Dom Feola, marketing specialist in Penn State Outreach, submitted the winning picture in the 2025 Penn State Today winter photo contest. The submitted caption reads: "Jane, the resident sandhill crane at Shaver's Creek Environmental Center on Dec. 16, 2024."
Thank you to all who participated in the 2025 Penn State Today winter photo contest! We received an incredible selection of photos reflecting winter at Penn State. The top photos, as selected by Penn State Today editors, are featured in the gallery below. The winning photo, featured above, was submitted by Dom Feola, marketing specialist in Penn State Outreach. His picture shows Jane, the resident sandhill crane at Shaver's Creek Environmental Center.?
Photo submitted by Abdullah Alhussayen, an undergraduate student studying industrial engineering at University Park. The submitted caption reads: "A car surface on a really cold day in the outskirts of campus close to the golf course."
Photo submitted by Jacob Brandes, an undergraduate student studying criminology at University Park. The submitted caption reads: "The Lion Shrine during snowfall at night, Dec. 15, 2024."?
Photo submitted by Priyasha Fernando, a graduate student in the Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences at University Park. The submitted caption reads: "Winter crowns Old Main with snowmen sentinels, quietly guarding its timeless grace."
Photo submitted by Sharon Siegfried, graphic design specialist at Penn State Harrisburg. The submitted caption reads: "Snow-covered red berries against the backdrop of the Student Enrichment Center, creates a striking visual that is both cold and serene."
Photo submitted by Suzanne Brokloff, academic adviser in the College of Education. The submitted caption reads: "This photo of the iconic bronze lion paw sculptures flanking the former Palmer Museum of Art on Curtin Road at the University Park campus was captured on Jan. 16, 2025."?
Photo submitted by Kelly Chan, administrative assistant for science and engineering, Academic Affairs at Penn State Abington. The submitted caption reads: "Two geese walking on a frozen pond" at the Abington campus on Feb. 4, 2025.
Photo submitted by Richard Akers, academic adviser and supervisor of the Chaiken Center for Student Success at Penn State World Campus, of the Hintz Family Alumni Center at the University Park campus.
Photo submitted by Andrew D. Regan, an undergraduate student studying enterprise technology integration in the College of Information Sciences and Technology. The submitted caption reads: "A squirrel sits looking at the camera, freezing in the snow. Someone get him a coat! Taken just outside of Old Main at University Park on Jan. 26, 2025."
Photo submitted by Amir Marvasti, professor of sociology at Penn State Altoona, of a sunny winter day on the Altoona campus.?
Photo submitted by Sade John, an undergraduate student in the College of Engineering. The submitted caption reads: "This photo was taken on the Pollock Road sidewalk. This water drop just happened to make a very nice heart shape. It caught my eye as I noticed all the little wet spots on the sidewalk."?
Photo submitted by Jordan DeLauer, an undergraduate student studying electrical engineering at Penn State Behrend. The submitted caption reads: "In the early fall I was given a tip from one of the campus groundskeepers that they'd seen a barred owl in the forests around Penn State Behrend. They said that I should try and find it to get a photo. Throughout the semester, I had gone out every chance I could to look for it. After almost an entire semester of looking up every tree, I had nearly given up hope. During Erie's recent blizzard that shut down campus operations, I managed to travel into the woods to look for the owl. Every step I took, I found myself up to my waist in snow. After almost five hours of slogging through the snow, the sun had began to set. As I started to head back to my car, I heard, for the first time, the owl's famous call. It sounded like it was hooting out, "Who cooks for you" from the other end of the forest. My heart jumped so much that I had to temper my excitement. I knew I was on a deadline and still had to find it before there was no light to see it, let alone take a photo of it. I finally saw a pair of eyes, big and dark as night, piercing right into me. In this quiet moment, the only thing I could hear was the wind blowing snow onto myself and onto the owl. I reflected on everything that made the moment possible. The forests that surround Penn State Behrend allow for species like the barred owl to thrive."
Photo submitted by Angkai Li, an undergraduate student majoring in statistics in the Eberly College of Science. The submitted caption reads: "I captured this photo in January, shortly after a snow. While walking along the sidewalk of East College Avenue, I passed by the Old Main Lawn. I noticed two sets of footprints trailing across the snow-blanketed grass — irregular yet artistically pleasing paths winding toward the center of Old Main. At that moment, a gust of wind unfurled the national and state flags in full display, where nature's randomness harmonized with human traces. I quickly took the scene with my iPhone from the edge of the lawn."
Photo submitted by Kathleen Hauser, assistant teaching professor at Penn State Berks. The submitted caption reads: "The view from the commuter student parking lot at the trail through the woods to the Luerssen Science Building at Penn State Berks on a quiet snowy Saturday afternoon."
Photo submitted by Justin Hassel, an undergraduate student studying atmospheric science and meteorology in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. The submitted caption reads: "This photo was taken on Dec. 17, 2024, at Shavers Creek Environmental Center in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. It showcases an aerial drone view of Penn State's environmental center on a clear, snow-covered evening."?
Dom Feola, marketing specialist in Penn State Outreach, submitted the winning picture in the 2025 Penn State Today winter photo contest. The submitted caption reads: "Jane, the resident sandhill crane at Shaver's Creek Environmental Center on Dec. 16, 2024."
