The Nittany Lion Mascot is more than the symbol of Penn State athletics. The Lion is an ambassador who makes more than 250 appearances each year, and only half of them are at sporting events. The rich history of the Lion, and how the mascot is selected, is the focus of "Heart of the Lion," a new documentary produced by Penn State Public Broadcasting.
The show will debut on WPSU-TV at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 3, as part of the December pledge drive. It will re-air several times throughout the winter months. Check local listings for dates and times. (more)
Penn State Public Broadcasting will join the acclaimed oral history project StoryCorps in celebrating the second annual National Day of Listening on Friday, Nov. 27. The National Day of Listening is an effort to encourage all Americans to honor a friend, a loved one, or a member of the community by interviewing them about their lives. (more)
In this video the Penn State Small Business Development Center (SBDC) highlights services offered to all entrepreneurs, including Penn State students. The center offers free and confidential assistance to entrepreneurs. The Penn State SBDC deals mostly with the public, but lately Penn State students have stopped in for advice, including World Campus student Ron Thomas. (more)
In north Philadelphia, Penn State Abington students are participating in a program in which they work one-on-one with high school dropouts who have basic literacy issues.
"It isn't easy," said Lisa Morris, Penn State Abington senior instructor in administration of justice, who coordinates the program. "The Abington students are dealing with a challenging population--mostly from poor neighborhoods, broken families and weak school systems. They have responsibility and maturity issues, too." (more)
Many Americans are fighting the battle of the bulge. Some experts say obesity has reached epidemic proportions and they say there are many options to solve the problem of overeating. Some adults are turning to weight loss surgery, a surgical procedure that decreases the size of the stomach and reduces food intake. Penn State President Graham Spanier and his guests, Dr. Ann Rogers and Dr. Jan Ulbrecht, will discuss weight loss surgery on the upcoming edition of "To The Best Of My Knowledge." The live call-in program airs at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 17, on WPSU-TV and WPSU-FM. It also airs on the Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN). (more)
Budget cuts are plaguing police departments worldwide because of the global economic climate. Los Angeles, for example, has stopped hiring police officers and eliminated a new recruit class; Atlanta officials have hiked property taxes to end furloughs for police and firefighters, and in East St. Louis, Ill., a police officer commended at a City Council meeting for capturing a murder suspect was laid off the same day. What can police departments do? The 2010 International Conference on Results-Driven Policing aims to provide strategies and tools to help police maximize their resources. The conference is planned for May 6-7, 2010, in Baltimore. (more)
When visiting Shaver's Creek Environmental Center at Penn State, one may be startled to hear a screech -- but do not worry, it's only a raptor saying hello.
As one of the few federally funded and state-licensed raptor facilities in Pennsylvania, the Raptor Center has been part of Shaver's Creek since 1981. The center is home to over 20 birds of prey, including bald eagles, golden eagles, barred owls and red-tailed hawks. (more)
Penn State will present a variety of contests, seminars and workshops that highlight the breadth of entrepreneurial programs available to students during Global Entrepreneurship Week from Nov. 16 to 22. (more)
Fighting in a war is not something one easily talks about. In fact, some never do. But Penn State student David Walker, an Iraq War veteran, was open to reflecting on his experience -- he just needed the right outlet. In spring 2009 he found that outlet through a unique course, English 497: Narrative, Oral History and New Media Technologies. The course's goal was to help returning veterans become filmmakers by creating short documentaries about their experiences of the Iraq War. Dubbed "Back from Iraq: The Veterans' Stories Project," these films, along with student interviews, class footage and course materials, are now available online. (more)
Last year, Penn State had more than 2,600 course enrollments by military service members and veterans, or 11 percent of total enrollment, in Penn State World Campus, the University's online campus. One reason so many military personnel are choosing World Campus is the flexibility of anytime, anywhere learning, which is ideally suited for servicemembers deployed in Iraq, Afghanistan and other overseas installations. Penn State's commitment to increasing access to education for military personnel, veterans and military family members is being honored with the 2009 Ray Ehrensberger Award for Institutional Excellence in Military Education from the American Association for Adult and Continuing Education (AAACE). AAACE's Commission on Military Education and Training (CMET) presented the award Nov. 3 in Cleveland. (more)
