Hands-On Activities to Showcase Penn College at Farm Show

The traditional throng attending the Pennsylvania Farm Show can again explore the interesting career possibilities of Pennsylvania College of Technology's "degrees that work" throughout the 2012 edition of the renowned agriculture exhibition in Harrisburg.

Representatives from the Admissions and Alumni Relations offices will be available all week at Penn College's booth in the Farm Show Complex & Expo Center, 2300 N. Cameron St., and patrons will have an opportunity to discover each of the college's eight academic schools on a rotating daily schedule from Jan. 7-14.

"The Pennsylvania Farm Show is an exciting annual event for our commonwealth, and Penn College is honored to be a part of this event," said Dennis L. Correll, associate dean for admissions and financial aid. "Come see our great hands-on activities planned all week and meet our faculty. We welcome all visitors including Penn College alumni to stop by the booth to visit and discover our "˜degrees that work.'"

On Saturday, Jan. 7, attendees can talk with School of Construction and Design Technologies representatives about exciting opportunities in the construction industry and build a keepsake wooden toolbox.

Also that day, Penn College culinary students along with Chef Michael J. Ditchfield, instructor of hospitality management/culinary arts, at 11 a.m. and Chef Paul Mach, assistant professor of hospitality management/culinary arts, at 5 p.m. will demonstrate their techniques on the PA Preferred Culinary Connection stage.

Students and Mach will return to the stage at noon and 3 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 8, for a live demonstration; School of Hospitality majors also will participate in the Student Cooking Challenge at 4 p.m.

Also Sunday, the college's School of Transportation Technology will offer demonstrations and hands-on activities throughout the day for those interested in automotive, aviation and collision repair. Automotive faculty will discuss fuel cell technology and demonstrate model fuel cell-powered vehicles. Visitors also can speak with aviation faculty, view student projects and check out a turbine-engine cutaway. Those intrigued by collision repair can see how vehicles are masked for painting, how pinstriping is accomplished, and what's involved in a wire body damage analysis sequence.

On Monday, Jan. 9, The School of Natural Resources Management will share students' career opportunities in the great outdoors. Explore Pennsylvania's woodland resources, as the forestry program showcases the felling stump and logging hardware used to prepare students for the forestry industry. From the landscape/horticulture programs, visitors will have the opportunity to test their green thumbs and transplant a root cutting. In addition to those hands-on activities, information will be available about diesel technology, heavy equipment technology and the on-site power generation major offered within the school.

At 1 p.m. Monday, Ditchfield and students will conduct a "Roasted Root Vegetables" cooking demonstration on the Culinary Connection stage.

The School of Hospitality also will be featured at the college's display booth throughout Tuesday, Jan. 10.

The School of Health Sciences continues the Penn College presence on Wednesday, Jan. 11, with a variety of activities to highlight the demand in surgical technology. Visitors can experience the skills needed to perform in the operating room, explore how surgery is performed using actual surgical instruments and models, and try their hand at an appendectomy or laparotomy. Attendees also can learn more about the college's physician assistant major by talking with faculty, examining the ear and the eye, and listening to heart sounds.

On Thursday, Jan. 12, those visiting the School of Integrated Studies display can discover an exciting career in graphic design or advertising art. Guests will have their photos taken and imported onto a magazine cover template that will be printed as a souvenir of their exposure to Penn College.

On Friday, Jan. 13, attendees at the School of Industrial and Engineering Technologies' presentation can learn about magnetic principles by constructing a simple motor. The school also will show a video of student projects from the Electronics and Computer Engineering Technology department.

On Saturday, Jan. 14, the School of Business and Computer Technologies will show how game programming, business planning, marketing, accounting and the law recently converged in the record-setting launch of "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3," a video game that sold more than 6.5 million copies (about $400 million worth) within the first 24 hours of going on sale. Faculty will be on hand to talk about the school's "degrees that work" that can prepare students for careers in accounting, business, health information technology, Web design, information technology and paralegal studies.

For more detailed information about Penn College's 2011 Pennsylvania Farm Show participation, visit online .

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