Thiel Happenings

Finance and investment professional returns to Thiel College Board of Trustees

Thiel College, a leading independent college in western Pennsylvania, announces that Paul Runge ’70 has returned to its Board of Trustees.

+ Read the full story in the newsroom

Former Eastman Kodak company executive rejoins Thiel College Board of Trustees

Thiel College, a leading independent college in western Pennsylvania, announces that John Barr ’70 has returned to its Board of Trustees.

+ Read the full story in the newsroom

• Learn more at Salvation Army.

For more information, email Cynthia Lawrence.

• Register a person or group to ring the bell.

Giving Than...ks with Panhel

Join members of Greek organizations from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Thursday outside the TC Cafe for a sweet time and pie Than Oo and other special guests to donate to a great cause! 

We are accepting non perishable food items or a small donation to “pie” one of the three guests

It's all for a good cause, and who doesn't love a good pie toss? Come for the pies, stay for the smiles, and help us
make a difference!

CYS Angel Tree gift tags are available 

The Mercer County Children and Youth Services angel gift tags are hung on the wall outside of AC 256 and near the mail room in the Howard Miller Student Center. Please stop by to pick one (or more) up today! They will be up until they are all gone. These tags represent child in foster care over this holiday season. The tags include information about age, sex, clothing size, and gift wish list of each child.

Gifts should be brought back in bags (not wrapped) with the angel tag attached. Kelsey will help collect gifts this year in AC 256 or you can drop them off in the Student Life office area in the HMSC.

The gifts need to be returned no later than Dec. 1.

This is a great opportunity to give back—get your family/friends involved or maybe even a class! Black Friday is just around the corner...happy shopping and giving!

Zumba class free for TC students and staff

Zumba with Deanna Loreno is held from 6-7 p.m. Mondays at the First United Methodist Church on 73 Clinton St. in Greenville. Please sign in with the instructor. It is free for Thiel students and staff.

Pictured on the left (from left to right) are Emily Baker ’22, Brooke Griffith ’26, Cooper Riley ’28, Campus Store manager Nalini Downing, Lillianna Briscoe ’24 M.S.’26, Deanna Loreno (Zumba Instructor), Danielle Ficeti ’25.

Thiel Scenes: Thiel Community members participate in Veterans Tribute Workout

This week’s photo essay was taken on Sunday, Nov. 10, the day before Veterans Day, members of the Thiel community gathered at Stoeber Field at Alumni Stadium to participate in a Veterans Tribute Workout. Participants braved the rain to complete a Murph-style workout.

The Office of Communications and Marketing is collecting photos that showcase the beauty and spirit of campus life. All faculty and staff members are invited to share their favorite moments from across campus!

Whether it’s a stunning landscape, a memorable interaction with students, or even a rare glimpse of the elusive woodchucks that roam campus, we’d love to see what you capture.

📸 Submit your photos to tnotes@thiel.edu and help us highlight the scenes that make Thiel College special!

The Fall/Winter Bell is available to read online

Look back at Dome Day 2024

Student News

• Schedule an appointment!

PA students collect donations for Mercy Center for Women

The PA students gathered items to donate to the Mercy Center for Women as part of the PSPA (Pennsylvania Society of Physician Associates) Annual Charity. Mercy Center for Women provides safe and supportive opportunities for housing, education and other support services for men, women and children facing homelessness. Faculty attended the conference and all the items were brought to the annual conference in Erie, PA.

ECE 335 students engaging with members of the community

Students in ECE 335 students engaged with members of the community throughout this semester. 

Earlier in the semester, Calli Shekell’s Science Methods students went to Pymatuning State Park to begin their training toward their certification in the Project Learning Tree and Project Wild curricula. Interacting with Jared McGary, Megan McDowell and Stacey Marendt of the DCNR and Kelcy Marini of the Mercer County Conservation District, students were trained on the curricula and then went kayaking on the lake. Then, to implement what they learned, they taught lessons from Project Learning Tree to local third graders. The third graders were very impressed with Stamm Hall and want to have all of their classes there. 

Plans are in the works to bring the third graders back to campus later this semester to learn from our Science Methods students who want to teach lessons from the Project Wild curriculum.

Students in the methods course include Jake Badger ’27, Ali Baker ’26, Brooke McKinney ’26, Hannah Miller ’26, Marley Chapman ’25, Carina Loreno ’27, Haley Chiappini ’26, Autumn Hendry ’26, Allie Kidder ’26, Savannah Adams ’26, Carolyn Ruffing ’27 and Amy Batt ’27.

Local pharmacy owners discuss their entrepreneur experience

On November 6, Bretton Walberg, owner of Walberg Family Pharmacies, visited the entrepreneur seminar class to discuss his experience as an entrepreneur in the pharmacy industry. His wife, Stacey, who also plays a major role in the business, had dinner with our class as well.

