Inside: Creative Expressions winners • Restaurants show off their wings
Town&Gown Katids lay AUGUST 2012
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Some local youth have discovered that having fun with Legos can be an educational experience
IF IT’S HAPPENING IN HAPPY VALLEY, IT’S IN TOWN&GOWN
ET M AY FF P D U 2 N B O SU CH M T N U A R 0 B 0:3 1
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Letter From The Editor Starting Off On Center: Anonymous 4 About Town: Webster’s finds new
26
Health & Wellness: Early exams
and bigger home below the streets can help children have healthy eyes
30
Creative Expressions: How Has a Teacher Opened Your World? For the second consecutive year, the State College Area School District held a Creative Expressions contest asking students to express their thoughts on how a teacher impacted their lives
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Future Forecasts The superintendents of Centre County’s five school districts confront school issues their school districts face heading into the new school year • by Rebekka Coakley
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Kids at Play Work Some local youth have discovered that having fun with Legos can be an educational experience • by Amy King
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Considering the Alternative While four-year colleges have been the normal choices for years, schools such as South Hills and CPI offer programs and options for those seeking something different • by Carolyne Meehan
This Month on WPSU Penn State Diary: Summertime
hijinks 66
Events: Inaugural Light Step, Right
Step festival brings sustainability to forefront What’s Happening From the Vine: Alsace region in
France is producing top food-friendly wines 81
Taste of the Month/Dining Out:
Area restaurants offer an abundance of flavorful wing sauces 95 Guide to Advertisers 96 Lunch with Mimi: Helen Wise 102 State College Photo Club’s Photo of the Month 104 Snapshot: Steve “Spud" Marshall On the cover: Photo by Darren Weimert. Jason Gines II is part of the First Lego League team at Young Scholars of Central PA Charter School.
Town&Gown is published monthly by Barash Publications, 403 South Allen Street, State College, PA 16801. Advertising is subject to approval of the publisher. COPYRIGHT 2012 by Barash Media. All rights reserved. Send address changes to Town&Gown, Box 77, State College, PA 16804. No part of this magazine may be reproduced by any process except with written authorization from Town&Gown or its publisher. Phone: 800-326-9584, 814-238-5051. FAX: 814-238-3415. Printed by Gazette Printers, Indiana, PA. 20,000 copies published this month, available FREE in retail stores, restaurants, hotels and motels & travel depots. SUBSCRIPTIONS and SINGLE COPIES: $45/1yr; current issue by 1st-class mail, $10; back copy, $15 mailed, $12 picked up at the T&G office. www.townandgown.com
5 - Town&Gown August 2012
Town&Gown August
A State College & Penn State tradition since 1966.
Publisher Rob Schmidt Founder Mimi Barash Coppersmith Editorial Director David Pencek Creative Director/Photographer John Hovenstine Operations Manager/Assistant Editor Vilma Shu Danz Graphic Designer/Photographer Darren Weimert Graphic Designer Amy Schmalz Account Executives Kathy George, Debbie Markel Business Manager Aimee Aiello
938 West College Ave. State College, PA 16801
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To contact us: Mail: 403 S. Allen St., State College, PA 16801 Phone: (814) 238-5051, (800) 326-9584 Fax: (814) 238-3415 dpenc@barashmedia.com (Editorial) rschmidt@barashmedia.com (Advertising) We welcome letters to the editor that include a phone number for verification. Back issues of Town&Gown are available on microfilm at Penn State’s Pattee Library.
www.townandgown.com 6 - Town&Gown August 2012
Imagine a place that doesn’t look like a gym, doesn’t act like a gym, but gets you the results you’ve been looking for. Many of us don’t exactly love working out, but we really want to be in better shape. You may like it even less when you’re trying to figure out how to do that on our own. For many, big gyms are intimidating, personal training is expensive, and the thought of trying to figure out how to get results on your own is frustrating. Maybe just the thought of stepping into a gym is unthinkable to you. If this is how you feel, Ki’netik FITNESS may be your answer. In fact, Ki’netik FITNESS isn’t exactly a gym. It’s more of a community of people that have had enough of not being healthy and have joined forces to change that forever in a fun, welcoming, yet challenging environment. At Ki’netik FITNESS you are never on your own. Not only are you coached through each session by a certified trainer, but you
have other members to show you the ropes as well. Some of them may have been in the program for years with great success, while others are just beginning their fitness journey, just like you – all of you are in the same class, each getting a great workout, modified to your own abilities. Everyone is there to be better tomorrow than they are today, by giving it their all. Getting in shape can be tough work. What Ki’netik can promise you is that the group dynamic and decades of successful coaching experience can make it easier and more fun. If you’re ready to find a fitness program that you really love and get the results you’ve always wanted, give Ki’netik FITNESS a try. Come in today for a no-obligation, FREE WEEK. It may just be the toughest workout you’ll ever love.
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letter from the editor
Aftershocks
Making sense of what’s been sentenced The day we went to press with this issue, the NCAA and Big Ten handed out their punishments to Penn State for its alleged actions and inactions surrounding the Jerry Sandusky scandal. The university isn’t appealing (even though a number of legal experts have expressed concern about the legalities of what the NCAA did), so Penn State and this community must now figure how to live with the effects of it all. This region has received so many punches to the gut over the past nine months that I’ve lost count. We’ve heard the phrase “healing process can now begin” how many times? — only to have something else happen that wounds us more. What’s most unfortunate about these times, it seems, is that symbolic, knee-jerk reactions to appease a mob mentality are ruling the day when substantive, thoughtful actions should be what’s happening. I try to use this space to express optimism about life here in Happy Valley. As many would probably agree, it’s become increasingly difficult to have those upbeat feelings. Yet, I still do have that sense of pride and positive emotion — and it’s becoming clearer why I do. It’s same reason why I love this country and love this state. It’s, of course, the people — and not the ones in Washington, DC, Harrisburg, and Old Main who make decisions that affect everyone else. It’s you who have businesses and work jobs and raise families and volunteer — and just continue with your actions to make this community and university better. You may not have a leadership title next to your name, but you are the real leaders of this region. And it’s the collective We who can see this community through what looks to be a difficult few years coming up. It this sounds like a rallying cry, well, it is. I believe Penn State and this region, as a whole, have always had their priorities in order. It’s some individuals at Penn State and in this region who didn’t or are being accused of not. When you think of Penn State and this region, yes, you think of football Saturdays, but you also think of
THON, researchers who are discovering cures for cancer (note to the national media, that is actually happening at Penn State), all the great nonprofit organizations in the community that help everything from dogs to health care for individuals in need, and just an overall quality of life that few places have. I believe Penn State and this community will be leaders in stopping abuse of any kind wherever it is happening. As crazy as it might sound now, Penn State, with its vast alumni network, can become a beacon that shines a light on abuse, makes others more aware of it, and brings forth efforts to end it. And, yes, athletics has a role here too. It’s hard to guess where the football program will be after the four-year bowl ban and reduction of scholarships. But, if early reaction is any indication, this team and this staff have nearly all of the Nittany Nation behind it. They’ve unfortunately become collateral damage through people handing out punishments because of the actions of a few. Yes, sports are a big part of this community. The fact is, sports are a big part in just about every corner of the world (hello, ESPN). Which means that while there are negatives to that, sports can have a positive influence. Kids from troubled neighborhoods or countries use sports to break free. Think about the role sports played in the aftermath of 9/11 and what it meant to the city of New York to have the Mets and Yankees playing. Locally, last year’s football game against Nebraska brought together this community and Penn Staters from all over, and they raised $47,000 for the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape. Sports can and should be part of the healing that will be taking place. On the fields, courts, and mats, the coaches and student-athletes here (especially the ones who will be playing football for the next few seasons) are wonderful symbols of Penn State. Off the fields, courts, and mats, they, too, are leaders in showing the true substance of the university.
David Pencek Editorial Director dpenc@barashmedia.com
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starting off
Salvation Army looks to help children in need
What’s
New
The Centre County Salvation Army has issued an urgent call for support in the Centre Region for students returning to school. Each year, the organization’s Back-to-School Program provides clothing, a backpack, and school supplies to hundreds of children in need in Centre County. The organization is looking for donations. “More families than ever need our help, but we’re behind on our donations as compared to previous years,” program manager Steve Williams said in a released statement. In 2011, the Salvation Army supported 598 students through the program. Donations can be made by contacting the Salvation Army at 861-1785 or dropping off donations to 2603 East College Avenue, Suite G, State College. Laura Waldhier
Mount Nittany Elementary honored Mount Nittany Elementary School was one of only two elementary schools named as a “Project of Distinction” in this year’s School Planning and Management magazine’s 13th Annual Education Design Showcase, and the only school project in Pennsylvania earning recognition. Project architect David Schrader, of Schradergroup Architecture, commented upon learning of the award, “On behalf of the entire design team, I would like to express my appreciation to the State College Area School District for their foresight in developing both the process and building for the future generations of State College Area youth. The community planning process that the district undertook is a tribute to their respect for the community as a whole.” In order to provide information and a way to share innovative, practical solutions in planning, design, and construction, School Planning and Management established the Education Design Showcase in 1999. The goal is to share ideas to help achieve the best possible learning environments for all students at all levels of education.
Penn State football players compete during the annual Lift for Life event.
Lift for Life raises record amount
In July, the 10th annual Penn State Uplifting Athletes Lift for Life raised more than $110,000 to benefit the Kidney Cancer Association. The total breaks the previous record of $100,930 in 2011. A total of 81 Penn State football studentathletes secured at least one donation for Lift for Life, led by junior guard Eric Shrive, who raised $31,868. Senior tackle Mike Farrell was next with $12,755. More than 2,500 fans attended the event, which was held outside for the first time at Penn State Lacrosse Field. Since the first Lift for Life in 2003, more than $700,000 has been raised in the battle against rare diseases by Penn State Uplifting Athletes. Donations can still be made by visiting liftforlife.upliftingathletes.org/lfl2. Uplifting Athletes has grown to 13 chapters, with Boston College, Colgate, Kent State, Maryland, North Carolina State, Northwestern, Ohio State, Princeton, St. Francis, Notre Dame, Illinois, and Fordham joining the Penn State chapter. T&G
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People in the
Community Natasha Fedkina
This month, Natasha Fedkina, 14, of State College will be looking to win her third national title in the 800-meter run in the Hershey Track and Field North American Final. She has participated in the Hershey track program since she was 9, and this is her final year at the games. She will be a freshman at State High this year, and she is looking forward to being a part of the cross-country and track teams. At the state meet held in July, Fedkina told the Centre County Gazette that because this is her final year of competing in the Hershey program she wants to do good. “I’ve kind of put pressure on myself,” she said. “It’s like you have to do good because it’s your last year and everything.”
Ron and Christine Krasnansky
Ron and Christine Krasnansky are celebrating their 10th anniversary of their local Home Instead Senior Care office. The two Penn State alums have a great affinity for the senior population, which led to their opening the State College franchise in 2002. They saw first-hand how valuable caregivers were to Christine’s grandparents, which makes owning the franchise very personal to them. “We are ever mindful that seniors want to remain as independent as possible — and safe from harm. That’s a big responsibility and we work hard to meet and exceed our clients’ expectations, and to be a source of inspiration to them as well,” Ron Krasnansky said. Their Central PA operation now provides nonmedical home-care services in seven counties — Centre, Clearfield, Mifflin, Juniata, Huntingdon, Bedford, and Fulton.
Jacquelyn Martin
State College Area School District’s board of directors approved Jacquelyn Martin as director of curriculum for grades 7-12. She replaces Marybeth Irvin. Martin had been the secondary principal at Penns Valley Area School District since 2008. Prior to that, she had served as middle school principal at Penns Va l l e y f o r t h r e e years. “I’m very excited about the opportunities State College Area School District has provided me,” Martin said in a released statement. “I hope I can do as much for the students of State College as I was able to in Penns Valley.” T&G
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Q&A
with Melanie Phillips, co-owner of the Village Eatinghouse Marketplace & Café By Sarah Harteis
With 20-plus years experience in catering, restaurant, and specialty food production industries, Clay and Melanie Phillips are more than qualified to Clay and Melanie Phillips successfully run their newest company in Pleasant Gap, the Village Eatinghouse Marketplace & Café. With a grand opening scheduled for September 7-8, their café offers a variety of fresh and local food. Inspired by their love and appreciation for local talent, their marketplace also will feature the work of local artisans, musicians, authors, and specialty food producers. Melanie recently shared with Town&Gown some of her ideas behind their new adventure. T&G: Will the café be separated from the marketplace? Phillips: No, it will all be incorporated. This way, you can eat your soup and sandwiches while you enjoy the artwork and plethora of items at the marketplace. T&G: Where does all the food come from? Phillips: Some local producers provide the meats, cheeses, and fresh produce, which we
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keep in a huge walk-in cooler. We make all pies, the lemonade, kielbasa corn chowder, baked goods, a variety of salads, and then we have our homemade salad dressings and marinades. T&G: What will the prices be like? Phillips: We want people to be able to shop regularly with us so they can feel like they are getting a good value and good food at good pricing. T&G: What is it like working with your husband as your partner? Phillips: For the first 11 years of our life together we worked at the Village Eatinghouse in Boalsburg. We worked together hand-in-hand. For the last five years, we’ve been working separately and we have missed each other. We work better as a team because we play off of each other’s strengths. T&G: What is your mission for the Village Eatinghouse? Phillips: To share the bounty of Central PA through education and entertainment. I say education because we will have programs to teach people how to make certain things on their own, whether it be a piece of art or a food dish. I say entertainment because we will have local music playing in the marketplace on Thursdays. We want to highlight artists in all ways that we can. T&G: What would you say makes your marketplace unique? Phillips: I think that it really comes back to the basics. It brings community to what otherwise might just be a space to eat or shop. It brings community to that space. T&G: Why do you think Pleasant Gap is a good location for your new company? Phillips: It’s a bedroom community that’s been sleepy for so long. It’s so close to the major places like State College, Bellefonte, and Centre Hall. It’s in right space and is just now blossoming. There are an awful lot of great things about to happen in Pleasant Gap and we really want to be part of that. T&G
Check out our NEW website! • Improved features • Search ALL properties for sale 1612 N. Atherton St. State College, PA
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Happy Birthday, Vera Bradley! August 7-9 In honor of her birthday, receive the classic Vera. Just $68 at our store. (suggest retail $88) Featured in new Paisley Meets Plaid
Looking Back Centre County history through the pages of Town&Gown August
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1988 In “Terrific Perfect Machines,” Town&Gown spotlighted the Pasto Agricultural Museum, which opened in 1978. The museum showcases centuries-old farm equipment, including an 1886 hand-cranked corn sheller. “The people who invented these devices were tinkerers, people obsessed with the idea that there was an easier way to do things,” Dr. Jerome Pasto said.
1999 “A New Chapter for Schlow,” looked at State College’s public library as it was planning to move into a bigger space. The new location had yet to be announced. “We’ve gotten to the point where, when we add something new, we have to take something away,” said then-director Betsy Allen. The library at that time had 120,000 books and other materials “crammed into 15,000 square feet of space that gets 357,000 visits a year.”
2008 Town&Gown profiled local families who have children with autism in “Addressing Autism.” Susan Schrock had moved to State College in 2005 with her son, Patrick, who has autism. She said that in Centre County, “They’re more willing to accept children as they are. Other counties don’t have the resources and they’re not willing to accept the responsibility for these kids.” T&G
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Tom’s Cell: (814) 574-4345 Ellen’s Cell: (814) 280-2088 Bob’s Cell: (814) 574-0293 Bob Langton Associate to Tom Cali Ellen Kline
cali.kline@gmail.com • www.statecollegeliving.com
This Month On townandgown.com
Anthony Clarvoe Lew Bryson
•
In 5 Questions, Lew Bryson, author of Pennsylvania Breweries, discusses beer in the Keystone State.
•
Starting August 31, check out editor David Pencek’s weekly Friday Sports Forecast, which will preview the coming weekends top games locally and nationally.
•
Special offers from Bonfatto’s, Down Under Steak House, and Arena Bar & Grill.
And visit our Facebook site for the latest happenings and opportunities to win free tickets to concerts and events! And follow us on Twitter at TownGown1.
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CENTRE COUNTY’S FULL-SERVICE WEEKLY NEWSPAPER Centre County deserves a weekly newspaper that provides balanced, comprehensive coverage of news of importance to the readers of Centre County. Now with increased distribution! 15,000 newspapers at more than 400 locations throughout Centre County. Published on Thursdays! - Providing increased readership heading into the weekend. The expanded Centre County Gazette will feature full coverage of News and Sports, while maintaining our strong commitment to the good news in the communities we serve. THE CENTRE COUNTY GAZETTE 403 S. ALLEN ST. • STATE COLLEGE, PA 16801 (814) 238-5051 • FAX (814) 238-3415 WWW.CENTRECOUNTYGAZETTE.COM
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pizza — a buttered crust topped with scrambled egg, mozzarella, cheddar, and your choice of toppings such as sausage, bacon, ham, onion, green peppers, and more. New to the menu are dessert pizzas. Try the Very Berry, a sugared crust topped with blueberries, strawberries, and sweet vanilla icing, or the Hawaiian Sweet Pie, a sugared crust topped with pineapple, banana, cinnamon sugar, and sweet vanilla icing. Having a big group event? Pizza Mia! offers a wide assortment of catering options from sub and wrap platters, delicious desserts, fruit and cookie platters, to pasta buffets, homemade appetizers, sides, and salads. Pizza Mia! serves every slice, bun, bowl, and plate with a smile. Family-owned and operated, it values a positive outlook on life. It loves workers who love working there, and everyone’s passion shows. Good food deserves good company.
