A new class was inducted into Baldwin-Whitehall School District’s Distinguished Highlander Alumni Hall of Fame, which was created to honor the significant personal and professional achievements of district alumni.
The latest honorees will become part of a permanent exhibition at Baldwin High School and were recognized at the Baldwin-Whitehall Educational Foundation Gala on March 21 at South Hills Country Club.
“While their achievements and impacts are diverse, our inductees represent one common idea: a future of unlimited potential for each of our current students,” said Dr. Randal A. Lutz, Superintendent of Schools for the Baldwin-Whitehall School District.
“The program recognizes those who have achieved significant professional success and rendered exceptional service to our communities,” said Erik Arroyo, president of the Baldwin-Whitehall Educational Foundation. “We are delighted to celebrate people who have defined the district’s past and will inspire our district community long into the future.”
Dr. Scott T. Chapman
Dr. Scott T. Chapman, who graduated from BHS in 1977, was honored for his highly impactful 40-year academic career as a mathematics professor, lecturer, author or co-author of more than 120 publications and editor or co-editor of five books. In 2020, he was named editor-in-chief of Communications in Algebra, one of the world’s largest algebra-only journals.
Chapman has always stayed true to his roots at Baldwin High School. In 2012, in his first editorial as editor-in-chief of the world’s most-read mathematics journal, The American Mathematical Monthly, he fondly remembered his father, Morris E. Chapman, who taught mathematics at Baldwin High School for 30 years. During his inaugural year as that publication’s editor-in-chief, Chapman instituted purple and white as the journal’s colors.
In addition to his research, Chapman has demonstrated extraordinary dedication to mentoring students. Through site grants from the National Science Foundation’s Research Experiences for Undergraduates in Mathematics Program, he has directed the summer research of more than 55 students, many of whom have gone on to achieve remarkable success. This includes 30 students who have earned Ph.D.s, and one (Nathan Kaplan) who was awarded the 2008 AMS-MAA-SIAM Morgan Prize for outstanding undergraduate research in the United States.
Chapman’s estimable career began in 1987 when he became an assistant professor of mathematics at Trinity University in San Antonio. He was promoted to Associate Professor in 1993 and to Full Professor in 1999. In 2003, he became the second recipient of Trinity University’s faculty-wide award for Distinguished Scholarship or Research.
In 2008, Chapman accepted a position as Full Professor and Scholar in Residence at Sam Houston State University. In 2016, he was elected to be a Fellow of the American Mathematical Society and is currently the only mathematician in the Texas State system to hold that title. In 2018, he was designated by SHSU as Distinguished Professor of Mathematics and Statistics. In 2019, he was designated by the Texas State University System as a Regents’ Professor.
Dr. Chapman earned his undergraduate degree from Wake Forest University, a master’s degree in mathematics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of North Texas. His wife Lenora is the Vice President for Finance and Administration at the University of the Incarnate Word. They have two sons, Jonathan and Cameron.
Walter D’Alessio (posthumously)
Iconic urban developer Walter D’Alessio (1934-2024) grew up on a poultry farm in Mars, Pa., but became a transformative influence in Philadelphia’s revitalization and growth for over half a century.
After graduating from BHS in 1951, D’Alessio earned a bachelor’s degree in landscape architecture from Penn State University and a master’s degree in city planning from the University of Illinois.
During his time at the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority, including serving as its executive director, D’Alessio worked on dozens of large-scale projects, including the creation and development of Society Hill, Independence Mall and Washington Square West.
He then spent 44 years at Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation, 34 of them as board chairman, where he grew the organization, led projects including the development of The Gallery shopping mall, and advocated for the commuter tunnel that unified the city’s Regional Rail system.
In addition to his development work, D’Alessio shared his knowledge with future urban developers by co-teaching a course at Wharton, serving as an adjunct professor at the University of Pennsylvania, and also serving as an advisor to the Fox School of Business at Temple University.
A lifelong civic contributor, D’Alessio served on dozens of boards in Philadelphia, including the American Red Cross, Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce and WHYY.
In 2005, D’Alessio helped found Fred’s Footsteps, the only program that provides direct financial assistance to support families of medically fragile children in the Philadelphia region.
Guy Junker
A 1974 graduate of Baldwin High School, Guy Junker enjoyed a 44-year career as one of the most recognizable voices in the 21st-century Pittsburgh sports scene. Along the way, he covered four Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl appearances and five Pittsburgh Penguins’ Stanley Cup wins.
Junker is perhaps best known for co-hosting “Sportsbeat” with Stan Savran for 13 years on KBL/Fox Sports Pittsburgh, which became the longest-running sports show in Pittsburgh television history. He also worked at WTAE TV twice — first from 1984 to 1990, then again as sports director from 2006 until his retirement in 2022.
