Donald Trump has announced that Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, a former presidential candidate and ally of Trump, will lead a new Department of Government Efficiency.

An international team of researchers led by Ida Djenontin, assistant professor of geography at Penn State, was recently awarded a $1.3 million grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation’s Dynamics of Integrated Socio-Environmental Systems program to investigate the socioecological outcomes of restoration in degraded woodlands ecosystems.

A new type of eco-friendly glass developed by researchers at Penn State offers higher crack resistance, potentially allowing for thinner, lighter and more sustainable products. “LionGlass” will be the subject of PSAA Presents: EMS Showcase, an event on Nov. 8 hosted by the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences in partnership with the Penn State Alumni Association.

Mining expert Barbara Arnold, professor of practice in mining engineering, joined a panel of experts to discuss how the United States will need to make dramatic advances to increase its technical- and skilled-labor workforce to power its green energy future and to become less reliant on foreign nations for securing materials used in both everyday devices and critical national security applications.

Laura Pulido, Collins Chair and professor of Indigenous, race, and ethnic studies and geography at the University of Oregon, is the featured speaker for the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences’ 2024 EMS Reads program. She will give the keynote lecture at 6 p.m. on Wednesday Nov. 13, in Paterno Library's Foster Auditorium on Penn State's University Park campus.

Penn State’s Local Climate Action Program is making a valuable impact beyond Pennsylvania’s borders, thanks in part to Joe Thompson, a World Campus Energy and Sustainability Policy graduate. Thompson was recently honored at a ceremony hosted by the San Diego chapter of the Climate Action Campaign, for his help in creating the City of Orange climate action plan.

Penn State will be sending its second delegation of students and faculty to COP29, the United Nations’ annual climate meeting, which will be held in Baku, Azerbaijan, in November.

Second-year student Morgan Dawkins and fifth-year student Olivia DiPrinzio spoke to the Board of Trustees about their experiences with the Schreyer Honors College. Honors programming has allowed them to find guidance, craft a courseload specific to their interests and find opportunities for professional development. 

Prospective students and their families are invited to attend a visitation program at Penn State Brandywine at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 26, in the Commons/Athletic Center gymnasium. The event is part of the University’s "Penn State Day."

Penn State Brandywine will host its annual Homecoming & Family Day from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 26.

Penn State Brandywine’s Student Spotlight series highlights the remarkable work being done by students in leadership, academics, service, athletics and more.

Penn State Brandywine’s Student Spotlight series highlights the remarkable work being done by students in leadership, academics, service, athletics and more.

Penn State’s Consortium on Moral Decision-Making and Moral Psychology Research Group are co-hosting a conference Nov. 15-17 to highlight interdisciplinary research on moral and ethical decision-making.

Penn State Brandywine’s and Penn State Berks’ LaunchBoxes, powered by Penn State, collaborated with Penn State Great Valley to hold the fall 2024 Idea TestLab Pitch Competition on Nov. 4. Six startup entrepreneurs participated in the competition, which was held at Great Valley.

Education Week asked three 8th grade teachers to evaluate real student responses to an open-ended question on the National Assessment of Educational Progress in social studies. Here's what they said.

Group projects founder when students don't work well together. Here's the latest thinking on evaluating students on both content mastery and collaboration skills.

The arts, geography, economics, and foreign languages will lose their place in the testing line-up as the National Assessment of Educational Progress is being streamlined to cut costs.

The PARCC and Smarter Balanced assessments have evolved since they were launched in 2015. Here's a guide to understanding them now.

As the two big groups of states craft common-assessment systems, experts warn that the smallest details could undermine their work.

Penn State New Kensington will honor its fall 2023 and spring 2024 graduates on May 6 with an in-person ceremony at 10 a.m. The ceremony will also be livestreamed. Adis Juklo, alumnus and current meteorologist at WPXI-TV in Pittsburgh, will serve as the event’s keynote speaker.

Jacob Guerrini, a junior electro-mechanical engineering technology student at the New Kensington campus, was named the 2024 Berger Scholarship recipient.

Robert Howard and John DeRiggi inducted to the New Kensington Athletics Hall of Fame on April 17. 

Penn State campuses across Pennsylvania were sites of celebration and recognition May 3-5 as the University awarded more than 14,000 degrees during 2024 spring commencement ceremonies held statewide. Revisit the excitement of commencement with this gallery of photos from Penn State's Commonwealth Campuses.

Kevin Snider, who became chancellor of the New Kensington campus in 2008, will leave behind a legacy of innovation, fostering partnerships and community development when he retires from Penn State on Dec. 31.

Five Penn State Commonwealth Campus leaders will be retiring from the University in the coming weeks and months, Penn State Vice President for Commonwealth Campuses and Executive Chancellor Margo DelliCarpini has announced.

Penn State students are experiencing a transformative way of learning thanks to a collaboration between Teaching and Learning with Technology Media Commons and Maker Commons, part of University Libraries, and College of the Liberal Arts faculty in the Department of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies. Together, they have developed project-based assignments that incorporate hands-on maker technologies, giving students a unique opportunity to enhance their technical and creative skills while promoting social justice and community values.

