Meet the Board
Here is the current board for the Triangle Chapter of the Penn State Alumni Association
President | Brian Shaunessy
Brian joined the Triangle Penn State Alumni Board in June 2015 and finished out the term of the Social Chair. In June 0f 2016 he was elected as Vice President and set up four Career Development events in 2017 & 2018 which averaged 30 people per event. Since 2020 he was the Student Relations Chair coordinating the application and reviewing process for the Triangle Chapter of the Penn State Alumni Association Scholarship in 2020 and 2021. Brian has been a Project Manager at MetLife since 2012 and relocated to the Raleigh area in 2014.
Vice President | Drew Boesel
Drew joined the Penn State Triangle chapter in 2019 and started the position as Vice President three years later. He is a resident of Durham but is active throughout the Triangle and Triad communities. Drew is a proud graduate of the Smeal College of Business where he studied management and international business with a minor in Japanese. After working in Corporate Finance for many years at Sony, he now works in aerospace as Head of Finance for Piedmont Aviation. In his spare time, Drew enjoys hiking around the state, supporting Penn State athletics, traveling, and spending quality time with his wife, Poonam (also a PSU Alum) and their adorable Staffie, Daphne (adopted PSU alum).
Secretary | Amy Penner
For the 2022/2023 year, I am honored to be your local alumni chapter secretary. As a marketing graduate of Penn State (’00), I started my career in hospitality, working for Disney and Hyatt Resorts (in sales). I left the hospitality industry in 2005 for real estate and continue to run my own real estate business today. While living in Scottsdale, AZ, I served on the board of the Phoenix Alumni Chapter for four years. I am married (to a Purdue grad) and we have two very active boys. I enjoy traveling, reading, serving at my church and playing/watching sports. WE ARE!
Student Services & Game Day Czar | Steve Ottone
’73 graduate of West Chester Henderson High, West Chester, PA
PSU ’77 BS Forest Products; ’79 MS Forest Resources
Married Janet Schaefer; ’78 BS Microbiology in August of ’79. Yes, we’ve been married for 43
years. Also 43 years working as a technical service person in the paper industry. Have lived in Phoenixville, PA, Naperville, IL, Highland Mills, NY, Dover DE, and Cary, NC. Cary since 1991.
Current job duties: develop and implement alternative paper packaging into the food service market that’s fully recyclable, biodegradable, and compostable. Yep, this is a step toward a more sustainable world. Imagine being able to throw a coffee cup into a standard recycling bin! Started with the Triangle Chapter in 1999; back when the game day parties were at O’Mulligans. Loved the family-like spirit of those events from day 1. Started as the halftime host in 2014; that stirring Croke Park, Dublin, Ireland game against Central Florida and also James Franklin’s first game as PSU head coach. The game was won on the last play, as Sam Ficken connected for his fourth field goal of the day. That first halftime discussion centered on famous PSU QBs who wore #14; the number that sophomore Christian Hackenberg was wearing on game day.
Membership Chair | Ken Devore
1980 Penn State ChE graduate, with two years at Behrend College. Retired in 2020 after 40 years with Hercules Incorporated and Eastman Chemical Company, with multi-year assignments in Coastal Georgia, in the Tidewater region of Virginia, in the Pittsburgh area and in Northeast Alabama. Moved to Garner in August 2020. My wife, Diana, and I were married in 1982 and we have three children.
Social/Activities Chair | Lisa Staniec
Lisa joined the Triangle Penn State Alumni Board in June 2022 and was appointed as Social Chair. Lisa graduated from Penn State with a double major in Psychology and Italian with a minor in Human Development and Family Studies. Lisa has been a Certified Child Life Specialist since August 2021 and works in the Department of Communication at The University of North Carolina as an Administrative Support Assistant. Lisa got her Master’s from East Carolina with a degree in Human Development and Family Science with a Concentration in Child Life in August 2021. She relocated to Raleigh in October.
Communications Chair | Robert Johnson
Robert Johnson joined the Penn State Alumni Association’s Triangle chapter in June of 2022. Robert graduated from Penn State in December 2019 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Meteorology and Atmospheric Science with a concentration in weather forecasting and communication. He also holds a minor in Energy, Business and Finance (EBF). Originally from Philadelphia, Robert moved to Raleigh in February 2020 to become the weekend evening meteorologist for ABC11 WTVD — a position he maintains today. When he's not forecasting the next storm, you can find him listening to music, exploring new coffee shops or going - as they say in Philly - "down the shore".
Philanthropy Chair | Emily Passauer
Emily graduated in 2013 with a Bachelor's of Science in Agricultural Sciences. While she was a student, Emily, like so many others, had a strong passion for THON and supporting the Four Diamonds Fund through her involvement in various Dancer Relation committees and Lion Scouts. Emily continues her support of THON as she joined as the philanthropy chair shortly after moving to Raleigh in 2020.
