Newsroom

College To Sponsor Annual Cambria County College Fair

The Annual Cambria County College Fair, sponsored by Pennsylvania Highlands Community College, will be held on Tuesday, September 21st, at the Frank J. Pasquerilla Conference Center. This year’s College Fair will take place from 8:30am to 11am, with students attending from across the region.

The mission of the College Fair is to promote higher education and future opportunities to not only high school students and their families, but to the public as well. The Cambria County College Fair helps local community members find and discover the many educational and career opportunities that are right in their back yard.

Colleges and universities from all over the state of Pennsylvania will be on-hand to meet with and assist guests regarding their educational and career needs. With so many institutions attending, there is something for everyone: technical schools, business colleges, cosmetology schools and universities, branches of the military, banks, local businesses, and more.

The Cambria County College Fair is here to inform our community of educational opportunities; please stop by. The College Fair is happening on Tuesday, September 21st. Be a part of something special and help us promote this community event to make it a great success.

Over $800,000 In Relief Funding To Be Distributed To Impacted Fall 2021 Students

Penn Highlands Community College will award roughly $832,000 in economic relief directly to students impacted by the pandemic this Fall 2021 semester as a result of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.

All enrolled for-credit students are eligible for COVID-19 relief payments. No Federal Application for Free Student Aid (FAFSA) is required to receive the relief funds; however, students that show exceptional need based upon their FAFSA status will be prioritized.

In addition to COVID-19 relief funds, Penn Highlands also offers over 20 scholarships for each academic year, as well as payment plans designed to assist a student’s individual needs.

This fall semester, courses are available in-person, online, or through a hybrid (in-person and online) model, allowing students to obtain their education at their chosen comfort level. Penn Highlands offers multiple degree and certificate programs at six locations across the region and online.

Our fall semester starts on Monday, August 23rd. There is still time to enroll. Click here to apply.

Medical Assisting Technology Awarded Continuing Accreditation Through CAAHEP

Update: As of March 2023, the Medical Assisting Technology degree is no longer accredited by CAAHEP.

The Medical Assisting Technology (A.A.S.) associate degree program at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College has been awarded continuing accreditation through the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP). The Medical Assisting Technology associate degree program received its initial accreditation in 2016.

“This accomplishment is a testament to the dedication and hard work put in by our Professor of Health Professions, Gaynelle Schmieder, and the rest of our Health Professions team,” stated Robert Farinelli, Vice President of Academic Affairs. “Students enrolled in Medical Assisting at Penn Highlands Community College can feel confident in knowing that their education will set them up for success with this accreditation status.”

Penn Highlands’ students will benefit the most from CAAHEP accreditation. Those that graduate from Penn Highlands with a Medical Assisting Technology degree will automatically be qualified to sit for the AAMA (American Association of Medical Assistants) exam and become certified medical assistants.

Medical assisting, a multi-skilled allied health profession, allows medical assistants to function as members of the health care delivery team by performing both administrative and clinical procedures.

CAAHEP is the largest programmatic accreditor of the health sciences profession. The organization reviews and accredits over 2,100 educational programs in 32 health science occupations. CAAHEP is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.

Continuing accreditation is awarded after a program has already been initially accredited and then subsequently reviewed by the Committees on Accreditation at specified intervals. Continuing accreditation remains in place until the CAAHEP Board votes otherwise, and it is not time limited.

RMU Partners with Penn Highlands To Create Affordable Transfer Pathways

Robert Morris University signed articulation agreements today with Pennsylvania Highlands Community College (Penn Highlands) and West Virginia Northern Community College (WVNCC) to create affordable pathways for community college students to earn a four-year degree.

“RMU shares with all our community college partners an unwavering commitment to ensuring that a four-year degree is affordable and accessible to students no matter where they are on their educational or professional journey,” said RMU President Chris Howard. “We are grateful to the Richard King Mellon Foundation for their support of this vital mission.”

The agreement with Penn Highlands, based in Johnstown, creates 26 combinations of Penn Highlands associate degree programs that will transfer seamlessly to RMU bachelor degree programs. RMU majors included in the agreement are accounting, business administration, management, marketing, sport management, cinema and photography, computer and information systems, cybersecurity, criminal justice, English, writing, organizational leadership, history, economics, health sciences, psychology, and interdisciplinary studies.

”These transfer agreements signify that we are committed to identifying those collaborations that are beneficial to Pennsylvania Highlands Community College and to Robert Morris University, but most importantly, to our shared students and to the communities we both serve,” said Penn Highlands Community College President Steve Nunez. “Ultimately, these agreements ensure that students of Pennsylvania Highlands can easily transfer to Robert Morris University, where they will receive an outstanding education as they earn their bachelor’s degree.”

Today’s announcement is just the latest in a series of agreements that RMU has signed with community colleges throughout western Pennsylvania and beyond.

Embracing The Motto Of Service Above Self

The original column appeared in the Tribune-Democrat, written by Dr. Steve Nunez. Click here to see original sourced column.

About seven years ago, Sauk Valley Community College, where I worked, hired a new president. During one of my first meetings with him, he asked me which community organizations I belonged to; I embarrassingly said none. He then went on to inform me that as I was a senior community college leader, he expected me to join and participate in several community organizations.

It seems so logical to me now – I mean, the word “community” is embedded right in the name of community college. I, therefore, wholeheartedly agreed and quickly joined multiple organizations across several communities.

That same boss suggested that I join a local chapter of Rotary International. Again, embarrassingly, I had to ask what the mission of Rotary was. He patiently explained that it was an organization dedicated to community service at the local, regional, national, and even international levels.

The motto being “Service Above Self.”

I was intrigued and soon joined the Dixon, Illinois, chapter of Rotary – where I was a member for five years.

During those five years, we did great work for the Dixon community and raised more than $50,000 for college scholarships and participated in multiple community renewal projects.

What impressed me most was that the Rotary Club was full of civic-minded, kind, and generous folks. As we say in the south, “they are good people,” and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know them. Many are still good friends today.

After being hired as President at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College, I had a conversation with my own leadership team about joining community organizations, just as my former boss did with me those seven years ago.

I have talented leaders on my team, and I stressed to them the importance of not only participating in but also providing leadership to community organizations.

I was pleased. They were already engaged with and provided leadership to many community organizations. I’m proud to say that the College remains “plugged in” to our communities as we serve as members of and provide leadership to many civic, service, and economic development organizations.

Last year, I decided to join the Ebensburg Rotary Club, where I quickly realized that members are good people who love their community.

A short year later, I am now the club’s president. We are a small but mighty club that is invested in helping the Ebensburg community. Our list of annual projects is quite impressive and only seems to keep growing.

We are most intently focused on designing and funding a dog park near Lake Rowena – and years of effort and persistence are finally paying off as we may be nearing the construction phase.

I’ll leave you with a call to action – investigate your local community organizations (of any sort) and join one.

Even if you can only infrequently participate, your expertise, your time, and your service is important to that club and to our community’s wellbeing. You won’t regret joining and you may find yourself falling in love with its mission – much as I did with the Rotary.

If you’d like to help the Ebensburg Rotary Club in its efforts to complete a dog park, you can attend our Dawg Pawty fundraiser from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on August 14th at Lake Rowena.

And, we’ll see you at Penn Highlands.

Written By Dr. Steve Nunez, College’s Fifth President. This monthly series appears in The Tribune-Democrat, and will allow Dr. Nunez to provide his perspective on the value of education and of a community college.