Penn College Students Earn Awards, Scholarships

Pennsylvania College of Technology students recently were honored with a variety of awards and scholarships.

Penn College Culinary Students Saluted for Excellence
Two culinary students from Pennsylvania College of Technology were honored at the National Restaurant Association's "Salute to Excellence Making the Difference" awards banquet, held in Chicago recently.

Student delegates from Penn College were Shannon Berry, Millerton, and Susan A. Wilt, York. The students, enrolled in baking and pastry arts, were nominated to represent Penn College at the national gathering by faculty in the College's School of Hospitality.

Qualifications for the recognition include academic accomplishments, leadership and activities, and industry work experience.

Burger King Presents Scholarships to Penn College Students
Two Pennsylvania College of Technology culinary students have been awarded scholarships from Burger King, located on Maynard Street, in Williamsport.

The scholarship recipients are: Heather McRae, Williamsport, and Michelle Moser, Tremont. Both are enrolled in baking and pastry arts. Michele Seville, restaurant manager at Burger King, presented each student with a $300 scholarship.

This is the 17th year Burger King has provided scholarships for students at the College. The award recipients are selected by faculty in Penn College's School of Hospitality.

Penn College Welding Technology Students Earn Awards
Six welding students at Pennsylvania College of Technology, in Williamsport, earned awards in an American Welding Society Contest and were honored at a recent banquet.

First place honors went to Jason Hamacek, Indiana. Other winners were: John Schropp Jr., Johnstown, second place; Christopher L. Myers, Punxsutawney, third place; Stephen E. Zinda, Pottsville, fourth place; John E. Scott, Parkesburg, fifth place; and Jeremy Wetherill, Canadensis, sixth place.

The awards were presented to the students by Niles Oehrli, of High Steel Structures, a member of the AWS.

Penn College Captures Two Gold Medals at State VICA
Two Pennsylvania College of Technology students captured gold medals at the Pennsylvania State Vocational Industrial Clubs of America skills competition, held recently at Seven Springs Resort in Champion.

Jon C. Shipley, Clearfield, a student enrolled in automated manufacturing technology, won first place in the precision machining competition. Kevin Greene, East Northport, N.Y., a diesel technology student, took top honors in diesel equipment technology.

The first-place finishers now move on to the national VICA contest in Kansas City.

At the state competition, Penn College also earned two bronze medals with third-place performances by Jonathan P. Reeder, Mifflinburg, an auto body technology student who competed in collision repair technology, and Kyle Gable, Lebanon, an electrical technology student who tested his skills in the industrial motor control contest.

Two fourth-place honors were logged by Ryan Bingaman, McVeytown, a computer-aided product and systems design student who competed in technical drafting, and Benjamin L. Kline, Millville, an architectural technology student who competed in architectural drafting.

Ed Roadarmel, assistant professor of drafting at Penn College, serves as the students' adviser.

Radiography Students Capture Second Place in Academic Contest
Two Pennsylvania College of Technology radiography students captured second place honors in the radiologic sciences "Techni-Bowl" competition at the 55th annual Pennsylvania Society of Radiologic Technologists' State Conference, held recently in State College.

Michele Confer, Mill Hall, and Kathi Jo Watts, Montoursville, represented Penn College in the competition. Elizabeth Berry, Trout Run, served as the team alternate. The academic contest focused on radiation physics, anatomy and physiology, and nursing principles.

Wheel Inn Awards Scholarships to Penn College Students
Ten students enrolled at Pennsylvania College of Technology each have been awarded $1,000 in Wheel Inn Scholarships. This marks the 15th year that Wheel Inn Inc., of Roaring Branch, has awarded scholarships to Penn College students, bringing its contribution total to $127,000.

Consideration for the scholarship is given to full-time students who graduate from high schools in Lycoming, Bradford, Tioga, or Sullivan counties, who are enrolled in agriculture-related majors, and who have attended the College for at least one semester. Recipients are selected on the basis of academic achievement and their letter of application.

This year's winners of the Wheel Inn Scholarships are: Eric Abernathy, Wellsboro, a 1993 graduate of Wellsboro High School who is enrolled in forest technology; Kelli L. Andrews, Muncy, a 1997 graduate of Montoursville High School who is enrolled in forest technology; Jay Cummings,Troy, a 1994 graduate of Troy High School who is enrolled in forest technology; Christopher Gastrock, Wellsboro, a 1997 graduate of Wellsboro High School who is enrolled in forest technology; Susan Guinter, Williamsport, a 1986 graduate of South Williamsport High School who is enrolled in forest technology; Gary R. Litz, Williamsport, a 1986 graduate of Loyalsock Township High School who is enrolled in landscape/nursery technology; Ronald L. Miller II, Williamsport, a 1996 graduate of Jersey Shore High School who is enrolled in forest technology; Michael Niedermyer, Williamsport, a 1993 graduate of Williamsport Area High School who is enrolled in landscape/nursery technology; Jason Randall Forksville, a 1997 graduate of Sullivan County High School who is enrolled in forest technology; and Todd Sweet, Wellsboro, a 1996 graduate of Wellsboro High School who is enrolled in forest technology.

Wilt Honored With Two Culinary Awards
Susan A. Wilt, of York, a baking and pastry arts student in the School of Hospitality at Pennsylvania College of Technology, has been honored as the 1998 Junior Chef of the Year by The American Culinary Federation of Pennsylvania, West Branch Chapter. The honor recognizes her participation in chapter activities and commitment to the culinary profession.

In addition, Penn College's School of Hospitality recently presented Wilt with its first "Excellence in Hospitality" award. The award recognizes students who have documented a minimum of 75 "special event" hours beyond what is expected of regular classroom hours.

A 1995 graduate of Central York High School, Wilt is the daughter of Joseph B. and Judith S. Wilt, of York. While pursuing her degree, Wilt works part time at Elizabeth's, an American bistro in Lewisburg. She will graduate in May and has accepted a position with Chef John Folse and Co., based in Louisiana. Folse, an internationally known Cajun and Creole cuisine chef and host of the PBS series, "A Taste of Louisiana," has visited Penn College three times as a distinguished visiting chef. His Louisiana operations include the award-winning Lafitte's Landing Restaurant in Donaldsonville, and White Oak Plantation and Louisiana's Premier Products, in Baton Rouge, La.