The College Store will discontinue its Wildcat Rewards Loyalty Program effective May 31. The store will offer more storewide promotions and other sales so that more students have the opportunity to save money on purchases. “The program has been popular with some students, but most students never trade in their points for College Store gift cards,” said Matt Branca, director of The College Store. By discontinuing the program, Branca said that store will be able to offer more discounts and sales on other merchandise. The store recently started one-day-only “Flash Sales” that are announced via The College Store Facebook page and on the myPCT Portal the morning of the sale. Those have proved quite popular with the campus community. While the Wildcat Rewards Program is ending May 31, students will continue to earn points through May 27. Students have until the end of the day May 31 to trade in any points for a College Store gift card. College Store gift cards do not expire, so students should make sure and cash in those points before they expire: 500 points earns a $25 College Store gift card and 900 points earns a $50 gift card. All points will expire and access to the program will be turned off on June 1. Students should log in to their Wildcat Rewards account via The College Store web site. Instructions can be found on the store’s Portal page.
News about College Store
College Store Kicks Off Exhibition of Instructors’ Artwork
A collection of faculty member Keith M. Whitesel’s stained glass is on display in The College Store during February, the first in a series of mini-galleries featuring artists who teach noncredit classes at Penn College. An instructor of electrical technology/occupations in the School of Industrial, Computing & Engineering Technologies, Whitesel is teaching Stained Glass for Beginners through Workforce Development & Continuing Education starting Feb. 22. A second class, Stained Glass: Level II, will begin April 11. Stop by The College Store to see his beautiful works of art as they glimmer in the sun – and revisit throughout the year as other media (photography, jewelry, etc.) are exhibited. (The pieces of art are not for sale.)
Baier Latest ‘Student of the Month’ at Penn College
Kendel F. Baier, of Jersey Shore, a senior in the building science and sustainable design: architectural technology concentration, has been chosen as the December/January Student of the Month at Pennsylvania College of Technology.
Exemplifying both academics and athletics, Baier maintains a full course load and is a national bowhunter champion on the Penn College archery team.
Among her accomplishments, she was selected as the college’s 2014 Female Athlete of the Year.
From Garb to Grub, ‘Finale’ Has Imminent Grads Covered
Nearly 450 students who have petitioned to graduate in one of May’s three commencement ceremonies breezed through their last-minute chores at Monday’s Grad Finale. Held from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. in Penn’s Inn, near-alumni could snag their Community Arts Center tickets for the big day; buy their caps and gowns; order announcements; learn about their alumni benefits, such as career services, scholarship opportunities, campus privileges and their lifetime Penn College e-mail accounts; and enjoy free food and other giveaways.
Photos by Marc T. Kaylor, student photographer, and Becky J. Shaner (center image)
Disguises Can’t Mask College Store’s Customer Service
With a variety of costumes ranging from police officer to leprechaun – and including a few denizens of “Duck Dynasty,” arguably the most frightening Halloween presence of all! – The College Store staff (including two current students) showed its typical willingness to do whatever to takes to chase away any rainy-day blues. From left are first-year student Alyssa L. Fink, employee Lisa A. Ely, junior Kendel F. Baier, and employees Jennifer L. McCracken, Joan M. Gilbert, Lisa M. Dincher, Colleen K. Hauser, Gale I. Grove and Alex J. Kuzio.
Photo by Matt P. Branca, store director
Latest College Book Relives 100 Years of ‘Marketing With a Mission’
The third volume in Pennsylvania College of Technology’s Countdown to the Centennial series, an abundantly illustrated book that employs a variety of promotional images to chronicle the transformation from Williamsport Technical Institute into Pennsylvania’s premier technical college, has been published.
Like other titles in the series, “Marketing With a Mission” was written by Elaine J. Lambert, director of college information and community relations, who drew upon her decades of experience and pulled from a rich archival reservoir to take readers on a memory-laden trip from WTI to Williamsport Area Community College to Penn College.
“I have been involved in promoting the college for more than 30 years,” said Lambert, a 1979 WACC graduate and a 2007 recipient of the college’s Distinguished Alumni Award. “Still, in writing this book, I found a few surprises and many forgotten successes in recounting a century’s worth of stories about the institution’s unique mission and dramatic marketing challenges.”
Centennial Merchandise on Sale at College Store
It’s a sale that only happens every 100 years! An exclusive selection of centennial items is now available at The College Store. Penn College, Williamsport Area Community College and Williamsport Technical Institute merchandise – from T-shirts (long- and short-sleeve) to hoodies, polos to hats – is available in each school’s “retro” colors. “We wanted to help celebrate the centennial and our history in a way that acknowledged all of the institutions,” said Matt Branca, director of The College Store, who, with operations assistant Jennifer L. McCracken, worked with multiple vendors and other departments to put together the limited-edition line. Each college’s seal was specially recreated for incorporation into many of the designs, and custom centennial labels make each piece of apparel a true collector’s item. A variety of other items, such as pins, coffee mugs, window clings and water bottles, are also available at The College Store.
