Nicole Nych, of West Middlesex, Pennsylvania, has accepted the position of head women’s volleyball coach at Penn State Shenango, effective July 1. The recent West Middlesex High School head girls’ volleyball coach was a former collegiate player at Waynesburg University and Slippery Rock University.

Recent Penn State Shenango occupational therapy assistant (OTA) alumnae Ali Izzo and Holly Masters saw the sadness of aging adults living in nursing homes firsthand while completing their OTA clinicals this past fall. Together, the two best friends asked one another, “How can we help these seniors feel more connected to their loved ones?” So they came up with “Purpose,” The Therapeutic Subscription Box LLC.

Penn State Shenango students were honored at the campus’ 2018 Honors Convocation and Recognition Banquet for their outstanding academic and student leadership achievements and services. The recipients of this year’s Eric and Josephine Walker Award, Dennis W. Bartholomew Outstanding Adult Student Award, the Ann Wansack Award, the Leonard R. Riforgiato Memorial Teaching Award, and the Margaret Cunningham Foley Memorial Teaching Award also were part of the program.

In 2016, the Penn State Shenango Staff Advisory Council (SAC) introduced a new fundraising initiative to support students at the Shenango campus. The program, titled “Fuel for the Future,” was designed to provide financial assistance to a student or students who are participating in an internship program or working on their clinical outside of the campus.

Want a new career? Thinking of transferring to a new college? Ready to finish your bachelor’s degree? Penn State Shenango will hold two Adult and Transfer Open Houses: Wednesday, June 27, and Thursday, July 19, both between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. Stop by the Admissions Office in Lecture Hall room 225, located on Shenango Avenue in downtown Sharon. No appointment is necessary.

The Penn State Shenango Alumni Society will hold its 17th Annual Golf Scramble on Saturday, June 16, at the Pine Lakes Golf Club in Hubbard, Ohio. Proceeds from the event benefit Penn State Shenango student scholarships and special projects.

There’s still an opportunity to take classes this summer at Penn State Shenango. The first six-week summer session begins May 14 and continues through June 22. Summer sessions, which include day, evening and online courses, offer students a chance to catch up on classes or get ahead for the fall.

Penn State alumnus William E. Casey, owner of Warren Glass & Paint Co., Ltd., will be this year’s Penn State Shenango commencement speaker. The campus will hold its 2018 spring graduation ceremony at 11:30 a.m. on Sat., May 5, in the Shenango campus auditorium with a reception immediately following. Jo Anne Carrick, campus director, will confer baccalaureate and associate degrees on the graduating students.

“It should be a win-win situation for both of us,” said Penn State Shenango Business and Finance Director Bill Dungee nearly one year ago. Dungee was referring to the campus’ newly reinstated athletic program and its collaboration with the Buhl Community Recreation Center in Sharon, Pennsylvania. The Shenango campus recently signed a three-year contract with the Buhl Center to utilize its facilities.

Now in its ninth year, Penn State Shenango’s Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) Club Hustle for Muscle 5K Run/Walk will be held at 9 a.m. on Saturday, April 14. The annual event, which is held on a family friendly, fast course around the Shenango campus and downtown Sharon, raises funds to support the PTA Club’s mission and program.