The Wright Center’s New Talent Acquisition Role

The Wright Center‘s Douglas Klamp’s plan to become a veterinarian was upended during a college trip in 1982 to southern Africa, where he saw stark injustice and soon discovered his life’s calling.

Klamp, who was then a Penn State University senior, was an eyewitness to how South Africa’s now-abolished system of racial segregation split the population into the haves and have-nots. In neighboring Lesotho, he was especially struck by rural Black residents’ “lack of access to health care.”

“There were not any health facilities for many, many miles,” he says. “And very few people had cars, so it would be a half-day or a day-long hike to get to a provider.”

Even before he flew home that summer, Klamp had decided to change his career path. He would become a physician.

Today, Dr. Douglas Klamp is a valued leader at The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education, where he remains as committed as he was four decades ago to the cause of expanding access to health care for low-income, rural, and other underserved populations.

Klamp, associate program director for Internal Medicine, treats patients and trains new physicians at The Wright Center’s primary and preventive care clinics. This year, he added the role of physician chair of resident and fellow talent acquisition.

In the newly created post, Klamp will help recruit top-quality medical school graduates who are a good fit for The Wright Center’s graduate medical education programs, looking especially for individuals with a heart for helping the underserved.

The task requires filtering through more than 5,000 applications each year and interviewing hundreds of candidates to fill only 80 available slots, an undertaking that requires considerable effort from all program directors and associate program directors.

The chosen physicians then work at The Wright Center’s training locations in Northeast Pennsylvania or one of its partner training sites across the nation. While embedded in those communities and serving patients, each doctor is also fulfilling the requirements of an accredited residency or fellowship program in disciplines such as internal medicine, family medicine, psychiatry, and geriatrics.

Klamp seems perfectly suited for the talent acquisition role because he embodies The Wright Center’s mission and ideals.

The nonprofit organization was founded in 1976 as the Scranton-Temple Residency Program with an inaugural class of six internal medicine residents. Today’s Wright Center trains about 250 residents and fellows each academic year, upholding a proud tradition of producing highly skilled and compassionate doctors, and helping to address workforce shortages in medically underserved areas across the U.S.

Those workforce shortages could get worse because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which strained the health care system and intensified burnout. But the outbreak also spotlighted the essential and at times heroic job performed by physicians.

National Doctors’ Day – observed each year on March 30 – pays tribute to all of the dedicated people who have chosen to devote years of study and training to become physicians. They contribute not only to individual lives, but also to the health of their communities.

“Some recognition of the amount of hard work, and the importance of the work, is appreciated,” says Klamp, a Waverly Township resident, husband, and father of two.

Klamp attended The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, one of only two students in his class of 110 who had not gone to private school, he says.

In the late 1990s, Dr. Robert Wright, the namesake founder of The Wright Center, convinced Klamp to move to this region to serve as associate program director of the Scranton-Temple Residency Program and founding medical director of its associated health center.

Klamp would later leave The Wright Center to take on other challenges. He ran a private practice in Scranton for about 17 years, before rejoining the nonprofit organization as a full-time employee in 2020.

Throughout Klamp’s career, he has traveled abroad repeatedly as part of volunteer medical and service-related trips. Among the destinations: Bolivia, Gambia, the Republic of Georgia, Guyana, Nicaragua, and Sudan.

During a two-month stint in Agra, India, he worked in a charity hospital where common maladies included tuberculosis, malaria, and intestinal worms. “We’d see 80 to 120 patients a day,” he says. On other trips, he primarily taught and lectured to doctors native to those areas.

No matter the location or task at hand, Klamp has found one thing constant about his profession ever since his first urge to enter the field: Being a primary care doctor continues to spark his humanitarian impulses.

“I still find reward,” he says, “in making people better: emotionally, physically, and financially, in terms of helping them gain access to the health care system without getting poor in the process.”

For information about The Wright Center, its services, and its mission-oriented physicians, visit www.TheWrightCenter.org.