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Fabulous Foursome
Anonymous 4 marks a quarter century of beautiful vocals with anthology concert By John Mark Rafacz
Not many musical groups can claim a repertoire that covers a millennium, but Anonymous 4 isn’t a typical vocal quartet. Four women got together for a music-reading session on a spring afternoon in 1986. Their goal? To hear what polyphony and medieval chant would sound like when sung by women. Today, Ruth Cunningham, Marsha Genensky, Susan Hellauer, and Jacqueline Horner-Kwiatek circle the globe performing in concert halls, houses of worship, and other venues in North America, Europe, and Asia. “If you’re already a fan of Anonymous 4, who released their first album in 1993 and still retain three of their four original singers, you’ll be well aware of their unearthly purity, perfect precision, and inviting style of programming … ,” writes an NPR music critic. “If by chance you haven’t yet made the acquaintance of this fine group — who are as close to superstars as the early music community comes — you are in for a remarkable treat.” Renowned for ethereal ensemble singing, Anonymous 4 celebrates its 25th anniversary in a concert of ancient, traditional, and modern chants and hymns October 23 at Penn State’s Pasquerilla Spiritual Center. “With the Anonymous 4, there is no accompaniment, no amplification, and no fancy staging,” notes a reviewer for the Denver Post. “It’s just four rarefied voices — pure, simple, and stunning.” The eclectic program, scheduled at Pasquerilla to take advantage of the spiritual center’s extraordinary acoustics, features music chosen from the ensemble’s 19 Harmonia Mundi CDs. S el ec t io n s in c lu d e e l e ve nth-c e ntury plainchant, harmonic English conductus and spicy French motets of the thirteenth century, fifteenth-century Hungarian polyphony, shapenote, and gospel songs of nineteenth-century
The women of Anonymous 4.
America, and contemporary works. Highlights include Anonymous 4’s first recorded song, “Gaude Virgo Salutata” from An English Ladymass; “Nicholai presulis” from the group’s first public performance, Legends of St. Nicholas; “O quam mirabilis” from The Origin of Fire; “O rubor sanguinis” from 11,000 Virgins; the American classic “Shall We Gather at the River?” from American Angels; John Taverner’s “Lord’s Prayer” from Darkness into Light; and “The Wood and The Vine,” a haunting contemporary take on the medieval ballad written for Anonymous 4 by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang. “The ensemble’s curiosity ranges wide, a millennium’s worth of repertoire,” writes a Boston Globe critic. “But no matter the style, the group has a knack for bringing out music’s ritual, comforting in its formality while intriguing in its mystery.” T&G Stephen and Patricia Noel sponsor the concert. The presentation is part of the Center for the Performing Arts Classical Music Project. With support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the project provides opportunities to engage students, faculty, and the community with classical-music artists and programs. Learn more about the project and Anonymous 4’s State College engagement activities at www.cmp.psu.edu. Tickets for Anonymous 4 and other Center for the Performing Arts 2012-13 presentations are on sale. Visit www.cpa.psu.edu or phone (814) 863-0255 for tickets. John Mark Rafacz is the editorial manager of the Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State.
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about town
Movin’ on Down Webster’s finds new and bigger home below the streets By Nadine Kofman Darren Weimert
Webster’s owner Elaine Meder-Wilgus.
Downtown State College’s only bookstore has gone underground. In the creeping age of Kindles, perhaps Webster’s is ahead of its time. Such a secluded place may require a search, but you don’t have to whisper, “Joe sent me,” at the door. Just go to the right of the Uncle Eli’s mural and — below the gold, orange, and black hanging sign — walk down 16 steps (using the strong banister), and there you are. Forced from the visible 128 South Allen Street (1999 to 2010), Webster’s Bookstore & Café reopened in April in the former Creative Oasis basement, 133 East Beaver Avenue. In this location, the used-book emporium is somewhat catty-corner from Schlow Centre Region Library. Size has replaced location, location, location. The former 3,700-square-foot, street-side hangout has become a 6,300-square-foot belowstairs hangout — making it possible to more than double the number of books stocked. Once again, smiles greeted the arrival of the used bookstore/community gathering place. (When the previous Webster’s opened, patrons showed up instantly — as though they were just waiting for such a comfy spot to materialize.)
“People were chomping at the bit for the opening!” says owner Elaine Meder-Wilgus. Around 30 book browsers and drink sippers stop by daily; some 100 attend Webster’s concerts. Its books have increased from 80,000 to 165,000. Webster’s memberships have been introduced. Visual art is, of course, on the walls. Activist fliers are still posted. “We really like the layout,” says Meder-Wilgus gazing around at the bigger space. “In the old store, I always thought that if two people stopped, they created a bottleneck.” Downstairs, she says, “We kept the shelving low,” so as to bring the outdoors in, through a bank of high windows on the Humes Alley side. That also is the side with a handicappedaccessible entrance and a small patio (for those who don’t mind a view of the alley’s dumpster). Interior brightness comes largely from the redone lighted ceiling. Underfoot, Webster’s has a sealed and polished “industrial”-look floor. Owner-painted swirls are here and there. Long-playing-record fans can again riffle through albums — Josh Ferko’s Stax of Trax — but without worrying about errant elbows.
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And again, there is a reading corner with kids’ volumes. “A lot of parents bring little ones in,” says Meder-Wilgus. With greater square footage, both Internet and warehouse books have been brought inhouse, and there are now separate areas for live entertainment and community meetings. The estimated 14-foot-by-30-foot Community Room, lined in books, holds regular and special meetings, including such diverse get-togethers as political confabs and an art reception. Community yoga takes place there once a month. In the open Performance Space — situated beside the local-specialties café — folk musicians, for instance, strum in what might be a hand-medown living room (furnished with an upright piano, a carpet, and an occasional chair in nonmatching prints). Audience members can sit at partitioned eating/listening tables, which have nearby outlets for computers. Other café tables have been removed for dancing. The owner’s husband, Bill Wilgus, did the sound system. Sunday brunch music is a regular feature, as are, each month: The Second Winds big band music, the first Saturday; Open Mic Night, the first Thursday; “Muriel’s Repair,” storytelling brainchild of Pam Monk, the last Wednesday. Sizzle Sticks swing band and dancers
perform every other month. Meder-Wilgus — also known for area acting since her Boal Barn Playhouse beginnings around 1980 — is a 1983 graduate of State College Area High School and a 1993 alumna of Penn State in a self-designed biological anthropology major. (Her daughter, “Mel,” is majoring in chemistry, with an emphasis on gender studies, at Barnard College.) Her new Webster’s has old faces. “Everybody came back,” she says of full-timers, as opposed to part-timers graduating from Penn State. Robbie Mayes is the manager; Molly Haight, the Internet manager. Explaining the latter category, MederWilgus says, “We’ve been selling on the Internet since 1995. … We ship all over the world.” A “destination-types of business,” Webster’s sees book hounds from Penn State conferences and from Altoona, Lewisburg, Lewistown, and Harrisburg, the owner says. People seem happy to be down there. A 70-something fellow who was looking around, confirmed that. “You’ve got a great place here,” he said to a smiling Meder-Wilgus. T&G Nadine Kofman is a native Centre Countian and historian.
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health & wellness
Vision of Youths
Early exams can help children have healthy eyes By Samantha Hulings
Coby Pighetti noticed that something just wasn’t right with one of the eyes of her 18-monthold daughter Gabrielle. To the first-time mother, it looked as though Gabrielle’s eye was turning in toward her nose. After having amblyopia, or a lazy eye, during childhood herself, Pighetti felt it was necessary to ask her daughter’s pediatrician if she also noticed the baby’s eye turning. The pediatrician, after examining the eye, made a referral for Pighetti and her daughter to visit Marla Moon, OD, FAAO, an optometrist specializing in pediatric eye care and a founding partner of Nittany Eye Associates. Upon visiting Dr. Moon, Gabrielle was immediately given glasses to begin correcting her lazy-eye condition. “The purpose of that was it would help strengthen the muscle and start pulling the eye back out,” Pighetti says. “They said if that didn’t work, we would try patching.” In an attempt to correct Gabrielle’s lazy-eye condition before surgery was needed, Moon had decided to combine the little girl’s glasses routine with patching, where the stronger eye is covered to make the weaker eye work harder in an attempt to strengthen the eye muscles. “One of the things with regard to kid’s vision is it changes pretty quickly, especially when children
are very young,” Moon says. “A lot of growth, a lot of development with regard to the visual system comes during the first 18 to 36 months of life, so a lot of things can change.” But because tracking skills, eye-teaming skills, and the focusing muscle do not fully develop until after birth, Moon says growth patterns and musclecoordination control can still change until a child is about 7 years old. A problem with eye-teaming and musclecoordination control is what caused Karlee Bierly, 10, to have double vision. “You could see it when she tried to bring her eyes together to look at something close up. Both eyes would start to go toward her nose, and then all of a sudden one eye would just relax and go back to its normal position. She could not make her eyes go in to focus properly,” Fawne Bierly, Karlee’s mother, says. Though Karlee received her first pair of glasses at age 8, changes in eye growth and development caused her to need additional eye therapy to correct her double vision a year later. This continued eye growth and development during early childhood is why the American Public Health Association, the largest body that represents all health-care providers, recommends that the first
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eye examination be done during a child’s first year of life. Additional visits should then occur when a child is 3 and 5, as vision problems affect 1 in 20 preschoolers and 1 in 4 school-age children. Moon says examination techniques at these crucial early eye exams depend on the age or the developmental age of the child. “When kids are younger, or developmentally lower, we will use something called preferential looking,” she says. “It is based upon some research that psychologists did back in the early ’80s where babies tend to want to prefer something that has some detail.” According to Moon, this conclusion is why development toys are often black, white, red, yellow and orange. “So, utilizing that, visual acuity [the clarity or sharpness of vision] tests were developed and standardized on that,” she says. These visual acuity tests for young children include striped patterns of various widths. Eye doctors are able to see where the patterns are located through an observational hole. Moon says if a baby can resolve the striped patterns, eye doctors will keep varying the location and size of the pattern. Once babies no longer show a preference, their threshold has been reached, providing eye doctors with an equivalent visual acuity. If young children are not tolerant of the preferential-looking test, eye doctors also may use the STYCAR test, which includes the use of Styrofoam balls in various sizes to evaluate the child’s visual acuity. During these time periods, eye doctors also begin to check for certain types of lazy-eye conditions that can’t be seen by an eye crossing or an eye turning outward. Moon says if doctors can catch those conditions in the developmental formative years, the symptoms and causes can many times be turned around before they begin to affect school performance. Because Gabrielle’s lazy-eye condition was caught at an early age, her schoolwork never
suffered. She is now an active 12-year-old soccer goalie, swimmer, and book-lover who simply needs the aid of glasses or contacts. “She excels athletically and academically. I think if we hadn’t caught it early, I wonder if we wouldn’t be where we are today,” Pighetti says. In addition to testing for visual acuity and lazyeye conditions, eye doctors also assess a child’s eye health during an examination. Moon says doctors check for cataracts, glaucoma, scar tissue, and hemorrhaging of the retina. Eye growth, or how much the eye is growing and elongating, is another aspect doctors look at. According to Moon, about 85 percent of children are born farsighted. As they grow, so does the eyeball. In the majority of cases, this growth causes the farsightedness to be naturally corrected by the time a child is 5 to 6 years old. But if the eye continues to grow past this point, children may develop other refractive problems such as nearsightedness or astigmatism, or inability of the eye to focus on an object to give a sharply focused image. These refractive problems are the most common visual issue in childhood, affecting about 15 to 20 percent of children from birth to 18 years old. Because the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists vision disorders as the fourth most common disability and the leading cause of handicapping conditions during childhood, Moon urges parents to have their children see an eye specialist as early as possible. She also believes having the right diet, using protective sports eyewear, having proper lighting for reading and watching television, and having routine eye care are the best ways to keep a child’s eyes healthy. T&G Samantha Hulings is a 2012 graduate of Penn State and a freelance writer in State College.
For Tickets, Call: Anne Campbell (814) 234-3141
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Crystal Little-Henry (814) 238-8820
Dana Davis (814) 235-8921
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Boalsburg
Duffy’s Tavern Another exciting chapter in the long history of Duffy’s Tavern is just beginning! The newest “caretakers” of Duffy’s Tavern are Darren and Tracey Moriarty, who have always had an especially warm place in their hearts for Duffy’s. The two met at Duffy’s Tavern on St. Patrick’s Day in 2006, got engaged at Duffy’s five years later, and were married in Duffy’s “Blue Room” in 2011. When the opportunity arose to purchase the historical treasure, they made it happen. The Moriartys are enjoying the historical research of Duffy’s Tavern, its patrons, and the building itself, and plan to preserve this legacy, while slowly tweaking Duffy’s Tavern with appropriate updates and improvements. The first of many changes was to expand the outside dining possibilities with a new patio, ready for you to enjoy! The Moriartys also have plans to bring back some Duffy’s Tavern special events, including “Colonial Christmas Dinner,” a n d add som e ne w one s: a Halloween Dinner paired with the “sharing” of their favorite Duffy’s ghost stories, and, of course, a St. Patrick’s Day celebration. Duffy’s Tavern is open daily, 11:30 a.m. until the close of the bar.
Welcome Back!
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The Boalsburg Apothecary The only certified compounding pharmacy in the area
Serving You For 31 Years! Pharmacists Wayne Foster & Carol Younkins 814-466-7937 In the Boalsburg Medical Office Bldg. 3901 South Atherton Street
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Duffy s Tavern Now Serving Fabulous Food & Drinks On Our New Outside Patio! For Reservations 466-6241 www.duffystavern.com
A unique, eclectic gift shop
Nature’s Hue is a unique, eclectic gift shop located in the historic town of Boalsburg. Gift shop items include antiques, vintage artwork, and much, much more! 122 East Main Street, Boalsburg, PA 16827 (814) 466-7181 29 33 -- Town&Gown Town&Gown August August 2012 2012
Located “On the Diamond” 113 East Main Street
Creative Expressions: How Has a Teacher Opened Your World? For the second consecutive year, the State College Area School District held its Creative Expressions contest asking students to answer “How Has a Teacher Opened Your World?" The contest was open to students in kindergarten through 12th grade. Entries came in the form of essays, poems, posters, slideshow presentations, comics, and illustrations/paintings. “I was impressed with the entries!” says Cheryl McCarty, a third-grade teacher at Gray’s Woods Elementary School who helped with the contest. “While the deadline was approaching, more and more entries arrived in my mailbox each day. I feel I had the unique opportunity of seeing each entry, and because I was in the position of being the contact person, I had experience of personally viewing each one. The amount of talent and passion for learning was inspiring. Not only was it a celebration of our students’ capabilities and inventiveness, but it also spoke to the amount of commitment the State College Area School District teachers have for honoring each student as individuals.”
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The four winners were announced in June. They were: K-2: Kellyn Roth, a second-grade student at Gray’s Woods. 3-5: Zoe Ellis, a fourth-grade student at Gray’s Woods. 6-8: Rosaleen Xiong, an eighth-grade student at Park Forest Middle School. 9-12: Sarah Wylie, a 10th-grade student at State High.
How a Teacher Opened My World
John Hovenstine (4)
By Kellyn Roth
Roth with her teacher, Jess Cowan.
Miss [Jess] Cowan helped me learn so much and helped me make many new friends. Miss Cowan helped me become great friends with other kids that I didn’t know. One time, in early January, Miss Cowan was standing next to a little girl about my age. She told my class that her name was Jessie and she had just moved to Happy Valley. I was really nervous and shy and I really didn’t know who she was. Miss Cowan told me to come up and introduce myself. We met each other and then on, from that day to the end of the year, we were amazing friends. Miss Cowan made me feel confident to share my writing stories with the class. One day, in late February, she told me If you want your stories to be great, explain things with more interesting words. One day, about a week later, I tried it. Then she told me and the class that “we will have Kellyn and Olivia share their stories!” I was really nervous. Then she announced, “I have chosen Olivia because of her great illustrations! I have chosen Kellyn because of her marvelous word choice!” Then all of a sudden I wasn’t nervous. I shared my story and everybody loved it! Miss Cowan was a great teacher and she taught me so much. She will always be my most favorite teacher!
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Dear Mr. Kauffman, This is how you taught me. You taught me that being smart is a good thing. When you are educated you can do wonders. When you are educated you can change things, make them better. Dear Mr. Kauffman, You taught me that if you are respectful to the environment it will give you treasures you could never imagine, never dream, like crystal-clear waterfalls cascading in a rainforest, the greenest green a forest could behold, flowers of every color. You taught me to learn about the world. To seek more. That is how you taught me.
Ellis with her teacher, Ron Kauffman
How a Teacher Opened My World By Zoe Elizabeth Ellis Dear Mr. Kauffman, You have been a wonderful influence in my life. You taught me and my classmates just how important it is to be peaceful and get along with everyone. You taught me how to achieve greatness and be environmentally friendly. You taught me how to take challenges. Dear Mr. Kauffman, This is how you taught me. You said when someone tries to get you down, you say something nice back. You didn’t directly say, “Get along with all people,” but you explained just that. You taught me about other cultures and how easy we have life and how hard it is for them. You made us see that. You made us open our eyes. To love what we have, not what we want. To cherish. To hold what you believe in. To get along. That is how you taught me.
Dear Mr. Kauffman, This is how you taught me. You taught me that challenges are good things. If you take a challenge, the worst thing that could happen is that you do something wrong, and that mistakes are simple things that can be fixed with a little extra work. You taught me there is more you can do than just doing your work. Reach to be greater. Do your best work. Do your best work until your best work is your regular work and reach higher than that! That is full potential. Full potential is a wondrous thing. Embracing the challenge of embracing the challenge is a wondrous thing. That is how you taught me. Dear Mr. Kauffman, I hope you have realized how much you have opened my world. This is how you taught me. You taught me things I would never dream of being able to do. You encourage me. You make me feel good about my work. You are the greatest influence in my life. You have helped so many people, including myself. I have seen this. This doesn’t even compare to what you taught me.
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How a Teacher Opened My World By Rosaleen Xiong Mrs. Lauren Elizabeth Bonsall is amazing. She has taught me not only how to count, but also how to make it count. Through 12 chapters of an incredible geometry class The divisibility rule for 11 10 invaluable life lessons Hilariously terrible math jokes number 9 8 pieces of life-changing advice Resolving 7 arguments 6 math competitions Answering 5 questions comprehensively Touching students’ lives for 4 years 3 years coaching the school’s Math Counts team of which we can became state champions 2 times And most of all, being the No. 1 teacher, advisor, coach, mentor, and friend any student could ever ask for. She is caring, helpful, and understanding. Her classes are taught with a grace and poise difficult to find in even the best of teachers. From both her impeccable morals and manners, her students learn the value of being a citizen of the world. Mrs. Bonsall has changed my life, and she will continue to brighten and enlighten all she teaches.
