(Posted June 10, 2008)


HUNTINGDON, Pa. -- Juniata College has received a $25,000 grant from the Penelec Sustainable Energy Fund of the Community Foundation for the Alleghenies to support the construction and sustainable energy features of Founders Hall, currently undergoing an 8.5 million renovation.

The grant is not dedicated to a specific part of the Founders Hall renovation, but rather to the overall costs of the construction project. The renovated building, scheduled to finish in fall 2009, was designed by Street Dixon Rick Architecture, a Nashville, Tenn. architectural firm. It will be built to the environmental standards to qualify it as a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) building by the U.S. Green Building Council. LEED certification recognizes performance in five key areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality. When the building is completed, the college will submit the renovated structure for certification as a LEED building.

In addition, the building will also feature an environmentally friendly geothermal heating and cooling system.

The Penelec Sustainable Energy Fund is a donor-advised fund within the Community Foundation for the Alleghenies. The Penelec Sustainable Energy Fund was funded in 2000 as a result of energy deregulation and utility settlement agreements in Pennsylvania. Grants, loans and investments are made for use of renewable energy, for energy conservation and efficiency, and renewable energy business initiatives.

The Community Foundation for the Alleghenies awarded more than $2.3 million in grants last year. Founded in 1990, the foundation serves primarily Bedford, Cambria and Somerset counties, as well as wider donor interests. The foundation manages more than $36 million in assets.


Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.