Captions:

FOR PUBLICATION Operating Room in India

Dr. Douglas Klamp, left, assists doctors during an operation at a charity hospital in Agra, India, in 1991 as part of a program for the U.S. Medical Aid Foundation. Dr. Klamp recently added the additional role of physician chair of resident and fellow talent acquisition to help recruit top-quality medical school graduates for The Wright Center’s eight residency and fellowship programs.

FOR PUBLICATION Dr. Klamp with patient

Dr. Douglas Klamp, left, talks to a patient at one of The Wright Center for Community Health’s nine primary care practices in Northeast Pennsylvania. Dr. Klamp, a board-certified internal medicine physician, accepts adult patients ages 18 years of age and older at the Clarks Summit and Scranton practices.

FOR PUBLICATION Gambia

The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education’s Dr. Douglas Klamp has worked around the world to improve access to health care, including in the West African nation of Gambia. In 1993, he served as the group leader for Operation Crossroads Africa with fellow providers from Gambia and the United States.

FNCB Bank Donates $2,500 to the Keystone Mission

FNCB Bank, through the FNCB Bank Charitable Foundation, today announced a $2,500 donation to Keystone Mission for their Code Blue Emergency Shelter program.

The Code Blue Shelter is an emergency shelter that serves people who are homeless and who might otherwise remain unsheltered during periods of extreme winter weather throughout Lackawanna and Luzerne County. A “Code Blue” alert is issued when the forecast temperature, including wind chills, is expected to reach 20 degrees or lower, or a foot or more of snow, according to AccuWeather.

The Keystone Rescue Mission Donation is part of FNCB’s larger Community Caring initiative. As a true, local community bank, FNCB is making a difference through volunteerism, donations, and outreach programs.

Marywood University to Host Virtual Conference with Photographer

Marywood University’s art department will host a virtual talk with internationally renowned documentary photographer Jordi Barreras, titled “Already but not yet: A Photographic Analysis of Social Isolation in Contemporary Society,” based upon the artist’s highly acclaimed recent book by the same name. The work examines—through photography—social isolation in contemporary society and the spreading influence of corporations throughout our lives.

The virtual talk is free and open to the public and will be held on Zoom on Friday, March 3, from 3-4 p.m. EST [8-9 p.m. GMT]. Those interested are asked to pre-register at http://marywood.edu/jordi, and a link will be provided one day prior to the event. This talk is being held in conjunction with a photography course at Marywood, Photography as a Means of Self Expression, in which students make their own photo books.

Barreras is a London-based documentary photographer. He became a photojournalist in 2002, working for some of the most important newspapers in Spain. Barreras ultimately decided to abandon photojournalism due to what he deemed “its sensationalist nature and lack of political critique.” His work then began to be more critical and reflexive, seeking the connections between documentary and conceptual photography. He holds an M.A. degree from Birbeck University of London, is a photojournalism postgraduate of the University of Barcelona, and a graduate of the general photography course at Grisart School, Barcelona. His book has been featured in the Washington Post and the New York Times. Barreras is currently working on a new project on the relationship between architecture and power in several European capitals.

To register for the virtual talk with Jordi Barreras, pre-register at: http://marywood.edu/jordi. The Zoom link will be provided to registrants a day before the event.

Sweda Advertising Attorney Appointed to Pennsylvania Supreme Court

Sweda Advertising is proud to announce that Attorney Bruce S. Zero of Moscow has been reappointed by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court as a member of the Pennsylvania Lawyers Fund for Client Security Board and has also been designated Vice‐Chair for a term of three years commencing April 1, 2023.


“I am honored and humbled by the reappointment to such an important board,” stated Zero. “When a lawyer violates the trust of a client by misappropriating funds, it unfortunately tarnishes the reputation of our entire profession. Thankfully, the Supreme Court has established the Lawyers Fund for Client Security to attempt to right those wrongs and make those clients whole.”
Established in 1982, the Fund receives its financial support from members of the Pennsylvania Bar through an annual fee that each lawyer must pay in order to keep their PA law license.

