August 2008
Doylestown, PA -- (August 29, 2008) - Delaware Valley College has once again been rated as one of the best comprehensive colleges in the north by U.S. News & World Report in the magazine’s 2009 edition of "America’s Best Colleges." This is the sixth consecutive year in which the college has received this national acclaim.
The annual rankings — in which U.S. News groups schools based on categories created by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching — serve as a resource for many parents and students in their college decision-making process.
"In today’s competitive and challenging marketplace, we are committed to academic excellence in all of our programs. This continued recognition of our college as a leader by U.S. News & World Report is a tribute to the quality of our faculty and our students," said Dr. Joseph S. Brosnan, president of Delaware Valley College.
In addition to an undergraduate curriculum focused on agriculture, business and the liberal arts, Delaware Valley College also offers master’s programs in several disciplines, including Educational Leadership, Food and Agribusiness and Business Administration. Located on 571 acres in Doylestown, PA, Delaware Valley College has a combined graduate and undergraduate enrollment of over 1,800 students.
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Doylestown, PA -- (August 25, 2008) - Delaware Valley College Assistant Professor of English, James V. O'Connor of Erwinna, PA, originally from Pelham NY, has completed the requirements for his Ph.D., in mass media and communication from Temple University. His dissertation, "Resisting the melting pot through ethnic newspapers: History and function of the Irish Echo" examines the function of ethnic media through the prism of the "Irish Echo" newspaper in New York.
Before joining the college in 2004, O'Connor was a newspaper reporter for 15 years. He served as a general assignment reporter for "The New York Times" and a writer for "Investor's Business Daily." He reported on the civil war in Bosnia for "The National Catholic Register" and has worked as a freelance writer for a variety of sports, travel and business magazines, including "Crain's New York Business," "Porthole," "Caribbean Life," Skiing" and "Field & Stream."
In addition, O'Connor wrote and produced several television programs for Temple University cable television, has completed four screenplays for film and two stage plays and has public relations and business experience.
O'Connor earned his bachelor's degree in English at Virginia Military Institute and has an MBA from Manhattan College Graduate School of Business and a master's degree in journalism from Iona College.
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Doylestown, PA -- (August 21, 2008) - The Henry Schmieder Arboretum of Delaware Valley College will host a special lecture titled "Great and Ancient Trees," at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 10 in Mandell 114; there will be a reception at 6:45 p.m.
During the event, attendees will learn about temperate tree species that grow into giants and live for centuries. Paul Meyer will be the guest lecturer for the evening. Meyer is the F. Otto Haas Director of the Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania and a leader in the field of plant exploration and evaluation. Meyer teaches urban horticulture in the University of Pennsylvania's Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning Department and is an honorary member of the Garden Club of America. Following the event there will be a "Garden Passions" plant raffle drawing of nearly 30 different species. For ticket information, call Sharon Haddon at 215-489-2283.
For more information, visit delval.edu/arboretum or email arboretum@delval.edu.
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Doylestown, PA -- (August 20, 2008) - Delaware Valley College Professor of Animal Science Fredrick Hofsaess of Bedminster, PA, was appointed to the Pennsylvania Race Horse Testing Program Management Committee for the Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission by Governor Edward G. Rendell and attended an official meeting of the group in August.
Hofsaess has been a member of the Delaware Valley College faculty since 1970 and teaches taught animal and equine production courses. He manages the equine Standardbred facility for the college. In addition to his work for the Commonwealth on the Race Horse Testing Program Management Committee, he is a member of the American Society of Animal Science, the United States Trotting Association, the New Jersey Standardbred Owners and Breeders Association and Pennsylvania Harness Horseman Association. Hofsaess earned his bachelor's degree in animal husbandry from Delaware Valley College and his master's degree and Ph.D., in animal science from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
The PA State Horse Racing Commission has general jurisdiction over thoroughbred activities in the Commonwealth and the corporations engaged in those activities and participates in all regional regulatory activities offering reciprocity to all racing jurisdictions.
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Doylestown, PA -- (August 11, 2008) - Dr. James E. Diamond, of Ottsville, PA, dean of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at Delaware Valley College, will retire on August 31, 2008 after a shining 47-year career.
A farmer, educator and international consultant, Diamond has worked in 49 countries on five continents. During his time at Delaware Valley College, Diamond has developed many programs and grant proposals and has teamed with Penn State's 4-H staff to bring at-risk youth to Del Val's A Day so that the children would learn where their food comes from; he is a part-time livestock/woodland farmer and serves as reviewer for the "Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education." Diamond has authored "Domestic Animal Bells from Around the World" and co-authored "Historical Excerpts of Pennsylvania Granges" and has been recognized by "Who's Who" in American Education in the East.
As dean of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, he was responsible for overseeing all academic-related matters, including program development, evaluation, faculty development, strategic planning and budgeting, for the Agriculture and Environmental Sciences departments at DelVal. Diamond earned his Ph.D., from Pennsylvania State University and served as an assistant professor at the University in the Department of Agricultural and Extension Education, where he was responsible for the Agricultural Science Major, served as director of Internship Programs for College of Agricultural Sciences and served as director of Instructional Materials Services.
