The founder of an Altoona firm with operations in three states will be memorialized with a new scholarship at Pennsylvania College of Technology.
The Hite Co., a leading family-owned distributor of electrical apparatus, equipment, industrial/commercial and residential lighting, electronics, and data-communications and automation products, recently finalized the agreement to establish the Robert L. Hite Memorial Scholarship at Penn College.
"My father was very aware of the merits and benefits of higher education and was a strong advocate of sponsoring scholarship opportunities in the locations where we do business and share an interest in the educational vitality of local employees and citizens," said R. Lee Hite, president and chief executive officer of The Hite Co. "Because of the specific focus of our business, it is our particular pleasure to support a scholarship in the electrical field."
The Hite Co. has 20 locations, serving 50 counties in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and New York. Robert L. Hite and his wife, Evie, established the business in Altoona in 1949.
The Robert L. Hite Memorial Scholarship will provide awards to full-time students enrolled in Penn College's electrical technology or electromechanical maintenance technology associate- degree majors and the electrical occupations certificate major.
Preference will be given to students who reside in Allegheny, Armstrong, Bedford, Blair, Butler, Cambria, Centre, Erie, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Jefferson, Juniata, Lycoming, McKean, Mercer, Mifflin, Potter, Snyder, Somerset, Venango, Warren, Westmoreland or Washington counties in Pennsylvania; Chautauqua or Cattaraugus counties in New York; and Ashtabula County, Ohio.
"We are very pleased and honored that The Hite Co. has chosen Penn College for this memorial scholarship," said Debra M. Miller, the college's director of corporate relations. "The Robert L. Hite Memorial Scholarship will be a great benefit to students who are enrolled in our electrical majors and will provide valuable assistance in meeting the costs of their education."
For more information about establishing scholarships at Pennsylvania College of Technology, call (570) 320-8020, or toll-free (866) GIVE-2-PC; send e-mail or visit online.