| Northeast
PA Business Journal |
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Business Notes
First Financial Group's new office address is 670 North River
Street, Suite 300, Plains, in the new Waterfront Professional
Plaza. The telephone number, (570) 829-0717 has remained the same.
A celebration mixer will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 8, starting
at 5 p.m.
The Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce is co-sponsoring a world
famous Dale Carnegie training program. Four hundred fifty of the
Fortune 500 companies endorse Dale Carnegie Training because of
its proven results. Last year over 175,000 individuals from all
walks of life participated and benefited from the training. A
recent survey of top executives on leadership found that the three
most important factors required for leaders in the 21st century
are: relationship building, communicating in a positive way, and
to operate with integrity regardless of the cost. Dale Carnegie
Training is designed to help participants learn leadership skills,
communicate more effectively, and control stress and worry. These
are the essential ingredients for personal and professional success.
Class size is limited. Call the Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce
at (570) 455-1508 for more information on the Dale Carnegie Training
class.
The Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber in collaboration with Skills
in Scranton and the Leadership Lackawanna alumni, recently presented
a program entitled Real Life 101. The event, held at the East
Mountain Business Center, was a day of hands-on learning and skills
building designed specifically for high school seniors who do
not plan to attend college upon graduation. The program included
informative sessions and workshops on topics such as how to fill
out job applications, workplace expectations, dressing for success,
and "Lets Do Lunch," which gave students the opportunity to speak
directly with local business people in order to get inside information
on what is going on in the working world. Each of the sessions
was designed for students by area professionals and was based
on their experiences about what local companies in northeastern
Pennsylvania are looking for in prospective employees. This is
one of several initiatives of the chamber's workforce development
efforts.
Insignia/ESG announced that the PNC building, located at 11-17
West Market Street, Wilkes-Barre, has been sold to a group of
New York investors. The PNC building is a 72,000-square-foot office
building. Tenants include PNC Bank, the Federal Home Loan Bank,
Ticketmaster and two law firms. Insignia/ESG represented the owner,
Deauville X, LP in the sale. The buyer is 11-17 West Market Street,
LLC. Insignia/ESG is one of the largest commercial real estate
services providers in the United States, with comprehensive brokerage,
consulting, property management, fee development, investment sales
and debt placement operations.
The Juniata Business and Industry board of directors has taken
action to become a member of Focus Central Pennsylvania, the area's
only regional economic development marketing organization. The
mission of Focus is to market the assets of member counties, to
bring in potential new investors, encouraging them to locate their
business in the region, thereby helping to create family-sustaining
jobs for central Pennsylvania. JBI took action to join Focus at
its May 23 meeting, with membership commencing on June 1. JBI
is now working with the Clinton County Economic Partnership, Susquehanna
Industrial Development Corporation (SIDCO), Williamsport/Lycoming
Chamber of Commerce, the Clinton, Lycoming and Snyder County Boards
of Commissioners, PPL Electric Utilities and SEDA-Council of Governments
as full members in Focus Central Pennsylvania. Focus Central Pennsylvania
was the recipient of the Pennsylvania Economic Development Association
(PEDA) 2001 Economic Development Partner of the Year award, presented
"in recognition of the organization's performance as a marketing
alliance working to increase the visibility of central Pennsylvania
to economic development prospects. It also recognizes the successful
implementation of an electronic marketing capability to disseminate
information on new business investment opportunities in central
Pennsylvania."
Beginning in August Northampton Community College will offer a
new fast track nursing program to enable licensed practical nurses
to advance their careers and become registered nurses. A grant
from the Pennsylvania departments of public welfare, labor and
industry, aging, education, and community and economic development
administered by the Lehigh Valley Workforce Investment Board will
allow the college to offer the training free of charge to 32 LPNs
under the commonwealth's critical job training program. Residents
of Carbon, Lehigh, Monroe, Northampton and Schuylkill counties
are eligible to apply for the funding which will cover the cost
of tuition and books. LPNs who enroll in the program will be able
to earn an associate's degree in registered nursing in 12 months
through late afternoon, evening and weekend study. More than 3,000
RNs and LPNs have graduated from NCC in the last 35 years.
