Pennsylvania State University

This article is about "Penn State," the state-related university in Pennsylvania. For the private university ("Penn") in Philadelphia, see University of Pennsylvania.

The Pennsylvania State University

Motto	Making Life Better
Type	Land-Grant, State-related
Established	1855
Endowment	US $1.59 billion(systemwide)
President	Graham Spanier
Academic staff	5,495
Students	44,112 University Park 33,393 Commonwealth Campuses 1,033 Great Valley 6,510 PA College of Tech 643 Dickinson School of Law 818 College of Medicine 6,104 World Campus 92,613 Total
Undergraduates	37,988 University Park 31,568 Commonwealth Campuses 6,510 PA College of Tech 3,069 World Campus 79,135 Total
Postgraduates	6,124 University Park 1,825 Commonwealth Campuses 1,033 Great Valley 637 Dickinson School of Law 224 College of Medicine 3,035 World Campus 12,247 Total
Doctoral students	594 College of Medicine
Location	University Park , PA 19 Commonwealth Campuses 5 Special-mission campuses
Campus	University Park Campus: 5,448 acres (22 km²). TOTAL Campuses: 18,370 acres (74 km²)
Colors	Blue and White
Nickname	Nittany Lions
Affiliations	MAISA; AAU
Website	www.psu.edu

The Pennsylvania State University (commonly known as Penn State) is a state-related, land-grant, space grant public research university located in the University Park area and within State College and College Township in Pennsylvania, United States. The University has 24 campuses throughout the state of Pennsylvania, including a virtual World Campus, with University Park being its largest campus. Penn State University Park (commonly referred to as the "Main Campus") is ranked in the top 15 nationally for public universities and is a Public Ivy. The enrollment at the Penn State University Park campus is 43,252 with a total enrollment of over 84,000 across its 24 campuses, placing it among the ten largest public universities in the United States. Penn State offers more than 160 majors and administers a $1.6 billion (USD) endowment(systemwide).

History

Main article: History of the Pennsylvania State University

Early years

Penn State was founded as a degree-granting institution on February 22, 1855 by act P.L. 46, No. 50 of the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania. Centre County became the home of the new school when James Irvin of Bellefonte donated 200 acres (0.8 km²) of land—the first of 10,101 acres (41 km²) the University would eventually acquire. In 1862, the school's name was changed to the Agricultural College of Pennsylvania, and with the passage of the Morrill Land-Grant Act, Pennsylvania selected the school in 1863 to be the state's sole land grant college. In the following years, enrollment fell as the school tried to balance purely agricultural studies with a more classic education, falling to 64 undergraduates in 1875, a year after the school's name changed once again to the Pennsylvania State College.

President Atherton

George W. Atherton became president of the school in 1882, and broadened the school's curriculum. Shortly after he introduced engineering studies, Penn State became one of the ten largest engineering schools in the nation. Atherton also expanded the liberal arts and agriculture programs, for which the school began receiving regular appropriations from the state in 1887. Atherton is widely credited with saving Penn State from bankruptcy, and is still honored today by the name of a major road in State College. Penn State's Atherton Hall, a well-furnished and centrally located residence hall, is named not after George Atherton himself, but after his wife, Frances Washburn Atherton. His grave is in front of Schwab Auditorium near Old Main, marked by an engraved marble block in front of his statue.

Early 20th century

Old Main

In the years that followed, Penn State grew significantly, becoming the state's largest grantor of baccalaureate degrees and reaching an enrollment of 5,000 in 1936. Around that time, a system of commonwealth campuses was started by President Ralph Dorn Hetzel to provide an alternative for Depression-era students who were economically unable to leave home to attend college.

Rapid growth

In 1953, President Milton S. Eisenhower, brother of then U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower, changed the school's name to The Pennsylvania State University, and the University developed rapidly under his successor Eric A. Walker. Under Walker's leadership (1956–1970), the University acquired hundreds of acres of surrounding land, and enrollment nearly tripled. In addition, in 1967, the Hershey Medical Center, a college of medicine and hospital, was established in Hershey with a US$50 million gift from the Hershey Trust Company.

