Volume I
April 2015 Volume 1, Issue 1
@BRYANTgrad
Inside this issue:
Welcome to Bryant,
Dr. Donoyan!
1,
4
MSGES Investigates 1,
3
Spotlight On: Masters
in Communication
2,
5
MAT Students Give
Back
3
A&S at the Degree
Exploration Fair
6
A&S Alumni News 7-
10
Get in Touch! 11
Welcome to Bryant, Dr. Donoyan!
Giovanna, “Vanna,” Donoyan, the newly appointed
director of Bryant University’s Masters in Teaching
program, has a story for me. Across the desk, Vanna’s
eyes light up as she describes the gorgeous view of fall
foliage she observed from a classroom window as she
spoke in a psychology course earlier that day. As Van-
na paints a picture of the trees, which, though beautiful,
are the ones that separate the classroom from the not-so
-beautiful parking lot, I am silently doing math in my
head. If Vanna was teaching at 8:30 this morning, and
will be teaching a night class until 9:15 tonight, that’s a
thirteen hour workday. Fall foliage or no, thirteen
hours is grueling. Yet in that moment, I captured the
true Vanna. Donoyan’s unwavering warmth, enthusi-
asm, and appreciation for her work and her students in
Bryant’s Masters in Teaching program
truly radiate from her being. Her passion
for teaching is utterly contagious.
Donoyan began her career in the banking
industry, and received her MBA during
this time. After several years in a more
corporate setting, the birth of Donoyan’s
children changed the course of her work-
ing life forever. She began volunteering in
her children’s schools, and through this
volunteer experience, Donoyan “became
aware of the absolute, vital importance of
education.” This passion blossomed into a
career. Donoyan studied to become a
board-certified teacher, then moved into
an administrative position, and finally
grew into a role as the superintendent of a
local district. (Continued on Page 4)
MSGES Investigates Weed Control in Worcester Region
Nicole Cournoyer of Bryant’s Masters
is Global Environmental Sciences pro-
gram, is embarking on a one-year re-
search project of the increasingly dam-
aging weeds affecting lakes and ponds
in New England: the fanwort. And
though its name has an amusing ring to
it, the plant itself, Nicole explains, is a
decidedly harmful organism. First
discovered in the 1930’s, this invasive
pond species has traveled up the coast
and now grows in many nonnative still
-water habitats throughout southern
New England. Nicole is focusing her
research on lakes and ponds affected
by the parasite in the Worcester region.
Nicole’s investigative research is
grounded in the twofold implications
of the growth of the weed: its detri-
mental effect on local aquatic ecosys-
tems, and the impact of this damage on
community economies. Her research
on the biology and ecology of the plant
has shown a wide breadth of problemat-
ic features (Continued on Page 3)
Gaytha Langlois,
graduate director of
Bryant’s MSGES Program
2
Page 2
@BRYANTgrad
Communication
students meet
with Professor
Berkos in the
Rotunda.
Spotlight on: Masters in Communication
The director of Bryant’s Master’s
in Communication program,
Christopher Morse, warned me
that he might have to miss our
meeting. It was Monday, Novem-
ber 10th, and his firstborn child
was due at any moment. Yet when
I showed up a few days later,
Morse was sitting in his office just
as we had planned, hospital brace-
let and all: it was a girl! Despite
the busyness of Morse’s week, he
was excited to talk about his stu-
dents and Bryant’s growing mas-
ters in communication program.
Morse highlights the accomplish-
ments of two of last year’s gradu-
ates, both of whom are working in
health communication fields. One
graduate joined a healthcare firm
that designs presentations and oth-
er communication materials to
streamline the dissemination of
health information materials from
medical practitioners to corpora-
tions and businesses with whom
they work.
The second graduate is working at
a pharmaceutical company in a
sales role that combines his
knowledge of both health and or-
ganizational communication, two
of the three tracks available to stu-
dents pursuing their masters in
communication here at Bryant.
The organizational communica-
tion track, one of the three path-
ways available to prospective
graduate students, gives candi-
dates “the ability to better under-
stand how organizations work,
how people in organizations work,
how culture is developed in the
workplace, and how conflict is
handled,” according to Morse.
