Penn State McKeesport has been partnering with local high schools on this program for several semesters. Current partners include East Allegheny, McKeesport, Pittsburgh Public, Ringgold, and West Mifflin. For more information, see the dual enrollment page.

Previous versions of the quiz are also available:

2005
2003
2002

Fall commencement was celebrated at Penn State McKeesport on Thursday, December 21 in Wunderely Gymnasium. Chancellor Curtiss E. Porter presided. Baccalaureate and associate degrees were conferred upon 36 students.

Robert E. Hauser, Assistant Professor of History, performed his duties for the last time as campus marshal.  Dr. Hauser, who has 36.5 years of service to the University, will be retiring at the end of this semester.  Also retiring and thus serving for the last time was Business Program Marshal Michael J. Dailey, Assistant Professor of Accounting. Delia Conti, Associate Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences, served as Communications and Information Sciences and Technology Program (IST) Marshals, and Margaret L. Signorella, Director of Academic Affairs and Professor of Psychology and Women's Studies, served as Letters, Arts, and Sciences and Applied Psychology Program Marshals.

Several students were honored with Academic Excellence Awards. These awards are given to students achieving a cumulative GPA of 3.60 or higher who have attended Penn State McKeesport for four or more semesters and who attended the graduation ceremony.  The students honored were Crystal Carroll (Applied Psychology), Christine Gibson (Applied Psychology), Kristine Kochis (Business Administration), Lauri Kozarian (Applied Psychology), James Mikesell (IST), and Matthew Perrotti (IST). Award winners receive a replica of the Nittany Lion shrine.

The keynote speaker was Mary Del Brady, an entrepreneur whose 30 years of professional experience include the founding and ownership of several companies in the services and biotechnology industries. Brady, president and CEO of Redpath Integrated Pathology, spoke to the students about her journey from humanities major to biotechnology, and the importance of both planning and openness to change. Much of her speech is included in the video highlights linked below.

View photos from commencement.

View video highlights from commencement (*.wmv format).

Attention all high school seniors, transfer students, and adult learners: it's not too late to apply to Penn State McKeesport for the Fall 2007 semester. So why wait any longer? Apply today to one of our nation's finest instituations. After all, everyone knows and trusts the BLUE and WHITE degree.

You can access Penn State's convenient online application at www.psu.edu/admissions. If you have questions during the online application process, please do not hesitate to contact the admissions office at 412-675-9010 or psumk@psu.edu. Once your online application is complete, you will need to forward your high school transcripts along with any post-secondary transcript(s), if applicable, to Penn State. Additionally, SAT or ACT scores are required for those students who are 24 years of age or younger. Once you have a complete aplication on file, you will hear from the university with a decision in four weeks or less.

If you are interested in learning more about Penn State McKeesport, please visit our Quick Facts site. To explore Penn State's more than 160 some majors, visit www.psu.edu/admissions.

The Penn State McKeesport Alumni Society has had another successful holiday season.

The Society received an Honorable Mention for its 2006 entry at the 2006 McKeesport Festival of Trees, held the first weekend of December in a city park adjacent to the campus.  Alumna Katherine Stamatelos designed the Penn State tree that was on view along with about 40 other trees for an estimated 6,000 visitors. The theme was “Orange Bowl Victor.”  The decorations include miniature oranges and footballs on a white tree. The tree topper is a great vine football surrounded by lights.  Katherine Stamatelos chose the theme because “Penn State excels in athletics and education and the University is a light of the area.” 

On December 9 the Society hosted about 75 children from Mon Valley area youth services agencies and the campus community at the eighteenth annual Breakfast with Santa in the Student Community Center at Penn State McKeesport.  This event included breakfast, activities and a performance by Dr. Jay Breckenridge’s theatre class. The highlight of the event was the arrival of Santa and Mrs. Claus on a fire truck from the Rainbow Volunteer Fire Company, based in White Oak, Pa.  Each child had a visit with Santa and the Mrs. and received a photo, a toy and a bag of goodies. Funding for this event is made possible through donations from local area businesses, alumni, advisory board members, staff, faculty and friends of Penn State McKeesport.

The Penn State McKeesport Psychology Club is assisting the Catholic agency, Auberle, with a special project to create an "Auberle Santa's Workshop" for the children at the home. The volunteers are coordinating this workshop so the children can shop for their siblings and parents for Christmas.  This project will also enable the children to feel a sense of pride in selecting gifts for their parents. 

Auberle has been dedicated to the mission of caring for and healing abused, neglected and troubled children throughout Southwestern Pennsylvania for over 50 years. They have been able to help thousands of children and their families through their residential care, foster care, emergency shelter, in-home intervention, education and community programs. The ultimate goals of Auberle are family preservation, the reuniting of families in a positive home environment and preparing children to be responsible adults.

The psychology club organized collection sights on campus for anyone who wished to donate any new or unused item that would be appropriate for a child to give to a family member. Possible gift ideas included picture frames, gloves, coloring books, slipper socks, kitchen items, knick knacks, markers, perfumes, colognes, activity books, hair accessories, baby dolls, candles, scarves, small art sets, tossel caps, screw driver sets, flashlights w/batteries, watches, crayons, toy cars.  Wrapping paper, tags, bows, tape and gift bags were also collected. Next week, the club will be going to Auberle to help the younger children make selections for their family's holiday gifts.

Penn State McKeesport presents the 6^th Annual Daily News and Century Heritage Federal Credit Union “Basketball Classic”. The first game in this 4 day tournament begins with tip-off on Thursday, December 6 at 6:30 p.m. in the Wunderely Gymnasium on the Penn State McKeesport campus.

All games will be played at Wunderely Gymnasium starting with the McKeesport Lady Tigers facing the Duquesne Lady Dukes. Other women’s teams in this year’s tournament include Serra Catholic Lady Eagles and West Mifflin Lady Titans. Men’s teams include McKeesport Tigers, Duquesne Dukes, Serra Catholic Eagles, and South Allegheny Gladiators. The following is a list of scheduled games and times:

December 6	6:30 p.m.-McKeesport Lady Tigers vs Duquesne Lady Dukes
	8:00 p.m.-Serra Lady Eagles vs West Mifflin Lady Titans
December 7	6:30 p.m.-Serra Catholic Eagles vs Duquesne Dukes
	8:00 p.m.-McKeesport Tigers vs South Allegheny Gladiators
December  8	6:30 p.m.-Duquesne Lady Dukes vs West Mifflin Lady Titans
	8:00 p.m.- Serra Lady Eagles vs McKeesport Lady Tigers
December 9	6:30 p.m.- Duquesne Dukes vs South Allegheny Gladiators
	8:00 p.m.- Serra Catholic Eagles vs McKeesport Tigers

          

All games will be broadcast live on Penn State McKeesport radio station, WMKP The Roar at http://www.clubs.psu.edu/mk/wmkp/.

Ticket cost is $2.00 for students and $5.00 for adults.

In its continuing effort to support student scholars and leaders, the Penn State McKeesport Alumni Society recently pledged $3,000 to Penn State for its endowed scholarship fund.

“This gift was made possible by the hundreds of people who purchased Penn State Creamery Ice Cream at the 2006 International Village and the many blue and white Penn State alums who volunteered to work at our booth,” said Denise Kubli ’00, president of the Society.

The Society has designated 63% of its Creamery Ice Cream sale proceeds of $4,798 for student scholarship support.  The remaining funds will be used to support the association’s activities during the coming year. According to Kubli, typical activities include sponsoring a student activity at a local entertainment venue and participation in THON, the Penn State student philanthropy dedicated to wiping out childhood cancers. The Society also participates in community activities such as the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life and the McKeesport Festival of Trees. This year’s tree theme will be the Nittany Lions’ 2006 Orange Bowl victory.

Since its formation in the 1980s, the Society has contributed almost $61,000 to the University, including $29,820 for scholarships, $27,000 for capital improvements, and $3,536 for the Four Diamonds Cancer Fund.

Each year, interest from the Society’s endowed scholarship fund is designated for student scholarships. Last spring, $2,750 was awarded to students who qualified based on their academic records and community involvement. The 2006-07 Alumni Society Scholars are Joshua Stover, Courtney Ely-Denberg, Michael Porter, Kacie Thomas, Crystal Carroll and Mariam Salisu.

Scholarship support is important to student Courtney Ely-Denburg, the current president of the Student Government Association. “I am able to spend more time studying and in SGA service without worrying as much about financial restraints,” he said.

Another annual project on the Society’s agenda is the Breakfast with Santa program, which recently received a Penn State Alumni Association award for excellence. In the 18 years of its existence, the breakfast has provided approximately 1,500 children from local social service agencies with special memories.

Alumni interested in getting involved are welcome to attend meetings and events. Individuals are encouraged to contact the campus at 412-675-9048 or http://www.mk.psu.edu/ for more information.

###

Penn State McKeesport’s third annual “All That’s Jazz” scholarship benefit did all that it was supposed to do on Saturday night.  At the close of the November 4 event, Master of Ceremonies Sheldon Ingram of WTAE-TV announced that the event had raised $50,500, surpassing the $50,000 fundraising goal established by the Advisory Board. The total continues to rise as contributions are added.

“Our volunteers and supporters outdid themselves,” said Chancellor Curtiss E. Porter, Ph.D. “In just three short years we have raised more than $110,000 for student scholarships. As our three student speakers told the crowd, receiving a scholarship takes away some of the financial burden of attending college and allows them to concentrate on their studies and the co-curricular experiences offered at our campus.”

A crowd of 245 alumni, friends, students, faculty and staff gathered in the campus Student Community Center, which was transformed into a sophisticated jazz nightclub. Stunning flower arrangements designed by Jim Miller of James Miller Interiors and whimsical balloon displays and event decor designed by Laurie Lieb of Festivities adorned the building.

First-year students Jose Almonte of Florida, Daniella Asantewaa of New York, and Adam Howells of Greensburg, Pennsylvania, thanked the donors on behalf of all the scholarship recipients. Posters featuring students who received scholarships as a result of last year’s event were also on display to show guests how their gifts are helping support a diverse group of students.

