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Patricia Jabbeh Wesley, assistant professor of English, was the feature of an article in the May/June Issue of the Indiana University alumni magazine. The article, titled, "Surviving War," also included three of Wesley's poems. The poems can be read at http://alumni.indiana.edu/magazine/poetry/index.shtml

Four of Wesley’s newer poems were published in the winter/spring issue of  JALA: Journal of the African Literature Association. Three of her poems were republished in issue 97 of Transition: An International Review.

Wesley was also featured by the Huntingdon Arts Council as the visiting poet for Poetry Month on April 17 and 18, 2008. She read her poetry in Huntingdon, PA, and conducted three poetry workshops for seniors in the Southern Huntingdon County High School on April 18, 2008.

Posted Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Thomas Krainer, assistant professor of mathematics, received the Outstanding Achievement in Research and Creative Activity Award at the annual reception honoring those who have recently received external grants and contracts and those who have published books during 2007-2008. The award was presented by Chancellor Lori J. Bechtel-Wherry.

Each year Penn State Altoona seeks to recognize distinguished research, scholarship, and creative contributions of the faculty through presentation of an Outstanding Achievement in Research and Creative Activity Award. The winner receives a plaque, a $1000 cash award, and formal recognition at the annual Faculty and Staff Awards banquet. Winners will be announced at the spring research reception recognizing faculty for the external grants they have received and books they have published.

Posted Friday, April 25, 2008

The Commission for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) recently announced its 2007-2008 Individual or Group Award recipient, Esther "Essie" Auker, assistant director of Health and Wellness Services at Penn State Altoona. The award serves to recognize outstanding individuals and organizations that demonstrate exemplary actions towards promoting an environment that values healthy lifestyle choices concerning alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs.

Those who nominated Auker praised her as being a strong and effective advocate of substance abuse prevention and education at the Penn State Altoona campus. She has served as a leader in coordinating and personally facilitating the alcohol education portion of Altoona's student orientation program, titled "How Far: Attitude of College Students about Drinking." This component addresses prevention and protective factors related to alcohol use, with the goal being to "inform students that the perception of excessive college drinking is not true."

Auker is recognized as being the "driving force" behind alcohol education efforts at Penn State Altoona and, through her programming, has reached approximately 4,500 first-year students, as well as a significant number of high school students in Blair County.

The CSAP awards program is intended to recognize individuals, organizations and initiatives that promote and apply strategies that may include, but are not limited to: alcohol and other drug free options; student leadership opportunities or community service; social norm campaigns; intervention programs including tobacco cessation and alcohol intervention efforts; policy and procedures; enforcement efforts; and peer advocacy.

An advisory group to the Vice President for Student Affairs, the mission of the Penn State Commission for Substance Abuse Prevention is to foster an environment that does not support the abuse of alcohol, tobacco or other substances. Its membership consists of students, faculty, staff and administrators from numerous Penn State campuses.

Posted Wednesday, April 23, 2008

The 2008 Teaching and Learning Consortium's Athleen Stere Award has been given to Mike Weiner, associate professor of mathematics. The award was created to recognize excellence in teaching and learning as exemplified by Athleen Stere, faculty since 1971. Weiner received the award for dedication to his students, passion and enthusiasm for teaching, innovative teaching methods and demonstrated, sustained excellence in teaching. Weiner will receive a plaque and $500 grant. This is the sixth year for the award.

Posted Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Patricia Jabbeh Wesley, assistant professor of English, was an invited and featured visiting poet for Johnson C. Smith University’s Lyceum Series from March 24 - 25, 2008. Wesley was the featured author in the "Thirteenth Annual World of Words Festival" as part of the Lyceum Series calendar. During her visit, Wesley conducted a creative writing seminar title "The Art and Craft of the Creative Process" and read her poetry at the North Carolina University. The Lyceum Series is one of the stellar lecture and performance series in the Charlotte area. Students at the University are required to earn eight Lyceum credits in order to be eligible for graduation. Wesley’s visit provided two Lyceum credits to students. The visit was made possible by the Lyceum Committee at Johnson C. Smith University.

