From the Christmas tree to hex signs, the Easter bunny to Groundhog Day, Pennsylvania Germans, have had a profound effect on American culture. Among the earliest American settlers, they still abide as an American folk group. Penn State folklorist and historian Simon Bronner recently spoke with us about current directions in the study of this distinctive culture.
Kaitlyn Rhubright, an undergraduate student majoring in criminal justice and psychology at Penn State Harrisburg, was one of just 11 Penn State students selected to present their research to Pennsylvania legislators at the State Capitol Building in Harrisburg, on April 25.
Data from a recent survey by the Center for Survey Research at Penn State Harrisburg shows how Pennsylvanians view key policing topics, including what defines police legitimacy and whether or not police wearing body cameras makes us feel safer.
Researchers at the Justice Center, located in Penn State's College of the Liberal Arts, are exploring multiple options to combat the increasing rates of drug use. One current project is looking to identify distribution networks for illegal and prescription painkillers (opioids) using data from both the Pennsylvania State Police and individual communities, while another project will investigate ways to disrupt the flow of opioids through targeted police action, public outreach, and community partnerships.
New research conducted by Anthony Buccitelli, professor of American studies and communications at Penn State Harrisburg, suggests that location-based gamers are doing more than just playing — they’re building communities and connecting with their local cultural heritage.
According to a new poll, more than 8 out of 10 Pennsylvanians trust their local police, and public attitude toward police reflects public attitude toward the federal and state government. However, while support from the general public is high, there are mitigating factors for individual attitudes.
The Edna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation have released a social and emotional learning brief—Teacher Stress and Health: Effects on Teachers, Students and Schools—the first in a 10-part series. This first brief examines the causes and consequences of teacher stress—a growing problem with nearly one-half of teachers reporting high daily stress and more teachers leaving the profession than ever before.
Penn State Harrisburg School of Public Affairs researchers, Jonathan Lee and Jennifer Gibbs, both assistant professors of criminal justice, say that for police to forge better relationships with the communities they serve, they must decrease “social distance.”
Cheryl Woodruff-Brooks, a graduate student in Penn State Harrisburg’s American studies program, thought she would do her thesis on the history of hip-hop. But a chance sighting of black-and-white photos in a Philadelphia gallery window in 2014 would eventually change her mind and open up to her a world during the 1930s to 1960s in which African-Americans ruled a section of Atlantic City beach, known as “Chicken Bone Beach.”
Kimberly Schreck has met families who spent thousands of dollars, even remortgaged their homes, to pay for unproven treatments to try to help their autistic children. Schreck and her colleague Richard Foxx, both professors of psychology at Penn State Harrisburg, are helping families cut through the hype and zero in on the most effective treatments to help children with autism.
