Aidan La Penta wins Syed R. Ali-Zaidi Award Aidan La Penta ’24 NEWS NOTES Pennsylvania Air National Guard Staff Sgt. received the Syed R. Ali-Zaidi Award for Academic Excellence from the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. The Board of Governors honored La Penta during its quarterly meeting and presented him with a $2,500 award. La Penta majored in Information Technology with a 3.9 GPA. He also earned a cybersecurity certificate in the criminal justice program. As a cable and antenna technician, La Penta redesigned an inspection process to improve efficiency, making it 20% faster. Additionally, as a tower rescue trainer, La Penta teaches tower climbing rescue procedures to other National Guard members. KU professor, Schuylkill Valley principal win national award Dr. Meganlyn Norris, assistant professor, Elementary, Middle Level, Library and Technologies Education (pictured at left), and Dr. Shannon O’Donnell, principal, Schuylkill Valley Elementary School, won the Exemplary P-20 Boundary Spanning award from the National Association for School-University Partnerships. This competitive national award recognizes those who are exemplary at building and sustaining partnerships between schools and universities. Norris and O’Donnell worked hand in hand to connect university research with classroom practices, creating opportunities for teachers to grow professionally and for university students to gain hands-on experience. They have been instrumental in the success of KU’s Teacher Leadership Academy, a program where educators earn an instructional coaching endorsement and incorporate their new learnings immediately into daily practice. Perkinses honored for tradition of philanthropy Bonita B. Perkins ’68 and Charles O. Perkins ’68 were presented with Kutztown University President’s Medals for their leadership and commitment to the university through decades of philanthropy and support. The Perkinses have supported KU through giving for 37 years, including each of the last 22 years. They created the Burke Perkins Endowed Scholarship and contribute to the Ladies Tea Endowed Scholarship, earning their membership in the George B. Hatcher Society at the KU Foundation. They are members of the Golden Bear Athletics Club, 1866 Giving Challenge Champions Fund, Bears Band Together Emergency Fund, Class of 1968 Endowed Scholarship, and the Football Legacy Club. They co-chaired the foundation’s annual fund in 1998 and served on the executive committee for KU’s capital campaign in 2008. 8 TOWER | FALL 2025
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