Program celebrates University's sesquicentennial

University Archives Penn State freshmen stand with the Nittany Lion shrine circa 1950.

As part of Penn State's sesquicentennial celebration, Penn State Public Broadcasting's WPSX-TV presents "Raise the Song: The History of Penn State" at 7 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 20. This all-new documentary examines the people and events that have taken the commonwealth's land grant university from its humble roots as the state farmer's high school to an internationally recognized place of learning.

"Penn State Public Broadcasting is honored to be producing several video pieces for the Penn State 150th anniversary, including a 15-minute video for the President's Office, a 30-second promotional spot for use on television nationwide and this original documentary for broadcast on WPSX-TV tracing the exciting history of an institution which has had such impact on Pennsylvania and its citizens," said Tracy Vosburgh, WPSX-TV station manager and executive producer.

Since the charter of the Pennsylvania Farmer's High School in 1855, America has seen 31 presidents, a Civil War, the Women's Suffrage Movement, the Great Depression, two World Wars, the civil rights movement, the Vietnam War, the Cold War and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Through it all, Penn State has persevered to become one of the world's foremost teaching and research facilities, impacting nearly every important era and event in American history since 1855.

"From the industrial age to the information age, Penn State has served the commonwealth and the world," said producer/director Patrick Mansell. "This film traces the history of Penn State, touching upon several interesting parallels that can be made to U.S. history over the past 150 years."

Penn State, which ranks nationally as one of the 10 largest public research institutions, annually spends more than $600 million dollars in Pennsylvania to support research activities.

Featuring archival photos, rare film footage and interviews, "Raise the Song: The History of Penn State" takes viewers through Penn State's history with examination of the land-grant charter, biographical sketches of significant faculty and administrators from Evan Pugh and Milton Eisenhower to Erwin Mueller and Joe Paterno.

"It's easy to think of Penn State as being separated from the rest of the world because of the school's rural location, but Penn State has both reacted to and been impacted by American history in many ways," said Mansell.

A production of Penn State Public Broadcasting, "Raise the Song: The History of Penn State" was produced/directed by Mansell with associate producer Eileen Akin. Executive producer was Tracy Vosburgh.

Penn State Public Broadcasting provides 29 counties in Pennsylvania and southern New York with 24-hour television and radio programming on WPSX-TV and WPSU-FM; multimedia support through their Media Solutions department; access to an extensive library of rare video and film through the Media Sales department; and Educational Services that serve the commonwealth with PBS-funded educational initiatives.