News about Events

Pennsylvania College of Technology held its Summer 2022 Commencement at 11 a.m. Saturday at the Community Arts Center in downtown Williamsport, a milestone ceremony that marked Michael J. Reed’s first as college president. Aided by another new college administrator (Neslihan “Nesli” Alp, who began her duties Monday as vice president for academic affairs/provost), Reed conferred degrees – including the first master’s-level degrees “in our storied history.” Bryan M. Bilbao, of Old Forge, one of the students in that initial cohort for the Combined Bachelor/Master of Science degree in physician assistant studies, was the student speaker. The 90-minute ceremony also featured a Distinguished Alumni Award to 2002 welding technology grad Richard A. Conrad Jr. and acknowledgement of more than 25 awards to graduating seniors.

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The Foundation for Free Enterprise Education held its final session of Pennsylvania Free Enterprise Week (July 31-Aug. 5) at Penn College, bringing more than 300 high schoolers to campus to hone their communication skills while being exposed to the concepts of teamwork, cooperation and leadership. The students stayed in campus housing, ate meals in the Keystone Dining Room and Capitol Eatery, and spent a whole lot of collaborative time in Klump Academic Center classrooms and auditorium. With galvanizing speakers and interactive learning exercises, PFEW provides a real-life educational experience for industrious students – each of whom is sponsored by a private-sector benefactor. Throughout the week, the students replicate the responsibilities, rewards and challenges of managing a corporation, marketing a product, and satisfying shareholders and customers alike. Among those on hand to guide and inspire the students was college President Michael J. Reed, who delivered a keynote address during a General Assembly on Tuesday afternoon.

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A second week of Pre-College Programs, providing an absorbing midmonth bill of fare, winningly delivered eight more options for teenagers looking for purposeful summer diversion. Attracting both the well-traveled and the close-to-home, the latest Penn College sessions covered a range of career-focused opportunity: Automotive Restoration; Design, Build & Grow (landscape and horticulture); Diesel Truck & Heavy Equipment; Fundamentals of Emergency Response; Graphic Design Summer Studio; the first-time offerings of Have Your Cake & Decorate It, Too and Non-Destructive Testing; and Thingamajig Fabricators. This photo gallery provides a sampling of the visitors’ enlightening encounters with their potential futures, with a slightly heavier dose of the inaugural cake-decorating camp … because who doesn’t want an extra helping of cake? (Readers can also relive the first round of Pre-College Programs, published elsewhere on PCToday.)

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Summer 2022 Commencement at Pennsylvania College of Technology will feature a couple of firsts.

The ceremony, scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 6, at the Community Arts Center, will include the awarding of master’s degrees for the first time in the college’s history. It is also the first commencement ceremony for which new Penn College President Michael J. Reed, who began his duties July 1, will preside.

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The first installment of Penn College’s My Tomorrow day camp (June 28 to July 1) provided middle-schoolers with a hands-on canvas on which to envision their own futures. The program, sponsored for the second year by the Soars Family, allowed students to explore any number of pathways – all of which lead to rewarding careers in fields that are never out of favor. Another session, equally popular given the sold-out registration, is set for July 12-15.

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The 2022 edition of Connections, enthusiastically marking a return to in-person summer orientation for the first time since 2019, kicked off Monday at Penn College. All new students (first-years, transfers and adult learners) are required to participate, as student leaders – an animated bunch known as Links – help them and their parents/guests prepare for the exciting road ahead.

The programs address a range of essential topics: academic expectations and involvement opportunities; information about textbooks/tool kits, meal plans and financial aid; faculty/staff resources; acquiring a student ID card; and a primer on Wildcat culture and community.

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The Student & Administrative Services Center at Pennsylvania College of Technology will soon bear the name of retiring President Davie Jane Gilmour.

The college’s Board of Directors convened a special meeting to approve the action at a gala event honoring Gilmour’s 24-year presidency. The board also granted emeritus status to Gilmour, who retires June 30.

The Student & Administrative Services Center, known in campus shorthand as “the SASC,” houses offices for student services such as Admissions, Financial Aid, the Registrar, Veterans & Military, the LEAP Center (first-year student assistance) and more. The upper floors of the three-story facility, which opened in 2003, includes spaces for People & Culture (formerly Human Resources), Financial Operations, Information Technology Services, Public Relations & Marketing and executive offices, including the President’s Office and Academic Affairs.

