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.
– Photos by Cindy Davis Meixel, writer/photo editor; J.J. Boettcher, student photographer;
Tom Wilson, writer/editor-PCToday; Larry D. Kauffman, digital publishing specialist/photographer;
and Kimberlee R. Rusczyk, manager of social media/online marketing
Visitors stop for directions at a convenient information tent staffed by LaDonna J. Caldwell (foreground), director of compensation and benefits, and Student Ambassador Elizabeth J. Wellar.
Student Ambassador Danielle R. Wesneski, an applied management major from Williamsport, leads a tour of the interested and the camera-shy alike.
Amid walls displaying student work and a video featuring 2007 alumnus Nicholas D. Biddle, visitors hear from Brian A. Flynn, assistant professor of graphic design, and other art faculty.
After a standing-room-only morning presentation in Penn's Inn, David R. Cotner, dean of industrial, computing and engineering technologies, answers follow-up questions.
Community Peer Educators Taylor C. Gonzales and Alexis J. Medero greet a prospective student with a free T-shirt for his swag bag.
Coach Chris Howard talks baseball with a family in the Bush Campus Center.
Advocating for the Wildcat Events Board at the Campus Life Involvement Fair are Ja'quela Dyer (left), of Dover, Del., enrolled in business administration: sport and event management concentration, and pre-nursing student Aaliyah E. Torres, of Lebanon.
Creating their Wildcat Wardrobe for fall, customers scour The College Store's inventory.
Madigan Library, among the stops on campus tours, commemorates academic majors observing their 25th or 50th anniversary during 2018-19.
Lt. Col. Jonathon M. Britton, professor of military science, leads an information session on the college's participation in the Bald Eagle ROTC Battalion.
At a gadget-laden table touting the college's Remote Control Club, a guest talks with Ryan S. McCrickerd, an aviation maintenance technology major from Bethlehem.
Still holding onto “the green” – with just a touch of autumn – campus walkways brim with activity.
Savoring an autumn outing and academic exploration
A large crowd emerges from the Thompson Professional Development Center following an overview session presented by the School of Construction & Design Technologies. (Assistant Dean Naim N. Jabbour is in the blue suit, his back to the camera.)
Creative campus landscaping is always a talked-about accent on Open House day.
Visitors move into the Hager Lifelong Education Center.
A family from Dillsburg warms up with coffee and cocoa.
Early childhood education students share their learning experiences with a prospective student.
A family from Berwick explores the Dr. Welch Workshop – A Makerspace at Penn College and views “BattleBots” with Roberta Schwenk, makerspace assistant and a 1994 building construction technology graduate.
A Makerbot basks in the glow of purposeful creation.
Reppin’ ASHRAE! Members of the student chapter of heating, refrigerating and air conditioning engineers stand ready to offer Open House assistance.
Marc E. Bridgens, associate professor of HVAC technology, tours visitors through the expansive double-decker facilities.
In Le Jeune Chef Restaurant, a young visitor from Wyalusing (at front in white apron) creates a delicious entrée with Paul E. Mach (in tie), assistant professor of hospitality management/culinary arts.
Whimsical chocolate creations tantalize visitors in the baking and pastry arts lab.
A glow-in-the-dark pendulum delights guests in the “Haunted Physics Lab.”
Students share their passion for civil engineering and surveying.
The gorgeousness of autumn has arrived at the Schneebeli Earth Science Center! Justin Shelinski (center), laboratory assistant for horticulture, leads an outdoor excursion.
Smoke billows from the 1959 Mack “drag truck” in the diesel lab.
Diesel technology students Eric M. Sander (far right), of Williamsport, and Cody S. Fink (second fom right), of Lenhartsville, engages a son and father in technical banter.
This family drove from Pittsburgh for their son’s second visit to the Earth Science Center.
With new décor, the lobby of the Student & Administrative Services Center serves as a welcoming hub for information.
Lee A. Dawson, admissions counselor, assists a family prior to enrollment.