The Fund is overseen by a seven‐member volunteer board appointed by the Supreme Court, including five lawyers and two non‐lawyers. Each member may serve up to two three‐year terms. Zero, a partner at Powell, Zero, Mundy, has 38 years of extensive civil litigation and trial experience in state and federal courts in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York in the areas of motor vehicle and truck accidents, product liability, medical malpractice and work place injuries.


Named a Pennsylvania Super Lawyer every year since 2007, Zero is board‐certified as a Civil Trial Specialist and Pre‐Trial Civil Practice Attorney by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He also serves on the Board of Lackawanna Pro Bono as Vice‐President, which provides legal representation to financially disadvantaged individuals free of charge.

Northeast Regional Cancer Institute Receives $2,605 Donation

The Mountain View Girls’ Basketball Team hosted a fundraiser on Monday, January 30 during their basketball game. The event featured a memory board, a 50/50 raffle, a Cotton Candy and Sno Cones sale, and a variety of raffle baskets. 

This event raised $2,605 for the Northeast Regional Cancer Institute.  The Northeast Regional Cancer Institute is a local nonprofit whose mission is to ease the burden of cancer in northeastern Pennsylvania. The Mountain View Girls’ Basketball team hopes to continue this event next year.  

Settlers Hospitality Launches Nonprofit

In times of crisis, Settlers Hospitality employees and affiliates won’t have to look far for support. The company recently launched Settlers Cares Foundation, a 501c3 nonprofit to provide short-term, emergency support to those experiencing hardship.

The Foundation will provide a tax-free grant to eligible workers in need due to an unexpected life event such as natural disaster, illness or death. “Our mission is to lift people up and hopefully make a challenging time a little bit easier by helping to relieve the financial burden that often accompanies a crisis,” says Janna Genzlinger, Settlers Cares Foundation Executive Director. “We formed the foundation to provide practical support not only for Settlers Hospitality employees but also workers from our affiliated business partners.” The fund was designed to address immediate need in emergency situations such as flood, tornado, illness, injury or death as well as fire or domestic abuse. Workers may apply via the nonprofit’s website, www.SettlersCares.org, which will launch soon.

As a nonprofit, Settlers Cares Foundation relies primarily on individual donations. Several fundraisers are planned throughout the year to directly benefit the Foundation including the Chili and Wing Cookoff at The Waterfront at Silver Birches on March 5. Also planned are a Tent Sale in June at The Settlers Inn, a Gala in November and a concert in December. In addition, a $1 charitable donation is added to each Settlers Hospitality hotel guest’s reservation to support Settlers Cares. 

Settlers Hospitality is one of the area’s leading employers with deep roots in the region. “Our commitment to our workforce has always been absolute. Establishing the Settlers Cares Foundation is another way we can be responsible stewards of our community. It’s simply neighbor looking out for neighbor,” explains Justin Genzlinger, Settlers Hospitality CEO/Owner.

Scranton/Wilkes Barre Penguins to Host Military Appreciation Night

The Wilkes Barre Scranton Penguins host the Belleville Senators on Saturday, February 25.  The Senators are the American Hockey League affiliate of the Ottawa Senators.

It’s MetLife Military Appreciation Night, and they will be honoring our armed forces.  The Penguins will be wearing special camo sweaters which will be auctioned off online.

TICKET INFO

Season-ticket packages for the Penguins’ upcoming 2022-23 regular season are on sale now. Full-Season, 22-game, 12-game, Flexbook and Premium Seating plans are available by reaching out to the Penguins directly at (570) 208-7367.

Individual tickets for this game are available to order online by clicking here.

U.S. Air Force to Host Open House

U.S. Air Force is hosting an Open House on Sunday February 26, 2023 at 1:00 PM- 5:00 PM.

The first 10 people to attend will receive a door prize

There will be food and drinks available.

There will also be time to learn more about the Air Force and what they can offer you.

