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Penn College students receive Mike Rowe scholarships

Nine Pennsylvania College of Technology students were selected to receive scholarship assistance for 2020-21 from the mikeroweWORKS Foundation, established by skilled-labor advocate Mike Rowe.

The mikeroweWORKS Foundation recognized the potential of nine Pennsylvania College of Technology students to shrink the skills gap by awarding them Work Ethic Scholarships for the 2020-21 academic year.

The foundation, created by skilled-labor advocate Mike Rowe, distributes the scholarships annually to students who “embrace personal responsibility, delayed gratification, a positive attitude and a strong work ethic” in preparing for a career in the skilled trades. Over $1 million was distributed to 223 recipients nationwide. Nearly 1,000 students applied for the scholarships.

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HVAC alum delivers for Geisinger emergency crews

A frame for an EMS airway hood comes together in Gillis' workshop.

It wasn’t remotely on his mind while taking a Mechanical Systems I class in Fall 2011, but a Pennsylvania College of Technology alumnus/employee’s plumbing and pipe-fitting skills resulted in fabrication of framework for five EMS airway hoods to be used at Geisinger Medical Center.

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HVAC with alumnus Jeff Comitz

Meet Jeffrey C. Comitz, an applications engineering manager for Thermal Product Solutions in New Columbia (and a 2016 graduate in heating, ventilation and air conditioning design technology). After earning his bachelor’s degree from Penn College, Comitz accepted an offer at TPS’ Tenney Environmental, where he partners with global organizations to develop industrial ovens and furnaces for testing and manufacturing processes. Take a look inside his career, see how he applies his education every day and imagine yourself pursuing a future made by hand. And when finished, check out other recent YouTube videos that showcase academic opportunities for tomorrow makers: concrete science, collision repair, construction management, plastics and graphic design.

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‘PA Build My Future’ extends its reach in Year Two

About 75 current Penn College students, eager cheerleaders all, sacrificed part of Fall Break to advocate for their chosen career paths.

Penn College’s second annual PA Build My Future event, an interactive academic and industry showcase on Thursday, provided more than 900 high-school students with an opportunity to experience the full range of possibilities in the construction and design field. Scores of current students in the School of Construction & Design Technologies joined faculty and administrators, along with many of the college’s commercial benefactors, in guiding visitors toward their potential careers.

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Newswatch 16 visits ‘PA Build My Future’

WNEP’s Chris Keating visited campus for Thursday’s PA Build My Future, filing a report on the second annual introduction of secondary students to the wide-open world of construction and design careers. Keating visited indoor and outdoor exhibits facilitated by industry sponsors, Penn College faculty and current students (who gave up a day of Fall Break to excitedly represent their respective majors). Included in the broadcast were Carol A. Lugg, dean of construction and design technologies; building construction technology instructor Levon A. Whitmyer; Christine A. Limbert, of Curwensville, enrolled in architectural technology; and Lucas Vandergrift, a sophomore at Wellsboro High School who was among the day’s 929 students from nearly 30 high schools and career and technical centers.
(“PA Build My Future photo gallery)

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ACCA chapter spends cool day in Lions’ den

Opened six years ago this month, the ice arena plays host to an inquisitive Penn College contingent.

Evan Cleary (in plaid shirt), who arranged the campus visit as facilities manager in Penn State's Office of Physican Plant, joins his guests outside the famed Berkey Creamery. Cleary is a 2017 alumnus of Penn College's heating, ventilation and air conditioning technology major. — Evan Cleary (in plaid shirt), who arranged the campus visit as facilities manager in Penn State’s Office of Physical Plant, joins his guests outside the famed Berkey Creamery. Cleary is a 2017 alumnus of Penn College’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning technology major.