Brian joined the Triangle Penn State Alumni Board in June 2015 and finished out the term of the Social Chair. In June 0f 2016 he was elected as Vice President and set up four Career Development events in 2017 & 2018 which averaged 30 people per event. Since 2020 he was the Student Relations Chair coordinating the application and reviewing process for the Triangle Chapter of the Penn State Alumni Association Scholarship in 2020 and 2021. Brian has been a Project Manager at MetLife since 2012 and relocated to the Raleigh area in 2014.
Vice President | Drew Boesel
Drew joined the Penn State Triangle chapter in 2019 and started the position as Vice President three years later. He is a resident of Durham but is active throughout the Triangle and Triad communities. Drew is a proud graduate of the Smeal College of Business where he studied management and international business with a minor in Japanese. After working in Corporate Finance for many years at Sony, he now works in aerospace as Head of Finance for Piedmont Aviation. In his spare time, Drew enjoys hiking around the state, supporting Penn State athletics, traveling, and spending quality time with his wife, Poonam (also a PSU Alum) and their adorable Staffie, Daphne (adopted PSU alum).
Secretary | Amy Penner
For the 2022/2023 year, I am honored to be your local alumni chapter secretary. As a marketing graduate of Penn State (’00), I started my career in hospitality, working for Disney and Hyatt Resorts (in sales). I left the hospitality industry in 2005 for real estate and continue to run my own real estate business today. While living in Scottsdale, AZ, I served on the board of the Phoenix Alumni Chapter for four years. I am married (to a Purdue grad) and we have two very active boys. I enjoy traveling, reading, serving at my church and playing/watching sports. WE ARE!
Student Services & Game Day Czar | Steve Ottone
’73 graduate of West Chester Henderson High, West Chester, PA
PSU ’77 BS Forest Products; ’79 MS Forest Resources
Married Janet Schaefer; ’78 BS Microbiology in August of ’79. Yes, we’ve been married for 43
years. Also 43 years working as a technical service person in the paper industry. Have lived in Phoenixville, PA, Naperville, IL, Highland Mills, NY, Dover DE, and Cary, NC. Cary since 1991.
Current job duties: develop and implement alternative paper packaging into the food service market that’s fully recyclable, biodegradable, and compostable. Yep, this is a step toward a more sustainable world. Imagine being able to throw a coffee cup into a standard recycling bin! Started with the Triangle Chapter in 1999; back when the game day parties were at O’Mulligans. Loved the family-like spirit of those events from day 1. Started as the halftime host in 2014; that stirring Croke Park, Dublin, Ireland game against Central Florida and also James Franklin’s first game as PSU head coach. The game was won on the last play, as Sam Ficken connected for his fourth field goal of the day. That first halftime discussion centered on famous PSU QBs who wore #14; the number that sophomore Christian Hackenberg was wearing on game day.
Membership Chair | Ken Devore
1980 Penn State ChE graduate, with two years at Behrend College. Retired in 2020 after 40 years with Hercules Incorporated and Eastman Chemical Company, with multi-year assignments in Coastal Georgia, in the Tidewater region of Virginia, in the Pittsburgh area and in Northeast Alabama. Moved to Garner in August 2020. My wife, Diana, and I were married in 1982 and we have three children.
Social/Activities Chair | Lisa Staniec
Lisa joined the Triangle Penn State Alumni Board in June 2022 and was appointed as Social Chair. Lisa graduated from Penn State with a double major in Psychology and Italian with a minor in Human Development and Family Studies. Lisa has been a Certified Child Life Specialist since August 2021 and works in the Department of Communication at The University of North Carolina as an Administrative Support Assistant. Lisa got her Master’s from East Carolina with a degree in Human Development and Family Science with a Concentration in Child Life in August 2021. She relocated to Raleigh in October.
Communications Chair | Robert Johnson
Robert Johnson joined the Penn State Alumni Association’s Triangle chapter in June of 2022. Robert graduated from Penn State in December 2019 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Meteorology and Atmospheric Science with a concentration in weather forecasting and communication. He also holds a minor in Energy, Business and Finance (EBF). Originally from Philadelphia, Robert moved to Raleigh in February 2020 to become the weekend evening meteorologist for ABC11 WTVD — a position he maintains today. When he's not forecasting the next storm, you can find him listening to music, exploring new coffee shops or going - as they say in Philly - "down the shore".
Philanthropy Chair | Emily Passauer
Emily graduated in 2013 with a Bachelor's of Science in Agricultural Sciences. While she was a student, Emily, like so many others, had a strong passion for THON and supporting the Four Diamonds Fund through her involvement in various Dancer Relation committees and Lion Scouts. Emily continues her support of THON as she joined as the philanthropy chair shortly after moving to Raleigh in 2020.
