors of psychological strain, isolation and flourishing patterns predict depression among student-athletes.
"As a student-athlete, I've seen that most student-athletes have either dealt with mental health issues or they know someone who has," Bartoletti said.
The overabundance of student athletes with mental health struggles is ultimately what inspired Bartoletti to pursue this line of research.
After presenting, she packed her bags and prepared to return home, receiving an email that she'd won a prize, though she didn't know which.
"I didn't find out I'd won until two days later." Bartoletti laughed. "They couldn't tell me what it was until the ceremony was over, and we had to catch our flight before that."
After those two days passed, Bartoletti learned that she'd won first place in her category.
"Research is important because it helps you to identify problems, but now that we've identified a problem, we have to start to try to solve it," Bartoletti said.