While Morse acknowledges that
this track pairs well with market-
ing and management undergradu-
ate coursework, he also sees the
potential for this focus to differen-
tiate students pursuing work in
any organization or setting. Pursu-
ing a master’s degree with a focus
on organizational communication
will “set the student apart from
other students graduating from
other colleges who have a similar
set of skills,” (Continued Page 5)
3
Page 3
Volume 1, Issue 1
MSGES Investigates, Continued
Not only is this a highly competi-
tive, rapidly growing weed, but it
is also able to tolerate a wide
range of conditions and water
temperatures, allowing it to easily
displace native still-water species.
In lakes and ponds, this displace-
ment can result in a decline in bio-
diversity of native ecosystems. As
the weed decays, with it comes a
depletion of oxygen in the water
that is essential to the wellbeing of
other inhabitants. As if that was
not reason enough to look into the
eradication of the fanwort, consid-
er this: the plant is huge. As Ni-
cole describes from her own spec-
imen residing in the Microbial
Ecology Laboratory, the fanwort
can grow up to six feet long, and
has a matted texture that eclipses
any native vegetation over which
it grows. The hostile nature of the
weed calls for a variety of chemi-
cal and physical eradication strate-
gies. The Hickory Hills Lake
Management Group has been
studying eradication since 2011,
and has engaged in a variety of
practices, including harvesting and
drawdowns. They’ve even sent
scuba divers to the bottom of in-
fested bodies of water to suction
the plant.
Nicole’s research will also focus
on a comprehensive analysis of
the Hickory Hills Lake Group and
other environmental groups’ strat-
egies in fighting the fanwort. She
plans to engage residents in the
Lunenburg region by designing a
survey about the weed, with the
end goal of “determining the best
practices for eradication and con-
trol of the weed.” These findings
could be applied to a wide range
of environmental service organi-
zations in their maintenance of
native ecosystems, especially in
the New England region.
Throughout the research process,
Nicole has enjoyed the benefits of
the personalized nature of Bry-
ant’s MSGES graduate program.
Nicole chose Bryant because the
coursework focus on environmen-
tal policy, green technology, and
sustainability “has a lot of rele-
vance” to what she hopes to do in
her career. The nature of many of
her assignments has also given
Nicole the independence to re-
search and present on topics she
finds personally meaningful. As
she explains, “while my profes-
sors are an excellent resource and
are there to give me guidance
whenever I need it, the freedom
this program allows is preparing
me to be an independent thinker
and a problem solver which will
benefit me in my future career.”
MAT Students Give Back in Turkey Basket Contest
On November 19, Bryant hosted its annual Turkey Basket
Contest. Participating groups were required to put together a
Thanksgiving-themed basket of dinner and dessert items to
give to a local food pantry or family in need. Baskets were
creatively designed with a holiday theme, stuffed with
Thanksgiving favorites, then displayed in the Rotunda for
judging and viewing. Students in Bryant’s Masters in Teach-
ing Program, led by the efforts of graduate student Cindy
Zdravkovic, an aspiring English and Language Arts teacher,
joined together to contribute their own basket to a local fami-
ly. As Zdravkovic explained, “I’m always looking for ways to
create community” among Arts and Sciences graduate pro-
grams. Zdravkovic’s team spirit, coupled with Bryant’s many
community service initiatives, embody a tenet on which the
university prides itself: cultivating a global awareness among
students that extends beyond the scope of academia.
MAT Students with their
Turkey Basket
4
Page 4
@BRYANTgrad
Dr. Donoyan, Continued
Donoyan never lost sight of her
love of teaching, explaining that
even as a superintendent, “I saw
challenges in terms of how I could
help teachers move student learn-
ing forward, how I could ensure
my decisions would trickle down
to the kid in that classroom.”
Donoyan thus comes to the Bryant
MAT program equipped with both
her innate passion for the art of
teaching, and an intensive under-
standing of the complexities of
school politics, law, and systems.
Donoyan’s breadth of knowledge
and years of that experience have
allowed her to cultivate a graduate
path that is purposeful, respon-
sive, and flexible.
The masters in teaching at Bryant
is a three-semester program that
provides a degree rivaled by insti-
tutions that can sometimes take up
to three years to award students a
teaching degree and certification.
Students are required to take core
education classes, taught by Do-
noyan, as well as select a specific
content area that they would like
to teach.
Donoyan stresses that what differ-
entiates the Bryant MAT from
others is the active shaping of new
and multiple pathways. As
Donoyan explains, teaching is “a
set of skills that anyone and eve-
ryone should have. It’s a matter of
learning to move individuals from
point A to point B so that their
human condition, and the human
condition of the society they live
in, improves.”
