PASSHE Institutions Merging

[iupgroundhog]

Those extension centers are a thing of the past. A lot of them were meant to capture working adults who now favor online courses. We're still getting our clocks cleaned by for profit online schools charging much more but recruiting and selling twice as good.

Most graduate programs have shifted to asynchronous and fully online (basically an internet version of correspondence courses) or some hybrid version of students in the classroom and some watching online.

The lone exceptions are IUP's culinary school in Punxsutawney and Slippery Rocks physician assistant school in Harrisville, which is likely coming to the main campus.

Edinboro sold its Erie (Millcreek) and Meadville satellites and Clarion sold it's Venango center. Decades ago Edinboro had satellites in Sharon and Bradford. Cal was leasing space at the Southpointe office park along I-79. Unsure if West Chester is still doing things in Center City Philly. Also pretty sure Millersville has already pulled out of the performing arts center in downtown Lancaster.

There's also a big, relatively new complex in Cranberry that PASSHE bought into that was to be shared outpost space for colleges doing those evening and weekend programs. It's largely sitting empty. In the very early days of Penn West, there was discussion of making that the central administrative offices.

Which brings me back to the original proposition that it will be interesting to see what happens with it. It could also serve as an example for other triad campuses which might want to try to sell off buildings and land. Frankly, using the same rationale for the obsolescence of these branch campuses, declining enrollment and distance learning, I think the same lack of utility could confront PennWest locations (and probably Mansfield, too) in the future. If the Clearfield campus can be sold off and developed in some meaningful way, why not take a similar approach to Edinboro, Clarion, California, and Mansfield.

[Fightingscot82]

Which brings me back to the original proposition that it will be interesting to see what happens with it. It could also serve as an example for other triad campuses which might want to try to sell off buildings and land. Frankly, using the same rationale for the obsolescence of these branch campuses, declining enrollment and distance learning, I think the same lack of utility could confront PennWest locations (and probably Mansfield, too) in the future. If the Clearfield campus can be sold off and developed in some meaningful way, why not take a similar approach to Edinboro, Clarion, California, and Mansfield.

I think they'll have a hard time selling it given its location. The building looks like it could be repurposed into something such as an office building or hotel, but its located off 322 headed east out of town. Maybe if it were close to I-80, but its not. There's also nothing east of Clearfield until Philipsburg but even then, this isn't an economically thriving part of the state for this type of building. Beyond tool & die, logistics close to the interstates and a new Dollar General in every municipality are the only things bringing new jobs. Its definitely a nice building - maybe the nicest of all the current & former PASSHE outposts. Edinboro's was the nicest piece of property since it was a mansion & estate, but they never had the money to make it really nice as either mansion or branch campus.

[iupgroundhog]

It should be noted here that the LHU Clearfield campus existed solely as a result of the influence of one man, Guy Graham, of Clearfield. Graham was an LHU alum, a successful businessman, and Chair of the LHU Board of Trustees from 1996-2020. This is essentially the same set of circumstances that has allowed Sam Smith of Punxsutawney, leveraging the same position of Chair of the Board of Trustees at IUP, to direct resources to build up IUP's Punxsy campus, which I think has taken resources away from the main campus in Indiana.

So, make of it what you will, but I don't think powerful individuals on the Board should have that kind of leverage to allocate huge amounts of resources for the benefit of their hometown. The funding should not be politicized and I think that it clearly has been in both of these parallel cases.

Not coincidentally, Graham passed away in 2025.

[IUPNation]

It should be noted here that the LHU Clearfield campus existed solely as a result of the influence of one man, Guy Graham, of Clearfield. Graham was an LHU alum, a successful businessman, and Chair of the LHU Board of Trustees from 1996-2020. This is essentially the same set of circumstances that has allowed Sam Smith of Punxsutawney, leveraging the same position of Chair of the Board of Trustees at IUP, to direct resources to build up IUP's Punxsy campus, which I think has taken resources away from the main campus in Indiana.

So, make of it what you will, but I don't think powerful individuals on the Board should have that kind of leverage to allocate huge amounts of resources for the benefit of their hometown. The funding should not be politicized and I think that it clearly has been in both of these parallel cases.

Not coincidentally, Graham passed away in 2025.

So rich people with power doing things that don’t benefit anyone but themselves. Welcome to Today’s USA.

