Erin Dolan, Lion’s Eye Staff Writer, evd5158@psu.edu

Penn State Brandywine’s senior volleyball player and setter Miranda Biondi has earned herself a commemorative banner hanging in the rafters at the Brandywine Athletic Center.

After ending her last season with the Brandywine volleyball team, Biondi’s academic and athletic resume sets her apart from other competitors.

During the 2016-17 season, Biondi was Brandywine volleyball’s first-ever United States Collegiate Athletic Association All-American, USCAA Student-Athlete of the Year and Penn State University Athletic Conference Player of the Year. She was also a USCAA National Academic Team nominee, selected to the Capital One Academic All-District Team in 2014, and a three-time PSUAC All-Academic Team honoree.

Biondi has kept a modest outlook regarding her awards and nominations.

“It was an amazing feeling,” Biondi said. “So many people kept telling me I was going to get it, but I wanted to stay humble if and when I was called. In that moment, I felt like everything I worked for academically and athletically paid off.”

Biondi concluded her four-year career on the volleyball court as Brandywine’s all-time leader in  assists (2,169) and aces (327).

In the future, she plans to transfer her volleyball communication skills into her career.

“I am going to take away the ability to work with different personalities and try to make connections with people,” Biondi said. “As a setter, I need to communicate and be a team player 24/7, so I plan to continue doing that.”

With the help of her team, Biondi led the PSUAC and ranks seventh in the USCAA, averaging 7.82 assists per set. She led Brandywine to its first-ever conference championship, tallying 36 assists and 15 digs during Brandywine’s title-clinching 3-1 victory over Penn State Fayette.

Biondi’s impact on the court has been recognized across the area. She was one of seven volleyball student-athletes from Philadelphia’s thirty area institutions to earn Academic All-Area accolades from the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Head Coach Melissa Algeo had more than enough to say about Biondi.

“One of those players you want on your team,” Algeo said. “She is talented, humble and a hard worker. She is an extremely gifted athlete but her abilities reach far beyond the court; she’s dedicated and focused in the classroom.”

Aside from Biondi’s immeasurable impact on the 2015-16 season, Coach Algeo became Brandywine’s first volleyball coach to reach 100 victories after the Lions defeated Penn State York 3-0 (25-9, 25-13, 25-12).

Coach Algeo is already looking forward to her next 100 victories.

“I am extremely proud and grateful to be part of this wonderful program,” Algeo said. “I am thankful to all my players, current and past, who made this possible.”

Coach Algeo’s accomplishment was not the only highlight for Brandywine’s team.

With the 2015-16 season record of 21-6, the team earned its first-ever bid to the USCAA Tournament. In addition, Brandywine went undefeated in their conference and claimed its first PSUAC crown.

Coach Algeo will miss Mirandi Biondi’s self-effacing spirit and dedication during games and practices.

“Miranda is a fantastic young women who I have been honored to coach for the last four years and will miss beyond words,” Algeo said.

It’s safe to say that Biondi has left a legacy unimaginable at Penn State Brandywine and is excited to move forward in a career after volleyball.

By: Deja Footes, Lion’s Eye Staff Editor, dmf5475@psu.edu

Coming in August 2017, Penn State Brandywine will have two new buildings: a residence hall and a student union building.

The campus’ new residence hall will be located behind the Vairo library and the student union, an improved version of the student lounge in main, between Vairo and Tomezsko.

The residence hall will feature double bedroom suites and study lounges, along with two apartments for full-time residence staff said Stephanie Jones, associate director of student affairs. In the student union building there will be dining services, a bookstore and The Lion’s Den. The buildings will also include fireplaces for those cold winter days on campus and to provide a comfortable and relaxed atmosphere.

During the campus renovations, Penn State kept its commitment to the environment by keeping sustainability a factor in the design and construction plan. High quality stone is used for construction, including glass and light sensors that are essential energy savers. Lighting and storm water control were all terms that lead to leadership in environmental engineering when the buildings were designed. The residence hall and student union were designed with life-long durability in mind.

Safety was also a key factor in the design of the residence hall and student union. The campus will be adding four emergency blue phones. The locations will be: the fountain in front of Commons, the gazebo, the student union building and at the intersection of the main building parking lot.