The Northeast Environmental Partners announces the call for nominations
for the 12th annual environmental partnership awards and the seventh
annual Thomas P. Shelbourne Environmental Leadership Award. The
organization consists of the Pennsylvania Environmental Council's
northeast office, Wilkes University, the Northeast Pennsylvania
Alliance, Proctor and Gamble Paper Products Company, the Pennsylvania
Department of Environmental Protection and the Pennsylvania Department
of Conservation and Natural Resources. The environmental partnership
awards are presented annually to recognize the achievements of
individuals or organizations that, through partnerships, have
achieved excellence in environmental protection or conservation
in northeast Pennsylvania. The Thomas P. Shelbourne Environmental
Leadership Award, in its eighth year, was established by the NEPA
Environmental Partners to recognize an individual who stands out
for his or her long-term commitment to environmental quality through
inspirational leadership, dedication and commitment to partnering.
The awards are open to any group, individual, company, program
or organization located in northeastern Pennsylvania, or whose
work has had a positive impact on the environment of the northeastern
Pennsylvania community. Over the years, the program has honored
individuals and groups involved in agriculture, forestry, business,
industry, education ,science, environmental awareness, community
service, and government, among others. To receive nomination materials
for the 2002 environmental partnership awards, contact the Northeast
Pennsylvania Environmental Council office at (570) 270-4420. Nominations
must be postmarked no later than July 12. Award presentations
will be made during the environmental partnership awards dinner,
to be held in the fall.
Area business leaders reserved time on June 20 to attend a special
information meeting on enhancements to the Northeast Pennsylvania
Chamber of Commerce health benefits program. Sponsored by the
Greater Hazleton Chambers of Commerce, three sessions were scheduled
throughout the day at the chamber's headquarters to inform business
owners about upgrades and enhancements in the "ChamberChoice"
initiative. ChamberChoice officials and representatives from Blue
Cross of Northeast Pennsylvania were on hand to brief business
owners on the details of the program. Subjects covered at the
session included how to enroll in the program; extending coverage
to include life, disability, vision and accidental death and dismemberment;
sole proprietorships, and the basic five options for the Blue
Cross health plan. Since the new chamber health program was launched
late last year under the sponsorship of the Northeast Pennsylvania
Chambers Service Committee, more than 2,000 participants have
been enrolled.
PPL Utilities Inc. recently paid the final installment of a multi-year
$50,000 pledge in support of College Misericordia's fundraising
effort "Campaign in Support of Misericordia." PPL's gift was used
in conjunction with other donations to construct the Mary Kintz
Bevevino Library, a 37,500 square foot, state-of-the-art facility,
in 1999. The service librarian room in the Bevevino Library is
now named for PPL. Back Mountain and other area residents are
welcome to use the library as an educational resource. College
Misericordia's fundraising efforts over the last five years have
resulted in tremendous capital improvements on campus. The college's
current campaign, Advancing the Vision, now stands at $4.6 million
and is funding an increase in the endowment, renovation of the
78 year-old administration building and the construction of new
athletic fields.
Pennsylvania College of Technology has once again received an
allotment of workforce-development funding to train workers for
Pennsylvania companies. Applications for guaranteed free training
funds for the 2002-03 fiscal year from the state Department of
Community and Economic Development can be accessed through the
Technology Transfer Center at Penn College, the local Workforce
and Economic Development Network of Pennsylvania partner. An initial
application period will take place through July 15. Larry L. Michael,
associate dean for technology transfer at Penn College, said the
college is currently administering more than $3.4 million in guaranteed
free training funding for Pennsylvania companies to train more
than 23,500 employees. Now in its fourth year, the guaranteed
free training program was designed by DCED to strengthen the business
environment in the state. Originally funded for $9 million for
basic skills training in 1999, the program includes $21.5 million
for basic skills and information-technology training in 2002.
