Besides Arts Fest and 4th of July, State College is a whole different town once summer rolls around. The locals leave their suburban developments and fill the store fronts that were once spots of drunken debauchery. Our home for nine months slowly transforms from a rowdy oasis of youthfulness into just another rural Pennsylvania town.
But once the students pack up their bed risers and left over Ramen, the bulldozers and construction hats come out across Happy Valley. This summer was especially eventful for downtown development, so we've compiled a list of some changes that have occurred while you were away.
As some may remember, last October the university announced that they would no longer license shot glasses bearing the words "Penn State" or any of its logos. However, a quick trip into most of the Penn State-oriented stores on College Ave makes this seem otherwise.
Yesterday afternoon, a few "lucky" students and community members living in off-campus apartments had the opportunity to get a brief introduction to a few noteworthy individuals in the Penn State and State College communities as part of the 2011 LION Walk. The goal of the event is to promote a smoother relationship between students and town residents by having community leaders and university administrators knock on residents' doors to start conversations.
Students, faculty, and staff were surprised this afternoon when tremors from a 5.9-magnitude earthquake with an epicenter outside of Washington, DC were felt across the east coast, including in Happy Valley. We put together a @Storify with an initial collection of reports about the earthquake and how people experienced it in State College. Check it out after the jump, and please share your stories in the comments!
Instructors and course editors will now be able to see your face, thanks to a new feature from ITS that links the photo on your Penn State ID card to your profile in ANGEL. Of course, that's just about the last photo you'd probably want your professors to see anyway. Hopefully, though, you look nothing like you did at freshman FTCAP, so you don't get sniped for sleeping through your ASTRO 001 at 8 a.m.
Matisyahu is coming back to Penn State in a couple weeks to perform an accoustic set at the HUB as part of the Penn State Jewish Life Festival. Matisyahu, best known for his unique use of reggae, and hip-hop to share traditional Jewish themes, will headline the concert on September 8.