R. Carlos Carballada ’56, HON ’81
Ryan G. Duns ’02, S.J.
Laura J. Hechtel, PhD
Valerie A. Latona ’91
Robert J. Butler, PhD
Katherine L. Fish ’10
Rev. James M. Pribek, PhD
Stephen L. Zawistowski ’77, PhD
Rev. Paul J. Dugan, S.J.
Eric L. Gansworth
Roberto A. Lleras ’08
David W. Rohde ’67, PhD
Lisa C. Foligno ’08
Clotilde Perez-Bode Dedecker ’82
Srs. Virginia and Loretta Young, SSJ
Benjamin J. Lankes ’08
Rev. Patrick J. Lynch, S.J.
Sara R. Morris, PhD
Margaret W. Paroski ’76, MD, MMM
Angelo M. Fatta ’66, PhD
Gabrielle R. Paoletti ’09
Rev. Michael F. Tunney, S.J.
Timothy H. Wadkins, PhD
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Economic Development Commissioner for the City of Rochester
National Chair, A Legacy of Leadership: The Campaign for Canisius College
R. Carlos Carballada brought nearly 50 years of business savvy, success and credibility to the job when he was named economic development commissioner for the city of Rochester in 2006. At the time, Carballada was semi-retired and served as director of M&T Bank Corporation and M&T Bank and chairman of the Rochester Fund of the M&T Charitable Foundation. Read more.
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Theology teacher, University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy
For Ryan G. Duns ’02, S.J., the decision to enter the Society of Jesus was not the result of an ‘ah-ha moment.’ Rather, it was the result of a series of experiences. But it wasn’t until Duns’ sophomore year at Canisius College that he made the decision to pursue the vocation. “I took a New Testament course taught by a Jesuit,” he says. I loved the material and the class, and I was in awe of the professor, Rev. Benjamin Fiore, S.J.” Read more.
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Director, Dr. George E. Schreiner ’43 Pre-Medical Center at Canisius College
There is an acute reality when it comes to admission into health science professional programs: It is increasingly selective. “Only those students with firsthand medical experiences, active involvement in research and a genuine sense of humanity will endure,” explains Laura J. Hechtel, PhD. Read more.
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Editor-in-chief, SHAPE magazine
Valerie A. Latona ’91 used to dream of being a fashion model. Today she is an ideal example that true beauty radiates from within. As editor-in-chief of SHAPE magazine, Latona oversees the number one active lifestyle magazine for women and the fourth largest young women’s magazine in the United States. Read more.
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Professor of English
Forty-three years in one place is a long time for someone captivated by the American spirit of wanderlust. But according to Robert J. Butler, PhD, professor of English, “I’ve always been able to reinvent myself at Canisius and that’s kept me alive as a teacher.”
Butler’s roots are in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, the venerable birthplace of American literature and home to W.E.B. Du Bois, Ralph Ellison and Nathaniel Hawthorne, to name a few. Read more.
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Student
When President Barack Obama took the oath of office on January 2009, Katherine L. Fish ’10 was among the nearly two million people who witnessed the historic event in Washington, D.C. It was an opportunity the future social studies teacher could not pass up.
“I seek out hands-on learning experiences so that when I become a teacher, I’ll have stories to tell my students,” says Fish. Read more.
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Assistant Professor of English
After he spent childhood summers on a relative’s farm in his native Wisconsin, assistant Professor of English Rev. James M. Pribek, S.J., PhD, enjoyed that way of life so much he decided to pursue a career in dairy farming. But after Father Pribek obtained his bachelor’s degree in agriculture from the University of Wisconsin, God had other plans. Read more.
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Executive Vice President, National Programs, and Science Advisor, ASPCA
When animal welfare is in question, Stephen L. Zawistowksi ’77, PhD, is called to action. As executive vice president for national programs and science advisor for the American Society for the Prevention for Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), Zawistowski oversees 16 departments and a staff of more than 400 throughout the United States. Based in New York City, he is responsible for animal care operations, community-based efforts that assist animal shelters; animal cruelty field services; education programs and legislative efforts. Read more.
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Moderator of Athletics
Rev. Paul J. Dugan, S.J., has held the position of moderator of athletics for the past 38 years. In his official capacity, Father Dugan, or Doogs as he is fondly known, tends to the spiritual needs of student-athletes. But for everyone he meets, Father Dugan provides guidance support, compassion, laughter and joy. Now 85 years old, Father Dugan may indeed be the person who has attended more Golden Griffin games than any other Griff fan. Read more.
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Professor of English
Eric L. Gansworth lives life as an outsider. An Onondaga Indian, Gansworth holds on to his deep-rooted Native heritage while he lives and works within a much larger and more dominant American culture. “It’s as if I float among different groups but do not necessarily belong to any one of them,” he explains. Read more.