The highlight of the evening was the performance of jazz greats Warren Vaché, Joe Negri, Benny Benack Jr., David Pellow, Thomas Wendt and Tom Roberts. The musicians captivated the crowd with their performances on the William A. Seifert Jr. Stage. Vaché, Negri and Benack wowed the crowed with “Medley of Memories of You,” “Watch What Happens,” and “Nancy with the Laughing Face.” Another crowd favorite was Duke Ellington’s “In a Mellow Tone,” also known as “In a Pellow Tone” when played by David Pellow. Benny Benack III, a third-generation jazz musician, played trumpet with his father and veterans Vaché and Negri during the second set. The Arbor Tribe, a jazz string quartet from Carnegie Mellon University, entertained guests in the Robert and Elizabeth Ostermayer Room.

Guests enjoyed delicious cuisine prepared by the campus Housing and Food Services staff. A live auction, silent auction and the Blue and White “mystery” auction netted $6,730 for the scholarship fund. Visitors also had the opportunity to enjoy the “Visualizing Jazz” exhibit on loan from the collection of Dr. Caryl Sheffield and her husband, Penn State Professor Dr. James Stewart. Artworks included Blues by Elizabeth Catlett, New York Café by Benny Andrews, and a glass sculpture of Jimi Hendrix by Samuel Hodge.

Assisting Co-Chairs Nancy Traina and Nancy Seifert in leadership roles were: Sponsorship Co-Chairs Mary Del Brady, Joseph M. Hohman and Advisory Board President Jacob N. Skezas, along with Host Committee Co-Chairs Reverend Earlene Coleman and Cliff Wise. They were joined by Dr. George Crawford and David J. Pasternak, co-chairs of the Auction Committee, and Publicity Chair Chris Miles. These volunteers were supported by Advisory Board members, community leaders, alumni, friends, and faculty, students and staff, all working to make the event a success.

Honorary Committee members supporting the event included: Arthur L. Baldwin, Suzy and Jim Broadhurst, Franco Harris, William E. Trueheart and Carol A. Word, Tom Hollander, Brandon Short, The Honorable Dan and Shelly Onorato, and Bill and Rose Strickland.

All That’s Jazz underwriters included: Entertainment Underwriter Nancy Seifert, and Benefactors Duquesne Light and Jay and Kim Weitzel. Supporters at the Patron level included Directed Electronics, Eat’n Park Hospitality Group, Gulf Materials, LLC, Ruth Hunt, and Nancy and John Traina.

Members of the Chancellor’s Circle included: Mrs. Nadine E. Bognar, Lou Anne Caligiuri, Citizens Bank of Pennsylvania, Mark R. Gruskin, George and Ann Kemp, Dr. Curtiss E. Porter, RedPath Integrated Pathology, Inc., Resource Development Management, Inc., Dr. Margaret L. Signorella, H.B. South Printers, and Clifford and Barbara Wise.  Sponsors also included event Ambassadors: Tom and Judy Bruney, Edward and Dorothy Datemasch, Tom Hollander, Jendoco Construction Corporation, Dr. and Mrs. Michael Kutsenkow, the Mon Yough Chamber of Commerce, Ross Nese, Vic and Patty Orler, David J. Pasternak, Penn State McKeesport Faculty and Staff Fund, Gary L. Thomas, UPMC McKeesport, Kirk and Charlene Urey, and Jay and Pat Winter.

All proceeds from the benefit will be added to the Penn State McKeesport Scholarship fund. Close to one-half—46%—of the students enrolled at the campus represent the first generation in their family to attend college, and many depend on grants, loans, and scholarships to pay for their education.

“The event was successful in raising awareness of the importance of providing more scholarship assistance to our students,” said Pat Quinn Winter, director of development. “We are grateful to all our supporters who helped us reach our goal and are providing our students with the gift of education.”

Anyone interested in donating to the Penn State McKeesport Scholarship Fund can learn more by calling the Office of Institutional Advancement at 412-675-9048.

Associate Professor of Psychology, Elizabeth Mazur, was recently published in the journal Cognitive Therapy and Research, currently available on SpringerLink, a premier data source for researchers in the sciences.

A developmental psychologist, Dr. Mazur's previous research with children of divorced parents suggested that biased appraisals influence adjustment to stressful life events. In her most recently published article, the focus is on parenting stress and how biased appraisals among mothers of young children predict parenting adjustment.

For her study Dr. Mazur used information collected from 72 mothers with at least one preschooler between the ages of 2 and 5. Most of the participants were recruited from six parenting groups in the Flint, Michigan metropolitan area.

As children enter the preschool period, parents often enter into a more adversarial relationship with their children as the child develops his/her own personality and tests the limits of parental authority.  Mazur's research shows that mothers who consistently endorse negatively biased appraisals, or "negative cognitive errors" of their child's behavior, experience more psychological distress and parenting stress, and less satisfaction and less sense of a control as a parent. For example, these parents are more likely to see a child's occasional temper tantrum as the willful noncompliance of a "bad" child.

On the other hand, parents who understand that tantrums are age-appropriate assertions by preschool-aged children adapt more readily to this often challenging phase of the child's life and are more likely to enjoy both parenting and their young children. Their realistic or even positive outlook allows these parents to cope more effectively with their children’s difficult behavior by allowing them to regroup their energy and psychological resources.

Information collected for the study included demographic information on the parent and child, measures of typical everyday events that can be a hassle to the parent, inventories of psychological distress, parenting stress, and parenting sense of competence, as well as information from a scale which rates parents on their strength of endorsement to negative and positive illusions as they are presented with hypothetical events.  The hypothetical events described are frequently occurring and perceived as undesirable behaviors for their children (whining, acting defiantly, ignoring parental requests, etc.)

Mazur's research indicated that the frequency and intensity of daily parenting hassles (such as children arguing, interrupting, and making messes, among others) are important determinants of mothers’ psychological distress and parenting stress and satisfaction.  However, among these mothers, those who endorsed negative cognitive errors showed greater levels of psychological distress and parenting stress and lower levels of parenting satisfaction and parental self-efficacy than mothers who did not think in this negatively biased way.

It may be that a mother who personalizes her child’s bad behavior as "her fault" or considers her day as a catastrophe due to one child's misbehavior does not consistently use effective discipline strategies, such as ignoring that behavior, because she feels responsible or that her day has now been ruined. In summary, the results indicate that no matter the frequency or intensity of the parenting hassles mothers experience, realistic appraisals of parenting hassles are key in maintaining positive parenting adjustment.

Dr. Mazur's previous publications include research on the relationship between negative and positive appraisal biases and adjustment to parental divorce. Those studies also concluded that it is important to teach positive appraisal biases so that children can cope more effectively with their stressful family situations. Mazur has taught here for four years. Previously, she worked at the University of Michigan at Flint and within that community as a parent educator, which, combined with her own parenting experiences, helped to inspire the present project.

For more information, contact Dr. Mazur (emazur@psu.edu).

Penn State McKeesport participated for the first time in the third annual WorldQuest competiton, sponsored by the World Affairs Council of Pittsburgh. The contest was held in downtown Pittsburgh at the Omni William Penn Hotel.

The campus team was led by Dr. Clifford Manlove, Assistant Professor of English. Joining him on the team were Dr. Greg Bondar, Adjunct Instructor in Anthropology; Dr. Margaret Signorella, DAA and Professor of Psychology and Women's Studies; and students Daniel Dolney, Dominic Scarano, and Timothy Werstuik. The team answered 30 out of 40 questions correctly, scoring well on general geography and world leaders, but experiencing difficulty with flags and Pittsburgh-related global trivia.

Penn State McKeesport was one of the sponsors of the event. Dr. Manlove is planning to lead next year's team. Anyone interested in participating should watch for the announcement of next year's event and team formation in early September.

The Dabbawallas is currently being shown nationally on PBS stations. The India documentary captures a 100-year-old work system where each day 100,000 lunches are delivered by 4,000 Dabbawallas (or box persons) from customers' homes to their places of work. This system is as complicated as what Federal Express does, but exists without any technology or modern business practices.

The program is being co-sponsored by Teaching India, the Library, and the Honors Program.

Dr. Goodman holds a Richard M. Cyert Professorship, and is Professor of Organizational Psychology, Director, Institute for Strategic Development and Co-Director, Center for the Management of Technology at Carnegie-Mellon University.

On October 19 at 12 noon in the dining area of the Student Community Center, Amzad Rahman will performance and discuss the "Evolution of the Music of India from Ancient to Present Times." Joining Rahman will be Anupama Kytham and Dr. Shenaz Choudhury, adjunct mathematics instructor at the campus.

On October 24 and 25, the University's cultural events program will present a musical workshop and performance by Facing East (October 24 at noon and 8 p.m.) and an Indian classical dance performance by the Nandanik Dance Company (October 25 at 7 p.m.).

Each fall, Penn State McKeesport celebrates Penn State Day and welcomes prospective students and parents to explore the campus and get a first-hand look at what life is like at Penn State McKeesport. Meet our faculty, staff & students and learn about 160+ majors, the admission process, financial aid, scholarships, athletic programs, student clubs and much more. Bring your family and spend the day with us! The event will take place on Saturday, October 28 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. in Penn State McKeesport's Student Community Center; registration begins at 9:30 a.m. To register, please call 412-675-9010 or visit our online registration site.

Dr. Jyotsna Kalavar, Associate Professor of HDFS at Penn State New Kensington, will be discussing the current social and economic changes in India that are impacting older people with her talk entitled, "The Emerging Phenomenon of Elder Care in India"

Jyotsna (Josi) Kalavar completed her undergraduate studies in Psychology from Bombay University.  She came to the United States in 1984 for graduate studies.  Her Ph.D. is from the University of Maryland at College Park, and she subsequently went to the University of Michigan for two years of postdoctoral research in gerontology.  Dr. Kalavar has been at  Penn State New Kensington since 2001.  She has been active in research, and has received more than $175,000 in research grant awards from external agencies, including the National Institute of Aging.  In 2004-2005, she spent her sabbatical year in India as a Fulbright Scholar. Currently, she teaches a variety of courses in Psychology and Human Development.

• If Penn State McKeesport is you first choice, we will waive the $50 application fee.

High school students and transfer students are invited to experience a day in the life of a Penn State student. This special event will be held:

Monday, November 13, 2006
Penn State McKeesport
Student Community Center
9:00 a.m. 