Global education has been of particular interest to Diamond. During his tenure at the college, he helped develop and shape international programs, flavored by years serving in the Peace Corps and as an international agriculture and extension consultant. With Diamond's support, faculty now integrate international activities into their curricula, including taking students to dairy farms in Ireland, food science students to the culinary capitals of Paris and Athens, horticulture students to England to study gardens and floriculture students to the Netherlands to see first-hand the international auction of flowers.
In 2007, Diamond spearheaded an ongoing exchange program with the University of Podlasie in Siedlce, Poland, offering exchange visits to students, faculty and staff between the institutions to globalize curriculum and experiences for both communities. So far, DelVal students have traveled to Poland twice, and University of Podlasie students have visited DelVal this past October.
Last year, Diamond received the 2007 Honorary County Agent Award from the Pennsylvania Association of County Agents, which recognizes outstanding performance in agricultural programming.
In 1982, he had his first international assignment with PSU in Mali and Cameroon. In 1986, he went to Swaziland as an extension-teaching specialist and helped develop their research station.
After retiring from Penn State, he became a freelance international consultant for the United Nations and the US Agency for International Development. He has done extension work in 47 different countries on 4 continents. One of his more noteworthy accomplishments occurred in the Far East, where his work helped reform the Agri-Technical schools in the People's Republic of China. They adopted his recommended "learning-by-doing" concept, and today the model is used by 40,000 teachers in 365 schools in China.
Diamond earned his bachelor's degree in animal husbandry from Delaware Valley College in 1961; his master's degree in counseling from Lehigh University and his Ph.D. in Agricultural Education from The Pennsylvania State University.
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Doylestown, PA -- (August 8, 2008) - The Henry Schmieder Arboretum of Delaware Valley College will host a series of events this fall. Events are free to members and DelVal students and $5 for non-members. Membership information is available by emailing arboretum@delval.edu.
The first event is titled "Great and Ancient Trees," and will be held at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 10 in Mandell 114 and features a reception just before at 6:45 p.m. Attendees will learn about temperate tree species that grow into giants and live for centuries. Paul Meyer will be the guest lecturer for the evening. Meyer is the F. Otto Haas Director of the Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania and a leader in the field of plant exploration and evaluation.
Meyer teaches urban horticulture in the University of Pennsylvania's Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning Department and is an honorary member of the Garden Club of America. Following the event there will be a "Garden Passions" plant raffle of nearly 30 different species. For ticket information, call Sharon Haddon at 215-489-2283.
Four additional lectures will be offered in the fall and spring terms as part of the Arboretum Founders Lecture Series.
The first is "Plants that Pop," with guest lecturer Karl Gercens, Wednesday, October 15, 7:30 p.m., at Mandell 114. Attendees will learn about plants that can enhance gardens with bold colors. Gercens has served as conservatory horticulturist at Longwood Gardens for the past 10 years and is responsible for curating the displays in their conservator complex. He lectures at major flower shows across the US and has visited public gardens in all 50 states.
The next event is titled "Green Spaces: Connectors to Community," with guest lecturer Louise Turan on Wednesday, November 12, 7:30 p.m., at Mandell 114. During this presentation, Turan, executive director of Bartram's Garden, America's first botanic garden, established in 1728, will explore how Bartram's has survived for centuries in spite of the landscape that is changing around it and how it uses its 45 acre on the banks of the Schuylkill to connect to community.
"Green Roofs" with guest lecturer Jeff Jabco, is scheduled for Wednesday, December 10, 7:30 p.m., at Mandell 114. Jabco is director of grounds for Swarthmore College and coordinator of horticulture for their Scott Arboretum since 1990. During his presentation, he will discuss why adding green or vegetated roofs to new or existing buildings may be a necessary wave of the future and will teach attendees what they need to know to begin considering a green roof for a home, office or outbuilding.
The last lecture of the season is titled "Hardy Groundcovers," with guest lecturer Dan Benarcik, on Wednesday, February 11, 7:30 p.m., at Mandell 114. Attendees will get an introduction to the use of groundcovers in garden designs and landscapes as Benarcik, a horticulturist at Chanticleer, an innovative garden in Wayne, PA, discusses the woody and herbaceous plants known for their ability to colonize in specific sites or perform a specific aesthetic task in a garden.
For more information or to become a member or purchase tickets, visit www.delval.edu/arboretum or email arboretum@delval.edu.
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Doylestown, PA -- (August 8, 2008) – George Gross, director of the Roth Living Farm Museum at Delaware Valley College, received the “Outstanding New Leader of the Year,” award yesterday by the Montgomery County Cooperative Extension for his outstanding leadership and dedication to the Montgomery County 4-H program.
Delaware Valley College sponsors a 4-H club; Gross, who lives on the farm that adjoins the Roth Living Farm Museum, volunteers his time as leader of the “Roth Awesome Animal Club,” as they are known. This 4-H group consists of about 20 area children, aged 8 years and older, who work with the animals on the Roth Living Farm Museum. According to Gross, this program gives these children a chance to work with animals that might otherwise be impossible to encounter if they don’t live on a farm.
The Roth Living Farm Museum is dedicated to providing historical information on farming practices to school children, organized groups and the general public. In addition to working and learning about the animals on the farm, the 4-H students take field trips, learn about many of the various components of agriculture and participate in 4-H sponsored programming.
To learn more about the Roth Living Farm Museum, please feel free to visit the farm's website at http://delval.edu/roth.