A Brand Opening

SPRING 2006

Capitol’s new logo makes a grand entrance as the college launches its updated image.

Editor, DesignMegan Campbell

Assistant Editor, WriterAngel Brownawell

in this issue

Capitol ChronicleSPRING 2006

volume 1, number 1

11301 Springfield Road, Laurel, MD 20708 301.369.2800, 888.522.7486

www.capitol-college.edu

on the cover Capitol College showcases its new logo. Freshman Jan Boshoff, studying electrical engineering, was one of the student volunteers at the brand launch, where he modeled clothing with the new design.

The Capitol Chronicle is published quarterly by Capitol College for alumni, faculty, staff, students, parents and friends.

It is printed on paper containing 50% recycled content including 15% post consumer waste.

Alumni Update, Class Note Update your information or send us a class note in the Alumni & Friends section of our website at www.capitol-college.edu. Or you can mail your name, class, address, phone number, email address, note and new employer/job title if rel-evant to the Office of Advancement and Alumni Relations, Capitol College, 11301 Springfield Road, Laurel, MD 20708.

Career AssistanceAlumni are welcome to use the services of the Career Center. Call Tony Miller, director of career services, at 301-369-2555 to make an appointment for career coun-seling or for information about hiring a co-op student. See our website for career services available to students and alumni.

Features1 Cover Story: Making Our Mark Capitol introduces its new brand message and logo

4 Campus Changes New building and sites add to campus landscape

5 Reaching Out Capitol-hosted programs attract high school students to engineering

6 Political Arena Students and leaders play active role lobbying the state government

Departments7 In Brief Kudos to Capitol, increased enrollment and more

8 Faculty and Staff Notes Professors recognized, new academic vice president named

9 Class Notes What your classmates are doing now

1 4

6 9

�SPRING 2006 Capitol Chronicle

cover story

Alexis Moore shrieked as she walked

into the classroom filled with

stacked cardboard boxes overstuffed

with red, black, white and gray t-shirts

and sweatshirts. An audience had gath-

ered just outside in the entrance hall

of the William G. McGowan Academic

Center, waiting for the anticipated logo

launch to begin. Moore and several class-

mates didn’t have to wait longer. They

volunteered as student models for the

event, getting a sneak peak of the logo.

“I love it,” Moore said excitedly, smiling

as she held up a white sweatshirt with

the new black and red design. “This was

the one I wanted.”

While Moore and others who gathered

for the event were mostly excited about

seeing the new public face for the col-

lege, the celebration wasn’t about just

the logo or even the tagline of “Educate.

Innovate. Inspire.” Capitol College on

Feb. 23 announced its arrival to the world

and the start of its new brand, a student-

centered commitment that establishes

the unique identity for the institution.

It’s a commitment that is summarized in

one sentence: Capitol College promises a

relevant engineering and business educa-

tion in a supportive environment for

career success.

That sentence is the Capitol College

brand promise – a statement that

declares exactly what the college repre-

sents and what it will do.

“The brand promise we make to all

whom we serve, emerged from nearly a

year’s hard work by a collective group of

people inside and outside the college,”

Wood said. “We are preserving much of

the old, and that which is new evolves

directly from its preceding generations.

The notion that we have a brand is new.”

The crux of the brand – the promise

– sounds so obvious to those who know

the college. The statement is not that

shocking or surprising, even Wood said

so in his remarks. Every word in the

brand promise tells what Capitol has

already been aspiring to do well for

decades.

But Capitol offers much more, and cap-

turing the essence of the college to create

its marketing identity was no easy task.

That’s why the branding initiative was

neither created quickly nor by the man-

date of one person. The challenge was

first tackled by a group of college faculty

and staff who began meeting in 2004.

Creating the Brand

With the arrival of a new president and

new strategic plan, the Marketing Com-

mittee was determined to recommend

how best to use its limited resources to

set Capitol from the pack in the competi-

making our markmaking our mark

“I absolutely love it. It was my

first choice [at the focus groups].

