Heavy Construction Equipment - PCToday - Pennsylvania College of Technology

Student Assists Instructor in Introducing Hydraulics at Middle School

Nov. 19, 2009 - 4:01 p.m.

A member of Penn College's Hydraulics Club recently helped one of his instructors with a lesson at Curtin Middle School in Williamsport. Paul A. Zenga, a diesel equipment technology/heavy construction equipment faculty member in the college’s School of Natural Resources Management, had been teaching basic hydraulic lessons to students in grades six through eight for about four weeks as part of the middle school’s Brown Bag Lunch program. He asked Zachary D. Ball, of Coal Center – enrolled in the heavy construction equipment technology: Caterpillar equipment emphasis major at the college – to assist him in teaching the Nov. 9 class because he was going over variable displacement pumps and needed an extra set of watchful eyes so he could allow the youngsters to take apart some pumps.

Penn College Students Awarded Scholarships After ‘Rodeo’ Victories

Nov. 17, 2009 - 10:08 a.m.

Two Penn College students were awarded a total of $2,500 in scholarships following the annual Precision Heavy Construction Equipment Rodeo – a popular event won this year by students from the college’s School of Natural Resources Management. Penn College students captured the overall title at the Oct. 25 event, which was held at the Schneebeli Earth Science Center, 10 miles south of the college’s main campus in Williamsport. Always an exciting event – open to the public and held in conjunction with Open House on the college’s campuses – the rodeo has been sponsored by the Service and Operation of Heavy Equipment Association student organization since 1983. Derek E. Adams, of Harrisburg, enrolled in heavy construction equipment technology: Caterpillar equipment emphasis, was awarded $1,500, and Shea O. Reiley, a technology management major from Williamsport who serves a president of the sponsoring organization, received a $1,000 scholarship.

Scholarship Established for Heavy-Equipment Students

Nov. 9, 2009 - 2:45 p.m.

A Baltimore-based heavy-equipment industry association has established a new scholarship fund at Penn College. The Mid-Atlantic Equipment Management Association Scholarship Fund will provide an annual award of $1,500 for a full-time student who has completed at least two semesters in Penn College’s heavy construction equipment technology-technician emphasis associate-degree major. "The Mid-Atlantic Equipment Management Association and its members are proud to help an up-and-coming technician obtain his or her goal,” said Rob Ermer, treasurer of MAEMA. “Our industry faces a critical shortage of competent technicians. This scholarship will help fill the need for these skilled positions in the future.”

Even in Tough Times, Caterpillar Supports Penn College Students

Nov. 5, 2009 - 11:15 a.m.

The Caterpillar Foundation and its partnering dealerships have joined in a $42,000 donation to Penn College, the majority of which will sponsor students in three majors within the college’s School of Natural Resources Management. “Despite these challenging economic times, our relationship with Caterpillar Inc. remains strong and productive,” said Mary A. Sullivan, dean of natural resources management at the college. “Our dealers continue to share ideas for curriculum development, donate equipment, and provide training and upgrading opportunities to our faculty and employment options to our students.”

Cummins Engine Donation to Benefit Students in Variety of Majors

Oct. 16, 2009 - 12:40 p.m.

Students enrolled in three majors within Penn College’s School of Natural Resources Management will benefit from the recent donation of a Cummins Inc. diesel engine. The 4.5-liter, 170-horsepower QSB engine was donated by Cummins Bridgeway LLC, the leading distributor for Cummins Inc., the largest manufacturer of diesel engines and power-generation equipment in the United States. The engine, which meets the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Tier 3 emission standards, was ordered and used by Cummins’ Engineering Department to develop and test its product line.

New Scholarship at Penn College Honors State Sen. Yaw

Aug. 21, 2009 - 8:44 a.m.

Military veterans attending Penn College can apply for awards through a new scholarship at the college established in honor of state Sen. Gene Yaw, R-23. College President Davie Jane Gilmour recently established the Senator Gene Yaw Scholarship through the Penn College Foundation. The fund will provide an annual award of $1,000, with preference given to military veterans who reside in the 23rd senatorial district. If there are no qualified applicants using those criteria, second preference will go to a student in the heavy construction equipment technology-operator emphasis associate-degree major at Penn College who resides in the 23rd senatorial district.

Penn College Students Get Eyeful of Some Very Heavy Equipment

Aug. 19, 2009 - 4:17 p.m.

A Heavy Construction Equipment Operations class from Penn College recently toured the Chief Oil & Gas gas-drilling location in western Lycoming County, seeing a first-of-its-kind electric rig designed specifically for the Marcellus Shale play. The students were engaged in a discussion on a variety of topics related to Chief’s Marcellus program; company representatives talked specifically about site preparation and other aspects of their operations that apply directly to the college’s heavy construction equipment technology: operator emphasis major.

Summer SMART Girls Spend Days in Nature's Thrall, Campus Labs

July 16, 2009 - 3:34 p.m.

Rising ninth- and 10th-grade students attending this week's SMART Girls residential activities at Penn College visited the Schneebeli Earth Science Center near Allenwood on Wednesday, learning about ornamental horticulture majors in the morning and spending the afternoon at the heavy construction equipment training site. In its ninth year, the college's SMART Girls program offers a variety of hands-on activities to show the real-life value of math and science in the career world.
Photos by Melissa M. Stocum, coordinator of matriculation and retention for the School of Natural Resources Management

Back on the college's main campus in Williamsport, the resident SMART Girls took part in several days of fun and instructive activities in other curricular areas, including information technology, automated manufacturing and radiography. At left, Katherine A. Walker, assistant professor of drafting/computer aided design, helps her teenage audience use software to fashion a dog toy.
Photos by Jessica L. Tobias, student photographer

Pair of Heavy-Equipment Majors Reaccredited by Industry Group

June 11, 2009 - 2:51 p.m.

Two of Penn College’s heavy construction equipment technology associate-degree majors – those emphasizing Caterpillar equipment and technician skills – have been reaccredited for five years by the Associated Equipment Distributors Foundation.

Penn College Students Awarded Construction-Industry Scholarships

June 4, 2009 - 10:38 a.m.

Three students in Penn College's School of Natural Resources Management – two in heavy construction equipment technology and one in diesel technology – each were awarded $1,000 scholarships in the latest workforce-development initiative of ConstructMyFuture.com.