Dean's Community Message

March 29, 2020

Dear College of Engineering Community,

Today is Sunday, marking the first full day that Centre County is officially under Governor Wolf’s “Stay at Home” order, joining 21 other counties in Pennsylvania. For most of us, the order should not change much about how we have been going about our day-to-day activities. We continue to teach, learn, and work remotely.

One thing to note is that if you are not in State College, but planned to return to the area soon, please reconsider. There are cases of COVID-19 here, just as there are in most places. Travel introduces more risk and exposure, and it is much safer for you and the community to remain in place. A letter with more details from Damon Sims, the Vice President for Student Affairs, is attached.

That leads me to today’s quote, submitted by Pat Fox, head of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering:

“When times get tough, we don’t give up. We get up.”
—Barack Obama

We may be physically separated, but we can connect and cheer each other through email and social media (my LinkedIn, and the college’s LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram). Things may be different, but we are not broken.

To keep positive and healthy at all times, but especially now, I exercise. Here’s a round-up of free at-home workout sources. And even under the new order, you can exercise outside — just remember to maintain social distance with others.

  • Nike Training Club is a free app that offers workouts, including training for running
  • Orangetheory uploads, a daily workout video on YouTube every day
  • Planet Fitness is livestreaming classes every night at 7:00 p.m. EDT (free, open to non-members)
  • Yoga with Adriene offers free yoga and meditation classes on YouTube

Please continue to reach out with questions and comments to L-COE_CORONA_CRISIS_TEAM@engr.psu.edu. Keep referring to University’s informational site as well as the College of Engineering resources site for additional information.

Here’s to a relaxing and healthy Sunday!

Justin Schwartz
Harold and Inge Marcus Dean, College of Engineering