I like the shield; it creates a strong

sense of honor and pride.”– Alexis Moore, senior, management of information technology

Capitol Chronicle� SPRING 2006

tive marketplace of higher

education. During that time,

the committee learned the

nuances of terms like posi-

tioning statements, values,

mission statements, and yes,

even brand promises – sev-

eral elements that would

help them focus on the right

message and image. Many discussions,

debates and decisions later, the commit-

tee put a plan into action.

Committee members weighed the

college’s history, traditions, strengths,

weaknesses, competitors and future.

They knew the college needed a unify-

ing visual identity to back up whatever

brand idea that was decided. After more

research, they recommended the creation

of a logo with

a modern look

while also pro-

jecting a strong

tradition.

The college

contracted a

professional design firm. The firm chat-

ted with students and toured the campus.

After proposing three logo ideas, they

conducted focus groups with key stake-

holders – prospective and current under-

graduate and graduate students, alumni,

strategic partners, faculty and staff.

With all opinions, ideas and concerns

tabulated and analyzed by the firm, the

recommendation for the new identity

was given to the Marketing Committee

and eventually then to the Executive

Council. The shield design overwhelm-

ingly impressed the focus group partici-

pants. The Executive Council gave its

approval. For three months, the new logo

was kept secret while pens, coffee mugs,

New logo wins gold in national contestThe Capitol College community isn’t the only group impressed

with the new logo. The design won a gold medal in the Admis-

sions Advertising Awards, a national competition sponsored by

the Admissions Marketing Report.

Capitol’s logo, designed by Creosote Affects of Emmitsburg,

Md., was named the best for schools with fewer than 2,000 stu-

dents. The silver went to Landmark College in Vermont; Alma

College in Michigan received the bronze. The judges awarded

the medals based on creativity, marketing execution and impact

of message.

The Admissions Advertising Awards is the largest educational

advertising awards competition in the country, with more than

3,500 entries submitted last year from every state in the country

and multiple foreign countries.

Judges for the Admissions Advertising Awards consisted of a

national panel of admissions’ marketers, advertising creative

directors, marketing and advertising professionals and the

editorial board of Admissions Marketing Report, the nation’s

leading marketing publication for higher education.

clothing and other logo-imprinted items

were ordered.

The New Look

“Now that the identity has been decided

and put into practice, it does seem like

it was there all along, and I think that’s a

positive sign that we got the message and

the look right,” said Megan Campbell,

director of marketing and communica-

tions, who helped guide the committee

through the branding process.

Students weren’t the only ones excited

to see the new logo. Alumnus Charles

Britt, a 2002 graduate, said it was great

to witness the college pulling together its

many pieces into one message. The logo

reminded him of Harvard University’s red

shield.

“I am excited about this new

logo. It shows that we are a small

college and a strong college with

strong foundations. The design

looks modern and appealing to

young adults.”– Nayi Castro, freshman, astronautical engineering

“It implies that we are a school

that has a rich legacy. The shield

shows a sense of empowerment.

It looks great on the clothing. It

has a fresher look than using just

a college seal.”– Don Lundberg, senior, computer engineering technology

“It really looks like something

worn by a superhero. It looks

great.”– James Wong, sophomore, computer engineering

�SPRING 2006 Capitol Chronicle

Strategic partner Steve Newhouse has

witnessed the campus evolution of the

past three years. His company built the

McGowan Academic Center.

“This really looks like the image of a

college,” said Newhouse, vice president

for business development with Atlantic

Builders. “It’s a nice, crisp new identity,

and I really like the tagline.”

The contemporary styling of the shield

symbolizes the college’s blend of aca-

demic tradition and modern

learning. The year, 1927, marks the

college’s founding. Inside the shield

are two Cs that balance each other

of it, as pointed out by several students,

is that different elements can be inter-

preted different ways. Isn’t that the job of

an engineer – to look at things differently

than others? Britt sees a resemblance to

an Ivy League institution, and Wood, a

former baseball umpire, noted that the

shield’s shape could be viewed as a base-

ball diamond.

