John T. Biggers was a muralist, educator, and Penn State alumnus who dedicated his work to establishing a sense of African American identity and pride through art. His murals, portraying rural Black laborers, can be seen at Penn State in the Burrowes Building and the Paul Robeson Center. Born on April 13, 1924, in Gastonia, […]
Hugh Jesse Arnelle was a two-sport star at Penn State, a distinguished corporate lawyer, and the first Black trustee of the university. He served on the board for 45 years, becoming a trustee emeritus in 2014. Arnelle received Penn State’s Distinguished Alumni Award in 2016.
Weather World is a weekday weather telecast begun in 1957 by Charles Hosler, dean of Penn State’s College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, who wanted to provide more accurate forecasts for Pennsylvanians. Since its inception, many professional meteorologists have received their initial television experience on Weather World and have gone on to provide forecasts for […]
University House is the former home of Penn State’s presidents and their families that is now part of the university’s Hintz Family Alumni Center. The two-story home is located on the south end of the Penn State campus, between Pollock Road and College Avenue. It was originally built for university President Evan Pugh, who died […]
Edwin Erle Sparks, Penn State’s eighth president, served from 1908 to 1920. Using his skills in outreach, he took advantage of the public’s growing appreciation for the value of Penn State programs to build the college’s popularity to levels never achieved before. Sparks was born in Newark, Ohio, in 1860 and earned a B.A. in […]
Mildred Settle Bunton was the first female student of color admitted to Penn State and the first to graduate from the university. She enrolled in 1929 as a transfer from the University of New Orleans and graduated in 1932 with a degree in home economics.
William G. Waring was Principal of the Faculty and Professor of Horticulture at the Farmers’ High School of Pennsylvania. William Griffith Waring was born in Herefordshire, England, in 1816 and emigrated to Centre County where he became a teacher and a nurseryman, owning a farm in Oak Hall. Waring organized the first teachers institute in […]
The Recreation Building, better known as Rec Hall, is a multi-purpose indoor athletic facility that has been the historic home of several Penn State athletic teams. The building, constructed of red brick with limestone trim, was designed by architect Charles Z. Klauder and completed in 1928 at a cost of $527,260. It formally opened in […]
Class gifts are philanthropic donations given by graduating Penn State classes that have made a significant impact on the university, including some of the most beloved and recognize landmarks. The mission of the annual Class Gift Campaign is to promote a philanthropic spirit among graduating students.
The Centre Furnace Mansion, originally the home of the furnace’s ironmaster, was the meeting place for the founding of the institution that became Penn State. The mansion on East College Avenue is now a historic house museum and the headquarters of the Centre County Historical Society.