Modern era

In the 1970s, The Pennsylvania State University became a state-related institution. As such, it now belongs to the Commonwealth System of Higher Education, and is not part of the fully public Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.

In recent years, Penn State's role as a leader in education in Pennsylvania has become well-defined. In 1989, the Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport joined ranks with the University, and in 1997, so did the Dickinson School of Law. The University is now the largest in Pennsylvania, and in 2003, it was credited with having the second-largest impact on the state economy of any organization, generating an economic effect of over $6 billion on a budget of US$2.5 billion. To offset the lack of funding due to the limited growth in state appropriations to Penn State, the University has concentrated its efforts on philanthropy (2003 marked the end of the Grand Destiny campaign—a seven-year effort that raised over US$1.3 billion).

Campuses and colleges

The Lion Shrine at University Park was a gift of the class of 1940 and is the most photographed site on campus.

University Park

The largest of Penn State's 24 campuses, University Park, is almost entirely within the boundaries of State College borough, a site chosen to be near the geographic center of the state. With an undergraduate acceptance rate of 51 percent, it is the most selective campus in the Penn State system, due primarily to the fact that students select University Park as their first-choice campus at a far greater rate than Penn State's other undergraduate campuses. During the fall 2006 semester, 36,612 undergraduate students and 6,302 graduate students were enrolled at University Park. Of those, 45.2 percent were female and 25.5 percent were not Pennsylvania residents.

Colleges

The University Park campus is organized into 13 distinct "colleges":

College of Agricultural Sciences College of Arts and Architecture Smeal College of Business College of Communications Penn State Dickinson School of Law College of Earth and Mineral Sciences College of Education College of Engineering

College of Health and Human Development College of Information Sciences and Technology College of the Liberal Arts Eberly College of Science Graduate School Schreyer Honors College

In addition, the Penn State Board of Trustees voted in January 2007 to create a School of International Affairs, with the first classes admitted in the fall 2008 semester. The school is part of the Dickinson School of Law at its University Park campus location.

As of 2008 the College of Nursing has been added to the list as a separate college.

• Erie

• Brandywine

• Abington

• Great Valley

• Berks

• Fayette

• Mont Alto

• York

• Harrisburg

• Lehigh

• Schuylkill

• Hazleton

• Wilkes-Barre

• Worthington Scranton

• University Park

• Altoona

• DuBois

• Shenango

• Beaver

• New Kensington

• Greater Allegheny

Map depicting the locations of Penn State's 19 commonwealth campuses and the University Park campus.

Commonwealth campuses

Main article: Pennsylvania State University Commonwealth Campus

In addition to the University Park campus, 19 campus locations throughout the state offer enrollment for undergraduate students. Over 60 percent of Penn State first-year students begin their education at a location other than University Park. All of these smaller campuses offer a limited number of degree programs, but any student in good academic standing is guaranteed a spot at University Park to finish his or her degree if required or desired. Most students do complete their degree program at University Park (known as "change of assignment," since Penn State campuses are not independently operated and therefore "transferring" is an inaccurate term).

Special-mission campuses

The Dickinson School of Law of the Pennsylvania State University was founded in 1834 and is the oldest law school in Pennsylvania. It merged with Penn State in 2000. Students now have the choice of studying in either Carlisle or University Park, with classes teleconferenced between the two locations using high-tech audiovisual equipment. The school is ranked among the top 100 law schools nationally, and has produced a number of governors, members of congress, and judges. A number of attorneys comprise the faculty and lead several centers and institutes devoted to specific practice areas. The school's alternative dispute resolution program is ranked among the top 10 nationally. The law school also houses the School of International Affairs.

