Nine accomplished young alumni recently were honored with the prestigious Alumni Achievement Award during a ceremony hosted by the Penn State Alumni Association on March 20 at the Penn Stater Hotel and Conference Center. The event brought together the nine honorees, their families, University leadership, and Penn State faculty and staff to celebrate some of the University’s brightest and boldest rising alumni.
Anisha Tiwari, majoring in chemistry and biology at Penn State Behrend; Emma Duffy, majoring in recreation, park, and tourism management in the College of Health and Human Development; and Valeria Miraballes, majoring in global and international studies in the College of the Liberal Arts, have been named recipients of the 2026 Ralph Dorn Hetzel Memorial Award.
Penn State Behrend faculty members will read from their original work at the annual “Behrend Reads” program, which is part of the Smith Creative Writers Reading Series at the college. The March 26 program, which begins at 6 p.m. in the lobby of Metzgar Center, is free and open to the public.
The cover of the H&SS News 2026 issue, published annually and provided free to alumni and friends of the Penn State Behrend School of Humanities & Social Sciences by the Office of Strategic Communications.
Dr. Christopher Shelton, director of the VAR Lab, center, and student researcher, Remington Orange, right, discuss a virtual reality project with a Snap-tite Hose employee.