The University of Scranton Events

March Events at The University of Scranton

Through Mar. 10        Art Exhibit: “ANew Understanding: Paintings by Travis Prince.” Hope Horn Gallery, Hyland Hall. Free during gallery hours. Call 570-941-4214 or email darlene.miller-lanning@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 3-5   8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday. Performance: “Little Women; the Broadway Musical” music by Jason Howland, lyrics by Mindi Dickstein, book by Allan Knee presented by The University of Scranton Players. McDade Center for Literary and Performing Arts. Ticket prices vary. Call 570-941-4318 or email players@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 4     Following 8 p.m. performance: Talk Back immediately after the performance of “Little Women; the Broadway Musical” by The University of Scranton Players as part of the University’s year-long “Celebrating Women: 50th Anniversary of Coeducation” series of events. McDade Center for Literary and Performing Arts. Ticket prices vary. Call 570-941-4318 or email players@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 5     7:30 p.m. Performance Music: “In Concert” featuring The University of Scranton Concert Choir and The Scranton Brass Orchestra. Houlihan-McLean Center. Free. Call 570-941-7624 or email music@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 7     6 p.m. Salary Negotiations Workshop offered by The University of Scranton’s Career Development Office and the Jane Kopas Women’s Center as part of the University’s year-long “Celebrating Women: 50th Anniversary of Coeducation” series of events. Room 405, The DeNaples Center. Free. Call 570-941-6194 or email jkwc@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 8     3 p.m. Women of Vision and Courage Award Presentation offered by The University of Scranton’s Jane Kopas Women’s Center as part of the University’s year-long “Celebrating Women: 50th Anniversary of Coeducation” series of events. McIlhenny Ballroom, DeNaples Center. Free. Call 570-941-6194 or email jkwc@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 13     noon. Schemel Forum’s World Affairs Luncheon Seminar: “The Courage to Care” presented by Carol Rittner, RSM, D.Ed., distinguished professor emerita of Holocaust and Genocide Studies and the Dr. Marsha Raticoff Grossman Professor Emerita of Holocaust Studies at Stockton University, New Jersey. The luncheon is part of the University’s year-long “Celebrating Women: 50th Anniversary of Coeducation” series of events. Rose Room, Brennan Hall. Registration required. Fees vary. Call 570-941-4740 or email brooke.leonard@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 20 through Apr. 14        Art Exhibit: “Post COVID: Art by Students for the Scranton School District.” Hope Horn Gallery, Hyland Hall. Free during gallery hours. Call 570-941-4214 or email darlene.miller-lanning@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 23     11:45 a.m. Community-Based Learning Talk “Environmental Health” presented by Tonyehn Verkitus. McIlhenny Ballroom, DeNaples Center. Free. Call 570-941-4419 or email community@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 24     5 p.m. Art Gallery Lecture: “Post COVID: Art by Students for the Scranton School District” presented by Darlene Miller-Lanning. Pearn Auditorium, Brennan Hall. Free. Reception to follow at the Hope Horn Gallery. Call 570-941-4214 or email darlene.miller-lanning@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 25     9 a.m. Preview Day for accepted students to The University of Scranton’s class of 2027. Various locations on campus. Call 570-941-7540 or email admissions@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 28     noon. Schemel Forum’s World Affairs Luncheon Seminar: “A Foreigner Called Picasso” presented by Annie Cohen-Solal, writer and social historian, distinguished professor at Bocconi University, Milan, Italy. Rose Room, Brennan Hall. Registration required. Fees vary. Call 570-941-4740 or email brooke.leonard@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 29     5:30 p.m. Schemel Forum with Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine Collaborative Program: “Mozart: The Mind and Music of a Genius” presented by Richard Kogan, M.D., professor of psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medical College and artistic director, Weill Cornell Music and Medicine Program. Sordoni Theater, WVIA Public Media Studies. Reception to follow. Registration required. $35 per person. Call 570-941-4740 or email brooke.leonard@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 29     7:30 p.m. Performance Music: “General Recital” featuring flute choir, percussion ensemble, steel drums and more. Houlihan-McLean Center. Free. Call 570-941-7624 or email music@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 29     7:30 p.m. Office of Sustainability film and panel discussion “The Seeds of Vandana Shiva.” Moskovitz Theater, DeNaples Center. Free. Call 570-941-7520 or email mark.murphy@scranton.edu.  

