Penn State Alumni Association, Central Texas Chapter
Board of Directors 2022-2023

JAKE PUSCH, PRESIDENT

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Jake is a 2011 graduate from Penn State. He has a B.A. is Psychology & a Minor in Law.
While he was a student you could find Jake tailgating on game day, enjoying a fish bowl at Bar Bleu, and occasionally studying in the library.  

After graduation, Jake lived north of Pittsburgh working as a Drug & Alcohol Counselor.  In  the fall of 2012, Jake quit his job and traveled the country for three months. He then began a career in Sales while residing downtown Santa Barbara, California. Jake arrived in Austin, Texas during the spring of 2013 after landing a job at Oracle. 

Jake took the role of President in August 2022 and is focused on growing the PSU community here in Austin, Texas. During his free time, Jake enjoys playing guitar, running town lake, traveling, and meeting new people. ​

DEREK TURNER, VICE PRESIDENT

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Derek attended his lifelong dream school in Penn State from 2013-2017 and graduated with a B.S. in Marketing from The Smeal College of Business and a Minor in Military Science. During his Penn State years, Derek split his time between Lion Ambassadors and Army ROTC.

After graduation, Derek Commissioned as an Army Officer and spent 4 months recruiting for ROTC at Penn State before being stationed at Fort Hood, TX in January of 2018. Upon completing his Military service, Derek decided to stay in Central Texas and currently works in medical device sales for Intuitive Surgical.

Derek spends his free time playing sports and piano, being outside, and hanging out with friends. He's passionate about meeting new people, making others happy, and of course, Penn State.

"Love helping this Chapter continue to grow! We have big things planned for Austin!"

ALEXANDRA LEON UNG, VP OF MARKETING

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Alexandra (Alex) is a 2017 graduate from Penn State University. She has a B.S. in Industrial Engineering with a minor in Product Realization. She is originally from Panama City, Panama and she is fluent in Spanish. In 2022 she received her MBA from Michigan State University - although she is still a Nittany Lion  first!

After graduating in 2017, she joined Masco Corporation in Michigan as part of their leadership development program where she held multiple roles in Product Management, Strategic Marketing, Operations, and Supply Chain over the last 5 years. After earning her MBA from MSU, Alex moved to Austin in 2022 to pursue a new opportunity as Product Manager for Microsoft Corporation. She was excited to see how active the Penn State Alumni Association was in Austin and decided to join the board as VP of Marketing to help make this chapter a home for other Penn State alumni  and supporters in Central Texas.

During her free time Alex enjoys trying new restaurants, dancing, traveling, and meeting new people!

MARIELLE BALZ, TREASURER

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Marielle is a Central Pennsylvania native, born and raised in Mechanicsburg, PA.  She is a 2013 graduate of Penn State University, with a Bachelors and Masters in Accounting.  Marielle chose Penn State for the school pride and endless opportunities that a big school has to offer.  At Penn State you could find Marielle at the McCoy Natatorium practicing with the Club Swim Team or the Smeal Business Building.

After graduation, Marielle worked for KPMG in New York City in their audit practice.  After 5 years, she was ready for a new adventure and transferred to Austin, TX.  Marielle now works as the Controller of a software company.

Marielle served as our Chapter President from 2019-2022 and is excited to continue her involvement with the alumni community in Austin as Treasurer.

NIKKI RAMIREZ, MARKETING CHAIR

Nicole Ramirez (Nikki) is a 2013 graduate from Penn State University. She has a B.A. in Journalism with a minor in Sociology. She is originally from Slippery Rock, a small town in Western Pennsylvania. After PSU, she received her M.A. in Mass Communications and Journalism from Point Park University in Pittsburgh, PA.

After graduation, she went on to pursue magazine journalism and worked as an Adjunct Professor for Penn State teaching English 420: Writing for the Web. Nicole now works in digital marketing and owns a company called NR Digital Consulting and hosts a podcast called Talk Digital To Me. She still writes as a contributor for publications such as Forbes and The Huffington Post and is an avid public speaker, including a recent TEDx Talk in 2018.
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Nicole is excited to come on as the Marketing Chair and help build alumni engagement and relationships in Central Texas. You can find her every weekend in blue and white at Parlor & Yard!

ERIN SEELEY, COMMITTEE MEMBER

Erin grew up in Grove City, PA.  She is a 2000 Penn State graduate with a B.S. in Chemistry.  In 2005, she earned a Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry from Purdue University.  She spent 9 years working at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN where she was the Treasurer and Scholarship Chair of the Middle Tennessee Chapter of the PSU Alumni Association.  She then spent 6 years in Morgantown, WV where she was involved in the Washington/Greene County Chapter and then helped to start a Greater Morgantown Area Chapter. 

While at Penn State, Erin enjoyed swimming and diving at the Natatorium and had aspirations of becoming a cheerleader before being sidelined by a knee injury.  She was heavily involved with the chemistry department as a TA for General Chemistry Lab and the Undergraduate Instrument Facility, a member of the Nittany Chemical Society, and participated in undergraduate research.
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Erin moved to Austin in February of 2020 as the Director of a new Research Core Lab at UT Austin.  She is excited to get involved with Chapter and meet Penn Staters in the Austin area.

SAMMIE POURSOLTAN, GAME DAY COORDINATOR

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​Sammie Poursoltan is a 2013 Penn State graduate with a B.S. in Marketing and a minor in Psychology. Originally from Maryland, she fell in love with Penn State the moment she stepped on campus. While at college, Sammie was very involved with THON all four years as a member of various R&R and OPP committees.

After graduation, she moved to Washington DC. In DC she became a member of the DC Diamonds Committee. DC Diamonds is a group of DC area PSU alumni who continue to raise money for THON. In 2020, their committee raised over $20,000 all FTK! After moving to Texas to be an Account Manager for a Tech start-up in Austin, Sammie is thrilled to be involved with the local Penn State community!

Wanted:  Capable, Passionate Leaders and Volunteers

Interested in developing new skills or building your professional network?  Do you love all things Penn State and want to help bring folks together? 
​Whatever drives you, we'd love to have you be a part of the PSU Central Texas chapter!   

If you have the interest in social media, event planning, or just a bit of time each month to contribute to our chapter, contact us and let us know.  
We'd love to work with you!  ​

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