Penn State Great Valley School of Graduate Professional Studies is a special mission campus offering master's degrees, master's certification, and continuing professional education. Located in Malvern, Pa., it also offers classes at the old Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. Penn State Hershey Medical Center and College of Medicine in Hershey, Pa., is Penn State's medical school and teaching hospital. Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center has become only the ninth hospital in the United States and 16th worldwide to implant the CardioWest temporary Total Artificial Heart when a 60-year-old man suffering from end-stage heart failure received the device in May, 2008. Pennsylvania College of Technology, in Williamsport, Pa., offers certificates as well as degrees in over 10 technical fields.

In 1998, the University launched Penn State World Campus, or Penn State online, which offers over 50 online education programs, degrees, and certificates. Distance education has a long history at Penn State, which was one of the first universities in the country to offer a correspondence course for remote farmers in 1892. Examples of online programs include a master's in homeland security in public health preparedness, a bachelor of science in nursing, a master's in business administration, and certificates in applied statistics and in economic and community development. Penn State's World Campus offers nine graduate degrees, 16 graduate certificates, 13 undergraduate degrees, and 16 undergraduate certificates. World Campus students come from 50 U.S. states, 43 countries, and seven continents.

Demographics and trends

Racial composition of student enrollment at Penn State as of fall 2006.

Racially, the University is representative of the state of Pennsylvania, although less diverse than comparable institutions. As of fall 2006, the racial makeup of the Penn State system, including all campuses and special-mission colleges, was 82.8 percent white, 5.4 percent African-American, 4.6 percent Asian-American, 2.9 percent Hispanic-American, 0.2 percent Native American, and 4.2 percent international students. Over the period 1996–2006, minority enrollment as a percentage of total enrollment has risen 3.5 percentage points, while minorities as a percentage of total teaching positions rose 2.0 percentage points from 1997 to 2002.

Organization

Penn State is a "state-related" university, part of Pennsylvania's Commonwealth System of Higher Education. As such, although it receives funding from the Commonwealth and is connected to the state through its board of trustees; it is otherwise independent and not subject to the state's direct control. For the 2006-2007 fiscal year, Penn State received 9.7 percent of its budget from state appropriations, the lowest of the four state-related institutions in Pennsylvania. Initial reports concerning the 2007-2008 fiscal year indicate that Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell is recommending a 1.6 percent increase in state appropriations. Penn State's appropriation request, submitted to the Pennsylvania Department of Education in September, requested a 6.8 percent increase in funding.

Board of Trustees

Old Main, the main administrative building at Penn State University Park, at night.

The university is governed by the 32-member board of trustees. Its members include the president of the University, the Governor of the Commonwealth, and the state Secretaries of Agriculture, Education, and Conservation and natural resources. The other members include six trustees appointed by the Governor, nine elected by alumni, and six elected by Pennsylvania agricultural societies. Six additional trustees are elected by a board representing business and industry enterprises. Undergraduate students do not elect any trustees; the court case Benner v. Oswald ruled that the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment did not require the undergraduate students be allowed to participate in the selection of trustees.

As of 2009 the chair of the board of trustees is James S. Broadhurst, a 1965 graduate of Penn State and CEO of Eat'n Park Hospitality Group, Inc.

The main responsibilities of the board are to select the president of Penn State, to determine the goals and strategic direction of the University, and to approve the annual budget. Regular meetings of the board are held bi-monthly and take place primarily on the University Park campus, although on occasion meetings are held at other locations within the Commonwealth.

Administration

See also: Category:Presidents of Pennsylvania State University

The president of the University is selected by the board and is given the authority for actual control of the university, including day-to-day management. In practice, part of this responsibility is delegated by the president to other departments of the administration, to the faculty, and to the student body. As of 2009 the president of the university is Graham Spanier.

The executive vice president and provost is the chief academic officer of the University. As of 2009 the provost is Rodney Erickson, and the Associate Vice President and Senior Associate Dean For Undergraduate Education is Jeremy Cohen.

