Caterpillar, dealers combine for $82,000 in support for college
Thursday, January 17, 2019
Furthering a partnership that has thrived for nearly a quarter century, the Caterpillar Foundation and a consortium of regional dealers recently delivered $82,000 in support of students and curriculum at Pennsylvania College of Technology’s Schneebeli Earth Science Center.
“We are pleased that Caterpillar Inc. and its dealers have continued to support our students and the college,” said Brett A. Reasner, dean of transportation and natural resources technologies at Penn College. “Their contributions support student scholarships and provide a positive impact on our ability to keep current technology in the classrooms and labs.”
Alban Tractor Co. Inc., Baltimore; Foley Inc., Bensalem; H.O. Penn Machinery Co. Inc., Poughkeepsie, New York; and Milton CAT, Milford, Massachusetts, donated a total of $41,000 to help students in the college’s heavy construction equipment technology majors.
An identical total in matching funds was allocated through the Caterpillar Excellence Fund, comprising the Caterpillar Foundation and the individual dealers.
“We have been recruiting technicians from Penn College for a long time, from back when it was known as Williamsport Area Community College,” said Karl Quinn, who retired from Alban at year’s end after a career that included more than three decades of visits to the institution.
“I have seen many changes in that time frame, and the thing that has kept Alban involved is the college’s ability and effort to keep the programs current with industry,” he said. “The program that Penn College offers is not an inexpensive program to run, and they do an outstanding job to stay current with their equipment and instructors.”
Funding from Caterpillar and its dealerships has flowed to the college annually since the Fall 1994 semester, frequently supplemented by equipment donations, and H.O. Penn – another longtime partner – was honored this year for its longtime involvement in that philanthropy.
Company representatives were presented with a plaque acknowledging “20 years of participation in the Caterpillar Excellence Fund grant to provide student sponsorships, instructional materials, technical equipment, curriculum development and faculty development funds” in support of Penn College.
“H.O. Penn has been an excellent partner in providing quality internships for our students and unique employment opportunities for our graduates,” Reasner noted.
The presentation took place during a recent Heavy Construction Equipment Technology Caterpillar Equipment Emphasis Advisory Committee meeting in the college’s Thompson Professional Development Center, held in conjunction with a Career Fair on main campus.
“The technicians we have hired over the years have been ones that are technically qualified to do the work,” Quinn said, after attending his last official meeting of the advisory panel. “Our only problem is we wished we could sponsor more students from the Maryland, Virginia and Delaware area to attend the program!”
He said Alban looks forward to many more years of recruiting and assisting the college in continuing to graduate qualified diesel and power-generation technicians.
“Penn College is a first-class educational institution,” he said. “Anyone attending the college should be proud of the programs they are enrolled in.”
For information about heavy construction equipment technology and other majors within the School of Transportation & Natural Resources Technologies, call 570-327-4516.
For more about grant-funding opportunities, faculty and staff may contact Grants & Sponsored Programs at ext. 7580 or through its Web portal.
For more information about Penn College, a national leader in applied technology education, email the Admissions Office or call toll-free 800-367-9222.
“We are pleased that Caterpillar Inc. and its dealers have continued to support our students and the college,” said Brett A. Reasner, dean of transportation and natural resources technologies at Penn College. “Their contributions support student scholarships and provide a positive impact on our ability to keep current technology in the classrooms and labs.”
Alban Tractor Co. Inc., Baltimore; Foley Inc., Bensalem; H.O. Penn Machinery Co. Inc., Poughkeepsie, New York; and Milton CAT, Milford, Massachusetts, donated a total of $41,000 to help students in the college’s heavy construction equipment technology majors.An identical total in matching funds was allocated through the Caterpillar Excellence Fund, comprising the Caterpillar Foundation and the individual dealers.
“We have been recruiting technicians from Penn College for a long time, from back when it was known as Williamsport Area Community College,” said Karl Quinn, who retired from Alban at year’s end after a career that included more than three decades of visits to the institution.
“I have seen many changes in that time frame, and the thing that has kept Alban involved is the college’s ability and effort to keep the programs current with industry,” he said. “The program that Penn College offers is not an inexpensive program to run, and they do an outstanding job to stay current with their equipment and instructors.”Funding from Caterpillar and its dealerships has flowed to the college annually since the Fall 1994 semester, frequently supplemented by equipment donations, and H.O. Penn – another longtime partner – was honored this year for its longtime involvement in that philanthropy.
Company representatives were presented with a plaque acknowledging “20 years of participation in the Caterpillar Excellence Fund grant to provide student sponsorships, instructional materials, technical equipment, curriculum development and faculty development funds” in support of Penn College.
“H.O. Penn has been an excellent partner in providing quality internships for our students and unique employment opportunities for our graduates,” Reasner noted.The presentation took place during a recent Heavy Construction Equipment Technology Caterpillar Equipment Emphasis Advisory Committee meeting in the college’s Thompson Professional Development Center, held in conjunction with a Career Fair on main campus.
“The technicians we have hired over the years have been ones that are technically qualified to do the work,” Quinn said, after attending his last official meeting of the advisory panel. “Our only problem is we wished we could sponsor more students from the Maryland, Virginia and Delaware area to attend the program!”
He said Alban looks forward to many more years of recruiting and assisting the college in continuing to graduate qualified diesel and power-generation technicians.
“Penn College is a first-class educational institution,” he said. “Anyone attending the college should be proud of the programs they are enrolled in.”
For information about heavy construction equipment technology and other majors within the School of Transportation & Natural Resources Technologies, call 570-327-4516.
For more about grant-funding opportunities, faculty and staff may contact Grants & Sponsored Programs at ext. 7580 or through its Web portal.
For more information about Penn College, a national leader in applied technology education, email the Admissions Office or call toll-free 800-367-9222.