When Morgan Bartholomew graduated in May, she left the college with a bachelor’s degree in plastics & polymer engineering technology, an associate degree in plastics & polymer technology, and insights gained through three industry internships, three plastics conferences, two global experiences and a wealth of campus involvement. And thanks to all that, she had a job waiting for her at TE Connectivity.

Bartholomew’s rich collegiate experiences were supported by the generosity of those who partner with Pennsylvania College of Technology. Those endeavors, in turn, helped her to design the career of her dreams: developing processes and products that will transform tomorrow.

“Since I was a little girl, I had an interest in hands-on activities and anything that was science-related,” Bartholomew said.

That interest was enhanced in middle school and high school classes that allowed her to explore craftsmanship and engineering. Her father’s work in plastics engineering provided further exposure. But Bartholomew didn’t want to follow his footsteps: until, as a high school sophomore, she visited Penn College and toured the polymer department – just to see what it was all about.

“I instantly fell in love with the school and the program. Hearing about the endless opportunities within the industry had me hooked,” she said.

Those opportunities, she learned, could extend from designing a life-changing medical device to manufacturing kids’ toys.

She was reassured by the knowledge that, because plastics are a key part of daily living, there will always be a need for polymer engineers. She was inspired by her faculty.

“Every one of Penn College’s professors are so passionate about their areas of expertise and want to see every student succeed,” she said. “In fact, on my first day of class, I was in a lab making parts and learning the basics of a polymer – and the energy was apparent. My professors were so into what they were doing, and their energy excited students about learning.

“I know a lot of my friends at other colleges don’t start in the lab until their second or third year,” Bartholomew continued. “And I think that is what makes Penn College such an amazing college: The hands-on experience is forming amazing futures for its students from day one!”

Bartholomew kept her hands busy outside of class, as well. She held two on-campus jobs, working as a campus tour guide and a library assistant, and served as president of the college’s Society of Plastics Engineers student chapter.

Her involvement in SPE afforded her the opportunity to travel to Florida for the National Plastics Expo; to Philadelphia for ANTEC, SPE’s premier technical conference; and to the SPE Blow Molding Conference in Atlanta, where, as the recipient of the society’s Carrie Fox Solin Memorial Scholarship, she was invited to speak.

“Having the opportunity to attend a technical conference and even accept an award was scary, but also very exciting,” she said.

She made two trips to Europe through Penn College Global Experience classes, traveling to England, France, Spain and Italy to observe Europe’s architecture, art and sustainable building practices.

“While in Europe, I noticed so many differences in plastic products,” Bartholomew said, describing plastic water bottles with their caps tethered to them to ensure the caps get recycled with the bottles. “This trip allowed me to gain exposure to products in Europe and get the gears turning on how, in my future role, I could incorporate differences in product design.”

To help cover her travel expenses, Bartholomew applied for assistance from the Penn College Foundation’s Global Learning Fund.

Penn College’s reputation with industry helped Bartholomew to land the first of three summer internship experiences.

“Having an internship after your first year of college is not common in our field, since most companies don’t feel first-year students have learned enough,” Bartholomew explained. “But Penn College students hit the ground running from day one, and companies know they can’t go wrong with our students.”

Her first internship was near her hometown with Amphenol FCI, where she joined a team starting an automation process for a new product. She learned about production startup and teamwork. The following summer, she pursued an internship with her current employer, TE Connectivity, in North Carolina. She served on a team that received plastic injection molds from the company’s other facilities for troubleshooting and repair.

“This internship exposed me to more than just plastics processing, but machining and tooling maintenance, as well,” Bartholomew said. She also spent time researching a metal 3D printer the company eventually purchased.

During her final internship, with pool equipment manufacturer Hayward Industries, she worked on creating end-of-arm tooling, learned new design software, participated in Kaizen events (rapid process-improvement activities) and completed her senior project: Designing a piece that could be 3D-printed from the company’s scrap plastic materials to fit over and protect a pool pump’s air-relief valve during shipping. She designed the part (a lightweight cylindrical shape with cutouts), had it tested by the company’s packaging engineer and did a cost analysis to determine whether it would cost more than the company’s previous solution: an outsourced piece made of corrugated cardboard.

“It was definitely intimidating at first, because this is something that could be a really good solution,” Bartholomew said. “In the end, after looking through everything, and getting all the numbers and logistics I needed, it felt good to see that this is something they could possibly move forward with and not lose money on.”

Accepting the internship with Hayward required her to spend another summer in North Carolina.

“Knowing the expenses would be similar to the previous summer, I decided to apply to the Penn College Internship Support Fund to help with some of my travel and lodging expenses,” she said. She received support from the Kuzio Family Internship Fund. “It helped me so much, and I am incredibly thankful for the Kuzios and their support. Having this financial help allowed me to follow through with taking the leap and moving away to follow my industry dreams yet again!”

Bartholomew received not only Global Experience and internship support funding, but she received several Penn College scholarships, as well. Thanks to the generosity of those who believe in the relentless work ethic and problem-solving spirit of Penn College students, the number of students receiving scholarships continues to grow each year. In 2024-25, Bartholomew and more than 700 other Penn College students received scholarships established by donors through the Penn College Foundation.

“These scholarships have opened the doors of opportunities in so many ways,” Bartholomew said. “I was able to relocate for summer internships, attend conferences and network for potential careers.  It feels amazing to know there is a support system surrounding Penn College, with companies and individuals investing in students and our futures.

“I am incredibly thankful for all who have invested in scholarships. Many of my experiences would not have been possible without donors like all of you: donors who have sought to help hardworking, driven individuals such as myself and so many other students are truly helping make future dreams achievable.”

For Bartholomew, it meant landing a dream job as a manufacturing and process development engineer before she even graduated.

“I want to thank everyone for supporting the students of Penn College and providing us all the opportunity to feel empowered and to take the leap of faith to get closer to that dream,” she said. “Thank you again.”