sp2 buck UL.LET L LIBRARY j THE BEHREND BEACON Friday, September 24, 2004 Knowledge Park benefits Behrend Corporations provide students with unique opportunities By Alicia Raffensberger staff writer Knowledge Park is Behrend’s science and tech nology park, in partnership with the Greater Erie Industrial Development Corporation. What does that mean? It means that Knowledge Park is a site for businesses and organizations that promote re search and development and is committed to creat ing jobs in the Erie area. A main attraction for tenants of Knowledge Park is its proximity to campus allowing access to stu dents, faculty, research and educational resources. From a student's perspective, that means more opportunities to add to the college experience. Many majors on campus require internships or projects prior to graduation. The accessibility of Knowledge Park is an asset to students for such purposes. “Since education is the college’s core, Knowl edge Park’s goal is to provide near-campus oppor tunities for students which supplement their in-class experiences, such as internships, part- and full-time employment, and undergraduate research,” said Dr. Robert Light, Associate Professor and Associate Dean. From an economic perspective, the role Knowl edge Park plays is an important one. Everyone has seen the state of the economy and realizes that jobs can be hard to come by. That is something Knowl edge Park is trying to alleviate. “Knowledge Park’s overall goal is to accelerate Inside Recap this year’s Emmy Awards STUDENT LIFE, Page 7 Ani DiFranco review. STUDENT LIFE, Page 6 Golf team wins first tournament, SPORTS, Page 9 CONTENTS News 1-3 Editorial 4 Student Life 6-7 Sports 9-10 CONTACT US Newsroom: 898-6440 Fax: 898-6019 E-mail: behrendbeacon@aol.com Our offices are located down stairs in the Reed Union Building. A Penn State Erie Student Publication regional economic development by promoting the growth and development of high-paying, high technology jobs that will replace the dwindling number of traditional manufacturing jobs,” Light said. Jessica Buske, COMBA 08, is the Communi cations Marketing Intern at the Center for eßusiness and Advanced Information Technology, located in Knowledge Park. She found out about the internship through an e-mail from the Career Development Center. “I started my internship in May 2004 and I am planning on continuing it until December,” Buske said. Like many students, Buske didn’t know much about Knowledge Park prior to her internship. “1 only knew that GE used to have internships in Knowledge Park, but beyond that I thought it was a few empty buildings and a lot of pretty trees,” Buske said. Buske feels that her internship has been a valu able experience to her college career. “I love working in Knowledge Park because I feel like I am valued for the work I do at the Center for eßusiness and Advanced Information Technology and it provided me with the chance to learn more about information technology and how commu nication is integral in any organization.” Knowledge Park is not just commercial space for companies. Next time you head up Jordan Road take a drive through Knowledge Park and scope out the 200-acre park with scenic landscap ing and walking trails. Wine Festival this weekend By Bryan L. Spry staff writer The 23rd annual North East Wine Country Har vest Festival begins today and will run through Sept. 26. The grapes have once again been harvested for the fall and everyone is invited to stomp on out to Gravel Pit Park and Gibson Park in North East to experience the fun and sample the wine that is produced right here in Erie. Penn State Behrend’s Parents and Families Weekend begins today. With only a short drive from the campus here at Behrend, North East may be the place for that extra entertainment your fam ily is looking for. The 2004 North East Wine Fes tival will be held at Gibson Park located in down town North East and Gravel Pit Park, which is lo cated just 1.5 miles west of downtown on Route 20. The North East Wine Festival begins today at 6 p.m. at Gravel Pit Park. Tonight’s venue will fea ture two of Erie’s outstanding bands, Freudian Slip and Coyote Joe. Along with these two great bands, there will be food and wine vendors on hand until the park closes at 10 p.m. The festival starts back up Saturday at noon in Gravel Pit Park with a Beatles tribute band, Abbey Road, performing along with the car show. The 10th Annual Car Cruise In will feature antique cars and sports cars from many different eras and is free to the public. On hand will be the Presque Isle Car Club, PT Cruiser Club, and the Dodge Viper Club. There will be three different grape stomping events at Gravel Pit Park on Saturday. The grape stomping events will be held at 2 p.m., 4 p.m., and 5:30 p.m. The grape stomping will feature the Grape Queen, Apple Queen and the Erie County Dairy Queen. The public is also invited to join in the fun of grape stomping at any of these times. Musical performances will be held at Gravel Pit Park on the main stage throughout Saturday and will feature such bands as Thirst’n Howl, Jim Moore and Endless Summer. WINE, continued on Page 2 Search begins for SEET director By Teresa Nicolia staff writer The School of Engineering and Engineering Technology will be starting its search for a