Good morning, State College.

Monday at Centre Hall, the 152nd Grange Fair held Kids Day with arts and crafts stations and an ice cream social that distributed over 1,000 cups in 20 minutes (with a marshmallow launcher craft for children) while officials highlighted the fair’s economic impact and support for year-round events.

This September and October, the Calder Way Pop-Up at 236 E.

Calder Way welcomes It Is What It Is Candy & Gifts, a family-owned shop offering high-quality chocolates and nostalgic treats from Lock Haven. Downtown visitors can enjoy unique sweets and gifts at this seasonal pop-up.

Penn State launched the pilot Career Accelerator program in summer 2026 at Smeal College of Business to give students real-world business experience.

The credit-bearing initiative lets them work on authentic projects with industry partners + earn certifications in high-demand fields.

Penn State graduates Tom and Colleen Weber (class of '87) endowed $250,000 to create a memorial scholarship at the Nese College of Nursing for first-generation nursing students and added $25,000 in fall 2025 to ease student costs.

Their gift honors their parents and supports future nurses.

The Fall 2026 Seminar Series at Penn State Neuroscience Institute begins Sept.

3 with free talks and refreshments at 008 Muller Laboratory and will run on Thursdays from 11 a.m. to noon.

Penn State student Shayla Hines was named a Thornton Tomasetti Foundation National Scholarship recipient for her work on historic building preservation (using infrared thermography, drone photography, and 3D laser scanning) at Centre Furnace Mansion in State College.

She plans to pursue restoration work after graduating.

Penn State alum J.B. Branch now leads federal AI governance at Public Citizen and was recently selected for the Council on Foreign Relations' Stephen M.

Kellen Term Member Program; he explained that his liberal arts education prepared him to address ethical technology policy challenges.

Undergraduate Research and Fellowships Mentoring, in partnership with the University Libraries, has launched a free, noncredit Undergraduate Research Readiness course on Canvas to help students learn scholarly research through six modules (with ungraded quizzes).

Undergraduate students from all disciplines can enroll now to earn a certificate and prepare for research opportunities.

Deborah Ehrenthal will step down as director of Penn State's Social Science Research Institute and return to the faculty at the College of Health and Human Development at the end of 2026.

A national search led by Craig Newschaffer will install a new director by January 2027.

Penn State researchers studied over 700 black ash seed samples to guide restoration after invasive beetles decimated populations.

They established three gardens at Ag Progress Days near University Park, in Syracuse and Quebec—efforts to produce seeds for reintroducing this vital tree.

The Pennsylvania Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility Program received a 2026 Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Project Certificate of Excellence Award for ranking in the top five nationally — honoring its 18 critical access hospitals — at a July 16 ceremony in Washington, D.C.

Penn State CTSI released its Five-Year Impact Report showing that its research efforts boosted funding, built rural health partnerships, and supported training for junior scientists; the report noted a 15.7-to-1 return on investment through over 150 pilot research projects that reached communities statewide.

Center Brock Riker, a former wrestler transferring from Texas State, gained over 30 pounds since joining and will compete for a starting role on Penn State's offensive line this fall (he allowed no sacks in 438 snaps).

Coaches say his work ethic will boost the team's Big Ten campaign.

Penn State announced that its October 10 football game against USC will kick off at 7:30 p.m. on NBC at Beaver Stadium; the White Out event marks the first meeting between the teams since 1994.