40 YEARS OF LIFESAVING FLIGHTS: The newest Life Lion Airbus H155 helicopter took flight in August from the Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. It’s the third aircraft in the Life Lion fleet, which has transported more than 45,000 patients since it was established in 1986.
EVERYDAY PEOPLE: BRAEDEN GRAY
Braeden Gray makes Penn State Lionettes history. Read the full profile by Amy Strauss Downey '04 Lib.
CLUB HOPPING
3D Printing Club
Founded: 2013
Current membership: 20
Mission: To explore what’s possible with 3D printing and educate people about it.
When the 3D Printing Club was founded more than a decade ago, one of the group’s first priorities was finding the best kind of weed-trimmer string to use for printing. The club has come a long way, says president Devin Schultz: Among other projects, it is working with a startup to build instructions for a fully open-source 5-axis printer. The club regularly collaborates with other student organizations, printing polymer materials for BattleBots competitions for the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and disco ball–shaped shells for the Penn State chapter of the Acoustical Society of America. Schultz, who recently helped a friend 3D-print a part for a research project, praised the resources Penn State has for students, including the Maker Commons and the Learning Factory. The 3D Printing Club is designed to “fill in the gaps” by modifying existing printers and teaching students how to do so to fit their needs. “We try to get a printer to do something it can’t already do,” he says.
What's Up With That?
Q: What are the origins of Penn State’s Alma Mater?
A: The alma mater celebrated its 125th anniversary in June. Prior to 1901, Penn State did not have a designated college song. American literature professor Fred Lewis Pattee, noting that other universities had adopted songs that helped foster unity and enthusiasm, penned six verses to the tune of “Lead Me On,” a song set in F major by Cauviere in the college hymnal that had traditionally been sung at commencement. The song debuted at the annual alumni dinner in June 1901, where Gov. James Beaver, then president of the Board of Trustees, proclaimed it “the official song of Penn State.” Eventually, the final two verses were omitted from the song, and in 1975, in recognition of International Women’s Year, some of the remaining lyrics were changed—“at Boyhood’s Gate” to “at Childhood’s Gate,” and “molded into men” to “Dear Old State”—to reflect the coeducational nature of Penn State, which had been admitting women since 1871. An unofficial, alternate version of the song, in which students repeatedly stated they did not know the words, was popular during home football games from the 1970s through the early 2000s before going out of style.
Got a campus mystery you want solved? Email us at heypennstater@psu.edu.
Reminiscing
What was your favorite Beaver Stadium tradition?
“For 50 years, our family has sat in section WF. As the game starts, we join the Mic Man when he says, ‘Beaver Stadium, I’ve got one question for you. Are you ready for Penn State football?’ We stand and shout with him, and I still get chills!”
Dee Ann Eckert Donnelly ’82 Com
“The Blue Band’s pregame show and traveling trumpets!”
Anna Noll ’03 Lib
“‘We don’t know the ... words.’”
John Newman ’84, ’93 PhD Lib
“Cup stacking and the cup wars that followed after the stack tipped over.”
Leslie Gotch Zarrelli ’95 Edu
“Trying to toss the kicked balls out of the south end zone.”
Brian McAllister ’96 Agr
“Pelting each other with marshmallows!”
Christine Chant Schuyler ’90 Lib
“Helping to pass the Lion up the bleachers.”
Joseph McAteer ’78 H&HD
Illustrations by Joel Kimmel.
Then & Now
Orchesis Dance Company
Members of the Orchesis Dance Company perform to the music of Scheherazade in 1974 (top) and this past April at Schwab Auditorium (bottom). Penn State’s oldest dance company was founded in 1935 and is a member of the PSU Performing Arts Council. Orchesis choreographs all of its routines in styles including contemporary, jazz, ballet, and tap, and performs at THON and various competitions throughout the year.
Common Wealth
Highlights from four Commonwealth campuses.
BEAVER
The work of student scientists and Autumn Sabo, associate professor of biology at Penn State Beaver, received the 2026 Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence for their Forest Exploration Center and Native Tree Nursery and their work growing native plants, restoring habitat, and educating the community in Beaver County. Sabo, the students, and Jeff Karwoski, founder and executive director of Reforest Our Future, planted 11 small patches of forest around Beaver County with the support of funding from the inaugural Commonwealth Campus Undergraduate Community- Engaged Research Award.
PENN COLLEGE
In partnership with a U.S. National Science Foundation–funded initiative to shape a more sustainable heating, ventilation, and air conditioning industry, Pennsylvania College of Technology now offers the final four semesters of its bachelor’s degree in heating, ventilation, and air conditioning engineering technology online. The coursework, taught by the same HVAC faculty who lead the college’s on-campus classes, enhances the hands-on equipment installation and troubleshooting skills developed during the associate-degree phase by adding education in HVAC system design, controls, and energy/project management.
HERSHEY
Penn State Health Life Lion Critical Care Transport welcomed a new helicopter to its fleet, which provides safe, rapid critical-care transport across central Pennsylvania and surrounding communities. The newest aircraft, stationed at Life Lion’s Lancaster base, joins a fleet of two other Airbus H155 aircraft. Life Lion now operates three of the largest and fastest aeromedical helicopters in Pennsylvania, each featuring a large interior cabin that accommodates advanced lifesaving equipment, specialty medical personnel, and family members during transport. The aircraft can also transport additional clinical specialists, including neonatologists, respiratory therapists, and perfusionists.
GREAT VALLEY
This fall, the campus began offering a master of science degree in artificial intelligence. The 30-credit graduate program, delivered through hybrid courses, is designed to prepare students with advanced technical expertise, research experience, and practical skills for careers in industrial research and development, academic research, and doctoral study. Students investigate theoretical and applied artificial intelligence problems and develop the skills needed to formulate research questions, design rigorous studies, analyze results, and communicate scholarly findings. The program can be completed in two years of full-time study or 21/2 years of part-time study.
The Big 3
East Classroom Building
The 90,000-square-foot East Classroom Building opened this fall near the intersection of Park Avenue and Bigler Road.
SHARED SPACE
The general-purpose classrooms are available to all academic colleges at University Park.
TAKE A SEAT
The building includes four lecture halls that can each accommodate up to 400 students.
BLENDING IN
The LEED-certified building was designed with red brick, sandstone, and aluminum exterior to match the campus aesthetic.
Illustrations by Joel Kimmel.
