News about Nursing & Health Sciences

Among the newer additions to the Pennsylvania College of Technology community as the Fall 2022 semester begins are 19 faculty members, as provided by the Office of People & Culture. Fifteen will begin their instructional duties on Aug. 11; the remainder were added to the roster as noted.

“This cohort of new faculty possesses a wide range of experiences and skills,” said Joanna K. Flynn, dean of curriculum and instruction. “We are excited to see the impact they will have on our students and the college.”

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When Pennsylvania College of Technology radiography student Sarah S. Conrath crossed the stage at commencement ceremonies on Aug. 6, she celebrated not only the culmination of her education, but a personal triumph that has deeper meaning for her family – especially her father.

Conrath, of Pottsville, began providing care long before she entered a health care major at Penn College.

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A graduating Pennsylvania College of Technology student is one of about a dozen accepted for the fall to the Physician Assistant Surgical Residency Program offered by Norwalk Hospital/Yale University School of Medicine.

Damaris A. Diaz, of Williamsport, plans to graduate from Penn College with a combined bachelor’s/master’s degree in physician assistant studies in August. Her 12-month residency begins Sept. 12.

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The Pennsylvania College of Technology Athletics Department has announced its 2022 Hall of Fame Class: Jordan A. Courter-Rutledge (soccer), Alicia N. Ross (basketball) and Mark C. Shaffer (baseball).

The three inductees will be enshrined at 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22, during the college’s Wildcat Weekend.

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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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A second week of Penn College’s My Tomorrow day camp (July 12-15) led middle-school students down more time-tested roads to career success and personal fulfillment. The program – again sponsored by the Soars Family – followed the template of the first: offering sixth through eighth graders an enviable palette of hands-on options, from emergency preparedness and health sciences to concrete, aviation and electrical.

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Get an early look at Penn College’s newest 30-second spot during “The Captain,” ESPN’s seven-part documentary about the career of Derek Jeter, from July 18-Aug. 11. “The Next Generation” celebrates the college’s role in meeting a shortfall of technically skilled positions – one tomorrow maker at a time – and will air regionally through Xfinity cable and satellite TV in the Wilkes-Barre, Harrisburg/Lebanon/Lancaster/York and State College media markets.

“I played a few different sports, but this is the only one that I’ve actually stuck with,” says Olivia Hemstock, a since-graduated member of the Penn College softball team, in a newly posted Wildcat Spotlight video. Hemstock crossed the Community Arts Center stage in mid-May to claim her associate degree in dental hygiene, the culmination of a college experience that included a first-ever North Eastern Athletic Conference championship in 2021. “Sticking with it” could well be her motto, as persistence and friendship turned self-doubt into self-confidence. “Before I got here, I was like, ‘I don’t think I can do this. I don’t know how to balance both sports and dental hygiene,'” she says. “Once I met amazing people on the team – and really enjoyed my major, as tough as it was – you figure it out.” Hemstock has passed all of her board exams and is job-shadowing co-workers at the North Branford Dental Group in her Connecticut hometown; she will begin work as a full-time hygienist there once her license is received.

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 Pennsylvania Health Information Management Association recently honored Daniel K. Christopher, assistant professor of business administration/health information at Pennsylvania College of Technology, with its 2022 Distinguished Member Award.

Each year, the association honors one outstanding member for loyal service to PHIMA and contributions to the profession.

Christopher has more than 40 years of experience in the field of health information, beginning in 1979 when he became director of medical records for Wernersville State Hospital. He also served as director of medical records at J.C. Blair Memorial Hospital in Huntingdon and Mercy Hospital in Altoona before being named controller at Mercy. At Lock Haven Hospital, he served as a health information consultant.

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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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Nearly 140 campers from near and far participated in the past week’s seven Pre-College Programs, giving teens a taste of Penn College through an engrossing variety of academic adventure and social interaction: Architecture Odyssey, Autism Spectrum Post-Secondary Interest Experience, Automotive Technology, Aviation, Engineering, Future Restaurateurs and Health Careers.

A second week of camps, featuring an equally tantalizing menu of opportunities spread among eight more programs, convenes in mid-July.  Registrants for both weeks hail from 14 states – some from as far away as Connecticut, Florida and Virginia – and include a camper from Santiago, Chile!

Don’t think high school students are the only ones in on the fun, however! Pre-College Programs include My Tomorrow, a middle school career exploration day camp sponsored by the Soars family, from June 28 to July 1 and July 12-15.

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Ready to see what hands-on learning is all about? Here’s a teasing glimpse of the action that’s set to unfold in the Pennsylvania College of Technology episode of The College Tour, produced nationally and streaming on Amazon Prime when Season Five drops on Aug. 31:

Now that your interest is piqued, watch the full episode at Penn College’s College Tour website. Filmed over five days during the spring semester and edited into 27 brisk minutes, the video features 10 standout students in dedicated segments: Ashlee Felix, human services & restorative justice (Business, Arts & Sciences); Caila N. Flanagan, who earned two business degrees (Wildcat Life); Alejandro F. Huaman, a building science & sustainable design: architectural technology concentration alumnus (Engineering Technologies); Dacia J. James, dental hygiene (Nursing & Health Sciences); Jesse D. Laird V, a nursing student and ROTC cadet (Commitment to Service); Danielle E. Malesky, construction management (Momentum Guaranteed); Maggie J. Mangene, a softball player and heating, ventilation & air conditioning design technology student (Stay Wild); Wesley S. McCray, an engineering design technology grad (Future Made by Hand); Kathryn A. Plankenhorn, physician assistant studies (Explore Campus & Beyond); and automotive technology management alumnus Dhruv Singh (Come Ready, Leave Prepared). After hearing their stories and getting the inside track on campus life, we’re sure you’ll agree with host Alex Boylan that “There’s so much to love here!”

Kelly T. Bidlespacher has been named director of nursing, bachelor’s and graduate degrees, at Pennsylvania College of Technology.

Bidlespacher, a registered nurse, began her Penn College experience as an adjunct faculty member in 2019 and served as the clinical director of nursing at the college from 2020-22.

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