Penn State

This article is about the nation, for the university itself see Pennsylvania State University.

Penn State
Flag
Seal
Motto	Making Life Better
Capital	University Park, PA
Established	February 2, 1855
State Formation	January 29, 2007
Alliance Affiliation	North Atlantic Defense Coalition
Nation Team	Blue
Languages	English (primary and official), Spanish, German, French, Japanese, Mandarin, Russian
Government	Constitutional Monarchy with Representative Democracy
Nation Founder	Mark Bruce
Head of Univesity	President Graham Spanier
Head of State and Government	King Mark Bruce I
Religion	Islam
Currency	Dollar
Statistics as of 11/18/2007
Infrastructure	3389.99
Technology	358.44
Literacy Rate	98.90%
Tax Rate	28%
Land Size	457.000 mile diameter (at maximum) 164,030 sq. mile area
National Strength	16,561.039
Nation Rank	#4,332 of 32,114 nations
Rank within Alliance	#112 of 650 nations
Population Statistics	43,111 Total Citizens 32,335 Non-Military Citizens 10,776 Military Personel 3,286,248 Civilians 352,489 Temporary Residents 3,681,848 Total Population
Avg. Gross Income	$303.83 per day $110,971.63 per year
Natl. Resources
Connected Resources
Bonus Resources

Penn State, officially the Republic of the Pennsylvania State University (conventional long form) or the Republic of Penn State (conventional short form), is a growing nation in North America located in the Mid-Atlantic Region of the former United States of America. It covers most of the former US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, as well as parts of Maryland, West Virginia, and New York.

Penn State has been a member of the Big Ten Union since 13 March 2007 and of the NADC since 5 February 2007.

The Republic of Penn State is considerably tied into both the administration functions and general operations of the Pennsylvania State University. Following the Great Collapse, the University survived and began to rebuild the surrounding areas, and subsequently founded the nation of Penn State.

History[]

Early Political and Economic Foundations[]

In the 1970s, The Pennsylvania State University became a state-related institution. In doing so, it became a part of the Commonwealth System of Higher Education, and no longer part of the fully public Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. Though still considered a public university, it was now under independent control rather than that of the state.

Entering the new millenium, Penn State's role as a leader in education in Pennsylvania became well-defined. In 1989, the Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport joined ranks with the University, and in 1997, so did the Dickinson School of Law. The University was the largest in Pennsylvania, and in 2003, it was credited with having the largest impact on the state economy of any organization, generating an economic effect of over $6 billion on a budget of US$2.5 billion. To offset the lack of funding due to the limited growth in state appropriations to Penn State, the University turned to seeking philanthropy. 2003 marked the end of the Grand Destiny campaign—a seven-year effort which raised over US$1.3 billion for the University.

The Great Collapse and Aftermath[]

During the worldwide chaos that collapsed all the established national governments, the University managed to maintain itself and remain operational even as the commonwealth of Pennsylvania itself failed. Penn State provided a relatively safe haven from the riots that were consuming Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and Harrisburg. When the national powergrid broke down Penn State was able to provide enough power to itself and the State College area with a combination of its coal power plant, steam generation facilities, and small nuclear reactor. As the chaos spread out from Pittsburgh into neighboring counties, Allegheny Energy abandoned its Greensburg, PA headquarters and relocated to State College, forming a partnership with the University for reestablishing power transmission to the nearby communities and maintaining power generation and infrastructure.

As the Pennsylvania state government ceased to exist, so did its services such as PennDOT. With the lack of any type of maintenance, roads and highways across Pennsylvania quickly became unusable. Additionally, the breakdown of FAA control and the chaos within the major cities crippling the airports created a major transportation crisis. The University, greatly entwined in the politics and operations of the State College area before the Collapse, expanded and reformed its Office of the Physical Plant to take over the operations of clearing and maintaining roadways and bridges in the State College general area. Additionally, OPP was expanded and given operational control over the University Park airport. Contact and trade was established with other smaller regional airports.