Penn College’s Air Conditioning Contractors of America student chapter recently traveled to Penn State’s University Park campus, visiting four areas that represent the sprawl of careers in heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration. Accompanied by faculty colleagues Kenneth E. Welker Jr. and Bradley Q. Kishbaugh, the students toured the Pegula Ice Arena, learning what it takes to prep, paint and maintain the 1.5-inch playing surface for the Nittany Lions hockey team; the Berkey Creamery, where freezers are integral to the sale of 750,000 ice cream cones each year; and the North Campus Chilled Water Plant and East Campus Steam Plant, essential in operation of the university’s facilities. (The steam plant includes a boiler manufactured by the former E. Keeler Co. in Williamsport, it was noted.) Samuel J. Bertolino, manager of design services, shared his criteria for assessing potential employees: Show up on time, have a great attitude, do what’s asked in a timely manner and earn a degree. At least a half-dozen Penn College alumni are now on Penn State’s HVAC payroll, Welker said, a testament to graduates’ hands-on abilities and teamwork ethic.
Photos provided

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Six Penn College students awarded national HVAC scholarships

A half-dozen students in two of Pennsylvania College of Technology’s academic schools are among 36 recipients of financial assistance from the Air-Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute’s Rees Scholarship Foundation.

Sharing a total of $8,000 are Peter W. Bennett, of Sea Cliff, New York, and Christopher J. Milliken, of Bellefonte, majoring in heating, ventilation and air conditioning technology; Luke Samuel Mika Brambley, of Breezewood, and Aiden Chestnut, of Aston, enrolled in heating, ventilation and air conditioning design technology; and building automation technology students Austin R. Reynolds, of Enola, and Adam J. Tarnowski, of Shickshinny.

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Two HVAC students awarded national industry scholarships

Two of five $5,000 scholarships recently awarded by the Oil and Energy Service Professionals and its co-sponsors have gone to Pennsylvania College of Technology students.

The scholarships were presented to Peter W. Bennett, of Sea Cliff, New York, and Ian H. West, of Hummelstown. Bennett is enrolled in the two-year heating, ventilation and air conditioning technology major; West is working toward a bachelor’s degree in heating, ventilation and air conditioning design technology.

The financial assistance comes from the organization’s Dave Nelsen Scholarship Program, established in 1999 to memorialize an OESP member’s commitment to education.

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Nine Penn College students medal at SkillsUSA nationals

Nine students from Pennsylvania College of Technology’s SkillsUSA team earned medals in six categories – three silvers and three bronzes – during the National Leadership and Skills Conference in Louisville, Kentucky, from June 24-29.

“The students represented themselves and the college well, and it showed with the number of medals we returned home with,” said SkillsUSA adviser James N. Colton II, an assistant professor of welding. “I look forward to next year and the students that we will have competing.”

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Women in Energy Mentorship Awards presented to two students

Penn College students Autumn N. Schreiber (left), of St. Marys, and Celeste G. Moquin, of Port Matilda, were presented with Women in Energy Mentorship Awards in Hershey on May 19.

Pennsylvania College of Technology students received two of the three Women in Energy Mentorship Awards presented this month at the Hershey Lodge and Convention Center.

Celeste G. Moquin, of Port Matilda, enrolled in on-site power generation, and Autumn N. Schreiber, of St. Marys, majoring in heating, ventilation and air conditioning technology, were honored at a May 19 dinner.

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Weis Markets service team hosts HVAC students

Hostler explains the controls on a low-temperature parallel rack system.

The students get an overview from Frisenda about the benefits of using adiabatic condensers in supermarket refrigeration.

Reilly describes the store's multizone leak detector and its importance to grocery operations. — Reilly describes the store’s multizone leak detector and its importance to grocery operations.

Laylon illustrates how a glycol loop works on the medium-temperature rack.

