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Winners announced in Penn College Food Show

As part of Pennsylvania College of Technology’s annual Food Show, culinary arts technology students Summer L. Showers, left, of Aspers, and Chelsea L. Gray, of Marysville, receive the Chef Eugene Mattucci Best of Show award for their “Game Meats From the Hunt” platter and charcuterie board.

Pennsylvania College of Technology recently announced the winners of its annual Food Show.

The Food Show provides a venue for students to share their final projects in several courses and to gain feedback from industry professionals who judge their work. At the same time, it offers a learning experience for high school students interested in hospitality-related careers, who make a visit to the show as part of a daylong campus experience.

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Penn College electrical students help power park

Ian J. Chilcote, of Altoona, was one of 15 electrical technology students from tasked with installing electrical power.

Pennsylvania College of Technology electrical students powered their education throughout the fall semester by employing their skills at a regional park.

The 15 second-semester students installed electrical service at Lime Bluff Recreation Area in Hughesville. What began in the heat of August ended in December’s chill as the students worked about five hours a week at the complex.

“The work they did can’t be replicated in the lab due to the nature of it,” said Joseph R. Raup, instructor of electrical technology/occupations and teacher of the Construction Lab II-Commercial course charged with the project. “We don’t have the area to do the trenching and the underground type of work.”

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Both Penn College teams place in regional student competition

The second-place Design-Build Team that represented Penn College is (from left) David H. Guarriello, Bethlehem; Adam Z. Hutchinson, Greensburg; Chekota J. Newhart, Troy; Lauren S. Herr, Litiz; Rachel E. White, Doylestown; and Derick S. Gower, Sunbury.

Two teams of Pennsylvania College of Technology students finished strongly among the 22 institutions in the 29th annual Associated Schools of Construction Region 1 Student Competition held Nov. 8-10 in Albany, New York.

The college’s Design-Build Team, charged with developing and constructing a STEM expansion at one of New England’s premier boarding schools, placed second. Its Commercial Team, challenged to provide a new Development Center on the Providence College campus, placed third in the competition.

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Students work alongside celebrity chefs at Breeders’ Cup

Pennsylvania College of Technology was part of the culinary team at the 2018 Breeders’ Cup Championships at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. From left, baking and pastry arts student Amanda M. Brandt, of Etters, York County; Chef Takao Iinuma, of Genji Sushi; and Penn College’s Chef Charles R. Niedermyer, instructor of baking and pastry arts/culinary arts, work alongside Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto during a demonstration in “The Mansion” at Churchill Downs.

Pennsylvania College of Technology hospitality students worked alongside some of the nation’s top chefs as part of the culinary team preparing food for guests of the 2018 Breeders’ Cup World Championships.

The annual November event is the unofficial culmination of the thoroughbred horse racing season. The two-day extravaganza attracts the best horses, trainers and owners from across the globe, along with its share of celebrity fans.

This year, the event was held at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. Sixteen Penn College students made the trip to the Bluegrass State to spend three days in the kitchens that serve the Downs’ most high-end venues.

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Paramedic students join Penn State EMS at home football games

Pennsylvania College of Technology emergency medical services student Devon E. Smith, of Montoursville, is among Penn College paramedic students paired with Penn State EMS supervisors during 2018 home games in Penn State’s Beaver Stadium to provide standby medical coverage.

Students in Pennsylvania College of Technology’s paramedic program have joined Penn State Emergency Medical Services to provide coverage at the university’s seven 2018 home football games in Beaver Stadium.

“Penn State EMS is charged with providing standby coverage at every home football game,” explained Christopher T. Boyer, director of paramedic technology programs at Penn College. “EMS providers are strategically placed throughout the stadium and respond to any medical or traumatic emergency that may occur both within and around Beaver Stadium. Considering Beaver Stadium is the second-largest football stadium in the country, seating 106,572 people, this is no small task.”

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Physician assistant students complete clinical rotations in Peru

Pennsylvania College of Technology physician assistant students, from left, Valerie L. Kubalak, of Spring Mills; Bailey T. Bachman, of Lewistown; and Megan N. Heckman, of Spring Mills, gained experience in hospitals, language courses and public health fairs during a monthlong clinical rotation in Trujillo, Peru.

Three students in Pennsylvania College of Technology’s physician assistant major returned recently from monthlong clinical rotations in the coastal city of Trujillo, Peru, where they were immersed in medical Spanish and worked in a variety of health care settings.

Bailey T. Bachman, of Lewistown; Megan N. Heckman, of Spring Mills; and Valerie L. Kubalak, also of Spring Mills, were the first Penn College physician assistant students to complete clinical rotations outside of the United States.