As OPP crews from Penn State worked to restore sections of Routes 80, 322, and 220 which had been severely damaged, the University Park Airport served as the primary lifeline for the State College area. Capacity issues at the airport began to arrise, so a large-scale renovation and expansion project was put into place in May 2006. Employing a great deal of local out-of-work laborers, the expansion was completed in only 5 months. The newly christened Joe Paterno International Airport was opened on October 16, 2006 with flights to various places in North America, Europe, and Asia.

Statehood[]

By December 2006, the University had taken over pretty much all operations of the State College Burough, College Township, Patton Township, and Ferguson Township. Problems began to arrise over the legality of the University's control, but with no one else to take over the need for the University to have that control was apparent. In January 2007, with crime growing in State College, the University Police were asked by the State College council to take over operations of the State College police. In doing so, a massive response by the residents of State College erupted over the question of Penn State's authority to control the law system and the rights of the general populace. The University organised a large town forum in Beaver Stadium on January 22, 2007. There the State College council, the Penn State Board of Directors, and the Undergraduate Student Government met with the State College populace to decide their futures. After hours of debate and discussion, a plan for statehood was decided upon, with the Penn State administration evolving into a national government. Penn State Legal Affairs and the Faculty Senate were commissioned to draft a constitution. On January 29, 2007, the Constitution of the Republic of Penn State was adopted, establishing the nation of Penn State.

The Rebuilding PA/America Initiative[]

At the first meeting of the 1st Penn State Congress on February 3, 2007, the Rebuilding PA Initiative was put into effect. This large-scale program was implemented to restore basic services throughout the former commonwealth and rebuild ruined towns and municipalities. Uniquely funded through a combination of philanthropy, fundraising events, taxation, tuition revenues, and corporate deals, the Initiative began restoring power, water, and roadways to surrounding townships. In March, its purview was expanded to begin reinstating local governments, reestablishing police and fire services, and building local industrial and commercial sectors. In April it was expanded yet again with a paramilitary national police force to remove small dictatorships and rogue militias which had taken control of small towns in the region.

In August, as the borders of Penn State reached the northern and southern borders of old Pennsylvania, calls for expanding the program into neighboring destitute counties in New York and Maryland began to be voiced. The Iniative Committee met on August 15 and voted to expand the Initiative Charter - becoming the Rebuilding America Initiative. With the change in its charter, the Initiative expanded into the neighboring states as well as other allied countries - most notably the nations of the Big Ten Union, the Poconos Republic, and the State of Wheeling.

Officially an arm of the University itself, the Rebuilding PA Initiative has grown to such a size that Penn State University has become the largest single employer in the region, if not the continent.

Current Major Initiative Rebuilding Operations[]

Pittsburgh metro area
Buffalo metro area
Akron, OH
Canton, OH
Clarksburg, WV
Dover, DE
Binghampton, NY
Morgantown, WV
Batavia, NY
Geneva, NY
Norwich, NY
Dayton, OH (with the US of Ohio)
Sandusky, OH (with the US of Ohio)
Toledo, OH (with Ann Arboria)
Fort Wayne, IN (with Notre Dame)
Indianapolis, IN (with Hoosierland)
Evanson, IN (with Hoosierland)
Davenport,IA (with Hawkeye Republic)
Milwaukee, WI (with Wisconsica)

Current Initiative Military Actions[]

Northern NY, especially around Buffalo and Rochester (against the Greater Erie Empire)
Cleveland, OH (against the Greater Eitre Empire)
Southern New Jersey (against the South Jersey Shore Republic)
Eastern West Virginia (against the Kingdom of Potomica)

The New Penn War[]