Erin Kitt-Lewis, associate director of education for the Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing’s Tressa Nese and Helen Diskevich Center of Geriatric Nursing Excellence, has been named a 2024 Distinguished Educator in Gerontological Nursing by the National Hartford Center of Gerontological Nursing Excellence. 

Sarah Stein, a Penn State College of the Liberal Arts student with three majors, completed an internship with Amazon as one of 28 Liberal Arts students in the Chapel Executive Internship Program this summer.

Dr. Mary Catherine Santos, pediatric surgeon and professor of surgery and pediatrics at Penn State College of Medicine, is among an elite group of surgeon educators to be inducted membership into the American College of Surgeons Academy of Master Surgeon Educators in 2024.

The Eberly Family Special Collections Library at Penn State University Libraries has announced that the application period for 2025-26 research grants is now open. Awards are available to support travel and research expenses while utilizing the Eberly Family Special Collections Library at Penn State’s University Park campus. The application deadline is Dec. 10.

Jennifer Jewell, teaching professor in the physical therapist assistant program at Penn State Shenango; Pamela Pologruto, teaching professor of physical therapist assistant at Penn State Fayette; Laura Cruz, research professor at Penn State's Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence; and faculty members from Penn State Lehigh Valley presented at the 2024 Lilly Conference in Austin, Texas.

Roger Myers, recent graduate of Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, has accepted an internship with Walt Disney World Resort.

Pamela Pologruto has received the F.A. Davis Award for Outstanding Physical Therapist Assistant Educator. The American Physical Therapy Association recognized her achievement with this national award, only given to one recipient annually, at their honors and awards reception ceremony in Kansas City, Missouri.

Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus is dedicating September to raising awareness about suicide prevention through a series of events and activities. This initiative follows the official proclamation by the Fayette County Commissioners, recognizing September as Suicide Prevention and Awareness Month.

At seven of Penn State’s Commonwealth Campuses, campus gardens and farms help to connect students with nature. Programs aimed at sustainable food practices and mental well-being help to create an environment for growth and joy within the community. 

At seven of Penn State’s Commonwealth Campuses, campus gardens and farms help to connect students with nature. Programs aimed at sustainable food practices and mental well-being help to create an environment for growth and joy within the community. 

Penn State Fayette students are invited to meet Estelle Belko, student aid coordinator, from 9-10 a.m. on Oct. 16 inside the Williams Building Student Success Center.

Eric Wicklund, co-author of "Through a Convict’s Eyes: An Overlooked View of the Criminal Justice System," will visit Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus at 12:15 p.m. on Oct. 29 to discuss his insights on criminal rehabilitation. He will be joined by his co-author, Lavarr McBride, who has worked in the criminal justice field for 39 years and serves as a professor of criminal justice at Penn State Fayette.

Virtual reality goggles with a choice of soothing environments or guided meditations, a color-changing bubble wall, a prayer area, Zen garden and massage chair: These are all options provided by Penn State Wilkes-Barre’s Counseling Services to help students relax and stay calm.

Penn State Wilkes-Barre’s Friedman Art Gallery is preparing to open a new exhibit. “Photography of Protest” by photographer Michael Mirabito will open on Oct. 31 and continue until Dec. 3. The gallery is open on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

They first met in kindergarten, and now they’re in college together. Caleb Balas, Nikolas Kistner and Alexis McGrady were educated at Hanover Area schools throughout elementary, middle and high school. Coming from a graduating class of 111 students, they frequently saw each other throughout school. Since they each made their college choice individually, they didn’t know they would continue to see each other at Penn State Wilkes-Barre — and all three said it’s nice seeing familiar faces.

Students who meet transfer requirements at Lehigh Carbon Community College are guaranteed admission to Penn State Hazleton, Lehigh Valley, Schuylkill and Wilkes-Barre.

Penn State Wilkes-Barre has received a donation from the Pennsylvania Land Surveyors’ Foundation, enabling the program to purchase additional equipment.

Penn State researchers explain what election and campaign finance laws say about Kamala Harris becoming the presumed presidential nominee on the Democratic ticket.

Theresa Tarves, interim associate dean for library and information services and professor of legal research, and Rebecca Mattson, interim director of the Law Library and professor of legal research, were invited to speak at the American Association of Law Libraries Annual Meeting held in Chicago, Illinois, from July 21 through July 23.

Michael Helbing, executive director of the Center for Energy Law and Policy and adjunct professor of law at Penn State, will give the talk, “Flying into the future: sustainable aviation fuel and the policies impacting its development,” at 4 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 7, in 112 Walker Building at Penn State University Park.

Penn State Dickinson Law and Penn State Law have entered the critical final steps of reunification with the recent submission of Applications for Acquiescence in a Substantive Change of Program or Structure to the Council of the American Bar Association (ABA) Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar, the recognized accreditor for law schools.

The Emily Dickinson Lecture featuring acclaimed poet Ilya Kaminsky will now take place at 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 21, in Paterno Library's Foster Auditorium.  The event — rescheduled from an earlier date — is free and open to the public.

Penn State School of Music announces the inaugural performance of its Opera Workshop, led by new faculty members Dawn Pierce and Parker Konkle. The performance, titled "Seasons of Love," will take place on Dec. 10, at 7:30 p.m. in the School of Music’s Recital Hall. This unique presentation will explore a range of lyric repertoire, offering an avant-garde experience that merges music, movement, and storytelling.