The Penn College HVAC technology program’s historically strong partnership with Weis Markets continued last month, as students in the commercial refrigeration classes toured a Weis store with members of the chain’s service team – including a number of graduates. The experience gave the students an opportunity to see operation of the heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration equipment they covered over the semester. Welcoming the students were Louis J. Frisenda and HVAC alumni Taylor P. Hostler (2010), Nicholas R. Laylon (2008), and John H. Lowe and Stephen J. Reilly (both 1989).
Photos by Stephen D. Manbeck, assistant professor of HVAC technology

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Supplier sponsors students’ attendance at training

The students tear down a semi-hermetic compressor during the hands-on portion of the class.

Bernard Servello, technical training specialist for Emerson, explains compressor cooling.

Ostrowski (left) and Woelfel (right), join Manbeck at the COSS training. Both students are actively involved in the Penn College student chapter of the Air Conditioning Contractors of America : Ostrowski as president and Woelfel as vice president.

Dave Dunn, technical training specialist for Emerson, explains compressor applications for R290 propane refrigerant.

Makdad (center), with Hassinger (left) and Manbeck

Through support from Makdad Supply Co. Inc., two Penn College students and an instructor recently attended an Emerson Compressor Operation and Service Seminar at the Central Pennsylvania Institute of Science and Technology. While heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration contractors from across the region attended the event – an in-depth, three-day program packed with everything an HVACR service technician needs to know to install, service and maintain Copeland compressors – Makdad sponsored seats for HVACR majors from CPI and the two students from Penn College. Among attendees were Ronald J. Ostrowski III, of Shavertown, and Zeph L. Woelfel, of Kersey, graduating next month with associate degrees in heating, ventilation and air conditioning technology, and Stephen D. Manbeck, an assistant professor of HVAC technology. Company owner Jack Makdad met with Manbeck and CPI’s Ken Hassinger to discuss how to provide similar training, as well as access to a variety of vendors and industry resources. The institutions already share a strong connection through the Penn College NOW dual-enrollment program. That initiative allows high school seniors to earn up to five college credits while enrolled at CPI, credits that help them get a head start on an associate degree at Penn College.
Photos provided

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Women in Construction builds confidence in tomorrow’s workforce

A half-dozen high school students hobnob with the Wildcat outside the ACC Auditorium.

About 35 area high school girls met their potential destiny during Penn College’s annual “Framing Your Future” event Friday, gaining hands-on exposure to the vast career opportunities represented by the School of Construction & Design Technologies. The college’s Women in Construction club inspired the ninth through 12th graders and coordinated the activities, which included a networking lunch and group sessions in the architecture/sustainable design, building construction and HVAC/plumbing labs.

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Scholarship luncheon provides firsthand look at donors’ impact

Ferki tells guests, “Scholarships act as a gateway to inspire growth in a student’s academics and passion for his or her industry.” She is the recipient of the SEKISUI SPI Workforce Development Scholarship and the Penn College Foundation Scholarship.

The empowering combination of applied technology education and financial support was celebrated Sunday afternoon, as Pennsylvania College of Technology hosted its second annual Scholarship Luncheon in the campus Field House.

“I am overwhelmed by the collective energies in this room to transform tomorrow,” President Davie Jane Gilmour said, addressing students, families and donors alike. Announcing that the coming academic year will include the largest total amount of scholarships awarded in any one year during the college’s history, she thanked attendees for their significant role in helping students succeed.

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HVAC students help ‘Cinderella’ prep for big dance

From left are Klose, Gaffney, YWCA boutique manager Kahlie DeHotman and Keiser.

Students from Penn College’s School of Construction & Design Technologies – all members of the campus chapter of the Air Conditioning Contractors of America – once again lent their skills to “Cinderella’s Closet,” which offered a donated selection of very affordable prom gowns, shoes and accessories to high school juniors and seniors. Helping with dressing booths for the March 23-24 event at the YWCA Northcentral PA were Alex A. Klose, of Bethlehem, and Griffin L. Keiser, of Lewisburg, both enrolled in heating, ventilation and air conditioning design technology, and Patrick C. Gaffney, of Plymouth Meeting, an HVAC technology major.
Photos by Carol A. Lugg, dean of construction and design technologies

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