Sheldon Bryan, a sophomore studying

network security, noticed how the two Cs

form a bond.

“There’s actually more than one way to

look at it. There’s a different vision that

you can see, and there are many

ways to interpret it. Seeing

and thinking differently

is something you need

in engineering and

business.”

and form a

circle, the

symbol of

knowledge. The

square at the

top marks the

moment when

knowledge is

gained through

learning.

In his remarks, Wood described the logo

as a symbol of tradition, strength and

empowerment.

“Students we surveyed view it as a typi-

cal symbol of what they think a college

should be. It’s a medieval and modern

symbol of learning,” Wood said. “The

logo is futuristic in that it is open – both

the outer and inner shields are open, as

are both the outer and inner circles

within the shield. The

point of the shield

forges an identity

for the college,

and it is pointing

to the 80-year

old roots for

the college.”

But the beauty

“It’s a good change. It makes us

look more like a college and not

solely as an engineering school.”– Jan Boshoff, freshman, electrical engineering

“It’s obviously symbolic of

strength and the two Cs form a

bond. There’s actually more than

one way to look at it. There’s a

different vision that you can see,

and there are many ways

to interpret it. Seeing and

thinking differently is

something you need in

engineering and business.”– Sheldon Bryan, sophomore, network security

“I really do like it. This will give

us a chance to really get out our

name and help identify us from

all the other colleges out there.”– Shayna Parker, junior, computer engineering

“I really like it. It’s

traditional, classic and

suits our school.”– Amanda Walderzak, freshman, astronautical engineering/electrical engineering

Capitol Chronicle� SPRING 2006

Campus evolves with openings of new structuresSeveral students control and track satellites inside the walls of the new building.

Others relax on couches, chatting with friends as they wait the start of their next

class. In the near year since its dedication, the William G. McGowan Academic Center

has become an architectural, social and academic feature for the evolving campus.

Dedicated in April 2005, the academic center opened for classes at the start of the fall

semester. The building was the result of a five-year capital campaign and 18 months of

construction that cost $7.1 million.

Not only a facility for learning, the center has hosted open house events for potential

students and their families, a meeting of the presidents who lead Maryland’s 18 inde-

pendent colleges and universities, and most recently, the launch of the new Capitol

College logo and branding initiative.

The McGowan Academic Center was the product of many minds coming and working

together, college President Michael Wood said at the building’s dedication ceremony.

“Today’s dedication of the McGowan Academic Center celebrates another milestone

in the life of the college, and positions us for growth and a higher level of excellence

well into the future,” Wood said.

The building’s completion corresponded with the development of two other campus

features: the John and Mary Dettra Amphitheater and the G. William Troxler Sympo-

sium Courtyard. Several classes have already been held in the amphitheater, giving

students and instructors a change of scenery.

“The amphitheater really complements the college and makes good use of the hill next

to the library,” said John Dettra, an alumnus and member of the Board of Trustees.

The tiered, gray-brick feature is partially located below the library reading room

named in honor of the Dettras to recognize their previous contributions to the college.

Former President G. William Troxler is also recognized on a plaque at the top of the

amphitheater for his support of the project.

(top) McGowan Academic Center,

(center) Troxler Symposium Court,

(bottom) Dettra Amphitheater

campus update

�SPRING 2006 Capitol Chronicle

Getting high school students interested in engineering – and

introducing them to Capitol College -- has been the goal of sev-

eral programs offered recently on campus.

In January, Capitol College for the second year hosted the

regional kick off to the FIRST Robotics competition. More than

300 students participating in the competition came to campus

to watch the live telecast from the FIRST headquarters in Man-

chester, N.H. Capitol also hosted for the students a robot-build-

ing workshop two months before the kick off.

