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Free dental services available to children on March 2

Pennsylvania College of Technology dental hygiene students Abigail S. Way, ’17, of Williamsport, and Rebekah L. Caretti, ’18, of Weedville, provide free preventive dental services to a child during the 2017 Sealant Saturday event at Pennsylvania College of Technology. Volunteer dentists, dental hygienists and dental hygiene students will again provide free services in the Penn College Dental Hygiene Clinic during Sealant Saturday on March 2.

Free dental care – including screenings, sealants, fluoride varnish treatment and education – is available to children ages 7 to 15 on Saturday, March 2, in the Pennsylvania College of Technology Dental Hygiene Clinic.

The event is co-sponsored by the Pennsylvania Dental Hygienists’ Association as part of its Sealant Saturday initiative. Sealant Saturday events are held across the state.

The Penn College event will take place from 9 a.m. to noon. The college’s Dental Hygiene Clinic is on the second floor in the west wing of the Advanced Technology & Health Sciences Center.

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State Senate Appropriations Committee chair tours campus

Always engaged and advocating for the college, Yaw (right) converses with Browne in the atrium of the Breuder Advanced Technology & Health Sciences Center.

State Sen. Patrick M. Browne, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, visited Pennsylvania College of Technology on Thursday.

Browne, who represents the 16th District – which includes Allentown and other municipalities within Lehigh County – came to campus after presenting an election and legislative update at a breakfast sponsored by the Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce.

He was invited by fellow Appropriations Committee member Sen. Gene Yaw, who also serves as chairman of the Penn College Board of Directors. Yaw also hosted the Chamber legislative update event, held at the Genetti Hotel in Williamsport.

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School of Nursing & Health Sciences hosts celebration

Pennsylvania College of Technology welcomed several School of Nursing & Health Sciences alumni back to campus to speak at an event celebrating the school’s name change, its academic majors, and milestone anniversaries for two programs: occupational therapy assistant (30 years) and physician assistant (20 years). From left are Megan Wright, ’12, a physician assistant practicing physical medicine and rehabilitation; Brian Webster, ’06, a nurse practitioner specializing in emergency and family nursing; President Davie Jane Gilmour; Sandra L. Richmond, dean of nursing and health sciences; and Michele “Mindy” Tedesco, ’88, a registered occupational therapist specializing in home health care.

The School of Nursing & Health Sciences at Pennsylvania College of Technology held a multifaceted celebration on Oct. 4 by hosting an open house of its facilities and welcoming accomplished alumni, who reflected on how their education has shaped their careers.

“We come together … to celebrate the positive impact all 10 of our nursing and health sciences programs have on our students’ lives, the professions in which they work, and the communities they serve,” said Sandra L. Richmond, dean of nursing and health sciences.

Of particular significance during the celebration was a change to the school’s name: from the School of Health Sciences to the School of Nursing & Health Sciences, and the anniversaries of the occupational therapy assistant program, whose first students graduated 30 years ago, and the physician assistant program, which graduated its first students 20 years ago.

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Dental Hygiene Events Faculty & Staff Nursing & Health Sciences Students

Free oral cancer screening available at Penn College on Oct. 6

Members of the Pennsylvania College of Technology chapter of the Student American Dental Hygienists’ Association, along with dentist and dental hygienist volunteers, will provide free oral cancer screenings on Saturday, Oct. 6, from 9-11 a.m.

The event will be held in the college’s Dental Hygiene Clinic, on the second floor of the Breuder Advanced Technology & Health Sciences Center. This is a walk-in event; no appointments are necessary.

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Dental Hygiene Faculty & Staff Nursing & Health Sciences Students

Dental Hygiene Students Treat 400 Children in Dominican Republic

From left, Penn College dental hygiene students Megan M. Mecouch, of Peach Bottom, Lancaster County; Kayla C. Summerson, of Emporium, Cameron County, and Lori M. Weaver, of Newmanstown, Lebanon County, join classmates in cleaning children’s teeth at a school in the Dominican Republic.

Seventeen Pennsylvania College of Technology students recently returned from the Dominican Republic, where they provided dental care to children at six schools in the Las Terrenas area.

The students are pursuing bachelor’s degrees in dental hygiene. Most were enrolled in Oral Health Care Field Experience, an elective course that allows them to increase their cultural competency by planning, providing and evaluating primary oral health services for an underserved population.