On June 12, 2007 an Initiative road crew from Penn State working to restore the Pennsylvania Turnpike Route 76 went missing. On June 15, their bodies were found a few miles west of the town of Plainfield, having been gunned down. On June 16, a second Initiative crew making first contact with the town of Schlusser, north of Carlisle, came under heavy fire from what appeared to be a semi-organized military unit. Penn State Initiative Security Forces were sent into north Schlusser on July 18. Fighting quickly erupted with what would be revealed to be a militia group from a rogue state calling itself New Penn. Daniel Acri, the leader of New Penn, declared war on Penn State, proclaiming his sovereignty over all of Pennsylvania. Penn State then activated its entire military and advanced on the forces of New Penn. Rogue forces in Schlusser were easily defeated by July 21. Much stronger resistance was encountered outside Carlisle where New Penn had seized control of the Carlisle Barracks and the former US Army War College. The seige of Carlisle lasted five days, with Penn State ultimately seizing control of the Carlisle Barracks and driving New Penn forces from the city.

With New Penn falling back all the way to Harrisburg, and much of the local populace rising up to join Penn State against them, Penn State quickly moved in to capter New Kingstown and Mechanicsburg. New Penn's main forces had been reduced to three strong pockets of control- one covering the Harrisburg metropolitan area; the second controlling Shippensburg, Chambersburg, and the Letterkenny Army Depot; and the final controlling the Fort Indiantown Gap, which was a major US National Guard training center and the headquarters of the Pennsylvania National Guard.

On July 1 Penn State began Operation Lion Claw, a well-coordinated controlled strike on all the sections of New Penn. Within three days Shippensburg, the Letterkenny Army Depot, and most of the Harrisburg metropolitan area was liberatered by Penn State. The Fort Indiantown Gap has put up a much better resistance, taking two weeks to overrun. Daniel Acri and his generals escaped from the capture of Harrisburg and fell back to Hershey, PA.

New Penn's forces, at this point greaty disorganized and demoralized, put up very little resistance at Hersey and quickly called a full retreat as Penn State military began to invade the city on July 19. Much of the remainder of New Penn's army scattered and disolved, but Daniel Acri led a small force away from the city down to the last major city under his control - Lancaster.

Penn State, bolstered by the gains it had made, advanced steadily to Lancaster. On July 26 at 7AM, Penn State began the final battle of the war by invading the city. Lancaster was captured with four hours, and Daniel Acri shot himself to avoid being captured. Penn State acquired all of New Penn's territory.

Territorial Aggression[]

Until late August 2007, Penn State had few neighbors, mostly being surrounded by unincorporated lands or small city-states. Penn State then began to meet neighboring organized states, and by the end of the first week of September, Penn State had new countries bordering it on all sides, save for the Nuclear Zones around Philadelphia and Baltimore. Some were friendly, and immediately allied themselves with Penn State (the Empire Republic, Delaware, the Potomic Republic); a few decided to join Penn State, becoming a part of the country (Scranton, East Keystone, New Delaware, Three Rivers Republic, the Poconos Republic, Wheeling); but a couple of its new neighbors were aggressive and claimed areas that Penn State had already took control of themselves. Among these were the Greater Erie Empire, the Kingdom of Tioga, the Kingdom of Sussex, the Mountain Republic and the Youngstown Commune. These nations are currently in a state of war with Penn State, and frequently raid bordering Penn State lands.

Government and Politics[]

Penn State is a unitary semi-presidential republic with strong democratic traditions. The constitution of Penn State was approved by referendum on 29 January 2007. It greatly strengthened the authority of the executive in relation to congress. The executive branch itself has two leaders: the President of the University, who is appointed by the Board of Trustees of the Pennsylvania State University and is the Head of University, and the King, who is the Head of State and Government.

The national government comprises three branches:

Legislative: The Congress, made up of the Board of Trustees (Senate) and the National Assembly (House), which makes national law, approves treaties and has powers of impeachment and the purse.

Executive: The King, who appoints, with the Board of Trustees' approval, the Cabinet and other officers, who administers and enforces national law, can veto bills, and is Commander in Chief of the military. And the University President, who is appointed by the Board of Trustees, who administers control of the university and its day-to-day operations, and who maintains the branch campus locations outside of the national area.

Judiciary: The Supreme Court and lower federal courts, whose judges are appointed by the King with the Board of Trustees' approval, which interpret laws and their validity under the Constitution and can overturn laws they deem unconstitutional.

