EDUCATION & TRAINING CENTER AT PITT-TITUSVILLE RECEIVES $350,000 FROM THE ROSSIN FOUNDATION

TITUSVILLE, Pa. – The Rossin Foundation in Pittsburgh contributed $350,000 to the Education & Training Center at Pitt-Titusville in memory of its founder, Peter C. Rossin, and to help the local community thrive. 

The newly named Peter C. Rossin Manufacturing Center, which serves as the new Manufacturing Assistance Center workshop, is located in the renovated J. Curtis McKinney II Student Union at Pitt-Titusville. The center, along with the other new spaces in the building, was formally unveiled to the public during a ribbon cutting and campaign celebration last week on campus. 

The new center is where manufacturing students will hone their craft by using advanced machine tools and computer-aided manufacturing software programs. Since the start of the manufacturing program in Titusville in 2021, students had been receiving their training at the Titusville Opportunity Park. 

The new workshop is equipped with an assortment of tools and equipment that students need, including mills, lathes, band saws, a drill press, and disc and belt grinders. The center also includes quality control and inspection tools, including a CNC coordinate measuring machine and optical comparator. 

“We are profoundly grateful to The Rossin Foundation for generously supporting our manufacturing students at the ETC,” said Rick Esch, president of Pitt-Titusville. “In the new Peter C. Rossin Manufacturing Center, our students will receive hands-on training on state-of-the-art equipment to prepare them for successful manufacturing careers in our community. 

“Having a steady supply of well-trained professionals for the region’s manufacturing workforce also will help to strengthen our region’s economy, which will be a benefit for everyone.”    

Joan Rossin Stephans, chair of the foundation and daughter of the founder, said, “My father always believed that supporting the next generation was not just a responsibility, but a privilege. He understood that investing in young people – especially through access to practical, career-focused education like vocational training – is an important way to create opportunity and build a strong future for our communities.”  

Mr. Rossin, along with his wife, Ada Egbert Rossin, established the foundation in 1989 to help communities thrive and support projects that enhance the quality of life for the people of Western Pennsylvania. 

As a young man, Peter Rossin paused his education at Lehigh University to enlist in the U.S. Army Air Corps. After flying 51 missions on a B-17 during World War II, he returned to Lehigh and finished his education, graduating at the top of his class. He went on to earn a Master of Science in metallurgical engineering from Yale University and enrolled at Rensselaer Polytechnic University to pursue a doctorate.