JOHNSTOWN

Education degree expands

Pennsylvania Highlands Community College is enhancing its education associate degree by integrating it with the Early Childhood Education program. This creates an associate degree offering two distinct pathways: elementary and secondary education.

The 61-credit Associate of Arts degree offers students the flexibility to customize their schedules, facilitating a seamless transition to their next college or university.

The Education A.A. offers an elementary education track approved by the Transfer and Articulation Oversight Committee of the Pennsylvania Department of Education. This approval enables Penn Highlands students to have a seamless program-to-program transfer with all 14 Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education schools. Students who transfer using this agreement will be granted junior status upon transfer.

For more information, visit the Education section of the college website at pennhighlands.edu/education/. This program is offered in-person at the College’s Richland Campus and the Ebensburg Center.

JOHNSTOWN

Conemaugh recognized

Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center has received Healthgrades’s Specialty Excellence Award, earning recognition among America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Pulmonary Care and Spine Surgery for 2025. This honor places Conemaugh among the top five percent of hospitals nationwide for excellence in these specialized care areas.

The Pulmonary Care Excellence Award recognizes hospitals with superior clinical outcomes in treating chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and pneumonia. The Spine Surgery Excellence Award acknowledges hospitals with exceptional clinical outcomes in back and neck surgeries and spinal fusion.