The addition of residence halls means that the campus will no longer be solely a commuter campus. Because of that, changes to parking have also been taken into consideration. With the nearly 900 existing parking spots, there will be enough room for the residents and commuters on campus.

For now, construction will not disrupt classes. Penn State stickers will be given to construction workers to identify them to students, staff and faculty. Construction workers went through an orientation and have their own entrances, locations for food and restrooms so the impact on the campus community is minimal.

“Their goal is to stay out of the campus’ way as much as possible,” Bill Tyson, director of marketing and communications, who spoke to a Penn State Brandywine audience regarding the construction.

The new and improved campus will officially be done and ready for students to start moving in August 2017.

Updated by the Lion’s Eye web staff

By: Najla King, Lion’s Eye staff writer, nxk5136@psu.edu

As the end of the semester approaches, Penn State students are already getting ready for the fall semester.

Scheduling classes is the first step and this year, students are using new software to do it. Lion Path was introduced to students to replace eLion, and adjusting to the new software may take a little time for some.

Since the beginning of fall 2015, news about a new platform for students to register for classes circulated around campus. Although registration for summer 2016 classes is still through eLion, scheduling for the fall semester has begun, and some speculation about the new platform concerns some students.

“I’m just still a bit confused, I guess,” Launa Andrews, a soon-to-be senior at Penn State Brandywine, said. “It’s still new, and this is everyone’s first time using it, so we just need to be patient and get familiar with navigating the website and using its functions correctly.”

Lion Path features a new way to search and save classes students wish to take the following semester. Similar to shopping at one’s favorite store online, courses are chosen and added into a student’s shopping cart, where then, students are registered into the classes that are in their cart. It sounds fairly simple.

With the majority of Penn State Brandywine’s student population millennials, it can become a challenge to explain a new online platform to students who are accustomed to things running quickly and smoothly. Also, most students have previous knowledge of how eLion worked and they expected Lion Path to operate the same, if not better.

Change may not come easy to some but for others, the new system doesn’t seem to cause them much concern.

“I haven’t even looked at the website yet,” Ayesha Smith, another Penn State student said. “I know I should because I need to schedule my classes but I’m not in a rush. Pretty much all of my teachers have been reminding us about it but I don’t think it’ll be that difficult to use.”

Whether the change is accepted right away or not, Lion Path is here to stay and some students are working on familiarizing themselves with the new site. Although others are adjusting more slowly than others, scheduling for fall 2016 semester is well under way.

By: Meghan Burton, Lion’s Eye Staff Writer, mcb5509@psu.edu

Dress to impress was the motto on Penn State Brandywine’s campus on March 24.

The annual career day, held at the Tomezsko Lounge during common hour, was a big day for some Penn State Brandywine students.

Students dressed up in business attire ready to learn, gain experience and to network with the following companies: JP Morgan, an American multinational banking and financial services holding company, Vanguard, an American investment management company and Crozer-Keystone Health Systems, a 501 not-for-profit health system.

Representatives from Pennoni Associates, Communications Test Design Inc., Pennrose Properties, Monarch Staffing, A Duie Pyle, Wawa and InternU were also on hand at the Career Day.

Looking around the room, some students seemed nervous and others seemed eager to communicate. However, the individuals representing these particular companies made sure every student was at ease.

Penn State Brandywine students were given the best advice from a Wawa representative, who suggested smiling. This advice definitely cut the tension in the room and made all the students feel at home.

Many students lined up to communicate and network with the participating companies. Overall, the Career Fair was a hit. Students from all majors were welcomed.

By: Nick Huntoon, Lion’s Eye Staff Writer, nhh5036@psu.edu

The majority of students and faculty at Penn State Brandywine have at least heard of the communications major. Some may not know of another aspect of the communications field called civic and community engagement.

Brandywine’s Dr. Lynn Hartle is the head of the civic and community engagement committee. At Brandywine, she is responsible for planning events, including the upcoming social justice fair, that will be held on campus April 18-21.

Events will be held throughout the four days to promote student and faculty involvement in the civic and community engagement field. Students will get a chance to listen to guest speakers and take away knowledge on a variety of social aspects, and students will have a chance to interact and engage.

Monday will feature a democracy/civic engagement session where each student can learn how to become more involved in political events both on the local and national level.

Tuesday will feature an ecological session where students will be taught how to leave less of a carbon footprint.

