The empowering combination of applied technology education and financial support was celebrated Sunday afternoon, as Pennsylvania College of Technology hosted its second annual Scholarship Luncheon in the campus Field House.
“I am overwhelmed by the collective energies in this room to transform tomorrow,” President Davie Jane Gilmour said, addressing students, families and donors alike. Announcing that the coming academic year will include the largest total amount of scholarships awarded in any one year during the college’s history, she thanked attendees for their significant role in helping students succeed.
Penn College students featured on “PMA Perspective” are Alexa M. Korinchak, a plastics and polymer engineering technology major from Hellertown, working on the heavy-gauge thermoformer …… and Shujaa AlQahtani, of Saudi Arabia, a manufacturing engineering technology demonstrating the Genos M560 vertical machining center.
The second of two episodes of “PMA Perspective” featuring Penn College aired Sunday morning on the Pennsylvania Cable Network.
David N. Taylor, president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Manufacturers’ Association, and the “PMA Perspective” crew toured and filmed in the plastics and polymer engineering technology labs, led by Kirk M. Cantor, professor of plastics technology; in automated manufacturing/machining, guided by Richard K. Hendricks, instructor of machine tool technology/automated manufacturing; and in rapid prototyping (3D printing), led by Eric K. Albert, associate professor of machine tool technology/automated manufacturing.
Last week’s first episode featured an interview with Penn College President Davie Jane Gilmour and a tour of the mechatronics lab. For that segment, Taylor interviewed Howard W. Troup, instructor of automated manufacturing/machine tool technology, and Christopher P. Ray, executive director, business development.
Both installments can be viewed on the “PMA Perspective” website.
Enjoying their exchange in the thermoforming lab with Bradley M. Webb, assistant dean of industrial, computing and engineering technologies, are (from left) Pickett, Hahn, Diamond, Sankey, Wheeland and Oberlander.In the welding lab, Pickett and Everett appreciate insights shared by David R. Cotner, dean of industrial, computing and engineering technologies.President Davie Jane Gilmour (center) leads a brisk walk across campus, as “Spring Break” begins in name only.Sandra L. Richmond (center), dean of nursing and health sciences, invites guests to identify the faculty member photographed in the college’s first dental hygiene lab. (The answer? President Gilmour!)During lunch in the Thompson Professional Development Center, the group hears apprenticeship information from Shannon M. Munro, vice president for workforce development.
Members of the state House Majority Policy Committee were among the Friday visitors to main campus, delighting in an illuminating tour of select instructional labs and learning about Penn College’s role – both academically and through apprenticeships – in enhancing the commonwealth’s skilled labor pool. College administrators, joined by local Reps. Garth D. Everett and Jeff C. Wheeland, welcomed a contingent of Republican lawmakers who research and generate policy proposals aimed at improving the quality of life in The Keystone State: Chair Donna Oberlander, of Clarion; Russell H. Diamond, of Lebanon; Marcia M. Hahn, Wind Gap; Tina Pickett, of Towanda; and Tommy Sankey, of Clearfield. The group, joined by legislative staff and local media, toured instructional areas for nursing, dental hygiene, plastics and welding; learned about efforts toward workforce development; and traveled to Lycoming Engines, a mainstay of the local economy for whom the college’s Metal Trades Center is named.
Pennsylvania College of Technology President Davie Jane Gilmour has been appointed to the NCAA Division III Chancellors/Presidents Advisory Group.
Gilmour will serve alongside other presidents and chancellors from Division III conferences across the U.S. who advise the Division III Presidents Council, the highest governing body in the division.
According to the NCAA website, “The (Presidents) Council establishes and directs the general policy of the Division, while also establishing Division III’s strategic plan. It can make recommendations to the Board of Governors on matters related to Division III, such as championships, and may approve how the Division spends its money.”
Pennsylvania College of Technology President Davie Jane Gilmour presented to the Pennsylvania Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday afternoon in support of the college’s 2019-20 state budget appropriation request.
This is the second year that Penn College was afforded the opportunity to present to the committee separately. Previously, the college’s appropriation request was communicated by The Pennsylvania State University when it presented as part of the hearing for state-related universities.
Tuesday’s hearing was broadcast live on the Pennsylvania Cable Network; video of the president’s testimony and follow-up questioning is available on the PCN website through the “Pennsylvania Budget 2019-2020” page.
Also presenting to the Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday were the state-related universities (Penn State, Pitt, Temple and Lincoln), and Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology.
Pennsylvania College of Technology held its Fall 2018 commencement on Saturday, Dec. 22, in the Community Arts Center, bringing down the curtain − as winter officially arrives and the new year nears − on another season of academic success. The student speaker was Katherine Lynne Mertes, of Williamsport, who was awarded a bachelor’s degree in residential construction technology and management: building construction technology concentration. Also addressing the Class of ’18 was Joanna K. Flynn, associate professor of mathematics, who was presented with the Veronica M. Muzic Master Teacher Award in May. Civil engineering technology alumna Margaret A. Jackson received the Alumni Achievement Award during the ceremony, at which more than 300 degrees were conferred by college President Davie Jane Gilmour and Steven P. Johnson, president of UPMC Susquehanna and a member of the college’s Board of Directors.
