Colleges and universities maintain eight main or branch campuses in The Alleghenies:
- Penn State Altoona
- St. Francis University
- Mount Aloysius College
- Penn Highland Community College (formerly Cambria County Community College)
- University of Pittsburgh – Johnstown Campus
- Allegany College of Maryland – Somerset Campus
- Allegany College of Maryland – Bedford Campus
- Juniata College
The locations of colleges and universities, high schools, trade schools, and vocational/technology schools are found in the SAP&DC 2002 CEDS.
These eight colleges are very important to the region.
As a primary strategy for economic development, we seek to attract high-tech companies and other businesses that employ college graduates. In addition, their students and faculty are current or future leaders, managers and innovators, crucial to the region’s economic health.
The institutions also are important employers of faculty with a high level of education (“knowledge workers”), who earn relatively good salaries. A brief description of these institutions is provided below.
Penn State – Altoona Campus
Penn State’s main campus, State College, is located in Centre County, just north of The Alleghenies. The Penn State Altoona branch campus was founded in Blair County 1939 as the Altoona Undergraduate Center. Situated on 120 acres surrounding a pond, Penn State Altoona comprises more than 20 buildings, including a student union center; an athletic complex with indoor pool, fitness loft and weight room, computer center, library, state-of-the-art science and engineering labs, a theater, art and music studios, and the Ralph and Helen Force Advanced Technology Center. Drs. Cale, Dean and Ceo report that the campus offers a Bachelors Degree in Business with an Entrepreneurial Track, in conjunction with the Altoona-Blair County Development Corporation. The degree requires an internship at area corporations.
Juniata College
Located in the Borough of Huntingdon (Huntingdon County) the liberal-arts college occupies 100 acres, with approximately 31 buildings. Founded in 1876, Juniata is an independent, coeducational college of liberal arts and sciences, with a good reputation for academic excellence. Huntingdon County officials consider the college an important resource for economic development. Juniata currently is emphasizing its science and technology degree programs, and it is becoming well known for its environmental science programs. The college operates the 365-acre Raystown Environmental Studies Field Station on Army Corps of Engineers Land by Raystown Lake. Conferences scheduled at the new facility are expected to generate hotel demand and benefit tourism. The new, 88,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art von Liebig Center for Science will help to attract top science faculty and students. The university also is renovating and expanding the Sill Incubator in Huntingdon.
St. Francis University
This Catholic university is located on a 600-acre campus in Loretto (Cambria County), north of U.S. 22 between Altoona and Ebensburg. The school has a liberal arts orientation. Degrees in business administration, biology and environmental science also are offered. St. Francis offers day and evening courses for undergraduate, graduate, and continuing education programs.
Mount Aloysius College
This small Catholic college is located in Cresson (Cambria County), just south of U.S. Route 22 between Altoona and Ebensburg. The college offers both bachelors degrees and associate degrees.
The University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown
Founded in 1927, Pitt-Johnstown was one of the first regional campuses of a major university. The spacious 650-acre wooded campus is located in a suburb of Johnstown in Cambria County. Pitt-Johnstown offers four-year degrees in more than 40 majors and programs of study. Degree programs include computer science, engineering technology, biology, management/marketing, geology, pre-law and environmental studies.
Allegany College – Bedford Campus and Somerset Campus
Bedford and Somerset are branch campuses of Allegany College in Cumberland, Maryland. The campuses offer technical training oriented to meet regional job requirements. Career certifications are available for automotive technicians, media technicians, computer specialists, chefs, hotel/motel managers, travel/tourism specialists, and business managers, and others.
Penn Highland Community College, formerly the Cambria County Area Community College
Founded in 1994, this comprehensive community college offers basic college-level courses required for students transferring to four-year colleges. Penn Highland also offers occupational and technical programs and workforce development training. For flexibility, the college offers long-distance education and on-line courses.