Erie
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Great Valley
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Hershey
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The Board of Trustees on Nov. 13 appointed Weber Murphy Fox Architects of Erie as architects for the proposed student housing at Penn State Harrisburg. The building will provide new student apartments for juniors, seniors and graduate students.
In other action related to campus buildings, the board approved final plans for a multi-purpose facility at Penn State Erie. It also approved final plans and authorized the University to obtain bids and award contracts for an academic support building at The Milton S. Hershey Medical Center and the Safeguard Scientifics Building at Penn State Great Valley.
Funds for the state-funded, $10- million project at Erie were recently released by Gov. Tom Ridge. The lower floor of the facility will house an eight-lane NCAA regulation swimming pool, locker and team rooms and a classroom. The upper level will have a weight and strength training room, exercise room and offices, as well as a large gymnasium with a running track, intramural basketball courts and a competitive court with bleachers for up to 1,886 people.
Designed by Celli-Flynn and Associates of Pittsburgh, it will be built of masonry and precast concrete with a limestone finish and be connected to the main core of campus by a walkway connected to the main entrance of the library.
The $21.8-million office building at The Milton S. Hershey Medical Center will house units of both the Penn State College of Medicine and the Penn State Geisinger Health System, bringing a number of offices to the medical center from leased space off campus. To be located along the southern edge of the medical center property, the building has been designed by Williams Trebilcock and Whitehead of Pittsburgh to relate to the existing hospital and College of Medicine building.
The first floor will house University functions and building services with University offices also on the second floor. The third and fourth floors will be entirely occupied by Penn State Geisinger Health System administrative offices, and the fifth floor will have offices for both the University and the health system.
The $8.5 million Safeguard Scientifics Building at Penn State Great Valley will be east of the existing building at Penn State Great Valley Graduate Center with a walkway that will join the two and a 211-car parking lot expansion to support the complex. The first floor will contain an entrance lobby, continuing education and conference offices, seminar and classroom spaces and a 300-seat auditorium. The second floor has additional seminar and classroom spaces, faculty offices and access to the upper rows of the auditorium. GBQC of Philadelphia is the architect.
After considerable negotiation and approval by the Board of Trustees on Nov. 13, Penn State plans to purchase the Peters Farm at Rock Springs, allowing the University to consolidate its properties at the Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center.
The property consists of 162 acres of prime farm and woodlands that lie between the research center's 1,000 acres to the west and 865 acres to the east, and contains a house, barn and a number of sheds. Funding for the acquisition will come from University funds and an anonymous donor who has committed $1.2 million for the transaction.
According to the agreement, both Jay Harpster and Jack Kocher will receive $750,000 in value. The negotiations include life tenancy in the Peters Farm residence for Harpster and a land swap for Kocher.
The University will obtain Kocher's portion of the farm in exchange for a portion of the former Harper property, which it purchased in 1997, and the James and Anne Harpster Farm, which it anticipates buying shortly. Kocher will reimburse the University for the value of the exchange exceeding $750,000.
Harpster is currently in the process of selling the development rights on his portion of the Peters Farm through the Centre County Agricultural Land Preservation Board for an estimated $92,500 and the University's purchase price will be reduced accordingly, resulting in a cost to the University of about $357,000.
"Acquisition of the Peters Farm will join our separated lands and result in better management and better access to our research farms at Rock Springs," said Gary C. Schultz, senior vice president for finance and business/treasurer.
The board also approved the purchase of the Beryl E. Widmann Farm, just north of the University Park Airport and next to the Hawbecker farm, which is used for research and education by the College of Agricultural Sciences. The farm contains a house, a barn and a number of sheds, and 187 acres that will enhance the agricultural research capabilities of the college. The house will be leased and the college will use the barn and sheds for storage. The purchase price of $1.95 million includes a right of way access route to Route 550.
The master plan for the University Park campus is on track and the consultants, Johnson Johnson & Roy will present drafts of their plan to the University community in open sessions for campus and community reviews on Dec. 9.
In an informational report to the Board of Trustees on Nov. 13, William J. Anderson, assistant vice president of physical plant, said that the consultants visited the campus in July and presented sub-campus plans and design guidelines for review. They returned in October with updated composite and system plans as well as revised sub-campus plans. They also conducted a series of focus groups with members of the University community.
The master plan is anticipated to be completed early next year and is planned to be presented to the board for approval at their March 18 meeting in Harrisburg.
By Karen Trimbath
Public Information
A new report outlines how Penn State's athletics program ensures that the University continues to comply with NCAA certification guidelines.
William Asbury, vice president for student affairs and chair of the steering committee responsible for the report, described the nearly complete study of the University's athletics program to the Board of Trustees on Nov. 13.
"This yearlong, campuswide effort is part of the NCAA Division I athletics certification program, which ensures integrity in an institution's athletics operations," said Asbury. "In addition to this focus, the University has examined how the activities of the athletics program relate to its mission and purpose."
Asbury said the study covers governance, academic and financial integrity, and commitment to equity. Other members of the steering committee include faculty, students, staff and members of the athletics department.
Major changes within the athletics program occurred in these areas:
* In 1995 the athletics director began reporting directly to President Graham B. Spanier and became a member of the President's Council.
* In 1995 the Student-Athlete Services Office added a full-time staff person to monitor student-athlete initial eligibility information for final certification and waivers.
* In 1994 Penn State added a women's soccer team and improved existing facilities for women's sports as part of its plan for continual compliance with Title IX.
* In August 1998, Spanier was named chair of the NCAA Division I Board of Directors.
Asbury said that once the study is finished, a team of external reviewers will conduct an evaluation at University Park from Feb. 1-4. They will report to the NCAA Committee on Athletics Certification, which will determine Penn State's certification status and announce the decision publicly.
Penn State's self-study report is online at http://www.psu.edu/sports. Additional copies are located at all major libraries in the University's campus system. A special e-mail address (ncaacertify@psu.edu) has been set up to collect opinions and suggestions from the University community and the public.
James Broadhurst, chairman and chief executive officer of Eat'n Park Restaurants with headquarters in Pittsburgh, has been appointed to the Board of Trustees to fill an unexpired term as a representative of the industrial societies.
Eat'n Park Restaurants is a chain of 71 family restaurants in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia and has several non-commercial food service accounts in the company's Parkhurst Dining Services Division.
Broadhurst joined Eat'n Park as executive vice president and treasurer in 1973, following a seven-year career with Pittsburgh National Bank in commercial banking. He was elected president of Eat'n Park Restaurants in 1975 and nine years later became chairman and chief executive officer. His many changes and improvements in the restaurants since joining the company 25 years ago have helped the company maintain its popularity in the communities it serves and a strong regional image throughout the restaurant industry.
Broadhurst is a 1965 graduate of Penn State. He received the Alumni Fellow award from the College of Health and Human Development in 1994. In May 1997, he was named Distinguished Alumnus of Penn State. He received his master's degree in business administration from the University of Pittsburgh in 1966.
He is actively involved in the Pittsburgh community, serving on numerous boards and committees, and has received numerous awards. He was a member of the University's National Development Council and currently serves as chair of the Pittsburgh region for the upcoming campaign.