“Guarantee Momentum,” the Pennsylvania College of Technology 2017-18 Impact Report, is available online and is set to arrive in mailboxes in the coming days. Read the President’s Message and review the college’s efforts to empower industry, inspire innovation, prepare tomorrow makers and more.
Penn College President Davie Jane Gilmour and Steven P. Johnson, president of UPMC Susquehanna and member of the college’s board of directors, were among more than 60 community-minded daredevils who rappelled from the nine-story William Hepburn Apartments on Saturday. Battling the elements (and obviously overcoming any descent-related anxiety), they joined their charitable colleagues in an Over the Edge fundraiser for the Williamsport Area School District Education Foundation, River Valley Regional YMCA and YWCA Northcentral PA.
Fall Open House visitors had unfettered access to Penn College’s vibrant campuses Sunday, as today’s faculty/staff, alumni and students provided them with a tantalizing view of a very real and credible tomorrow. All six academic schools put out the welcome mat through information sessions, tours and laboratory demonstrations, and guests were encouraged to explore the institution’s myriad complementary services and activities.
The disparate threads of Homecoming and Parent & Family Weekend were woven together again this fall, producing another seamless tapestry of fun and reconnection for graduates, current students and families. The third annual combined celebration kicked off with a Friday bonfire, tent party and Hall of Fame Banquet; continued Saturday with a presidential breakfast, Williamsport bus and trolley excursions, lab tours, a golf outing and on-campus sporting events, arts and crafts, and an alumni reunion at downtown nightspots; and concluded Sunday with more athletics and a fond farewell (until next year)!
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.
Lycoming Engines’ longtime support of Pennsylvania College of Technology and its academic programs was celebrated on campus recently with the unveiling of new signage at the college’s Metal Trades Center.
Members of the Penn College community and representatives of Lycoming Engines – including alumni of the college employed by the company – gathered on Oct. 2 to dedicate the Lycoming Engines Metal Trades Center sign on the front lawn of the facility.
Jim R. Dougherty III, assistant director of classroom technology and A/V services, assists the president with the VR headset.Explorers welcome!Gilmour is wowed by space exploration …… and plays a game in “the funhouse.”The “launchpad” location for virtual exploration, in the rear hallway of the library’s second floor
Information Technology Services and Madigan Library will officially open Penn College’s new Virtual Reality Studio at 3:30 p.m. Thursday. Located on the south side of the library’s second floor, the configuration is powered by an Alienware Aurora PC, and includes a state-of-the-art HTC Vive Pro VR headset and controllers. The space is open to students and faculty for instructional and gaming use; hours will be 3-10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday (with special sessions available for faculty by appointment). Explore human anatomy with “The Body VR,” pilot a lunar mission with “Apollo 11 VR” or visit a fantasy world in “Skyrim VR,” among others. College President Davie Jane Gilmour sampled some of the adventure on Monday afternoon, spreading excitement about the addition to campus and encouraging attendance at Thursday’s open house. Contact the Office of Instructional Technology for more information.
Penn College is participating in Welcoming Week (Sept. 14-23), a national appreciation of international students and their collective contributions to campus culture. “Students from all over the world are a vital part of our campus, bringing fresh perspectives and new ideas, which contribute to the vibrant diversity that we all value,” President Davie Jane Gilmour said in a commemorative proclamation. “This week, we honor the spirit of unity that is bringing people together across the nation and the world. Regardless of where we are born or what we look like, we are Penn College, united in our efforts to build a stronger campus and greater future.” As part of the celebration – which featured an appropriately hashtagged cake and selfies with the Wildcat – friends and colleagues were invited to show their support of global education during an informal get-together in the Bush Campus Center lobby Wednesday afternoon. Penn College has 24 students from nine countries: France, Ghana, India, Iran, Oman, Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan and the United Kingdom.
At the dawn of 2018-19 classes, Pennsylvania College of Technology President Davie Jane Gilmour gathered with faculty and staff Thursday morning to set a resolute tone for the fall semester. Summarizing the swirl of summer activity – and a wide range of developments from facilities to personnel to athletics – she ended with a reminder that inspiring students is the true bottom line. “When reflecting on the start of a new academic year, so much comes to my mind,” the president told an all-college audience in the Klump Academic Center Auditorium. “First, the new students, fresh ideas, a slight bit of fear, and, yet, their entrusting us to help shape their future. The excitement, the realization of the responsibility we all share and the knowledge that, if all goes right, we will make a difference in their lives and they in ours. Yes, the challenges, the opportunities and the bumps along the road are real and, at times, frustrating. But … for all the challenges we face, the joy in knowing we are some small part of creating ‘tomorrow makers’ fixes everything.”
