News about General Information

Shell Polymers’ Support to Boost Plastics Education at Penn College

A $250,000 gift from Shell Polymers will enhance Pennsylvania College of Technology’s efforts to produce highly skilled graduates for the plastics industry. The funding will enable Penn College to enhance and upgrade an academic and research lab to be known as the Shell Polymers Rotational Molding Center of Excellence. Marking the occasion are, from left, Dan Moldovan, team leader, Shell Polymers; Adriana Velasquez, technical service engineer, Shell Polymers; Shannon Munro, vice president for workforce development, Penn College; Michael Marr, external relations, Shell Polymers; Elizabeth Biddle, director of corporate relations, Penn College; Todd Whittemore, general manager of polyethylene technology, Shell Polymers; and Laura Chamorro, global marketing manager, polyethylene, Shell Polymers.

A $250,000 gift from Shell Polymers will enhance Pennsylvania College of Technology’s efforts to produce highly skilled graduates for the plastics industry while helping to ease the growing skills gap in plastics manufacturing.

The funding will enable Penn College ­– which also operates the Plastics Innovation & Resource Center (PIRC) to assist plastics companies with research and development and the training of incumbent workers – to enhance and upgrade the academic and research lab that will now be known as the Shell Polymers Rotational Molding Center of Excellence.

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Canine Companions Effortlessly Ease Students’ Transition

Making friends, one by one, is Poppy, owned by Robert A. (shown) and Carol A. Lugg, dean of construction and design technologies.

Women's basketball coach Lauren Healy (standing) brought Rayne, her Labrador retriever/German shepherd mix.

Marvin, a golden retriever accompanied by Brian D. Walton, assistant dean of business and hospitality, was an instant buddy to anyone lending attention.

A nostalgic treat draws a crowd.

Patient pooches await their next nuzzle

Student Affairs this week renewed the annual “Hot Dog, You’re Here” event, a popular start-up activity that focuses on providing the campus family (especially those members who may be missing home) the opportunity to connect with faculty, staff, Penn College support services … and, of course, dogs! For 90 minutes Wednesday evening, Rose Street Commons was filled with friendly faces, information tables, food and an ice cream truck, allowing students a huggable entrée into the fall semester.
Photos by J.J. Boettcher, student photographer

Youth Leaders’ Winning Project Bears Fruit; 5K Set for Sept. 29

The Race for FreedomThe Race for Freedom, a 5K run that grew out of the Penn College Youth Leadership program, will step off at 9 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 29, in Montoursville’s Indian Park. Hughesville High School students Valerie Ammar-Khodja, Lauren Hall and Logan Woolcock were awarded $1,791 to implement their winning project in the program’s Social Change Competition: an event to make the community more aware of human trafficking. Proceeds will benefit the YWCA and Transitions to fight the problem in Lycoming County and beyond. “We are so passionate about this cause and we hope you will help us in the fight against human trafficking,” the students wrote on their race website. “Even though we are only three rising seniors in high school, we know that we can make a difference with the help of the members of our community.” Interested runners, walkers and donors can register through Falcon Race Timing.

Penn College’s Finest Also Among ‘Funnest’

The officer fields questions from children ...

... literally keeping his answers on their level.

Portable and prepared, Hakes explains the equipment he carries on the job.

The officer dons his helmet for an instructive ride-along.

Penn College Police Officer Justin M. Hakes recently joined the Bears for “Bike Day” at the Dunham Children’s Learning Center, a vehicle for teaching the boys and girls the helpful mission of law enforcement. The officer, who often patrols campus on a bicycle, volunteered to visit after he saw a group of children riding earlier in the summer. “It was a great experience and I think we will have him back again to talk to us,” said Barbara J. Albert, center director. “The children enjoyed seeing all the tools on his bike. He talked to them about bike safety, as well as rode with them around the courtyard.”
Photos by Neva E. Simcox, group leader

College Provides Venue for Public Session on School Safety

Sen. Yaw (second from right), who also chairs the college's board of directors, welcomes participants and attendees to Penn's Inn. He was joined by legislative colleagues (from left) state Rep. Frederick B. Keller (R-86th); state Sen. John R. Gordner (R-27th); and State Sen. David G. Argell (R-29th), committee chair.

The state Senate Majority Policy Committee held a public discussion of school safety, hosted by State Sen. Gene Yaw (R-23rd), in the Bush Campus Center on Thursday afternoon. The 90-minute session, the latest in a series being held across the commonwealth, allowed a diverse panel of stakeholders – district superintendents, principals, business managers and school board members; law enforcement; bus contractors; legislators and the legal profession – to share their concerns and best practices alike. The roundtable, open to the public and streamed live, was also attended by Penn College Police Chief Chris E. Miller and Elliott Strickland, the college’s vice president for student affairs.

Practical Nursing Information Session to Be Held in Potter County

Pennsylvania College of Technology’s Outreach Practical Nursing Program, based in the Wellsboro Area School District, will host a free information session for those interested in nursing as a career.

The session will be at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 11, in the Potter County Education Council building, 5 Water St., Coudersport. A question-and-answer period will follow the presentation.

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School Officials to Attend Safety Roundtable on Campus

Sen. Gene YawThe state Senate Majority Policy Committee will hold a roundtable on school safety with local district superintendents and administrative staff, hosted by State Sen. Gene Yaw (R-23rd), at 1 p.m. Thursday in the Bush Campus Center.

