Johnson College is proud to announce the promotion of Liz Renda as the College’s Chief Financial Officer. Ms. Renda began her career in higher education at Johnson College in 2011. She holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Scranton.

Ms. Renda brings to the College over 15 years of accounting experience and involvement as a community leader. She volunteers annually with the Jude Zayac Foundation and is active in activities at St. Clare/St. Paul School in Scranton.

Ms. Renda is excited to continue her journey at Johnson College and said, “I fully support the College’s mission to provide a hands-on education that is affordable for all students. I look forward to working with the administration to carry out financial priorities that will positively impact the campus and our students.”

Katie Leonard, President & CEO of Johnson College is excited to continue working with Ms. Renda as she grows into her new role and said, “We are looking forward to Ms. Renda’s financial leadership and guidance as a part of Johnson College’s continued tradition of producing highly skilled technical graduates who have an immediate and direct effect on Northeast Pennsylvania.”

Ms. Renda resides in Scranton with her husband and two children.

On January 15th, Katie Leonard, President & CEO and Kellyn Nolan, Chief Academic Officer announced Johnson College’s newest program, Building and Property Maintenance. 

The one-year certificate program prepares students to enter the workforce ready to perform general maintenance and repair. Graduates will have industry credentials and will be cross-trained in Carpentry, Electrical Construction, and Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning. Employers seeking trained technicians include residential or business complexes, schools, hospitals, and more.

President Leonard spoke about the program to an audience of faculty, staff, and industry partners:

“After many months of feasibility conversations and planning, we are very excited to announce to the campus community and our industry partners that a new program of study will begin in 2019. Building and Property Maintenance will allow a new path for students to not only achieve a credentialed certificate, but will also provide them with a path toward a two-year degree in one of three interconnected majors. Enrollment for this program will begin immediately.”

Ms. Nolan detailed the benefits this program will have, not only on industry, but for all types of students:

“First, it is a pathway for a person to achieve a position as an entry-level maintenance technician, a job that is sought in all kinds of industries. This is not limited to custodial work, but the maintenance of lighting, heating, and upkeep that all buildings need.

Second, it is an option for a student who is hesitant to commit to a two-year program. By aligning the Building and Property Maintenance curriculum with that of the Building Trades and Technology Curriculum- Heating Ventilation, and Air Conditioning, Carpentry, and Electrical Construction, we have created a way for someone to come back for a second year and earn an associate’s degree.

Third, it is an opportunity to upskill. When we say upskill, we mean training current employees to work better and more efficiently. The Building and Property Maintenance certificate program allows organizations a resource to send an employee here, to Johnson College, to improve upon their skills to better serve the organization.”

For more information on the Building and Property Maintenance program, please click here. 

For questions regarding enrollment, please call 570-702-8856 or email enroll@johnson.edu. 

 

Johnson College Carpentry & Cabinetmaking Technology students recently completed a community service project to benefit the Factoryville Christmas Market. The students erected four storefronts to be used at the market on December 8th and 9th in the Factoryville Borough. Greg Yanko, of the borough council, arranged the project with Todd Campbell, Carpentry & Cabinetmaking Technology Instructor, and ten students in the freshman class were chosen to complete the storefronts. The project allowed them to create structures that will benefit the community for years to come. Mr. Campbell said the “students learned different types of joinery as well as teamwork and project organization.” Three students led the building of the storefronts – Derek Peters, Eli Fuentes and David Kosch.

Johnson College student organization, Social Force, collected over 100 presents for more than 60 children in the Scranton area. The students sponsored a giving tree in the Moffat Student Center with the names of local children in need. Students, faculty, staff and alumni donated gifts to fulfill the wishes of every child. The donations went to two North Scranton Head Start locations as well as families identified by students. Under the supervision of Ms. Emily Holmes, Counselor & Manager of Disability Services, the giving tree at Johnson College has provided local children with presents for the last fourteen years.

President Honors students who have finished fall semester with a 3.90 GPA or higher

Katie Leonard, President & CEO of Johnson College, has announced the President’s List of students who have completed the Fall 2018 semester with a grade point average of 3.90 or higher.

