Penn State Altoona's 70th anniversary celebration highlighted by Doobie Brothers

Tuesday, July 28, 2009 - 3310 hits

Penn State Altoona has come a long way in seventy years, and the college is having a birthday party to remember.

The community is invited to join in a weekend-long celebration, beginning Saturday, October 24 in conjunction with Homecoming and Parents/Families Weekend. Events and activities Saturday include sand and spin art, face-painting, old fashioned photos, an illusionist, a tailgate and viewing of the Penn State football game, and both men's and women's soccer games with the crowning of the Homecoming King and Queen during half-time of the men's game.

Sunday, much of the party moves to the downtown campus along 12th Avenue where there will be food vendors, Creamery ice cream, a pictorial exhibit of Penn State Altoona's history, and musical entertainment from students and faculty. There will also be college musical and dance performances, along with children's activities.

The weekend wraps up with a concert by the Doobie Brothers at the Jaffa Mosque, Sunday, October 25, 2009. The opening act is Hope Fallacy, a student band from Penn State Altoona. Doors for the concert will open at 6 p.m. with the Doobie Brothers set to go on at 7:30 p.m. Tickets go on sale August 15 at the Altoona Railroader's Museum for $10 plus handling fees. Net proceeds benefit the Penn State Altoona Future Fund, a source of funding for programs that enrich academic and cultural life on campus and in the community. Tickets will be available by phone at 1-888-4-ALTOONA.

This fund also may be used by the administration to offer emergency scholarship assistance to students who are experiencing a financial crisis.

"The seventieth anniversary celebration is, in large part, for our community," says Chancellor Lori J. Bechtel-Wherry. "It is the support of our community that makes our achievements possible. The weekend of fun family-oriented events is our way of giving something back to the people who have long stood by us during our journey. We are excited to share such a milestone with our community."

Penn State Altoona was founded September 13, 1939, when the Altoona Undergraduate Center opened in the former Webster Grade School building in downtown Altoona. Quickly outgrowing this location after World War II, the college's Advisory Board purchased Ivyside Park in 1947, an abandoned 38-acre amusement park on the outskirts of the city, for a new campus. The Ivyside Park campus opened in 1948 with approximately 600 students and thirty faculty members. Since that time, Penn State Altoona has grown to become a four-year college with more than 4,000 students currently enrolled. The College offers twenty baccalaureate and nine associate degrees, as well as the first two years of more than 180 Penn State majors and NCAA Division III athletics.

Please continue to visit this Web site for more information on the celebration and updates to the weekend's schedule.