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Active celebrant
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A way of life
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By Bill Campbell
Special to Intercom
Patrick Hicks, a Ph.D. candidate in computer science, gets up
every morning at 6 a.m., reads the scripture 
for more than a hour,
then attends mass. In the evening, he often is involved with other students
in Bible study.
"The religious aspect of my University experience is central to my life," he said. "I came to Penn State with no Christian upbringing. But, I was baptized into the Catholic Church last Easter and it has become a huge part of my everyday life."
Jennifer Keller, a sophomore in elementary education, found her spiritual home-away-from home in Hillel:The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life.
"My spiritual life is very important to me," she said. "It gives me a sense of identity. On a personal level, it is my Jewish home-away-from home. I'm welcome. I can be with people who have beliefs similar to mine."
Their concern with the religious or spiritual aspects of their lives is not uncommon among today's college students.
According to Kenneth Clarke, director of the Center for Ethics and Religious Affairs, there is a revived amount of interest in religion on campuses nationwide that is being reflected at the University.
"Students are looking for meaning and purpose in the midst of an explosion of the information age and technological advances," he said. "Out of that experience, and despite the fact that more is at hand, they are seeking meaning and a sense of direction and hope to grasp some core values that can give some orientation to their lives.
"Unlike the 1950s, there is not just a Protestant, Catholic or Jewish revival of religion. This is a quest across many faiths, locally and nationally. There is a real desire to find meaning."
"As a culture," added Alicia Anderson, campus minister for Lutheran Campus Ministry, "people are looking for meaning in life through spirituality, but they do not always find it through traditional church structures.
"My greatest challenge is helping students figure out what it means to be a Christian when not in a worship setting. When they are not in a worship setting, they often aren't sure how to live out their faith."
Anderson said the most difficult, yet most important, thing individuals do is struggle to find a faithful way to live their lives.
"Society doesn't emphasize that," she said. "Society focuses on consumerism, prestige and the like. But we can help students by encouraging them to think about choices, by calling them to accountability in caring ways."
Evidence of the importance of religion to Penn State students can be seen in the Catholic community, the largest faith community at University Park with some 10,000 students, from which to draw approximately one-fourth of the total campus enrollment. Mass is held five times on weekends and twice daily. The largest mass in Schwab Auditorium, at 9 p.m. Sunday, attracts between 700 and 800 students every week.
"The importance of faith and religion to our students is revealed by their commitment to come to Sunday worship," the Rev. Fred Byrne, director of the Penn State Catholic Community, said. "It is an important part of their lives."
For the 4,000 Jewish students on campus, Hillel tries to create an environment in which students can live independently away from home and feel comfortable.
"Judaism is a way of life," Tuvia Abramson, Hillel executive director, said. "Religion plays a major role, but we also try to provide for the cultural, educational and social needs of the Jewish students by creating programming to answer their needs. Many of our students are away from home for the first time and they struggle to find themselves, to define who they are.
"In terms of the spiritual aspect, we try to help them maintain their value system and their roots. We also create an atmosphere in which they can feel free to express their religious belief without feeling discomfort from being different."
Penn State has a long history of supporting the spiritual and religious aspects of student life. The Helen Eakin Eisenhower Chapel is one of the earliest campus buildings constructed with private contributions. In the Association of College and University Religious Affairs, Penn State is one of only a few public universities represented.
The Centre Daily Times still prints daily prayers of John Henry Frizzell, former long-time University chaplain who died in 1976. Because of legal concerns over separation of church and state, the chaplain position has evolved over time to the more administrative function of director.
"But it still involves providing an opportunity for students, faculty and staff to become voluntarily engaged in opportunities for religious growth and programming on issues where society and religious faith intersect," said Thomas G. Poole, assistant vice provost for educational equity and former director of the Center for Ethics and Religious Affairs for 10 years. Importance of the role at Penn State has owed itself to close connection to the Office of Student Affairs, where there is a concern for the holistic development of students. Spiritual development is folded into that package, according to Poole.