But it was an exciting day in Indiana.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

I think they'll have a hard time selling it given its location. The building looks like it could be repurposed into something such as an office building or hotel, but its located off 322 headed east out of town. Maybe if it were close to I-80, but its not. There's also nothing east of Clearfield until Philipsburg but even then, this isn't an economically thriving part of the state for this type of building. Beyond tool & die, logistics close to the interstates and a new Dollar General in every municipality are the only things bringing new jobs. Its definitely a nice building - maybe the nicest of all the current & former PASSHE outposts. Edinboro's was the nicest piece of property since it was a mansion & estate, but they never had the money to make it really nice as either mansion or branch campus.

It could perhaps be repurposed into a Senior Living facility. It does look nice from the photos.

But, it's kind of in the middle of Bum-F, USA.

[Fightingscot82]

So rich people with power doing things that don’t benefit anyone but themselves. Welcome to Today’s USA.

But it was an exciting day in Indiana.

PASSHE trustees are the best and worst things going for them. They're usually hyper-local and underscore that almost all of the original schools were founded by their communities. But just like a school board, there are also too many sitting there without doing their homework, have an agenda to push, and lack a basic understanding of current demographics or the higher education industry. I sat on too many boards and attended way too many meetings with trustees from various PASSHE schools who all gloated about how wonderful things were at their university. I do think they genuinely thought that was true...only to have most of those campuses lose their independence, identity, and personality. Lots of cheerleaders with a rubber stamp on their heels.

Trustees are appointed by the governor and names are usually fed by local state reps and the PASSHE board or chancellor. I've not seen the level of political partisanship on the boards like you see in say Florida, but there certainly are some folks who have everything at their fingertips yet still view their campus through the lens of their preferred political lens's view on higher education. One of the reforms I believe could have saved the 14 university model would have been allowing for alumni-elected trustees. State law says 2 of 11 must be alumni. That's it. Meanwhile

Lincoln: 9 alumni trustee spots (6 elected by alumni)
Penn State: 9 alumni trustee spots (all elected by alumni)
Pitt: 6 alumni trustee spots (all elected by alumni)
Temple: 1 alumni trustee spot (24 elected by alumni)

[Fightingscot82]

It could perhaps be repurposed into a Senior Living facility. It does look nice from the photos.

But, it's kind of in the middle of Bum-F, USA.

Back when I was working at Penn State, I-99 was still incomplete (I think due to rumored toxic sediment uncovered during earth moving), so if I was going to or from Edinboro, I had to get off at the next exit, "Woodland" and drive through Philipsburg and Port Matilda. You're right, a whole lot of nothing and nobody. Lots of "I wonder what people do for a living around here" clusters of houses with the occasional "how the hell is that house sitting out here?"

[Ship69]

Back when I was working at Penn State, I-99 was still incomplete (I think due to rumored toxic sediment uncovered during earth moving), so if I was going to or from Edinboro, I had to get off at the next exit, "Woodland" and drive through Philipsburg and Port Matilda. You're right, a whole lot of nothing and nobody. Lots of "I wonder what people do for a living around here" clusters of houses with the occasional "how the hell is that house sitting out here?"

Some years back I had a job that kept me on the road and took me to almost every corner of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. I was fascinated that Pennsylvania, despite still being one of the most populous state in the country, had so many areas that are relatively isolated. Outside of the Erie area and the old anthracite region of Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, and Hazleton, there really is not a whole lot north of I-80. The hill-and-valley nature of the state also cuts off some areas and makes them seem more remote. Before I-99, getting north and south in the center of the state was a time-consuming task. When I was attending Ship, they hadn't even completed all of I-81 (no bridge over the Susquehanna), so getting north or northeast from the Harrisburg area took some time.

[Bart]

Back when I was working at Penn State, I-99 was still incomplete (I think due to rumored toxic sediment uncovered during earth moving), so if I was going to or from Edinboro, I had to get off at the next exit, "Woodland" and drive through Philipsburg and Port Matilda. You're right, a whole lot of nothing and nobody. Lots of "I wonder what people do for a living around here" clusters of houses with the occasional "how the hell is that house sitting out here?"

When I drove to IUP it was 1-80 to Milesburg PA-144 South to Port Matilda US-220 south to Tyrone and off at Altoona onto US 22 west over Cresson Mtn. In Ebensburg changed to US 422 west. There may have been other roads. I tried to recreate the route about 20 years ago during my last trip to IUP, and I got lost a couple of times, but I made it. And I did that trip many times in the 2 years I attend but got lost anyway. I often thought I would like to live out here in one of these places, but where would I work.

[IUPNation]

When I drove to IUP it was 1-80 to Milesburg PA-144 South to Port Matilda US-220 south to Tyrone and off at Altoona onto US 22 west over Cresson Mtn. In Ebensburg changed to US 422 west. There may have been other roads. I tried to recreate the route about 20 years ago during my last trip to IUP, and I got lost a couple of times, but I made it. And I did that trip many times in the 2 years I attend but got lost anyway. I often thought I would like to live out here in one of these places, but where would I work.

A good portion of the Bud Shuster Porkway I-99 was opened from Bedford tomAltoona while I was at IUP. Same with 22 to Ebensburg.

[Fightingscot82]

When I drove to IUP it was 1-80 to Milesburg PA-144 South to Port Matilda US-220 south to Tyrone and off at Altoona onto US 22 west over Cresson Mtn. In Ebensburg changed to US 422 west. There may have been other roads. I tried to recreate the route about 20 years ago during my last trip to IUP, and I got lost a couple of times, but I made it. And I did that trip many times in the 2 years I attend but got lost anyway. I often thought I would like to live out here in one of these places, but where would I work.

They've straightened 22, 28, and 422 so much in the last 20 years. I have a lot of memories of driving those old windy roads on my way to/from Indiana and State College and now its much easier but lost a lot of its character.

[TheBigCat2192]

Trustees are appointed by the governor and names are usually fed by local state reps and the PASSHE board or chancellor. I've not seen the level of political partisanship on the boards like you see in say Florida, but there certainly are some folks who have everything at their fingertips yet still view their campus through the lens of their preferred political lens's view on higher education. One of the reforms I believe could have saved the 14 university model would have been allowing for alumni-elected trustees. State law says 2 of 11 must be alumn. That's it. Meanwhile

I actually wonder if alumni-elected trustees could lead to more partisan/ideological boards than the current appointment system. Alumni donation/engagement for our campuses isn’t the highest, especially for Gen X and younger, who tend to view college as a box to be checked on the path to getting A Good Job(TM). What happens if most of the disinterested alumni don’t vote (not an uncommon event in other membership orgs like credit unions or even elections at large) and the polling is completely dominated by, say, alums from a campus chapter of the DSA or Campus Crusade for Christ?

[Fightingscot82]

I actually wonder if alumni-elected trustees could lead to more partisan/ideological boards than the current appointment system. Alumni donation/engagement for our campuses isn’t the highest, especially for Gen X and younger, who tend to view college as a box to be checked on the path to getting A Good Job(TM). What happens if most of the disinterested alumni don’t vote (not an uncommon event in other membership orgs like credit unions or even elections at large) and the polling is completely dominated by, say, alums from a campus chapter of the DSA or Campus Crusade for Christ?

You see that play out at Penn State with the JoeBot bloc.

[TheBigCat2192]

You see that play out at Penn State with the JoeBot bloc.

I suppose it’s a risk-reward question. To clarify, I’m not inherently opposed to your idea, and I can understand the optimistic view that it might make alums care more about the alma mater. I just happen to see a downside case for a motivated minority to dominate the voting, and not necessarily in a way that makes the board better.

[Ship69]

They've straightened 22, 28, and 422 so much in the last 20 years. I have a lot of memories of driving those old windy roads on my way to/from Indiana and State College and now its much easier but lost a lot of its character.

Rt 15, which was a three-lane road for most of the way north from Harrisburg years ago and actually went through the center of towns such as Mansfield, has been widened and diverted over the decades. Going south on 15 when I was returning home from a summer job between my junior and senior years of college, I was passing a car in the center lane and was temporarily blinded by bright sunlight. I pulled back into the right lane, and not two seconds later a car going the opposite direction in the center lane whizzed by me. I was that close to a head-on collision that likely would have been the end of me. As much as we complain about Pennsylvania's roads and as inadequate as some of them still are, they're a lot better than they used to be.