Stories / News, Events and Issues from Central Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania holds primary elections May 18th. Who’s on the ballot? That’s being determined right now . . . and the process is more complicated than it seems.

Author and central Pennsylvania native Alison Bechdel was best known for her comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For. That was until Time Magazine named her critically acclaimed graphic memoir, Fun Home, one of the best books of 2006! WPSU’s Patty Satalia talks with Bechdel about the graphic medium and her career.

When it comes to underage drinking in college residence halls, the first line of defense is a group of students called Resident Assistants, or RAs. Penn State University Park has hundreds of RAs, who receive special training. WPSU’s Emily Reddy reports.

To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, many dairy farms will need to cover their manure lagoons. In this report from the Ohio River Radio Consortium, Tom Borgerding reports on a farmer who hopes to convert greenhouse gases to money in his pocket.

The Beatles: Pop culture is now an academic subject, and we’ve got a couple of local experts. Patty Satalia talks with two Penn State-Altoona professors, Ken Womack and Jerry Zolten, who contributed to the just-released “Cambridge Companion to The Beatles.”

Penn State’s student choir,”Essence of Joy”, performs music from the African and African American choral traditions. Professor Tony Leach, founder and director of the choir, will lead the group in a concert Saturday afternoo at Penn State’s main campus, part of the Celebration of African American Music Festival. WPSU’s Kristine Allen listened-in during a recent rehearsal.

Opposition to the student-created drinking holiday, “State Patty’s Day,” is growing in State College. WPSU News intern Erica Brecher reports.

Last week was the one-year anniversary of President Obama's first economic stimulus package. Did the money help? What did we spend it on in Central PA? Patty Satalia talks with a labor economist from the Keystone Research Center.