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BE Scholars visit Larson Design Group

Built Environment Scholars tour LDG's Williamsport headquarters ...

... getting a real-world feel for their eventual careers.

The School of Construction & Design Technologies’ second-year cohort of Built Environment Scholars visited Larson Design Group on Tuesday. The 14 students – accompanied by Carol A. Lugg, dean, and Naim N. Jabbour, assistant dean – toured LDG’s newly renovated state-of-the-art office space in Water Tower Square, and had a discussion with project designer (and 2006 architectural technology alumna) Kara Demmien and Vice President Robert Gehr. Topics included the state of architectural practice today, as well as possible future trends, the importance of creating collaborative open environments, and the significance of an interdisciplinary team approach within the construction and design industry. The first-year students have been awarded scholarships through a $1 million National Science Foundation grant that aims to increase retention, graduation and career readiness for enrollees in Penn College’s STEM-focused majors. The 2018-19 class represents architectural technology; building construction technology; civil engineering technology; heating, ventilation and air conditioning technology; and surveying technology.
Photos provided

Young nursing professionals network at ‘Sip and Snap’ event

Nursing's Oct. 8 "Sip and Snap" event provides an inviting venue for networking in Le Jeune Chef.Penn College’s Bachelor of Science Nursing Honor Society, in collaboration with UPMC Susquehanna and the Pennsylvania State Nurses Association, recently hosted a “Sip and Snap” event for young nursing professionals at Le Jeune Chef Restaurant. Participants had the opportunity to network, have their resumes reviewed by UPMC Susquehanna, gather interview tips and obtain a quality photograph for use on social media sites. Thirty-one nurses and students attended the event, which included a signature beverage and a Classical Cuisine buffet. The digital headshots were taken in the Thompson Professional Development Center by Mark W. Wilson, graphic design instructor, and graphic design students Luke A. Bierly, of Centre Hall, and Kennedy L. Englert, of Williamsport.
Photo by Duncan Rodriguez, a 2017 nursing alumnus

Penn College Career Fair attracts record number of employers

Penn College student John J. Gisonna (right), a heating, ventilation and air conditioning design technology major from Monroe, N.Y., talks with recruiters from SmartEdge. Representing the Tonawanda, N.Y.-based building controls company at the college’s Career Fair are Garret Smith (left), mechanical specialist, and Michael J. Burns, service sales engineer.

Thanks to a new two-day format, a record number of employers recruited Pennsylvania College of Technology students during the school’s Fall Career Fair.

More than 300 employers – representing all economic sectors and 16 Fortune 500 companies – visited campus, offering more than 3,000 job and internship opportunities.

“We needed to expand the Career Fair because of the tremendous demand for our technically skilled students,” said Erin S. Shultz, coordinator of career development. “Despite stretching the event over two days, we still had a waiting list of nearly 90 employers. Clearly, our students and their ‘degrees that work’ are very attractive to employers.”

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Minority student scholarship gets boost toward full endowment

Two senior administrators at Pennsylvania College of Technology have made a commitment to a scholarship that benefits minority students enrolled at the college and supports diversity initiatives within the institution’s strategic plan.

Carolyn R. Strickland, vice president for enrollment management and associate provost, and Elliott Strickland Jr., vice president for student affairs, will match up to $5,000 in new contributions made to The Start to Finish Minority Student Scholarship at Penn College.

“We are proud to support the Start to Finish Scholarship because it represents the best of Penn College – a scholarship developed for students, by students,” the Stricklands said. “This scholarship will help students, many from marginalized backgrounds, by providing needed funding so they can complete their ‘degrees that work’ at Penn College. We would encourage all members of Penn College’s extended family to consider giving to this new scholarship. Your generosity can make a true impact on our future.”

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Start building a Penn College future at Oct. 28 Open House

The Madigan Library (left) and Bush Campus Center are two of the facilities that visitors to Pennsylvania College of Technology may tour during Fall Open House on Sunday, Oct. 28.

Students looking for a bold next step in their educational journey are encouraged to attend an Oct. 28 Open House at Pennsylvania College of Technology, where “future made by hand” is a template for success.

“Visiting a college campus should be an experience. At Open House, students are able to touch, see and explore their future,” said Claire Z. Biggs, assistant director of admissions. “From the state-of-the-art labs to the knowledgeable faculty and staff, Penn College is the place to be if you want to be a tomorrow maker.”