To date, more than 2,500 Pennsylvania businesses have received
more than $50 million worth of training to improve the skill level
of nearly 100,000 employees. Eligible businesses must be based
in Pennsylvania or have a significant presence in the state. Point-of-sale
retail businesses, employment agencies, training vendors, and
government, education and nonprofit entities are ineligible. Participation
is limited to two consecutive years or three out of five years.
To receive the training, employees must reside and be employed
in Pennsylvania. They must be permanent full-time employees, earn
at least 150 percent of minimum wage (excluding benefits) and
remain with the company for 180 days following the training. Basic
skills training includes the teaching of a variety of fundamental
skills needed for success in the workplace. To qualify for basic
skills training, employers must be manufacturing- or technology-based
businesses, including biotech and environmental-tech companies.
The company may apply for funding for any number of eligible employees
up to $450 per employee and $100,000 per fiscal year (July 1 to
June 30). Employees must be frontline employees or first-level
supervisors with no policy- or decision-making authority. On-the-job
sales, and orientation training do not qualify for the basic skills
program, and the funds cannot be used to address workplace literacy
needs. Examples of basic skills training include communication
and teamwork, applied mathematics and measurement, workplace health
and safety, problem-solving, quality assurance, and manufacturing
fundamentals. Information-technology training includes the teaching
of a variety of high-tech skills to succeed in the workplace.
Employees participating in the training must be new or current
technical workers, information-technology professionals, or frontline
employees and first-level supervisors of manufacturing companies
needing applied-manufacturing technology training. Any number
of eligible employees can be trained for up to $700 per employee
and $50,000 per fiscal year. Introductory information-technology,
introductory applied manufacturing, and sales-training courses
are not eligible for the information technology-training program.
Some of the training elements offered include applied-manufacturing
technology, e-business/commerce, web site design and development,
software engineering, and computer programming. The program includes
both instructor-led and e-learning courses that can be taken on
site at the company, at a training provider or at another convenient
location. Company in-house training is permitted. Only WEDnetPA
member institutions can process applications, and they are responsible
for determining instructor qualifications. WEDnetPA is a partnership
of 35 community colleges, universities and technical education
providers throughout Pennsylvania, formed to implement the guaranteed
free training program and other education and training initiatives.
Information about the guaranteed free training program, including
basic skills training and information-technology training, can
be obtained by calling (570) 327-4775 or hbaldwin@pct.edu, or
by visiting the Penn College WEDnetPA site at www.pct.edu/ttc/Free_WedNet.htm.
Information can also be obtained by visiting the statewide WEDnetPA
Web site: www.wednetpa.com.
Procopia and Associates Fundraising, Shamokin is a new business
that has formed to prepare grant applications directed to foundations
and governmental funding sources, coordinate fundraising events,
design capital campaigns, and oversee a host of other fundraising
activities for nonprofit community groups, clubs and agencies.
Linda Procopio, managing partner, bring 20 years of experience
in fundraising, grant writing, nonprofit administration, marketing
and public relations, volunteer work and recruitment, and people
and project management to her new company. Procopia prepared successful
grant applications for People in Progress for a Verizon technology
grant, for Northumberland County Industrial Development Corporation
for a $100,000 PERF planning grant, for the Brush Valley Regional
Chamber of Commerce for PPL community resources design grants
two different years, and for the Shamokin Revitalization Corporation
for $75,000 in Main Street funding when she was the town's downtown
manager. She is well-known for the fundraising cookbooks she has
written for the chamber of commerce, Lincoln Street United Methodist
Church, and St. John's United Methodist Church. As the former
executive director of the Susquehanna Valley Visitors Bureau,
and the former president of the Greater Shamokin Area Chamber
of Commerce and the Brush Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce,
she has coordinated capital campaigns, membership drives, downtown
street festivals, arts-related events, and numerous other fundraisers
over her long career. Having worked for a newspaper and for a
radio station, she is well versed in the marketing and public
relations that are important to a nonprofit organization's success
potential. Her son and partner in this venture, Eric Davis, who
has an MBA and will be studying for his doctorate in law this
fall, brings an urban polish to the new firm, with his ability
to attractively package and bind grant applications from his office
in Pittsburgh, and with his own excellent writing and technical
skills. Interested nonprofit groups can call Procopio at (570)
648-2866 or visit the firm's web site at http://www.procopiofundraising.com.
