News about Legal Assistant/Paralegal

A member of Pennsylvania College of Technology’s Board of Directors and his wife, an alumna of the legal assistant/paralegal studies program, have established a fully endowed scholarship at the college.

The Steve and Mary Ann Johnson Scholarship will benefit students who are enrolled full time; have served in the U.S. military, are on active duty, are enlisted in the Reserves or National Guard, or are dependents of a veteran who was 75-percent disabled or died because of their service; have an academic standing of sophomore or greater; and have earned a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better on a 4.0 scale.

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Stormie B. Mauck has yet to earn her Bachelor of Science degree in legal assistant/paralegal studies, but the Pennsylvania College of Technology student already has a full-time job at a Williamsport law firm and is lending her expertise to two Lycoming County task forces – one focused on elder abuse and the other on heroin.

The Beech Creek resident, who says she’s known since middle school that a law career was ideal for her, is a civil litigation paralegal at Lepley, Engelman & Yaw and recently began volunteering for the Elder Law Task Force and Project Bald Eagle, a successor to the Heroin Task Force. Both initiatives are focused on community education and were spearheaded by Lycoming County President Judge Nancy L. Butts.

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Six transfer counselors from Harrisburg Area Community College traveled to Penn College this week to learn more about the transfer process. During their stay, the counselors reviewed current and potential articulation agreements, and, with their academic program peers, discussed advisement from two-year degrees into Penn College’s four-year programs. The counselors also had the opportunity to tour academic labs, hear about services offered to international students and study abroad opportunities, visit Madigan Library, and enjoy lunch and conversation at Le Jeune Chef Restaurant. “This was a great opportunity to collaborate with Penn College faculty to create transfer paths for our students,” said Gina Bowers-Miller, a counselor and faculty member in HACC’s Computer Information Security program.  “The exchange provided the opportunity for us to forge meaningful connections with our counterparts at Harrisburg Area Community College and between our shared program areas,”  said Clifford P. Coppersmith, dean of sciences, humanities and visual communications at Penn College. “We look forward to following up with visits by HACC students to our programs in the fall to further their knowledge of these continuing educational opportunities in paralegal studies and emergency management.” HACC is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, so, in the spirit of institutional celebrations, enjoyed Penn College’s Centennial additions around campus, including the mosaic and the History Trail. The visit was coordinated by the Office of Transfer Initiatives, charged with fostering stronger relationships with community college partners.
Photos by Carol A. Lugg, director of transfer initiatives  

Awards for teaching were presented to three full-time faculty members at Pennsylvania College of Technology during commencement ceremonies held May 16-17 at the Community Arts Center, Williamsport.

As part of the Distinguished Teaching Awards program, Penn College President Davie Jane Gilmour presented the Veronica M. Muzic Master Teacher Award to Dorothy M. Mathers, associate professor of medical-surgical nursing.

Excellence in Teaching Awards were presented to Peter B. Kruppenbacher, assistant professor of building construction technology, and Kevin R. Derr, professor of legal assistant studies.

The Distinguished Teaching Awards are presented to full-time faculty at Penn College who have been nominated by their students and colleagues for excellence in instructional performance. Since the program’s inception in 1982, awards have been presented to 95 honorees (30 Master Teacher and 65 Excellence in Teaching).

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Pennsylvania College of Technology students again are volunteering their time to help qualified individuals as they prepare their 2013 income tax returns.

More than a dozen students, most of them majoring in accounting but also representing the college’s financial planning, legal assistant, business management and information technology majors, have undergone months of extensive training to become certified tax preparers by the Internal Revenue Service.

The free service, part of the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program sponsored by the IRS, is designed for taxpayers who have relatively uncomplicated returns and less than $51,000 in annual income.

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A 150-year-old Williamsport law firm has established a scholarship benefiting students enrolled in the legal assistant-paralegal majors at Pennsylvania College of Technology.

The McCormick Law Firm Scholarship will make annual awards of $1,000 while building to endowed status. Once fully endowed, the scholarship fund will produce annual awards of $1,000 or more in perpetuity.

The scholarship will be awarded to those who demonstrate financial need and are enrolled as full- or part-time students, have a home residence in Lycoming County, are enrolled in the legal assistant-paralegal studies bachelor-degree major or the legal assistant-paralegal associate-degree major, and have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher.