Xiong with her teacher, Lauren Bonsall.
Thank you, Mrs. Bonsall.
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How a Teacher Opened My World By Sarah Wylie I could go on and on about how much I love my English teacher, Ms. [Kate] Hoffman. She shows us movie clips in class and lets us read outside, which, let’s be honest, what teenager wouldn’t love? She is always cheerful and open-minded and encouraging and supportive. Most importantly, though, she opened my world by encouraging creativity, motivating me to learn for the right reasons, and showing me different perspectives. Ms. Hoffman taught me that there is more to life than the Toulmin argument of claim-data-warrant. She encouraged creativity. Our essays had three paragraphs or five paragraphs or seven, and they used quotes or videos or pictures as data. Sometimes our essays weren’t even essays at all — we wrote journals, letters, satires, and comic strips. I frequently had difficulty with this because I like to have guidelines and rules, and I like to know exactly what I have to do and how to do well on it. However, with Ms. Hoffman’s help, I started to embrace the idea of creativity and originality in my writing. I still choose to write the standard essays for our marking-period projects, but I’m opening up to the idea. My journals are no longer confined to specific questions and topics. Ms. Hoffman taught us the rules, but also how to break them. She taught us the skills we need to write standard essays and paragraphs for the future, but she also made sure we knew there was more to writing than decided by the curriculum or the school or another writer. Ms. Hoffman opened up a world without limits, a world where I set the standards. Ms. Hoffman taught me that tests are just pieces of paper. She always told us that what was on the test wasn’t important; what we got out of the class
Wylie with her teacher, Kate Hoffman.
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was the important part. She taught us to read and write to learn, so we actually cared about the class and we were able to relate it to our lives enough to actually get something out of it. We had discussions about A Tale of Two Cities but we also talked about real life issues; we made connections between The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Lord of the Flies, but we also made connections between each other. Coincidentally, when she took the focus off of the test, we were always prepared for the tests anyway because we actually learned something. Don’t get me wrong, we haven’t all thrown ourselves into our work 100 percent of the time, and I haven’t been miraculously transformed from my usual panicking test-taker self, but this doesn’t matter to me. What matters is that I realized for the first time that tests aren’t life. One day I won’t care whether I got a B+ or an A- on my vocabulary test, but I will care that I learned everything I could. Ms. Hoffman opened my world and taught me to take something out of every experience, and not just enough to “pass the test.” Ms. Hoffman taught me the value of looking at life from someone else’s perspective. As a teenager, sometimes it’s hard to think about what other people are going through or how they feel. My class-
mates are far from selfish, but sometimes we do need help seeing life from other people’s points of view, and this is what Ms. Hoffman gave us. We read stories by people of different backgrounds and we had group discussions where we heard other people’s opinions. She made sure we were always mindful of other people’s views and feelings, but she also let us share our own thoughts as well. She didn’t make us all little sympathetic angels, but she did expose us enough to make us aware of other people’s perspectives. For me especially, the materials Ms. Hoffman gave me to look into other points of view helped me to think about how different people think and live. Ms. Hoffman opened up my world by encouraging me to get different perspectives on life. My world was opened up by Ms. Hoffman because she encouraged creativity, taught me to learn for the right reasons, and she emphasized the importance of different points of view. She taught me all the rules of writing — so much that I remembered to add a thesis and topic sentences in this essay — but she also taught me about life. I may sound cliché when I say this, but I don’t care, because Ms. Hoffman truly opened my world and I’m a better person because I had her as a teacher. T&G
We are the future!
Following their high school graduation in 2024, many of these students will be entering fields and studying careers that do not exist today. As we prepare these students for lifelong success, we will continue to seek the support of this outstanding community for our future-focused programs and facilities.
Students celebrate their graduation from Kindergarten in June 2012.
State College Area School District
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www.scasd.org
uture Future F orecasts Forecasts F
The superintendents of Centre County’s five school districts confront issues their districts face heading into the new school year By Rebekka Coakley
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Fall means it’s time for kids to head back to school. And while many children have spent the summer camping, swimming, and forgetting all about their classrooms, the teachers, principals, and district administrators have spent the past few months preparing for the new school year. Each school district in Centre County has key issues to address this year. Town&Gown asked each of the five superintendents from the county’s school districts about the top issues their district faces. Here are their responses.
Bald Eagle Area School District Superintendent Daniel Fisher
Student engagement: Providing programs and instruction that address the educational needs of students and engage them in a manner that captures their attention and their imagination is a challenge. The students of today use so many technology-related activities such as cell phones, Facebook, texting, and video games, which provide a constant stream of stimuli, that students have learned to expect instant answers and feedback, sometimes with minimum effort on their part. This creates a challenge for educators to keep students focused on learning, which takes time to develop the higher order critical-thinking skills needed for true understanding. 37 - Town&Gown August 2012
Technology is a major issue at Bald Eagle Area.
Upgrading technology: As technology continues to evolve, Bald Eagle Area is reviewing its school district’s present technology needs, with an eye to the future of what would best serve the educational needs of our students and staff and make learning engaging and interesting. Bald Eagle Area has recently reestablished a district technology committee to investigate current technology uses and to make recommendations for short- and long-term technology goals for the district. This committee is comprised of elementary and secondary teachers, building and central-office administrators, and members of the Bald Eagle Area community and board of education. The committee is discussing the technology uses of various software and educational programs and the types of hardware that may be used with the various programs, which range from PC-based hardware to Apple Macbooks to iPads for student and teacher use. A needs-assessment survey of educational technology will be used to gather information from teachers, administrators, and clerical staff, which will be used to help make decisions on what hardware will be purchased. Declining enrollment: It will continue to be difficult to operate four elementary schools at Howard, Port Matilda, Wingate, and at the Mountaintop without changing attendance boundaries and staff. Yet the geographic separation of the different areas of the school district makes school consolidations very difficult. BEA has recently been notified that to maintain its Federal Title I funding, which pays for most of its elementary remedial-reading programs, it must equalize student resources at all schools. This is difficult with the present small class sizes at Howard, Mountaintop, and Port Matilda elementary schools.
Bellefonte Area School District Superintendent Cheryl Potteiger
D e v e lo p m e nt o f a comprehensive math curriculum for K-12: The district will be writing a K-12 math curriculum this year to meet the needs of the PA academic standards and common-core requirements. Curriculum development is a process that should constantly be taking place for all subject areas. The district is currently looking at each area to improve based on the state standards and common core that the PSSA and Keystone tests are based upon.
Students in Bellefonte Area School District enjoy sports and art.
Increase the Public School Employees’ Retirement System rates: This is out of Bellefonte’s control. All districts are probably trying to put money aside and budget wisely because of PSERS. They are setting aside funds to lessen the impact to the district in the future. However, in the 2015-16 school year, the PSERS rates will climb to approximately 27 percent. The current rate this year is 8.65 percent and is going to increase to 12.36 percent for the 2012-13 school year. This has a big impact on the budget. Health insurance: The district is moving to a PPO health plan to help stem the rising costs of health insurance. Administrators and professional staff just moved to the plan in July. Charter- and cyber-school costs: Charter and cyber school costs are projected to be more than $1 million this coming year. Bellefonte Area School District has its own BeLA (Bellefonte eLearning Academy) for students who want to participate in a cyber-option. Students who are involved in the BeLA program will graduate and receive a Bellefonte Area School District diploma.
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Penns Valley Area School District Superintendent Brian Griffith
The projected increase in costs of retirement as established by the Public School Employees’ Retirement System: The rate is projected to increase annually by 4 percent of payroll into the foreseeable future. The net increase to Penns Valley is approximately $200,000 annually. The continued challenges of having 100 percent of Penns Valley students be proficient by 2014. Decline in state and federal sources: The decline in combined revenue from the state and federal sources has caused the district to increase taxes locally. The total decline in state/federal revenue in 2011-12 exceeded $700,000, and the increase in taxes yielded $317,500. This means that the 2011-12 budget declined by 2.02 percent. The district is limited to small increases in taxes with the enactment of Act 1, so it needs
to find programming cuts to balance its budget. Identifying programming cuts that have the least impact on education is the challenge that all districts face in this new fiscal reality. The cost and consequences of the current funding mechanism and oversight for charter schools: Currently Penns Valley spends approximately $1 million to support charter schools and transportation associated with these schools. This compromises the district’s ability to plan appropriately and continue to offer quality educational programming.
Philipsburg-Osceola Area School District
Superintendent Stephen Benson
Penns Valley students collect data using graphs.
Philipsburg-Osceola student Ryan Wallace pours liquid into a model volcano while secondgrade teacher Amy Yarrison looks on.
Penns Valley students test fabrics to find which are best for making raincoats.
Beginning of grant initiative: Next school year marks the beginning of the district’s Keystones to Opportunity grant initiative. Philipsburg-Osceola was awarded $654,514 for the first year of a five-year grant because of the many steps the district took in the last few years to improve literacy. Literacy will be a focus, and it will work hard with early learning partners to strengthen and align the literacy program starting from birth through grade 12. The grant money will help with salaries for coaches and data people.
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P-O students engage in interactive lessons.
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Increase student achievement by improving instruction: This will continue next year. For the last five years, the district worked to build a successful K-12 math program, and now it is focused on literacy. It will learn to think about literacy in ways it hadn’t before and that will require careful planning and thinking outside the box. The next budget: It’s never too early to begin thinking about the budget for 2013-14. Unlike many districts, Philipsburg-Osceola’s was able to withstand the cutbacks of the last two years without furloughs. This is because it has been very conservative for the past several years and has set priorities and goals. It is hoping it will not receive a cut in 2013. State funding is important because 60 percent of the school district’s revenue comes from the state. Technology: Phillipsburg-Osceola is doing a lot with technology in the district in 2012-13. Next year it will have its first iPad classroom, and it is offering several virtual courses at the high school. Anytime there is a change, especially a technical one, there are challenges to work through. At the same time, the district is very excited about keeping it current with
P-O students Celena Winter (left) and Braden Dixon work with other students while drawing.
twenty-first-century learning. The school today looks nothing like it did for its students’ parents, and it doesn’t even look the same as it did a few years ago.
Centre Region Parks & Recreation
Aquatics • Senior Center Programs Millbrook Marsh Nature Center Youth & Adult Recreation Programs
2012 Fall Active Guide Available Sunday, Aug. 19
CRPR...Where Everyone Plays www.crpr.org • 814-231-3071 41 - Town&Gown August 2012
State College Area School District
Superintendent Robert O’Donnell
State College superintendent Robert O’Donnell participates in the annual First Grade Tree Planting ceremony in May.
Development of curriculum and instruction: A significant focus for the district’s professional staff during 2012-13 will be to continue updating its K-12 curriculum alignment to the Common Core Standards, as well as ensure it is integrating twenty-first-century skills into grade-level learning experiences. The most important aspect of what it is doing as a school district is what occurs on a daily basis with teachers and students. Support and development of faculty and staff: To continue providing students with meaningful and growth-oriented learning experiences, the district must continue supporting efforts and development of our faculty and staff. Continuing issue of budget and funding challenges: The direction of state funding for public education continues to be a challenge for the district’s financial planning. The state’s and district’s increasing obligations to the re-
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tirement system will become a more significant challenge each year. Also, local revenue sources have not been increasing to the degree of past years due to economy and lack of realestate growth. The school district wants to ensure it is working diligently to both preserve quality experiences provided for students, as well as continue to evolve programs as part of improvement efforts for better preparing students for future success. Update districtwide facility master plan, including the required educational-specifications document for the high school program: After the school board hires an architectural firm, the district will draft and share the processes for updating its districtwide facility master plan and high school project. It will share these processes with the entire school community with the goal of helping to increase understanding and obtain critical feedback relating to each process. Opportunities for community engagement and support of this project are critical, so residents can fully understand the programs the district is prioritizing for the future. Understanding
the financial ramifications is important because the high school project’s financing will appear as a referendum question on a ballot for the community to consider. Because of the district’s facility-related needs, it must ensure that it considers the condition of each district facility. A large amount of resources will be necessary to update its most needy district facilities. The students deserve quality facilities that support the instructional program. It is clear that the facilities that need to be evaluated and considered during its plan update include the following: High School North, High School South, Corl Street Elementary School, Fairmount Avenue Building, Houserville Elementary School, Lemont Elementary School, Radio Park Elementary School, and Memorial Field. The district’s goal is to work with the entire school community to ensure they participate with the district, understand what is being proposed, and the rationale for those proposals. T&G Rebekka Coakley lives in Bellefonte, is a freelance writer, and works for Penn State.
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Kids at Play Work 44 - Town&Gown August 2012
Some local youth have discovered that having fun with Legos can be an educational experience
By Amy King
Photos by Darren Weimert Some members of the First Lego League teams from Young Scholars of Central PA (YSCP) and State College Area Robotics (SCAR) include (top row, from left) Esman Umarov (YSCP), Riya and Isha Chakraborty (YSCP), Roshan Haque (YSCP), Jason Gines II (YSCP); (second row, from left) Jacob Gindhart and Ben Servey (SCAR), Oliver Rose (YSCP), Ruthie Dangelo and Katelyn Servey (SCAR); (third row, from left) Gracie Dangelo (SCAR), Charlotte Getson (SCAR), Danila Berezin (YSCP), and Bridget Gindhart and Sarah Dangelo (SCAR).
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Children have been exhibiting building skills with various toys for hundreds of years, but there has been a loyal following of the indelible plastic bricks manufactured by Lego since they first hit the market in 1947. For countless boys and girls, it’s simply a rite of passage when progressing from the “big bricks” (known as Duplos) to the smaller, more challenging pieces. For at least two groups of local students, Legos are much more than that. They are a means to express creativity while learning multifaceted elements of science and technology as well as other academic and nonacademic skills. These students are part of First Lego League (FLL), an international-competition partnership between FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) and the Lego Group, aimed at children ages 9 to 14. FLL reaches more than 200,000 students per year in 60 countries worldwide. Palvan Amanov, an IT specialist at Young Scholars of Central PA Charter School (YSCP) in State College, founded an FLL
A Lego robot creation from YSCP.
group for YSCP. The new extracurricular activity was offered for the first time during the 2011-12 school year. Another local team making waves in FLL is State College Area Robotics (SCAR), composed of a group of home-schooled children. Amanov, who has an interest in robotics, especially the building component, says he wanted to share this passion with the students at YSCP. After research, he discovered that FLL had the best competitions available for the participants. “I didn’t know much going in,” he admits, “but we learned together as the season progressed.” A theme for the competition year is announced by FLL (this past season it was food contamination), and the challenge, based on a real-world scientific topic, and guiding rubrics are released in September. There are three subdivisions to each contest: a robotics sector, where teams design and program autonomous Lego robots, utilizing the Lego Mindstorms NXT kit, to complete a series of tasks within a given time allotment; a project sector, where teams are given a problem (relating back to the given theme) and then complete a research
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YSCP teachers Sarah Naeem and Palvan Amanov show off the “Frozonizor."
assignment, discover an innovative solution, and exhibit findings to a panel of judges; and a core-values sector, where teams illustrate how well they work together and demonstrate individual capability with each member playing a definitive role. The function of Amanov, along with his co-coach, Sarah Naeem, is to be a mentor and advocate for Danila Berezin (11 years old), Isha Chakraborty (11), Riya Chakraborty (11), Jason Gines II (11), Roshan Haque (11), Oliver Rose (12), and Esman Umarov (12) — otherwise known as Robo Scholars. Especially at the beginning of the competition year, these students dedicate copious amounts of time to the cause. “We met after school every Tuesday and Thursday, as well as a number of Saturday mornings,”
Amanov explains. “We had to work hard, especially at the beginning because this was a first for all involved. Yes, there were some students who were good with electronics; others with building. But there were elements of hardware, software, and sensors, too, and that was all new to the students. “It took several weeks to familiarize them with the introductory yet sophisticated programming on the computer. Now, they are all comfortable with the programming language. They have come so far.” Constructing the robot, named Beemo, was a common preference for many of the students. “Using technology to build robots to perform different tasks was my favorite part,” Gines II says. “It was fun putting parts together to build the robot,” agrees Umarov. “And when we got trophies that showcased our work, it was so cool!” Yet kids will be kids. “My favorite part was skipping classes!” Haque boldly states with a sly grin. Equally as important in the learning process is overcoming challenges — such as fitting the robot within the size and weight specifications. “It’s hard to make a robot do 10 different tasks within the set guidelines,” says Rose. “The design and structure process wasn’t easy,” adds Isha Chakraborty. “It’s hard to picture how it’s going to look and if it’s going to work once it’s put together.” In addition to parlaying excitement about science and technology and just plain being fun, the involved individuals acquire many other applicable life skills, equally evident to the students and adults associated with this
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Sarah Dangelo of SCAR programs a robot to perform a task.