FIRST is a worldwide competition that challenges teams of

professionals and students to solve an engineering problem in

six weeks using a kit of parts to build a robot. Throughout the

30 regions, teams enter a series of competitions.

The college opened its doors in June 2005 to the largest class of

NASA PREP students. Sixteen high school graduates attended

the annual Capitol College/NASA PREP pre-college engineering

program in the summer.

The intense six-week program continued its tradition of offer-

ing challenging coursework and hands-on experiences that

prepare minority high school students for the rigors of a col-

legiate engineering degree program. Fifteen of the participants

enrolled as a Capitol first-year student.

In June, Capitol College again offered a weeklong program to

area Hispanic high school students, an event supported by the

PerkinElmer Foundation and High Point High School.

The eight selected students to the program, Raising Hispanic

Awareness in Engineering, worked with professional engineers

to build their own rockets while learning about the mathemat-

ics, physics and engineering foundations necessary for a suc-

cessful launch.

Raising Hispanic Awareness aimed to attract the next genera-

tion of the nation’s fastest growing population to study math

and science and – eventually – consider an engineering career.

Outreach programs attract high school students to engineering, college

High school graduates attending NASA PREP are (front row, left to right) Kelly Price, Charles Sanders, III, Antonio Araica, Ralvin Nagya, Melody Ford, (center row) Quinn Hawkins, Kevin Catalan, III, George Butler,

Chatera Walker, Shanon Dash, Marcel Mabson, (back row) Nikita Hall, Adetomiwa Ibronke, Lamont Stanfield, Jonathan Martin, James Dorsey.

Capitol Chronicle� SPRING 2006

Capitol hosts meeting of college presidentsIndependent college and university

presidents from across Maryland met

at Capitol College in September for

the quarterly trustees meeting of the

Maryland Independent College and

University Association.

Among other things, MICUA serves as

a lobbying voice for colleges, allow-

ing more frequent and direct access

to state legislators. Along with the

college presidents, Delegate Adri-

enne Jones, of Baltimore, attended

the meeting, held in the William G.

McGowan Academic Center.

“We were very honored to host the

meeting and bring presidents from

around the state to our campus,”

said Richard Beall, vice president for

external relations at Capitol Col-

lege. “The timing of the meeting also

allowed us to showcase the newly

opened McGowan Academic Center, a

facility that was made possible thanks

the efforts of the state of Maryland

and the help of MICUA.”

Capitol is one of 18 independent col-

leges in the state of Maryland.

Capitol College lobbies in AnnapolisFive Capitol College students traveled to Annapolis with college leaders in February

to lobby their elected officials to continue the state’s financial support of independent

colleges in Maryland.

The students joined hundreds of other college students and leaders from across the

state for Maryland Independent Higher Education Day on Feb. 2, organized by the

Maryland Independent College and University Association. First-year student Ralvin

Ngaya and Nikita Hall, and seniors Alexis Moore, Donald Lundberg and Kamesha

Norris attended from Capitol.

The students walked the hallways of the delegate and senate offices, meeting up with

the lawmaker from their home districts or dropping off Capitol College mementos

if the officials were not available. Moore, whose family lives in Joppa, met with her

senator, Nancy Jacobs (R-Cecil and Harford counties).

“We want to explain who we are and thank you for your support of Capitol College,”

Moore said, and explained how Capitol, as a school with a focus on engineering and

related sciences, stands out from the other independent colleges in the state.

Maryland is one state that provides grants to independent colleges and universities

through the Joseph A. Sellinger Program of Aid to Non-Public Institutions. Budget

cuts have significantly reduced the funding in recent years.

Later in February, Capitol College President Michael Wood testified on behalf of all

Maryland’s independent colleges and universities before the state House of Delegates’

Subcommittee on Education and Economic Development.

