Penn State students, faculty and staff who plan to travel out of the country over the spring break will not face any official travel restrictions due to Influenza A H5N1 (avian influenza strain, also referred to as bird flu). The U.S. Department of State, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the World Health Organization (WHO) have not issued any travel alerts or warnings for avian-flu infected areas. However, the CDC advises travelers to countries with documented H5N1 outbreaks to avoid poultry farms, contact with animals in live food markets, and any surfaces that appear to be contaminated with feces or fluids from poultry or other animals. If going to a country where avian flu has been identified (see http://www.cdc.gov/travel/other/avian_influenza_se_asia_2005.htm for more information), travelers should consider the potential risks and keep informed of the latest medical guidance and information in order to make appropriate plans. Margaret Spear, director of University Health Services at Penn State, recommends that students and other spring-break travelers follow the basic CDC guidelines for reducing the risk of infections while traveling.
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Penn State received $42.9 million in gifts from alumni and friends in December 2005 -- the highest total ever for a single month, President Graham B. Spanier reported to the Board of Trustees last week. The previous record was $35.3 million in December 1999. "Several factors converged to allow us to accomplish such a feat," Spanier said. "For example, improvements in the financial markets have made securities a more attractive gift vehicle for donors. We ended the first six months of fiscal year 2006 with about $12.8 million in securities gifts, the highest total we've had at this point in the last five years." Philanthropic support typically is directed to scholarships and graduate fellowships, faculty endowments, library and laboratory acquisitions, equipment upgrades and many other purposes for which state and federal funds are inadequate or unavailable. For the six months ending Dec. 31, 2005, giving to the University totaled about $98 million.
Penn State received $42.9 million in gifts from alumni and friends in December 2005 -- the highest total ever for a single month, President Graham B. Spanier reported to the Board of Trustees last week. The previous record was $35.3 million in December 1999. "Several factors converged to allow us to accomplish such a feat," Spanier said. "For example, improvements in the financial markets have made securities a more attractive gift vehicle for donors. We ended the first six months of fiscal year 2006 with about $12.8 million in securities gifts, the highest total we've had at this point in the last five years." Philanthropic support typically is directed to scholarships and graduate fellowships, faculty endowments, library and laboratory acquisitions, equipment upgrades and many other purposes for which state and federal funds are inadequate or unavailable. For the six months ending Dec. 31, 2005, giving to the University totaled about $98 million.
Penn State will distribute $1.2 million in student-parent child-care subsidies during the next four years. The subsidies generate from a new grant the University received from the U.S. Department of Education. Penn State was awarded the maximum amount possible under the federal Child Care Access Means Parents in School program. The University will receive $300,000 per year for four years. The new funding represents an $80,000 increase over an existing grant that expired Sept. 30. Child-care subsidies will be distributed to student parents at all Penn State locations. As required by the Department of Education, priority will be given to student parents who receive federal Pell Grants. Students who do not receive Pell Grants can apply for future subsidy distributions.
Penn State will distribute $1.2 million in student-parent child-care subsidies during the next four years. The subsidies generate from a new grant the University received from the U.S. Department of Education. Penn State was awarded the maximum amount possible under the federal Child Care Access Means Parents in School program. The University will receive $300,000 per year for four years. The new funding represents an $80,000 increase over an existing grant that expired Sept. 30. Child-care subsidies will be distributed to student parents at all Penn State locations. As required by the Department of Education, priority will be given to student parents who receive federal Pell Grants. Students who do not receive Pell Grants can apply for future subsidy distributions.
More than a quarter of a million subscribers receive news about Penn State in their e-mail boxes through the Penn State Newswire, the companion Penn State Live Web site receives nearly 10,000 hits a day from people seeking information about the University, and RSS feeds deliver much of the same information directly to news Web sites and individual subscribers. Now, the Department of Public Information has launched the Penn State news widget. Anyone who uses an Apple computer loaded with the OSX 10.4 (Tiger) operating system can get Penn State news delivered right to the desktop with the new Penn State Live widget. Widgets, which are mini-applications that perform common tasks and provide fast access to information, run through the operating system's Dashboard feature. The Penn State Live widget gives users the most recent Penn State headlines automatically. The headlines then link directly to the full stories on the Penn State Live Web site.
More than a quarter of a million subscribers receive news about Penn State in their e-mail boxes through the Penn State Newswire, the companion Penn State Live Web site receives nearly 10,000 hits a day from people seeking information about the University, and RSS feeds deliver much of the same information directly to news Web sites and individual subscribers. Now, the Department of Public Information has launched the Penn State news widget. Anyone who uses an Apple computer loaded with the OSX 10.4 (Tiger) operating system can get Penn State news delivered right to the desktop with the new Penn State Live widget. Widgets, which are mini-applications that perform common tasks and provide fast access to information, run through the operating system's Dashboard feature. The Penn State Live widget gives users the most recent Penn State headlines automatically. The headlines then link directly to the full stories on the Penn State Live Web site.
Looking for back issues of the Penn State New Kensington newswire? Then visit Penn State Live, the news organization of Penn State that provides daily news about the University. Under the auspices of the Public Information Office, the news service is a clearinghouse for all 23campus newswires. With a subscription base of more than 170,000 alumni and friends, the campus newswires are distributed at various times--daily, weekly, biweekly, monthly and reach almost a million e-mail boxes each month. Penn State New Kensington's newswire subscription base is close to 800 students, faculty, staff, parents, alumni, and friends and its four monthly issues reach more than 30,000 e-mail boxes each month.
The Office of Continuing Education at Penn State New Kensington is sponsoring a series of 36 non-credit courses, titled Public Offerings, this spring. Non-credit courses include professional development seminars and workshops, conferences, certificate programs, and short courses. The courses do not carry college credit and are often part of a certificate program or are designed to meet the needs of specific skill development. The cost of each course varies. For more information, call Pat Hollinger at 724-334-6053 or Nancy Miller at 724-334-6014.
An artist reception for Bud Gibbons, assistant professor of art at Penn State New Kensington, will be held in the art gallery on April 11, at 7 p.m. Gibbons' exhibit, "Borrowing from the Past," is on display throughout the month of April. Gibbons, a faculty member since 1974, annually exhibits his work for the PSNK and the local communities. A graduate of Penn State and the Maryland Institute for the Arts, Gibbons has painted landscapes in the United States, China, and Peru. A multi-media piece by Gibbons was on display at the Andy Warhol Museum last September.