team, no matter the capacity. For example, Gines’s father, Jason, found it easy to support his son’s newfound extracurricular activity even though it ate up a lot of family time. “My son has learned lifelong lessons … lessons that can be transferred to his grades, his life,” the elder Gines says. “He has learned that to see reward, and to achieve something great, you need to put in the time — have a dedicated work ethic. “The discipline he has shown is in no small part due to Palvan’s commitment to the program. It is a sure reflection of the advisors’ involvement.” What do the students think? “Being involved in FLL has taught me cooperation,” says Haque. “It is easier to use teamwork to get through difficult situations than to try to find an answer on my own.” Gines II adds, “We troubleshoot together. There really is no arguing because your team needs you.” And Rose acknowledges how being part of the team has helped him prepare for other activities. “Above all, it’s helped with any
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amount of stage fright I used to have,” he says with a touch of satisfaction. The Robo Scholars’ arduous perseverance paid off with several awards won at the competitions they entered. At their qualifying tournament in Pottstown, the team was awarded first place for Robot Performance as well as second place overall. At the regional tournament, held in Philadelphia, the team took the first-place honor for Innovation and Strategy. “One of the most exciting things I learned through this process is that kids are able to achieve anything if they work hard and are regularly guided toward a goal,” Amanov humbly says. “It takes the whole team to collaborate and be determined to succeed. This includes parents, who may not be at the front end of the whole story.” Jen Dangelo decided to take on coaching the State College Area Robotics team after hearing about FLL from a friend. She knew of several children from a homeschooling group with which she is involved that she thought might be interested and be willing to dedicate the time needed. When she joined with her three daughters — Gracie (11 years old), Ruthie
(13), and Sarah (14) — she was able to form a team. This was their second year of competing. In addition to Dangelo’s three children, the team has Charlotte Getson (14), Bridget Gindhart (13), Jacob Gindhart (14), Ben Servey (10), and Katelyn Servey (13). While still difficult to coincide schedules to put in the much-needed time to make the team effort worthwhile, these children (and their families) do enjoy a bit more flexibility when arranging their twice-weekly meetings. Dangelo starts her meetings with teamwork activities. “We need something to bring us together, keep enthusiasm levels up, and get us to focus,” she says. Her group took note of this coaching mentality and moved forward together. “It takes a lot of teamwork,” says Katelyn Servey. “If you try to do any of it individually, you won’t get anywhere.” Even though much of the effort is science-based, Dangelo is thrilled with the multiplicity of skills her team acquires throughout the process. “They have learned so much in a realworld experience … things that simply can’t be taught from a book,” she says. “They gain
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The SCAR team with its coach, Jen Dangelo.
knowledge of presentation skills, research, writing, vocabulary, problem solving, critical thinking, and public speaking. To see them continually improve brings a lot of joy.” SCAR also is similar to Robo Scholars in their expressions of positivity when asked about being involved with the program. “The best part is getting together and hanging out as a team,” Katelyn Servey expresses. “We’re having so much fun, it doesn’t even seem like work!” Then she (slightly begrudgingly) adds, “It’s even brought me closer to my brother.” And just like Robo Scholars, the members of SCAR were rewarded for their tenacity at the competitions they entered. At their qualifier in Philadelphia, they were awarded first place overall. They followed that with a third-place overall finish at the state competition, also held in Philadelphia. “We could tell that we had put in more time than other competing teams,” says Jacob Gindhart. “We felt like we tried harder, so the payoff felt right.” In addition to being a time obligation, being part of FLL is a financial commitment. Dangelo was quick to point out that one of SCAR’s biggest challenges was having enough money to
earn the supplies needed to compete. In fact, just one NXT kit costs around $260, and both Robo Scholars and SCAR had at least two with which to experiment and build the best robot they could. Couple that expense with the cost of travel, hotel stays, and food bills during competitions, and the amount spent per family swiftly adds up. Linda Getson, mother to one child on the team and a staunch supporter of SCAR, stepped forward to take on a “sponsorship role.” She asked local businesses for donations (their names are on the back of the team T-shirts worn to competitions) and helped organize a yard sale with all proceeds going toward the cost of the NXT kits. SCAR will once again be looking for community sponsors in the coming competition year. Although FLL may be more widely known for the robotics component of their competitions, it is the students’ research-based projects that are equally impressive. This past academic year, each team had to explore a problem that today’s scientists are trying to solve relating to food contamination. Robo Scholars invented the “Frozonizor”
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— a device designed to be attached into a refrigerator vegetable crisper to eliminate bacteria from fruits and vegetables using ozone technology. While eliminating bacteria, which, the team researched, is a common cause of more than 25 million illnesses and 1,300 deaths in the United States annually, the Frozonizor also extends the life of fruits and vegetables. The outbreak of listeria in cantaloupes helped move SCAR in the direction it pursued. The team discovered a way to remove listeria from cantaloupes using a short blast of steam followed by a drying component (and then steam and dry once more), and it aimed its findings to cantaloupe farmers. The “steam and dry” would not affect the fruit, it determined, because of its thick skin. Allison Felix, the operational partner for the Southwest/Central Pennsylvania FLL region, can’t speak highly enough about the merits of FLL. “It is an extremely well-done program and is so much more than a robot competition. It is based on FLL core values, including their trademarked ‘gracious professionalism’ and ‘cooperitition.’ It provides students with the
opportunity to apply science, math, technology, and engineering-design knowledge and process skills to work in teams, conduct research, solve problems, and communicate information,” she says. “It is so engaging because it is all done in an atmosphere that is similar to a sporting event. It’s even known as ‘sport for the mind.’ ” In addition to helping children learn how to be competitors, FLL stresses the value of recognizing the importance of nonsuccesses as well. “Students need to understand the value of persistence and learning from failure rather than being dejected,” Felix says. “It is our hope that they also learn that to complete the challenge and compete in the tournament is an accomplishment in itself.” Above all is the sense of self-satisfaction each involved individual feels. Amanov sums up his first year leading the Robo Scholars saying, “It was worth it. It was worth it.” T&G Amy King is a contributor to Town&Gown, and teaches preschool at Grace Lutheran Preschool & Kindergarten. She lives in State College with her husband and three children.
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Considering the
Alternative While four-year colleges have been the normal choices for years, schools such as South Hills and CPI offer programs and options for those seeking something different By Carolyne Meehan
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A
a new two-year degree program for the school. She spends most of her class time in a clinical room that is set up like a doctor’s office, with state-of-the-art equipment. “Our school is very hands on — that’s what I love about it,” she says. She hopes to find a job as a medical assistant in a physician’s office or to work as a phlebotomist in a hospital setting. The odds of her gaining employment in her field are very favorable, based on the school’s statistics — 89 percent of South Hills graduates secure jobs post-graduation. There are close to 6,000 South Hills graduates in Centre County, with degrees in the fields of business, health care, technology, and law. “You wouldn’t believe how hard our students work,” says David Shaetkin, director of education at South Hills. He explains that students spend 25 hours a week in class compared to 15 or 16 in a university setting. “When we compare our curriculum to other universities, our students are getting the same in two years that other students get in four.” State High alums Josh Brown and Will Heckman will attest that fouryear colleges and big universities are not for everyone. Brown decided to enroll at South Hills, which has 425 students on its State College campus, after discovering that he didn’t like the 300-person classes and limited office hours of his professors at Penn State. Josh Brown (top) and Will Heck“I prefer man are each State High alums a smaller who are taking classes at South Hills. environment
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John Hovenstine (3)
ccording to labor statistics, the demand for jobs requiring technical education is outpacing the demand for jobs requiring traditional four-year college degrees. In Pennsylvania, the need for certified, trained technical professionals has never been greater. In a town with a strong university presence, considering a two-year degree program or a skill-specific certificate can be challenging. Students who do seek alternatives in post-high school education are finding success through schools such as South Hills School of Business and Technology in State College and the Central Pennsylvania Institute of Science and Technology in Pleasant Gap. “It’s tough in a college town to open up other alternatives,” says Susan Brindle, head counselor of the Stage College Area High School counseling staff. Eighty-one percent of graduates from State High attend four-year colleges. “It’s the community expectation.” “Our job is to point out their strengths academically and their weaknesses academically and what job possibilities are out there,” Brindle explains of counseling students on their post-graduate education decisions. Seven percent of State High students enroll in institutions with two-year-degree programs. For some students, this choice is an easy one. Others need more assurance. A recent graduate came to Brindle and said, “Are you sure I am making the right decision? All my friends are going to four-year colleges.” For South Hills student Jess Steele, attending a four-year college was never a consideration. She didn’t know what she wanted to do when she finished high school, so she joined the Jess Steele worked eight years workforce. After in retail before deciding to eight years in enroll in the medical-assistant retail, she decided program at South Hills. it was time to start a career. She enrolled at South Hills in the medical-assistant program,
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Darren Weimert (5)
where if you don’t understand something you can go and talk to a teacher after class, find them in their office, or e-mail them and get a response that day,” he says. He values the one-on-one interactions and relationships he has developed with faculty. He just finished his first year in the criminal-justice program and plans to put his degree to work in policing or corrections on the state level. Like Brown, Heckman also spent some time at Penn State before deciding on South Hills. “I was young and I didn’t know what I wanted out of life,” he says of his exit from the university. Having grown up in a family in the hotel bar and restaurant business with 10 years of management and service experience under his belt, Heckman was feeling it was time to start his own thing — his goal is to open his own sports bar and grill in town. He is working toward his business-administration Jessica Dolan earned an associate degree at South Hills and now owns her own management and marketing company, Room to Breathe. degree — he came to South Hills to learn how to run a business and to South Hills in 1998. She opened a homelearn how to keep the books. During the organizing and staging business, Room to course of a social-networking class, he created Breathe, in 2004. a blog about Pittsburgh sports called “City of Around the same time that the organizing Champions.” He is proud to say he had the and design shows were becoming popular commissioner of the NFL and NFL players on TV, Dolan had an epiphany. She realized following him. that people were making a living by doing He says he wants to give back to the school the things that she did naturally. During her that has given so much to him. “I offered to whole life she has been teased for her tidiness, come back and help with the marketing and constant rearranging, and insistence on having social-media stuff just for fun,” he says. things in the right place. Many alums come back to speak in classes, She built Room to Breathe from concepts including successful local business owner she took with her from her South Hills Jessica Dolan. She earned her associate degree education. She applies key marketing in business, management, and marketing from strategies from her course work, and follows
Tom Fryer is a heavy equipment student at CPI.
the same format of a business plan she created for a class years ago. Learning the crucial statistic that says most businesses fail in the first three to five years stuck with Dolan. “I promised I would stick with it for five, and reassess — now here I am going strong and bigger than ever,” she says. Because she didn’t know what she
wanted to do when she finished high school, Dolan was given the hard line from her parents. They said, “If you don’t go to school, you need to find a place to live,” words which may sound familiar to many. Dolan knew that a four-year college wasn’t for her — and she found an alternative that, in her words, allowed her to figure out the direction her life was supposed to take. “Why take four years to get it done, when I can do it in two?” says recent Bald Eagle High School graduate Kristine Chiodo. She enrolled at South Hills for the legal-assistant program — she likes research and has had some experience in the field through her time at the Central Pennsylvania Institute of Science and Technology. Like other high school students from Bald Eagle, Bellefonte, and Penns Valley, Chiodo had the opportunity to spend half of her school day at CPI, where students can choose from close to 20 areas of study ranging from precision machine technology to culinary arts. She participated in the protectiveservices program in which students learn basic skills in police science, fire science, and emergency medicine. In addition to this program, she chose to take a Dale Carnegie course, which she says proved to be of great value to her growth as a shy student. “It was all about getting you out of your shell and being able to talk to people without being nervous,” she explains of the
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course. “I’m able to talk with people now.” MaryAnn Volders, director of the secondaryeducation programs at CPI, works to make students aware of technical education Todd Taylor is director of adult and and career post-secondary education at CPI. fields at an early age. This fall, she hopes to reach out to middle school students in an effort to get them thinking about their programs for high school — enrollment from high schools was down this year, falling from 410 to 370. “Students need to find a niche,” Volders says. For many, sitting through seven or eight periods a day in the traditional classroom is
not what they need. “They come here and they work with their hands — they do well here. They are skilled when they leave.” According to the test scores through the National Occupational Competency Testing Institute, 86 percent of CPI students score in the advanced or competent range. The tests are written and hands on, conducted by industry representatives who come in to test in specific areas. For some students, a skills certificate with high test scores is enough to get them into a job post-high school. Other students, such as recent CPI graduate Katherine Purnell, go on to pursue more education in their fields of study. “I am thinking about what’s best long term,” says Purnell, who can see herself designing business logos or laying out magazine spreads in her future. She currently does freelance photography. She was the recipient of the Most Outstanding Student award for the graphic-design and publishing-technology program at CPI. She also earned the John Wayne Memorial Media Arts Scholarship
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from Bellefonte High School. Job-placement statistics played a huge role in her decision to enroll in a four-year bachelor’s degree in graphic-design program at Penn Technical College in Williamsport. After visiting the school, she was impressed by the technology and examples of student Commercial driver’s license instructor Dave Priester (right) watches student David Shannon working the simulator at CPI.
works on display. The small class sizes also were appealing. She is very thankful for her experience and CPI, and realizes that not all kids have this kind of opportunity. “Not all people take tech school seriously,” she says, “but it really prepared me for college.” Despite the rising costs of education for the American family, there is still the need to continue education beyond high school. Just this spring, Halliburton, one of the world’s largest oil-fieldservice companies, came to CPI looking to hire 20 diesel technicians. A job in this field starts in the $40,000 range and has the potential to reach into the $70,000 range over time. It takes only
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the necessary training and licenses to become a diesel tech. Yet this year, CPI couldn’t fill Halliburton’s request. “They are searching hard for these technicians,” says Todd Taylor, director of adult and post-secondary education at CPI. “We’d like to help them meet that need.” Employers today are looking for specialized skill sets. Taylor explains that CPI is regularly updating their certificate programs to match the needs of the high-demand occupations serving Central Pennsylvania. It is their mission to look at what the industry recognizes as the highest credential and then integrate it into their program. The nursing program at CPI always has a huge waiting list. The one-year program of 1,560 hours is the longest offered by the school and has the highest rate of job placement. The commercial-drivers-license program is a short two-month program that can lead a driver to a $50,000 annual salary in today’s road and gas industry. CPI also is working to offer two-yeardegree programs to align with current courses. Learners of all ages, high school and beyond,
& E V E N T R E N TA L S
are finding programs to meet their needs at CPI. Forrest Kear has been a truck driver for most of his professional career. At 45 years old, he was looking for a way to fulfill a childhood dream and discovered CPI’s heavy-equipmentoperations program. “I got hired in a new job before I even graduated,” he says. He is now working for Glen O. Hawbaker Inc., driving a tri-axel truck. He does construction on the side and hopes to do more heavy-equipment operations in the future with Hawbaker. Taylor credits the board at CPI and the school districts for being forward thinking in looking for ways to better serve the community. “They see the need for quality technical education,” he says. “The time is right to offer accessible, affordable, and accredited education.” T&G Carolyne Meehan is a writer and educator. She lives in State College with her husband and two young boys.
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Taste of the Month
Town&Gown’s Monthly Focus on Food
If it’s happening in Happy Valley, it’s in Town&Gown!
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ThisMonth on Credit: Courtesy of Capital Concerts
GREAT PERFORMANCES Tanglewood 75th Anniversary Celebration Friday, August 10, at 9 p.m. Tanglewood is one of the world’s most beloved music festivals and serves as the summer home for the famed Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO). As part of the PBS Arts Summer Festival, this historic concert will feature the BSO, the Boston Pops Orchestra, and the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra, under the direction of conductors John Williams, Keith Lockhart, and Andris Nelsons.
Performers will include pianists Emanuel Ax and Peter Serkin, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter, and vocalist James Taylor, as well as the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, John Oliver, conductor.
GREAT PERFORMANCES Vienna Philharmonic Summer Night Concert Friday, August 31, at 9 p.m.
For additional program information, log on to wpsu.org
the world of dance in music by Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky, and Richard Strauss. The concert also features performances of Debussy’s “La Mer,” and the Austrian favorite “Wiener Blut” (“Viennese Blood”) by waltz king Johann Strauss.
Jazz@thePalmer
Constellations, a jazz quintet featuring Penn State students, will perform in the Palmer Lipcon Auditorium at the Palmer Museum of Art on Thursday, August 23, at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free; however, because seating is limited, tickets are required. For ticket information, visit wpsu.org/jazzatthepalmer. The concert will be recorded and broadcast on WPSU-FM as part of the weekly Jazz Show, beginning in November.
WPSU WINE FESTIVAL
Join conductor Gustavo Dudamel and the renowned Vienna Philharmonic under the stars in the magnificent gardens of Austria’s Imperial Schönbrunn Palace. Vienna Ballet dancers join the orchestra in celebration of
wpsu.org
PENN STATE PUBLIC BROADCASTING
Tickets are on sale now for the fourth annual WPSU Wine Festival on Sunday, September 16, from 1 to 5 p.m., at The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel. For additional information, or to purchase your ticket(s), go online to wpsu.org/winefestival.
AUGUST
U.Ed. OUT 13-0015/13-PSPB-TV-0001
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penn state diary
Summertime Hijinks Memories of a trip to the beach By Lee Stout
With Arts Festival fading in our memories and Grange Fair still a few weeks away, the thoughts of many around here turn to vacationing at the seashore. You feel the primeval urge to be in the water, to feel the waves, perhaps to sail, surf, or just calmly fish. It heals the soul and calms the tensions of modern-day life, especially after the year we’ve had around here. Every family has their favorite spots — Long Beach Island or towns between Atlantic City and Cape May on the Jersey shore; the Delaware beaches of Rehoboth, Bethany, and Dewey; the craziness of Ocean City, Maryland, or the peace of Assateague; and for those ranging farther, Virginia Beach and the Outer Banks, or north to Cape Cod, Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard, or the villages and islands along the coast of Maine. We go to swim, eat massive quantities of seafood, and slather on the lotion as we lounge on the beach, feeling either sensitive or defiant about getting some tan. I grew up very close to the ocean in Red Bank, New Jersey, about 25 miles south of New York City. This is the north shore — Sandy Hook, Sea Bright, Long Branch, and Asbury Park. Coming to Penn State in the summer of 1965, I discovered this was the part of the Jersey Shore largely unknown to Pennsylvanians, who rarely ventured north of Barnegat Lighthouse. The year 1965 was pre-Springsteen (and the Stone Pony in Asbury Park), not to mention Snooki and her pals in Seaside Heights who seem to represent the “Jersey Shore” to so many today. I quickly discovered saying I was from the Jersey Shore generated confusion — I was from neither the Wildwoods nor the wild woods of Lycoming County’s Jersey Shore. Few of my fellow students knew of Count Basie, “the Kid from Red Bank.” And I didn’t have either a Philadelphia or New York accent — how could I be from New Jersey? I surrendered to their geographic misconceptions.
As a young child in 1952, the author enjoyed rides on the boardwalk of Asbury Park.
