MANSFIELD, PA— The Mansfield University Alumni Association Society of Honors welcomed four new members during an induction ceremony held during Alumni Weekend, June 8-11.
Merle Stilwell, Elizabeth (Libby) Morse French, Rodney Pursell and Adam Murtland were inducted. The Society of Honors annually recognized outstanding alumni achievement in four categories.
Merle Stilwell received the Alumni Citation Award, which was established in 1969 and acknowledges exceptional contributions to society through professional, civic, and philanthropic work and leadership activities.
After graduating from Mansfield with a BS in Mathematics, History and English in 1956, Merle Stilwell earned his MAT from Columbia University in 1958 and a PhD from Cornell University in 1967, both in Mathematics and Education.
He taught mathematics from 1956-65 at Walt Whitman HS in South Huntington, NY. After earning his Doctorate, Stilwell moved to I
ndiana University of Pennsylvania as a mathematics professor, teaching there for 23 years. He served in many leadership positions in his department and university-wide at IUP while making many professional presentations.
Among his numerous civic contributions, Stilwell was chairman of Mass Care Program for the Red Cross in Indiana County for 12 years. For 20 years, he was either president or vice-president of the Grace Senior Community Living Corporation. Over the past seven years he have served actively on service committees for Indiana’s VFW Post #1989. Stilwell has held many leadership roles at Grace United Methodist Church for 42 years and served for more than 30 years as a volunteer mentor and tutor for primarily freshmen football players at !UP. He was also a volunteer football coach at IUP for five years and was the baseball coach for the Indiana Lions Junior Legion Baseball program for seven years. He continues as the chairman of the Lions Baseball Committee to this day. While at Mansfield, Stilwell earned eight letters in football and baseball, serving as baseball team captain in 1956. He was the Student Government president in 1955 and 56 and received the Kappa Delta Pi Senior Award and the M-Club Award in 1956.
Stilwell is married to Eleanor (Seely), a fellow 1956 Mansfield graduate.
Elizabeth (Libby) Morse French was honored with the Distinguished Educator Award, which was established in 
1986 and recognizes outstanding service, dedication, and leadership to education.
French received her BS in Elementary Education in 1972 and went on to earn a Master’s of Education in 1975 from Mansfield. She earned her Doctorate Degree at Widener University. Her other education accomplishments include Reading Specialist Certification from Penn State- Harrisburg and Principal and Special Education Certifications from Immaculata University.
French is an Assistant Professor Emerita at Lebanon Valley College (LVC) in Annville, PA. She has been responsible for teaching special education courses and supervising student teachers. Though retired, she continues to serve at LVC with involvement in various student activities and student instruction. French taught in both private and public school education for over 30 years. She has participated on a state committee for on-line teaching, published in the Global Education Review Journal, written a book review for the Journal of the Assembly for Expanded Perspectives on Learning and has made presentations to various education venues.
French established two local chapters of international honor societies at LVC; Kappa Delta Pi and Delta Alpha Pi. She is a member of the Council for Exceptional Children, National Association of Professional Women, Green Dot and Lebanon County Educational Honor Society.
On a personal note, she is also an active member of her church and is currently beginning a children’s book writing project.
She is married to Major General Robert P. French (retired), also a 1972 Mansfield graduate.
Rodney Pursell was presented with the Elsie Burk Service Award, which was established in 1983 and recognizes outstanding leadership, loyalty, and service to Mansfield University. 
Pursell is a 1988 Mansfield graduate, earning a BA in Liberal Studies. He was a four year starter in football for the Mountaineers, earning AP All-American honors in 1986, as well as All-PSAC in 1985 and 86. He was the first recipient of the Frank Butsko Scholarship Award and was named team MVP in 1986. Pursell was inducted into the MU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1993 and in 2016 was named to the All-Era football team for 1980-2005. He is a member of Alpha Beta.
Pursell has served a member of the MU Alumni Board from 2006 to the present, serving on several committees and represented the Alumni Board and MU on many occasions.
In addition to Alumni Board, Pursell is a member of the Sprint Football Advisory Committee and the Alumni Athletic Hall of Fame Committee. In 2012, Pursell received the Austin Snyder Award from the MU football program. He established the Pursell Family Endowed Scholarship in 2013. Pursell is the 33rd recipient of the MU Presidential Coin of Excellence, receiving the honor in 2016.
Currently, he is president of Adam Meyer, Inc. and Pursell Storage Co, LLC in Bethlehem, PA.
Adam Murtland received the Outstanding Young Alumni Award, which was established in 1986 and is given for outstanding professional performance, achievements, 
and leadership to an alumnus who has graduated in the last 25 years.
Murtland is a 2012 Mansfield graduate with a BS in Business Administration. He will complete a Master’s in Digital Communication and Media/Multimedia from Southern New Hampshire University in 2017.
Murtland was named assistant director for Digital Content at Cornell University (NY) in December 2016.
From February 2014 until accepting the position at Cornell, he served as Digital and Electronic Media manager in the Department of Marketing at Mansfield. He worked on the production of major university marketing initiatives, including web and broadcast video, promotional photography, and web and print publications. Murtland was a member a team that won a Bronze Cuppie Award for Television Commercial Production in 2016.
He was Admissions Marketing Coordinator at MU for a year before joining the Department of Marketing. During his four years as a student at MU, Murtland was the principal photographer and videographer for the Sports Information Department. Murtland is the 35th recipient of the MU Presidential Coin of Excellence, receiving the honor in 2016.
He is also the owner of Adam Murtland Productions, a freelance production company specializing in photo and video for business and personal clients.
The MU Alumni Association seeks nominations for the Society of Honors each year. For more information on the Society of Honors and the Alumni Association, go to alumni.mansfield.edu