“Enacting common-sense legislation to protect students, teachers and school staff has been a priority for the legislature in recent months,” said Yaw, who also chairs the Pennsylvania College of Technology Board of Directors. “This roundtable discussion with our superintendents and school officials will provide us with more insight on how best to address challenges and implement solutions that can further safeguard everyone moving forward.”

The event, to be held in Penn’s Inn, is open to the public.

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Fanciful Signpost Takes Shape Outside CAL

At Penn College, the end of the road is just the beginning!

No detail is spared in the rustic recreation.

Sunlight plays off the silky flow of water.

Fittingly pointing the way to related instructional space – and cleverly mirroring Penn College’s evolution from yesterday to tomorrow – a pondless water feature outside College Avenue Labs affirms that “everything old is new again.” A broken-down truck forms the centerpiece of the tableau, created by several departments within General Services and completed Wednesday. “The idea of the 1949 Dodge came from seeing some old trucks used as landscape markers with seasonal interest in them: flowers in the spring, mums in the fall, evergreen clippings in the winter,” said Andrea L. Mull, horticulturist/grounds and motorpool supervisor. “We wanted to make a landmark that would show where the automotive restoration and collision repair labs are. All we have to do now is tell people to go to the building where the old Dodge truck is located!” A course of 2RC limestone simulates the old road that the vehicle supposedly was traveling as it approached a hill with a load of mountain stone. The engine died … the truck remained … and Mother Nature took possession, evidenced by the tree growing up through the bed. The truck  was purchased from Bill Lee Jr., of Jersey Shore; the aged lettering was done by Todd Moore, student affairs marketing specialist; and the clear coat (to slow the weathering process) was applied by collision repair instructor Roy H. Klinger.

Read Fall 2018 Penn College Magazine

Fall 2018 Penn College Magazine cover, illustrated by graphic design student Kennedy L. Englert

Read the Fall 2018 Penn College Magazine. The issue includes an inside look at students’ experiences on the Kentucky Derby hospitality team, faculty experts’ take on preparing the next generation for the jobs of the future, and three graduates’ behind-the-scenes work at Sight & Sound Theatres, plus much more. Look for it in your mailbox, or read, share and comment online.

Pennsylvania Free Enterprise Week Visits Campus

A “company” gathers for a photo with its adviser outside the Klump Academic Center.

Company D-2, which adopted the name FurrPets, acts out a television ad for its product, “FurrFresh,” a non-allergenic dry shampoo for pets, only slightly exaggerating the frustration of washing the family pet.

Looking “fierce,” a group poses with its company adviser.

Pennsylvania Free Enterprise Week held one of its five weeklong camps at Penn College from July 29-Aug. 4. Hundreds of high school juniors and seniors from across the state converged on the campus to learn what it is like to run their own business. The camp is a product of the Foundation for Free Enterprise Education. The remainder of the PFEW camps are also held in Williamsport at Lycoming College.

Fall Course Targets Those Seeking Employment as Phlebotomists

A Clinical Phlebotomy course will be offered this fall in the Klump Academic Center on Pennsylvania College of Technology’s main campus.

The program – 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays from Sept. 18 to Oct. 23 – will provide instruction in how to collect blood samples using venipuncture and capillary puncture procedures.

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From the Grounds Up

A newly groomed landmark awaits a new yearMaking hay while the sun shines – a rare occurrence of late – Penn College’s General Services professionals have dodged frequent rain and merciless steam to prepare for this weekend’s commencement and the new academic year beyond. The signature shrubbery outside the Student & Administrative Services Center, attractively spruced up this week by horticulturalist Jerry W. McNett, is but one example of the ongoing (and typical) institutional effort to make campus as aesthetically appealing to visitors as it is to the tomorrow-makers arriving for the Fall 2018 semester.

Where It Reigns, They Pour

Uniformly expressing an oft-heard Saturday sentiment is an entourage that includes Ashley R. Hilfiger (second from right), a 2010 technology management alum.

Penn College’s brewing and fermentation science major was again featured at Saturday’s Billtown Brewfest in Pine Square, organized by the Lycoming County Visitors Bureau and the Brickyard Restaurant & Ale House in celebration of craft beers. The second annual event offered two three-hour tastings from among an impressive range of regional brewers, and included musical entertainment on the stage outside Trade & Transit Centre II.

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Children’s Learning Center Grant Lowers Costs for Eligible Parents

Pennsylvania College of Technology student Shaunice M. Douglas, of Williamsport, completes a craft with her son during a family event at the Children’s Learning Center, which provides on-campus child care for the children of Penn College students and employees while their parents attend class or work. Douglas is a pre-nursing student.

The Dunham Children’s Learning Center at Pennsylvania College of Technology received a $92,118 grant to help reduce child care fees for eligible students who enroll their children at the facility.

The CCAMPIS grant was issued by the U.S. Department of Education. The abbreviation stands for Child Care Access Means Parents in School. It helps the Children’s Learning Center to provide discounts to Penn College students whose income makes them eligible for federal Pell Grants. Reductions range from 25 to 75 percent off Children’s Learning Center fees based on a student’s income as reported to the college’s Financial Aid Office.

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Campers Enjoy Fruits of Their Labor

Bloom talks campers through their edible creations.

Smiles abound during camp activities.

Camp buddies partake in show-and-tell snacking.

From preparation to presentation

Camp ESCAPE visited the Keystone Dining Room on Monday, making energy bites and fruit tarts with Rebecca L. Pawlik, registered dietitian, and Noelle B. Bloom, Dining Services’ assistant director.
Photos by Amy S. Lingg, Dining Services marketing assistant

Penn College is a special mission affiliate of Penn State