October 14, 2025
Penn State University Libraries will observe GIS Day, an annual event celebrating the technology of geographic information systems, on Nov. 17. This year’s activities focus on geospatial presentation, networking opportunities and student engagement through trivia games and résumé reviews.
October 14, 2025
In spring 2026, the College of Agricultural Sciences’ Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering will launch ABSM 497: Conservation Management, a course designed to help students understand natural resource concerns across Pennsylvania’s landscape, with an emphasis on soil and water conservation.
October 13, 2025
In September, turfgrass students from Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to volunteer at the 2025 U.S. Mid-Amateur Golf Championship.
October 10, 2025
Power plants may emit higher amounts of pollution during lapses in federal monitoring and enforcement, such as during a government shutdown, according to a new study led by researchers at Penn State.
October 9, 2025
Penn State researchers studying declining populations of sundial lupines in the eastern part of the United States are closer to determining how an understanding of the plant genetics could be used to inform reseeding strategies to help with conservation efforts.
October 9, 2025
The Department of Animal Science in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences has named Bob Pepple of Oxford to receive its 2025 Distinguished Dairy Science Alumnus Award for his contributions to the dairy industry.
October 9, 2025
Catherine Nettles Cutter, a longtime professor of food science in the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences, and her husband, Lester Cutter, have pledged a $200,000 estate gift to establish the Nettles Cutter Food Safety Endowment in the Department of Food Science. Funds from the gift will support research in areas of microbial food safety and food safety education.
October 7, 2025
New research conducted by ethnobiologists — scientists who study the relationships between people and their environments — at Penn State revealed that harvesters collect a surprisingly wide variety of wild mushroom species in the region, primarily for food and medicinal purposes. In addition to foraging varied fungi, the researchers found that harvesters built communities focused on knowledge sharing and expansion.
October 7, 2025
New research conducted by ethnobiologists — scientists who study the relationships between people and their environments — at Penn State revealed that harvesters collect a surprisingly wide variety of wild mushroom species in the region, primarily for food and medicinal purposes. In addition to foraging varied fungi, the researchers found that harvesters built communities focused on knowledge sharing and expansion.
October 6, 2025
Carrie Laboski, a Penn State alumna and research leader for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service’s Pasture Systems & Watershed Management Research Unit, University Park, has been named head of the Department of Ecosystem Science and Management in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, effective Nov. 3.
October 6, 2025
Roughly a quarter of adults in the U.S. are caring for elderly family members or children with an illness or disability — and sometimes both at the same time. Researchers at Penn State led an expansive study of caregiver well-being and found that the type of geographic location and individual circumstances can impact a caregiver’s health, comfort and happiness even more than their state’s family care policies.
October 2, 2025
Government and industry stakeholders got a literal taste of the future of agriculture by sampling hydroponically grown greens at one of several presentations during the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences’ annual Legislative Research Tour, held Sept. 25 at the University Park campus.
October 1, 2025
For the first time, the International Union for Conservation of Nature is formally including all microbial life in its framework by establishing a Microbial Conservation Specialist Group, which includes Seth Bordenstein, the director of Penn State’s One Health Microbiome Center, and will focus on the survival of species — even the smallest ones on the planet.
October 1, 2025
Caroline Hunter, a senior majoring in environmental resource management in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, had the opportunity to grow her knowledge of environmental policy during a summer internship with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
October 1, 2025
The Penn State Alumni Association celebrated some of its best and brightest during the Alumni Fellow Awards ceremony on Sept. 17, where 12 Penn State alumni received the Alumni Association’s most prestigious honor. Learn more about this year's honorees, see photos from the event, and view the full 2025 Alumni Fellow Awards Ceremony via the Alumni Association’s official recording.
September 30, 2025
Innovation helps spur rural economies, but a new study led by researchers at Penn State found that while firms incorporating innovation into their business model had higher credit application rates, they were less successful in receiving loans, especially in rural areas.
September 30, 2025
Just as a lighthouse guides mariners through uncertain waters, faculty and staff in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences are serving as beacons to help first-generation students navigate the challenges and opportunities of college life.
September 29, 2025
As part of our regular “We Are!” feature, we recognize 21 Penn Staters who have gone above and beyond what’s asked of them in their work at the University.
September 29, 2025
Penn State Extension’s Allegheny County office has relocated to Penn State Greater Allegheny in McKeesport, expanding community access and collaboration with faculty and students. The new office, located in the Main Building, will host an open house Oct. 14 from 4 to 6 p.m. to showcase programs and services.
September 29, 2025
Bacterial speck is a common disease affecting tomatoes that can result in lower yields for growers. A new study led by researchers at Penn State gives new clues on how a plant’s microbiome can be used to combat the pathogen.
September 29, 2025
The College of Arts and Architecture’s Stuckeman School at Penn State is hosting a public roundtable discussion panel to explore the concepts of designing across generations and designing for an aging society at noon Oct. 8 in the Stuckeman Family Building Jury Space.
September 23, 2025
The One Health Microbiome Center at Penn State has awarded the first cohort of doctoral students to receive the Biotechnological and Integrative Opportunities in Microbiome Sciences (BIOMS) doctoral training fellowship. Fellows will engage in rigorous training in microbiome sciences and biotechnology.
September 23, 2025
In a development that could help protect one of the world's most beloved agricultural commodities, a research team at Penn State has successfully created disease-resistant cacao plants using gene-editing technology. According to the researchers, the innovation promises to help resolve a significant problem for the global chocolate industry, worth over $135 billion annually, which faces threat from the phytophthora species, a fungal-like pathogen that gives rise to the destructive black pod disease that can cause yield losses of up to 30% worldwide.
September 23, 2025
Andrew Patterson has been named director of Penn State’s Center for Molecular Toxicology and Carcinogenesis, a research hub that investigates how environmental exposures affect human health.
September 22, 2025
The Rock Ethics Institute and the Maurice K. Goddard Chair in Forestry and Environmental Resource Conservation are now accepting applications for the 2026–27 Faculty Fellows program. The program offers a one-course release from teaching during a single academic year to support Penn State faculty with ethics-related research projects.
September 22, 2025
Six Penn State students and recent alumni have been nominated for the 2026 Rhodes and Marshall scholarships, two of the most prestigious and competitive awards available to U.S. students. Nominees will submit their materials to the national review committees, and finalists will be invited to interview in November.
September 19, 2025
Fall is the time of year when thousands of Pennsylvania residents head to forests and woodlots with chainsaws to cut firewood to heat and enhance their homes over the coming winter months. Judd Michael, professor of agricultural and biological engineering, who recently published a study on chainsaw injuries, recommended precautions for those who use the powerful, dangerous tools in this Q&A.
September 19, 2025
Cruciferous vegetables like radish, broccoli and kale offer significant health benefits, especially when they are consumed as microgreens, or as young seedlings harvested early. But microgreens are highly perishable and lose nutritional value quickly. In an effort to boost the impact and accessibility of microgreens, a team of researchers at Penn State found that hot air drying — a cheap and relatively easy preservation technique — largely allows the plants to retain key nutrients and compounds that benefit health.
September 18, 2025
Organic beekeeping can support healthy and productive honey bee colonies, and a new study led by researchers in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences found that adopting organic honey bee colony management is not only profitable, but in some cases, it can be even more profitable than conventional management.
September 18, 2025
Teaching and Learning with Technology, part of Penn State University Libraries, has announced the Teaching and Learning Technologies Faculty Advisory Committee members for the 2025-26 academic year. The committee is pivotal in guiding the integration of technology within teaching and learning at Penn State.