This philosophy has materialized
in a transformation of the MAT
program under Donoyan’s direc-
tion in just six short months. Do-
noyan and Bryant colleagues
“started to learn of ways that
teaching and learning can be facil-
itated in other environments,”
and, consequently, “want to see
the MAT grow.”
Inspired by individual student in-
terest and the demands of an ever-
changing, global society, Do-
noyan has created a curriculum
that satisfies careers in both tradi-
tional teaching and corporate or
administrative educational roles.
Because of the responsiveness and
flexibility of the program, each
MAT candidate is able to hone his
or her unique skill set for the ex-
act environment in which they
wish to work.
Individualized curricula, course-
work planning done directly be-
tween students and program direc-
tor Donoyan, and small class sizes
are just some of the things that
make the Bryant MAT a valuable
opportunity for undergraduate stu-
dents, alumni, and working pro-
fessionals. Donoyan agrees that
the Bryant MAT is “not a cookie-
cutter program. The purposeful-
ness, organization, professional-
ism, and culture of Bryant perme-
ate this program.”
The innovative pathways that al-
low students to teach in places
outside the classroom offer a
unique take on a more traditional
masters in teaching degree that is
cognizant of a vastly changing
world. Donoyan’s quickness to
respond to both societal and stu-
dent needs as she develops new
pathways are consistent with the
values of Bryant University, and a
world in which, at some point, we
are all students. But the reach of
Donoyan’s contributions extends
beyond the program structure.
To undergraduates considering the
Bryant MAT, Donoyan has a sim-
ple message: “We’re ready for
you, and you’re ready for it.”
Welcome to Bryant, Dr. Donoyan.
We are ready for you, too.
5
Page 5
Volume 1, Issue 1
Wendy Samter, newly appointed Dean
of the Bryant College of Arts & Sciences,
and professor of communication
Masters in Communication
Spotlight, Continued
(Continued from Page 2) uniting both their undergradu-
ate education and personal strengths into a marketable
package that is strategically distinct from job-seeking
competitors. A second pathway, health communication, is
focused on “designing campaigns that impact health be-
havior” and “understanding how providers and patients
interact and how that influences our health.” Students in
this track learn the intricacies of communicating “health
information between those who do it and those who need
it.” This path of study also lends itself to a wide variety of
positions in healthcare, advertising, and pharmaceutical
companies, among others. Anticipating the upcoming
physician assistant program for the fall semester of 2015,
Morse also alluded to the possibility of working with as-
piring physician assistant students as part of health com-
munication coursework.
While the benefits of pursuing a master’s degree in a
smaller, more personalized program like Bryant’s are in-
numerable, Morse highlights what is arguably one of Bry-
ant’s Communication department’s strongest selling
point: the third track, which consists of coursework tai-
lored specifically to the career and personal goals of the
student. Morse and his colleagues work with students
with particular careers goals to “develop a program that
fits with the interests they have.” Historically, these per-
sonal tracks have been geared toward public relations
work and family consulting. Developing this individual-
ized track is a joint effort between the student and faculty,
who are able to make course plans and advise students for
an educational track that is laser-focused on the intended
career and enhancement of the individual’s skill set.
Masters in
Communication graduate
students do groupwork.
6
Page 6
@BRYANTgrad
A&S Graduate Programs Represent Multiple Pathways at Degree Exploration Fair
Each fall, the Bryant University
Office of Undergraduate Advis-
ing holds its annual Degree Ex-
ploration Fair in the heart of the
unistructure. The fair, designed
to give students in all grade lev-
els an opportunity to speak with
faculty representatives about ma-
jors, minors, concentration paths,
and graduate school, is a high-
traffic and highly anticipated
event. This year, the fair hosted
representatives from all three
Bryant Arts and Sciences Gradu-
ate programs to meet with stu-
dents looking to pursue work in
these disciplines. Positioned at a
table at the head of rotunda, pro-
fessors Gaytha Langlois and
Vanna Donoyan, of the Global
Environmental Sciences program
and Masters in Teaching pro-
gram, respectively, offered un-
dergraduate students a unique
perspective on the value of a
graduate degree in these fields
for a wide range of careers.