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The 36th Annual Penn College Foundation Golf Classic, featuring six-time PGA Tour winner Rocco Mediate, recently raised a record-setting $140,360 for student scholarships at Pennsylvania College of Technology.

With this year’s support, the Penn College Foundation Golf Classic Scholarship Fund now totals nearly $2.1 million. Proceeds from the annual Golf Classic and accumulated investment income created the endowed scholarship fund, one of the foundation’s largest.

Mediate, a Greensburg native who has also won three times on the Champions Tour, including the 2016 Senior PGA Championship, hosted a driving-range exhibition and played three holes with seven foursomes during the event, held at the Williamsport Country Club.

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A national foundation devoted to manufacturing’s future is teaming with Pennsylvania College of Technology to spark interest among high schoolers in the sector’s rewarding careers.

Nuts, Bolts & Thingamajigs, the charitable foundation of the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association International, provided a $2,000 grant for the college to host the Thingamajig Fabricators Pre-College Program for students entering grades 9-12. The program is also supported by the PMMI Education and Training Foundation and Construction Specialties Inc.

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Sure to be a big hit, an exhibition in The Gallery at Penn College is celebrating a true summertime classic.

“A Diamond Anniversary: A Celebration of 75 Years of the Little League Baseball® World Series” will run June 7 through Aug. 25 in the gallery on the third floor of The Madigan Library at Pennsylvania College of Technology. The exhibit is free and open to the public. Hours will be: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, and 1 to 4 p.m. Sundays. (The gallery will be closed Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays and is also closed July 3-5.)

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Advice from industry partners led to the creation of the Human Services & Restorative Justice Coffee & Conversation series this past semester at Pennsylvania College of Technology, and plans are underway to continue the initiative in the fall. Hosting three speakers across three months of Spring 2022, the sessions provided candid conversations on hot topics impacting the HSJ field.

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​More than 400 prospective students and their guests attended Wednesday’s first Open House of the summer season, which featured weather as warm as the welcome they received from accommodating faculty and staff. Attendees got an informative “sneak peek” at what awaits Penn College’s Tomorrow Makers, including tours of instructional space and various aspects of student life. Visit the Admissions Office to register for one of the season’s remaining Open Houses: Sunday, June 26; Saturday, July 23; and Friday, July 29.
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With Baby Boomer retirements and pandemic-era voluntary departures only adding to the skills gap in industry, Workforce Development’s 2022 Penn College Apprenticeship Summit provided timely food for thought. Tuesday’s daylong event in Penn’s Inn brought together experienced industry representatives and empathetic partners to discuss current trends and the workforce of the future, and brainstormed how apprenticeship programs play a crucial role in recruiting and retaining high-quality employees. Workforce Development serves as a comprehensive clearinghouse for apprenticeships at companies of all sizes, and customizes those offerings to meet industry’s specific needs in fields including mechatronics, robotics, health care, plastics and diesel. In addition to such benefits as career advancement, higher income and a competitive edge, participants in those registered programs now have a pathway to an associate degree in apprenticeship technology.

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Pennsylvania College of Technology held three ceremonies May 13-14 for the nearly 750 students who petitioned to graduate at the end of the Spring 2022 semester – the last of 135 commencement exercises to be held under President Davie Jane Gilmour. “My life is better for all of the students I’ve dealt with, interacted with, shook hands with for the last 24 years,” said the president, who is retiring June 30. “I am so proud of you and what you’ve done, and I want you to remember one thing: If you make yourself proud every day, then we will be Penn College Proud. And no matter where you go or what you do, you will always have a home at Penn College.” Bittersweet and joyful, nostalgic and raucous (with cowbells, air horns and confetti cannons), it truly offered moments to cherish, and not just for the 20,000th graduate to cross the stage and receive one-on-one congratulations.

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As part of the spring semester wind-down, Penn College employees gathered near the Field House for catered lunch and camaraderie. Thursday’s picnic – the first since before the pandemic – brought together staff and faculty from across campus to relax in the outdoors before the weekend’s commencement activities.

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