Posted Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Sohail Anwar, associate professor of engineering, has been awarded a full fellowship from the National Center for Telecommunications Technologies to participate in SAME-TEC, a series of National Science Foundation-supported workshops on emerging technologies, to be held in Austin, Texas, this summer.

SAME-TEC is a unique event that provides national networking and collaboration between education and industry partners to promote the viability of high tech industries through the development of a highly skilled and knowledgeable workforce. Conference participants are given an up-close look at the advancing tools, training demands and recent developments in emerging and converging technology fields, including semiconductors and electronics, information and communications technologies, alternative energies, optics and photonics, mechatronics, micro-electro-mechanical systems and nanotechnology.

Posted Tuesday, April 1, 2008

On April 10, Sandra Harbert Petrulionis, associate professor of English and American studies at Penn State Altoona, will accept the 2008 Kjell Meling Award for Distinction in the Arts and Humanities. Petrulionis has made a number of recent significant contributions to literary scholarship, including a well-received book on the anti-slavery movement in Concord during the time of Henry David Thoreau and a collection of essays on Thoreau's Walden, co-edited with Laura Dassow Walls. She has received both an NEH fellowship and stipend and is a recipient of the Penn State Altoona Grace D. Long Faculty Excellence Award and Penn State's 2008 Atherton Award for teaching excellence.

The award ceremony begins at 7 p.m. in the Wolf Kuhn Theatre of the Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts. Petrulionis will give a lecture, "To Set This World Right: Antislavery Activism in Concord, America's Town." A dessert reception will follow at 8 p.m. Both are open to the public.

Penn State Altoona initiated the Meling Award in 2006 to honor the memory of its longtime associate dean for Academic Affairs, who passed away in 2005. The award is intended to memorialize Meling's love of literature and language and his unwavering support as an administrator for the development of Penn State Altoona's faculty as scholars and artists. Each year, a faculty committee considers nominations for external and internal awardees, who are then invited to receive a sculpture designed by Penn State Altoona artist Rebecca Strzelec and present their work at Penn State Altoona.

Posted Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Pennsylvania Associated Press Broadcasters Association, PAPBA, has announced winners of the 2007 AP awards. Two Penn State Altoona communications graduates and a communications instructor have won awards.

Graduate Doug Kawtoski, a videographer with WTAJ-TV in Altoona, won for his work in the Feature category. Graduate Brian Smithmyer, a videographer with WHP-TV in Harrisburg, won for his work in the Series category.  Brian Shoenfelt, a videographer with WTAJ-TV in Altoona, and part-time lecturer in communications at Penn State Altoona, won for his work in the Enterprise/Individual Reporting category.

First, second, and third place rankings will be announced at the annual awards dinner April 5 in Pittsburgh.

Posted Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Sandra H. Petrulionis, professor of English and American studies, has been chosen as a recipient of the Atherton Award for teaching excellence for 2008.

The George W. Atherton Award, named after Penn State’s seventh president, was established in 1989 as a continuation of the AMOCO Foundation Award. It honors excellence in teaching at the undergraduate level and is presented each year to Penn State faculty members who have devoted substantial effort to undergraduate teaching.

More than 5,300 full-time faculty members teach throughout the Penn State system, which includes Penn State Altoona and all other locations that are part of the University. Each year, four Penn State faculty are honored with the highly prestigious George W. Atherton Award for excellence in teaching at the undergraduate level.

Posted Friday, March 21, 2008

Harriett Gastson, minority programs coordinator in the Division of Undergraduate Studies, has received the Dr. James Robinson Equal Opportunity Award, which recognizes a faculty or staff member who has promoted equal opportunity through affirmative action and/or contributes to enhancing the educational environment of the University through improving cross-cultural understanding.

Posted Friday, March 21, 2008