Tuition

According to a 2006 survey by USA Today, Penn State's "flagship" campus, University Park, has the highest in-state tuition rates among comparable institutions nationwide. While a task force formed in 2001 to study options for tuition projections determined that the University's operating efficiency is among the highest in postsecondary education, it found that tuition increases at Penn State still consistently outpaced increases at other Big Ten Conference institutions. Student leaders of The Council of Commonwealth Student Governments (CCSG) have led annual rallies to lower rate hikes at each of the 19 commonwealth campuses and at the Pennsylvania state capitol in Harrisburg. In 2005, the board of trustees proposed a tuition freeze at the undergraduate campus locations (except University Park) as part of its state appropriation request.

Academics

Academic rankings
National
U.S. News & World Report	47
Washington Monthly	5
Global
THE	105

The Forum Building, a classroom building with four 300+ capacity classrooms.

As of February 2007, only 23 Pennsylvania colleges and universities held Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business accreditation in business and accounting. The Smeal College of Business, The Sam and Irene Black School of Business, Penn State Harrisburg, and Penn State Great Valley were among the institutions accredited.

Penn State offers an accelerated Premedical-Medical Program in cooperation with Jefferson Medical College. Students in the program spend two or three years at Penn State before attending medical school at Jefferson.

Over 10,000 students are enrolled in the University's graduate school (including the law and medical schools), and over 70,000 degrees have been awarded since the school was founded in 1922.

Research

For fiscal year 2007 the National Science Foundation reported that Penn State had spent US$652,144,000 on R&D, of which US$370,789,000 (57%) had come from the U.S. government, and that it ranked 11th among U.S. universities and colleges in R&D spending.

The Applied Research Lab (ARL), located near the University Park campus, has been a research partner with the United States Department of Defense since 1945 and conducts research primarily in support of the United States Navy. It is the largest component of Penn State's research efforts statewide, with over 1,000 researchers and other staff members.

The Materials Research Institute was created to coordinate the highly diverse and growing materials activities across Penn State’s main campus. With more than 200 faculty in 15 departments, 4 colleges, and 2 Department of Defense research laboratories, MRI was designed to break down the academic walls that traditionally divide disciplines and thereby enable faculty to collaborate across departmental and even college boundaries. MRI has become a model for this interdisciplinary approach to research, both within and outside the university.

Penn State was one of the founding members of the Worldwide Universities Network (WUN), a partnership that includes 17 research-led universities in the United States, Asia and Europe. The network provides funding, facilitates collaboration between universities, and coordinates exchanges of faculty members and graduate students among institutions. Penn State president Graham Spanier is a former vice-chair of the WUN.

The Pennsylvania State University Libraries were ranked 14th among research libraries in North America in the 2003–2004 survey released by The Chronicle of Higher Education.

The University's library system began with a 1,500-book library in Old Main. In 2009 its holdings had grown to 5.2 million volumes, in addition to 500,000 maps, five million microforms, and 180,000 films and videos.

The campus is also host to a Radiation Science & Engineering Center, which houses the oldest operating university research reactor. Additionally, University Park houses the Graduate Program in Acoustics, the only acoustics program in the United States.

Athletics

File:Psulogo.jpg

Wall near Beaver Stadium

Pennsylvania State University mascot and cheerleader

Main article: Penn State Nittany Lions

See also: List of Pennsylvania State University Olympians, Penn State Nittany Lions football, Penn State Nittany Lions men's basketball, and Penn State Nittany Lions volleyball

Penn State's mascot is the Nittany Lion, a representation of a type of mountain lion that once roamed what is now University Park. The school's official colors were originally black and pink. Penn State participates in the NCAA Division I-A and in the Big Ten Conference for most sports. A few sports participate in different conferences: men's volleyball in the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA); men's lacrosse in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC); women's lacrosse in American Lacrosse conference; and hockey (American Collegiate Hockey Association). The fencing teams operate as independents. In 2010, the men's lacrosse team will join the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA).