Schuyl Inc., Pottsville, was awarded the creation of the Black
Diamonds Tourism Coalition's tourism web site. The coalition's
aim is to promote northeastern Pennsylvania's rich anthracite
mining heritage. By providing a web portal that can reach well
beyond Pennsylvania to a global marketplace, the goal of attracting
tourists from around the world has now become more attainable.
Schuyl Inc. will work closely with the coalition to create a dynamic
and resourceful web site that intends to give visitors to the
site a fully interactive experience. Trip itineraries, specific
county and area historical information along with guides to historical
markers, landmarks, museums and other anthracite-related tourist
attractions will be featured on the site. The awarding of the
contract has also enabled Schuyl Inc. to create a second position
in the Schuylkill/Pottsville technology incubator. Schuyl Inc.
hired Anthony F. Wiscount IV as a multimedia developer.
Over 35 attendees representing veteran-owned small businesses
attended the SEDA-Council of Governments' recent seminar on business
and contracting opportunities for veterans. Held in Harrisburg
on May 16, the seminar was sponsored by the SEDA-COG Central Pennsylvania
Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC), and the Vietnam
Veterans of American, Capital Chapter 542. Firms were given the
opportunity to meet prime contractors and individuals from buying
activities and various assistance programs that target veteran-owned
small businesses. The keynote speaker for the event was Gail Wegner
of the Center for Veterans Enterprise, U.S. Department of Veterans
Affairs. Presentations at the seminar included the implementation
status of the federal veterans entrepreneurship program, 10 steps
to winning government contracts, financing available in Pennsylvania
for small businesses, and marketing one's business to prime contractors,
along with presentations by the Department of Defense Small Business
Offices, and General Services Administration. Other guest speakers
included Kenneth Olson, acting deputy district director of the
U.S. Small Business Administration; Carol Decker of the U.S. Small
Business Administration at NAVICP; Tom Knudsen, small business
specialist at Defense Contract Management Agency; Helen Katz,
deputy director of small business at NAVICP; Angela DiTommaso,
director of small business services at General Services Administration;
James McClure, director of SEDA-COG's finance program, and Chris
Wilusz, program manager of the Central Pennsylvania Procurement
Center. For more information regarding veteran contracting goals
or what qualifies a business as veteran-owned, please contact
SEDA-COG Central PA PTAC at sedapta@seda-cog.org or call 570-524-4491
and ask for Wendy Berger. For additional information on SBA lending
programs, contact James McClure at 570-524-4491.
The Steamtown Marathon Race Committee is accepting sponsors for
its seventh annual race, scheduled for Sunday, October 13. The
marathon, with its 26.2 mile USATF certified course, has been
recognized as one of the country's 10 fastest marathons and draws
both national and international runners. Since its inception in
1996, the marathon has raised more than $95,000--through sponsorships
from area businesses and the runners themselves--to benefit St.
Joseph's Center, Scranton.
Susquehanna University's School of Natural and Social Sciences
has added anthropology to the list of minors available to students.
To complete the requirements for a minor in anthropology, students
must complete 24 semester hours in anthropology and receive grades
of C- or better. Required courses include Introduction to Cultural
Anthropology, Research Methods in the Social Sciences and History
of Anthropological Theory. Students must also complete eight semesters
of an anthropology theory course, such as magic, witchcraft and
religion, national, transnational and diasporic communities, or
cultures of science and technology. In addition, students choosing
to pursue an anthropology minor must also complete four semester
hours of an area studies course, such as Latin American culture
or caribbean culture and society. The anthropology minor is expected
to compliment a variety of majors.