“We’re very appreciative of McCormick Law Firm’s support of Penn College students through the establishment of this scholarship,” said Robb Dietrich, executive director of the Penn College Foundation. “McCormick Law Firm has a rich history of giving back to the community. This scholarship, and the financial assistance it will provide students for generations, will only add to that legacy.”

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The free Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program is being provided again by Pennsylvania College of Technology students for individuals needing guidance in preparing their 2011 taxes.

The VITA program is available through April 2 in the Teachers’ Learning Center (Room 213) in the Madigan Library on the college’s main campus in Williamsport. Sessions will be scheduled from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday to Thursday by appointment only.

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Renovated instructional space at Pennsylvania College of Technology has enhanced students’ real-world access and literally increased the visibility of several majors in the School of Business and Computer Technologies.

Located on the second-floor east wing of the Breuder Advanced Technology and Health Sciences Center and showcased at a Nov. 30 open house, the classroom/laboratory space includes a mock courtroom for paralegal studies/legal assistant students (Room E201), a Financial Markets Investment Lab (E258), a Web and Interactive Media Lab (E264) and a fully functional corporate boardroom (E200).

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Prospective enrollees in Penn College’s legal assistant/paralegal majors visited Thursday for an informative overview of the program. Participants explored academics and real-world applications with faculty and other School of Business and Computer Technologies principals; toured main campus with admissions representative Brian D. Walton and Bradley M. Webb, the school’s coordinator of matriculation and retention; saw firsthand the wide-ranging resources available to Penn College students seeking “degrees that work;” and enjoyed lunch.

Two by-appointment-only opportunities for free tax assistance have been scheduled at Pennsylvania College of Technology’s North Campus near Wellsboro.

The Internal Revenue Service’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, in which Penn College students help prepare hundreds of income-tax returns each season, will be available from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday, Feb. 25, and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, March 25; area residents should call 570-724-7703 to arrange their one-hour appointments at the Tioga County site.

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Six members of the Penn College Legal Society helped at the Hepburn-Lycoming Elementary School Walk-a-Thon on Sept. 19, handling a number of duties so parents were free to participate in the event with their children. The students and their assignments: Joshua A. Caudell, Williamsport, Tina M. Hill, Jersey Shore, and Shannon L. Hine, Bloomsburg, rewards table; Elizabeth M. Segraves, Williamsport, raffle-prize table; Courtney J. Snyder, Montoursville, concession stand; and Christopher M. Good, Hughesville, registration table. “The kids had a great time and the parents were very grateful for our help,” students and advisers were told by Hine, the organization’s president. “It is times like these that I’m proud to be a part of the Penn College community.”

The Internal Revenue Service’s free Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, in which Pennsylvania College of Technology students annually prepare hundreds of returns for area taxpayers, will offer two by-appointment-only sessions for Northern Tier residents this season.

The program will be offered from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday, Feb. 26, and from 1 to 6 p.m. Friday, March 26, at Penn College’s North Campus, along Route 6 between Wellsboro and Mansfield. Northern Tier residents should call 570-724-7703 to arrange appointments.

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The seventh annual “Money in Your Pocket” campaign, through which Pennsylvania College of Technology students collaborate with the Internal Revenue Service and Salvation Army volunteers to help hundreds of area residents prepare and file their returns, will begin Feb. 1.

The IRS’ free Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program will be offered in Room 102 of Penn College’s Madigan Library from 4 to 6 p.m. Monday to Thursday, through April 8. Assistance also will be available at The Salvation Army’s 457 Market St. location in downtown Williamsport and at the Muncy Public Library, 108 S. Main St.

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The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, in which Pennsylvania College of Technology students and community volunteers from The Salvation Army annually help hundreds of low-income local residents prepare their returns, soon will resume for the 2008 tax season.

The Internal Revenue Service’s free program will be offered in Room 102 of Penn College’s Madigan Library from 4-6 p.m. Monday through Thursday from Feb. 2 through April 9. Tax assistance also will be available at The Salvation Army’s 457 Market St. location in downtown Williamsport and at the Muncy Public Library, 108 S. Main St.

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The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, in which Pennsylvania College of Technology students prepare income-tax returns at no cost, will offer three Fridays of by-appointment-only help to Northern Tier residents this season.

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