Seven Valley High School graduates and two graduates of Ken-Hi make up the second annual class of New Kensington-Arnold School District’s distinguished alumni.
The Ken-Hi graduates Esther Belli Stevenson, 1947, and Michael Shamey, 1949, are being honored posthumously.
The Valley High School graduates are Nancy Menk, 1973; Steven Paulovich, 1979; Stephanie Dorwart, 1988; Aaron Borrelli and Monica Monroe, 1991; Brian Heidenreich, 2001; and Stephen Thomas, 2006.
They will be recognized during the pregame of the district’s homecoming football game on Oct. 4, when Valley hosts Burrell, school board member Sarah Yurga said.
Yurga and Jon Banko, currently principal of Valley High School and previously assistant superintendent, relaunched the distinguished alumni program in 2022 to recognize graduates of Valley and its predecessor high schools, Ken-Hi and Arnold High, who have had extreme success in their lives.
There were 12 nominations.
“I am impressed every year by the quality of nominations and so happy for the well-rounded group of recipients we have. Artists, entrepreneurs, small-business owners, musicians and educators are amongst the awardees,” Yurga said.
“Distinguished is an abstract word, but I believe that the more people you can positively affect, the more distinguished you are. These alumni use their influence in their careers to move society in a positive direction.”
The first group recognized in 2023 consisted of 13 alumni.
More information about this year’s honorees:
• Esther Belli Stevenson, a businesswoman in the Alle-Kiski Valley for more than 30 years, owned Dog n Suds, a drive-up restaurant in Harmar that became The Rialto Venice, an upscale Italian restaurant. She also owned the Candlelight Lounge in Lawrenceville. A graduate of the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, she drew advertisem*nts for businesses. She died during the pandemic at age 91.
• Michael Shamey served in the Navy before earning a degree in architecture at Penn State. He designed Burrell High School while working at Cook and Ryan Architects in Arnold. He later started his own firm and was the architect for the New Kensington-Arnold School District. His work included designing homes and Peoples Library in New Kensington. He served on New Kensington Council in the 1970s. Shamey died in April 1989.
• Nancy Menk is a professor of music, director of choral activities and chair of the music department at Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Ind. At Saint Mary’s, she conducts Belles Voix and the Collegiate Choir and teaches conducting. She is the founder and conductor of the South Bend Chamber Singers and editor of the Saint Mary’s College Choral Series. She has conducted seven Carnegie Hall concerts. Menk has a degree in music education from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and in choral conducting from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music.
• Steven Paulovich, a sculptor and industrial designer in Louisville, Ky., fabricated the Willie Thrower statue at Valley Memorial Stadium, the Harmar miners memorial and the Natrona steelworker sculpture.
• Stephanie Dorwart is chief executive officer of Altius Healthcare Consulting Group. She previously was executive vice president and chief operating officer of a health care consulting firm which she rebranded to become Altius. She founded the Valakron Foundation in 2023 in honor of her mother, Andrea, a visual arts teacher and yearbook sponsor at Valley High School. The foundation awards scholarships to seniors pursuing further education in visual or performing arts.
• Aaron Borrelli has served for 25 years in public health administration and now works for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as a public health adviser in a program focusing on the prevention and control of emerging infectious diseases. He volunteers as a mentor to young public health professionals and students. He volunteers with organizations including Mission Mobile Medical, Florida International University Online Master of Public Health Advisory Board, Global Slovakia and Valley High School Class of 1991 alumni activities.
• Monica Monroe, a resident of Cambridge, Mass., is the assistant dean for community engagement, equity and belonging at Harvard Law School. She earned a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy and economics from Boston University and a doctorate from George Washington University Law School. She clerked for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces and the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, then spent six years in private practice as a litigator. At George Washington Law, she was a professorial lecturer in law and taught legal research and writing and legal drafting. She was an assistant dean for student affairs and associate dean of students. At Penn Carey Law School, she was dean of students and associate dean for equity and inclusion.
• Brian Heidenreich is principal of H.D. Berkey Elementary School in Arnold and co-owner of Las Hachas, an ax throwing business in New Kensington. He previously was a first and third grade teacher, math coach and substitute principal of Valley High School.
• Stephen Thomas is an ordained pastor in Washington County. He has developed “Value, Vision, Purpose,” a curriculum for middle and high school students. He has been working with Valley students for three years and with other schools including Washington High School and a school in Kentucky.
Brian C. Rittmeyer is a TribLive reporter covering news in New Kensington, Arnold and Plum. A Pittsburgh native and graduate of Penn State University's Schreyer Honors College, Brian has been with the Trib since December 2000. He can be reached at brittmeyer@triblive.com.
