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John Eicher

In brief: Did Europeans know the 1918 flu was a pandemic in 1918?

John Eicher, associate professor of history at Penn State Altoona, published an article on the 1918 influenza pandemic in the journal Contemporary European History. The article concludes that the average Europeans who endured the 1918 influenza pandemic had no idea it was a pandemic in real time.
Penn State Altoona students Ally Black (first row, second from left), Devlin Glenn (first row, third from left), Abigail Hayes (first row, fourth from left), and Katelyn Kurtz (first row, fifth from left) join their mentor Dr. Nathan E. Kruis, (last row, first from left) and representatives from Penn State Health and the Pennsylvania State Police at the Keystone Model of Crisis Management workshop held at Penn State Great Valley on April 28, 2025.

Collaboration brings crisis management workshop to first responders, community

Four students from the Integrated Social Sciences Research Lab at Penn State Altoona worked with faculty from the Douglas W. Pollock Center at Penn State Harrisburg and representatives from the Pennsylvania State Police, Penn State Health and the Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute to provide a free crisis management training workshop to first responders and community members.
A closeup of a green flower with a blurred Old Main in the background

Top pictures from the 2025 Penn State Today spring photo contest

Thank you to all who participated in the 2025 Penn State Today spring photo contest! We received an incredible selection of photos showcasing spring at Penn State. The winning photo was submitted by Bethany Stitzer, an undergraduate student studying biomedical engineering at University Park, and highlights spring blossoms surrounding Old Main on a quiet April morning. See more top submissions, as selected by Penn State Today editors, in this photo gallery. 
Brian Onishi

Penn State Altoona professor selected as Philosophy in Media Fellow

Brian Onishi, associate professor of philosophy at Penn State Altoona, was selected as a 2025 Marc Sanders Foundation Philosophy in Media Fellow. As part of the fellowship, he will spend three days in New York City this summer at a workshop dedicated to promoting public academia through podcasting.