Athletic teams at Penn State have won 64 national collegiate team championships (36 NCAA, 2 consensus Division I football titles, 6 AIAW, 3 USWLA, 1 WIBC, and 4 national titles in boxing, 11 in men's soccer and one in wrestling in years prior to NCAA sponsorship). There have been another 53 national collegiate championships, by either individuals or club teams. The 36 NCAA Championships ranks eighth all time in NCAA Division I, and is the most of any Big Ten school. Recent championships won include Women's Rugby, Men's Gymnastics, Men's/Women's Fencing, Women's Volleyball in 2007, Men's Volleyball, and Women's Volleyball in 2008 and Men's/Women's Fencing in 2009 won their respective national titles.

Since joining the Big Ten in 1991, Penn State teams have won 48 regular season conference titles and 11 tournament titles, including eleven consecutive titles in women's soccer (second longest streak in Big Ten athletic history), and six straight in women's volleyball (the longest streak in Big Ten volleyball history).

Penn State has one of the most successful overall athletic programs in the country, as evidenced by its rankings in the NACDA Director's Cup, a list compiled by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics that charts institutions' overall success in college sports. From the Cup's inception in the 1993–1994 season through the 2007–2008 season, the Nittany Lions have finished in the top 10 eight times and the top five four times, and have finished in the top 25 every year. In 1999, Sporting News named Penn State as the country's best overall athletic program, citing its consistent and wide-ranging athletic successes along with its athletes' long-standing tradition of excelling in the classroom. Penn State placed 6th in Sports Illustrated's top 25 rankings for athletic success for the 2007-08 academic year, the highest of any Big Ten school.

Penn State student-athletes receive academic honors that often far exceed those awarded to other Division 1-A schools. In the 2007-08 academic year, a school record 261 Penn State Student-Athletes earned Academic All-Big Ten honors. Penn State leads the Big Ten with 3,069 selections.

Despite widespread success in the overall athletic program, however, the school is best known for its football team, which draws a very large following. Penn State's Beaver Stadium has the largest seating capacity (over 107,282) of any stadium in the nation, slightly ahead of Michigan Stadium, whose seating capacity was reduced following litigation regarding the number of handicapped seats in the stadium. The football team is led by legendary coach Joe Paterno, who at 82 is in his 44th year as head coach (as of the 2009 season). Joe Paterno is in a constant race with Bobby Bowden, the head coach for Florida State, for the most wins ever in Division I-A (now the FBS) history. As of July 2009 Paterno has 383 total career wins. In 2007 he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.

In 2009, Cael Sanderson became the head coach of Penn State's wrestling team.

The University opened a new Penn State All-Sports Museum in February 2002. This two-level 10,000-square-foot (1,000 m²) museum is located inside Beaver Stadium. During Penn State home football games, State College becomes the third most populous city in Pennsylvania, surpassed only by Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.

In addition to the school funded athletics, club sports also play a major role in the University, with over 68 club sport organizations meeting regularly to date. Many club teams compete nationally in their respective sports. The Penn State Ski Team, which competes as part of the United States Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association (USCSA) in the Allegheny Conference, as well as the Penn State Swim Club, which competes in the American Swimming Association - University League (ASAU), are just a few examples. Some other clubs include baseball, squash, karate, crew and sailing.

Penn State's most well-known athletic cheer is "We are...Penn State." Typically, the students and cheerleaders shout "We are," followed by a response of "Penn State" from the rest of the fans. This is typically done three or four times, and followed by "Thank you..." "... you're welcome!" when completed. The cheer is by no means restricted to sporting events, as prospective students touring the campus (with the aid of either the Lion Scouts or Lion Ambassadors) will hear plenty of these chants from current students.

Student life

A residence hall in West Halls

The University's fight song is "Fight On, State," and other notable songs performed at public celebrations include the Penn State Alma Mater, "Hail to the Lion" and "Lion Roar."

Diversity

Penn State has been the subject of controversy for several issues of discrimination. In response, in 1990 a vice provost for educational equity was appointed to lead a five-year strategic plan to "create an environment characterized by equal access and respected participation for all groups and individuals irrespective of cultural differences." Since then, discrimination issues include the handling of a 2001 death threat, controversy around LGBT issues, and the investigation of a 2006 sexual discrimination lawsuit filed by former Lady Lions basketball player Jennifer Harris, alleging that head coach Rene Portland dismissed her from the team in part due to her sexual orientation.