The college will be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. for prospective students and their families to explore more than 100 bachelor’s, associate and certificate programs. Free bus service will be available on the main campus in Williamsport, and shuttles will transport guests to and from the nearby Lumley Aviation and Schneebeli Earth Science centers throughout the day.

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Insightful alum urges students to stoke passions, make connections

A 2007 recipient of the college's Alumnus Achievement Award, Jeffcoat talks with students during a late-September return to campus.

Pennsylvania College of Technology alumnus Keith L. Jeffcoat recently returned to his roots to share advice and industry experience with the next generation of students.

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The third time’s a charmer!

Enjoying the autumnal alumni evening (from left): Timothy D. Haldeman, ’11, manufacturing engineering technology; Michael D. Ferraiolo, ’10, aviation technology, and ‘11, aviation maintenance technology, and guest, Melyssa McHale; and Whitnie-rae (Mays) Haldeman, ’12, advertising art, and ’14, applied technology studies.

The disparate threads of Homecoming and Parent & Family Weekend were woven together again this fall, producing another seamless tapestry of fun and reconnection for graduates, current students and families. The third annual combined celebration kicked off with a Friday bonfire, tent party and Hall of Fame Banquet; continued Saturday with a presidential breakfast, Williamsport bus and trolley excursions, lab tours, a golf outing and on-campus sporting events, arts and crafts, and an alumni reunion at downtown nightspots; and concluded Sunday with more athletics and a fond farewell (until next year)!

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School of Nursing & Health Sciences hosts celebration

Pennsylvania College of Technology welcomed several School of Nursing & Health Sciences alumni back to campus to speak at an event celebrating the school’s name change, its academic majors, and milestone anniversaries for two programs: occupational therapy assistant (30 years) and physician assistant (20 years). From left are Megan Wright, ’12, a physician assistant practicing physical medicine and rehabilitation; Brian Webster, ’06, a nurse practitioner specializing in emergency and family nursing; President Davie Jane Gilmour; Sandra L. Richmond, dean of nursing and health sciences; and Michele “Mindy” Tedesco, ’88, a registered occupational therapist specializing in home health care.

The School of Nursing & Health Sciences at Pennsylvania College of Technology held a multifaceted celebration on Oct. 4 by hosting an open house of its facilities and welcoming accomplished alumni, who reflected on how their education has shaped their careers.

“We come together … to celebrate the positive impact all 10 of our nursing and health sciences programs have on our students’ lives, the professions in which they work, and the communities they serve,” said Sandra L. Richmond, dean of nursing and health sciences.

Of particular significance during the celebration was a change to the school’s name: from the School of Health Sciences to the School of Nursing & Health Sciences, and the anniversaries of the occupational therapy assistant program, whose first students graduated 30 years ago, and the physician assistant program, which graduated its first students 20 years ago.

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Lycoming Engines’ instructional support lauded at sign dedication

From left, Michael Kraft, senior vice president and general manager for Lycoming Engines; Pennsylvania College of Technology President Davie Jane Gilmour; and aviation technology student Warren K. Bitterman, of Zieglerville, Montgomery County, all spoke at a dedication ceremony honoring Lycoming Engines’ ongoing support for the college.

Lycoming Engines’ longtime support of Pennsylvania College of Technology and its academic programs was celebrated on campus recently with the unveiling of new signage at the college’s Metal Trades Center.

Members of the Penn College community and representatives of Lycoming Engines – including alumni of the college employed by the company – gathered on Oct. 2 to dedicate the Lycoming Engines Metal Trades Center sign on the front lawn of the facility.

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Setting the stage

Penn College graduates (from left) Jeffrey T. Feeman, Eric T. Metzler and Franklin N. Carr have found a calling at Sight & Sound Theatres, where audiences are awed by the on-stage results of their behind-the-scenes work.

Three alumni use their skills to craft scenery and on-stage technology for the panoramic stage at Sight & Sound Theatres in Lancaster.

From the Fall 2018 Penn College Magazine: Three graduates’ craftsmanship wows audiences of more than a million a year at Sight & Sound Theatres. Read “Setting the Stage.”

 

Sixth annual tradition proves ‘Old habits dye hard’

Student Natascha G. Santaella, of Williamsport, and Gary T. Pandolfi, refrigeration, heating and plumbing mechanic, send color coursing through the Veterans' Fountain.

Student leaders outside the Breuder Advanced Technology & Health Sciences Center, with the newly tinted fountain spraying behind them, are (from left) Santaella; Everett B. Appleby, of Wilkes-Barre; David A. Gadalla, of Mechanicsburg; Patrick C. Ferguson, of Williamsport; Jerry A. Hudak, of Archbald; and Alexandra D. Petrizzi, of Langhorne.

