This week's top stories from across Penn State:
FACULTY AND STAFF AWARDS: Each year, Penn State recognizes outstanding faculty and staff with annual awards in teaching and excellence. The award recipients will be honored at a ceremony on April 19.
TOWN HALL: Opportunities for employee growth, health care and benefits, changes taking place in the University's Human Resources management system, and retaining and rewarding staff and faculty were among the topics covered during a Town Hall with Penn State leaders on April 5 that focused on human resources-related issues.
GRADUATE UNIONIZATION: Penn State President Eric Barron discussed the University's view on how graduate student unionization impacts Penn State's academic mission in a letter to the campus community.
JESSICA BIEL HISTORY: The ballad of Francis Marion Brazier ends badly: Brazier, the great-great-great grandfather of the actress Jessica Biel, was killed while attempting to escape a Civil War prison. Joseph Beilein, an assistant professor of history at Penn State Behrend, helped tell the story on a recent episode of TLC's "Who Do You Think You Are?"
INNOVATION HUBS: New innovation hubs at 13 Penn State campus communities are successfully supporting early-stage startups. In the process, they have discovered an unanticipated benefit to the program: an abundant source of hands-on student internships that enhance success for startups and students.
NEW GRADUATE CERTIFICATE: Penn State is accepting applications for a new graduate-level certificate designed to help businesses leverage their marketing data.
CYBERCRIME: A lecturer in the College of Information Sciences and Technology offers three tips for users to safeguard their online information.