April 04, 2012
Millersville student named 2012 Ali-Zaidi Award winner
Contact: Kevin Hensil, khensil@passhe.edu
Harrisburg – David P. Walton, a senior chemistry major at Millersville University of Pennsylvania,
has been named the 2012 winner of the Syed R. Ali-Zaidi Award for Academic Excellence.
He will receive $1,000 along with a commemorative medallion for his achievement.
Joanna Catalano from Clarion University of Pennsylvania and Katherine Zimmerman from
Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania were selected as runners-up for the award. Each
will receive $500.
The Ali-Zaidi Award is presented annually to a graduating senior at one of the 14
Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) universities. It recognizes
outstanding academic achievement and participation in extra- and co-curricular activities.
The award was established by Syed R. Ali-Zaidi, a founding member of the PASSHE Board
of Governors.
Walton of Coatesville, who also will receive a minor in mathematics in May, has earned
a 3.99 GPA at Millersville. He is the recipient of numerous scholarships and academic
awards, including the Dr. Judith Bond Endowed Scholarship as the top junior in the
South Eastern Pennsylvania Section of the American Chemical Society and the Cecil
A. Upton Organic Chemistry Award.
He has participated in a variety of research projects, including the National Science
Foundation funded Summer Research Program, and has submitted for publication in professional
journals four manuscripts that he coauthored. He is a member of both the Phi Kappa
Phi Honor Society and the American Chemical Society.
Walton has served as a chemistry tutor and participated on both the cross country
and track teams at Millersville, earning recognition as a Pennsylvania State Athletic
Conference (PSAC) Scholar Athlete. He plans to pursue a Ph.D and to teach chemistry.
Catalano of Joppa, Md., who is president of Clarion University’s Student Government
Association, will receive her undergraduate degree in molecular biology/biotechnology,
along with a minor in pre-medicine. She has earned a 3.96 GPA while at Clarion. She
has received more than a dozen academic and athletic scholarships, and also earned
PSAC Scholar Athlete recognition as a member of the women’s basketball team.
She has participated in a variety of research projects, including the Undergraduate
Research Experience for Undergraduates at Colorado State University, and has had several
of her articles published. She participated in Clarion University Community Service
Day last fall and was a participant and team captain in Clarion’s Relay for Life for
four years and volunteered for three years with the Special Olympics of Northwestern
Pennsylvania, among her community activities. She plans to go to medical school to
become an orthopedic surgeon.
Zimmerman of Mechanicsburg will earn her undergraduate degree in special education/elementary
education. She has earned a 3.99 GPA at Bloomsburg. She has received several scholarships
and was a presenter last fall at the National Collegiate Honors Council Conference
held in Phoenix, Ariz. She also participated in the Cameroon Urban Practicum, where
she had the opportunity to teach third- and fifth-grade children from poor farming
families in the west Central African nation.
She is a member of the Association for Positive Behavior Support, where she was part
of an international forum to advance the application of positive behavior support
among diverse populations. She has participated in the Best Buddies program, is a
Ronald McDonald House volunteer and organized Project Linus, which helped raise money
for materials to make fleece blankets for children staying in local hospitals. She
plans to get a job teaching children with emotional and behavioral difficulties.
The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher
education in the Commonwealth, with nearly 120,000 students. The 14 PASSHE universities
offer degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. About 500,000
PASSHE alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.
The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg,
Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery
Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. PASSHE also operates branch campuses
in Clearfield, Freeport, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including
the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg.