Probably not many of you remember Neo-Psuedo and the Invisible Band - an original music phenom here in State College Pa back in the day, with Mike Biddison as lead vocals and guitarist and Dave Biddison on percussion and vocals, Kevin Slick on base, often with Beth Williams and a flow of other local music legends playing and singing along. Neo-Psuedo was famous for doing benefits and wild venues that other bands couldn't arrange, due to the groups social wizardry. Crazy wild times. The neo-pseudo tunes are still some of the best originals to come out of state college, in my completly biased opinion.
Well, the Biddison brothers have formed a new band, the Llama Dalis...
Lets see, how would I describe it - it's a mix of jam band, rockin folk band, with splashes of Dave Matthews and the Talking Heads - and somethin else, can't quite put my finger on it. I'm only on my first serious listen thru tho - i'll figure it out.
Huge THANKS to ALL our supporters! Voices received $6577 in direct gifts! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
Overall the CENTREGIVES event was an AMAZING success, with 2,847 gifts, totaling $415,116, given to over 80 non-profits. Congratulations to the CCCF for running an amazing event!
Oh, nice, Scotia is such an interesting if somewhat strange place, what a history!
June 22, 2012 Chris Hennessey Outreach and Volunteer Coordinator 2555 North Atherton Street State College, PA 16803 Phone: 814.237.0400 Fax: 814.237.4909
Public invited to unveiling of Scotia Barrens recreation map June 28
ClearWater Conservancy and Purple Lizard Maps will introduce new map
ClearWater Conservancy invites local residents to a celebration of a new map of the Scotia Barrens, a popular local hunting and outdoor recreation destination, on Thursday, June 28, from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Central Pennsylvania Convention and Visitor’s Bureau in State College. The event includes presentations by ClearWater conservation biologist Katie Ombalski and Purple Lizard Map’s cartographic designer/owner, Mike Hermann. The map is a collaboration between ClearWater and Purple Lizard. Local historian Bob Hazelton will also speak on the history of Scotia. This event is free and open to the public; doors open at 6:30. Read more »
We are excited to announce the return of the Summer Solstice Celebration at Tait Farm. Last year's event drew 750+ people to the farm for a celebration that is based on a mission to "Help Save Farmland". Plan to attend this year and enjoy local food and beverage sampling as well as Farmland Preservation Artist's exhibition and sale to benefit the Centre County Farmland Trust. Participating restaurants include Elk Creek Café + Aleworks, Gamble Mill Brewery, Harrison’s Wine Grill & Catering, Mt. Nittany Winery, Otto’s Pub & Brewery and Zola Bistro. Other on-site sponsors include ClearWater Conservancy, PASA, and Buy Fresh Buy Local. This year’s Summer Solstice Celebration is a “zero waste” through the generosity of Ecoproducts, Roaring Spring Water and the State College Borough who will be composting all materials that day – thank you to our event sponsors!Read more »
When 'old-timers' - that is, people of my age - say "we didn’t have computers when I was in school, and I turned out fine", they have a point. That’s why it’s necessary for educators to explain why the education we remember is not adequate for today’s students.
It is also important to understand that a "21st-century" education is not really about technology. Technology is only a tool; a means to an end. More than one school district has spent a fair sum buying new computers, only to have them sit in classrooms, collecting dust. If access to new technologies doesn’t provoke us to fundamentally re-think the teaching and learning experience, they’re not worth the investment.
So it is important to understand how technology allows us to do things in the classroom that we couldn’t do before - and why that matters. That was the opportunity that several members of the school board had on a recent visit to State High.
For members of the public who have not stepped inside a classroom in decades, this would be enlightening, and would hopefully jump-start a community-wide conversation concerning the direction of public education.
Perhaps the most significant way that education has changed (or rather, needs to change) is that it has become less about the consumption of information - which, in the information age, is not nearly as important as it once was - and more about what you can do with that information. As one teacher put it, we’re seeing s shift from "content" to "analysis."
Educators and employers have identified a set of "21st-century skills" that today’s students will need in order to be successful. The list includes critical-thinking, collaboration, broad communication skills, civics and creativity. What technology does is make it possible, or at least considerably easier, to incorporate that set of skills into the student learning experience. Read more »
The recent release of "Bully" and the controversy over its initial "R" rating (it was eventually released "unrated") has sparked a national conversation over bullying in school. Putting aside the absurdity of the MPAA rating, I’d like to talk about the movie itself, and where we might go from here.
First, the movie is worth seeing. It is an excellent portrayal of what bullying looks like from the perspective of students. It also does a nice job of showing how clueless adults can be, adults within the school system in particular. You can imagine how frustrating that is to both affected students and parents.
It’s probably too much to ask, but where I think the movie falls short is in solutions, which don’t get much beyond insisting that the school, and the public at large, face up to the issue. While that’s a good start, it highlights the shortcomings of traditional anti-bullying efforts: they tend to be reactive, with the focus typically on changing the behavior of the “bully”. Not enough attention is paid to the behavior of the bystanders, nor on the overall climate of the school. Read more »