Sunrise over Mt. Nittany

Student organizations

As of May 15, 2007, 667 student organizations were recognized at the University Park campus. In addition, Penn State has one of the largest Greek systems in the country, with approximately 12 percent of the University Park population affiliated.

While each individual residence area at the University Park campus holds its own Student Government, the official on-campus residence Student Government is the Association of Residence Hall Students (ARHS) In additional to several ad-hoc committees, students serve as chairs and directors for many campus-wide functions, such as Channel 72, ARHS Cinemas, and Movin' On. ARHS's National Communications Chair (NCC), in conjunction with the National Residence Hall Honorary - Nittany Chapter (NRHH-Nittany), coordinates Penn State's representation at the National Association of College and University Residence Halls (NACURH) and Central Atlantic Association of College and University Residence Halls (CAACURH) events every year.

Penn State's student union building, the HUB-Robeson Center.

The official Commonwealth Campus Student Government of The Pennsylvania State University is the Council of Commonwealth Student Governments (CCSG). CCSG meets typically 3 times a semester at University Park, with two representatives from each commonwealth campus. The executive board of CCSG is made up of University Park students dedicated to the commonwealth ideal of "One university, geographically dispersed." CCSG represents all students enrolled through Penn State. The official student advocacy group of Penn State-University Park is University Park Undergraduate Association (UPUA). The UPUA has 35 elected representatives from every academic college council, on campus, off campus, Greek council, as well at large students. In addition it holds an Assembly, Executive branch, and a Board of Arbitration. Though not a governing body, UPUA holds a voice for the 40,000 students at University Park.

The Penn State Glee Club, founded in 1888, is the oldest student organization on campus, and has reached a broad audience with their annual spring break tour, which has led them to many destinations around the globe. Another organization rich in history is the Penn State Thespians, who have performed theatre at University Park since 1898, and are the oldest continuously-active student-run organization on campus (the Glee Club having been temporarily suspended during the Second World War). Additionally, the Penn State Blue Band, founded in 1899, performs during halftime at football games and at other university functions, and was honored with the Sudler Trophy in 2005. The Trophy, which has been presented by the John Philip Sousa Foundation since 1982, is regarded as the nation's highest accolade for collegiate bands.

Penn State is also home to the Paranormal Research Society (PRS), which has earned national media attention over the past few years. The A&E Network recently announced that it is developing a national reality series with the group and University, entitled Paranormal State. Parts of the series will be filmed on campus.

Media

The student-run newspaper is The Daily Collegian. It is published every weekday while classes are in session. Since the summer of 1996, the traditional paper publication has been supplemented by an online edition, known as The Digital Collegian. Onward State has recently gained standing as an alternative media outlet to The Daily Collegian. It is a blog centered around the Penn State community. In addition, Penn State's newspaper readership program provides free copies of USA Today, The New York Times and as of fall 2009, The Wall Street Journal, as well as local and regional newspapers depending on the campus location (for example, the Centre Daily Times in University Park). This program, initiated by President Graham Spanier in 1997, has since been instituted on nearly 400 other universities across the country.

The student-run organization for yearbooks is named La Vie. La Vie 1987 won a College Gold Crown for Yearbooks award from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association. The La Vie 1987 editor-in-chief was David Beagin.

The student-run radio station is The LION 90.7 fm (WKPS-FM). Founded in 1995 as a replacement for Penn State's original student radio station WDFM, The LION broadcasts from the ground floor of the HUB-Robeson Center, serving the Penn State and State College communities with alternative music and talk programming, including live coverage of home Penn State football games. The LION's signal can be heard in the greater State College area at 90.7 FM and anywhere in the world via its live 24/7 webstream at www.theLION.fm. The LION's programming grid can be found at www.thelion.fm/shows/. Among the station's most popular shows is its long-running public affairs program, Radio Free Penn State, hosted by Andy Nagypal, which airs weekdays from 5-6pm Eastern.

