J. Michael Schweder has a well-defined challenge as the new president of AT&T; Pennsylvania: to get it into residential, local phone service.

It's a process that he successfully undertook as president of AT&T; New Jersey, where he has been in charge since November 2000. Starting Oct. 1, he has been president of AT&T; in both states.

In order for AT&T; to provide the local service, the company must pay Verizon Communications Inc. to use its lines. AT&T; is willing to pay Verizon's rates to offer residential service in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, but it has not made a final decision on whether it will.

Meanwhile, AT&T; is trying to persuade the Public Utility Commission to direct Verizon to lower its rates so that AT&T; finds it economically feasible to provide local service in the rest of the state.

On Thursday, the PUC told Verizon to refigure its wholesale rates, but the commission would not specify by how much, and referred the matter to an administrative law judge to decide.

"We will continue to press our case with the PUC and with elected officials to see that this is finally resolved," Schweder said Friday.

Earlier last week, Schweder, 53, said during an interview in his office at 1600 Market St. that the advantage of AT&T;'s getting back into local phone service would be to increase competition. He said the result would be lower bills and, for customers consolidating their local and long-distance service, only one bill as opposed to two.

Schweder, who was born in Bethlehem, where he still lives, was a high school social studies teacher and football coach after graduating from Lycoming College. (His father, John, now 74, played for the Baltimore Colts and Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1950s.)

In 1974, Schweder, a Democrat, was elected to the Pennsylvania House from the Bethlehem area. He gave up his seat in 1980 to run for Congress, but lost. In 1997, he won a seat on Bethlehem's City Council, and is in his second term.

Although he was already called upon to testify before the state legislature on his second day on the job at AT&T; Pennsylvania, he said he doesn't see being on the council as a conflict of interest.

"I've gone to great lengths to see that it isn't," said Schweder, who joined AT&T; in 1983.

He and his wife, Annette, whom he met in college, have three grown sons. His wife is a nursing-school administrator in Bethlehem. They will celebrate their 30th anniversary next month.

When not commuting between his offices in Philadelphia and Bedminster, N.J., Schweder enjoys playing what he laughingly refers to as "a very bad brand of golf."

- Thomas J. Brady

Unisys Corp., Blue Bell, has hired Michael Reuschel as president of the Unisys global communications and media industry practice. He had been managing partner of the New World Networks practice at PriceWaterhouseCoopers L.L.P., Philadelphia.

Ikon Office Solutions Inc., Valley Forge, has named Carlyle Singer to the new post of senior vice president of operations. She had been vice president and controller.

Simon Knight has been promoted to senior vice president and chief information officer. He had been vice president of the company's enterprise systems group.

Joseph Meterchick has been promoted from vice president and senior relationship manager for corporate banking at PNC Bank, Philadelphia, to senior vice president and sales manager for Southeastern Pennsylvania. He will direct the client relationships and sales activities in the Southeastern Pennsylvania region and continue to manage middle market corporate accounts.

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia has named Meg Jones vice president of human resources. She was assistant vice president of human resources at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City.

Martin Phillips has been hired as vice president for new business development at Bryn Mawr Trust Co., Bryn Mawr. He worked in a similar capacity for Firstrust Bank, Conshohocken.

Commerce Bank has named Michael J. Tierney vice president and director of corporate giving. He will be responsible for overseeing all corporate-giving initiatives throughout eastern Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey and New York. He had practiced in the commercial litigation and government relations departments in the Philadelphia office of Pepper Hamilton L.L.P.

Penn National Gaming Inc., a Wyomissing owner of casinos and racetracks, has named Jordan Savitch senior vice president and general counsel. He had served as vice president, professional services, and general counsel at iMedium Inc., Wayne.

Mary C. Mammarella has been named vice president of operations for the Arthritis Foundation's Eastern Pennsylvania chapter, Philadelphia. She had been a consultant at Moving Solutions, Havertown.

United Staffing Services, a Plymouth Meeting human services and health-care temporary staffing company, has appointed Pamela S. Pennypacker director of marketing and customer relations. She had been regional director of community relations at Sunrise Assisted Living, Philadelphia.

Joel Boyarski has assumed the position and responsibilities of chief financial officer at WorldGate Communications Inc., a Trevose provider of Internet access via television. He will retain his responsibilities as vice president and general manager of the company's TVGateway activities.

Showtime SM Enterprises Inc., a Paulsboro three-dimensional-marketing services company, has appointed Ira A. Greenberg vice president of corporate strategy. He was a senior associate for the Center for Applied Research, Philadelphia.

Linda Rawlins has been hired as vice president, client services consulting, by Right Management Consultants, a Philadelphia global human resources consulting firm. She had been regional manager for the Delaware Valley market at Manchester Inc., Philadelphia.

CareScience Inc., a Philadelphia provider of online care-management services to the health-care industry, has hired Hugh Levaux vice president and general manager of the company's pharmaceutical and biotechnology practice. He had been senior vice president at Quintiles Transnational Corp., Durham, N.C.

Nicholas Augustinos has been hired as vice president of market development. He had been a vice president at Healtheon/WebMD, Elmwood Park, N.J.
- Mike Zebe