March 26, 2014

Student leaders from California, Clarion universities named to PASSHE’s Board of Governors

Contact: Kevin Hensil, khensil@passhe.edu

Getsy of Plum Borough and Garrett of Mercer will join Sara J. Dickson, the former president of the Clarion University Student Senate, on the 20-member Board, which has overall responsibility for planning and coordinating the development and operation of PASSHE, which comprises Pennsylvania’s 14 public universities. The Board establishes broad fiscal, personnel and educational policies under which the universities operate.

The three student members who serve on the Board are selected from among the sitting student government presidents at the PASSHE universities at the time a vacancy occurs. Once appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Senate, a student member may serve until he or she is graduated. The three student members participate in all discussions of the Board and have the same voting rights as all other members.

Getsy, a junior business administration and management/marketing major with a minor in leadership, has a 3.9 grade point average and expects to graduate from Cal U. in May 2015. She was elected SGA president last May and also is a member of the Student Association Inc. (SAI) Board of Directors. She served as Big Event Day of Service, AmeriCorps chair, last spring and has been a peer mentor since September 2012. She has attended numerous student leadership conferences, including the National Center for Student Leadership.

While in high school, Getsy achieved the rank of Colonel and served as a commander overseeing 200 cadets in Air Force Junior ROTC. She also earned 32 college credits in a variety of subject areas in advance of her college admission.

Garrett, a junior political science major with a 3.6 GPA, also expects to graduate in May 2015. He was elected University Senate president last May and is a member of the Clarion Students’ Association Board of Directors. He also is a Board member of the Newman Club and previously was secretary of the Campus Ministry Board.

He is the recipient of numerous scholarships and has attended various student leadership conferences, including the Students for Life National Conference and the National Youth Leadership State Conference.

PASSHE is the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth, enrolling about 112,000 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 and PASSHE Center City in Philadelphia.