“Capitol College is a special institution in a special fabric of independent and public

higher education in Maryland. Your support through the Sellinger Fund and Capi-

tal Projects is crucial to our longevity,” Wood said in his testimony. “By supporting

Capitol and the other independents, you, ladies and gentlemen, help an overloaded

public system. You also make higher education a reality for more diverse, deserving

Maryland students.”

Students joined college leaders in

Annapolis to lobby for independent

higher education. Those attending

were (front) President Wood,

(center) Ngaya, Norris, Moore and

(back) Lundberg, Hall, and Dean of

Student Life and Retention Melinda

Bunnell-Rhyne.

�SPRING 2006 Capitol Chronicle

Large first-year class increases enrollmentCapitol College welcomed its largest class of undergraduate

students in recent years as more than 100 students joined the

Class of 2009.

The class of 2009 is largely from Maryland (about 75 percent)

and mostly male (about 85 percent). The most enrolled pro-

gram for these students is once again electrical engineering.

The admissions staff works around the year to recruit new

Capitol College students, and has begun new traditions such

as a daylong open house event specifically for high school

juniors.

Admissions website ranked among bestThe admissions section of the Capitol College website was

recognized among the best in the country by the National

Research Center for College & University Admissions. The

NRCCUA gave Capitol an A for its admissions features during

their annual index, a research-based analysis of the admissions

websites of more than 3,000 post-secondary institutions.

Capitol was one of only 130 institutions to receive this grade,

and was ranked No. 7 out of 10 specialty institutions. The

NRCCUA study evaluated the functionality and design of admis-

sions websites to determine how well the sites provide informa-

tion that encourage potential students to apply.

Graduate programs named ‘Best Buys’ Three Capitol graduate degree programs have been awarded

the designation of “Best Buy” by GetEducated.com, an inde-

pendent, online degree clearinghouse.

In GetEducated.com’s Top 25 Best Buys for Online Engineer-

ing Degrees, the organization listed the college’s master of

science in electrical engineering as No. 15. The master of

science programs in computer science and network secu-

rity were also recognized by lists ranking computer science

programs. The computer-related degrees ranked 10 out of 44

regionally accredited programs.

Capitol College is the only independent institution to make

GetEducated.com’s biennial survey.

GetEducated.com surveyed only accredited distance-learning

master’s degrees in the computer science and engineering areas to

determine the average cost a student might expect to pay for an

online master’s in computer science or engineering.

Grad School, USDA, and Capitol partnerCapitol College joined forces with the Graduate School, USDA,

to offer government employees and other students of the

Graduate School courses and a certificate of accomplishment in

security management.

Through the agreement, Graduate School students can take

online network security courses taught by Capitol College fac-

ulty, using Capitol’s innovative live audio delivery system.

“The network security program at Capitol College for several

years has been preparing professionals who can address system

threats. The demand for savvy managers and specialists is

increasing,” said Dianne Veenstra, vice president for planning

and assessment. “Capitol College is pleased that we could

expand our reach and offer our recognized program to students

of the Graduate School, USDA.”

The courses were the first offered through the Grad School,

USDA, that take advantage of real-time, live audio in its online

delivery. This system, the same as used for all of Capitol’s

graduate-level programs, has allowed students the convenience

of online courses while engaging with the instructor and class-

mates.

in brief

Screen capture of updated www.capitol-college.edu website.

Capitol Chronicle� SPRING 2006

Odett named academic vice presidentDavid Odett was named in October 2005 vice president for aca-

demic affairs and chief academic officer. Odett came to Capitol

from Walsh College in Troy, Michigan, where he served as chair

of the department of management and quantitative methods.

While at Walsh, Odett collaborated with Capitol College

President Michael T. Wood, who was a Walsh vice president, to

develop new systems-engineering curricula for the Greenfield

Coalition of eight engineering schools.

“David is a valuable addition to the college as he offers his

expertise and leadership,” Wood said. “David helped me bring

faculty and administration and diverse disciplines together at

Walsh. He developed a managing manufacturing operations

program, which, in some form, will be very helpful here as we

consider expanding into industrial engineering.”