"We're not asking that students check their religious sentiments at the gate and pick them up at commencement," Poole said. "We've provided opportunities for them. Our approach centers on practice by all and domination by none. Virtually any kind of religious organization in society can be found here, if it is a registered student organization and plays by the rules."
Mike Baer, a senior architectural engineering major and president of Christian Student Fellowship, had no aspirations of becoming leader of a student religious organization when he first enrolled at the University.
"After my freshman year, I discovered a lot of opportunities for spiritual guidance," he said. "At Penn State you have a chance to try different fellowships and I found my fit with the Christian Student Fellowship. I was missing God in my life. Without that, I don't know where I'd be now."
J. Thomas Eakin, former assistant vice president for student affairs, who served for six years as director of religious affairs, also cited the openness of the University over the years in "encouraging students to pursue their faith as they see it within the University rather than making it off limits."
"As a result of this encouragement and openness ... there are a tremendous number of student religious organizations active on campus."
Eakin said the presence of Eisenhower Chapel is a symbolic, as well as a real example that the University sees the religious experience as an important part of University life, rather than sending a message that it should be done or practiced elsewhere rather than on campus.
Eisenhower Chapel is, in fact, the cornerstone of religious activity on the University Park campus. In addition to its 125-seat all-faith worship facility, it provides meditation and meeting rooms, study lounges and offices for a variety and diversity of campus ministries.
The 30 student religious organizations on campus use its meeting rooms. It houses the Center for Ethics and Religious Affairs, and is home to more than 20 campus ministries professionals. Here you can find Hillel, Episcopal Campus Ministry, United Campus Ministry, Christian Student Fellowship, Penn State Catholic Community, International Christian Fellowship, Lutheran Campus Ministry, Asian American Christian Fellowship, Muslim Student Association, Unitarian Universalists and others.
"I liken it to a little United Nations of faith. The crossroads of faith intersect here," said Rev. Byrne. "Students should be aware of other faith communities because we have to learn to work together. Eisenhower provides a microcosm of the larger world."
In addition, the University Park campus presents a unique opportunity for learning about other faiths in that some 2,400 international students are enrolled. One of the most visual aspects of religious activity on campus can be seen in the community where students practice their faith helping others.
The Christian Student Fellowship touches the community through weekly ministries at a nursing home, the Central Counties Youth center and its "Big Dudes, Little Dudes" program. Some students in the Penn State Catholic Community are involved in a prison ministry every Sunday at Rockview State Penitentiary. Hillel, in conjunction with other campus ministries and several academic departments, sponsors interfaith trips to the Holocaust Memorial Museum. During spring break, students can be found building homes for Habitat for Humanity, working in a women's shelter, assisting people in poor villages in Haiti, and working on neighborhood projects with the Miami Rescue Mission.
"Part of being a Christian is helping God's people," William 'Buzz' Roberts, campus minister in the Christian Student Fellowship, said. "There is a natural tendency to share what you have discovered with other people and help those less fortunate because that is one of the basic teachings of the Bible.
"Another reason for the interest in these projects is the close relationship the students build with one another as part of their growth pattern. There is a desire to want to stand next to each other and work together."
Eisenhower Chapel, the cornerstone of spiritual activity on the University Park campus, is about to get bigger.
Spurred by a $1 million gift from Joe and Sue Paterno, a new interfaith spiritual center is being planned as an addition to Eisenhower, which was built in 1956 and expanded in 1976 with private funds.
"From the standpoint of space, there has been a need for a number of years," said Kenneth Clarke, director of the Center for Ethics and Religious Affairs, which is housed in the chapel and serves as a liaison between Campus Ministries and the University.
"Currently, virtually all space is occupied in the evenings until 10:30 p.m. Every night during the academic year, except Saturday, the building is open and brimming with activity."
Christy Cochran, a junior from Bethlehem and a member of the Penn State Women's Volleyball team, visits Eisenhower daily.
"I love Eisenhower," Cochran, a member of the Penn State Catholic Community, said. "I go every day. It's a great place to meditate; a nice getaway on campus. I would encourage others to take the opportunity to visit."