Mar. 30     5 p.m. 26th Annual ACHE Healthcare Symposium: “Bedside and Administration: A Strategic Alliance.” McIlhenny Ballroom, DeNaples Center. Registration required. Includes dinner, presentation and panel discussion. Fees vary. Call 570-709-9892 or email scarlet.alexander@scranton.edu.   

The University of Scranton to Offer Free Masterclass and Concert

On Sunday, Feb. 19, at 7:30 p.m., Performance Music at The University of Scranton will present a concert featuring The University of Scranton Jazz Band with special guest guitarist and vocalist Matt Munisteri. The 7:30 p.m. concert will take place in the Houlihan-McLean Center, Mulberry Street and Jefferson Avenue.

Munisteri will also offer a free guitar masterclass in the afternoon before the concert, please email music@scranton.edu for more information.

According to Performance Music directors Cheryl Y. Boga and Philip J. Kuehn, the concert will feature a variety of songs about love and heartbreak, in a nod to the concert’s proximity to Valentines’ Day. Munisteri and the Jazz Band will combine to perform a number of songs together, and there will be several solo pieces during the concert featuring only Munisteri.

A multi-faceted musician, Munisteri is the sparkling guitarist on several chart-topping jazz CDs. He is a critically lauded songwriter and nimble lyricist, an urban banjo-warrior, a selfless and devoted sideman, a wry-yet-honest singer, an engaging and winning front-man, and an arranger whose ear-pulling re-inventions of well-traveled songs have contributed to Grammy winning CDs for artists such as Loudon Wainwright and Catherine Russell.

Munisteri’s debut CD “Love Story” from 2003 wound up on several critic’s “Best Of” lists, and garnered the number two slot on Amazon’s Top Ten Jazz CDs of The Year. A formidable lyricist, his literate songs have been compared to Randy Newman, Mose Allison and Bob Dorough. Munisteri has been featured on France’s ARTE television, profiled in Downbeat magazine, honored with Acoustic Guitar Magazine’s Editor’s Choice award, and has been the subject of several broadcasts on NPR.

When not working on his own projects, his primary sideman gigs for the last few years have been playing with violinist Mark O’Connor’s Hot Swing, Steven Bernstein’s Millennial Territory Orchestra and with the singer Catherine Russell, for whom he also currently serves as Music Director. He also lent a hand to his friend, guitarist Julian Lage, producing Julian’s acclaimed solo guitar debut “Worlds Fair” (2015).

The primary focus of Performance Music at The University of Scranton is its student choral and instrumental performing ensembles. There is no music major at the University, and all enrolled Scranton students (undergraduate and graduate) from every major are eligible for membership in the University bands, choirs and string ensembles, with neither an audition nor enrollment fee required for membership. Hundreds of students participate in the ensembles each year, and a number of University faculty, staff and alumni perform with them.

Performance Music’s large ensembles include Concert/Symphonic Band, Concert Choir/Singers, String Orchestra and Jazz Band (big band format). Smaller groups are made up of members from within the large ensembles, and include Steel Drum Band, Percussion Ensemble, Flute Ensemble, Trumpet Ensemble and Sax Ensemble, plus other small vocal and instrumental groups in various formats. Solo, duo and trio performance opportunities are available to members of the ensembles through the general recitals offered each semester. Other programs within the department, including guest artist concerts, World Premiere Composition Series, Nelhybel Collection and Scranton Brass Orchestra, closely coordinate programming with the student ensembles and offer unique opportunities for student musicians in the ensembles to hear, observe, interact and perform with numerous world-class musicians and artist-teachers. High school juniors and seniors who are considering applying to Scranton are encouraged to contact Performance Music to arrange to sit in on a rehearsal, meet the staff, attend a concert or tour the building.  

For further information on the concert, call 570-941-7624, email music@scranton.edu or visit scranton.edu/music. Please check Performance Music’s website, within 24 hours of the concert for information regarding venue requirements for audiences, as policies regarding campus health and safety may change throughout the season.

For further information about Munisteri, visit mattmunisteri.com.