BW names 2021 Alumni Merit Award winners

Five accomplished alumni are the recipients of a Baldwin Wallace Alumni Merit Award, the highest honor conferred upon a graduate by the university. The award celebrates outstanding alumni for their achievements and service to their profession, community and alma mater. This year's recipients include:

John Farrell '60
Bachelor of Science in Chemistry

Farrell earned his doctorate from the University of Pittsburgh in 1964 and began working at Franklin & Marshall College (F&M) in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the next year. In his time at F&M, he worked with two of his colleagues, Rick Moog and James Spencer, to develop an active learning pedagogy called Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) in 1990. The method has since expanded to several STEM disciplines and has been adopted at many colleges and high schools across America, including BW. The seventh edition of Farrell's landmark textbook, "Chemistry: A Guided Inquiry," (co-authored with Rick Moog) was published in 2017.

Jaclyn "Jackie" Lee '12
Bachelor's and Master's of Business Administration in Accounting
Minor in Entrepreneurship

Lee is an audit manager for Wells Fargo Bank, following public accounting positions at Deloitte LLP and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. A licensed CPA in North Carolina and Ohio, she is also a Certified Financial Crime Specialist, a Certified Fraud Examiner and a Certified Internal Auditor. Her professional affiliations include the National Association of Black Accountants. In the community, she serves as a domestic violence court advocate and on the boards of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners and the Children and Family Services Center of Charlotte. Lee is an avid traveler and sports fan and enjoys maintaining ties with the BW School of Business.

Deborah "Debbie" O. Lucas '79
Bachelor of Science in Biology
Minor in Chemistry

Lucas earned a Master of Public Health degree in epidemiology at the University of Michigan. For more than 40 years, she has advanced clinical research, healthcare quality and safety, and technology and methodology development for healthcare-related data. She has earned national recognition for the publication of her innovations in disease self-management programs for patients with pediatric obesity, Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and asthma. She is currently president of Bridging Care LLC. In the community, she co-founded Camp China, an annual heritage program for families with children from China; volunteered with Bridge to the Nations, advancing agriculture and healthcare service projects in Northwest China; and served as a PTA president. She is a member of the Wake Education Partnership and the Duke Primary Care Patient and Family Advisors Council.

Brittany (Cioffoletti) Marino '08, MAEd '13
Bachelor of Arts in English and Master of Arts in Education
Minor in Education

Marino is a middle school teacher in her hometown of North Ridgeville, Ohio, teaching seventh-grade language arts. She also leads the grades 5-8 language arts team as department chair. She serves on the executive board of the Ohio Middle Level Association (OMLA), which has recognized her efforts in making positive contributions to school spirit and culture. She also has presented at the annual OMLA state conference on topics related to curriculum and culture. She has maintained connections with BW, including speaking at the conference of Teaching Together, a BW student organization.

Chisomo Selemani '09
Bachelor of Arts in Communication Sciences and Disorders
Minor in Psychology and Spanish

Selemani earned her master's degree in communication sciences and disorders from Case Western Reserve University. She is a certified speech-language pathologist, an associate professor in BW's communication sciences and disorders program, clinical supervisor in the BW Speech Clinic and coordinator of the celebrated BW-Z study abroad program to Zambia, Africa, for speech-language pathology students. She is also a collaborator across campus for BW's first-year experience program and diversity and inclusion initiatives. She has presented at national and international conferences. Her service to the community includes the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association; board member of The Treehouse, a nonprofit in Bedford, Ohio; and hosting her podcast, "Integrated Rhythm."