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Alumni Dental Hygiene Events Faculty & Staff Nursing & Health Sciences Students

Event Provides Free Dental Care to Service Members, Their Families

Providing dental hygiene services are (from left): Allison D. Bailey, a student from West Chester; Samantha J. Diehl, a student from East Berlin; Paige N. Spicher, a registered dental hygienist who graduated from Penn College in 2017; and, in second exam area, Courtney E. Bashwinger, a student from Levittown.

Pennsylvania College of Technology dental hygiene students, joined by local hygienists and dentists who volunteered their time, provided free dental hygiene services to 29 current or veteran members of the armed services and their family members.

The 35 students who provided “Service Saturday” treatments on April 14 are in the Community Dental Health course, taught by Kim A. Speicher, assistant professor of dental hygiene. Each year, the class provides community service to a population in need, Speicher explained.

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Health Sciences Team Owns ‘Breakout’ Session

Conquering the interactive challenge of Williamsport Escapes are (clockwise, from bottom left) Zeel Patel, a pre-nursing student from Bensalem; Long; Traister; Cera N. Blunk, a physician assistant major from Schuylkill Haven; Emily K. Conklin, a pre-dental hygiene student from Port Allegany; and Constance J. Plankenhorn, of Williamsport, enrolled in physician assistant studies.
Conquering the interactive challenge of Williamsport Escapes are (clockwise, from bottom left) Zeel Patel, a pre-nursing student from Bensalem; Long; Traister; Cera N. Blunk, a physician assistant major from Schuylkill Haven; Emily K. Conklin, a pre-dental hygiene student from Port Allegany; and Constance J. Plankenhorn, of Williamsport, enrolled in physician assistant studies.

The Health Sciences Living-Learning Community participated in an activity Friday at Williamsport Escapes, which offers a team-building series of brain games at 201 Basin Street. Tanae A. Traister, clinical director of nursing, and Taren A. (Adams) Long, a 2011 radiography graduate, joined four students as they solved clues that allowed them to break out of the facility’s locker-room area. The group was given 60 minutes to escape and managed to get out with two minutes and 57 seconds to spare! Penn College’s Living-Learning Communities provide themed housing arrangements for first-year residents in a variety of academic majors.
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Thirteen Students Selected for Penn College NOW Scholarships

Penn College presented scholarships to 13 first-year students who took Penn College NOW courses. From left are Tavor T. Wadsworth, of Williamsport; Vincent R. Keene, of Downingtown; Kayley E. Johnson, of Bloomsburg; Monica A. McCarty, Penn College’s dual enrollment specialist; Michael L. Gardner, of Williamsport; Warren E. Knipe, of Liberty; and Tanya Berfield, the college’s manager of college transitions. Additional recipients not in the photo are: Cheyenne N. Greene, of Jersey Shore; Deontae Z. Johnson, of Selinsgrove; Kylee E. Kelley, of Lock Haven; Tyler W. Miller, of Montgomery; Luke B. Walter, of Millmont; Brittany M. Weiskopff, of Blossburg; Clayton T. Welch, of Benton; and Jeremy M. Wolfgang, of Allenwood.

Pennsylvania College of Technology recently recognized 13 first-year students who received Penn College NOW scholarships.

The recipients completed Penn College courses during high school as part of the college’s Penn College NOW dual-enrollment program. The group was honored during an Oct. 27 reception.

To be eligible, students must have successfully completed at least one Penn College NOW course, have a minimum GPA of 3.0 in Penn College NOW classes, enroll in Penn College as a full-time freshman student for the fall semester after high school graduation, and maintain a 2.5 GPA at Penn College as an enrolled student.

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Faculty Pitch Health Careers at Regional ‘Awareness Day’

Wellsboro students learn about dental hygiene careers, straight from the mannequin's mouth.
Wellsboro students learn about dental hygiene careers, straight from the mannequin’s mouth.
Justin M. Ingram uses brains to make students mindful of their vocational options.
Justin M. Ingram uses brains to make students mindful of their vocational options.

