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)
Penn State Public Broadcasting will air "No. 4 Street of Our Lady," a documentary film about the Holocaust, at 9 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 19, on WPSU-TV. The film was produced and directed by three Penn State faculty members and debuted in March of 2009. Following the film, WPSU host Patty Satalia sits down with filmmaker and Penn State faculty member, Judy Maltz, as part of a special edition of "Conversations from Penn State." (more)
November is National Diabetes Month -- a good time, according to Penn State Cooperative Extension educators, to raise awareness of a program that has seen early success in helping those with Type 2 diabetes to manage the disease. (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)
On Nov. 9, USA Today -- the nation's top-selling newspaper -- in cooperation with Penn State launched a new e-Edition for Penn State students as part of the University's continuing mission to promote newspaper reading as a way of integrating real world with classroom study. Since 1997, Penn State has had a readership program in place -- the first of its kind in the nation and a model for more than 500 collegiate readership programs nationwide. (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)
Shaver's Creek Environmental Center will host its annual Children's Halloween Trail and Festival on Saturday, Oct. 24, and Sunday, Oct. 25. The Halloween trail is a nonscary, enchanting event tailor-made for children ages 4 to 10. On the trail, scarecrow-costumed tour guides will lead children to five different educationally designed stations facilitated by Penn State students. Tours run every 10 minutes, beginning each day at 11 a.m., with the last tour leaving at 3:30 p.m. (more)
The discussion about adequate health care has dominated the news recently. From town hall meetings to debates, health care reform is on the minds of Americans. But what is the future of the current system? Chris Calkins, director of outreach health initiatives at Penn State Outreach, will sort out the fact from the fiction on the next episode of "Conversations from Penn State."
The show will air on the Big Ten Network at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 23. The show also will air on WPSU-TV at 9 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 22. After this show, join Calkins on the Conversations Web site for a live chat and view the show at http://conversations.psu.edu/ online. (more)