For students looking to work in
start-up and entrepreneurial envi-
ronments, Langlois highlighted
the marketability of understand-
ing sustainability practices in an
increasingly environmentally-
conscious world. Donoyan in-
formed interested students of the
new pathways offered by the
Bryant MAT program, encourag-
ing those pursuing higher educa-
tion, education administration,
and human resources goals to
consider the value of a graduate
teaching degree. As Donoyan
observed, “the undergraduates I
met presented a mature outlook
about their future plans. present-
ed a mature outlook about their
future plans. They told me they
were exploring opportunities,
career or graduate schools,
as next steps after graduation.
For many, the MAT made a fine
compliment to their plans. I was
impressed by them!”
The fair marked the first of many
hands-on opportunities for under-
graduate students to learn about
the value of an Arts and Sciences
graduate degree.
“The
undergraduates I
met presented a
mature outlook
about their future
plans.”
Degree Exploration
Fair flyers were
posted throughout the
unistructure leading up
to the event.
7
Page 7
Volume 1, Issue 1
Maniscalco’s success
has come not only
from her own passion
for her work, but also
the “contagious
dedication and
passion” of her
professors at Bryant.
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Alumni News
Jamie
Maniscalco
at her
graduate
ceremony
May 2013
Jamie Maniscalco, MACom ‘13
Jamie Maniscalco, who graduated with a Masters in Communication
from Bryant in 2013, describes her current work as a program coordina-
tor at the Miami Chamber of Commerce as “the perfect storm” of every
skill and interest fostered throughout her time at Bryant. Jamie works
on a variety of projects in her role, including event-planning, app de-
signing, and facilitating grand-openings in the area, all of which require
her to apply the professional and personal skills she cultivated through
the master’s in communication program. As Jamie describes, “I use
strategic communication in creating campaigns that encompass market-
ing, advertising, public relations, and management. I use writing skills
in running our newspaper and various newsletters, and persuasion skills
in sales efforts.” Maniscalco’s success has come not only from her own
passion for her work, but also the “contagious dedication and passion”
her communication professors at Bryant displayed throughout the pro-
gram.
Today, Jamie is continuing to enjoy adjusting to her new life in Miami,
a transition from her home in New Jersey marked by “crystal blue wa-
ter, sunshine, and palm trees.”
8
Page 8
@BRYANTgrad
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Alumni News
Jeanette Ferraro, MACom ‘13 Jeanette Ferraro gives
credit to the Bryant fac-
ulty for sparking her
interest in Health Com-
munication, explaining
“the faculty is outstand-
ing. They helped me
discover my passion
and pushed me to be my
best.” and pushed me to
be my best.” When
Jeannette started her
masters at Bryant, she
pursued the Health
Communication track
via the “4+1 program,”
which allowed her to
start graduate studies
during her senior year
of college, and continue
full-time after gradua-
tion. Upon graduation,
Ferraro took a position
as a Communication
Specialist at Cigna, with
a focus on strategy and
healthcare provider ex-
perience. Ferraro ac-
credits the masters pro-
gram at Bryant for her
ability to “think strategi-
cally when it comes to
insights and data” to
enhance customer expe-
rience. Outside of work,
Ferraro is busy planning
her upcoming marriage,
scheduled for August
2015.
Ferraro at her
graduation, May 2013
Todd Stewart, MACom ‘13
As a Marketing Manager at Bos-
ton-based consulting firm Hour-
lyNerd, masters in communica-
tion alumnus Todd Stewart ap-
plies the critical thinking, evalu-
ating skills, and ambitious work-
ethic he fostered through the
Bryant graduate program in his
daily work. Stewart says his
coursework in Bryant’s graduate
program “has not only improved
the way I approach my every
day of business, but it has also
made me a much more astute
learner when it comes to the life
outside of work. I’m always
questioning and evaluat-
ing.” Stewart pursued his mas-
ters in organizational communi-
cation as “stepping-stone” to his
ultimate goal of teaching at the
university level. He also accred-
its his graduate education for his
current success, expressing the
degree has “opened up doors for
me much faster than I imag-
ined.” Today, Stewart is cultivat-
ing a writing career as the writer
of two eBooks, and is currently
working on a third in conjunc-
tion with analytics firm In-
sightSquared. He is also looking
forward to commuting from his
new home in downtown Boston
back to Bryant as a public speak-
ing professor for the Spring
2015 semester.
