In this Issue:
- President's Message
- Scholarships
- THON & Philanthropy
- Social Events
- Upcoming Events
- PSU Alumni Small Business Owners
President's Message
Dear Penn State Alumni and Friends,
Greetings to everyone who has supported and stayed engaged with our Triangle Chapter over the years. My name is Brian Shaunessy, and I am honored to serve as your Chapter President, a role I’ve held since 2022.
Since our last newsletter, there has been a great deal of exciting activity across Penn State. Beaver Stadium is undergoing major renovations, and our football program is moving forward under new leadership. On the national stage, our Men’s Wrestling team captured its 14th National Championship in March 2026, continuing an incredible tradition of excellence. We are also proud of the Women’s Hockey team, currently ranked No. 3 nationally, as they advance to the Final Four and prepare to host the Frozen Four at Pegula Ice Arena.
Closer to home, Penn State Women’s Gymnastics delivered an outstanding performance on March 13 at Carmichael Arena at UNC in a tri‑meet against North Carolina and Nebraska. The Nittany Lions finished on top with a score of 196.875, ahead of Nebraska (195.650) and UNC (194.550), marking their first multiteam win of the 2026 season. Local gymnast Elizabeth Leary led the way by winning all‑around with a season‑high score of 39.250. Fellow local standout Ava Cash earned 9.800 on vault, the eighth such score of her career, and turned in a strong showing on the uneven bars.
As a chapter, we continue to offer a wide variety of social and community events throughout 2025 and 2026, including football watch parties, happy hours, cornhole tournaments, our annual picnic and student send‑off, and our THON fundraiser. We also welcome alumni to join our monthly board meetings, held on the second Wednesday of each month. If you’re interested, please email me at [email protected] for details or to join via Zoom.
Finally, we value your input and encourage you to participate in our chapter survey, which will remain open until April 5. Your feedback helps shape our future programming, so please take a moment to share your thoughts by clicking HERE.
Thank you for your continued support of Penn State and the Triangle Chapter.
We look forward to seeing you at an upcoming event.
We Are!
— Brian Shaunessy
Triangle Chapter President
We Are!
Scholarship Alumni Triangle Chapter Scholarship
Have you looked at the annual cost for an out-of-state student to attend our beloved university? We all know that it’s high; the current tuition, room & board fees are more than $56,000/year. Ouch! That’s why our Triangle Chapter for years has sponsored a scholarship for an outstanding local student to attend Penn State. How do we raise the funds for this scholarship? Well, you all help the effort through your participation in the 50/50 raffle at game day parties during football season. Thanks to all who help this cause!
How does the scholarship application process work?
- For the 2025/2026 school year, we received from the University a list of 33 local Penn State students to solicit applications for the scholarship.
- Triangle Chapter reached out each student with an email requesting they apply. Of the students contacted, five sent in applications.
- Applications were evaluated by the Triangle Chapter Board based on criteria such as need, academic achievement, activities, and quality of the answers to the questions on the application.
- The thing that really struck the Board during the evaluation process was how accomplished all these students are. The evaluation process was a difficult one due to the high quality of the applications!
- Mohamed Kornay
- Annie Wang
THON and Philanthropy
Every event, donation, and volunteer hour represents the power of our alumni community coming together to make a difference For The Kids and within our local community.
THON Fundraising
This year marked a record-breaking milestone for our chapter’s THON fundraising efforts. Thanks to the incredible generosity and engagement of our alumni network, we raised $8,784. This is the highest total in recent chapter history.
Our success was driven by a combination of both new and returning events that brought our community together in meaningful and impactful ways:
- BBQ, Beer, and Bingo at South Line Brewing (Apex) + Online THON Auction – Our largest fundraising initiative of the year, this combined effort brought together alumni and the local community for an engaging night of connection, friendly competition, and giving back.
- THON Football Fundraiser – Alumni rallied together during our THON football game with funds raised in our 50/50 raffle
- Direct Donations – Continued support from our alumni network helped amplify the impact of each event.
Together, we dance for a cure! #FTK
Other Community Impact
Our chapter continued to make a meaningful impact in the local community through both volunteerism and donations.
- Hope Reins Volunteer Event (September 20, 2025)
- For the second consecutive year, our alumni partnered with Hope Reins to support their mission of providing a healing environment for children in crisis. This year, 8 volunteers participated and contributed their time through activities such as cleaning and landscaping to support ongoing farm operations. We are proud to see this partnership continue to grow into a meaningful annual tradition.
- Food Drive
- Throughout the year, our chapter collected and donated approximately 40 pounds of food, along with $1,647 in monetary contributions that will lead to 8,235 meals provided by the Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina. These donations helped provide essential resources to individuals and families in need across our local community.
Social Events
We've had the privilege of hosting many social events throughout the year and we have many more activities to come in 2026!
Spring Cornhole Tournament at Compass Rose
This year we held our annual cornhole tournament at Compass Rose Brewery in Raleigh. The weather was perfect, the competition was fierce and fun was had by all. We had 12 different teams of all skill levels participate, proving that whether you’re a seasoned cornhole competitor or just playing for fun, the real win was spending time together as a Penn State community. The laid back vibe at the brewery made it easy to enjoy cold drinks, cheer on fellow alumni, and catch up with both familiar faces and new connections. Throughout the afternoon, friendly banter, impressive throws, and a few dramatic near-misses kept the crowd engaged. Of course, bragging rights were on the line, and the competition stayed lively right up until the final toss. In the end, Emily and Ann took home the WIN for Team Passiniski by defeating Barry and Mary in a nail-biter! Team Passinski's legacy lives on until another challenger is brave enough to take them on during our next tournament in Spring 2026! Events like these are a great reminder of how strong and welcoming the Penn State Alumni community is here in the Triangle. We look forward to seeing you at our next gathering.
Carolina Hurricanes Hockey Game
We had a great time together at the Carolina Hurricanes Hockey game! Thank you to everyone who came out to connect. Look out for some more exciting opportunities this Spring to connect with PSU Alumni and enjoy some great sports in the Triangle!
Upcoming Events
We have have many exciting events planned for this year. We hope to see you!
Below is a list of events that we already have planned for 2026! More information will come on all of these events as the events get closer!
Nick Scott Charity Golf Tournament: Monday, April 13th in Charlotte (for more information visit their website here)
Networking Event: 6:00 P.M. on Thursday, April 16th at Yard House
Cornhole Tournament: Saturday, May 2nd at Compass Rose Brewery
Durham Bulls baseball game: June (details coming soon)
Annual Summer Picnic and Student Send-off: Saturday, July 25th
Opportunity for PSU Alumni Small Business Owners
Are you a small business owner in the Triangle and a proud PSU Alumni? We want to feature you in our exclusive PSU Alumni Business Directory!
Share your business details with us, including:
- Business name
- Website
- Contact person
- Contact phone number
- Social Media Handles
- Brief description of your services
Submit your details today by completing the form here!
TriPSU.org
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