In honor of Women's History Month, alumna Emmy Arnett-Duffy will speak at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, at 7:30 p.m. on March 18, in the worship space of the Larry and Kathryn Smith Chapel. Arnett-Duffy is the Crawford County prothonotary, the chief clerk of the Civil Division of the Court of Common Pleas.

Her presentation is free and open to the public, and parking will be available in the Junker Center lot.

Arnett-Duffy will discuss how her experiences at Penn State Behrend prepared her for life and, in particular, for life in public service. She will highlight how she managed the campaign that ultimately resulted in her being elected to her current position. Prior to this, she served as an adult probation officer and tipstaff for Crawford County.

In 2001, Arnett-Duffy, a professional female bull rider, was injured in a rodeo accident, leaving her paralyzed from the waist down.

In 2000, Arnett-Duffy was ranked No. 1 by the Professional Women's Rodeo Association for bareback riding in the all-around competition and No. 2 in bull riding. That same year, she was featured with those accolades in the now defunct Sports Illustrated for Women.

A native of Cochranton, Arnett-Duffy was a student-athlete at Penn State Behrend. She played on the women's basketball and softball teams, and was the catcher on the ECAC Championship softball team in 1993. The team was inducted into the college's Athletic Hall of Fame in 1998.

Arnett-Duffy earned a bachelor of arts in general arts and sciences from Penn State Behrend in 1996.

This presentation is sponsored by the Student Activity Fee, the Behrend Liaison Committee for the University Commission for Women, and the University Commission for Women. For more information, contact Mary Ellen Bayuk, college registrar, at 814-898-6351 or meb5@psu.edu.