Students will have the opportunity to...

• Attend a Penn State class such as Calculus, Great Traditions in American Literature, Spanish, and more
• Interact with Penn State students and have their questions answered
• Learn about admissions and student financial aid
• Take a lower and upper campus tour with a Lion Ambassador
• Explore student life and campus activities
• Complete a Penn State McKeesport application online and have the $50 application fee waived
• Enjoy refreshments on us

To register, visit our online registration site or call 412-675-9010. Don’t forget to bring a friend! High school students will be given an excuse letter to take back to their high school.

Approved September 15 by the University's Board of Trustees, the name change is intended to support the campus' regional presence, facilitate an expanded vision and evolving mission for the campus and raise general awareness of the campus.

The new moniker also is expected to give a sense of ownership to campus alumni and Penn Staters living in Allegheny County, and reinforce the campus' position as the only Penn State location in the county. More than 22,000 Penn State alumni live in Allegheny County -- the largest concentration of alumni residing in any one county in the nation -- and approximately 4,000 Penn State students hail from the county.

"The mission of this campus has evolved," said Penn State President Graham B. Spanier. "Although never limited to serving the city of McKeesport, the campus is now involved much more in the Pittsburgh region and in Allegheny County. Students arrive from all nearby boroughs and cities, from throughout the commonwealth and the nation, and increasingly, internationally. 

The change in name would more readily describe the region served, more accurately reflect the 21st century mission of the campus and more precisely identify a significant Penn State asset in this region."

Penn State McKeesport, founded at its current location in 1957, offers baccalaureate degrees in six disciplines, and provides the first two years of instruction for more than 160 academic programs at the University. It also offers associate degrees in six areas as well as several certificate programs.

Before reaching the University's Board of Trustees for consideration, the proposal for the new name was approved by the McKeesport Faculty Senate, the McKeesport Advisory Board, the McKeesport Alumni Society, students and the campus chancellor.

As there are many details to work out regarding the changeover, a firm date has not been set yet.

The admissions counselors at Penn State McKeesport will be out on the road this fall presenting Penn State University to high school juniors and seniors. This is a great opportunity to learn about Penn State's multi-campus system, the application process, 160+ majors, financial aid, as well as what makes Penn State a cut above the rest. There will be plenty of time to have your questions answered. Interested students should contact their guidance counselor to sign-up.

The admissions counselor who will be visiting the bolded schools is Ryan Astor. The admissions counselor who will be visiting all other schools is Melanie Jo Wrobleski. Both counselors are happy to answer your questions and can be reached by calling 412-675-9010.

Name of High School	Date of Presentation
Baldwin	09/29/06
Bethel Park	09/27/06
Brashear	TBA
Brentwood	09/29/06
C.A.P.A.	09/19/06
Carrick	11/14/06
Central Catholic	09/28/06
Clairton	09/25/06
Derry	10/19/06
Duquesne	TBA
East Allegheny	09/21/06
Elizabeth Forward	10/05/06
Ellis	09/26/06
Gateway	10/05/06
Greater Latrobe	10/24/06
Greensburg Central Catholic	10/03/06
Greensburg Salem	10/03/06
Hempfield	10/10/06
Imani Christian Academy	TBA
Jeannette	10/24/06
Keystone Oaks	10/02/06
Laurel Valley	10/03/06
Ligonier Valley	10/19/06
McKeesport	TBA
Mt. Lebanon	10/04/06
Norwin	10/17/06
Oakland Catholic	10/27/06
Peabody	10/12/06
Penn Trafford	10/10/06
Ringgold	10/20/06
Schenley	10/21/06
Serra Catholic	09/26/06
Seton LaSalle	10/02/06
South Allegheny	10/02/06
South Park	09/27/06
Steel Valley	09/20/06
Taylor Allderdice	10/10/06
Thomas Jefferson	10/04/06
Upper St. Clair	10/18/06
West Mifflin	09/20/06
Wilkinsburg	09/26/06
Wilson Christian Academy	10/04/06
Winchester Thurston	10/18/06
Woodland Hills	10/17/06
Yough	10/05/06

Alumni and friends are invited to join Penn State McKeesport's 2007 trip to Paris, France. Travelers will experience the living history and vibrant modernity of the City of Light, inspiring some of the world’s greatest art, architecture, and films.  In addition to visiting celebrated museums and monuments such as the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay, Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower, and Versailles, visitors will be able to discover their favorite places among the many parks, markets, and neighborhoods.  The group will immerse itself in French culture: see films, taste the cuisine, interact with Parisians in cafés in shops, and on the metro. 

Students may take the opportunity to earn Penn State credit by engaging in one or two spring 2007 courses: French Culture through Film and Integrative Arts: French Art and Architecture. Both the Paris travel experience and the associated courses are open to students at any college.  Friends, family members, faculty, and staff are welcome to join without taking the courses.

The cost of the trip is $1,565, and includes flights, airport transfers, hotels, breakfasts, and the guidance of two experienced Penn State McKeesport faculty members who are fluent in French.  Please contact Dr. MaryEllen Higgins at 412-675-9461 or mxh68@psu.edu or Amy Guthrie at 412-675-9140 or akg10@psu.edu for more information. A deposit of $150 is needed by October 20, 2006, to secure a place. The full balance will be due on November 30.

Information on the trip is available at: http://www.celestialvoyagers.com/html/tours/universities_schools/penn_state/paris-mckeesport-1888.html

Penn State McKeesport Professor of Mathematics, Zhibo Chen, and his former student, Tian Liang, have coauthored an article that has been accepted by the College Mathematics Journal. The article, "Converse of Viviani's Theorem, " is scheduled for November, 2006 publication.

Tian Liang was an Honors student at the campus from Fall 2002 through Summer 2004 and finished her major, Computer Engineering, at the University Park campus. Ms. Liang was chosen as student marshal for Computer Engineering at the Spring 2006 commencement ceremony. Currently she is enrolled in the University's Computer Engineering graduate program.
   
Dr. Chen and Ms. Liang collaborated in an undergraduate research program at Penn State McKeesport focusing on Viviani's Theorem.  Viviani's Theorem is a result of geometry discovered over 300 years ago.  The theorem states that inside an equilateral triangle, the sum of the perpendicular distances from a point P to the three sides is independent of P (and so equals the altitude of the triangle).

Through the use of vectors,  which Dr. Chen introduces in his Calculus and Vector Analysis class (MATH 230) as a tool, he and Ms. Liang established the converse of the theorem and extended the theorem to all regular polygons. The College Mathematics Journal, which accepted the resulting article, is a highly respected refereed journal.

Penn State McKeesport provides its students with opportunities for undergraduate research. Through these opportunities, students at Penn State are afforded the opportunity to work with a scholar to join in the pursuit of new knowledge.  By being an active researchers,  students are also introduced to the basic principles used to make new discoveries and develop theories.

Orientation 2006 for new first-year students began on September 3, 2006, and consisted of a full week of fun activities and informative workshops. Students and their families learned about the many resources available on campus, and had the opportunity to meet the faculty, staff, and students of Penn State McKeesport. 

Orientation included a series of required events and optional activities, highlighted below. (Complete details are on the Orientation page.) 

Sunday, September 3, 2006 - Required

New Residence Hall Student Move-In (Slideshow)
Welcome picnic for all new students and their families 
New Students:  Get real, Get involved
For parents only:  A panel discussion
Ice cream social featuring Penn State Creamery Ice Cream

Monday, September 4, 2006

First-Year Student Dance and Boat Ride on the Gateway Clipper

Tuesday, September 5, 2006 - Required

First Day of Classes
College Meetings for all New Students during Common Period (12:15pm - 1:30 pm)

Thursday, September 6, 2006 - Required

All Campus Lunch Barbeque during Common Period (12:15pm - 1:30 pm) featuring Faculty Celebrity Chefs!

Other student events will include:

Bowling, movies, comedian, clubs and organizations involvement fair, star gazing, and more!
 
For more information on Orientation events, please call the Office of Academic Affairs at 412-675-9052 or email us at mhetrick@psu.edu.

It's not too late to sign-up for Dual Enrollment at Penn State McKeesport. High school juniors and seniors are eligible for this program and receive a grant-in-aid worth 50% of the per-credit tuition. More and more students are getting a jumpstart on their college education by enrolling in daytime, after school, and evening courses. To learn more about this exciting educational opportunity, please visit the Dual Enrollment home page. For questions, please call 412-675-9010 or e-mail psumk@psu.edu. 

It's not too late to sign-up for Dual Enrollment at Penn State McKeesport. High school juniors and seniors are eligible for this program and receive a grant-in-aid worth 50% of the per-credit tuition. More and more students are getting a jumpstart on their college education by enrolling in daytime, after school, and evening courses. To learn more about this exciting educational opportunity, please visit the Dual Enrollment home page. For questions, please call 412-675-9010 or e-mail psumk@psu.edu. 

Thanks to the support of generous alumni and friends, Penn State McKeesport raised $430,894 in gifts during the 2005-06 fiscal year, which ended on June 30. Donors contributed $148,271 for scholarship support, $167,916 for outreach programs and special projects, $95,092 for buildings and equipment, and $19,615 in general support.

“Philanthropy allows Penn State McKeesport to provide enhanced educational opportunities for our students. Our donors are helping students pay for their educations, providing career and research opportunities, and improving our facilities. Each gift, no matter its size, is needed and deeply appreciated,” said Pat Quinn Winter, Director of Development.  For more information on how you can support the campus, contact the Office of Institutional Advancement at 412-675-9048 or visit http://www.mk.psu.edu/giving/default.htm?cn61=&cn63. 

Penn State McKeesport is happy to present you with this issue of  Nittany Lines. For more information on this publication or for opportunities to get involved and remain connected to the campus, contact us at psmk-alumni@psu.edu

The Penn State McKeesport Alumni Society will have a  Penn State Creamery Ice Cream booth at the City of McKeesport’s International Village on August 15, 16, and 17, 2006.

Alumni will be serving Creamery favorites, including Peachy Paterno, Butter Pecan and Death by Chocolate. Ye Olde College Diner Grilled Stickies will also be served a la mode. Half-gallons of ice cream will also be available for sale.