A welcoming trio in the SASC (from left): Rantz R. Mahaffey, admissions counselor, transfer and adult students; Tina M. Miller, director of public relations & marketing, and Student Ambassador Nathaniel H. Lyon, a welding and fabrication engineering technology student from Fredericksburg.
Student Ambassador Maepearl E. St. George assists guests arriving at the Field House. St. George is a pre-physician assistant student from Bellefonte.
The 9 a.m. crowd fills the Field House …
… and stretches out the door just as morning rains cease.
Dental hygiene student Megan P. Fitzsimmons, of Portville, N.Y., discusses X-rays with a potential student in the dental hygiene lab.
The evolution of the dental hygiene program and its labs (circa 1977, 1987 and 2016) are pointed out by Barbara K. Emert-Strouse (left), assistant professor of dental hygiene.
Radiography students discuss the tools of the trade.
Conversation fills the newly renovated occupational therapy assistant lab. At left, Carlene L. Cabot, ’11, occupational therapy assistant, is among alumni returning to campus to assist.
Student Ambassador Lindsey A. King (center) leads a crowd in collegiate dialogue. King, from Hanover, is enrolled in applied health studies: occupational therapy assistant concentration.
A crisp autumn day welcomes visitors to campus.
Business power team: (from left) Summer L. Bukeavich, Stanley Schuyler Jr., Mark A. Ciavarella and Steven J. Moff are faculty ready to answer questions related to business administration, management and marketing.
Business-ready! Alumnus Caleb G. Schirmer, ’14, landscape/horticulture technology: landscape emphasis, and ’16, applied management, returns to his alma mater to help guests.
Tammy M. Rich, assistant professor of business administration/management/event management, shares entrepreneurial insights in the innovation lab.
The augmented reality sandbox offers a colorful complement to the autumnal day. Incorporating a 3D camera, sensor, projector and computer, the unit reveals virtual topographical contour lines, an elevation color map and simulated water on sand.
With new wayfinding in place, guests easily locate labs including the in-progress Shell Polymers Rotational Molding Center of Excellence.
Tim E. Weston (center), associate professor of plastics technology, converses with alumnus Russ Ritner (’97, plastics polymer engineering technology) and family.
Sunshine and blue skies made a persistent effort to break through the clouds, brightening the greenery near the PDC.
At day's end, as satisfied families head for their cars (and the Admissions Office!), traffic dwindles at the center of main campus.
Pedestrian traffic moves northward on the campus mall as families endeavor to take it all in.
President Davie Jane Gilmour welcomes Open House attendees to the Klump Academic Center Auditorium.
Providing helpful tips during an informative morning session is Admissions Counselor Dev Devvrat.
Fall flora bursts from the bed of a Dodge pickup, a grabber of a water feature outside College Avenue Labs.
Visitors to the Physician Assistant Building get first-class attention from instructor Kendra F. Boell and students.
Among the knowledgeable faculty sharing their insight with Open House guests is Keith N. Stefanowicz, instructor of electrical technology/building automation technology/renewable energy technology.
An impressive walk-by during Open House is the site of the expanded welding labs, which will add scores of students in a popular program.
Instructor Glenn R. Luse entertains visitors to the Construction Masonry Building on the northwest corner of campus.
... where metal-shaping was among the hands-on skills in evidence.
David J. Fedor, instructor of civil engineering technology, is joined by alumnus/student Jason R. Komar, of Waymart, for an outdoor demo. Komar earned a bachelor's in civil engineering technology in May and is completing his dual degree in surveying technology.
Dauphin Hall was a popular spot during Open House, with tours of student housing and an $8 buffet.
Honda PACT instructor Charles F. Probst staffs the major's spacious and well-stocked lab in the Parkes Automotive Technology Center.
Aided by the persistent beat of their musical playlist, emergency medical services students Courtney L. Breon (foreground), of Jersey Shore, and Kayla M. Vincent taught more than a dozen people to do hands-only CPR.
A 1956 Ford Thunderbird graces the collision repair/automotive restoration lab ...