In addition, the Penn State College of Communications operates ComRadio. It was founded in the spring of 2003 as an internet-based audio laboratory and co-curricular training environment for aspiring student broadcasters. ComRadio is most well known for its coverage of most major Penn State sporting events. ComRadio also airs student-produced Penn State news. Other programming includes student talk shows, political coverage, AP syndicated news and soft rock music.

The student-run humor magazine is Phroth, which publishes two to four issues each year. Phroth's roots date back to 1909 when it was called Froth. Several Froth writers and editors have gone on to win fame: Julius J. Epstein wrote the screenplay for Casablanca and won three Academy Awards; Jimmy Dugan wrote for the Saturday Evening Post, National Geographic and The New York Times; and Ronald Bonn was a producer with NBC Nightly News and CBS Evening News. Kalliope is an undergraduate literary magazine produced by students and sponsored by the Penn State English Department. Kalliope includes works of fiction, nonfiction, poetry and visual art. 'The student-run life and style magazine is Valley.

Other

See also: Penn State Dance Marathon

Every February, thousands of students participate in the Penn State Dance Marathon (THON), In previous years, participants stood for 48 hours nonstop and performed a line dance at least once every hour to stay alert. In 2007, THON was moved to the Bryce Jordan Center and now lasts 46 hours. THON raises millions of dollars annually for pediatric cancer care and research, generally through the Four Diamonds Fund. In 2009, THON raised more than US$7.49 million.

The 22,000+ student section at home football games is the largest concentrated student section in the nation. However, Penn State has the lowest percentage of students given the opportunity to purchase season in tickets in the Big Ten, and one of the lowest in the nation at just 25.25%. Conversely, Ohio State University, with a student section of 29,000 tickets (in a smaller stadium nonetheless) has seats for 57.16% of their students. Penn State students were listed number one in the "students who pack the stands" category of the 2009 Princeton Review survey. Due to a change in the way seating is assigned, beginning in 1993 tradition has been for students to camp outside of the stadium on the days leading up to important games, and beginning in 2005 the campsite has been called "Paternoville."

Alumni and notable people

Former President's house, now adjoined to the Hintz Alumni Center

Further information: [[:List of Pennsylvania State University people]]

Established in 1870, nine years after Penn State's first commencement exercises, the Penn State Alumni Association has the stated mission "to connect alumni to the University and to each other, provide valuable benefits to members and support the University's mission of teaching, research and service." The Alumni Association supports a number of educational and extracurricular missions of Penn State through financial support and is the network that connects alumni through over 280 "alumni groups," many of which are designated based on geographical, academic, or professional affiliation.

As of 2006, the Alumni Association counts 453,346 members within the United States, with an additional 6,277 in countries around the globe. About half the United States alumni reside in Pennsylvania, primarily in the urban areas of Philadelphia (and the surrounding counties), the Pittsburgh Area and in the Centre County region surrounding State College, although alumni can be found in almost every region of the country and abroad. About 34 percent of United States alumni and 21 percent of international alumni are members of the Alumni Association. With membership totaling 154,688, the Penn State Alumni Association is the largest dues-paying alumni association in the world, a distinction it has held since 1995.

Since 2001, Penn State, along with all schools in the Big Ten, has participated in the "Big Ten Challenge" website, which is a "competitive" clearinghouse of alumni donation statistics for member schools. Results are tracked to determine a percentage of each school's alumni from the previous decade who gave to their alma mater each calendar year (for example, during the 2005-2006 year, alumni donations from 1996 to 2005 were tallied). With the exception of 2005-2006, when Penn State fell to second behind Northwestern University, Penn State has won the challenge each year since its inception.

Point of interest

• The Arboretum at Penn State
• The Lion Shrine
• Penn State University Creamery
• Beaver Stadium
• Bryce Jordan Center
• Rec Hall

See also

• Hetzel Union Building shooting

External links

• Official website
• Official Athletics website