William Bennett, Physical Therapist Assistant

Nicholas Bush, Architectural Drafting & Design Technology

George Campbell, Computer Information Technology

Jerry Coyle, Computer Information Technology

Valerie Crandall, Architectural Drafting & Design Technology

Andrew Giardina, Advanced Manufacturing Engineering Technology

Adrian Gonzalez, Radiologic Technology

Brian  Hill, Computer Information Technology

Brandon Hudacko, Heating Ventilation & Air Conditioning

David Hudak, Advanced Manufacturing Engineering Technology

Joseph Iannielli, Electrical Construction & Maintenance Technology

Tommy Ibarrondo Vega, Electrical Construction & Maintenance Technology

Stephanie Laskowski, Automotive Technology

Regina McCaffery, Radiologic Technology

Christopher Mecca, Electrical Construction & Maintenance Technology

Joseph Morin, Automotive Technology

Christine Noldy, Radiologic Technology

Jennefer Petliski, Radiologic Technology

Matthew Robinson, Computer Information Technology

Daniel Schultz, Computer Information Technology

Bethany Severn, Veterinary Technology

Maura Speicher, Physical Therapist Assistant

Joseph Stoffey, Computer Information Technology

Benjamin Terry, Electronic Engineering Technology

Patrick Walker, Architectural Drafting & Design Technology

Kerri Wydeen, Radiologic Technology

Do you love a challenge? Do you enjoy working with wood and being creative?

Then please join us on Saturday, December 8th for the Johnson College 1” x 12” Challenge! This event is open to high school students, college students, Johnson College Alumni, and the general public. There is no fee to participate and prizes will be awarded to the first and second place winners.

Contestants will build an object out of wood using the material from a 1” x 12” x 96” (3/4” x 11 ¼” x 96”) board. The contestants can build anything they want – furniture, art work, household items, instruments, etc. First place and second place prizes will be awarded in each of the following three divisions: High School, College, and Advanced.

 

High School Division	1st place – $1,000 scholarship to Johnson College 2nd place – DeWalt drill/driver kit
College Division	1st place – DeWalt drill/driver 2nd place – $ 75.00 gift card
Advanced Division	1st place – DeWalt drill/driver 2nd place – $ 75.00 gift card

Rules of the Challenge

• Any species of wood can be used. The board cannot exceed 1” x12” x 96” nominal size. (Home Depot has pine 1×12 boards for around $17.00). Glue, nails, dowels, screws, etc. can be used in the construction.
• In addition to your creation, you will need to show drawings and sketches of your idea. Please take a picture of your material before you start, pictures of various stages of the building process, and a picture(s) of the final product. These will be used during the evaluation of your project.

This contest works on the honor system. Each contestant is expected to use no more than the allowed material. Contestants should build their own projects. Contestants must accompany their creation to the judging which will be held in the Carpentry Shop in Woolworth Hall at Johnson College. Judging begins at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 8, 2018. Please have your project delivered and ready for judging by 9:30 a.m.

All questions regarding the contest can be directed to Todd Campbell, Department Chair of Carpentry and Cabinetmaking Technology, at tcampbell@johnson.edu, or 570-702-8913.
Please reserve your place in the competition by e-mailing to tcampbell@johnson.edu by December 4th.

One entry per contestant please.

In case you haven’t heard, Johnson College has been recognized by Forbes!

Johnson College has joined the rankings of premiere technical education by being ranked #10 on Forbes Top 25 Two-Year Trade Schools. Of 700 schools considered, Johnson College was recognized as one of the most prominent when it comes to “high-earning alumni, stand-out graduation and retention rates, and respectable debt repayment scores,” according to Forbes. The list of schools highlights industry that seeks a skilled workforce, education that is affordable and accessible. The list was based on IPEDS, College Score Card, and Pay Scale data. The methodology of the list is guided by the question, “What should a high school senior be looking for in higher education?” and according to Forbes, it is “a gateway to a great career.”

For more information about the designation, please click here.

To celebrate this great occasion, we are inviting students, alumni, faculty, staff, and community friends to purchase limited edition apparel! To purchase, please click the image below!

 

Like so many people, Austin Caramanno, ’17, did not end up where he thought he would when he started his college career. The Mid-Valley High school graduate and Olyphant native originally attended a small college just outside of Philadelphia and planned on getting his degree in Graphic Design. However, the promise of hard work with only a slight chance of finding success in his career was not enough to satisfy him. “I would work hard and might get somewhere, but, for me, it was go big or go home. So, I decided it was time to go back home.”

While back home, he decided to do some research on opportunities in the trades. “I knew I was looking for something that would work for me in the future but would be fun to learn in the process,” he says. “I wanted to do something completely new and Logistics kept popping up as something in the trades for those who were less inclined to do something like fixing cars.” The option of majoring in logistics and supply chain management and the culture at Johnson College was just what Austin was looking for. “It didn’t click [at his previous school], but everything at Johnson felt natural. Everyone was so personable.”

Caramanno graduated from Johnson College in 2017 with a degree in Logistics and Supply Chain Management. He started working at the Neiman Marcus Distribution Center in Pittston in 2015 as a shipping assistant and was quickly promoted to Human Resources Assistant in 2016. By November 2017, he was promoted to his current position of Shipping Supervisor where he now manages those he used to work with as a Shipping Assistant. Caramanno was also a recipient of the Neiman Marcus Group Best award in 2017 because he consistently went above and beyond in his work and he displayed the company’s core values of being “memorable, trustworthy, and bold.”

