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www.ccp.edu / College Newsroom


For Immediate Release

Contact:
Anthony Twyman
Office: 215-751-8082, atwyman@ccp.edu

Earni Young
Office: 215-751-8021, eyoung@ccp.edu

MEDIA ALERT

COLLEGE DEBUTS FALL ISSUE OF PATHWAYS MAGAZINE AND OFFICIALLY OPENS CENTER FOR SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING EDUCATION

PHILADELPHIA, Sept. 30, 2009—Lynn Elsenhans, CEO of Sunoco, Inc., will be the keynote speaker at 7:45 a.m., Tuesday, Oct. 6, when the College introduces its fifth issue of Pathways magazine at its Center for Business and Industry, 18th and Callowhill streets.

Later that same morning, the College will officially debut its new Center for Science and Engineering Education with a presentation from Mike Mullane, a retired U.S. Air Force colonel and former astronaut. Mullane’s presentation will be at 9:30 a.m., Tuesday, Oct. 6 in the College’s Bonnell Building Large Auditorium on 17th Street, between Spring Garden and Callowhill streets. He will be introduced by Derrick Pitts, chief astronomer for the Franklin Institute Science Museum, who also will be the master of ceremonies for Mullane’s presentation.

Both events are designed to emphasize the importance of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (S.T.E.M.) education, the College’s educational programs and the career opportunities available in S.T.E.M. fields.

Pathways is a magazine of the Community College of Philadelphia Foundation, the fundraising arm of the College. The latest issue of the magazine focuses on the College’s S.T.E.M. programs and the growing demand for workers trained in these fields. The cover story for this issue is an interview with Elsenhans, Sunoco’s president, chair and chief executive officer.

The Pathways magazine breakfast will be followed by the grand opening of the new science center. As part of the opening, Mullane, an author and member of the International Space Hall of Fame, will deliver a motivational speech called "Countdown to a Dream." His presentation, which is sponsored by the Motorola Foundation, will include a question and answer session with College and high school students, faculty, administrators and guests who will be in attendance.

After Mullane’s presentation, the high school students will spend the rest of the afternoon participating in hands-on science experiments and demonstrations and meeting with officials from the College’s Admissions office.

According to the National Academy of Science, fewer U.S. students pursue science and engineering degrees than students in other countries. This has created a shortage of American workers with the necessary skills and knowledge to fill job openings in the science and engineering fields, especially in the Philadelphia region which has the second largest concentration of bioscience/life science workers in the nation.

In her interview with Pathways, Elsenhans said educational programs that emphasize S.T.E.M. today will provide the skilled workers for Sunoco and other science, engineering and technology dependent companies tomorrow. The petrochemical giant relies on scientists to optimize its use of the oil, engineers to help make Sunoco’s facilities safe and efficient and process technologists to operate the company’s equipment in an environmentally sound manner. 

"In this industry, we’re not all that atypical of process industries, where the average age of our workers is around 50 years old. Many of these people will be retiring from the workplace in the not-so-distant future," Elsenhans told Pathways. "There’s a long lead time from elementary through junior high school, high school, and then community college or college."

The College’s new Center for Science and Engineering Education is a virtual center that enhances opportunities for students to explore career options in the S.T.E.M. fields. It promotes a broader understanding of science and emerging technologies and their effects on society. The center supports the College’s educational programs in science and technology and it fosters student research, identifies professional development opportunities for faculty and reaches out to industry to forge lasting connections.

Mary Anne Celenza, dean of Math, Science and Health Careers, said the center’s ultimate goal is to encourage more students to pursue science programs and improve their chances of sticking with their career choices. The center will work proactively with the College’s Corporate Solutions to develop and implement new science technology certificates as needed to address emerging trends. For example, the College recently added a new degree program in Applied Science and Engineering Technology. Other science-related degree programs which the College offers include Chemical Technology and Engineering Science. Students also can pursue a certificate in Biomedical Technician Training with the Wistar Institute.

Sunoco employees helped write the course material for the College to develop the new Process Technology certificates that are part of the new Applied Science degree program. Sunoco also helped the College identify potential faculty to teach the courses. The Philadelphia Gas Works also was instrumental in helping the College develop the new science programs.


Mike Mullane

Mullane joined the first group of Space Shuttle astronauts in 1978. He completed three space missions and logged 356 hours in space aboard the Shuttle Discovery and Atlantis before retiring from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Air Force in 1990. He has been inducted into the International Space Hall of Fame and is the recipient of many awards, including the Air Force Distinguished Flying Cross, Legion of Merit and the NASA Space Flight Medal. He is the author of an award-winning children’s book, Liftoff! An Astronaut’s Dream; a popular space-fact book, Do Your Ears Pop In Space?; and a memoir, Riding Rockets: The Outrageous Tales of a Space Shuttle Astronaut.


Derrick Pitts

Pitts wears several hats at the Franklin Institute Science Museum. In addition to being senior scientist and chief astronomer, Pitts also serves as director of the Institute’s Fels Planetarium. His astronomy columns have been published in many newspapers and magazines, and he appears as a commentator on numerous television and radio shows.


Schedule of Events on Tuesday, Oct. 6

  • 7: 45 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. in Room C2-5 at the College’s Center for Business and Industry, 18th and Callowhill streets – Sunoco CEO Lynn Elsenhans speaks at the breakfast launch of the College Foundation’s latest issue of Pathways magazine.
  • 9:30 a.m. – 11 a.m. in the Large Auditorium (Room BG-10) on 17th Street, between Spring Garden and Callowhill streets – Astronaut Mike Mullane delivers a motivational speech, "Countdown to a Dream."
  • 11 a.m. – 12 noon in the Great Hall on the second floor of the College’s Winnet Building on 17th Street, between Spring Garden and Callowhill streets – Admissions office officials meet with the high school students during lunch.
  • 12 noon – 3 p.m. in the College’s West Building on the corner of 17th and Spring Garden streets – each hour from noon to 3 p.m., the College will hold hands on Biology, Chemistry and Physics experiments/demonstrations for the high school students.