Homecoming and Parent & Family Weekend (Oct. 5-8)Members of the Student Government Association and the Wildcat Events Board presided over the customary dyeing of The Veterans’ Fountain on Monday morning, joined by Student Activities and General Services to give the water its Wildcat Blue hue for Homecoming and Parent & Family Weekend. It’s the perfect time to show Wildcat pride, reconnect with friends, spend time with family and tour campus. Highlights include athletic events with food trucks, breakfast with President Davie Jane Gilmour, an alumni and friends tent party, and family activities on Friday and Saturday nights.

Emergency management grad urges career preparedness, too

David E. Bjorkman, instructor of emergency management/social science, introduces his guest speaker to emergency management students.

Hess details various types of disaster recovery planning strategies.

The emergency management lab, on the fourth floor of Klump Academic Center, offers a collaborative work space.

Emergency management technology graduate Elizabeth (Landis) Hess, ’17, returned to the classroom recently to share her advice and expertise with students in the major. Hess is working as a disaster preparedness associate at Delta Development Group, Mechanicsburg. Among her projects, the Penn College alumna is working with public health, state and local stakeholders, and health care coalitions on a variety of emergency management initiatives. During her time in the major, Hess interned over two summers at the Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center under the guidance of its emergency preparedness coordinator. As part of her visit to her alma mater, Hess discussed courses within the emergency management curricula that she has found particularly relevant in the world of work, and encouraged students to take full advantage of internships and other learning opportunities that will enhance their resumes and skill sets. Once on the job, she told her audience to “humble yourself and be willing to learn” as they begin to navigate their careers and to keep an open mind to different paths since emergency management “is a broad field” filled with many possibilities and specialties.

Services set for alumnus/faculty member

William E. Curry, in a 1976 yearbook photoServices will be Friday for William E. “Bill” Curry, an alumnus and retired faculty member, who died Monday, Sept. 24, at the age of 86. He was a 1959 Williamsport Technical Institute graduate in service and operation of heavy construction equipment, and earned a Penn College degree in technology studies in 1985. He taught diesel mechanics/automotive at Williamsport Area Community College and Penn College from 1971-94, later returning to the Schneebeli Earth Science Center as a part-time faculty member teaching along several of his former students. A life celebration will be at 8 p.m. Friday at Brooks Funeral Home and Cremation Service, 207 Broadway St., Turbotville; visitation is from 6-8 that evening. A full obituary was published in Wednesday’s editions of the Williamsport Sun-Gazette.

Penn College Supports Girl Scouts in the Heart of PA STEM Mobile

Representing Girl Scouts in the Heart of Pennsylvania are, from left, Valerie Whyman, fund development, and Casey Miller, Lewisburg-based program coordinator, who will use the STEM Mobile to deliver activities directly to girls. At right is Elizabeth A. Biddle, director of corporate relations for Penn College, sponsor of the STEM Mobile.

Supporting efforts to give thousands of girls the opportunity to explore science, technology, engineering and math, Pennsylvania College of Technology has partnered with Girl Scouts in the Heart of Pennsylvania and its Girls Go STEM initiative by sponsoring the organization’s new Lewisburg-based STEM Mobile.

The STEM Mobile, adorned with Penn College’s logo, will be utilized by GSHPA staff traveling to community events throughout central Pennsylvania to promote STEM education for girls and young women through hands-on and collaborative activities.

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Alexanders Donate Model T to Automotive Restoration Program

Aubrey Alexander (front row, left) and brother Adam (front row, right) deliver a 1926 Ford Model T to students and faculty outside College Avenue Labs, home to Penn College’s automotive restoration and collision repair majors.

A 1926 Ford Model T, traded to Alexander Nissan in 2013 by its Picture Rocks owner, has been passed on to Pennsylvania College of Technology students for use in a variety of automotive labs.

Blaise Alexander Family Dealerships donated the historic vehicle that was recently offloaded onto main campus, accompanied by brothers Adam and Aubrey Alexander.

“We appreciate this gift to our automotive restoration program from the Alexanders. In addition to value for our students in their curricular work, it serves as a way to engage prospective students in the restoration major,” said Elizabeth A. Biddle, the college’s director of corporate relations. “Our goal is to foster the interest in antique cars and the restoration industry among young people.”

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Penn College is a special mission affiliate of Penn State