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Student
Roberto A. Lleras ’08 is all about breaking educational barriers. The National Center for Education Statistics reports that only six percent of all bachelor’s degrees conferred in the United States each year are earned by Hispanics. Lleras was among this group when he earned his degree in bioinformatics in May 2008. Read more.
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Ernestine Friedl Professor of Political Science at Duke University
If you listen to National Public Radio (NPR) or read the New York Times, then the name David W. Rohde ’67, PhD, may be familiar to you.
“David Rohde is one of a handful of the best known scholars on the U.S. Congress and elections – period,” says Michael V. Haselswerdt, PhD, professor of political science at Canisius College. Read more.
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Student
Sports have always played a significant role in Lisa C. Foligno’s life. In fact, the Class of 2008 marketing major hails from a family of professional athletes. Her great uncle, Eddie Giacomin, was a popular goaltender for the NHL’s New York Rangers during the 1960s and early 1970s. Many Buffalonians remember her father, Mike Foligno, a feisty forward for the Buffalo Sabres from 1982-1991. Read more.
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President and CEO of the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo
Clotilde Perez-Bode Dedecker was just eight years old when her family emigrated to the United States in 1967. Still, she remembers the relief her family felt when their plane left the ground in Cuba. “When we came to Buffalo as Cuban exiles, we were provided for by the largess of this community and this country, and for that I hold a great debt of gratitude,” says Dedecker. Read more.
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Sisters of St. Joseph
Professors of American Sign Language
Sisters Virginia and Loretta Young, SSJ, are identical twins who also share a life that is devoted to God, to the education of the deaf and hard of hearing, and to Canisius College. Since first entering the Sisters of St. Joseph at age 17, Srs. Virginia and Loretta have served St. Mary’s School for the Deaf. “Our assignments to St. Mary’s were blessings,” said Sister Virginia. Read more.
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Student
Benjamin J. Lankes ’08 is a true reflection of the Jesuit ideals he learns at Canisius. He champions them everyday.
This Spanish and European studies intellectual comes to class with an open mind, prepared to share his knowledge and eager to challenge his professors. Read more.
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Chair and Associate Professor of Religious Studies
and Theology
Rev. Patrick J. Lynch, S.J., chair and associate professor of religious studies and theology, says that the Jesuit mission to find God in all things is a major reason education is so important to the Order. At Canisius College, this is demonstrated by the Jesuits and faculty alike when they interact with students in the classroom and tend to their intellectual and spiritual needs. Read more.
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Professor of Biology and Director of the Environmental Science Program
Bird-watching is a spiritual experience for Sara R. Morris, PhD. “I have had some amazing opportunities to sit quietly alone on an island, and just watch birds interact and fly,” says Morris. “When I take in all of the beauty, it is a clear sign to me that a higher power exists.”Read more.
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Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, Kaleida Health
As executive vice president and chief medical officer of Kaleida Health, Margaret W. Paroski ’76, MD, MMM, is at the upper echelon of Western New York’s health care system. Similarly, her clinical practice and medical specialty in adult neurology represents a new frontier in medicine. But Paroski says her greatest accomplishment is “Educating the next generation of physicians.” Read more.
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Vice President, The Fatta Foundation
Chair, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra Board of Directors
A product of the Canisius science program, Fatta’s ascent among the region’s leaders began in 1973, when he co-founded ACTS Testing Labs, which grew to become a global consumer products quality assurance company. After his retirement in 1998, Fatta took on two new challenges that would enrich the Buffalo Niagara community. Read more.
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Student, All-College Honors Program
Gabrielle R. Paoletti ’09 is fascinated by the mathematical constructions of Markov chains but what intrigues this math and economics major most are the possibilities that lie ahead for her. An All-College Honors student, Paoletti thrives on intellectual challenges and “loves to be proven wrong.” Read more.
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Rector
Professor of Fine Arts and Director of the Studio Art Program
Saint Ignatius Loyola believed that God could be revealed through creative pursuits, including theatre, music and fine art. As a professor of fine arts and director of the Studio Art Program at Canisius College, Rev. Michael F. Tunney, S.J., cultivates the skills and imagination of his students, and encourages them to share their finished works for the enjoyment of others. Read more.
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Associate Professor, Religious Studies & Theology
Chair, Center for the Global Study of Religion
As a religious studies major at San Jose State University, Timothy H. Wadkins wrote his senior thesis on colonial era preacher and philosopher Jonathan Edwards. What was meant to be a capstone paved the way for his future graduate work in history and theology. Wadkins earned a master of divinity degree from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and a PhD in historical studies from Graduate Theological Union. Read more.