Junker has won eight Emmy Awards, including seven for Best Sports Series during his 23-year run as the writer and host of “The Penn State Football Story.” In 2001, he was honored with the National Football Foundation’s Chris Schenkel Award for coverage of college football. He also won a Golden Quill Award as writer and host of “Steelers Extra” on WTAE TV. In 2022, Junker was inducted into the Emmy Silver Circle Society by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
Since 2022, Junker has served as the Public Address announcer for the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park. He also appears on the DVE morning show every Thursday and hosts a monthly Penn State Hockey TV show during the winter.
In addition to playing JV baseball at Baldwin High School, Junker played college baseball at Penn State Greater Allegheny. He and his wife Darla have been married for 33 years and are the proud parents of three children — Emilee, Dylan and Natalee.
Timothy Knavish
Timothy Knavish graduated from Baldwin High School in 1983. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Pittsburgh.
Knavish initially joined PPG in 1987 in an engineering role in the former flat glass business and was based at the corporate headquarters in Pittsburgh. He advanced through multiple engineering, supervisory and management roles before joining PPG’s architectural coatings business in 2000 as plant manager for the East Point, Ga., manufacturing facility.
In the decades that followed, Knavish rose through PPG’s executive ranks while relocating to serve in roles headquartered in Michigan and Australia before returning to Pittsburgh in October 2017 as senior vice president, industrial coatings. After subsequent appointments and promotions, including responsibility for PPG’s global automotive refinish business, architectural coatings businesses in the U.S., Canada and the EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) region, and PPG’s Latin America region, Knavish became PPG’s chief operating officer in March 2022.
Tim Knavish was named president and CEO of PPG effective Jan. 1, 2023, and in October 2023, he became chairman. He has served on PPG’s executive committee since 2019 and he joined the company’s board of directors in 2022.
Knavish currently serves on the boards of the American Coatings Association and the Allegheny Conference on Community Development as vice chair. He is also a director on the board of Rockwell Automation and a member of the Business Council. Knavish previously served on the boards of Junior Achievement of Western Pennsylvania and the United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania.
Rear Admiral Susan Orsega
Susan Orsega, Deputy Assistant of Defense for Health Services, Policy and Oversight, graduated from Baldwin High School in 1986. She is a highly accomplished senior health policy leader at the Department of Defense, retired at the rank of United States Public Health Service 2-star Admiral. For more than 35 years, she has successfully led teams to solve complex healthcare issues, establish sustainable programs and improve the health of people around the world.
In her current role, she leads health policy formulation and program oversight for the Military Health System clinical policies and programs, providing medical information and advice to Congress and senior officials in other government agencies.
Previously, Orsega acted as Senior Advisor for the Assistant Secretary for Health & Surgeon General. Prior to that, she was appointed Acting Surgeon General by the President of the United States from January through March 2021 during the height of the covid-19 epidemic, where she oversaw the largest historic vaccination implementation across the U.S.
Orsega was also previously appointed by the Health and Human Services Secretary as the HHS Smoking Cessation Coordinator for a strategic plan aligned to the White House Cancer Moon Shot effort to reduce the death rate from cancer by at least 50% over 25 years.
As the co-author of two books and over 30 research papers. Orsega has been instrumental in sharing crucial health and medical knowledge related to combating influenza, HIV and Ebola.
Orsega has received honorary Doctorate of Science Degrees from Uniformed Services University and Georgetown University. She has also received 17 National Honors and more than 20 Uniformed Service Individual Honor and Unit Awards, including Distinguished Service Medal, Surgeon General’s Medallion and National Defense Service and Global War on Terrorism Medals.
John F. Slater
A 1971 graduate of BHS, John F. Slater has served his community for more than four decades with distinction as a funeral director and supervisor of John F. Slater Funeral Home, providing compassionate guidance to countless families during their most difficult moments.
Slater began working at the family-owned funeral home in 1969, where he cut grass and trimmed trees on the grounds during summers in high school and college. He graduated from the College of Wooster in 1975 and the Pittsburgh Institute of Mortuary Science in 1976, and became a licensed funeral director in 1977.
As a leading member of the Allegheny County Funeral Directors Association, the National Funeral Directors Association, Brentwood Business Owners Association, Economic Development South and Brentwood Baldwin Whitehall Chamber of Commerce, Slater has consistently demonstrated a deep sense of service, generosity and civic responsibility.
In 2018, Slater further enriched the community by opening The Whitehall House, an elegant and welcoming place for families and businesses to host meetings, events and celebrations.
John F. Slater and his wife Paula reside in Bethel Park and have three sons, John, Andrew, and Luke; three daughters-in-law, Tammy, Kim, and Adrianna; and six grandchildren.