However, in my second summer here in 1966, I had the opportunity to go to Atlantic Ci ty. To my frien ds in th e dorm, it was inconceivable that I could be from the Jersey Shore but had never been to Atlantic City. I blamed my parents; it was a long ride when the ocean was 15 minutes from home, there was a boardwalk in Asbury Park, and you didn’t need to travel far to be sunburned and bitten by mosquitoes. “Hendy” was my ride to Atlantic City. He had a girlfriend there, and if passengers would pay for his gas, we could all have a fun weekend at the beach. Besides, he had a convertible — how cool to ride to the beach with the top down. Six hours later, when I couldn’t comb my hair from the accumulated grime of zooming along in the back of an open car, that fantasy was over. We arrived at his girl’s shared beachcottage after 1 a.m. — too late to disturb the household, Hendy, Jack, Bill, and I agreed to doze in the car, in the driveway until morning. A couple of hours later, a drunken
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President Grant and his family go swimming at Long Beach in 1869.
brawl broke out across the street. With police arriving, we decided to vacate the driveway for a more peaceful side street. Hello, Mr. Mosquito, act one. Morning arrives — Hendy and his girl take us to nearby Ocean City. OK, this is more like it — cute girls, saltwater to salve the bites, and, that evening, a big dance in Sea Isle City. As I recall, Jack and I completely struck out at the dance, so we went for a walk on the beach. Despite sitting and talking, we were rousted by local law enforcement for violating the “no sleeping on the beach” ordinance. The fact that we were obviously not asleep didn’t seem to help — we were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Off to the police station and a $10 fine each. Miraculously, we found our friends again, but a falling out between the two young romantics meant another night in the car parked in a woodsy area. Act two of mosquito mania. Sunday morning’s financial assessment found us with just enough cash for coffee and four donuts, gas, and the bridge toll to get across the Delaware. The rest of the trip was made on US Route 322, which was originally called the “Lakes to the Sea Highway” — it goes from Cleveland to Atlantic City we learned that day, right through State College. Act three of the mosquito drama played out at Ritenour Health Center — more than 100 bites from an assortment of diveb o m b i n g b u g s . T h e doc pre sc ri be d hot showers to relieve the itch. Otherwise, we were the heroes of the dorm for our daring exploits. I’ve generally avoided Atlantic City ever since. But we will be at the beach again for a week this month. After all, it wouldn’t be summer without it. T&G Lee Stout is Librarian Emeritus, Special Collections for Penn State.
David Monk: The Art & Science of Teaching & Learning Because his father was a high school English teacher, David Monk grew up in an environment “where education was taken seriously and where good teaching was prized.” At Dartmouth College, he combined his interests into a bachelor’s degree in urban studies with an emphasis on economics and education, followed by a University of Chicago doctorate in educational leadership with an emphasis on the economics of education, and began a career examining resource allocation issues in educational systems. After 20 years on the Cornell University faculty, Monk became dean of Penn State’s College of Education in 1999, the first of many family ties to the university — his wife, Pamela, is a journalism senior lecturer, daughter Elizabeth is a liberal arts graduate, and son Andrew is executive chef at the Nittany Lion Inn. Over the past dozen years, Monk has worked with his colleagues to build on the College of Education’s reputation, enhancing faculty strength and improving program quality. Of particular note is the new Krause Innovation Studio, which the dean says will make the college “an international leader in the sensible application of technology for the improvement of teaching and learning.” As college and K-12 students start classes this month, Monk reminds their parents to provide encouragement and support. “We all need to work diligently at helping students of all ages make progress and realize potential.” The Penn State Bookstore thanks David Monk and all faculty and staff who carry out the university’s mission every day.
www.psu.bncollege.com 814-863-0205
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events
A Step in the Right Direction Inaugural festival brings sustainability to forefront By Iris Peters
The hot, scorching days of summer are coming to an end. Vacation time is limited, and those afternoons spent lying by the pool are numbered. Kids are finalizing their schedules and preparing to go back to school — but that doesn’t mean they are the only ones who can learn something new this fall. The Borough of State College’s sustainability committee has partnered with Transition Town State College and organized the inaugural Light Step, Right Step Festival and Energy Expo. The festival will be held September 8 and run from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on South Allen Street and Foster Avenue in State College, with events also being held at Schlow Centre Region Library, the Municipal Building, Sidney Friedman Park, and on campus at the MorningStar Home and The Living Machine. The main purpose of the event is to celebrate the sustainability efforts in the Centre Region, as well as educate others on these efforts and inspiring them to become involved. Meagan Tuttle and Joyce Eveleth are two members of the festival steering committee who began organizing the event in February 2012, which, coincidently was right around the same time that Transition Town State College, a nonprofit organization that looks at local energy issues, wanted to plan an energy expo. The two entities decided to join forces and turn their ideas into one big festival. “Transition Town State College’s focus is energy, so it worked out very nicely that they wanted to have a sustainability festival and focus on energy. This festival will go on for years and years and have a different theme each year,” Transition Town State College steering committee member Scot Chambers says. To make this event a success, it was vital for the community to hop onboard and give support. Ma-
jor contributors include Schlow Library, Discovery Space of Central Pennsylvania, and the Centre Area Transportation Authority (CATA), as well as the West Penn Power Sustainability Energy Fund, which awarded a grant to be put toward the festival. The festival will feature many vendors, including businesses, nonprofit organizations, and school groups that all focus on environmental sustainability. It will give everyone a chance to form connections within the community and join together for a common cause. “This is a small town and a lot of people are involved in a lot of different things, so we are planning activities to help begin merging these groups,” Eveleth says. “That is exactly what happened with Transition Town here. We started partnering with them to create more connections that way.” During the day there will be many hands-on activities for children, plus a storybook reading. Discovery Space will have free admission the whole day and there will be activities at Friedman Park. In addition to the activities for the kids, there will be events for adults. Dr. Richard Alley, author and Evan Pugh Professor in Geosciences, will speak about the history of energy and future energy options, as well as show some of his program, Earth: the Operators’ Manual. Following Alley, the documentary Carbon Nation will be shown. It explains what opportunities there are for the future of energy and different efforts going on in the country. Bill Kunze, Nature Conservancy’s Pennsylvania State Director, will give a talk called “The Not So Phantom Menace — Energy Demand in the 21st Century,” and State College Area School District teacher Nell Herrmann will talk about her experience and research on climate change from her research trip to Antarctica earlier this year. Presentations and workshops will be happening during the day as well, including a home-canning
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workshop by Spring Creek Homesteading Fund, a local nonprofit that supports local self-sufficiency by holding reskilling workshops and local-food initiatives. “An important part of sustainability is reskilling. Teaching people how to do things themselves at a more localized level like growing their own food and sewing their own clothes, rather than always having someone pay to ship it in to a Walmart or something like that,” Chambers says. CATA will demonstrate its new clean-naturalgas busses as well as adding one stop to the Blue Loop route that will take visitors to the Sustainability Experience Center for guided tours of the MorningStar Home and The Living Machine. The MorningStar Home is a completely ecofriendly and sustainable home designed and built by Penn State students in 2007. It produces more energy than needed for the home. The Living Machine was built in 2000 as the Senior Class Gift. It is a wastewater-treatment facility that uses plants and fungi in an all-natural process to eat or break down waste, turning contaminated water into clean water. Other activities during the day include the Centre Region Bicycle Coalition teaching a bicycle street-skills course and Freeze Thaw Cycles teaching bicycle safety. Even with all these activities and presentations, the festival would not be complete without local musicians and talents performing downtown, and great food prepared by local establishments. “We want to appeal to a larger crowd,” Eveleth says. “Some events, although they are great events, draw the same crowd. We want to make it very fun and get the whole community, university, and region educated and interested in sustainability and energy issues.” State College already has momentum toward sustainability efforts such as establishing a committee that focuses on sustainability within the borough and encouraging alternative transportation through CATA and the Centre Region Bicycle Association, so the steering committee is eager to spread the awareness even more. “There is a lot of initiative in State College and surrounding areas, but no one seems to know about it,” Eveleth says. “This is a good opportunity to celebrate what is going on and get people more involved and excited.” T&G For more information, visit www.lightsteprightstep.org. 67 - Town&Gown August 2012
COMING TO Bryce Jordan Center/ Medlar Field at Lubrano Park
August 1-3 Spikes vs. Hudson Valley Medlar Field at Lubrano Park 7:05 p.m. 4-6 Spikes vs. Aberdeen Medlar Field at Lubrano Park 7:05 p.m. Sat. & Mon.; 6:05 p.m. Sun. 11 Penn State Commencement Bryce Jordan Center 10 a.m. & 2:30 p.m. 15-16 Spikes vs. Jamestown Medlar Field at Lubrano Park 7:05 p.m. 17-18 Spikes vs. Auburn Medlar Field at Lubrano Park 7:05 p.m. 24-26 Spikes vs. Jamestown Medlar Field at Lubrano Park 7:05 p.m. Fri. & Sat.; 6:05 p.m. Sun. 27-29 Medlar Field at Lubrano Park Spikes vs. Auburn 7:05 p.m.
August
what’s happening
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Deadline for submitting events for the October issue is August 31.
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The first Farm Fest runs Aug. 3-4 at the Grange Fairgrounds
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11 The State College Microbrew Expo returns to Tussey Mountain.
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Ag Progress Days open in Rock Springs and run through Aug 16.
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The Bellefonte Arts & Craft Fair begins and runs through Aug. 18 in Talleyrand Park.
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The Grange Fair opens in Centre Hall and runs through Aug. 30.
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The Penn State women’s soccer team hosts defending national champion Stanford at Jeffrey Field.
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Penn State begins its fall semester.
It’s the first day of classes for State College Area School District.
Penn State’s women’s volleyball team opens its home schedule against Stanford at Rec Hall.
25The State
Theatre presents Fiddler on the Roof, Aug. 24-26.
Announcements of general interest to residents of the State College area may be mailed to Town&Gown, Box 77, State College, PA 16804-0077; faxed to (814) 238-3415; or e-mailed to dpenc@barashmedia.com. Photos are welcome. 69 - Town&Gown August 2012
Academics
Club Events
11 – Penn State Summer Commencment, BJC, PSU, 10 a.m. & 2:30 p.m., www.bjc.psu.edu. 27 – Penn State Fall Semester Classes Begin. 28 – SCASD First Day of School.
1, 8, 15, 22, 29 – S.C. Sunrise Rotary Club mtg., Hotel State College, S.C., 7:15 a.m., kfragola@psualum.com.
Children & Families 1 – “Read It, Watch It” Summer Movie Series: Nancy McPhee, State Theatre, S.C., noon, www.thestatetheatre.org. 4, 18, 25 – Saturday Stories Alive, Schlow Centre Region Library, S.C., 11 a.m., www.schlowlibrary.org. 6, 20 – Drop In Knitting, Schlow Centre Region Library, S.C., 6:30 p.m., www.schlowlibrary.org. 7-8 – Dream Big! Read End of Summer Party, Schlow Centre Region Library, 10 a.m. Tues., 2 p.m. Wed., www.schlowlibrary.org. 8 – “Read It, Watch It” Summer Movie Series: Legend of the Guardians, State Theatre, S.C., noon, www.thestatetheatre.org. 9, 23 – Drop In Embroidery Group, Schlow Centre Region Library, S.C., 6:30 p.m., www.schlowlibrary.org. 15 – “Read It, Watch It” Summer Movie Series: Flicka, State Theatre, S.C., noon, www.thestatetheatre.org.
Class & Lectures 7 – “24 Hours at Manassas Junction; Second Manassas Campaign” by Mark Trbovich, PA Military Museum, Boalsburg, 7 p.m., www.pamilmuseum.org. 7, 21 – “A Joint Venture,” a free class on hip and knee replacements, Mount Nittany Medical Center, S.C., 11 a.m. Aug. 7, 7 p.m. Aug. 21, 278-4810. 10 – Gallery Talk: “Color my World: Color Photographs from the Permanent Collection,” Palmer Museum of Art, PSU, 12:10 p.m., www.palmermuseum.psu.edu. 24 – Gallery Talk: “The Mother of Invention: Quilt Designs in the Terasaki Collection,” Palmer Museum of Art, PSU, 12:10 p.m., www.palmermuseum.psu.edu. 25 – Women’s Assault Prevention Seminar Series, Schlow Centre Region Library, S.C., 1:30 p.m., www.schlowlibrary.org. 31 – Gallery Talk: “Protecting Paper at the Palmer,” Palmer Museum of Art, PSU, 12:10 p.m., www.palmermuseum.psu.edu.
2 – 148th PA Volunteer Infantry Civil War Reenactment Group mtg., Hoss’s Steak and Sea House, S.C., 7:30 p.m., 861-0770. 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 – S.C. Downtown Rotary mtg., Damon’s Grill & Sports Bar, S.C., noon, http://centrecounty.org/rotary/club/. 8 – Member Information Session, CBICC, 200 Innovation Blvd., S.C., 8:15 a.m., 234-1829 or www.cbicc.org. 8 – Women’s Welcome Club of S.C., Oakwood Presbyterian Church, S.C., 7 p.m., www.womenswelcomeclub.org.
Community Associations & Development 9 – Centre County TRIAD mtg., Patton Township Municipal Bldg., S.C., 10 a.m., 237-8932. 9 – Business After Hours hosted by Clothes Mentor, 176 Rolling Ridge Dr., S.C., 5:30 p.m., 234-1829 or www.cbicc.org. 14 – Women’s Mid Day Connection Luncheon, Elk’s Country Club, Boalsburg, 11:45 a.m., 355-7615. 21 – Spring Creek Watershed Association mtg., Patton Township Mun. Bldg., 7:30 a.m., www.springcreekwatershed.org. 22 – Patton Township Business Association mtg., Patton Township Mun. Bldg., noon, www.ptba.org. 23 – Business After Hours hosted by Sleep Inn, 111 Village Dr., S.C., 5:30 p.m., 234-1829 or www.cbicc.org.
Exhibits 1-September – Contemporary and Traditional Chinese Art, The Bellefonte Art Museum, Bellefonte, 1 p.m., www.bellefontemuseum.org. Ongoing-19 – Color My World: Color Photographs from the Permanent Collection, Palmer Museum of Art, PSU, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Tues.-Sat., noon-4 p.m. Sun., www.palmermuseum.psu.edu. Ongoing-26 – American Quilts from the Terasaki Collection, Palmer Museum of Art, PSU, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Tues.-Sat., noon-4 p.m. Sun., www.palmermuseum.psu.edu.
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Ongoing-September 9 – Protecting Paper at the Palmer, Palmer Museum of Art, PSU, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Tues.-Sat., noon-4 p.m. Sun., www.palmermuseum.psu.edu. Ongoing-November – Foodways, PA Military Museum, Boalsburg, www.pamilmuseum.org.
Health Care For schedule of blood drives visit www.cccredcross.org or www.givelife.org. 2 – Grief Support Group, Centre Crest, Bellefonte, 6 p.m., 548-1140 or amboal@co.centre.pa.us. 6 – Breast Cancer Support Group, Mount Nittany Medical Center, S.C., 5:30 p.m., 231-7005. 8 – The Fertility Issues and Loss Support Group, Choices (2214 N. Atherton St.), S.C., 6:30 p.m., www.heartofcpa.org. 9 – The Diabetes Support Group, Mount Nittany Medical Center, S.C., 6 p.m., 231.7095. 14 – Alzheimer’s Support Group, The Inn at Brookline, S.C., 6:30 p.m., 234-3141 or 235-2000. 14 – Brain Injury Support Group, HealthSouth Nittany Valley Rehab Hospital, Pleasant Gap, 7 p.m., 359-3421. 14 – The Parent Support of Children with Eating Disorders, Mount Nittany Medical Center, S.C., 7 p.m., 466-7921. 16 – Better Breathers Support Group, HealthSouth Nittany Valley Rehab Hospital, Pleasant Gap, 2 p.m., 359-3421. 16 – The free H.E.I.R. & Parents class and tour of the maternity unit for expectant parents and support people, Mount Nittany Medical Center, S.C., 6:30 p.m., 231-3132. 20 – Cancer Survivor Support Group, Centre County United Way, S.C., 11:30 a.m., www.cancersurvive.org. 21 – Multiple Sclerosis Support Group, HealthSouth Nittany Valley Rehab Hospital, Outpatient Entrance, Pleasant Gap, 6 p.m., 359-3421. 28 – Stroke Support Group, HealthSouth Nittany Valley Rehab Hospital, Outpatient Entrance, Pleasant Gap, 1 p.m., 359-3421.
Music 1 – Bellefonte Summer Sounds from the Gazebo: Guitar Man, Talleyrand Park, Bellefonte, 7 p.m., www.bellefontearts.org. 3 – Friday Concerts on the Lemont Village Green: River Road Band, Lemont, 7:30 p.m., www.lemontvillage.org. 5 – South Hills Annual Music Picnic Series: The Les Shaw Band, South Hills School of Business & Technology, 6 p.m., www.southhills.edu. 5 – Bellefonte Summer Sounds from the Gazebo: Callanish, Talleyrand Park, Bellefonte, 7 p.m., www.bellefontearts.org. 10 – Friday Concerts on the Lemont Village Green: John I. Thompson IV, Lemont, 7:30 p.m., www.lemontvillage.org. 12 – South Hills Annual Music Picnic Series: Heritage Brass, South Hills School of Business & Technology, 6 p.m., www.southhills.edu. 12 – Bellefonte Summer Sounds from the Gazebo: Banjovial, Talleyrand Park, Bellefonte, 7 p.m., www.bellefontearts.org. 17 – Friday Concerts on the Lemont Village Green: Tussey Mountain Moonshiners, Lemont, 7:30 p.m., www.lemontvillage.org. 18 – Miss Melanie and the Valley Rats, State Theatre, S.C., 8 p.m., www.thestatetheatre.org. 19 – South Hills Annual Music Picnic Series: The Little German Band, South Hills School of Business & Technology, 6 p.m., www.southhills.edu. 23 – Constellations, Palmer Museum of Art, PSU, 7:30 p.m., www.palmermuseum.psu.edu. 24 – Friday Concerts on the Lemont Village Green: Valley Stomp, Lemont, 7:30 p.m., www.lemontvillage.org. 26 – South Hills Annual Music Picnic Series: Tommy Wareham & The Intrigues, South Hills School of Business & Technology, 6 p.m., www.southhills.edu. 31 – Friday Concerts on the Lemont Village Green: Ridge and Valley String Band, Lemont, 7:30 p.m., www.lemontvillage.org.
