Penn State Schuylkill traces its origins to the Depression years of the 1930s, when a citizen’s group in Pottsville began to explore options for local, affordable post-secondary education. Meanwhile, The Pennsylvania State College adopted guidelines on May 22, 1934 for the establishment of Undergraduate Centers throughout Pennsylvania in an effort to bring its services to more of the commonwealth’s citizens. Pottsville was quickly proposed as one of the sites for a center, a survey of the county’s educational needs was done, and Pottsville, along with Hazleton and Uniontown, was approved by the State Superintendent of Schools on July 25, 1934 as a location for an Undergraduate Center.
Classes began at the Pottsville Undergraduate Center on September 19, 1934, with Walter R. Van Voorhis as administrative head. Twenty freshmen were enrolled by opening day, and were taught by a faculty of six. Several weeks later a need for part-time enrollment was realized, and an evening Extension School was opened. Enrollment soon increased to 62. Classes were held on one floor of the Bunker Hill Building at Ninth and Schuylkill Streets in Pottsville. The building was leased from the Pottsville School Board for $1 per year, an arrangement that would last until 1966. Penn State students also used the laboratory facilities of the nearby Pottsville High School in the late afternoons.
The Center initially allowed students to complete the first year of a degree program locally before going on to University Park. Enrollment grew steadily, and larger facilities were soon needed. By 1937 the college was leasing the entire Bunker Hill Building. Chemistry and physics labs were added, as well as a student lounge and snack bar. In the early 1940s Van Voorhis was replaced briefly by Wallace Brewster, followed by T. Stewart Goas in 1942. By the end of World War II, enrollment increased considerably and summer sessions were begun. The Yorkville School Building at 20th and Norwegian Streets was also leased from the Pottsville School District, and provided an additional six classrooms and faculty offices. Liberal arts classes were taught in the Yorkville Building, while science classes were housed in the Bunker Hill Building.
In 1944 an advisory committee of local citizens was incorporated as the Schuylkill Education Foundation. Now known as the Advisory Board of the Schuylkill Campus of Penn State University, this board continues to exemplify the close association between the campus and the community.
By 1948 the Center received a new name, the Pennsylvania State College Center of Pottsville, along with another new building. The former Dietz Funeral Home at 912 Mahantongo Street was remodeled to house administrative offices, a library, a psychology clinic, bookstore and classrooms. The Yorkville Building was then closed. Henry I. Herring succeeded Goas as head of the Center in 1949.
In 1953, the same year the Pennsylvania State College became the Pennsylvania State University, the Pottsville Center introduced its first associate degree program. This program, in drafting and design technology, allowed location-bound students to complete a degree without leaving Schuylkill County.
Space constraints in Pottsville led the Schuylkill Educational Foundation to begin a search in the 1950s for a new campus site. The county owned a tract of land of over 200 acres south of Schuylkill Haven which had been used since the 1830s as a “poor farm,” providing a home and livelihood for the county’s indigent and mentally ill. By the late 1950s changes in social services and in agriculture had made the “poor farm” concept obsolete. The county discontinued the farming operation in 1961 and consolidated its remaining patients into one nursing home building on the property.
The county agreed to sell a 42-acre parcel of land to the University for $1. The tract contained six buildings and a large barn. Architects determined that only the old hospital building, constructed in 1897; a building built in 1913 which had housed the poor and mentally disturbed; and a storage building/slaughterhouse for livestock built in 1928 would remain. These structures were renovated and became, respectively, the Classroom Building, the Administration Building, and the Maintenance Building.
Renovations were completed by the end of 1966 at a cost of $576,743, and the Schuylkill Campus (as it had been known since 1963) was opened for classes at its Schuylkill Haven location in January 1967 with an enrollment of 468.
Schuylkill soon became a residential campus with the acquisition in the fall of 1967 of the former Anthracite Research Laboratory on East Main Street in Schuylkill Haven. This building was turned into housing for about fifty female students. A large garage on the property was renovated and used as a field house/gymnasium. In late 1977 the $1.2 million Multi-Purpose Building was added to the campus, providing a gymnasium, auxiliary gym, office and storage space, and an additional classroom. This facility brought increased opportunities for intramural and intercollegiate athletics to the campus.
Director Henry Herring retired in 1978, and was succeeded by Dr. Wayne D. Lammie. The campus continued to grow and to reconfigure spaces to meet changing needs. In 1979 the library was moved to the lower level of the Classroom Building, freeing up space on the first floor for a Conference Center which provided meeting space for outside as well as University groups. The $1.3 million Student/ Community Center was dedicated in 1983 and included an auditorium, expanded food service, and a student lounge area.
Originally begun to serve the needs of the local community, the campus was also experiencing increased enrollments from outside the local area, necessitating additional housing. The residence hall was opened to men as well as women in 1985, but more space was needed. The county gave the campus three additional parcels of land to the north and west of the campus, and the Advisory Board financed the construction of the Nittany Apartment buildings, the first of which housed 32 students and was completed in fall 1987. Additional units followed, allowing the dormitory across Route 61 to be closed in the spring of 1991.
In 1987 the largest fund-raising campaign in the county to date was undertaken, raising over $1 million locally for construction of a new library building. The building, housing the two-story library, fully-equipped television studio, Center for Academic Achievement, and meeting rooms, opened in 1994. The space formerly occupied by the library in the lower level of the Classroom Building was renovated to become the Sol and Julia Cotler Computer Center.
Program offerings also began increasing in the late 1980s in response to the need for increased opportunities for location-bound students, and Schuylkill began offering a Bachelor of Science degree with a major in Nursing and an Extended Bachelor’s Degree in General Arts and Sciences. Certificate programs in business management and law enforcement were announced in late 1994.
In 1996, as part of a University-wide initiative to streamline the campus operations, Schuylkill chose to merge with Penn State Harrisburg to become part of the two-campus Capital College, expanding opportunities for local four-year programs. The merger became effective July 1, 1997. Bachelors’ degrees in criminal justice, business and psychology, as well as a Master’s in teaching and curriculum, were implemented that year.
In 1998 a new physical plant building was constructed, and the former maintenance building was renovated and became the Student Activities and Advising Center. By 2000 the campus had its own endowed scholarships, helping to further its mission of making a college education accessible. Dr. Wayne Lammie retired from his position as campus executive officer in 2000 and was succeeded by Dr. Sylvester Kohut Jr.
An administrative reorganization was announced by the University in 2005, dissolving the merger between the Schuylkill and Harrisburg Campuses. Schuylkill became part of University College, with its local campus executive given the title of chancellor. Dr. R. Keith Hillkirk assumed this position in 2005. A Bachelor’s degree in Information Sciences and Technology was added in the fall of that year.
Changes and growth continue throughout the campus. The multi-purpose building was renovated and enlarged in the summer of 2008 to provide additional meeting spaces, new offices for Student Services, and a remodeled fitness center, and is now known as the Health and Wellness Center. The former Student Activities and Advising Center was remodeled in early 2009, being renamed the Business and Academic Services Building. The campus has purchased a parcel of adjoining land from the county, and is looking forward to the construction of additional housing.
Throughout its 75-year history, the campus has remained dedicated to its mission of bringing educational and cultural opportunities to the county. Schuylkill Campus currently offers the first two years of over 160 bachelor’s degree programs, five associate degrees, four baccalaureate degrees, and four minors. More than thirty organizations and six varsity sports are available. Continuing education programs, Kid’s College summer camps, a varied program of cultural events, and service learning opportunities which bring together students and community needs continue to unite the campus and community.