Cara Cotellese introduced with 2026 PSAC George Heaslip Award

KUTZTOWN, Pa. — Former Kutztown University Cinema, Television and Media Production professor and division chair Cara Cotellese was introduced because the 2026 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) George Heaslip Award throughout a halftime presentation on the Golden Bears’ soccer recreation towards Clarion, Saturday, Sept. 12.

Cotellese constructed Kutztown University Television (KUTV) into the usual for scholar tv broadcasting throughout the PASSHE system throughout her 11 years with Kutztown’s CTM division (beforehand Electronic Media) and was a staunch supporter of Golden Bear athletics by way of quite a few reside broadcasts and studio exhibits.

 

She began as producer/director with KU in 1986 following her commencement from the college in 1985 earlier than spending practically 20 years as a professor at Bucks County Community College. Cotellese returned to Kutztown as an teacher within the Department of Electronic Media in 2008, rising to affiliate professor by 2015 and remaining in that position till her retirement in 2025. She additionally served because the division chair from 2016-19.

 

Cotellese embraced the reside broadcast manufacturing alternatives athletics offered and used them as useful educating periods for her college students. KUTV aired Golden Bear soccer on the campus TV station for many years and distributed the broadcasts to native tv networks equivalent to Service Electric, BCTV and Comcast. When the on-campus TV channel ended, KUTV continued to supply reside broadcasts that had been streamed through the PSAC Sports Digital Network.

 

Cotellese led protection efforts of sports activities KU had by no means earlier than broadcast, together with bowling and cross nation. KUTV’s involvement with Golden Bear athletics peaked throughout her time as chair, with the community overlaying practically all residence occasions in soccer, area hockey, soccer, volleyball, wrestling and basketball through the 2018-19 and 2019-20 tutorial years.

 

The PSAC acknowledged KUTV’s professionalism and manufacturing high quality by hiring Cotellese and her scholar employees to broadcast the 2015 PSAC Women’s Basketball Championship at Bloomsburg, the 2017 PSAC Men’s Basketball Championship at IUP and the 2019 PSAC Field Hockey Championship at West Chester, along with overlaying any PSAC championship occasions at Kutztown, together with the 2021 PSAC Cross Country Championships.

 

Cotellese served on the PSAC Streaming Video Taskforce starting in 2015 and served as a presenter on the PSAC Video Streaming Summit at commissioner Steve Murray’s request. Under her management, KUTV gained the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Science Crystal Pillar Award for reside protection of school soccer in 2014 and acquired quite a few nominations for awards from the identical group between 2012-17.

Each yr, athletic communications and sports activities info administrators from the PSAC nominate and vote to acknowledge a person for meritorious service in media protection of the league. The George Heaslip Award is known as in honor of the late Cheyney University sports activities info director, who was a proud ambassador of the PSAC. Cotellese is the thirty seventh particular person to be acknowledged with the award and simply the second feminine winner in its historical past. She appeared on the poll for the primary time in 2026.