Shawn A. Kiser, Penn College’s director of dental hygiene, and Justin M. Ingram, assistant professor of biology, collaborated to provide hands-on recruitment at the 2017 Tioga County Health Career Awareness Day. The event was held Nov. 8 at Wellsboro Area High School. Ingram provided an overview on the human brain; Kiser provided the opportunity for students to “clean” a mannequin’s teeth and place dental sealants. The event attracted about 150 area high school students.
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Alumni Dental Hygiene Events Faculty & Staff Nursing & Health Sciences

Dental Hygiene Program Hosts Oral Health Conference

Dental professionals from across northcentral Pennsylvania attend the 16th annual Oral Health Conference in Penn’s Inn.
Dental professionals from across northcentral Pennsylvania attend the 16th annual Oral Health Conference in Penn’s Inn.
Tom Viola, speaker, teacher, author and registered pharmacist, provides insight on pain management in the dental profession.
Tom Viola, speaker, teacher, author and registered pharmacist, provides insight on pain management in the dental profession.

The dental hygiene program hosted the Northcentral Pennsylvania Area Health Education Center’s 16th annual Oral Health Conference on Oct. 27. The event was held in Penn’s Inn and attracted 200 dental professionals from across the state. The audience included 81 graduates of the Penn College program and 36 second-year dental hygiene students. Rhonda S. Walker, alumni relations specialist, and Kimberly R. Cassel, director of alumni relations, attended to welcome the alumni group to campus. The keynote speaker was Tom Viola, registered pharmacist and certified consultant pharmacist, who provided a presentation on the pharmacological aspects of pain management for dental professionals titled “I Haven’t Got Time for the Pain!”
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Dental Hygiene Faculty & Staff Nursing & Health Sciences Students

Dental Hygiene Clinic Holds ‘Pink Out’ for Breast Cancer Awareness

The college’s Dental Hygiene Clinic takes on a pink hue as students and faculty don pink gowns for National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
The college’s Dental Hygiene Clinic takes on a pink hue as students and faculty don pink gowns for National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Penn College’s dental hygiene program helped to promote National Breast Cancer Awareness Month this week. While treating patients in the Dental Hygiene Clinic on Thursday and Friday, second-year students and their faculty donned pink gowns, creating a clinicwide “pink out.”

Dental Hygiene Nursing & Health Sciences Students

A World Away, Students Make Do … and Make a Difference

Penn College students gather with schoolchildren in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Penn College students gather with schoolchildren in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
On the steps of a school in Las Terrenas, Santo Domingo, Penn College students join a group of teachers and administrators. The students conducted clinics in four schools in four days at Las Terrenes.
On the steps of a school in Las Terrenas, Santo Domingo, Penn College students join a group of teachers and administrators. The students conducted clinics in four schools in four days at Las Terrenes.
Jenna N. Tippy, a student from Langhorne, outfits a curious child with gloves, glasses and face mask to be her “helper.”
Jenna N. Tippy, a student from Langhorne, outfits a curious child with gloves, glasses and face mask to be her “helper.”
The students provided their young clients with Penn College backpacks, courtesy of the Admissions Office.
The students provided their young clients with Penn College backpacks, courtesy of the Admissions Office.
Pretty in pink: Instructor Rhonda J. Seebold snapped a photo of students with children whose outfits just happened to be a perfect match to the students’ bright lab jackets. The students were providing sealants.
Pretty in pink: Instructor Rhonda J. Seebold snapped a photo of students with children whose outfits just happened to be a perfect match to the students’ bright lab jackets. The students were providing sealants.

Students in Penn College’s dental hygiene bachelor’s degree major made a summer stop in the Dominican Republic, where they provided free dental services to between 250 and 300 children in underserved neighborhoods. The students first visited the town of Las Terrenas, on the northeast coast, where they spent four days providing free dental clinics at four schools before traveling south to Santo Domingo, the nation’s capital, to serve a school there. A highlight of the trip happened in Santo Domingo, where the students’ accommodations were within walking distance of the school in which they would establish a clinic. On their way back from the school, with supplies in hand, the students came upon a dirt alley where small children were playing. “Some of the students sort of dropped everything and started playing with them,” said Rhonda J. Seebold, part-time instructor of dental hygiene, who led the study abroad trip. With the help of Seebold’s son, who speaks fluent Spanish, the children’s parents excitedly accepted an offer to provide fluoride treatments to the children, and the students went about setting up a clinic. “Part of what I teach the students is that you make do with what you have,” Seebold said. While in the Dominican Republic, Seebold estimates that the 12 students treated about 75 children a day. The students were enrolled in a summer elective course called International Oral Health Care Experience.
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