Special Events 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 – Lemont Farmers’ Market, 133 Mt. Nittany Road, Lemont, 3 p.m., www.lemontvillage.org. 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 – WingFest!, Tussey Mountain, Boalsburg, 5:30 p.m., www.tusseymountain.com.
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3-4 – Farm Fest, Grange Fairgrounds, Centre Hall, 4:30 p.m. Fri., 11 a.m. Sat., farmfest2012.paorganic.org. 3, 10, 17, 24, 31 – Downtown State College Farmers’ Market, Locust Lane, S.C., 11:30 a.m., www.statecollegefarmers.com. 4 – Boot Camp for Kids, PA Military Museum, Boalsburg, www.pamilmuseum.org. 4, 11, 18, 25 – Bellefonte Farmers’ Market, Gamble Mill Restaurant parking lot, Bellefonte, 8 a.m. 4, 11, 18, 25 – Millheim Farmers’ Market, Millheim American Legion pavilion, 10 a.m., www.oldgreggschool.com. 4, 11, 18, 25 – North Atherton Farmers’ Market, parking lot of Home Depot, S.C., 10 a.m., www.nathertonmarket.com. 7, 14, 21, 28 – Boalsburg Farmers’ Market, PA Military Museum, Boalsburg, 2 p.m., www.boalsburgfarmersmarket.com. 7, 14, 21, 28 – Tuesday Downtown State College Famers’ Market, S.C., www.statecollegefarmers.com. 9 – Fresh, State Theatre, S.C., 7 p.m., www.thestatetheatre.org. 11 – Microbrew Expo 2012, Tussey Mountain, Boalsburg, 5 p.m., www.tusseymountain.com. 14 – Bellefonte Elks Annual Gun Raffle Fund Raiser, Bellefonte Elks Lodge, Bellefonte, 404-9646.
14-16 – Ag Progress Days, Rock Springs, agsci.psu.edu. 17-18 – Bellefonte Arts & Craft Fair, Talleyrand Park, Bellefonte, www.bellefontefair.org. 23-30 – Centre County Grange Encampment and Fair, Centre Hall, www.grangefair.net. 27 – Otto’s Golf-Fest to benefit ClearWater Conservancy, Elk’s Club, Boalsburg, www.clearwaterconservancy.org. 31 – Registration deadline for 19th Annual Geri Reeve Open Golf Tournament, Penn State Blue & White Golf Courses, PSU, www.gerireeveopen.com.
Sports For tickets to the State College Spikes, visit www.statecollegespikes.com. 1-3 – State College Spikes/Hudson Valley Renegades, Medlar Field at Lubrano Park, 7:05 p.m. 4-6 – State College Spikes/Aberdeen IronBirds, Medlar Field at Lubrano Park, 7:05 p.m. Sat. & Mon., 6:05 p.m. Sun. 11 – PSU/Villanova, women’s soccer (exhibition), Jeffrey Field, PSU, 7 p.m.
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The State College Spikes have 16 home games in August.
15 – PSU/Hartwick, men’s soccer (exhibition), Jeffrey Field, PSU, 7 p.m. 15-16 – State College Spikes/Jamestown Jammers, Medlar Field at Lubrano Park, 7:05 p.m. 16 – PSU/Drexel, men’s soccer (exhibition), Jeffrey Field, PSU, 7 p.m. 17-18 – State College Spikes/Auburn Doubledays, Medlar Field at Lubrano Park, 7:05 p.m. 19 – PSU/St. John’s, women’s soccer, Jeffrey Field, PSU, 2:30 p.m. 24-26 – State College Spikes/Jamestown Jammers, Medlar Field at Lubrano Park, 7:05 p.m. Fri. & Sat., 6:05 p.m. Sun. 24 – PSU/Old Dominion, field hockey, PSU Field Hockey Complex, PSU, 5 p.m. 24 – PSU/Stanford, women’s soccer, Jeffrey Field, PSU, 7:30 p.m. 25 – PSU/Stetson, men’s soccer, Jeffrey Field, PSU, 7 p.m. 26 – PSU/Virginia, field hockey, Jeffrey Field, PSU, noon. 26 – PSU/Central Michigan, women’s soccer, Jeffrey Field, PSU, 2:30 p.m. 27 – PSU/Hartford, men’s soccer, Jeffrey Field, PSU, 7 p.m. 27-29 – State College Spikes/Auburn Doubledays, Medlar Field at Lubrano Park, 7:05 p.m.
BuyHereLiveHere.com 73 - Town&Gown August 2012
31 – PSU/Duquesne, men’s soccer, Jeffrey Field, PSU, 7 p.m. 31 – PSU/Stanford, women’s volleyball, Rec Hall, PSU, 8 p.m.
Theater 1-4 – Penn State Centre Stage presents I Love You, Your Perfect, Now Change, Penn State Downtown Theatre Center, S.C., 7:30 p.m. Wed. & Thurs., 8 p.m. Fri. & Sat. (2 p.m. matinees Wed. & Sat.), theatre.psu.edu. 1-5 – The 39 Steps, Millbrook Playhouse, Mill Hall, 2 & 7:30 p.m. Wed., 7:30 p.m. Thurs.-Sun., www.millbrookplayhouse.com. 2-5, 8-12 – The Fantasticks, Millbrook Playhouse, Mill Hall, 7:30 p.m. (2 p.m. matinee Aug. 12), www.millbrookplayhouse.com. 4 – Singing Onstage presents Cinderella, State Theatre, S.C., noon, www.thestatetheatre.org. 7-11, 14-18 – Seussical!, Boal Barn Playhouse, Boalsburg, 8 p.m., www.scctonline.org.
Millbrook Playhouse has its production of The 39 Steps August 1-5.
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19 – Nittany Shakespeare Festival presents Hamlet, State Theatre, S.C., 1 p.m., www.thestatetheatre.org. 23-25 – James and the Giant Peach, Boal Barn Playhouse, Boalsburg, 7 p.m. Thurs. & Fri., 11 a.m. & 2 p.m. Sat., www.scctonline.org. 24-26 – Fiddler on the Roof, State Theatre, S.C., 7:30 p.m. Fri. & Sat., 2 p.m. Sat. & Sun., www.thestatetheatre.org. T&G
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Red Cross Honor Roll of Milestone Blood Donors 5 GALLONS: Troy Alesi, Gary Brown, Arabella Confer, Galen Corl, Richard Harris, Thomas Miller, Linda Murphy, Lewis Orndorf, Robert Reed, Craig Rose, James Soltis, Amos Stoltzfus, Elmer Stoltzfus, Anne Trout, Daniel Turenne, Michael Walker, Richard Whitmer, John Woika 4 GALLONS: Chester Boonie, Sara Bourne, Melanie Brush, Tonia Bush, Larry Caram, Sandra Confer, Steven Constable, Jason Dalenberg, Laura Dorman, Andrew Estright, Diana Goodyear, Roy Hammerstedt, Lynn Laborde, Gloria Martz, Jeannine Mayo, Christine Meenan, James Miller, Daniel Nelson, Louise Neibauer, Margaret Richner, Paul Rolley, Frank Scierka, Michelle Spiering, Susan Taylor, Carolyn Thompson, Allen Treaster, Kerry Trout, Megan Van Orden, J Phillip Yanak, Stephen Zappe, Julia Zettle 3 GALLONS: Gideon Beiler, Louis Beranty, Victoria Bordi, Amanda Bressler, Jeffrey Carter, Marise Comley, Jennifer Delozier, Sharon Dreese, Julia Erdley, John Esh, Yvonne Foflygen
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A New Era Begins!
from the vine
Admiring Alsace
Region in France is producing top food-friendly wines By Lucy Rogers
The Alsace region makes most of its wines from five grapes — Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Muscat, Riesling, and Gewurztraminer.
Alsace is a wine region in the northeast corner of France — a 170-kilometer stretch of land that runs along the foothills of the Vosges Mountains, which border the region to the west. To the east is the Rhine River, which forms the border between France and Germany. The south and eastward facing slopes and proximity of the river, cool temperatures, warm autumn sun as well as varying limestone, granite, marl, and clay soils combine to create a perfect microclimate in which to grow white-wine grapes. This ideal slice of earth that is rich in minerals and other natural resources has been the source of conflict between France and Germany several times over the last several centuries. However, the region has belonged to France ever since the end of World War I, with the exception of the Germany’s annexing of the area during World War II, with Alsace being returned to French con-
trol in 1944. Not surprisingly, the area’s cultural heritage is a fusion of both countries. This blurred identity is evident in both the Alpine architectural style of Alsace’s many pristine villages and in its remarkable gastronomy that takes the best of German and French cuisines and creates something distinctly Alsatian. In terms of being a culinary center, Alsace has no equal within France, perhaps even the world, with the possible exception of Paris. But factor in that Alsace is producing what could quite possibly be the most foodfriendly wines in the world, and the concept of “Eat Locally, Drink Locally” takes on a gourmet twist. Brasseries and “winstubs” abound, offering traditional and modern takes on centuries-old local cuisine. Some of the most common fare are things such as flammekueche or (tart flambee in French) — a crusty dough topped with cream, bacon,
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Looking for Heroes They provide a helping hand, go the extra mile to improve our towns, have overcome adversity, or simply done something you thought deserved recognition. Town&Gown is now accepting nominations for people to profile in our Happy Valley Heroes Issue in December. E-mail your suggestions to editorial director David Pencek at dpenc@barashmedia.com.
Deadline is September 23, 2011
Deadline is September 28, 2012
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Donald E. Leitzell, CFP ®
Also visit us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter (@TownGown1). 1524 W. College Ave., State College • 814-234-2500 Securities offered through J.W. Cole Financial – Member FINRA/SIPC. Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. owns the certification AND in the U.S. Diversified Asset Planners and J.W. Cole Financial are independent firms. marks CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER ™ 79 - Town&Gown August 2012 83 - Town&Gown September 2011
and onions and then fired in a wood-burning stove — and choucroute — a type of sauerkraut made with potatoes and pickled sour cabbage and more often than not mixed with some kind of bacon, ham, and/or smoked meats — or baeckeoffe — a stew of marinated vegetables and meat cooked in wine. All of these German-sounding-yet-Frenchfoods pair perfectly with any number of local wines — 90 percent of which are white. It is interesting that such hearty, rich foods have found their oenological counterparts in white wines rather than red wines. The majority of those white wines are made from just five grapes: Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Muscat, Riesling, and Gewurztraminer, and, with the exception of Pinot Blanc, all are made to be 100-percent varietally pure; i.e., these are not blended wines but made from 100 percent of the grape that is on the label. As the rest of France was using regional and AOC names on their labels, Alsace has been putting the name of the grape on the bottle for more than a century. This is notable in that it is much easier to find the grape you want if you can see it on the label; otherwise, you need to know your geography and know in what region of France to find the varietal you are seeking. Here are the wines we used for our tasting. The Premium Wine and Spirits store on North Atherton Street did not have an extensive section of Alsatian wines, but there were at least enough for us to taste at least one if not two of the five dominant grapes and Pinot Noir. The panel overall was justifiably impressed with all the wines — some were better on their own than others, but every one of them was enhanced by the food, and the food was equally enhanced by the wine. I know I will be on the lookout for Alsatian wines when pairing food and wine. Rene Mure Cremant d’Alsace NV (PLCB code 18674 $21.99) — A little skunky on the nose but notes of bread and yeast eventually sneak through. Fine perlage and elegant, but perhaps lacking a little something for the price. Pinot Blanc, Auxerrois, Riesling, Pinot Gris, and Pinot Noir. Trimbach 2006 Riesling (current vintage in store, 2008, is listed as PLCB code 6625, $15.99) — One of the most reputable and prolific producers in Alsace, Trimbach’s entry-
level Riesling is generally a solid bet. This one, being slightly older, did have notes of diesel and subtle lemon in the nose, with flavors of apple, under-ripe apricot, with a honey and/ or mead-like quality to it on the palate. Trimbach 2004 Pinot Gris (current vintage in store, 2005, is listed as PLCB code 8494, $21.99) — Burnt rubber and petrol in the nose, honey, orange, and a bit of sour pineapple on the palate, this wine was fairly pleasing but really shone when paired with food. Trimbach 2005 Reserve Pinot Gris (PLCB code 8494, $21.99) — The smell of bad tap water (for lack of a better description) and isopropyl alcohol emanated from this wine initially, but we are glad we didn’t let it prejudice us against the taste of the wine, as it was the hit of the night. Lychee, pineapple, and honey combined to create a richer, more forward wine than the 2004 vintage, but still finished completely dry. If you can find it on the shelves, grab a bottle and see for yourself! Paul Blanck 2009 Riesling (PLCB code 18625, $21.99) — With crazy smells of sulfur/hardboiled eggs at first, this bouquet morphed into the scents of leather and diesel/petrol after a bit of time in the glass. The wine’s flavor was predominantly citrus and lemon and seemed to be missing something. Michel Fonne 2009 Dry Muscat (PLCB code 36857, $19.99) — This wine was my personal favorite of the tasting, with lots of fruit-cocktail flavor that never tasted syrupy or cloying — and yes, finished astonishingly dry. A great match for many styles of cuisine. Willm 2009 Gewurztraminer (PLCB code 36862, $17.99) — Aromas, peaches, nectarine with just the slightest hint of hot dog (!). Canned fruit cocktail with just a subtle note of five-spice, the wine was rich and did dry out a bit in the finish. Domaine Schlumberger 2008 Gewurztraminer Prince Abbes (PLCB code 18264, $27.99) — Sour milk and/or dairy note in the nose that leads to a creaminess on the palate, with lots of soft-fruit flavor. A little disappointing for the price, as it seemed sort of lackluster. T&G Lucy Rogers teaches wine classes and offers private wine tastings through Wines by the Class. She also is the event coordinator for Zola Catering.
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Tasteof the
Month
Jim K’s Curry
Sue’s Habanero Bourbon Peach
Jim K’s Chesapeake
Zesty Dry Rub
Wings from the Arena Bar & Grill
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On Fire!
Area restaurants offer an abundance of flavorful wing sauces
By Vilma Shu Danz Since 1998, the Tussey Mountain WingFest has become one of the most well-known outdoor events in Central PA, welcoming an average of 1,500 guests every Thursday night from mid-July to late August. The events feature live music and a friendly wing-off competitions. For seven weeks, the area’s best restaurants are invited to show off their award-winning wing sauces and compete for a chance at the Wing King title. Hungry wing eaters chow down more than 8,600 wings on average in just one night, and cast votes for their favorite. A champion is awarded a trophy every week and moves on to the WingFest Finals. “There isn’t a cash prize for being crowned the Wing King, and for
most of the participants it is all about the bragging rights,” explains Christie Hume, Tussey Mountain events manager. Marketing manager Aaron Weyman adds, “New this year, we are working on a Stanley Cup-style prize that will have a plaque on it with the winning restaurant’s name and will be passed from restaurant to restaurant each year.” This year’s 14th-annual WingFest began July 19 and ends with the finals on August 30. Admission is $5 for adults, and children 12 and under enter free. There is no fee to park and, once inside, tickets can be purchased to sample the wings. One ticket costs $1 and gets you two wings. Some of the restaurants participating this year include Garfield’s, Kildare’s, Café 210 West, Spruce Creek Tavern, Arena Bar & Grill, Home Delivery Pizza, Wingman Catering, Hublersburg Inn, Doan’s Bones, and the Down Under Steak House. In addition to the Tussey Mountain WingFest, there are a number of Centre County eateries offering wings tossed in a variety of fiery sauces, from Otto’s Hurricane Mary to Bonfatto’s Fire-in-the-Hole. But if you can’t take the heat, there are milder yet flavorful options such as the Arena Bar & Grill’s Honey Bourbon BBQ or the Toftrees Down Under Steak House’s Sesame Teriyaki.
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Arena Bar & Grill
1521 Martin Street, State College (814) 237-8833 thearenabarandgrill.com
Wings are the best-selling appetizer at the Arena Bar & Grill. Whether you prefer your wings spicy or mild, with 19 sauces and counting to choose from, there is a wing sauce that will satisfy your taste buds. Every year, the restaurant calls out to its loyal customers to submit their unique wing-sauce recipes, and one is chosen for WingFest. “We announce to our customers about a month before the WingFest and we give them until the week before we compete to submit their recipes,” explains bar and restaurant manager Karyn Withers. “We make small batches of each one and pick one to take up with us. We name the sauce after them and they usually end up on our menu.” In addition to the customer’s sauce, the Arena brings up to eight different sauces to compete in WingFest each year, including their Honey Bourbon BBQ, Spicy Ranch, Sweet Garlic, and Zesty Dry Rub. Some other wing sauces available at the Arena include Jim K’s Chesapeake, Jim K’s Curry, Sue’s Habanero Bourbon Peach, Hot Garlic, Mild Garlic, Cajun
Garlic, Spicy BBQ, Ranch, Honey Mustard, and its hottest sauce, Suicide. “Our Suicide sauce is made with jalapenos, habaneros, cayenne, Cajun seasoning, and crushed red pepper — so it’s pretty hot,” says kitchen manager Brandon Aikey. Wing Night on Wednesdays, starting at 9 p.m. until midnight, is the perfect time to sample all the different flavors at the Arena for 35 cents a wing. “Our Wing Night is like the WingFest — you can order as few or as many as you want, so you can really get to try all the different sauces,” says Withers. “After the WingFest, people come in and request the flavors that they liked up at Tussey, and some of the more interesting flavors seem to be what people talk about, like our Zesty Dry Rub, Sue’s Habanero Bourbon Peach, or Jim K’s Curry.”
