Penn College News

Penn College summer commencement set for Aug. 7

Wednesday, July 28, 2021

Pennsylvania College of Technology will hold a Summer 2021 Commencement ceremony on Saturday, Aug. 7, for the more than 200 students who have petitioned to graduate.

The in-person ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. at the Community Arts Center. The event is open to students who are registered to participate and ticketed guests. Unvaccinated individuals must wear face masks. The event will be livestreamed.

The student speaker for the ceremony will be Larcynina De Guzman Bitner, of Mill Hall, who will be awarded a Bachelor of Science degree in physician assistant. Bitner, a Dean’s List student, is originally from the Philippines, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in biology and a Doctor of Medicine degree and completed a medical internship.



Penn College will hold a Summer 2021 Commencement ceremony Saturday, Aug. 7, at the Community Arts Center in Williamsport. The student speaker will be Larcynina De Guzman Bitner, of Mill Hall, who will be awarded a Bachelor of Science in physician assistant.After moving to Pennsylvania in 2010, she worked as a phlebotomist for Jersey Shore Hospital and later as a microbiology analyst for West Pharmaceutical Services. She also joined the Army National Guard as a motor transport specialist. She was accepted into the pre-physician assistant program at Penn College in 2019.

While performing clinical rotations, she simultaneously enrolled at Saint Francis University for a Master of Medical Science, graduating in May. She is a member of the Pennsylvania Society of Physician Assistants, the Penn College Veterans Club and the Penn College Physician Assistant Club. She is a recipient of the Richard and Mildred Taylor Memorial Scholarship.

During the ceremony, the college will present an Alumni Achievement Award to LaQuinn N. Thompson, of York, who earned a bachelor’s degree in applied human services in 2016.

Thompson recently became the STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) elective instructor for fifth- and sixth-grade students at Lincoln Charter School, York. Previously, he served as director of community outreach for St. Matthew Lutheran Church in York. He is also the founder of The B.E.A.S.T. Initiative, an esports/gaming youth program with the mission to bring the community together through gaming.

Degrees will be conferred upon graduates by President Davie Jane Gilmour, assisted by Sen. Gene Yaw, chairman of the Penn College Board of Directors.

More information can be found at the college's Commencement page.

Penn College is a national leader in applied technology education. For more, email the Admissions Office or call toll-free at 800-367-9222.