UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State’s Sustainability Institute, in conjunction with the Student Sustainability Advisory Council (SSAC), has dedicated a dogwood in the Leadership Tree Award grove in memory of former Penn State student Jon Taiclet.
Taiclet, a 21-year-old geography honors student and sustainability leader, died in 2006 during his tenure as a student at Penn State. Clean energy was a passion of his, having just attended the PA Clean Energy Expo weeks before his death.
His sister, Angel Mazack, said Taiclet was known to educate those around him about sustainability issues. A former professor of his, Brent Yarnal, said “(Jon’s) positive, can-do spirit, and his love for and commitment to the environment were infectious. He was the heart and soul of that course, and his passing was profoundly felt by every one of us.”
Taiclet had hoped to eventually pursue a career in environmental work in Colorado or Arizona.