The presidents of Pennsylvania College of Technology and Lycoming College signed an agreement Thursday to explore a tuition exchange program benefiting the dependent children of full-time employees at both city institutions.
In a ceremony at the Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce, Penn College President Davie Jane Gilmour and Lycoming College President Kent Trachte signed a memorandum of understanding establishing the terms of the program, which begins this fall.
Pennsylvania College of Technology held the Triple Crown of commencement ceremonies May 17-18 for more than 900 students who petitioned to graduate following the Spring 2019 semester. The Friday afternoon proceedings at the Community Arts Center honored students from the School of Industrial, Computing & Engineering Technologies and the School of Sciences, Humanities & Visual Communications. Saturday morning featured The School of Construction & Design Technologies and the School of Health Sciences, while students from the School of Business & Hospitality and the School of Transportation & Natural Resources Technologies graduated during the afternoon session. Student speakers were Hannah G. Maize, of Riverside, who received a bachelor’s degree in plastics and polymer engineering technology (summa cum laude) on Friday; Lauren S. Herr, of Lititz, awarded a bachelor’s in construction management (summa cum laude) at Saturday morning’s session; and David A. Gadalla, of Mechanicsburg, who received a bachelor’s degree in aviation maintenance technology in the weekend’s final ceremony. The college also bestowed three teaching honors – the Veronica M. Muzic Master Teacher Award and two Excellence in Teaching Awards – as well as three alumni awards.
Ending the spring semester with a Thursday morning message to faculty and staff, President Davie Jane Gilmour celebrated superhero-caliber employees who regularly and selflessly fight the good fight on behalf of Pennsylvania College of Technology students’ success. Her address also recapped accomplishments during 2018-19 and anticipated the opportunities to come: “We have had an incredible year. Student and faculty success. Expanding welding, opening in Wellsboro, the turf field,” she said. “Most importantly, we have changed lives – we have contributed to the growth of our community and our students. We have helped each other when necessary and made everyday efforts on behalf of Penn College.”
A graduation ceremony was held Wednesday morning for Rylee A. Butler, a member of the Penn College archery team who is unable to attend commencement exercises due to this weekend’s U.S. National Outdoor Collegiate Championships in Ohio. President Davie Jane Gilmour presented the diploma to Butler, who earned a bachelor’s degree in engineering design technology, during a brief gathering in the Student & Administrative Services Center. The building’s lobby was filled with family and other well-wishers, including faculty from the School of Industrial, Computing & Engineering Technologies; as well as representatives of the Athletics Department, Academic Affairs, and the Admissions, Registrar and Financial Aid offices. In addition to her degree, Butler is receiving the Academic Vice President and Provost’s Award and the Engineering Design Technology Faculty Award; she also was recently inducted into the college’s new Chi Alpha Sigma honor society for student-athletes. Spring graduation often coincides with postseason play and, in recent years, the president has taken road trips to present diplomas so Wildcats didn’t have to choose between commencement and competition.
WELLSBORO – A facility gifted to Pennsylvania College of Technology by UPMC Susquehanna is serving a new purpose as a site for instruction in practical nursing, medical assistant and other health care careers, as well as customized training for business and industry.
The 8,400-square-foot Penn College at Wellsboro facility, located at 22 Walnut St., was formally dedicated today in ceremonies that included members of the Penn College community, representatives of UPMC, elected officials and stakeholders, and others.
Student teams from four area high schools will share $2,100 to realize community projects they presented as part of Pennsylvania College of Technology’s ninth annual Youth Leadership Program.
Twenty-nine students graduated May 2 from the initiative, which is designed to educate and motivate students to understand the needs of their communities and to take an active leadership role in addressing them.
Penn College President Davie Jane Gilmour visited the Dunham Children’s Learning Center on Tuesday, bringing the requisite supplies for an art project with the facility’s Birds (ages 4 and 5) and Bears (ages 3 and 4). The president helped the youngsters make cute daffodils – fitting, given the ample sunshine of the past two days – and told each child “to give it to someone in your family who you love.”
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.
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.
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.