Toftrees Down Under Steak House 1 Country Club Lane, State College (814) 234-8000 toftrees.com/dining_downunder.php
Located at the Toftrees Golf Resort & Conference Center, the Down Under Steak House offers a casual-dining atmosphere with
Down Under Steak House’s Hot Wings (left) and Sesame Teriyaki. 83 - Town&Gown August 2012
Smoked wings (left) and a smoked chicken thigh from Otto’s Pub & Brewery.
spectacular views of the resort’s 18-hole golf course. Executive chef and State College native Randy Sherman offers six different wing sauces, from the classic hot or mild to the Bourbon BBQ, Chipotle Rum BBQ, Sesame Teriyaki, and Garlic Butter & Oil. He also makes a super-hot wing sauce by request. “We make all our sauces in-house with fresh, all-natural ingredients, real butter, and your wings are always made-to-order,” he explains. “We won the Tussey Mountain WingFest in 2005 and 2006.” This year, the Down Under Steak House will be competing again at WingFest on August 23. “We typically bring up four to five different sauces, and this year we are thinking about a new Spicy Pina Colada Caribbeanstyle wing sauce to take up,” says Sherman. Sample a full order of 10 wings for $9.99, or five wings for $5.99. Try the different sauces on their own or request a combination of sauces like the Hot Sauce with Garlic Butter & Oil or the Chipotle BBQ with the Garlic Butter & Oil.
Otto’s Pub & Brewery 2235 North Atherton Street, State College (814) 867-6886 ottospubandbrewery.com Otto’s Pub & Brewery gives diners the choice of regular or smoked bone-in wings as well as boneless wings and smoked chicken thighs. Chef Pete Herncane says, “The smoked wings are pretty unique because of the crisp texture of the skin and you can really taste our spice rub. We let the rub marinade into the chicken wings for about 10 hours before we smoke them in-house.” There are eight different sauces, including Curt’s Smokin’ BBQ, Mild Buffalo, Mango Habanero, Garlic Sesame, Thai Peanut, Sweet and Spicy Garlic, and the two hottest and most popular, Brother Rod’s Bhutty, and Hurricane Mary. If you can’t decide on what sauces to try, Wednesday Wing Night lets diners sample half a dozen wings with your choice of regular, smoked, or boneless, choice of sauce, and celery and blue cheese for $3.50 from 8 to 10 p.m.
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Herncane recommends pairing a lighter, less hoppy beer such as a pint of Otto’s Pilsner, Spruce Creek Lager, or the Hefeweizen with your wings. Bonfatto’s 205 Park Place, Bellefonte (814) 353-3330 bonfattos.com Bonfatto’s in Bellefonte has become famous for its Bonanza subs, award-winning bottled wing sauces, and the restaurant’s newest creation, Spice Cream. The business was originally a grocery and produce market in 1919 in downtown Bellefonte and has
grown to a family restaurant serving wings, subs, salads, pizzas, steaks, and seafood. Opened in 2000 in its current location, owner David Letterman started creating his signature wing sauces starting with the Original Buffalo-style sauce. By 2008, he had bottled seven different varieties, including RazzHab, Apple Pepper Jack, Peaches & Scream, Fire-in-the-Hole, Tongue Thai’d, and Hawaiian BBQ. “My tagline is Feel the Flavors because my sauces aren’t just for wings,” explains Letterman. “My Hawaiian BBQ is great as a marinade or a stir-fry. The Apple Pepper Jack is great on burgers, ribs, and baked beans. The Tongue Thai’d is a curry sauce with coconut milk, peanut butter, and basil, so it makes amazing chicken satay or a curry/rice dish.” Bonfatto’s won the 2007 Wing King title at WingFest and has won four consecutive years at the Blue & White Wing Fest since it began in 2008. In addition, in 2011, Letterman submitted his sauces to the Fiery Food Challenge competition in Texas. Out of 750 entries from around the country, Bonfatto’s Apple Pepper Jack and Fire-in-the-Hole
Bonfatto’s wings with Tongue Thai'd wing sauce.
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> Featured Selections < New to the Area Red Rooster, On-the-Go Café 685 Pleasant View Blvd, across from Capperella Furniture, Bellefonte. (814) 355-8584 Open 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m., Sunday. Red Rooster, On-the-Go Café (formerly Andy’s on the Go) is transitioning to a must-try, easy take-home source for wings, barbecue, and other comfort foods. It smokes all its own meats, including pulled pork, beef brisket, and, soon, smoked wings! Red Rooster makes all of its 10 wing sauces from Hot Garlic Ranch to Insanity! You can pick up dinner, take home a six-pack, or eat in. Remaining Dates for WingFest at Tussey Mountain
Bonfatto’s owner David Letterman.
August 2 August 9 August 16 August 23 August 30
each received a third place, and the Original Buffalo and RazzHab earned the Golden Chili Award. Bonfatto’s Thursday Wing Night gives diners an opportunity to sample the different sauces for $4 for six wings. The sauces also are available for purchase at the restaurant as gifts or to incorporate in your own dishes. They also can be purchased online at www. FeelTheFlavors.com. For those who are adventurous, try Bonfatto’s Spice Creams, which include a combination of premium French vanilla ice cream blended with the RazzHab sauce and miniature peanutbutter cups, the Peaches & Scream and granola, and the Apple Pepper Jack and pecans. “Think outside of the box and give it a taste,” says Letterman. “When people first try it, they have said Who would have thought that those two go together? but it’s a really good combination.” T&G
For more information on WingFest, visit www.tusseymountain.com/wingfest.php. Web Site Offers (visit www.townandgown.com for coupons on these special offers: Bonfatto’s: 3 Bonfatto’s Spice Creams for $10 (Regular price for each Spice Cream is $4.99). 3 Bonfatto’s Wing Sauces for $15. (Regular price for each Wing Sauce is $7.) Toftrees’ Down Under Steak House: $1 off a full order of wings. Arena Bar & Grill: $1 off the All-You-Can-Eat Pizza and Wings Buffet on Mondays, 7 to 10 p.m. (Regular price is $9.99).
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Dining Out Full Course Dining Allen Street Grill, corner of Allen Street and College Avenue, 231-GRILL. The food sizzles. The service sparkles. The prices are deliciously frugal. The menu is classic American grill mixed with popular influences from Mexico, Italy, and the Far East. AE, D, MC, V. The Autoport, 1405 S. Atherton St., 237-7666, www.theautoport.com. The all new Autoport offers exceptional dining featuring local produce and an extensive wine list. Tapas menu and special events every week. Catering and private events available. Live music. AE, D, DC, MAC, MC, V. Full bar. Bar Bleu & Bar Q, 113 S. Garner St., 237-0374. Authentic Kansas City Barbeque featuring smoked ribs, pork, wings, plus down-home sides and appetizers. Roadhouse & Sports Lounge upstairs. Upscale martini bar downstairs featuring live music 7 nights a week. Open for dinner every night at 5 p.m. AE, D, DC, ID+, MC, V. Full bar.
The Corner Room Restaurant, corner of Allen Street and College Avenue, 237-3051. Literally first in hospitality. Since 1855, The Corner Room has served generous breakfasts, lunches, and dinners to the community and its guests. AE, D, MC, V. Cozy Thai Bistro, 232 S. Allen St., 237-0139. A true authentic Thai restaurant offering casual and yet “cozy” family-friendly dining experience. Menu features wide selections of exotic Thai cuisine, both lunch and dinner (take-out available). BYO (wines & beer) is welcome after 5 p.m. AE, D, DC, MAC, MC, V. Damon’s Grill & Sports Bar, 1031 E. College Ave., 237-6300, damons.com. Just seconds from Beaver Stadium, locally owned and operated, Damon’s is the premiere place to watch sports and enjoy our extensive menu. Ribs, wings, burgers, steaks, apps, salads, and so much more. AE, D, MAC, MC, V, Full bar. The Deli Restaurant, 113 Hiester St., 237-5710. The area’s largest menu! Soups, salads, sandwiches, burgers, Mexican, Cajun. Dinners featuring steaks, chicken, seafood and pastas, heart-healthy menu, and award-winning desserts. AE, D, DC, LC, MC, V. Full bar.
Bill Pickle’s Tap Room,106 S. Allen St., 272-1172. Not for saints…not for sinners. AE, DIS, MAC, MC, V. Full bar. Carnegie House, corner of Cricklewood Dr. and Toftrees Ave., 234-2424. An exquisite boutique hotel offering fine dining in a relaxed yet gracious atmosphere. Serving lunch and dinner. Prix Fixe menu and à la carte menu selections now available. AAA Four Diamond Award recipient for lodging and fine dining. Reservations suggested. AE, MC, D, V. Full bar.
Key
AE ...........................................................American Express CB ..................................................................Carte Blanche D ................................................................ Discover/Novus DC........................................................................Diners Club ID+ ................................................ PSU ID+ card discounts LC ............................................................................ LionCash MAC .......................................................................debit card MC .......................................................................MasterCard V ......................................................................................... Visa .............................................. Handicapped-accessible
To advertise, call Town&Gown account executives Kathy George or Debbie Markel at (814) 238-5051.
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India Pavilion Exotic Indian Cuisine
Open Tuesday thru Sunday Closed Monday Lunch Buffet: 11:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Dinner: 5:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Carry Out Available
The Dining Room at the Nittany Lion Inn, 200 W. Park Ave., 865-8590. Fine continental cuisine in a relaxed, gracious atmosphere. Casual attire acceptable. Private dining rooms available. AE, D, DC, MAC, MC, V. Full bar. Faccia Luna Pizzeria, 1229 S. Atherton St., 234-9000, www.faccialuna.com. A true neighborhood hangout, famous for authentic New York-style wood-fired pizzas and fresh, homemade It.alian cuisine. Seafood specialties, sumptuous salads, divine desserts, great service, and full bar. Outside seating available. Sorry, reservations not accepted. Dine-in, Take-out. MC/V. Galanga, 454 College E. College Ave. 237-1718. Another great addition to Cozy Thai Bistro. Galanga by Cozy Thai offers a unique authentic Thai food featuring Northeastern Thai style cuisine. Vegetarian menu selection available. BYO (wines and beer) is welcome after 5 p.m. AE, D, DC, MAC, MC, V.
222 E. Calder Way 237-3400 www.indiapavilion.net
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Gamble Mill Restaurant & Microbrewery, 160 Dunlop St., Bellefonte; 355-7764. A true piece of Americana, dine and enjoy our in-house craft beers in a historic mill. Experience bold American flavors by exploring our casual pub menu or fine dining options. Six to seven beers of our craft beers on tap. Brewers Club, Growlers, outdoor seating, large private functions, catering. Lunch 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Mon.-Sat. Dinner 5-9/10 p.m. Mon.-Sat. “Chalk Board Sunday’s” 4-8 p.m. All credit cards accepted. The Gardens Restaurant at The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel, 215 Innovation Blvd., Innovation Park, 863-5090. Dining is a treat for breakfast, lunch and dinner in The Gardens Restaurant, where sumptuous buffets and à la carte dining are our specialties. AE, CB, D, DC, MC, V. Full bar, beer. Herwig’s Austrian Bistro, where bacon is an herb, 132 W. College Ave., herwigsaus trianbistro.com, 272-0738. Located next to the State Theatre. Austrian Home Cooking. Ranked #1 Ethnic Restaurant 5 years in a row. Eatin, Take-Out, Catering, Franchising. BYO after 5 p.m., D, MC, V.
We continue the Luna tradition by using only the freshest ingredients!
1229 S o u t h A t h e r t o n S t r e e t S tAt e C o l l e g e 234-9000 A
true neighborhood hAngout highly
regArded for itS populAr And AuthentiC
n ew y ork - Style
wood - fired pizzA
And Commitment to quAlity .
A wArd - winning pizzA . And i tAliAn CuiSine homemAde with only the beSt And freSheSt ingredientS . www . fACCiAlunA . Com
We offer wood-fired pizza, fresh homemade pasta, as well as wood-grilled items such as Baby Back BBQ Ribs, homemade meatloaf, various fish and seafood and our soon to be award winning burgers!
www.luna-2.com 2609 E. College Ave. • State College, PA • 234-9009
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Hi-Way Pizza, 1688 N. Atherton St., 237-0375. Voted best pizza. Twenty-nine variations of pizza, entire dinner menu and sandwiches, strombolis, salads, spectacular desserts, and beer to go. AE, D, DC, LC, MC, V. Full bar. India Pavilion, 222 E. Calder Way, 237-3400. Large selection of vegetarian and nonvegetarian dishes from northern India. Lunch buffet offered daily. We offer catering for groups and private parties. AE, D, (call ahead.) MC, V. Inferno Brick Oven & Bar, 340 E. College Ave., 237-5718, www.infernobrickovenbar.com. Casual but sophisticated atmosphere — a contemporary brick oven experience featuring a lunch and dinner menu of old- world favorites and modern-day revolutions. AE, D, MAC, MC, V. Full bar. Legends Pub at The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel, 215 Innovation Blvd., Innovation Park, 863-5080. Unwind with beverages and a casual lounge menu. AE, D, MC, V. Full bar.
Luna 2 Woodgrill & Bar, 2609 E. College Ave., 234-9009, www.luna-2.com. Wood-fired pizza, fresh pasta, wood-grilled BBQ ribs, seafood, burgers, and don’t forget to try the homemade meatloaf! Sumptuous salads and desserts. Full bar service. Outside seating. Sorry, no reservations accepted. Dine-In, Take-out. MC/V. Mario’s Italian Restaurant, 1272 N. Atherton St., 234-4273. The Italian tradition in State College. Homemade pasta, chicken, seafood specialties, veal, wood-fired pizza, calzones, rotisserie chicken, roasts, salads, and sandwiches, plus cappuccino and espresso! AE, D, DC, LC, MC, V. Full bar. The Mt. Nittany Inn, 559 N. Pennsylvania Avenue, Centre Hall, 364-9363, mtnittanyinn.com. Perched high above Happy Valley at 1,809 feet, the Mt. Nittany Inn offers homemade soups, steaks, seafood, and pasta. Bar and banquet areas available. AE, CB, D, MAC, MC, V. Full Bar.
Cool off with an Ice Cream Treat!
! ur tio to a ou or p k ec tdo Ch ou W E N
MILK • ICE CREAM • EGGS • CHEESE • JUICES POP'S MEXI-HOTS • BAKED GOODS • SANDWICHES ICE CREAM CAKES • & MORE!
MEYER DAIRY STORE & ICE CREAM PARLOR
Family friendly dining for all the sports enthusiasts.
Open Daily 8:00 a.m. - 11 p.m. • 2390 S. ATHERTON STREET • 237-1849
7 big screens all now in HD, NHL, NBA, catering tailgate and party packs available.
14 New Craft Beer Selections!
Wednesday Bike Night starts at 4pm, all you can eat wings for $9.99 & Live Entertainment 7-9 pm. Damon’s can cater your summer party or picnic, call us for more info.
Here’s Hospitality!
1031 East College Ave. 814-237-6300 • damons.com
Award Winning Food • Poolside Service Fire Pits • Nightly Specials & Entertainment Happy Hours 7 Days a Week 5-7
Rooms Still Available for Fall Weekends!
Call us Today for info on special Stay & Play Packages A Penn State Tradition since 1936! • Minutes from Campus 1405 South Atherton St. • State College, PA 16801 • www.theautoport.com • 814-237-7666 90 - Town&Gown August 2012
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Otto’s Pub & Brewery, 2235 N. Atherton Street, 867-6886, www.ottospubandbrewery.com. Our new location provides plenty of parking, great ales and lagers, full service bar, signature dishes made with local products in a family-friendly, casual atmosphere. AE, D, DC, LC MC, V, Full bar. The Tavern Restaurant, 220 E. College Ave., 238-6116. A unique gallery-in-a-restaurant preserving PA’s and Penn State’s past. Dinner at The Tavern is a Penn State tradition. Major credit cards accepted. Full bar. Whiskers at the Nittany Lion Inn, 200 W. Park Ave., 865-8580. Casual dining featuring soups, salads, sandwiches and University Creamery ice cream. Major credit cards accepted. Full bar. Whistle Stop Restaurant, Old Train Station Corner, Centre Hall on Rte. 144, 15 minutes east of State College. 364-2544. Traditional dining in an 1884 Victorian railroad station decorated with railroad memorabilia. Chef-created soups, desserts, and daily specials. Lunch and dinner served Wed.-Sun. D, MC, V.
Zola New World Bistro, 324 W. College Ave., 237-8474. Zola combines comfortable, modern décor with exceptional service. Innovative, creative cuisine from seasonal menus served for lunch and dinner. Extensive award-winning wine list. Jazz and oysters in the bar on Fridays. Catering. AE, D, MC, V. Full bar.
Good Food Fast HUB Dining, HUB-Robeson Center, on campus, 865-7623. A Penn State tradition open to all! Eleven restaurants stocked with extraordinary variety: Starbucks, Chick-fil-A, Higher Grounds, Joegies, Mixed Greens, Burger King, Panda Express, Piccalilli’s, Sbarro, Sushi by Panda, Wild Cactus, and more! V, MC, LC. Meyer Dairy, 2390 S. Atherton St., 237-1849. Stop and get your favorite flavor at our ice cream parlor. We also sell a variety of delicious cakes, sandwiches, and baked goods.
We love People, Beer & Local Foods Bringing you craft beer and fresh food using local products in a family friendly, casual atmosphere.
Food & Beer TO GO!
Bottles • Cases • Kegs • Growlers ring Now offe e ad m locally candy, , p a be er so & mugs!
2235 N. Atherton St. State College 814.867.6886 www.ottospubandbrewery.com
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Westside Stadium Bar and Grill, 1301 W. College Ave., 308-8959, www.westsidestadium barandgrill. com. See what all the buzz is about at Westside Stadium. Opened in September 2010, State College’s newest hangout features mouthwatering onsite smoked pork and brisket sandwiches. Watch your favorite sports on 17 HDTVs. Happy Hour 5-7 p.m. Take-out and bottle shop. Outdoor seating available. D, V, MC. Full Bar. T&G
Taste of the Month Town&Gown’s Monthly Focus on Food
Monday: Fajita Rita Day Classic Double fajitas $12.99 Tuesday: Burger with Fries $5.99 Wednesday: Half Order Texas French Fries $2.99, Whole Order $4.99 Thursday: Burger with Fries $5.99
The Ri-pear-ian from Fiddlehead
If it’s happening in Happy Valley, it’s in Town&Gown!