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Penn College student ‘constructs’ his future at K’NEX

Thomas Proske

Some people spend a lifetime searching for that elusive “dream job.” Thomas Proske spent a summer experiencing his, thanks to an internship at a prominent toy maker.

The Pennsylvania College of Technology industrial design student worked on the design team at K’NEX in Hatfield. A division of Basic Fun, K’NEX is the maker of iconic construction toys pieced together by colorful, interlocking plastic components.

“It was pretty much, ‘Here, go make stuff,’” said Proske, a sophomore from Laceyville. “I didn’t know that they were going to sit me down and have me build all day. It was such an awesome job.”

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Penn College student updates iconic Maya calendar converter

For his senior project at Pennsylvania College of Technology, Ethan M. Yoder, a software development and information management student from Denver, Lancaster County, is updating an iconic Maya calendar converter program.

Archaeologists traversing the ruins and rainforests of Mexico and Central America to unearth clues about the Maya culture have an ally more than 3,000 miles away at Pennsylvania College of Technology.

And he doesn’t even own a shovel.

From the comfort of a campus computer lab, Ethan M. Yoder digs deeply into his expertise to modernize a valuable tool that helps researchers assign historical context to discoveries. The software development and information management student is updating the iconic “bars and dots” Maya calendar converter for his senior project.

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Future-seekers meet their match at Fall Open House

Savoring an autumn outing and academic exploration

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.

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Students to prepare cuisine for elite Breeders’ Cup crowds

Horses parade to the paddock at Churchill Downs, in Louisville, Ky., in May. Pennsylvania College of Technology hospitality students will again work alongside celebrity chefs in the Downs’ premier venues during the Breeders’ Cup Championships, Nov. 2-3.

Pennsylvania College of Technology students are set to return to the famed Churchill Downs racetrack, where they will work alongside celebrity chefs to feed guests of horse racing’s prestigious Breeders’ Cup World Championships.

Sixteen students in the college’s baking and pastry arts, culinary arts and hospitality management majors will leave campus Oct. 31 and spend the next three days in the kitchens of Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. They will be accompanied by Chef Charles R. Niedermyer, instructor of baking and pastry arts, who is an alumnus of the college.

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Hundreds of secondary students attend PA Build My Future

Drilling five wood screws into a board, a student from Northern Tier Career Center attempts to “beat the clock” in a timed Pennsylvania Builder Association contest.

​PA Build My Future – coordinated by Penn College’s Building Construction Technology Department, College Transitions, and the School of Construction & Design Technologies – hosted approximately 800 secondary students and their chaperones on campus Thursday. The day was designed to allow scores of businesses to engage the students through hands-on activities that display the breadth of opportunities in the construction and design industry, from skilled trades to management. Indoor exhibits were in the Carl Building Technologies Center, Hager Lifelong Education Center and Lycoming Engines Metal Trades Center; outdoor exhibits were offered on campus parking lots. WNEP’s Kristina Papa visited campus for the event, which is an outgrowth of a Homebuilding Education Leadership Program grant through the National Housing Endowment. Her report aired during Thursday evening newscasts, beginning at 5:30 p.m.

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Penn College Career Fair attracts record number of employers

Penn College student John J. Gisonna (right), a heating, ventilation and air conditioning design technology major from Monroe, N.Y., talks with recruiters from SmartEdge. Representing the Tonawanda, N.Y.-based building controls company at the college’s Career Fair are Garret Smith (left), mechanical specialist, and Michael J. Burns, service sales engineer.

Thanks to a new two-day format, a record number of employers recruited Pennsylvania College of Technology students during the school’s Fall Career Fair.

More than 300 employers – representing all economic sectors and 16 Fortune 500 companies – visited campus, offering more than 3,000 job and internship opportunities.

“We needed to expand the Career Fair because of the tremendous demand for our technically skilled students,” said Erin S. Shultz, coordinator of career development. “Despite stretching the event over two days, we still had a waiting list of nearly 90 employers. Clearly, our students and their ‘degrees that work’ are very attractive to employers.”

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The third time’s a charmer!

Enjoying the autumnal alumni evening (from left): Timothy D. Haldeman, ’11, manufacturing engineering technology; Michael D. Ferraiolo, ’10, aviation technology, and ‘11, aviation maintenance technology, and guest, Melyssa McHale; and Whitnie-rae (Mays) Haldeman, ’12, advertising art, and ’14, applied technology studies.

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)!

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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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Lycoming Engines’ instructional support lauded at sign dedication

From left, Michael Kraft, senior vice president and general manager for Lycoming Engines; Pennsylvania College of Technology President Davie Jane Gilmour; and aviation technology student Warren K. Bitterman, of Zieglerville, Montgomery County, all spoke at a dedication ceremony honoring Lycoming Engines’ ongoing support for the college.

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.

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Penn College is a special mission affiliate of Penn State