‘Finale’ Helps Near-Graduates Tackle Commencement To-Do List
The traditional Grad Finale, a one-stop opportunity for Penn College students to breeze through their 11th-hour pre-commencement chores, was held from 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Tuesday in Penn’s Inn. Staff from Alumni Relations, The College Store and Career Services were among those on hand to assist the imminent graduates with commencement tickets, cap-and-gown purchases, graduation invitations, alumni benefits … and much, much more.
College’s Centennial ‘Legacy of Leaders’ Book Available for Purchase
Pennsylvania College of Technology has published a book and website featuring the seven individuals who guided the institution through its nearly 100-year history – from George H. Parkes, who transformed a small, high school industrial arts shop into a postwar model of adult education, to current President Davie Jane Gilmour.
“Legacy of Leaders” also features Robert L. Breuder, who oversaw the transformative 1989 birth of Penn College as a respected affiliate of The Pennsylvania State University; William H. Feddersen, former Williamsport Area Community College president; Kenneth E. Carl, founding president of WACC and a graduate of Williamsport Technical Institute, and interim leaders C. Herschel Jones and David M. Heiney.
Stories from distinguished faculty, staff, alumni and student leaders are also included in this second of four publications planned to celebrate the institution’s 2014 Centennial, marking the 100th anniversary of the first year that adult classes were held in Klump Academic Center.
Store’s New Online Service Lets Students Compare Textbook Prices
A new textbook price-comparison service is available online through The College Store at Pennsylvania College of Technology, one of only 40 institutions nationwide to provide such a program.
Students now will be able to compare The College Store’s textbook prices with those offered through Amazon and Half.com, then make purchases from the chosen vendor. When accessing their class schedules through the secure Student Information System, students will be able to view all of their course-book information with a single click on the “Buy Textbook” link.
College Store Announces Student Winners in Textbook-Buyback Drawing
The winner of The College Store’s drawing for a 32GB Apple iPad is student Britni Fennell, Drums; student Heather Krepps, McVeytown, won a 3G Amazon Kindle. The College Store congratulates them and thanks all students who sold back their textbooks.
College Store’s Scholarship Funds Mentioned in National Magazine
The College Store’s scholarship assistance to Penn College students is spotlighted in theSeptember/October issue of The College Store Magazine, the official publication of The National Association of College Stores. “Most stores do this out of good will,” the article quotes store director Matthew P. Branca. “It’s a good way to show students that we have a commitment to them and their educations. … Every year, we get piles of thank-you notes from students. I keep them in a file and look at them when I’m having a bad day.” The three-page article by Kim Fernandez titled “Giving It Away” and made available here with the magazine’s permission follows:
Centennial Booklet Combines Nostalgia, Interactivity and Benefits Students
Purchase your piece of history today and support the Penn College Endowed Alumni Scholarship. The Countdown to the Centennial has begun with the publication of a new booklet featuring images and text from the 2009 retrospective, “Were You There? The Evolution of a College Campus.” The booklet is available for sale through The College Store (in store and online ). More details are available on the Web where you also have the opportunity to help identify individuals in some of the photos featured in the retrospective. Net proceeds from the sale of the booklet will become permanently restricted funds that will be invested to create income used for annual scholarship awards from the Penn College Endowed Alumni Scholarship. This is a great opportunity to add to your collection of memories and to share others’ recollections of our history. It also makes a great gift for friends, family and associates who are connected with Penn College and its forerunners.
College Store Director Contributes to Industry Publication
Matthew P. Branca, director of The College Store, recently contributed to an industry publication on the compliance efforts college bookstores around the country are undergoing to meet the requirements of the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008. In the article, featured in the November/December issue of The College Store magazine, he argues the importance of providing open-access textbook information and its role in helping students succeed. Branca has been in the industry for 20 years, the past 10 at Penn College. He is a Certified Collegiate Retailer and frequently contributes totrade articles and discussion groups, and presents at regional and national conferences.
College Seal Etched Into Instructor’s Latest Stained-Glass Creation
The College Store at Penn College is offering for sale locally crafted stained-glass windows with the college seal etched in blue glass. The center panel is bordered with clear beveled glass. Designed and created by Keith M. Whitesel, instructor of electrical technology/occupations in the School of Construction and Design Technologies, these pieces are being offered for sale exclusively through The College Store at $100 each, plus sales tax (no discounts will apply). All net proceeds will support student scholarship funds through the Penn College Foundation.