Wednesday’s event takes on the music and arts. Students will understand how the arts influence college students’ activism in social events.

Thursday, students and faculty will engage in learning about selected people’s rights on issues such as sexual assault and immigration.

The social justice fair is a great opportunity for students to get involved.  To everyone’s liking, there will be also food each day. Students should know, however, that the best way to get involved is to attend as well as talk to participating professors and faculty.

It should also be of interest to the student body that the civic and community engagement minor and group on campus is a great way to become involved. The civic and community engagement event focuses on giving back to the community.

Being involved with civic and community engagement also makes for a great resume builder.  All in all, Hartle and the civic and community engagement group offers great opportunities on campus and beyond. The job of the students is to embrace them.

The event schedule with locations has not yet been released.

Updated by the Lion’s Eye web staff

Open Mic Karaoke Draws Crowd
By: Nick Huntoon, Lions Eye Writer, nhh5036@psu.edu
Open Mic Karaoke drew in a large crowd to experience the diversity of talent and student life on campus.
Surprisingly, amateur singing fits into lunchtime on a college campus much better than imagined.
Looking at Brandywine´s lounge area, it seemed a bit empty for the usual lunch rush. Soon enough there was a stage and microphone set up. The once nearly vacant Lion’s Den began to buzz with student life.
Before the event, senior Elisabeth Gremlich talked about the motivation for Tunes Thursday, and how it was inspired by the diversity of talent and student life on campus.
“It is very student driven,” Associate Director of Student Affairs Stephanie Jones said. “It gives members of the Brandywine’s newly formed club Musician’s Collaborative the opportunity to highlight the talents of their members.”
The drive of those students was apparent. To kick off the event, a member of the Musician’s Collaborative Club stepped up to the mic, and a couple of students recited verses of their own poetry.
By this time, the news of an open mic spread. More students filed into a now cramped Lion’s Den and somehow, with the tremendous turn out, most of the audience shied away from taking the mic.
The silence was promptly broken when eager student Alexis Proctor took the stage. Before the audience could ponder the upcoming song choice, the words of “I Want it that Way,” by the Backstreet Boys blared through the speakers.
It was an amusing choice and Proctor’s effort proved to be the ice-breaker. Soon people took the stage with song choices ranging from Disney’s “Frozen,” “Let it Go,” and Usher’s “Confessions.”
For the remaining hour, the performers truly provided the crowd a good show.
“The event was fun and a good way to get out of the everyday routine,” Alexis Proctor said after her experience at Tunes Thursday.
Of course, as in any event, there were some who decided to sit back and watch instead of participate.
Freshman Shacor Tyler was one of the bystanders.
“I wasn’t able to find an inspiring song,” Tyler said.
Sure enough, the first ever Tunes Thursday proved to be a refreshing and unique way to spend a lunch break.
Updated by the Lion’s Eye Web Staff

Nostalgia Mixes with Newness as “Star Wars” is Reborn
Paul Alberici, Lion’s Eye Editor, paa5102@psu.edu

In 2005, George Lucas capped his epic space saga “Star Wars” with the final chapter of the prequel trilogy, highlighting the fall of Anakin Skywalker to become the evil Darth Vader.

This chapter connected the critically acclaimed trilogy of the 70s and 80s with the recently released films and it seemed that the series concluded. However, in 2012, Disney bought out Lucas films for $4 billion, and their announcement was as expected: they will be continuing the “Star Wars” saga from where “Return of the Jedi” (1983) left off. The announcement also came with skepticism.

“[I was] curious how Disney was going to handle it,” sophomore Carly Dargitz said. “I was excited, regardless, that the series was coming back.”

“Star Wars: The Force Awakens” the seventh chapter of the saga, 30 years after “Return of the Jedi,” and “Empire,” a new evil emerged from its ashes — “The First Order,” led by an
evil dark side user, Kylo Ren (played by Adam Driver). Opposing The First Order is the heroic Resistance, which is the fighting force of the New Republic.

Some of the main pieces of the fighting force are new characters: pilot Poe Dameron (played by Oscar Isaac), a feisty desert scavenger, Rey (played by Daisy Ridley) and a former Stormtrooper, Finn
(played by John Boyega).

Many of these new actors have been praised for their portrayal of these new characters.