137 S. Allen Street · 234-5922
Herwig’s Austrian Bistro As seen on ESPN’s “Taste of the Town”
Pre-Show Dinner Discounts Truly Unique Dining Experience Authentic Homestyle Austrian Cuisine Mon-Wed: 11am-8pm (last seating) Thu-Sat: 11am-9pm (last seating)
Everything Fresh, Every Day!
Eat-in, Take-out, Catering and Franchising.
We Now Make Our Own Bread! NOW ACCEPTING CREDIT CARDS!
132 West College Ave, Downtown State College (next door to the State Theatre) • 814-272-0738
State College’s newest hangout
Try our onsite Smoked Pork Sandwich!
1301 West College Ave. • 814-308-8959 www.westsidestadiumbarandgrill.com 93 - Town&Gown August 2012
Go
for your next cookout
Organic Sweet Relish, Mayonnaise, Ketchup, BBQ Sauce, and Yellow Mustard.
Bring home our line of organic condiments. These organic items taste as nature intended, and are better for the Earth. They contain no synthetic pesticides, fertilizers, or genetically engineered ingredients. We carry over 280 Wegmans Organic products. Relish and pickles coming in June.
345 Colonnade Boulevard â&#x20AC;˘ State College, PA 16803 â&#x20AC;˘ (814) 278-9000
guide to advertisers
ATTRACTIONS, EVENTS,
BOALSBURG
GARDENING, LANDSCAPING
ENTERTAINMENT
A Basket Full ....................................29
Moon Brothers Landscaping ......63
Ag Progress Days ...........................74
Boalsburg Apothecary ..................29
Bob Perk’s Fund .......................... 101
Duffy’s Tavern ..................................29
Center for the Performing
Natures Hue .....................................29
SERVICES Centre County Airport Authority ................................ 52, 53
LODGING Hospitality Asset Management
Centre County Youth Service Bureau......................................... 100
Arts ................... Inside Front Cover
N’v........................................................29
Company .......................................88
Centre Elite Gymnastics, Inc ......... 4
Centre County Grange Fair .........40
Tait Farm Foods...............................29
Ingelby Lodge ..................................42
Clinefelters Flooring ......................... 6
Penn State Hospitality ..................... 4
Fitness Circuit .................................... 7
Centre Region Parks & Recreation.....................................41 Coaches Vs. Cancer ................... 103
BUSINESS, INDUSTRY Blair County Chamber Of
Light Step Right Step Festival.....58
Commerce ....................................73
Palmer Museum of Art ...................68
CBICC .................................................19
Goodall & Yurchak..........................75 MEDICAL Envision Laser Center.............. Inside Back Cover Foundation for Mount Nittany
Penn State All-Sport Museum ....74
Medical Center ............................13
Penn State Centre Stage ..............67
DINING
State Theatre....................................76
Autoport .............................................90
Toftrees Resort ................................53
Chili’s Grill & Bar .............................93
Hospital ..........................................67
Cozy Thai Bistro ..............................93
Mount Nittany Medical Center ...... 3 The Circulatory Center .................... 9
HealthSouth/Nittany Valley Rehab
Handy Delivery ................................18 Hoag’s Catering ..............................60 Koch Funeral Home .......................16 McQuaide Blasko ...........................15 P2P Computer Solutions ..............72 Red Cross .........................................75 Tire Town ...........................................61
AUTOMOTIVE
Damon’s Grill....................................90
Dix Honda .........................................63
Dantes ................................................91
Driscoll Automotive ...... Back Cover
Faccia Luna ......................................89
PRINTING, COPYING, MEDIA
Joel Confer BMW ............................75
Gamble Mill Restaurant.................89
Centre County Gazette ..................28
Degol Carpet ....................................43
Herwig’s .............................................93
Penn State Public Broadcasting
Home Reflections............................16
BANKS, FINANCIAL
Hotel State College ........................87
SERVICES
India Pavilion ....................................88
Frost & Conn Insurance .................. 4 Kish Bank ............................................ 2 Penn State Federal Credit Union ..............................................99 State College Federal Credit
Meyer Dairy Store & Ice Cream Parlor ..............................................90 Otto’s Pub .........................................92 PSU Food Services (Hub Dining) .................................92
(WPSU)...........................................62 REAL ESTATE, HOUSING
Tubbies ..............................................53
Chambers, Scot-Keller Williams..........................................25
Wegmans...........................................94 Westside Stadium ...........................93
Realty........................................... 101
Whistle Stop Restaurant ...............92
Kissinger Bigatel & Brower ..........14
Zola New World Bistro...................89
Lions Gate Apartments .................63
Confer’s Jewelers ...........................21 Mid State Awning & Patio Company .......................................21 Penn State Federal Credit Union ..............................................20 Pizza Mia............................................21
Hurvitz, Eric-RE/MAX Centre
Mount Nittany Residences Inc. ...97 State College Area School District ............................................35 State College Friends School .....49 The Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School ............................................51
Penn State Bookstore ...................65
Realty..............................................17
Susquehanna Bank .......................11
EDUCATION
Moyer Jewelers ...............................23 Squire Brown’s ................................48
Vantage Investment
Black Walnut Body Works............21
Jack Harper’s ...................................42
Cali, Tom-RE/MAX Centre
Tavern Restaurant............................. 1
BELLEFONTE SECTION
Collegiate Pride ...............................48
Berks Homes....................................61
Union ..............................................40
Advisors LLC ............................. 101
SHOPPING, RETAIL Aurum Jewelers & Goldsmiths ....16
Ring, Nancy- RE/MAX Centre Realty..............................................98 RETIREMENT SERVICES Foxdale Village ................................23 Home Instead Senior Care ..........27 Presbyterian Senior Living ............. 8
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VISITOR INFORMATION Central PA Convention & Visitors Bureau............................................12
lunch with mimi
Looking to Make Wise Decisions Former education leader talks about current state of university, school district
96 - Town&Gown August 2012
Darren Weimert
Helen Wise had held many leadership positions, particularly in education, before her retirement in 1996. She was deputy chief of staff for Governor Robert Casey, the executive director of the Delaware Education Association, past president of the Pennsylvania State Education Association, former president of the National Education Association, taught junior high at State College Area School District for 15 years, and was elected to the Town&Gown founder Mimi Barash Coppersmith (left) talks with Penn State Board of Trustees in Helen Wise at Harrison’s in State College. 1969 and was reelected for succeeding terms until her retirement from the board When you ran for the board what motivated in 1990. you to do it and what did you seek to achieve? During the 21 years she served on the board, Helen: It was out of a clear blue sky when she was a member of numerous committees, in- a small group of people in State College came cluding chairing the special advisory committee on to me and said: We would like you to consider affirmative action and the committee on educational running for the board of trustees in 1969. And policy. She also was a member of the executive they had already contacted Jesse Arnelle, and committee from 1973 until 1990, and served on wanted the two of us to run. Jesse Arnelle was the presidential-selection committee for Penn State the first black person elected and I was the first president Bryce Jordan. woman elected. There had been women apBorn in Sussex, New Jersey, she came to State pointed to fill positions but they weren’t quite College when she was 10 and graduated from Penn sure what to do with either one of us. State with a bachelor’s degree in history, a master’s Mimi: What did they want you to do? degree in education, and a doctor’s degree in eduHelen: It seemed to me and the people who cation in curriculum and instruction. talked to me that the board did a really good job She and her husband of 63 years, Howard building buildings and expanding the university, Wise, a retired SCASD teacher, have three sons, but wasn’t paying much attention to students, who each attended Penn State, and eight grandchil- instruction, and faculty. I thought that was an dren — two are recent PSU graduates. area that I could do something about. Back Town&Gown founder Mimi Barash Copper- then, the board met only twice a year. They smith sat down with Wise to discuss the reorgani- rubber-stamped what the executive committee zation of the board of trustees and the challenges had done, and, frankly, they didn’t know what facing public education. they would do with me. They thought I’d be Mimi: With all that is going on in our town interested in going with the women to see the and our gown, I thought it would be interest- flower arranging, and I declined. But I found six ing for the two of us to get together to spotlight or seven other people and we studied very hard the whole thing called board of trustees. Let’s that year how to reorganize the board, how to start this conversation with: We are two people make it more functional, more reflective of the who served on Penn State’s board of trustees university, and to include students and teachers because we really wanted to make a difference. as we went into discussion.
Mimi: So, this group of six or seven led a campaign to reorganize the board? Helen: And we did. Mimi: What were your major changes? Helen: We met six times a year instead of twice and we had a gentleperson’s agreement that no chair would serve more than three years — and that has never been violated. It’s not written anywhere, but everyone has agreed to serve three years since that time. It was at that time also that Governor Shapp appointed the first student to the board. That was a whole change to the concept, and from that we would have faculty sit in on board meetings and involve the students more in the general meeting. Mimi: So fast forward to today. We are now in a period — because of a major happening, a major tragedy — of a sincere effort to reorganize the board. Can you give us your perspective from a point of view of someone who would probably have been called a maverick back in 1969. How do you see that? Helen: I see the intent as very good. I am afraid, however, that those who got so excited because of the tragedy didn’t really look at
what it means to reorganize or what it means to make the board more expansive, because, unless you go to the legislature and change the charter, some of the things are going to stay the same. The officers of the board now want to be responsive and want to be open — certainly the new Web site is geared to that, but I think it will take awhile. We’ll have to see how the new members react to the fact that they aren’t going to get a lot done as three or four people. Mimi: Well, no matter what the environment, the change is slowly incremental. There is no question that in this civilization in which we live, more and better transparency would have come about probably even without the tragedy. Helen: Because we live in a different world with the type of communications we have now, it would have changed, but because it changed so quickly, it will make a difference, but it will be a slow difference. Mimi: But the change is a sincere effort to hear the voices of all of the constituents. I do believe that. Helen: I agree. It is a sincere effort, and those folks who are most concerned have to
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look beyond the one issue. And now they have to tell us what things they’d like to see as this university grows. I think that the fact that we have more youngsters coming this year than last year is an indication that the outside world still thinks that their children are going to get a good education here. Mimi: Well, no one should forget what a remarkable institution Penn State has become. And no institution goes unscathed. We unfortunately are in a situation, a historic situation that no one could have ever imagined, predicted, or written the script for in any way. Helen: It’s going to take a lot of effort and a lot of people, including alumni, to move us forward in a good direction, and the fact that so many alumni voted is a good thing. Unfortunately, when you have 86 people you kind of dilute your ability to choose. Mimi: I want to shift directions. We have many issues that are related to the board making decisions, even in our community — like in the school system. As a person who was president of the Pennsylvania State Education Association and rose to be the president of the National Education Association and a
very prominent woman in the history of both of those associations, what’s your spin on the model of the organized teaching union? Helen: I think we have to look back to why we have the teachers’ unions in the first place. And one of the things that people simply don’t understand is that teaching is the most political of all professions. Mimi: And that’s unfortunate. Helen: Now, if you think about it, whom we teach, what we teach, how we teach, when, and where — all those decisions are made by politically elected people or in some cases appointed people, like in the city of Philadelphia. And so public-employee bargaining with teachers began as a way to have some influence over what was happening. I negotiated the first contract in State College in 1968 with 32 members on the school board. It was so scattered, and we thought we needed a way to influence the education of the children, as well as our own. And we passed the first bargaining law in Pennsylvania in 1969 with a Republican governor, Republican senate, Democratic house — and I don’t remember the vote because it wasn’t even close.
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Mimi: So, now it’s at great risk. All you have to do is look at the results of the election in Wisconsin and there are major warning signals coming out. Helen: One of the reasons it has become a great risk is that about 25 years ago we started to hear that public schools were government schools. It was a derogatory statement, and I heard a governor of a midwestern state say that you can’t have government bargaining with government. But that is assuming that our public schools don’t represent our communities or the teachers or the students anymore. Mimi: You don’t hear a lot about the quality of teaching. Helen: You would be surprised to know that three years after we got that first contract we agreed with the school board in State College that we would propose to them a merit system. And we did. We spent a year where we visited other places that had incentive systems, and we presented to the board with a system of peer evaluation that would allow incentives, some kind of merit, but the board decided it was terribly expensive and that was the last I ever heard about it in this town.
Mimi: We are in a new century. There are indications that the system has to change. Something has to happen. Do you have any suggestions on how we approach it? Helen: Something I have thought a lot about, and I wish I had some really concrete suggestions, but I do think that we saw a couple of years ago that when the public was upset with the school board about the building prospects, they got very much involved. But that’s it. So, it seems to me that we need a community response that says Here is what we’d like to see. Mimi: Well, we have this incredible university across the street; there has to be people there that are involved in this. Helen: I think you are right, and there are people at the university, but we have to bring them together — the leaders of the community, our community, the borough council, and the PTA. Mimi: And before we do the old form in allowing the board to make that decision. School boards act like operational systems, not like governing systems, and there is something wrong with that model.
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Helen: And it’s a very difficult thing to change, and we have to remember that all those people, even if we disagree with them, are volunteers. They don’t get paid. They don’t have a lot of training, and yet they are forced into this system that keeps on repeating itself. Some of our cities have experience with elaborate approaches, and, if I do say so, the state I worked in a long time, Delaware, has become quite well known for the teachers and the legislatures and the school boards working together to devise merit and incentives. Mimi: You have been an extremely important part of our community on both sides of the map over the years. What’s your thought on where we begin, because we have all the resources? How do we capture this great pool of smart people in our community to make a difference? Helen: I think we have to start with parents. I think we have to look at perhaps the PTA where the parents are involved. They are very active people. Mimi: Our school system is more than voting out one board and voting in a new board,
because it is difficult to distinguish. Helen: It is. Mimi: The real problems live on. Helen: It seems to me that we need to get the PTA leaders, the leaders in the college of education and our business school together. Mimi: With your experience in public education, what would you say is the most important thing to do now? Helen: There are so many things. We need a better system of keeping the community informed about what the schools, teachers, and children are doing. We simply don’t do that. We have to enlist community organizations to work together with a lot of other folks to say what is it we want from our schools and how can we get it? Mimi: The good news is, we produce a pretty good collection of well-educated women. Helen: Oh, we do. There is no question. Mimi: But I think we can do it better. I want to thank you for taking time from your retirement and joining me in this, which is an effort to talk about a couple of really controversial things. Helen: Thank you. T&G
100 - Town&Gown August 2012
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State College Photo Club’s Photos of the Month The State College Photo Club provides photo enthusiasts with the opportunity to share their passion for photography with others and to provide an environment for learning and developing new skills. The club welcomes individuals from amateurs to professionals. One of the club’s activities is to hold a monthly competition. Town&Gown is pleased to present the winning images from the club’s competition.
2011-12 Annual Meeting Competition First Place “Not My Rose” By Linda Hale
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Here are the winning photos for the June themed meeting competition, and the winning meeting competition photo for the year 2011-12, as determined by Photographic Society of America judge Karl Leck.
“Image of a young woman fighting a serious illness. Her strength, faith, and determination are admirable.”
June Meeting First Place: Doors and Windows
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“Log Cabin Window” By Jan Anderson
“This is a photo of a window in a log cabin at Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Georgia.”
A copy of either of these photos may be obtained with a $75 contribution to the Salvation Army of Centre County. Contact Captain Charles Niedermeyer at 861-1785. You can select any size up to 11-inches wide. The State College Photo Club meets on the third Monday of each month at 7:30 p.m. at Foxdale Village Auditorium. Guest and new members are welcome.
Visit www.statecollegephotoclub.org for more information about how to join. 102 - Town&Gown August 2012
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Hoping the World Turns Over a New Leaf Local entrepreneur starts organization to enrich communities at both home and abroad By Iris Peters
Before Steve “Spud” Marshall and his friends went to college they made a promise to each other that whatever they did they would make a difference in the world and hold each other to that. Marshall, a 2008 Penn State graduate, kept his word. Two years ago, he and three of his friends had decided that they wanted to create an organization that entirely served the community. They wanted to make State College a better place, but in an untraditional way. That is how the New Leaf Initiative began. “We wanted to know what challenges and frustrations people had in State College and around the world and ask, ‘What can we do to solve them?’ ” Marshall says. The New Leaf Initiative originally started in August 2010, and ever since then it has evolved into a large nonprofit organization that is primarily student driven — they come up with ideas and plan many of New Leaf’s projects. “The scope of what we cover is nonexistent,” Marshall says. “We don’t care what people are passionate about as long as it has some social good.” In order to achieve the social good it is essential that the students are driven and capable of leading, but it also is important that there is nonstudent support as well. Some of New Leaf’s projects have allowed Marshall and his allies to travel to Haiti where they utilized recycled bags that had been used to distribute food or aid. They filled the bags with dirt or rubble and built strong hurricane-resistant and earthquake-resistant structures with low cost and minimal environmental impact. Closer to home, Marshall and his allies are working on a project called the co.space. This developed after Marshall reached out to alumni,
Steve “Spud” Marshall Favorite place to travel: “Anywhere new! I’m fortunate that my job provides many opportunities to travel and share the work we are doing with the co.space.” Favorite place in State College: “In the few hours of the week that I’m not scheming down in the New Leaf office or sleeping, I love finding random parks outside to throw a Frisbee, kick around a soccer ball, or play volleyball.” How did you get your nickname Spud?: “My mom realized that I looked like a baby potato in her baby books. Ever since then, the name Spud has stuck — and I’ve got no complaints.” State College residents, and elders and realized that they had no real interactions with the student community. The co.space will be a place where those experienced changemakers can talk to students and share their knowledge and skills. “We want to make Penn State and State College the flagship model of what it looks like to really engage with students and have the community work together,” he says. “We want to say Here is what the Penn State community actually cares about.” He has an expansion plan for the co.space, expecting it to take off in Philadelphia next, hoping to bridge the Philadelphia community with local universities. “It has been getting a lot of attention, which is awesome but also terrifying,” he says. “We have a big vision and it’s not about having people write a check for what we do. It’s having the community support to help provide that first step to help create change in the world.” T&G For more information on New Leaf initiative, visit newleafinitiative.org.
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88 - Town&Gown July 2012
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