All proceeds benefit the Penn State McKeesport Alumni Scholarship Fund.

For more information contact Penn State McKeesport at 412-675-9048.

Renowned trumpet soloist Warren Vaché and Pittsburgh treasure Joe Negri will be the featured musicians at Penn State McKeesport’s third annual All That’s Jazz scholarship benefit on Saturday, November 4, 2006, at 7:00 p.m. in the campus’ Student Community Center.  Proceeds will be added to the Penn State McKeesport Scholarship Fund.

In just two short years the event has provided almost $60,000 in student aid. This year the Penn State McKeesport Advisory Board hopes to raise $50,000 for student scholarships. Event Chairs Nancy Seifert and Nancy Traina and the All That’s Jazz Committee are planning an exciting evening of classic jazz, delicious food, a live auction, and the popular Blue and White “mystery” auction. 

When the campus radio station in the old "BUB" went live on April 5, 1971, students tacked cardboard egg cartons to the walls to enhance acoustics, built and mixing console, bought a mike in a pawn shop, and scrounged tow cast-off turntables.  The booth was an old wooden desk piled with equipment.  While they may  have lacked sophisticated equipment, the entrepreneurial students running WPSM made up for it with ingenuity and technical know-how.

A gift of $25,000 has allowed the campus to name the radio station booth in the Student Community Center in honor of James “Jay” M. Weitzel, Jr. ’74.  His connection to the radio station goes back to 1971, when he and a group of students including longtime friends Tom Lemak and Rick Toretti were involved with WPSM.  Lemak built much of the equipment, Toretti was president of the Electronics Club and wired the station, and Weitzel was in charge of recruiting disc jockeys and developing the play list.

This group followed an earlier set of students, including Charles T. Glazer '73, who began broadcasting on campus in 1969. 

The current home for the radio station—with its new call letters of WMKP—has gone way beyond egg cartons and vinyl records to provide a commercial-quality broadcast to listeners in the building and on the internet (www.wmkptheroar.com). The booth, overlooking the game room on a central corridor, provides an exciting space for DJs of the twenty-first century.

“It's great to see the station still going after 35 years with so much student interest! The professional equipment is a whole lot better than what we started with, so the station gives students a better introduction to the art of broadcasting," Weitzel said. "And, as with any student-run organization, you hope that while they're having fun, the students will develop leadership and other skills that will complement their classroom work."

Two school districts.
Two local foundations.
Two program models.
One goal:  Close the achievement gap for elementary and middle school students struggling with math and reading.

Penn State McKeesport Continuing Education (CE) is piloting the Pathways to Success program in the East Alleghenyand the WashingtonCountyAreaSchool Districts. Dr. Anthony Mitchell, University Community Programs, Continuing Education, designed the programs to focus on the specific academic and developmental needs of the students and families participating in the program.

The Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation has provided $95,000 in support and The Pittsburgh Foundation granted $50,000 for the innovative educational program designed to improve attendance, develop reading and writing proficiency skills, increase mathematics proficiency, and involve parents in a school-home partnership.

According to the Pennsylvania State Board of Education Council of Basic Education, PAGE1 Plan of Action, an achievement gap exists when groups of students with relatively equal ability fail to achieve at the same levels in school, with one group far exceeding the achievement of the other. Nationally and statewide, the most glaring gaps in academic achievement exist between the poor and the races.

“It is clear to me that under the mandates of No Child Left Behind, school districts cannot close achievement gaps without developing effective partnerships and collaborations,” Mitchell said.

“In today's high-stakes testing climate, poor skills and performance in reading and lack of parent involvement, especially on the elementary level among lower-income and minority families, can create serious inequities and academic under-achievement.”

The support of the Benedum and Pittsburgh Foundations is allowing PennStateand the school districts to design and implement an intervention program that can have a lasting impact. “This impact not only benefits the students who participate in the program, it also enables teachers to maximize the learning of all students. By providing these students more time, attention and practice, we are improving the capacity of teachers to teach more effectively,” said Mitchell.

“The challenges facing school districts for higher levels of student proficiency are greater than ever before and after-school programming is one of the vehicles that can bring extra resources to the students, particularly those that are struggling to achieve,” said Dr. James V. Denova, senior program officer at the Claude W. Benedum Foundation.

“I believe that higher education has a powerful role to play in providing after-school programming.  Penn State McKeesport, in particular, has a tremendous record in community outreach and for that reason we at Benedum are very excited abut the opportunity to see how Pathways to Success can play out in the WashingtonSchool District,” Denova said.

The Pittsburgh Foundation grant targets the East AlleghenyPathways program, which involves a partnership of school administrators, five teachers and Penn State McKeesport student tutors. Approximately 52 third and fifth graders were registered in the program, which ran three days a week for ten weeks in the fall and ten weeks in the spring.

A typical two-hour day would include arrival, snack, self-esteem motivation, tutoring and homework support. Celebration programs for parents and families were held in the fall and spring to acknowledge the success of all students in the program. 

PennStatestudents serving as learning assistants found the work challenging. “This program is teaching me the value of an education; I have tutored many children and the primary goal I have is that they understand why teaching things like science and math can contribute to their lives.. ." said Quincy Coles, a freshman studying to be a pediatrician.

Overall attendance was outstanding, according to Mitchell, who found families to be very supportive. “One of the goals for this initiative was to create greater parental awareness of the No Child Left Behind Act and involvement in their child’s learning,” said Mitchell. 

East Allegheny Teacher and Pathways Instructor Kelly Ference agrees. “The Pathways to Success Program is a great experience for children. It is wonderful to see children so enthused and engaged in learning in an after-school program after they have worked so hard all day. The enthusiasm and energy levels are definitely high during the program. The students truly enjoy the program and the academic benefits are evident in the progress they have made so far.  It is always an outstanding thing to see students enjoy learning,” she said.

“The Pittsburgh Foundation sees Penn State McKeesport's innovative approach of creating school-home partnerships as a well-conceived strategy for improving student achievement. By focusing on a combination of rigorous academic tutoring supported by mentor role models and parents, we believe Pathways to Success is making the best possible use of multiple resources to meet its objectives,” said William E. Trueheart, president and CEO of The Pittsburgh Foundation.

The Benedum Foundation grant is supporting the WashingtonAreaSchool Districtprogram. Pathways began in January for about 40 sixth graders and will run 20 consecutive weeks. The program model uses mentors from Southwest Training Services, Inc., tutors from The Huntington Learning Center and pre-service teachers from Washington & JeffersonCollege.

“The cognitive and emotional development of sixth graders can be extremely challenging to teachers and parents. This initiative targets adolescents who need social supports at this stage in their lives. In addition to the academic tutoring provided by The Huntington Learner Center, Pathways students receive life skills education from Southwest Training on topics that address self-esteem, peer pressure, bullying, conflict resolution, and internet safety to name a few. This exciting approach is different, and most importantly, the students seem to really appreciate what they are learning about choices and decision-making,” Mitchell said.

“We’re encouraged by the early student results and parents and teacher feedback,” observed Mitchell. “We believe that long-term implementation of the Pathways models can significantly improve and sustain students’ achievement and performance in math and reading proficiency. Thanks to our partners, the Pathways to Success is a program that may be transportable to other districts in the region and state.”

Tuesday, July 18, 6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Frable Conference Center, Frable Building

Tuesday, August 1, 6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Frable Conference Center, Frable Building

For more information or to make a reservation, please call the Student and Enrollment Services Office at 412-675-9010 or e-mail psumk@psu.edu.

Penn State McKeesport offers all four years of bachelor’s degrees in Business; Communications; Information Sciences and Technology; Letters, Arts and Sciences; Organizational Leadership; and Psychology as well as the first two years of 160+ Penn State majors. Classes are offered in both day and evening schedules. Last year, a new associate degree in Nanofabrication Manufacturing Technology was added to the Penn State McKeesport two-year degree offerings which include Business Administration; Letters, Arts and Sciences; and Science. The newest four-year degree is the Bachelor of Arts degree in Letters, Arts and Sciences, which combines a classic liberal arts education with today's need for flexibility and practical skills.

Dear Fellow Alum:

Did you know that as a dues paying member of the Penn State Alumni Association (PSAA), you are automatically a member of the Penn State McKeesport Alumni Society and your have a voice in our future? 

The Society is reorganizing and revitalizing our programs and activities. Our purpose is to more effectively stimulate and sustain the interest of former students of Penn State McKeesport and all University alumni. We also provide a way for alumni to join together for the enrichment of the campus and the University.

In collaboration with the PSAA, we are conducting a survey of the interests and preferences of alumni. In order for the Society to continue its success, we need to hear from you.  Results of the survey will guide the development and implementation of Society programs and activities that reflect your interests and preferences.

Please take a few minutes from your busy schedule to complete the on-line survey. You can also find a copy of the survey in Spring-Summer 2006 issue of Nittany Lines.  

Thank you for your interest and involvement in your alma mater.

For the Glory,

Denise Kubli ’00, President
E-mail: dmk190@psu.edu

Office of Institutional Advancement 412-675-9048

A team of Penn State McKeesport business students captured third place in the Pittsburgh American Marketing Association contest held recently.  The contest, an annual event open to area college students, matches teams of marketing  students with non-profits in the area who wish to develop a marketing initiative.  The students become the marketing consultant for the non-profit as they establish a plan and its implementation.

A team of five Penn State McKeesport students advised by Dr. A. K. Singh, Assistant Professor of Marketing,   worked with the Auberle Education Center (AEC) located in Homestead during a six-week period in Spring, 2006 .  The team, after consultation with Auberle, defined a project and determined  desired outcomes.  Student members of the Penn State McKeesport team were Nicole Wolff (team leader), Rebecca Hardy, Russell Fazio, and Dominic Tonzo,Jr. The PSUMK team included all seniors in the campus four-year business program. 

Penn State McKeesport has taken part in the annual AMA collegiate competition since 2002 and has placed in the top 3 during three of the four years the campus has participated.  This year 11 colleges from the Greater Pittsburgh area  competed. 