Congress[]

The Penn State Congress is a bicameral legislature comprising a National Assembly and a Board of Trustees. The National Assembly representatives represent local constituencies as well as the undergraduate and graduate student governements of the Pennsylvania State University and are directly elected for 1-year terms. The Assembly has the power to dismiss the cabinet, and thus the majority in the Assembly determines the choice of government.

The 32-member Board of Trustees includes the President of the University, the Head of the Faculty Senate, the Mayor of State College, the Centre County Commissioner, and the Director of the Penn State Alumni Organization. The other members include six trustees appointed by the Undergraduate Student Government, nine elected by the alumni, three elected by the Graduate Student Government, and three appointed by the State College city council. Lastly, six additional trustees are elected by the Board representing business and industry endeavors.

Constitution[]

The Penn State Constitution is based upon the former United States Constitution, the supreme legal document in the American system, and serves as a social contract for the people of Penn State. All laws and procedures of the national government are subject to review, and any law ruled by the judicial branch to be in violation of the Constitution is overturned. The Constitution is a living document as it can be amended by a variety of methods, all of which require the approval of an overwhelming majority of the Board of Trustees and National Assembly. The Constitution has been amended 4 times, the last time on March 26, 2007.

The Constitution contains a dedication to "preserve liberty" with a "Bill of Rights" and other amendments, which guarantee freedom of speech, religion, and the press; the right to a fair trial; the right to keep and bear arms; universal suffrage for citizens; and property rights. The Constitution also defines the legal statuses of civilians and citizens.

Geography[]

Psmap1 — The Republic of Penn State with major cities

The Republic of Penn State covers 49,795 square miles (129,020 km²), 490 square miles (1,269 km²) of which are inland waters. The highest point of 3,213 feet (979 m) above sea level is at Mount Davis, which was named for its owner, John Davis, a schoolteacher who fought for the Union Army at the Battle of Gettysburg. The lowest point is at sea level on the Delaware River, and the approximate mean elevation is 1,212 feet (369 m). Penn State is in the Eastern time zone.

Psumap — University Park and State College

Penn State is a growing nation centered around the Pennsylvania State University campus at University Park, PA and the surrounding town of State College, PA. Its influence and control radiants outerward, covering all of the land that was once the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, some of western Ohio, parts of southern New York, the surviving areas of northern and western Maryland, and the both panhandle regions of West Virginia, along with a good deal of its northeastern section.

Penn State's borders touch (clockwise from the northwest) the Greater Erie Empire, the Finger Lakes Republic, the Empire Republic, the Kingdom of Sussex, the Philly-New Jersey Nuclear Zone, Delaware, the DC-Baltimore Nuclear Zone, North Virginia, Shenandoah Valley, the Potomic Republic, the Mountain Republic, and the United States of Ohio.

Climate[]

Penn State's diverse geography produces a variety of climates. Straddling two major zones, the southeastern region of the state posses the warmest climate. The areas outside the former city of Philadelphia lie at the southernmost tip of the Humid continental climate zone, with some characteristics of the Humid subtropical climate that lies in Delaware and the former areas of Maryland to the south. Moving toward the mountainous interior of the state, the climate becomes markedly colder, number of cloudy days increases, and winter snowfall amounts are greater. Western areas of the state, particular cities closer to Lake Erie can receive over 100 inches of snowfall annually, and the entire state receives plentiful rainfall throughout the year.

City	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Monthly Normal High and Low Temperatures For Various Penn State Cities
State College	32/18	36/20	45/27	58/37	69/48	77/57	81/62	80/60	71/53	61/41	48/33	37/24
Pittsburgh	37/20	39/21	50/29	62/38	71/48	80/56	85/62	83/60	76/53	64/41	53/33	42/25
Harrisburg	38/23	41/25	51/33	63/42	73/51	81/61	86/66	84/64	76/57	64/45	53/36	42/28
Hagerstown	37/21	42/23	52/31	63/40	73/51	82/60	86/64	85/62	77/56	66/43	54/35	43/27

Demographics[]

According to the last census, Penn State has an estimated official citizen population of 43,111 - with 32,335 of those having citizenship status and 10,776 holding a special status as members of the armed forces. However, the total inhabitants of Penn State's lands number 3,681,848 people. The non-citizen population figures take into account 'temporary residents' which includes students and professors of the Pennsylvania State University (and various other colleges) who retain their home nation citizenships, and 'civilians' which include children, prisoners, and those inhabitants who have not yet gained citizenship status.