Johnny Casasnovas, a graduate student in food science, spends considerable time at Eisenhower. He stops almost daily for Mass and for conversation with clergy or staff, and in the evenings for meetings and choir practice.
"I put down roots in the community in large part through Eisenhower contacts," said Casasnovas, whose native country is the Dominican Republic. "It has been a keystone in my survival at Penn State and has helped me see the University as my home."
Last year, more than 3,800 events for the campus ministries, student religious organizations, and academic and academic support units were scheduled. That figure is expected to be more than 4,000 this year.
"Several of the campus ministries have expressed an interest in expansion," Clarke said. "The present all-faith chapel seats 125. The larger ministries have to worship in other areas of the building or in other locations on campus."
He said the expansion will help address a number of needs.
"Focus will be on program space and will include an 800-seat worship area that will be adaptable for smaller needs. There also will be a variety of meeting and program areas and some additional office space."
No date for the start of construction has been set, with the timetable to be determined by additional private gifts for the project. Plans call for the addition to be adjacent to the current facility. It will involve some reconfiguration of current indoor program space, but the external structure will not be significantly altered.
"The next major step in the process is the development of a building design committee which will need about a year to do its work," Clarke said.
"The committee will use information from the Chapel Expansion Program Statement and recommend specific plans for new program space."
-- Bill Campbell
By Alan Janesch
Public Information
Launched in January, Penn State's World Campus is now offering programs in turfgrass management and noise control engineering to online students both across the United States and outside its borders, the University Faculty Senate learned at its March 3 meeting.
The World Campus is an educational institution with no walls, where learning is accomplished via the Internet and other new information technologies. As envisioned by University leaders, it is a distinctive outreach campus of the University that will eventually offer a broad spectrum of educational activities beyond the existing Penn State system.
Seven of the Big Ten universities, as well as many other institutions, are trying to create "virtual universities" that offer online courses to students who cannot get to an actual university location.
"We are not trying to play catch-up," said Jacob De Rooy, associate professor of economics, who presented a report on the World Campus to the Senate. "We are trying to position ourselves as a leader ... in this highly competitive arena."
In the next five years, the World Campus is expected to have 300 Penn State courses online. Over the short term, its offerings include the following:
-- Chemical dependency counseling, a postbaccalaureate certificate program in counselor education, set to begin this month.
-- Geographic information systems, a five-course, non-credit certificate program from the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, set to begin in fall 1998.
-- Fundamentals of engineering review course, a test preparation course for professional engineers, set for spring 1998.
-- Business logistics, in The Smeal College of Business Administration, an undergraduate certificate program on the movement of goods and information, set for spring 1998.
Eventually, De Rooy said, all Penn State distance education "may conform to the model being established by the World Campus."
James Ryan, vice president for continuing education, and Gary Miller, associate vice president for distance education and director of the World Campus project, said that the University sees the World Campus as an "alternate delivery system" for reaching people who want a Penn State education but cannot take classes at existing Penn State locations.
While the World Campus cannot duplicate the traditional classroom experience or face-to-face interactions with faculty, Miller said, the University does want to make the World Campus "as dynamic a learning community as we can, using the technology available to us."
"Reseearch has shown that distance education through technology is as educationally effective as classroom instruction," Miller said. "The World Campus will use these technologies to create a rich and dynamic learning community among students who are separated from each other and from the faculty."
In his report, De Rooy said the faculty needs to consider several issues related to online distance education, such as faculty involvement in the delivery of World Campus programs, the development of World Campus programs that provide graduate professional degrees, and the control and assessment of the academic content and quality of World Campus programs.
In other business, the Senate recommended to the University administration that 25 percent of the funds available for salary increases should be used for raises to individual faculty members whose salaries are within the lowest third of their departments' salary structures. The Senate also recommended that the administration include additional information about the handling of faculty salary review cases.
The Senate will next meet on Tuesday, March 31, at 1:30 p.m. in Room 112, Kern Building, University Park.
Davie Jane Gilmour, interim president of Penn College, was misidentified in a photo caption on page 14 of the March 5 Intercom.
Tuvia Abramson (above), executive director of Hillel:The
Foundation