Working directly with Kathy Bey, a staff member of Auberle, students worked on a non-traditional marketing project that was deemed important to the facility.  The team's mission was to design a career awareness program  that would help the agency's students do effective career planning.  Penn State McKeesport team members worked to develop a program  that would increase awareness of individual options upon graduation.  Information on college programs was collected and organized.   Team members also engaged in the planning and implementation of a Career Day at the facility.    Students enrolled in the PSUMK Advertising and Promotion Marketing course were able to apply the theories and lessons of the course to the project.    

Team members had to deliver their marketing proposal to AEC staff and Mary Kate Bartley, Vice President of Collegiate Relations for AMA Pittsburgh,  during a presentation at Penn State McKeesport in late April.  As part of the presentation the students delivered a 45-minute PowerPoint presentation.  The students also developed a report on the project, a brochure outlining the various options available to Auberle students after graduation and a PowerPoint presentation that AEC could use to recruit local employers who might hire AEC graduates or who might be interested in taking part in the facility's career day.

Penn State McKeesport was the only Penn State campus in the region to take part in the AMA competition.    The third place win earned the students a stipend of $100. The American Marketing Association is considered the pre-eminent worldwide professional disciplinary association of academics and practitioners.  The organization's goal is to support the professional growth of its members and  to  foster an understanding of marketing at the local level while facilitating networking and the exchange of marketing information and ideas among marketing professionals, academics and students.

Students receive their invitation to FTCAP after completing their on-line placement tests and their Educational Planning Survey.

During a FTCAP session, students and family members participate in two workshops.  The first workshop is designed to familiarize them with Penn State Degree requirements, including General Education and First Year Seminar requirements.  The second workshop introduces participants to eLion, an interactive web-based system used to access financial and academic information.  Participants also meet student orientation leaders, and learn more about student clubs and other important campus resources.

One highlight of the FTCAP program is the Advising Session.  Students meet with a FTCAP adviser to review placement test results, discuss majors, and design a first semester schedule.  During this time, families are able to use our computer lab to establish a Friends of Penn State account, visit individually with staff in our Financial Aid and Business offices, tour the campus, or relax in our Student Community Center.  The FTCAP adviser will help students understand their placement results, major requirements, and schedule, so the students can answer any questions their families may have later.

FTCAP is the first major activity in the first-year experience for Penn State McKeesport students. The next major step is Orientation.

For additional information on FTCAP, please email dus-psumk@psu.edu or call 412-675-9070.

For additional information on Orientation, please email academics-psumk@psu.edu or call 412-675-9052.

Join us at one of Penn State McKeesport's Spend a Summer Evening programs! This program is designed for students and parents seeking information on admissions, academics, and student life at Penn State McKeesport. The evening's agenda will also include a campus tour plus a refreshing treat perfect for a summer evening. The two programs will take place:

Tuesday, June 27, 6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Ostermayer Room, Student Community Center

&

Thursday, July 20, 6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Ostermayer Room, Student Community Center

To register for the event, please call the Office of Student and Enrollment Services at 412-675-9010 or register at our Schedule a Visit web site. For a campus map, driving directions, and parking information, please visit our Visits and Events web site. We look forward to seeing you there!

High school juniors and seniors who participated in Penn State McKeesport's Dual Enrollment High School Program this past spring will be honored at an upcoming Dual Enrollment Celebration. Penn State McKeesport faculty and staff along with the students' high school staff will be in attendance to congratulate those who were able to jumpstart their college education at Penn State. For more information, please call 412-675-9010.

Penn State alumnus Ronald R. Davenport, chairman of Sheridan Broadcasting Corp. and co-chairman of the American Urban Radio Networks, was the keynote speaker.

Davenport has served on numerous civic and corporate boards, including ARAMARK, the Mayor's Committee on Human Resources, the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund and the Opportunities Industrialization Center. Some of his community service activities include the Heinz Awards, the Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania, the Committee for Economic Development and the Museum of Television and Radio in New York City. Davenport recently was honored at the "Celebration of Giants" in broadcasting by the Library of American Broadcasting Foundation in New York City.

Penn State honored Davenport as an Alumni Fellow in 1974 (his wife, Judith, was honored in 2001) and as a Distinguished Alumnus in 1975 (and Judith in 1995). The Davenports have endowed faculty chairs in the Eberly College of Science and The Smeal College of Business Administration. They also endowed two undergraduate scholarships for minority students who have an interest in the sciences and in business.

For the past twelve months, the Psychological Association of Penn State McKeesport has become an active force in establishing community relationships and serving local agencies with their volunteer efforts.

Under the leadership of club President, Kacie Thomas, relationships have been formed with Womansplace, a  haven for abused women and their children in the McKeesport area, and Auberle, an agency which serves troubled youth and their families.  The club and its membership, approximately ten Applied Psychology majors,  have also assisted with a campus book sale which benefited the Penn State McKeesport Kelly Library.

The first ever Day of Unity was the club's first activity.  Partnering with Womansplace, the Psychological Association brought domestic violence to the attention of the campus.  Organizing the Clothesline project in the Student Community Center, students, staff and faculty designed original T-shirts to express how violence affects them individually.  This project was followed by a "Take Back the Night/Day of Unity"  which included a program of community speakers, skits, a march through campus and a candlelight vigil.  All of the activities focused on increasing the campus's and the community's awareness of the domestic violence issue.

During December, the club organized a "Santa's Workshop" at Auberle, to raise money so that the children housed at Auberle could buy inexpensive gifts for their family members. Students sold homemade Christmas ornaments and solicited gifts from the community. Over 150 items were donated by the faculty, staff and students at Penn State McKeesport for the activity. Psychology Association members organized the workshop on site at Auberle and assisted the children in selecting and purchasing gifts. Shown at the left are Crystal Carroll, Alacia Eicher, Laurie Kozarian, and Kacie Thomas.

As its third project, students in the Association assisted the campus librarian to organize and conduct the campus library's annual book fair.  Used books, tapes, CD's, etc were solicited from the campus community for resale.  Over $300 was raised to purchase additional materials for the library with the help of student volunteers.

As its fourth project to date, the Psychological Association is again partnering with Auberle for the 2006 Home Olympics.  The Olympics, hosted by Auberle at Carnegie Mellon University,  is an annual,  nationwide event for at-risk children.  More than 350 children will compete at the CMU campus for medals in track and field, basketball, softball, volleyball, soccer and swimming.  The campus association is helping by collecting items for the children's gift bags.  The participants in the Olympics will take home the bags as a remembrance of their time in Pittsburgh. Donations were solicited from the campus community for items with a Pittsburgh theme.

The campus Psychological Association is advised by Penn State McKeesport faculty member, Dr. Elizabeth Mazur, Associate Professor of Psychology.  Chartered by the campus's Student Government Association in 2005, the organization plans on applying to Psi Chi, the national honor society in psychology, to form a local chapter.

For more information, contact Dr. Mazur: emazur@psu.edu.

Cancellation and delay information is available by phone on a pre-recorded message by calling the campus bulletin board phone at 412-675-9200, Option #1.

Dr. Kathy Taylor Brown, Assistant Professor of Communications, and Jeanna Cooper, Instructor of IST, are currently compiling data with Penn State McKeesport Business and Communications students to quantify how valued diversity is in the business world.  Surveys, compiled by the Penn State McKeesport faculty members, are being sent to over 100 local and national corporations.  Upon their return, students will review, code and enter the data for further analysis.  For many years employers have stated the value of diversity to their business with no quantifiers.  The survey designed by Brown and Cooper is meant to better define and express exactly what this value means to the economy and the business world.

A student research assistant was also used in compiling a survey and overseeing the printing and reproduction of the campus's literary and arts magazine, Absence.  All members of the Penn State McKeesport campus community (faculty, staff, and students) are invited to submit their creative work to the magazine for inclusion in the publication.  Dr. Clifford Manlove, Assistant Professor of English, oversees the publication and the student editorial board.  The magazine is printed annually.  This year the campus hosted an evening program where faculty and student works were highlighted and performed by the authors.  Awards funded by the Chancellor's office were presented in the literary and visual arts categories. 

Penn State McKeesport IST faculty are heading a proposal for "Data Collection for the Survey of Computer/Internet Usage of Senior Citizens."    The project, written by Dr. Guangfeng Song, Assistant Professor of IST, will be used to collect data from senior citizens in three different assisted living facilities managed by the Westmoreland County Housing Authority.  Two IST majors are helping Dr. Song to distribute the survey and compile the collected data.   Survey questions focus on the amount and type of Internet usage.  The survey also attempts to gauge seniors' understanding of the Internet and possible security problems that might result from uninformed usage.   The project is headed by Galen Grimes, Assistant Professor of IST and head of McKeesport's IST department.  Dr. Song has assumed the responsibility for overseeing the student researchers.

Two Penn State McKeesport students will benefit from the Undergraduate Research project submitted and funded by Dr. Elizabeth Mazur, Associate Professor of Psychology.  Applied Psychology majors, Crystal Carroll and Ashley Tyszkiewicz, worked as research assistants on the "Parents with Physical Disabilities and Their Adolescent Children" project.  Both students formulated their own hypotheses, which they then tested with the data collected. Their findings , in the form of a research poster,  has been accepted  for presentation at the Pennsylvania Psychological Association annual meeting in Harrisburg, PA, June, 2006. Both students used the project as a one credit course, PSY 494, during Spring 2006 and earned stipends for their work. 

This summer, Dr. Mazur will be collaborating with Lauri Kozarian, an Applied Psychology major entering her senior year, on how adolescents portray themselves on their web logs or blogs.  Blogs, very popular among adolescents, especially girls ages 15-17, are personal commentaries that typically detail the young person's daily world, especially his or her relationships (romantic, peer, and family), struggles, ideals, and emotions.  Dr. Mazur previously introduced her students to the world of blogging in her Adolescent Psychology class, PSY 426, where students searched for informative teen blogs in order to analyze why adolescents write blogs, and their appeal and drawbacks as a form of communication.  In 2005, Dr. Mazur published a report of this class project in Teaching of Psychology, a highly competitive academic journal.   The summer research will continue her work not only with Ms. Kozarian but also with two Penn State McKeesport students who will “learn the ropes”  as coders.