Volunteers from Tobyhanna Army Depot replaced a roof for an elderly
woman in Kunkletown, while other another crew completed window
replacements and general home clean-up during "Rebuilding Together,"
a national program that was formerly called Christmas in April.
Participants included 15 depot employees, soldiers and family
members, in addition to 23 soldiers from the U.S. Army Reserve's
365th Combat Engineering Battalion, Scranton. Donated funds through
various depot-associated private organizations help offset some
of the cost of materials. Local merchants donate other materials.
Scranton, Shanghai and Beijing might seem like an unlikely mix
in the world of higher education-unless you happen to be a University
of Scranton faculty member who is teaching an MBA course in China.
Through a program sponsored by a consortium of Jesuit universities,
as well as an independent affiliation established by the University
of Scranton, faculty members from the Kania School of Management
have been invited to teach MBA courses in China during the summer
semester. In the summer of 2001, Satya Chattopadhyay, Ph.D., associate
professor of marketing/management, was selected as one of a handful
of faculty members from 26 Jesuit universities to teach a summer
MBA program as part of the Beijing International MBA (BiMBA) Program
held on the campus of Peking University in Beijing. This summer,
Cynthia Cann, Ph.D., assistant professor of management/marketing,
will be one of a small group of faculty members from Jesuit universities
teaching in Beijing. The connection between the University of
Scranton and China is further enhanced by an independent arrangement
established through the efforts of Alan Brumagim, Ph.D., associate
professor of marketing/management. Last summer, Dr. Brumagim and
Wayne Cunningham, Ph.D., associate professor of operations and
information management, team-taught an MBA course at Tongji University
in Shanghai. This summer, Nabil Tamimi, Ph.D., associate professor
of operations and information management, will teach an MBA course
at the Tongji University. These foreign teaching experiences translate
into professional enrichment of faculty who share their real-life
experiences of international business with students on two continents.
Chinese students have the opportunity to learn about American
business practices. Students in the BiMBA program also earn an
MBA from Fordham University. Back on American ground, students
at the University of Scranton have an opportunity to learn about
the economic development of China, whose economy has grown faster
than any other nation in the world over the past two decades.
Wilkes University, Wilkes-Barre, will offer a new major in e-business
beginning with the fall 2002 semester. The undergraduate program
is designed to respond to the rapid growth of the Internet and
corporate networks that have changed the face of today's business
world. The coursework incorporates a standard education in all
the functional areas of business including marketing, advertising,
economics, entrepreneurship, accounting and financial analysis;
the design and use of computer information systems; and an emphasis
on effective and efficient business practices using technology
and the World Wide Web. The Association of Collegiate Business
Schools and Programs (ACBSP) has accredited the business programs
at Wilkes. ACBSP accreditation is recognized by graduate and professional
schools and potential employers as affirmation of excellence in
business programs.
Recognizing the fiscal needs of the Williamsport Area School District,
Pennsylvania College of Technology has proposed to pay more than
$50,000 and provide various academic and consulting services to
the school system over a five-year period beginning July 1, pending
approval by the college's board of directors. As a nonprofit entity,
Penn College is exempted from real estate and other taxes under
state law. But under a May 21 agreement with the school district,
the college has agreed to make an annual commitment of $10,500
and provide an array of at-cost services and reduced-fee courses
through June 30, 2007. For the cost of materials only, the college
will provide internships, as well as services by students and
faculty, in career areas such as heavy construction equipment
technology; building-related trades; heating, ventilation and
air conditioning technology; electronics; welding; vehicle maintenance;
forestry; landscape/nursery technology; turf-grass management,
and automotive technology. The college will also offer professional
development training for teachers and administrators, as well
as consulting services on various matters. In addition, eligible
students in the school district will be able to take advanced
courses at the college (for high-school credit) at a 50 percent
reduction in cost when space is available.
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PA Business Journal 2002 |
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