Along with his experience in higher education, Odett has a

background in law enforcement and managing large diverse

groups in academia and health care. At Walsh, he helped

develop integrated business and managing manufactur-

ing operations. Odett launched the MBA program there and

increased its enrollment to 1,000 students, one of the largest in

the country.

Odett, a certified fraud examiner, holds an MBA from Notre

Dame University and a doctorate from Wayne State University.

Professor David Ward presented at the

annual conference for the National

Association of Relay Administrators on

voice-over IP and received a letter of

commendation from the association.

Professor John Ryan assumed leadership

of the Faculty Senate, following Profes-

sor Laura Dickinson’s departure. Ryan is

a 1968 alumnus of the college.

Ryan also hosted high school counselors

and provided digital training for Project

Lead the Way, the national initiative to spur

interest in engineering in the high schools.

Rick Sample, director of the library and

information literacy, was named to

the Maryland Digital Library Content

Committee and hosted the state library

association’s annual Vendor Day.

Professor Charles Woods was recognized

by the Maryland Independent Colleges

and Universities Association for facili-

tating activities by students from all 18

colleges at Higher Education Day in

Annapolis.

Allan Berg, assistant dean and director

of the Critical Infrastructures and Cyber

Protection Center, spoke March 28-29 at

GOVSEC ASIA in Hong Kong and moder-

ated a panel on joint research partnership

opportunities as related to information

assurance.

faculty and staff notes

Woods

dent of the Capitol College chapter of the

National Society of Black Engineers, Britt

remains involved with the organization.

’03Dawn Susini, BS, and James M.

Wallis are pleased to announce their

engagement and plan to marry May 4 in

Annapolis. The couple in November 2005

purchased a house together in Crowns-

ville. Dawn is a computer programmer

for the National Institute of Aging in

Baltimore.

Grant Vargo, BS, is computer services

manager at Capitol College. He lives in

Washington, DC.

’04Ashley Klunk, BS, married Nichole

Brown on May 21, 2005. They live in

Hanover, Pa. Klunk is a systems program-

mer for the Social Security Administra-

tion, working on the operating system

that runs on the administration’s main-

frame computers.

’64Jess Tidmore, AAS, was recently

inducted into the Hall of Fame for the

New Mexico Activities Association/New

Mexico Officials Association. A high

school football official for 25 years, Tid-

more volunteered hundreds of hours for

the association. He lives in Albuquerque

with his wife, Jane.

’79Richard Okeowo, BS, retired in

December 2005 after 25 years as manager

of BCP/ISS for Chevron Texaco, USA, in

Lekki, Lagos. “The technical background

I acquired has been the bedrock of my

career. The courses prepared me well for

future challenges.” He received a master

of science from George Washington Univer-

sity. He lives in Laurel with his wife, Layo.

’91Kevin Wilson, BS, is manager of

system administration for U.S. Pharma-

copeia in Rockville. Wilson is the most

recent appointment to the Alumni Advi-

sory Board. He and his wife, Elena, are

expecting their second child. They live in

Rockville.

’00Joanna Kolasinski, BS, of Towson

is a program coordinator at PCTEST

Engineering Laboratory, Inc. in Colum-

bia. She worked at MET Laboratories,

Inc. for 10 years.

’02Charles Britt, BS, of Annandale,

Va., is a project manager at Northrop

Grumman Corp. in Herndon. “As a

student or young professional it’s always

important to treat every experience or

encounter as a stepping stone to that

next opportunity or personal success

story. It’s always important to remem-

ber where you’ve come from, because

understanding your past will help you

prepare for your future.” A former presi-

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Each issue of Capitol Chronicle, including class

notes, is posted on Capitol College’s website.

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Submit your class note on our website at www.capitol-college.edu under the Alumni & Friends section or mail the form below to Capitol College, Office of Advancement and Alumni Relations, 11301 Springfield Road, Laurel, MD 20708.

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Susini

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