Daily Brief

Small Business Administration Visits Kutztown University and Local Small Businesses

Representatives from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Eastern Pennsylvania District Office recently visited Kutztown University and the Kutztown community to engage with small businesses supported by the Kutztown University Small Business Development Center. The SBA delegation included Steve Dixel, district director, Michael Kane, deputy district director, Kimberly Stout and Lynn Loaisa. University representatives accompanying the visit included Chali Nondo, associate dean, Carl J. Sheperis, vice provost and dean of graduate studies, and Lori Lentz, director of extended learning in the Vice Provost's office. Kutztown University SBDC graduate assistants Emily Deneen, Soufiyane Belyamani and Valerie Deneen also participated. As part of the visit, the group toured the manufacturing facility of Paul Wagner Paul, founder of The PROgram, a wholesale supplier specializing in frozen fruit, and owner of Dewy Meadow Foods, Inc., located in Kutztown, Pa. The visit included a walkthrough of the company's pie shell manufacturing operations. Robert Kieke, business consultant with the Kutztown University SBDC, serves as Paul Wagner Paul’s primary consultant and has worked closely with him on business growth and operational planning. In addition, multiple KUSBDC graduate assistants and interns have collaborated with Wagner through ongoing applied projects, reflecting the Center's hands-on consulting model and experiential learning approach. The visit highlighted the impact of entrepreneurship in rural Pennsylvania, the importance of small businesses in the Kutztown community and the value of cross-departmental collaboration across Kutztown University. It also underscored the role of the SBDC in supporting workforce upskilling, manufacturing growth and the development of the next generation of business leaders.

Rachael Wolfe, Kutztown Small Business Development Center

Your Year-End Gift Creates Golden Opportunities

This holiday season, the most meaningful gift you can make is one that has the power to change lives. Your year-end support helps make education possible for KU students. To explore ways to give or support KU's greatest needs, visit the Kutztown University Foundation online. Make your tax-deductible gift before Wednesday, Dec. 31 online, via mail or by phone. Contact us at together@kuf.or​g to learn more.

KU Foundation

Record Five Football Golden Bears Receive All-America Honors

Brandon Hile and Ryan Schernecke captured three All-America honors apiece and five Kutztown University football student-athletes were recognized in total as the Associated Press (AP), American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and Division 2 Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) each announced their 2025 All-America teams. Hile, a senior linebacker, and Schernecke, a redshirt senior offensive tackle, were named All-America Second Team by all three organizations. Redshirt junior quarterback Judd Novak, redshirt senior offensive guard Billy Everitt and redshirt junior defensive end Freddie Retter captured D2CCA All-America Second Team spots.

Football All-America Teams

Sports Information

Women's Volleyball Quartet Receive CSC Academic All-District

Kutztown University women's volleyball was well represented on the Collegiate Sports Communicators (CSC) 2025 Academic All-District team, as senior Mallory Hoch and sophomores Emma Baldridge, Saige Thibodeaux and Grace White were announced as members of the squad. To be eligible for this award, student-athletes must possess at least a 3.50 GPA and must compete in 90 percent of the institution's matches or have started in at least 66 percent of the institution's matches.

Golden Bear quartet receive CSC Academic All-District

Sports Information