Eight Communications students from Penn State McKeesport participated in the 11th annual Undergraduate Research Exhibition hosted by the Schreyer Honors College and the Office of Undergraduate Education on April 4 - 6 at University Park. The students, all members of Dr. Kathleen Taylor Brown's Communication 494, Research Projects class, spent the Spring, 2006 semester working on their projects for undergraduate credit.

Students Leslie Dezorzi, Jason Farino, Lauren McCaffrey, Patrick McIntyre, Benjamin Olcott, Jeffrey Sabo, Kellie Sackett, and Shawn Zetkulic worked under Dr. Taylor-Brown's direction to formulate their hypotheses and research their findings. 

Student topics included the Assessment of Online Course Work on Critical Thinking:  A Focus on Discussion Boards, and a Review of the Literature of Deceptive Advertising:  Is Military Recruiting Deceptively Targeting Lower Income High School Students. 

The exhibition was open to all Penn State Undergraduate students. Student works were presented to faculty, business and industry leaders and the general public during the Performance Exhibition held Wednesday, April 5, at Alumni Hall. The presentations included two elements, visual and oral.  The foundation of each exhibit was a poster containing text and graphics that gave an overview of each project so that the basis of the research was displayed and easily communicated.  The oral part of the presentation included discussion and defense of their research by the students in attendance. 

The 2006 Undergraduate Research Exhibition allowed the Penn State McKeesport students and their peers to celebrate research and interact with students university-wide from dissimilar fields of study. Participants had the opportunity to showcase and present their work while sharing and exploring their research methods. It was the second year that Dr. Brown's students participated in the event.

For more information on the Undergraduate Research Exhibition, go to  http://www.undergradresearch.psu.edu/index.cfm.

Penn State McKeesport recognized the Edwin R. Crawford Trust at the spring Blue and White Scholarship Reception for the Trust’s philanthropic support of the campus over a 35-year period.

Trustees George F. Young, Jr., Bernadine H. Kovacs and William H. Johnson represent the Trust, which was established by the estate of Edwin R. Crawford a banker and manufacturer from Duquesne, Pa.  At his death in 1936, his will created a charitable trust fund of $1.5 million.

Since 1971, the Trust has contributed $456,614 to the campus, primarily for scholarships. The Edwin R Crawford Trust is the single largest organizational donor to Penn State McKeesport. In 1988 in recognition of the foundation’s outstanding support, the campus named the building that houses the computer center and technology labs in honor of Edwin R. Crawford.

“The Trust’s gifts to the campus are inspirational,” said Pat Quinn Winter, director of development. “In addition to establishing the E. R. Crawford Trust Fund Scholarship in 1984, the Foundation also set up a matching fund from 1986-1990 whereby the Trust agreed to match up to one-half of the amount needed to establish a scholarship endowment. As a result of their matching program, the campus added nine additional scholarship endowments during the University’s first capital campaign,” she said.

The Trust also supported the McKeesport Heritage Center, which got its start at the campus, and a student emergency loan fund at a local bank.

We are now accepting registrations for Penn State McKeesport’s Kids’ College 2006, offering a variety of camps geared to youth in grades 4 through 8.

The one-week camps begin July 10, 2006 with different camps offered each week through July 28, 2006.

Fun and learning are combined in: Cooking, Robot Building, LEGO Mindstorm, Scrapbooking, Dance Mania, Imagination Station, Fun With Drums, Astronomy, Magic of Materials Science, Let’s Act/ Let’s Sing, Girls Volleyball, Boys & Girls Basketball,  and Crime Scene Investigator camps.

For a complete schedule and description of classes contact Melanie in the Continuing Education office at 412- 675-9040.

View our summer 2006 Kids'College Brochure

Register now!  http://offering.psu.edu/mk-kids-college

Penn State McKeesport's Continuing Education, in collaboration with Penn State Fayette will be offering nursing information sessions for registered nurses who want to pursue a bachelor of science degree in nursing.
Sessions will be held on Wednesday, April 19, 2:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m. and Thursday, April 20, 6:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. Both events will be in held on the campus of Penn State Mckeesport in Room 117 of the Frable Building.

For more information and to register, call 412- 675-9058. 

"Morocco, the land where the sun sets" will introduce the history and culture of Morocco.

The event, which will take place on Tuesday, April 11th from at 12:15 p.m. (Common Period) in Frable 117, is free and open to the public.

"The Cosmopolitan Roots of Senegalese Cinema," was the proposal submitted by Assistant Professor of English, Dr. MaryEllen Higgins. The proposal connects Senegalese cinema to African cosmopolitan movements in the 1930's and earlier. Previous research on Senegalese cinema led Dr. Higgins to the premise that several Senegalese films trace their artistic cosmopolitan roots to the Negritude poets in France and the African diaspora in the United States. Dr. Higgins will have a course release In Fall, 2006 to further her research in this area.

Dr. Clifford Manlove, Assistant Professor of English, was funded for his proposal "King Kolonialism: On the Interconnections between King Kong, Colonialism, and Film History, 1884 - 2005." Dr. Manlove's objective is to publish an article on the simultaneous advances of modern colonialism (Congress of Berlin, 1885), the moving picture (1895) and the machine gun (the Maxim, 1884) during the late 19th century. To further this research, Manlove's project will focus on an article length essay on a close textual reading and historical analysis of the original 1933 feature film, King Kong, and its two subsequent versions in 1978 and 2005.

Dr. John Peles, Associate Professor of Biology, was funded for his proposal, "Influence of protein Hererozygosity on the metabolic response of fathead minnows to toxicant exposure." Peles' investigation will examine the influence of protein hererozygosity on the standard metabolic rate in fathead minnows, an organism that is routinely used for toxicity testing by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Minnows will be exposed to the heavy metals, copper, and cadmium. Peles hopes the project will provide baseline data for a grant proposal to be submitted to the National Science Foundation.

Assistant Professor of Information Sciences and Technology, Dr. Guangfeng Song was funded for his project to compare computer-generated instructions to those written by human experts in guiding users' visual search of information on the Web.

Penn State McKeesport will host an Adult/Transfer Student Information Session on Tuesday, April 25, from 6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. in Frable 117.

Prospective students who have previous undergraduate academic work should attend this event to learn more about the four-year degree programs offered at Penn State McKeesport. Please bring a copy of your transcripts and our admissions staff will perform an informal evaluation of the courses for transfer to Penn State.

To register for this event, use the on-line form at https://www.admissions.psu.edu/my_admissions/visitation/index.cfm, call 412-675-9010, or e-mail psumk@psu.edu. 

Penn State McKeesport offers all four years of bachelor’s degrees in Business; Communications; Information Sciences and Technology; Letters, Arts, & Sciences; Organizational Leadership; and Psychology (Applied), as well as the first two years of 160+ Penn State majors.  Classes for the bachelor's degrees that can be completed at Penn State McKeesport are offered in both day and evening or on-line schedules.  A new associate degree in Nanofabrication Manufacturing Technology has increased two-year degree offerings which include Business Administration; Letters, Arts and Sciences; and Science. 

The play dramatizes elements of the famous legend. The production is part of the campus focus on Africa.

High school students interested in Penn State are encouraged to attend Penn State McKeesport's upcoming Spring Open House. The event will be held on Saturday, April 8 from 9:00 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. in the Ostermayer Room of the Student Community Center. The agenda includes

• A Chancellor welcome
• Admissions presentation
• Testimonies from current Penn State McKeesport students
• An exploration of Penn State's 160+ majors
• Academic breakout sessions
• An opportunity to meet with representatives from financial aid, athletics, health services, and housing
• Campus and residence hall tours
• FREE lunch

Don't forget to bring your family and friends. To register, call 412-675-9010 or visit the registration page. We look forward to meeting you!

Penn State McKeesport student, John Harkins, is fulfilling the internship requirements for his major by working at the Blueroof Technologies' Smart House in McKeesport. John, a senior who majors in Information Sciences and Technology (IST), has been a "valuable" asset to Blueroof, according to Penn State Professor of Engineering and Blueroof Director of Technology, Robert Walters.

Maintaining the documentation and the organization of the technology used in the Smart House is just part of the intern's responsibilities.  Recently John took responsibility for setting up a research lab in the basement of the Smart House that Penn State McKeesport engineering and IST students will use. 

Walters indicates that documenting what was installed in the Smart House was lacking until Penn State McKeesport began using student interns over the past 3 - 4 years to help with the process.  Over the course of that time six interns have helped with the facility, taking responsibility for the IT infrastructure's installation, documentation and maintenance.

Maintaining  and upgrading the  Blueroof website, http://www.bluerooftechnologies.com/, is also the responsibility of the current intern.  Training on how the site was developed and what needs to be changed will be part of his job while at Blueroof.  Harkins, like most of the Blueroof interns, was personally recruited by a  member of the Blueroof staff, in this case, Professor Walters. Early this academic year, Walters searched for a good student capable of understanding and working with the Smart House concepts.  Harkins needed an internship for graduation and the match was made.
  
After graduation, Harkins plans on attending graduate school, majoring in network security.  He feels his work at the Blueroof site has given him valuable experience, because security at the house itself and within its network is instrumental in providing the type of safety and peace of mind vital to its senior residents.  Harkins enjoys the autonomy of the job and, according to Walters, possesses the self-motivation and discipline necessary to work on his own for the 20 hours per week required of the internship. 

Work at the Smart House is incorporated into the IST 402 curriculum, Quality of Life Technology.  Students from the IST and the Engineering programs at Penn State McKeesport have used assignments at the Smart House for the laboratory component of their classes. 

The Smart House was designed to allow senior citizens to live in a safe environment which educates, monitors and optimizes their every day lives.  The Smart Living concept of the model cottage includes home networking security, information technology for assisted living, internet appliances, and the Connected Home which allows seniors to connect with their friends and family in a monitoring environment.  All of this technology allows senior occupants of the house to stay in their own home longer while feeling safe and secure.

The Blueroof project is one of many community partnerships in which Penn State McKeesport  participates. The campus's partnership with Blueroof also includes the City of McKeesport, the County of Allegheny, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,  Leviton, PPG,  local foundations, area businesses and organizations.  