For class on November 6, 2024, Bretton Walberg came to present his story. He was born and raised in Greenville, where his father was a high school science teacher, but also an entrepreneur at heart. In 1976, his parents bought an independent pharmacy that was on the brink of bankruptcy, and his father played a crucial role in turning it around—Chaerin Ryu ’25

In 1999, Bretton purchased his own pharmacy, and his wife, Stacey, helped with its marketing. He noted that his parents instilled a strong work ethic in him. Since then, he has continued to acquire more pharmacies and even bought a facility where he can produce large quantities of medicine for the community. —Lexi Brown ’26

One of the greatest challenges Walberg described was the gap between paying for medications upfront and receiving reimbursements from insurance companies, which can create cash flow issues. —Gianna Sprecace ’26

He currently owns 11 retail pharmacies in Pennsylvania and Ohio, including a central fill in Greenville PA, Transfer, Jamestown, Mercer, Sharon, New Castle, Linesville Petrolia, Clarion, etc. —Emily Ripple ’26

Beyond prescription filling, he emphasized the importance of automation, patient education, and community service in his business model, positioning his pharmacies as comprehensive healthcare providers. — Jaehee Lee ’25

He highlighted the importance of building relationships with customers and offering a level of service that goes beyond traditional retail pharmacy chains. —Dillon Belknap ’25

As they look ahead, they discuss recent economic challenges in pharmacy reimbursements and closures affecting larger pharmacy chains. Despite these pressures, the speaker credits their strategic foresight, adaptability, and commitment to serving their community for helping their business continue to thrive. —Yeeun Seo ’25

He emphasizes the need for innovation and adaptability in the pharmacy industry, particularly in response to challenges like declining reimbursements. Despite the focus on growth, the speaker maintains that the ultimate goal is to enhance community health rather than merely increase profits. —Minseo Kim ’25

Looking to the future, the speaker’s company is exploring partnerships with insurance companies and pharmaceutical manufacturers, including direct-to-consumer models like working with Eli Lilly to distribute medications. These ventures are part of a broader strategy to expand the business, improve patient care, and continue giving back to the community. —Daeun Lee ’25

They foresee AI complementing the pharmacy workforce, especially in today’s challenging hiring environment, where it can fill in for roles that are harder to staff, allowing pharmacists and technicians to focus more on direct patient interactions and high-value tasks. —Seungwoo Baek ’25

The largest challenge for him at first was cash flow, because insurance companies take 30-40 days to pay invoices, however, the pharmaceutical companies need to be paid every 17 days —Jordan Lang ’25

His biggest advice on how to help cash flow is making sure you have a line of credit even if you don’t need it now because you never know if there would be an emergency—Zachary Bergstresser ’25

Lessons Learned

• Your partners need you as much as you need them. —Lexi Brown ’26
• Find good people to work for you. —Lexi Brown ’26
• Ask for help when needed—Emily Ripple ’26
• Stay determined and keep an open mind, opportunities often arise. —Chaerin Ryu ’25
• The Value of a Strong Leadership Team: The speaker highlighted how building a competent and dedicated leadership team was essential for managing the complexities of a multi-location business. —Yeeun Seo ’25
• A proactive approach can improve customer satisfaction. —Minseo Kim ’25
• Businesses must continually innovate and adapt to changing environments. —Minseo Kim ’25
• As a business grows, it's crucial to bring in the right people and implement effective systems. —Daeun Lee ’25
• Automating processes and adopting innovative solutions, like robotic medication dispensing, can significantly improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance customer satisfaction —Daeun Lee ’25
• As the organization grew, adopting the EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System) highlighted the importance of effective management and team alignment, emphasizing that a solid organizational structure is key to sustainable growth. —Seungwoo Baek ’25
• Always innovate, never become complacent on how you do things, always look for better ways. —Dillon Belknap ’25
• Success is driven because of employee and community support. —Casey Yacos ’25
• Hard work pays off —Yianni Panagiotopoulos ’25

Dinner Dishing

• During dinner was a three-course meal which was concierge by Jordan Lang, she had dinner with Caesar salad, hand breaded chicken parmesan with spaghetti and roasted broccolis, and dessert was a blueberry cheesecake. — Emily Ripple ’26
• I had the opportunity to sit with new friends and special guest, Stacey Walberg. She was today’s guest’s wife. She tried to make the atmosphere comfortable, so we had good conversation over a delicious dinner. —Chaerin Ryu ’25
• I was the host for this meal, and I started it with a prayer. The meal started with a salad, then was followed by Parmesan Chicken, and ended with Blueberry Cheesecake —Jordan Lang ’25
• At dinner, I sat with Jordan, who was responsible for the dinner concierge. It was interesting to hear her thoughts on each course selection, which added context I often missed at previous dinners—Jaehee Lee ’25
• This time, the menu that Jordan prepared as a concierge was also excellent, but the most impressive menu was the blueberry cheesecake for dessert, which was as delicious as the food you get at an expensive café—Seungwoo Baek ’25
• Always dress for success. —Jordan Lang ’25
• Look for a niche before diversifying. — Jordan Lang ’25
• Best meal yet! —Dillon Belknap ’25
• I personally liked the chicken parm which had the perfect cut of chicken. The blueberry cake was also very good. AVI did an awesome job. —Yianni Panagiotopoulos ’25
• The blueberry cheesecake, which wrapped up the meal, has now joined my list of favorite desserts from this class. —Gianna Sprecace ’26