The Pennsylvania State University

The Pennsylvania State University (commonly known as Penn State) is a state-related, land-grant university. The University has 24 campuses located throughout the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, including a virtual World Campus. The enrollment at Penn State is over 84,000 students, placing it among the ten largest public universities in the United States. Penn State offers more than 160 majors and administers a $1.4 billion (USD) endowment.
In its 2007 edition, U.S. News & World Report ranked the university's undergraduate program 13th in the United States among public universities and 47th among all national universities.

History
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 (809,000 m²) of land—the first of 10,101 acres 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.

Early years
George W. Atherton became president of the school in 1882, and worked to broaden the school's curriculum. Shortly after he introduced engineering studies, Penn State became one of the ten largest engineering schools in the nation. 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 rests in front of Schwab Auditorium near Old Main, and is marked by an engraved marble block resting in front of his statue.

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

Early 20th century
In 1953, President Milton Eisenhower, brother of former 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 the surrounding land, and enrollment nearly tripled. Additionally, in 1967, the Hershey Medical Center, a college of medicine and hospital, was established with a US$50 million gift from the Hershey Trust Company.

Eisenhower, Walker
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. Currently, the University is the largest in Pennsylvania, and in 2003, it was credited with having the 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 turned to seeking philanthropy. 2003 marked the end of the Grand Destiny campaign—a seven-year effort which raised over US$1.3 billion for the University.

Modern years

Campuses and colleges
The largest of Penn State's 24 campuses, University Park, is almost entirely within the borough boundaries of State College, a site chosen to be the near-geographic center of the state. With an acceptance rate of 54%,

University Park
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
College of Earth and Mineral Sciences
College of Education
College of Engineering [1]
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 Colleges

Main article: Pennsylvania State University Commonwealth Campus Commonwealth campuses
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. It is located in Malvern, PA, and also offers classes at the old Philadelphia Navy Yard.
Penn State Hershey Medical Center and College of Medicine is Penn State's medical school and teaching hospital, located in Hershey, PA. 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. A 60-year-old mid-state man suffering from end-stage heart failure received the device in a six-hour surgery on Wednesday (May 2). The procedure was performed by a surgical team led by Walter Pae Jr., Penn State Heart and Vascular Institute's program director, cardiac surgery.
Pennsylvania College of Technology offers certificates as well as degrees in over 100 technical fields, and is located in Williamsport, PA.
The Dickinson School of Law of the Pennsylvania State University merged with Penn State in 2000, and is located in Carlisle, PA. As of Fall 2006, students have the choice of beginning their studies in either Carlisle or University Park.
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. It was one of the first universities in the country to offer a correspondence course for remote farmers in 1892. Some examples of online programs include a Master's Degree of Homeland Security in Public Health Preparedness, Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Master of Business Administration, and certificates in applied statistics, and economic and community development, among many others. Currently, Penn State's World Campus offers nine graduate degrees, 16 graduate certificates, 13 undergraduate degrees, and 16 undergraduate certificates. World Campus students come from seven continents, 43 countries, and from 50 states.

Demographics and trends
Penn State is a "state-related" university, part of Pennsylvania's Commonwealth System of Higher Education. This means that though it receives funding from the Commonwealth, and is connected to the state through its Board of Trustees, it is otherwise independent and is not subject to the state's direct control. For the 2006-2007 fiscal year, Penn State received 9.7% of its budget from state appropriations, the lowest of the four state-related institutions in Pennsylvania.

Organization
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 the alumni, and six elected by Pennsylvania agricultural societies. Lastly, six additional trustees are elected by the Board representing business and industry endeavors.

Board of Trustees
See also: History of the Pennsylvania State University#Past presidents of Penn State
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, this responsibility is delegated by the President to other departments of the administration, to the faculty, or to the student body. The current president of the university is Graham Spanier.
The Executive Vice President and Provost is the chief academic officer of the University. The current provost is Rodney Erickson.

Administration
According to a recent survey by USA TODAY, Penn State's "flagship" campus, University Park, has the highest in-state tuition rates among comparable institutions nationwide.

Tuition
Penn State is a research university with highly regarded programs in engineering, architecture, economics, business, and the sciences. As of February 2007, only 23 Pennsylvania colleges and universities held AACSB accreditation in business and accounting. The Smeal College of Business, Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, Penn State Harrisburg, and Penn State Great Valley were among the institutions accredited.

Academics
During the 2006 fiscal year, Penn State's research budget totaled US$638 million, 56% of which was funded by federal agencies including the Department of Energy and the Department of Defense. National Science Foundation reports indicate that in 2004 (the latest year that figures were available), Penn State ranked ninth in the country in terms of research expenditures. The university is also supported by private industry, ranking second nationwide in terms of research funding from industry.
The campus is also host to a Radiation Science & Engineering Center which houses the oldest operating university research reactor.

Research

Main article: Pennsylvania State University rankings Ranking and reputation

Main article: Penn State Nittany Lions Athletics
The University's fight song is "Fight On, State" and other notable songs performed at public celebrations include the Penn State Alma Mater and "Hail to the Lion".
As of 2005, Penn State has more students registered on the Facebook social networking website than any other university.