new di rector. Dr. Robert Simoneau, the current director, will retire at the end of this academic school year, leaving the position to be filled by an applicant who meets and exceeds a list of several qualifications. “The candidate should have a PhD in the field of engineering. They should have a record of schol arship and research and excellent teaching,” said Dr. Rob Weissbach, chair of the search committee The hired applicant is not required to teach a class, however, Simoneau took on the task during his years as the director. It is typically understood that the person chosen will function mostly at an adminis trative level, which is why the committee prefers applicants with prior administrative experience. However, Weissbach emphasizes, “Applicants should be able to have industrial experience...to show something outside of academic credentials.” The procedure for finding the most promising interviewee is simple yet structured. Advertisements are placed in various publications identifying the available position. Prospective applicants across the nation will then submit their resumes to the search committee. The committee will make sure all ap plications are read and screened. Finalists are then contacted first by phone and finally asked to attend an on-campus interview. It was originally believed that the current direc tor had a large say in selecting his replacement; how- nts stri Senat Hall comes up short? Students reveal pros and cons of new residence hall By Aaron J. Amendola and Adam McLachlan staff writers Freshmen residents of the newly built Senat Hall have been having quite the time since moving in. The hall, which began its construction last year, was built with accommodating new freshmen students in mind. Senat Hall was specifically designed to meet the needs of freshman students in the First-Year Inter est Group program. Students will only be housed in Senat for their first year at Behrend and must re main in the FIG program their first semester. With operational elevators on each floor (for handicapped students), several lounges and study rooms for residents to mosey around in and with an updated look from the Niagara and Perry dorm halls, Senat Hall is aiming to please. The hall, which opened in August, cost $11.9 million and is supposed to hold around 150 students, all of whom will be grouped by academic major. The hall is named after Acting Sailing Master George Senat, commander of the schooner Porcu pine. With three floors to fill the demand of incoming students, plenty of fun can be had at every comer, but there’s also room for some errors. Rob Covert, 810 05, an RA on Senat’s second towards their new dorm, ever, that is not the case. “The outgoing director is pretty much a by stander in this process,” said Simoneau. On the other hand, the search committee has the right to nominate individuals in whom they seepo tential. “The process is pretty standardized. It’s pretty well-established,” Weissbach remarked. The search committee is looking for a well rounded person. One who will be able to help ad vance the program that is already well established. Applicants must be aware that Penn State Behrend has a very unique engineering program to be managed since the merger of engineering and engineering technology into the same school. The example the director sets for the department must be respectable and businesslike. “The position entails somebody who will repre sent the school and communicate between the fac ulty of the school and the administration of the col lege such, as the dean,” said Weissbach. The next director of the engineering and engi neering technology program will be the fifth per son to fill the position. The current director has paved the way for research and economic develop ment. Next year’s leader will need to focus on ex panding the schools educational and outreach op portunities. Since the search is nationwide, there is no esti mation or assumption of the types or number of people who will apply for Dr. Simoneau’s position. Details on the progress of the search are not yet available. floor said Senat has “a great atmosphere for students. It’s a lot more conducive to studying than the other dorms. Not everything is per fect though.” ‘They’ve had a few problems with plumb ing and the sewer backing up the first day... All the kinks are basically out now,” said Covert. Melissa Damon, PSHBS 01, had emphasized the air conditioning. ”1 love having air condi tioning,” said Damon. “Even though some nights, it is almost too cold, it is still great to have in your dorm room.” Staci Rowlands, ACNTG 01, and Lindsay Porter, DUS 01, second floor Senat residents, seem to have already bonded into great friends along with other Senat students. “The floors are bonding, we’re all pretty tight.. .there’s still a little bit of rivalry though,” said Rowlands. ‘The only bad thing is the construction out side when we’re trying to sleep in. The floor of our shower wasn’t done...but we’ve been making the best of it.” The incomplete bathrooms have been the only repetitive complaint from Senat residents, also coming from Jason Dellosala, 810 01, who said, “It’s awesome compared to the other dorms.. .they just had to come in an finish our bathroom.” Vol. LII No. 5
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