Penn State McKeesport's Third Advising Day will be held on Tuesday, March 28, 2006 during Common Period in the Student Community Center and from 5pm - 7pm in McKeesport Hall.  Advising Day brings advising services to the students to assist with Summer and Fall 2006 scheduling. 

At both programs, students will be able to visit with advisers and ask questions about the Summer and Fall 2006 schedule and degree requirements to name a few topics.  A lap top station will be set-up for students to receive eLion tutorials. 

All students who visit with their adviser will be given a ticket to enjoy refreshments.

A highlight of this semester's event is a "Name That Adviser" contest.  Adviers have submitted little know facts about themselves to Math Instructor Kris Kokal.  Ms. Kokal has assembled the facts into a game sheet students can pick up from each adviser during Advising Day.  The student correctly identifying the most advisers will win a 256 MB Jump Drive donated by Barnes and Noble Campus Bookstore.  Answers to the "Name That Adviser" contest will be announced at 7pm on March 28 and posted to the campus web site.  The winner will be notified on March 29.

Advising Day is planned by a committee of faculty, students and staff.  Advising Day committee members include Mr. Mark Ament, Mr. Dan Brown, Ms. Kris Kokal, Ms. Donna Rhodes, Ms. Victoria Garwood, Dr. Margaret Signorella, and Dr. Joe Marchesani.

• 6:00 p.m.--What is IST?
• 6:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.--Breakout Sessions (IST Careers: A Shape-Shifting Portfolio Worker for the Future, A Look Outside the IST Classroom: From Student Research to Student Activities, Smart Technologies for Smart Living, Campus Technology Tour)
• 7:30 p.m.--IST Wrap-up

Download the invitation to learn more about this event. Visit this page to learn more about IST. To register for this program, call 412-675-9017 or 1-800-248-LION.

From astronomers to a curator to a foodie, several of Penn State's faculty stars are hitting the road to present fun and educational programs for alumni and friends, part of the Penn State Alumni Association's "City Lights" program.  The Penn State McKeesport Alumni Society is a group sponsor of the “City Lights” program.

"City Lights" will reach out to Penn Staters in three major East Coast cities with some of the highest concentrations of alumni: Pittsburgh (more than 40,000), Philadelphia (more than 71,000), and Washington, D.C. (more than 18,000). The "City Lights" program, now in its second year, brings Penn State faculty to its alumni to present five upcoming events intended to appeal to a broad range of alumni interests.

Two events are slated for the Southwestern Pennsylvania: A Penn State Day of Science and Sport on Saturday, May 6 from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in Pittsburgh at the Carnegie Science Center and UPMC Sports Works; and a behind-the -scenes tour of Bella Notte Restaurant in Pittsburgh’s popular Strip District on Wednesday, May 17 from 5:30 to 9:00 p.m.  A full listing of events is available on the Penn State Alumni Association website: www.alumni.psu.edu.

All "City Lights" events are open to Penn State alumni and friends, with ticket prices ranging from $10 to $45 for Alumni Association members and slightly more for non-members. For more information -- including exact times and ticket prices for each event --or to register for any "City Lights" program, access the www.alumni.psu.edu or call 800-548-LION option 5.

The Penn State McKeesport Alumni Society works to connect Penn State McKeesport alumni with the University. For more information, visit the website at alumni.mk.psu.edu or call 412-675-9048.

The Penn State Alumni Association is the largest dues-paying alumni association in the world with more than 156,000 members. Established in 1870, the Alumni Association connects alumni to the University and to each other, provides valuable benefits to members and supports the University's mission of teaching, research, and service. The Penn State Alumni Association oversees hundreds of annual programs and events designed to inform, involve, and inspire Penn State alumni.

Pi and pies will be the order of business on Tuesday, March 14, as Penn State McKeesport celebrates its first annual Pi Day.   March 14th, expressed 3/14 (just in case you haven't figured out why events are scheduled for that particular day), will include a calendar of events aimed at bringing students and faculty  together in a social atmosphere to celebrate the wonder of mathematics.  

Pi, the 16th letter of the Greek alphabet (p) and the symbol which denotes the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter, will be celebrated Monday and Tuesday at Penn State McKeesport.   Engineering, mathematics and science faculty have joined together to plan events. A competitive quiz as well as experiments and/or classroom activities will start the festivities on Monday, March 13, as faculty attempt to bring Pi to the attention of the campus's student body.   

The Pi Day planning committee consists of Dr. Zhibo Chen, Professor of Mathematics, Dr. James Gillespie, Assistant Professor of  Mathematics, Dr. Otto Linsuain,  Assistant Professor of Physics, and Dr. Eric Lipsky, Instructor in Engineering. 

During the campus's common period on Tuesday, March 14 (noon to 1:30 p.m.) students will have one last opportunity to take the competitive Pi Day quiz.  Attendees can also view a faculty presentation on Pi and participate in a pie (not Pi) eating contest in the stage area of the campus's cafeteria.  Prizes will be awarded.  Both Monday and Tuesday's activities are geared to stir student interest in Pi and mathematics, in general.  It is hoped the event will raise awareness of the interesting things happening in mathematics and the variety of areas which encompass mathematical research.

Pi Day is celebrated in many schools, colleges, and universities nationwide.  It is Penn State McKeesport's first attempt at taking part in the celebration. 

The Lions are the PSUAC 2006 State Champions! 

To review the Championship Season go to:
http://www.mk.psu.edu/StudentLife/24418.htm?cn257

Penn State McKeesport faculty members Galen Grimes, Assistant Professor of Information Sciences and Technology;  Dr. Michelle Hough, Assistant Professor of Business Administration; and Dr. Margaret Signorella, Director of Academic Affairs and Professor of Psychology and Women's Studies have had their co-authored article,  "Email end users and spam: Relations of gender and age group to attitudes and actions,"  selected for inclusion in Elsevier FLASH.
 
Elsevier FLASH is a service that hopes to stimulate a broader interest in scientific, technological and medical research.  A monthly email is generated by the company and sent to respected health and science media contacts in the United States and Great Britain.  The email highlights a short selection of article summaries chosen from a list of almost 2000 Elvesier titles. The co-authored Penn State McKeesport article was one of the few articles chosen for this select distribution.
 
The article by Grimes, Hough and Signorella will be published in Computers in Human Behavior, a journal dedicated to examining the use of computers from a psychological perspective.  The article examines computer users’ attitudes toward and experience with email spam based on gender and age.  Information was obtained by surveying three different age groups:  college-age, working-age, and retirement-age audiences.  The outcomes of the survey indicate that although most respondents strongly disliked receiving spam, few took action against it.   Age appeared to be the strongest predictor of response with retirement age men indicating their expertise in computer usage as much lower than those of working age.  Predictably, working age respondents confirmed that they spent more time on the computer, but all age groups appeared to receive the same amount of spam, regardless of time online.  Survey results also suggest that older computer users have more of a tendency to make a purchase via spam and thus, may be more vulnerable.  The overall usability of email, the article reports, may be threatened by the inability of users to effectively take action against spam. 
 
The coauthored article was also listed in ScienceDirect, the world's largest electronic collection of science, technology and medicine full text and bibliographic information. 
 

Mary Preuss, professor of Spanish and comparative literature, has been invited to take part in Research Unplugged, an outreach program sponsored by the Vice President of Research.

Research Unplugged is an informal forum open to the entire University community. The forum is meant to foster open dialogue and to energize faculty and staff into discussing varying ideas and viewpoints. The spring session of the program begins February 22 and continues through April 12. Held at the Penn State Downtown Theatre on Allen Street in University Park, the Research Unplugged series presents a variety of relevant topics.

Dr. Preuss has been invited to address the group on Wednesday, March 29, at their 12:00 noon session. The topic of Dr. Preuss's presentation will be, "Once upon a myth: Exploring Yucatec-Mayan stories.” Dr. Preuss's research has focused on the Yucatec-Mayan culture. Her recent book, Yucatec Maya Stories: From Chen-Játo the Milpa, released in the Summer of 2005, is a compilation of stories that she collected during her numerous visits to towns in the Yucatán peninsula of Mexico. During her many visits to the region, Dr. Preuss has recorded stories from the Mayas and analyzed them, interpreting representative elements of Mayan culture as they are passed down through the centuries. It is Dr. Preuss's hope that by documenting these stories they will not be lost to future generations.

For more information on the Research Unplugged series you may visit the website at: http://www.rps.psu.edu/unplugged/index.html

Penn State McKeesport students set off on a journey to Biloxi, Mississippi that changed their lives. In partnership with Hands on USA, a non-profit organization that is dedicated to timely disaster response and relief, 11 students gave of their time over the winter break to make a difference in the lives of victims of Hurricane Katrina.  The trip was organized by SGA president, Rajiv Raja, 19, of Lansdowne, Delaware County, and Courtney B. Ely-Denberg, 22, of Waynesboro, Franklin County. The student volunteers completed a number of tasks in the Biloxi area including cleaning debris from homes, removing mold from walls, and delivering supplies to hurricane victims. “The people there are survivors” stated Raja, “nobody is giving up down there.”

No one gave up on the 11 students when they returned to Penn State McKeesport either. In fact, Dr. Joseph Marchesani, assistant professor of integrative arts, nominated the group of students for the Penn Stater of the Quarter Award and they won. This recognition program provides an opportunity to thank those faculty, staff, and students who serve the University above and beyond their normal duties.

“This extraordinary effort by a group of our students exemplifies the importance that the campus places on community service and civic engagement as complements to our academic mission,” stated Marchesani. “By donating a substantial portion of their holiday break to assist those in need, their action merits the recognition that comes with being designated as Penn Stater of the Quarter”.

The 11 students were recognized for their accomplishments in Biloxi when they received certificates of achievement from Dr. Curtiss E. Porter, chancellor, Penn State McKeesport, during an open house event with prospective students and their families. Their names will be inscribed on a permanent recognition plate on campus. The names of the students are Edward A. Constantine, Courtney B. Ely-Denberg, Brittney N. Hays, Kendra Jennette, George M. Kopko, T. J. O’Malley, Ashley M. Porter, Rajiv Raja, Joshua B. Stover, Susanne L. Tindall, and Eric Wood.

