Penn College

Local firm’s anniversary celebration includes scholarship fund

On hand at Penn College for the recent announcement of the Ken Larson Scholarship are, from left, Robb Dietrich, executive director of the Penn College Foundation; college President Davie Jane Gilmour; Keith S. Kuzio, president and CEO of Larson Design Group; Kenneth C. Larson Jr., for whom the scholarship is named; and Christopher E. Keiser, LDG project manager and chair of the fundraising campaign. Credit: Pennsylvania College of Technology / Penn State. Creative Commons

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — The intertwined histories of an employee-owned architectural engineering survey firm and a national leader in applied technology education have resulted in a new scholarship fund in honor of a company co-founder.

In the midst of marking its 30th anniversary, Larson Design Group recently announced that it has begun fundraising for the Ken Larson Scholarship at Pennsylvania College of Technology.

Once endowed, the fund will benefit students enrolled in a number of college majors related to LDG specialties: building science and sustainable design: architectural technology concentration; architectural technology; civil engineering technology; surveying technology; heating, ventilation and air conditioning design technology; heating, ventilation and air conditioning technology; and building automation technology: electrical technology concentration.

“Ken Larson was the first CEO of Larson Design Group. His vision was to create careers to keep talented engineers, architects and surveyors in Lycoming County,” said Christopher E. Keiser, project manager with LDG and chair of the fundraising campaign. “With the help of Pennsylvania College of Technology, he was able to realize that vision.”

At a recent company shareholders’ meeting on main campus, it was noted that Larson currently employs 83 graduates of Penn College (or its predecessors) in three offices. Over its three decades, 143 alumni have worked for LDG in various capacities.

“We wanted to create a scholarship in his name at Penn College, both to honor his contributions to the company and to honor the college’s contributions,” said Keiser, whose own resume includes an associate degree in landscape/nursery technology from the college.

Surprised at that spring shareholders’ meeting by the announcement that the scholarship fund would be a tribute to him, Larson talked of the decision to form the company in 1986.

“There wasn’t a decent engineering firm within 90 miles,” said Larson, who served on a Williamsport Area Community College advisory committee while employed by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. “We were losing a lot of good people from the college, Bucknell and Penn State to other areas.”

The scholarship is part of LDG’s ongoing 30th anniversary celebration, reflecting both Larson’s vision and the instrumental role that college alumni have played in the company’s growth and service to its communities.

In order to reach endowment, funds raised must reach or exceed $25,000. Larson Design Group has pledged to match contributions dollar for dollar up to $12,500, and several fundraising events are being planned.

Those interested in contributing to the Ken Larson Scholarship or establishing a scholarship fund can send a donation to the Penn College Foundation, One College Avenue, Williamsport, PA 17701; give at https://give.pct.edu/scholarship.htm; or call the Institutional Advancement Office toll-free at 866-GIVE-2-PC (866-448-3272).

Students who wish to apply for any of the more than 200 scholarships administered by the Penn College Foundation should complete the application at www.pct.edu/admissions/scholarships.

For information about Penn College, a national leader in applied technology education and workforce development, visit www.pct.edu, email admissions@pct.edu or call toll-free 800-367-9222.

Last Updated August 23, 2016