Stewart poses with a
company tee.
9
Page 9
Volume 1, Issue 1
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Alumni News
Eric Georgio, MAT ‘14
Georgio proudly represents
the Bulldogs!
Eric Georgio didn’t always want to be a math teacher. Georgio started his coursework at Stonehill Col-
lege in North Easton, MA, with the intention of going into computer science. It wasn’t until his senior
year, when Georgio began a tutoring job, that he realized his passion for teaching. As he cultivated this
new interest, Georgio realized Bryant’s MAT program was a fitting next step to jumpstart this career. He
switched his major, graduated Stonehill with a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics, and looked to Bryant
since “the focus of the program was not the mathematics that I would be teaching —although their math
courses featured plenty of challenges — but rather how to teach it in a way that students can understand.”
Once Georgio came to Bryant, his education courses supplemented his mathematics background, ensur-
ing he felt ready to enter the classroom. Professors at Bryant encouraged Georgio to consider “a variety
of educational philosophies and ideas from veterans in the field... well-known theorists, the faculty at the
university, or teachers in the area whose classrooms we observed. I was able to take their views, experi-
ences, and mindsets and pull pieces from them to develop my own personal teaching style.” Additional-
ly, this MAT program provided Georgio “with a great toolkit for how to be a teacher.” Today, in his new
role, Georgio explains, “every day at work, I find myself taking this toolkit and using it in various ways.
Certain tricks and techniques work for a particular student or class and others do not, but Bryant has pro-
vided me with a solid foundation for and valuable experience in making these decisions. It seems easy to
talk about material you already know to an audience all day, but the real job of a teacher is to instill pas-
sion, promote growth, foster lifelong learning, and provide opportunities for students to succeed.”
After spending the fall 2014 semester student teach-
ing at Smithfield High School, Georgio was hired as
a full-time math teacher in Cumberland High
School. He now teaches four classes of Algebra 2,
one class of Pre-Calculus, and one class of Numera-
cy. Georgio is fully certified as a highly-qualified
educator for mathematics, grade 7 through 12, in
Rhode Island. In his new role, Georgio “faces the
challenges that Bryant has prepared me for: design-
ing engaging lessons to appeal to a variety of learn-
ing styles, developing assessments that yield quality
data to measure student performance, and establish-
ing positive rapport with students so that they can
feel comfortable approaching me with any questions
they might have.”
Though Georgio walked away from the standard 9 to
5 office job he once considered, he now realizes
“being a teacher is a 24/7 commitment towards see-
ing your students grow and aiding them as much as
possible for their future endeavors.” Georgio’s time
at Bryant gave him the resources to do just that.
10
@BRYANTgrad
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Alumni News
Scott Waterman, MAT ‘14
Waterman visits the New York Stock Exchange
for a workshop this past summer.
Scott Waterman, who graduated from Bryant’s
Masters in Teaching Program with a business
concentration in December 2014, is now a dual-
certified business teacher in Rhode Island and
Connecticut. Upon graduation, Waterman was
hired as a Business Education teacher at Parish
Middle School and High School in Chaplin,
CT. He accredits Dr. Langlois and Dr. Holder,
both of Bryant, for inspiring him to join the
MAT program, which he describes was “a great
fit.”
Waterman’s new role as a secondary educator is
a marked departure from his three years of ac-
tive duty in the US Army. Today, Waterman is
the proud step-father of Tyler Silveira, who is
serving his country as a member of the US Ar-
my in Fort Hood, Texas, and keeps busy with
his younger children, Brady, 10, Lincoln, 7, and
Presley, 5.
Waterman is also an avid athletics supporter. He coaches youth baseball for the Connecticut Mustangs,
and is the Vice President of minors baseball in the Killingly, CT Little League. He spends his winters as
a basketball coach, and is an active supporter of the St. James school, St. James athletics, and Deary
Gymnastics.
As he settles into his new role as a business teacher, Waterman hopes his time with Bryant is not over.
He hopes to one day return to the university as an adjunct professor of business to inspire a new genera-
tion of future leaders.
Page 10
11
Volume I, Issue I
Bryant University
1150 Douglas Pike
Smithfield, RI 02917
E-mail:
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Our student-centered learning community is dedicated to developing the
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for our student body of approximately 300 graduate students and 3,000 under-
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including distinguished professionals in leading positions in businesses, gov-
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