“I absolutely loved Boyega’s portrayal of Finn,” freshman Dave McDermott said. “I think that whoever cast this movie made an excellent choice, and I think that he will have a good future after his run in “Star Wars” movies. Ridley was also excellent. I think that she played Rey well, but I sense that there was a bit of a difference between what she was showed onscreen, what she wanted to show, and what was written. I think that she will evolve as an actress with the series, and it will be interesting to see where she goes. Although his character was immature and his performance wasn’t loved by all, I think that Driver’s Kylo Ren was intended to be exactly as he was.”

Yet, the freshness was also paired with nostalgia. Between the flight of the “Millennium Falcon,” one of the iconic movies of the series and the original cast of the first movies, including the lovable smuggler,
Han Solo, and his faithful companion, Chewbacca (played by Harrison Ford and Peter Mayhew respectively), General Leia Organa (played by Carrie Fisher), and Jedi Master Luke Skywalker (played by Mark Hamil), it was hard for some fans to pick one iconic moment.

“I think the movie fit really well into the series so far,” senior Kevin Cardella said. “They made tons of references to past movies and followed up on the stories of the old characters. It isn’t just a movie of
all new characters. The characters are learning from the older classic characters.”

Needless to say, the movie has become a worldwide phenomenon and has been acclaimed by both critics and fans alike, making Disney’s big buy a favorable one.

“If I could, I would rate it an 11,” freshman Andrew Leake said. “I believe this installment will be an amazing addition to the saga. At the moment, it fits in perfectly, in my mind at least. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time.”

With this chapter, the series now in the books, and seemingly redeeming the series from the continually bashed movies known as the prequel trilogy. Expectations are already high for the next chapter.

“The next one will be even more awesome,” sophomore Coleman Hart said. “Rey will work on learning about her past while Kylo Ren moves closer to the Dark Side. I feel like showing the parallels in
their training would be cool to see.”

While fans of the galaxy far away have to wait until December of 2017 to see where all of these characters are going to be in “Episode VIII” (the title has yet to be released), a new “Star Wars” movie will be released this year. “Rogue One” is the first movie of a spinoff series of the movies known as “The Star Wars Anthology.”

While they will be based on main characters and events of the main series, these spinoffs will focus on some of the more minor characters. The focus of “Rogue One” will be how the Rebel Alliance of the original trilogy was able to steal the plans to the Death Star, the Empire’s superweapon that blows up planets, prior to “Episode IV; A New Hope.” This spinoff is set to be released in December of 2016.

Other Side of Higher Learning

By: Najla King, nxk5136@psu.edu, Lion’s Eye

As students begin their college careers at Penn State, thoughts and questions surrounding their future goals are constantly brought to mind.

So much so, students likely don’t give much thought to their professors’ accomplishments or the achievements that possibly aided them in securing a position with a reputable university such as Penn State. The further along students progress in their college careers, they begin to notice the syllabus a little more and begin to take advantage of their seasoned professors’ expertise.

Amanda Gunlefinger, a professor at Penn State Brandywine, is one of those extraordinary teachers who has first hand knowledge of the vaccine to prevent the spread of the sexually transmitted virus, HPV, which can lead to the development of cervical cancer.

“I began working in the manufacturing of Gardasil in 2009, a little after the production of the vaccine started,” Gunlefinger said. “Before I started teaching, I worked at a company called Merck, and there, we worked on Gardasil.”

Gunlefinger provides experience and knowledge of working in such a demanding industry to her students, which can be helpful for them. Some students dream to be in a similar occupation.

Gunlefinger said the long hours and stress working at Merck was enough to convince her to switch career paths.

“I taught in grad school and always enjoyed teaching,” Gunlefinger said.

Now, as a professor at Brandywine, she offers students experience that in their opinion makes her more credible as a teacher.

“Knowing that your teacher has worked on something that’s actually on the market is extremely cool,” Ayesha Smith, a Brandywine student, said. “It makes you think your goals aren’t so far- fetched when you have a real life example of success telling you what to do.”

College students should take advantage of their instructors’ knowledge and get to know them outside the classroom. Professors are hired to pass along their experiences, tips and tools that students will need to succeed. New discoveries, even conversations, can spark an occupational interest for students that they didn’t know existed.

Students may be surprised at the similarities they have with the people they call professor.