Student life
Penn State has exhibited consistent positive trends in efforts to promote a diverse and multicultural campus, most notably beginning in 1990 with the creation of a position for a Vice Provost for Educational Equity and the adoption of 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."
Respect Comes Full Circle http://www.equity.psu.edu/reporthate/ is the University-wide campaign to address diversity issues on each campus. Created by Penn State University Publications for the Office of the Vice Provost of Educational Equity. Copywriter Patrick Pacacha, Designer Heather Reese, and Photographer Scott Johnson provided the creative catalyst for this visual campaign.

Diversity
See also: List of Penn State residence halls

Residence life
As of 15th May 2007, 667 student organizations are recognized at the University Park campus.
The Penn State Thespians have performed musical theatre at University Park since 1898, and is the oldest continuously-active student-run organization on campus. The student improv troupe is "Full Ammo Improv".
In 2005, the Penn State Blue Band was honored with the Sudler Trophy. 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. The Penn State Glee Club is the university's oldest musical organization and tours nationally and internationally.
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 U. Parts of the series will be filmed on campus.

Student organizations
The student-run newspaper is The Daily Collegian. Since the summer of 1996, the traditional paper publication has been supplemented by an online edition, known as The Digital Collegian. In addition, Penn State's Newspaper Readership Program provides free copies of USA Today and the New York Times, 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,
The student-run organization for yearbooks is named La Vie. La Vie 1987 won the highest recognition given by the Columbia Scholastic Press Association [http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cspa/docs/contests-and-critiques/crown-awards/index.html} to a student print or online medium for overall excellence, the Gold Crown Award. The La Vie 1987 editor-in-chief was David Beagin.
The student-run radio station is ComRadio. ComRadio has been a part of the Penn State College of Comm since the spring of 2003. Members of ComRadio broadcast every sporting event at PSU; this includes away football games. The station also produces a live newcast weeknights from 6-6:30. Other programming includes student talkshows, political coverage, AP national news and soft rock.
The longest running show on ComRadio is "Under The Bleachers": a show dedicated to sports/entertainment talk mixed with daily interviews and quotes from local and national celebrities. UTB aired for 4 1/2 years and concluded their final show on May 18, 2007.
The student-run humor magazine is Phroth.

Media

Main article: Penn State Dance Marathon IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon
The Phi Psi 500, first organized in the 1970s by undergraduates in the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity, was a raucous fundraising event popular among students. Contestants entered either individually or in theme-related groups and had to run a 1.1 mile course through downtown State College. During the run, contestants had to make a half-dozen stops at taverns for beer or soft drinks.
Revenue generated through entry fees and donations went to local charities. The Phi Psi 500 brought a large number of alumni visitors as well as resident spectators and student participants. Over US$21,000 was raised by over 1,800 runners in the fourteenth running in April 1983.
Another popular fundraiser that sprung up in the 1970s was the Sy Barash Regatta. Sy Barash was a prominent State College businessman and civic leader who died of cancer in 1974. The regatta named in his honor began a year later, with proceeds going toward cancer research.
Beta Sigma Beta fraternity, of which Barash had been a member, sponsored the regatta first held at Stone Valley until 1983. Eventually, the regatta witnessed more than 15,000 visitors. By the mid-1980s, the popularity of the multi-faceted event forced its move to Bald Eagle State Park.
Aside from the nautical competition itself, the regatta offered picknicking, music and other leisure activities. After its first decade, the Sy Barash Regatta had raised more than US$100,000 for the Centre County chapter of the American Cancer Society.
Co-sponsored by The Free University, Gentle Thursday was a popular social event that occurred each spring. Proclaimed as a "day of sharing", students were encouraged to show concern for one another and forgo academic and campus political concerns. Crowds of students on the lawns of the Hetzel Union Building and Old Main enjoyed live music, food, friends and films.
Gentle Thursday eventually became a day of over-indulgence, highlighted by many drug- and alcohol-related incidents. These incidents and general truancy caused in area secondary schools led to Gentle Thursday's death in 1980.
The student section recognized by ESPN's College Gameday as the best in college football has turned heads again with a sellout of more than 21,000 season tickets today in a remarkable 59 minutes.
The unprecedented sale took place in record time, according to Bud Meredith, Director of Ticket Operations. The previous record was 13 days last year, using a combination of online sales and applications that were mailed to the ticket office.
The 21,000-plus student-season tickets are the second-largest number of student season tickets in college sports. Penn State made an additional 520 student season tickets available this year compared to 2006.
Penn State has approximately 90,000 season ticket holders overall, also among the largest in the nation.
The passionate, loyal and enthusiastic Penn State student section is a primary reason why Beaver Stadium is one of the nation's toughest venues for opposing teams. The Nittany Lions averaged 107,567 fans at home last season, second-highest in the nation, topped by an electric throing of 110,007 for the prime time clash with Michigan.
A recent attempt to move to a lottery format for student season tickets was met with student opposition that many believed was the most swift and comprehensive response to school policy in decades. A student rally ensued on the steps of Old Main to celebrate the reversal of the lottery to the previous first-come, first-served procedure.
The sale was moved from Penn State servers to Ticketmaster, which handles large demand, high profile on-line tickets sales on a daily basis.

Phi Psi 500
Sy Barash Regatta
Gentle Thursday Alumni and notable people

The Arboretum at Penn State