The campus community is looking forward to our new students arriving on campus and the beginning of the Fall 2008 semester.
Orientation 2008 will consist of a full week of fun activities and informative workshops.
Dr. Kurt Torell joined the administrative staff of Penn State Greater Allegheny as its Chief Academic Officer, effective July 1. Dr. Torell came to Greater Allegheny from his position as Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Marywood University in Scranton, PA.
Dr. Torell earned his Ph.D. in Philosophy from Duquesne University. He also holds two M.A. degrees in Philosophy, one from Duquesne and the other from the University of Pittsburgh. His undergraduate work was completed at Boston University.
Cataracts are one of the most well-known ailments that affect the eye. Approximately 20.5 million Americans carry this diagnosis, and an estimated 2.5 million surgeries per year are performed to correct this condition. Worldwide, this condition afflicts 48 percent, or approximately 18 million people of the world's blind, making it the leading cause of preventable blindness, explains this week's edition of The Medical Minute, a service of the Penn State Hershey Medical Center.
The world's smallest species of snake, with adults averaging just under 4 inches in length, has been identified on the Caribbean island of Barbados. The species -- which is as thin as a spaghetti noodle and small enough to rest comfortably on a U.S. quarter -- was discovered by Blair Hedges, an evolutionary biologist at Penn State. Hedges and his colleagues also are the discoverers of the world's smallest frog and lizard species, which too were found on Caribbean islands. The most recent discovery will be published on Aug. 4 in the journal Zootaxa.
Over the past year, the look and feel of Penn State Live has undergone some subtle changes. Now, the site has experienced its first major facelift since it was launched in April 2003. The first major difference in the site is a large, horizontal image at the top of the page. There will be a variety of images in this space, and visitors to the site can click through to see everything that's there. Clicking on these images will link the user to additional content -- photos, stories or videos about the topic in the original image. A key new feature to the site is the ability for readers to easily access additional stories related to the one they just read. Please take our site survey by clicking on http://www.questionpro.com/akira/TakeSurvey?id=1016512 online.
All Penn State students, faculty and staff are encouraged to enroll in PSUTXT, an easy and accessible system that lets them know via cell phone when classes are canceled due to weather conditions or if the campus has an emergency situation. Sign up now for PSUTXT and, when necessary, Penn State will send a text message alert directly to your cell phone and/or e-mail account. To register, visit http://newswires.psu.edu/ and click on the PSUTXT REGISTER button at the bottom of the page to sign up. For information, contact Annemarie Mountz at [email protected].
Dr. James Stewart and his wife, Dr. Caryl Sheffield, have recently donated a framed limited edition print to the Penn State Greater Allegheny campus.
"The Americans," by Dane Tilghman, emphasizes the collective attachment to core American values held by most African Americans and shows two individuals that Tilghman met. One man proudly displayed an American flag outside his home as a testimonial to the sacrifices he made for his country, and the second figure was a spectator Tilghman saw at a July 4th parade.
Penn State will receive a 1.2 percent increase in state appropriation for the 2008-09 fiscal year as a result of the new budget approved by the Senate and the House and signed by Pennsylvania Gov. Edward Rendell over the holiday weekend. The total appropriation for Penn State for this fiscal year is $338.4 million, an increase of $4.1 million over last year.
A grant submitted by Penn State Greater Allegheny to increase Intercultural and International Competencies for the 2008-09 academic year was funded for $20,000 by the Equal Opportunity Planning Committee (EOPC). Authored by Dr. James Jaap, Assistant Director of Academic Affairs, with Dr. Margaret Signorella, Professor of Psychology and Women's Studies, the grant will promote the campus's efforts to foster diversity and integrate issues of intercultural and international competencies into the curriculum.
The Red, Brown, and Blue parking lots, and handicapped parking area beside Main Building will be closed off for two weeks starting Monday June 9 for the parking lot resurfacing project. The closures will include the weekends.
The Blue lot is located behind Frable Building. The Red and Brown lots are located on Broadway across from Kelly Library and the Student Community Center (also see campus maps).