As a Shipping Supervisor, in addition to making sure that merchandise gets to the stores in a timely fashion and managing nine other employees, Austin now oversees security protocols and the quality of the high end merchandise that goes into Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman stores across the country.  His job has given him the opportunity to handle dresses that can cost more than $6,000 and other merchandise being sent to celebrities in the fashion and music industries. All of this is a far cry from what he thought he would be doing while working in graphic design.

He credits much of his success in his position to the leadership skills and professionalism he learned while at Johnson College. “It’s funny because students complained all the time about writing papers but, I have to submit a ‘Goals and Objectives’ report often so, learning those skills really helps,” he says. “The technical skills you learn and your demeanor will help you move past just being an entry level employee. Things like group projects, which seem silly at the time, help you because when working- you don’t get to pick your group and you have to make do.”

Austin also gives credit to his instructors who made sure he not only learned the theory behind business management but, took the time to make sure he truly understood the real world application. “[The instructors] were very helpful because they were people directly from the field.  A book tells you one thing but you have to adapt to real life situations. They helped you learn that,” Austin recalled. He also mentioned that Laura Little, the Business Management Department Chair, pushed him to be the best that he could be- “She put in the time to give me the best education she could, so I wanted to take the time to be good at what I was doing.”

When asked what advice he would give current Johnson College students, he says “Things don’t come to you. You have to go after them. An opportunity may fall into your lap but, it’s still up to you to take it.” He emphasized the importance of seizing opportunities just like the one he seized at Johnson College and the ones he’s had at Neiman Marcus.

For more information on our Logistics & Supply Chain Management degree, please click here.

 

On October 18th,  the Northeastern Pennsylvania Alliance (NEPA) presented Johnson College with a $76,974 Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) grant. NEPA, in coordination with Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, assisted Johnson College in preparation of the grant and recommended the project to ARC for approval. The goal of this project is to update the technical training systems that Johnson College students utilize in obtaining an educational experience that reflects the latest developments in materials, tools, machinery, equipment, methods and techniques; ultimately allowing for quicker response to industry labor needs.  The $76,974 grant, combined with $76,974 in matching funds from Johnson College, will be used to purchase 12 different “Training Systems” which guarantee the students practical experience with high-technology tools and resources that employers expect them to show proficient use of during their first professional positions in industry.  It will offset the cost of educational equipment in support of Advanced Manufacturing, Electronic Engineering, Automotive, Diesel, Electrical Construction & Maintenance, and Welding Technology programs, creating an outstanding learning experience for students.

Being ranked #10 on Forbes “Top 25 Two-Year Trade Schools: Colleges That Can Solve The Skills Gap,” this grant opportunity helps ensure Johnson College students have the opportunity to master the skills needed to enter high priority occupations in the ARC region in a way that meets the most current industry standards and provides a family sustaining wage. Congressman Matt Cartwright commended Johnson College on its recent Forbes ranking by mentioning how the institution is contributing to a large issue that he discusses often with business owners in Pennsylvania, “not enough skilled workers.”

President Katie Leonard commented, “Not only has the economy become increasingly dependent on STEM jobs, but the students of today have become more cognizant of the investment in a post-secondary degree. Technical education is the right investment for Pennsylvanians who are ready to get to work to earn a family-sustaining wage.”

She also explained, “This grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission has so many positive implications for the programs it supports. Equipment is a major expense for technical colleges because it is critical that students learn on industry standard equipment that mirrors what they will use during their internships and on the job as new technicians. Equipment in the classroom should not only mirror equipment of today, but institutions are always considering technology and learning tools to prepare them for the future as well. Industry depends on us for this.”

About NEPA:

The NEPA Alliance, a regional community and economic development agency, serves the seven counties of Northeastern Pennsylvania including Carbon, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, Schuylkill and Wayne. NEPA Alliance services include Business Financing, Government Contracting Assistance, International Trade Assistance, Nonprofit Assistance, Transportation Planning, Research and Information, and Local Government Services. For more information about NEPA visit www.nepa-alliance.org or call 866-758-1929.  “This institution is an equal opportunity provider and employer.”

About ARC:

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) is a regional economic development agency that represents a partnership of federal, state, and local government. Established by an act of Congress in 1965, ARC is composed of the governors of the 13 Appalachian states and a federal co-chair, who is appointed by the president. Local participation is provided through multi-county local development districts. ARC’s mission is to innovate, partner, and invest to build community capacity and strengthen economic growth in Appalachia.