Penn College

Penn College summer commencement held Aug. 7

Penn College will hold a Summer 2021 Commencement ceremony Saturday, Aug. 7, at the Community Arts Center in Williamsport. The student speaker will be Larcynina De Guzman Bitner, of Mill Hall, who will be awarded a Bachelor of Science in physician assistant. Credit: Penn College / Penn StateCreative Commons

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — Pennsylvania College of Technology held its Summer 2021 Commencement ceremony on Saturday, Aug. 7, for the more than 200 students who have petitioned to graduate.

The in-person ceremony began at 11 a.m. at the Community Arts Center. The event was open to students who are registered to participate and ticketed guests. Unvaccinated individuals must wear face masks. The event was livestreamed.

The student speaker for the ceremony was Larcynina De Guzman Bitner, of Mill Hall, who will be awarded a bachelor of science degree in physician assistant. Bitner, a dean’s list student, is originally from the Philippines, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in biology and a doctor of medicine degree and completed a medical internship.

After moving to Pennsylvania in 2010, she worked as a phlebotomist for Jersey Shore Hospital and later as a microbiology analyst for West Pharmaceutical Services. She also joined the Army National Guard as a motor transport specialist. She was accepted into the pre-physician assistant program at Penn College in 2019.

While performing clinical rotations, she simultaneously enrolled at Saint Francis University for a master of medical science, graduating in May. She is a member of the Pennsylvania Society of Physician Assistants, the Penn College Veterans Club and the Penn College Physician Assistant Club. She is a recipient of the Richard and Mildred Taylor Memorial Scholarship.

During the ceremony, the college presented an Alumni Achievement Award to LaQuinn N. Thompson, of York, who earned a bachelor’s degree in applied human services in 2016.

Thompson recently became the STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) elective instructor for fifth- and sixth-grade students at Lincoln Charter School, York. Previously, he served as director of community outreach for St. Matthew Lutheran Church in York. He is also the founder of The B.E.A.S.T. Initiative, an esports/gaming youth program with the mission to bring the community together through gaming.

Degrees were conferred upon graduates by Penn College President Davie Jane Gilmour, assisted by Sen. Gene Yaw, chairman of the Penn College Board of Directors.

More about commencement can be found at www.pct.edu/commencement.

Penn College is a national leader in applied technology education. For more, visit www.pct.edu, email  admissions@pct.edu or call toll-free at 800-367-9222.

Last Updated August 10, 2021

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