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Spring 2009 Commencement Speaker Announced

Penn State Schuylkill will be holding graduation on Saturday, May 16, 2009 at 10:00 am on the Campus Green.  Dr. James T. Gallagher, Superintendent, Pottsville Area School District will be the keynote speaker.  Musical soloist will be Janelle Hoenich and Banner Bearers will be Dr. Gordon Nelson and Dr. Michael Gallis.  In case of inclement weather, the ceremony will take place in the John E. Morgan Auditorium.

During a career in education that has spanned 36 years in the Pottsville Area School District, Dr. James T. Gallagher taught accounting and mathematics at Pottsville Area High School during the first eight years of his career. In 1981 he became Vice Principal of the D.H.H. Lengel Middle School. By 1987 he was named the Principal of Pottsville Area High School, and in 1993 he became Superintendent of Schools in the district in which he spent his entire career. Dr. Gallagher continues to serve in that capacity and is currently enjoying his 16th year in his role of superintendent.

Dr. Gallagher has served, and continues to serve many civic organizations. He is a past member of the Pottsville Rotary Club, the Schuylkill County Executive Commission on Drug and Alcohol Prevention, the Historical and Architectural Review Board of Pottsville, and served as a member of the Boards of Directors of the Pottsville Free Public Library, the Schuylkill Chamber of Commerce, the Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center and the Family Services Agency. He currently serves as Chairman of the Civil Service Commission of Pottsville, as a member of the Penn State Schuylkill Advisory Board, the Board of Directors of the Schuylkill Health System, the Knights of Columbus, and the Ancient Order of Hibernians. Dr. Gallagher is a member of the St. Patrick Church where he serves as a lector.

A graduate of Penn State University, Dr. Gallagher earned his B.S. in Education, followed by a Masters degree from Bloomsburg University. In 1993 he earned his doctoral degree in Education from Temple University. Dr. Gallagher is married to the former Mantura Mazzuca, who is currently serving as Schuylkill County’s Chair of the Board of Commissioners. They have one son, James Dominick, who is a 2001 Princeton University graduate and a 2004 Georgetown University Law Center graduate. He is currently an associate attorney in the Washington D.C. office of Hughes Hubbard and Reed.