The students plan to return to help again in Biloxi during spring break. But before they go, they may be driving to Harrisburg to receive a resolution passed by the state House of Representatives. Representative Marc Gergley, D-White Oak, PA. was present at the award ceremony and congratulated the students for their unselfish actions. “We’re always proud to honor our students,” commented Gergley. Citations from the representative’s office will be presented to the students in Harrisburg.

As a member of a research team at one of six government funded supersites in the Eastern United States, Penn State McKeesport Instructor in Engineering, Dr. Eric Lipsky, worked to study air quality.  Lipsky's dissertation topic at Carnegie Mellon University, home of one of the supersites, was "Measurement of Fine Particle Emissions from Combustion Sources:  Design and Evaluation of Dilution Samplers and the Effects of Sampling Conditions."  The research documented in this doctoral study was recently published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology.

Lipsky's article, co-authored with Dr. Allan L. Robinson, an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Engineering and Engineering and Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon and Lipsky's dissertation advisor, focused on examining the effects of dilution on emissions from a diesel engine and from a wood stove.  The article also dealt with improving the techniques by which we measure emissions to better simulate the effects on the emissions as they are diluted during their release into the atmosphere. 
 
The CMU supersite at which Lipsky worked during his doctoral studies was co-funded by the Environmental Protection Agency and the U. S. Department of Energy.  The air pollution study group that staffed the supersite, was composed of chemical, civil and mechanical engineers, computer modelers, and experimentalists.   The study, based in Pittsburgh's Schenley Park, collected data over a 14-month period, and included researchers from universities throughout the United States. 
 Lipsky's article, Effects of Dilution on Fine Particle Mass and Partitioning of Semivolatile Organics in Diesel Exhaust and Wood Smoke,  focuses on the emissions of a diesel engine as well as those of a wood burning stove.  In this study, Dr. Lipsky worked with three identical dilution machines, each diluting the emissions different amounts at the same time.  This allowed him to compare the effects of dilution on fine particle mass emissions while minimizing the effects of variations in the emissions. 

The results showed that due to the large amounts of organic material in the diesel and woodsmoke emissions, the mass emission rate will vary depending on the amount of dilution.  By increasing the amount of dilution with filtered air, the mass emission rate was dramatically reduced in both the diesel engine and the wood burning stove emissions.  The article goes on to explain how the amount of dilution affects the organic material in the exhaust as it is cooled from the high exhaust temperatures to ambient levels, and how the two types of exhausts (wood and diesel) differ from each other.
 
Dr. Lipsky currently teaches Mechanical Engineering courses at Penn State McKeesport while continuing his research in Environmental Science.

The cultural heritage of an area can and has been used to steer the course of other communities.   One of these communities, Colquitt, GA was visited by Penn State McKeesport faculty and staff, led by Dr. Susan Lewis, as well as members of the Regional Heritage preservation Foundation, Rivers of Steel.  Colquitt, like McKeesport, was a one-industry town, decimated when that industry closed its doors, destroying the region's economy.  Colquitt, through its Swamp Gravy project, turned a dying cotton mill town into a theatre Mecca, supported by an arts council that looked to develop stories which highlighted the town's cultural heritage.

After the visit, Penn State McKeesport started the process of collecting stories from local residents who were part of the steel industry and developing a theatrical production from those stories.  Penn State McKeesport students, many of whom had parents and grandparents who had worked in the steel mills, began interviewing area residents who remembered the era of steel production in the Mon Valley. The students tried to bring to light events that could be dramatized in a production.  For this production, students looked for stories that illustrated ethnic conflict, the collaboration of many individuals of diverse backgrounds and the celebration of the region's heritage. 

Collaborating with this older generation of workers, the students began to get a sense of the reality of the situations that the story tellers experienced.  Forming Story Circles, students interviewed an older generation that told stories of their lives and experiences .  Taping the accounts of many incidents which made up the daily lives of their collaborators, the students transcribed the stories, not only to help their own memory of the events being recounted, but also to add to the archives of the Rivers of Steel organization.    Pulling together the incidents which spanned six decades, from the 1930's through the 1980' s allowed the students to add their own creative license to create a collage of scenes.  Costumes, sets, props, lights and sound were added as the array of stories was developed into a final production with eight students performing 30 roles.  The play, Blood, Sweat & Steel:  Ethnic Blend, was performed to full houses in the campus's Community Center on three different nights. 

Penn State McKeesport takes its role as a community partner seriously and hopes its start in collecting stories to pass on to future generations can develop into a community project.  The campus is partnering with the McKeesport Heritage Center, the Rivers of Steel Foundation and community Senior Centers to continue to collect stories which will develop into scripts for Readers Theatre presentations to be held at Senior Centers throughout the area.  The Spring 2006 American Studies class, "Pop Culture and Folklore," under the direction of Assistant Professor of Integrative Arts, Dr. Joseph Marchesani,  is currently working on the project.  To support this endeavor the Office of Continuing Education, under the direction of Dr. Susan Lewis received funding for a $10,000 grant proposal. from the Pennsylvania Heritage Parks Programs.

A class is also being developed as a summer offering.  It is hoped this class will attract local high school students as  part of the state's Dual Enrollment program.  Students can learn of the region's history through their collaboration with older residents of the region and can earn college credits at the same time.

Dr. Breckenridge hopes to help other communities with similar projects.  Recently he and Ms. Kopefinger developed a presentation, "Blood, Sweat and Steel:  Ethnic Blood - Process and Product," which was accepted as part of the Hawaii International Conference on Arts and Humanities in Honolulu (January, 2006).    The presentation has also been accepted for the program of the National Symposium on Theatre in Academe, at Washington and Lee University in Washington, DC this spring where Dr. Breckenridge and Ms. Koepfinger will be co-presenters.

The course schedule has been designed to offer the most sought after courses by our students during the summer break. Highlights of the summer schedule include:

• Several accelerated sessions allowing students to earn credits in an expedited manner.
• IST, psychology, and kinesiology courses offered via the web, allowing students to work at home for added convenience.
• Biology, BMB, and chemistry offerings that include general education courses as well as those that satisfy requirements for a variety of majors.
• IST support of option courses: ACCTG 211, PSY 002, and PSY 217 (web based).
• Courses available to foster multicultural understanding and satisfy the University and B.A. diversity requirements.
• Selection of general education courses to appeal to a variety of student interests.
• An assortment of courses to fulfill requirements for Business, IST, and Psychology majors.
• MATH offerings with small class sizes for more individualized attention.

For more information, contact:

Academic Affairs Office
104 Frable Building
412-675-9140 
academics-psumk@psu.edu

BLACK HISTORY MONTH EVENTS

Drumming workshop

February 2, 2006 from 3:00 - 5:00 p.m.,  Ostermayer Room of the SCC

Maxine Maxwell

Echoes of the Past weaves in and out of history to explore the turning points in the lives of five African American women of remarkable strength and courage. This one-woman dramatic performance takes a look at what it has been like to be black and female over the past 150 years.

February 2, 2006 at 7:00 p.m., Ostermayer Room of the SCC

Jackie Jonas: Professional storyteller

February 7, at 4 p.m., Ostermayer Room of the SCC

Greg Kenney

Rosa Parks: Please Keep Your Seat. Actor Gregory Kenney performs his one-man tribute to Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, Mrs. Rosa Parks.  Join Just'n Truth, a young man who was on the bus the day Mrs. Parks refused to give up her seat. Just'n will lead you up to that day including events that happened and the Civil Rights Movement that followed.

February 9, 2006 at 9:00 p.m., Residence Hall Lobby

The Healing Force

A celebration of African culture through storytelling and music.  This family of artists brings arts to the community through high-energy performances.  Founded in 1975 by the husband and wife team of Joseph and Gail Anderson, they are joined by their daughter Sonji, and son, Karim, making their work a family affair.

February 21, 2006 at noon, Dining Area of the SCC

Pittsburgh Dance Ensemble

One of Pittsburgh’s earliest modern dance companies, the Pittsburgh Dance Ensemble deftly combines Modern Dance, Ballet, Jazz, Hip-Hop and ethnic dance styles, presented by its bold young artists.

February 28, 2006 at 12:15 p.m. (workshop) and 7:00 p.m. (performance), SCC

Raymond B. Cody

A well-known print by Raymond B. Cody is on display in lobby of Kelly Library.
"From slave ships...to the fields...through the crisis of the turbulent 60's...into the progressive 90's.  We never weakened...we never slumbered...we only persevered...as we fought to survive......THE STRUGGLE."

Dr. James Stewart and his wife Dr. Caryl Sheffield, have most graciously loaned it to us from their private art collection.  It will be on display throughout April..

On July 24, 2002, miners working underground in the Quecreek mine accidentally broke into an adjacent abandoned mine, which unleashed millions of gallons of bone-chilling water nearly drowning one crew of miners and leaving another crew of nine trapped in the flooded mine for 77 hours.  The rescue of the miners, who were trapped in the flooded mine 24 stories beneath the earth's surface, made headlines around the world. 

As part of an on-going campus Student Services series, Mr. Unger will describe his personal account of how he and his fellow miners survived this ordeal.

The event is free and open to the public. For more information, call 412-675-9010.

Pennsylvania State Network Mission to Israel: June 11-19, 2006

Chaired by Penn State President, Dr. Graham Spanier, this Mission aims to inspire, educate and energize the Network Communities of Pennsylvania, as well as the alumni and friends of the University. It serves also to enable rural communities in Pennsylvania to strengthen their connections to each other and the Jewish people in Israel and around the world through networking, education, social action, and community building. Sign up today!

Costs and Details
Itinerary Highlights
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Former Pittsburgh Councilman Sala Udin will be the guest speaker for Penn State McKeesport’s tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King. Mr. Udin will talk of the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King from his personal perspective as a civil rights leader and a political figure.

The event is free and open to the public. For more information, call 412-675-9010.

In an industry that produces one flavor of the month after another, Yewande (pronounced E-wan-day) has become one of the most sought after independent artists in the world. Her socially charged brand of Urban Rock music has captured audiences from B.E.T.’s “106th Park” to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In the elusive college market, her award-winning lecture-performance on the evolution of American music and popular culture has raised the consciousness of a new generation.

The event is free and open to the public. For more information, call 412-675-9010.

A video slideshow of the events can be viewed in Windows Media Player.