The coastline of San Juan, the capital of Puerto Rico. Penn State New Kensington students volunteered for community service projects in San Juan during spring break.
Group headed to “51st state” for various projects
Penn State New Kensington students are volunteering in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico this week during the annual spring break. The campus is open all week, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday-Friday, March 9-13.
When they could be unwinding after a week of midterm exams, 10 New Kensington students flew to San Juan for a hybrid community service project that combines helping environmental communities and underserved communities. Two staff members, Lauren Blum, assistant to the director of student affairs, and Elaine Zarichnak, campus nurse, accompanied the students to the United States’ territory.
Erin Bruce, Kelcey Harris, Zach Hudak, Christian Kamenic, Kristen Kopacko, Annie Ley, Brittany Miller, Sandra Muhhuku, Will Nichols, and Aubrey Simpson are performing a variety of functions, including rehabilitating a mangrove and assisting with literacy initiatives throughout San Juan, the commonwealth’s capital.
The eight-day goodwill journey includes sightseeing around San Juan and leisure time at beaches, rainforests and festivals. The students left the states March 7 and will return March 14.
Classes resume on Monday, March 16. After the break, there are seven weeks remaining in the semester. Final exams conclude May 8, and commencement is scheduled for May 9. The first summer session, the three-week intersession begins May 11. The 12-week and five-week sessions start on May 17.
For Penn State academic calendars, visit http://www.registrar.psu.edu/academic_calendar/calendar_index.cfm
Campus Connections to Puerto Rico
The New Kensington campus has a connection with Puerto Rico as the Admissions office made inroads into the United States territory in 2013. Danielle DeStefano, assistant director of enrollment, visited high schools throughout the island in cities such as San Juan, Ponce, Myaguez, Caguas, Carolina and Bayamon.
“Penn State is quite popular and very well known in Puerto Rico, so the name itself is a big draw,” said DeStefano, who joined the admissions staff in 2008. “When students and families hear that a degree at New Kensington is the same as the degree at University Park, they get even more interested in our campus.”
Another draw for the campus is the funding opportunities available to the island students. Puerto Ricans are eligible for financial aid and scholarships. Campus scholarships are awarded to eligible students on the basis of academic promise, leadership qualities, community service and financial need. In 2014, new and returning students at the New Kensington campus earned a total of $538,000 in scholarship money, $304,000 from private donors and $234,000 from the University. The campus has 54 scholarship endowments, annual gifts and program awards that funded 225 students with an average award of $2,400 per student.
“Because they are considered U.S. citizens, Puerto Rican students are classified as out-of-state students and can receive financial aid,” said DeStefano, a 2006 recipient of the Walker Award, the campus’ most prestigious student award. “This makes the cost of tuition much more affordable to them than an international student.”
For more on campus admissions, visit http://www.nk.psu.edu/Admissions/default.htm
About Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico, Spanish for “rich port,” is an archipelago comprising four islands in the northeastern Caribbean Sea. San Juan is the capital of the main island of Puerto Rico, which is located between the Dominican Republic and the Virgin Islands. The “island of enchantment” is part of a group of islands that includes Cuba, Hispaniola (Dominican Republic and Haiti) and Jamaica that constitute the Greater Antilles.
A possession of Spain for more than 400 years, Puerto Rico was ceded to the U.S. in 1898 as a result of the Spanish-American War. The inhabitants elect their own governor but are not represented in the U.S. Congress, which holds sway over the territory. The 3.7 million Puerto Rican people cannot vote in U.S. presidential elections.
The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is a non-incorporated territory of the United States.