Company president/alumnus establishes student scholarships
Tuesday, December 13, 2022
The founder and president of a Troy manufacturing company, who is also an alumnus of Pennsylvania College of Technology predecessor institution Williamsport Area Community College, has established two scholarships to benefit students in engineering design and manufacturing majors.
John M. Estep, of E-Tech Industrial Corp., a global manufacturer of precision power-tool attachments for the aerospace and automotive industries, has developed the E-Tech Industrial Corporation Engineering Scholarship and the E-Tech Industrial Corporation Machining Scholarship. Each will award $1,000 annually.
“Our success as a company has been a result of the Penn College partnership!” Estep said. “With the majority of our employees having been through a Penn College degree, certificate, continuing education or apprenticeship program, it is easy to see the contribution Penn College has had in our success!”
This year’s scholarship recipients are: Holden Lee Robinson, an engineering design technology student from Gillett, and Jack J. Stump, a machine tool technology student from York. Robinson is receiving the engineering scholarship, and Stump is awarded the machining scholarship.
During a recent visit to the college, Estep met with his scholarship recipients to learn about their career aspirations. He also toured the Larry A. Ward Machining Technologies Center and the Automated Manufacturing Lab and discussed future partnership opportunities with faculty and staff.
“We are so thankful for the Estep family and their strong collaborative partnership with Penn College,” said Kimberly R. Cassel, college relations director.
“John has gone out of his way to hire our alumni and share the wonderful things about a Penn College education,” Cassel said. “Every time I have the opportunity to visit E-Tech, I am more and more impressed with what they do and the values of the company. The scholarship support that E-Tech provides helps alleviate some of the pressures of being a student and allows the recipients to focus on their classes and academic goals.”
Estep earned an associate degree in mechanical drafting in 1974 and was awarded the college’s Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2019. He and his company, a Corporate Tomorrow Maker at Penn College, were the subject of a feature story in the Spring 2019 issue of Penn College Magazine.
Close to 75% of E-Tech’s workforce consists of Penn College graduates. The company develops, engineers and manufactures tools and parts utilizing computer-aided design and drafting, computer-aided manufacturing, and finite element analysis technologies to build their products to meet the rigorous standards required by corporate customers, including Boeing, General Motors, Chrysler and Ford.
“E-Tech’s success stems from its foundations; John Estep forged his commitment to innovation here at Williamsport Area Community College and maintained his focus on the integrity of the product and the character of the company in Troy,” said Chris S. Macdonald, corporate relations officer. “We greatly appreciate his commitment to support Penn College students through these scholarships and look forward to building upon their foundations to help create many other future success stories.”
In mid-November, Cassel was invited to join Estep at his company’s table at Troy Area Junior/Senior High School’s postsecondary training fair organized by the Northern Tier Regional Planning & Development Commission. The collaboration is just one example of the partnership opportunities the company and college plan to explore to support student success. Estep has invited students and faculty to his facility and plans to work with students on projects and support the Baja SAE team’s development and success.
Anyone interested in establishing a scholarship or contributing to one of more than 350 existing scholarship funds may visit or email College Relations, or call 570-320-8020.
For information on degrees in engineering design, manufacturing and machining offered by Penn College’s School of Engineering Technologies, call 570-327-4520.
For more about Penn College, a national leader in applied technology education, email the Admissions Office or call toll-free at 800-367-9222.
John M. Estep, of E-Tech Industrial Corp., a global manufacturer of precision power-tool attachments for the aerospace and automotive industries, has developed the E-Tech Industrial Corporation Engineering Scholarship and the E-Tech Industrial Corporation Machining Scholarship. Each will award $1,000 annually.
“Our success as a company has been a result of the Penn College partnership!” Estep said. “With the majority of our employees having been through a Penn College degree, certificate, continuing education or apprenticeship program, it is easy to see the contribution Penn College has had in our success!”This year’s scholarship recipients are: Holden Lee Robinson, an engineering design technology student from Gillett, and Jack J. Stump, a machine tool technology student from York. Robinson is receiving the engineering scholarship, and Stump is awarded the machining scholarship.
During a recent visit to the college, Estep met with his scholarship recipients to learn about their career aspirations. He also toured the Larry A. Ward Machining Technologies Center and the Automated Manufacturing Lab and discussed future partnership opportunities with faculty and staff.
“We are so thankful for the Estep family and their strong collaborative partnership with Penn College,” said Kimberly R. Cassel, college relations director.
“John has gone out of his way to hire our alumni and share the wonderful things about a Penn College education,” Cassel said. “Every time I have the opportunity to visit E-Tech, I am more and more impressed with what they do and the values of the company. The scholarship support that E-Tech provides helps alleviate some of the pressures of being a student and allows the recipients to focus on their classes and academic goals.”
Estep earned an associate degree in mechanical drafting in 1974 and was awarded the college’s Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2019. He and his company, a Corporate Tomorrow Maker at Penn College, were the subject of a feature story in the Spring 2019 issue of Penn College Magazine.
Close to 75% of E-Tech’s workforce consists of Penn College graduates. The company develops, engineers and manufactures tools and parts utilizing computer-aided design and drafting, computer-aided manufacturing, and finite element analysis technologies to build their products to meet the rigorous standards required by corporate customers, including Boeing, General Motors, Chrysler and Ford.
“E-Tech’s success stems from its foundations; John Estep forged his commitment to innovation here at Williamsport Area Community College and maintained his focus on the integrity of the product and the character of the company in Troy,” said Chris S. Macdonald, corporate relations officer. “We greatly appreciate his commitment to support Penn College students through these scholarships and look forward to building upon their foundations to help create many other future success stories.”
In mid-November, Cassel was invited to join Estep at his company’s table at Troy Area Junior/Senior High School’s postsecondary training fair organized by the Northern Tier Regional Planning & Development Commission. The collaboration is just one example of the partnership opportunities the company and college plan to explore to support student success. Estep has invited students and faculty to his facility and plans to work with students on projects and support the Baja SAE team’s development and success.
Anyone interested in establishing a scholarship or contributing to one of more than 350 existing scholarship funds may visit or email College Relations, or call 570-320-8020.
For information on degrees in engineering design, manufacturing and machining offered by Penn College’s School of Engineering Technologies, call 570-327-4520.
For more about Penn College, a national leader in applied technology education, email the Admissions Office or call toll-free at 800-367-9222.