As of November 2007, twenty two cities had populations greater than 50,000, five cities had a population greater than 100,000 (State College, Akron, Youngstown, Buffalo, Frederick), and one city, Pittsburgh, had a population greater than 500,000.

Citizenship[]

Penn State incorporates a unique system which separates its resident population into four distinct categories:

Civilian (Class 1 and 2)
Citizen
Serviceman
Temporary Resident

All inhabitants (except temporary residents) start out as civilians in Penn State. Civilians have all the same basic rights as civilians and servicemen, but may not participate in the political process and do not receive many of the same priviledges as citizens (depending on what class of civilian they are).

Civilians

Class 1 Civilians are those civilians who are able to take the citizenship test but have not yet done so, those who have failed the test through their own fault, convicted felons, and legal immigrants within the first two years of entering the nation. Class 1 civilians may not vote in elections or hold public office, and are not eligible for free healthcare or free education.

Class 2 Civilians are those who have not obtained citizenship status because they are physically or mentally unable to through no fault of their own. They include all children of the age of 18, developmentally handicapped persons who are unable to pass a citizenship test based upon their handicap, and medically incapacitated persons. Class 2 civilians may not vote in elections or hold public office, but do receive free healthcare and free education (as well as some other priviledges afforded to citizens).

Although generally having less rights and priviledges than their Citizen counterparts, civilians do have one particular advantage which keeps many from attempting to obtain Citizenship. Civilians do not pay income taxes (although they do still pay local property and municipality taxes). With many out of work or holding low wage jobs following the economic collapse, the number people who retain the Civilian status is quite high.

Citizens

Citizens are those who have passed the Penn State Citizenship Test. All civilians who have reached 18 years of age, have been living in the country for at least two years, and who are not convicted felons (although they may try to apply for a reformed exception) are eligible to take the citizenship test. Upon successful completion of the citizenship test, one is immediately granted the status of Citizen. Citizens are able to vote in all national elections and are eligible to hold public office. Citizens are also covered under the free Penn State Universal Healthcare System and the Penn State National Education Initiative which allows each citizen to attend any school of secondary education for free up to a total of 8 years. Additionally, only Citizens are eligible to enlist in the military.

Servicemen

Servicemen are those citizens who have joined one of the branches of the Penn State Armed Forces. Servicemen afford all the same rights and benefits of Citizens, but do not have to pay taxes. Veterans who served with the Armed Forces for at least ten years of peacetime or those who served four years and partipated in a major armed conflict may retain their Serviceman status after being discharged (meaning they never have to pay taxes again).

Temporary Residents

Temporary Residents are those living in Penn State who retain the citizenship of another nation. They include students and professors of the Pennsylvania State University, and refugees from other war-torn countries. Temporary Residents may not vote or hold office, are only eligible for partially subsidized healthcare, and must pay tuition to attend school. Temporary Residents who wish to become Citizens must first apply for Civilian status (applicants are rarely rejected, but reasons for rejection normally include a criminal past).

Language and Religion[]

Although Penn State has no official language at the federal level, English is the de facto national language. As of September 2007, roughly 91 percent of all households spoke English as the primary language. Owing to the large Pennsylvania Dutch and Amish populations, the second most widely spoken language is German, followed by Spanish and Mandarin Chinese (mainly from the student population at the university). The most widely taught foreign language by far is Spanish, followed by French and Japanese. Significant numbers of foreign students and faculty at the university lead to observable Mandarin and Russian language populations.