{"id":100843,"date":"2026-01-30T16:46:08","date_gmt":"2026-01-30T16:46:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/100843\/"},"modified":"2026-01-30T16:46:08","modified_gmt":"2026-01-30T16:46:08","slug":"penn-state-scranton-names-this-years-thon-dancers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/100843\/","title":{"rendered":"Penn State Scranton names this year’s THON dancers"},"content":{"rendered":"

DUNMORE, Pa. \u2014 Penn State Scranton has announced its 2026 THON dancers, Alexis Colasurdo and Airiana Scarfo, who will\u00a0represent\u00a0the campus during the annual 46-hour\u00a0THON Dance Marathon<\/a>, scheduled for Feb. 20\u201322 at Penn State\u2019s Bryce Jordan Center in University Park.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Their\u00a0selection\u00a0was revealed during the campus “Silent Disco” event, where students gathered for the announcement.\u00a0<\/p>\n

THON is a student-run philanthropy that raises funds and awareness for children and families affected by pediatric cancer. Proceeds\u00a0benefit\u00a0Four Diamonds<\/a>, which supports pediatric cancer research and helps offset medical expenses for families. More than 16,500 student volunteers\u00a0participate\u00a0in THON activities each year across Penn State\u00a0campuses.\u00a0<\/p>\n

As campus\u00a0dancers, Colasurdo and Scarfo will take part in the no-sitting, no-sleeping dance marathon that serves as the culmination of a yearlong fundraising effort. In the months leading up to THON Weekend, Penn State Scranton students, faculty,\u00a0staff,\u00a0alumni\u00a0and community members\u00a0participate\u00a0in fundraising initiatives and events to support the cause.\u00a0<\/p>\n

During\u00a0THON\u00a0Weekend, Colasurdo and Scarfo will stand alongside dancers\u00a0representing\u00a0Penn State campuses from across the Commonwealth in support of Four Diamonds families.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Colasurdo, a fourth-year mechanical engineering major<\/a>, said she is looking forward to connecting with others during the event.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m looking forward to connecting with the people there and getting to be part of such a huge event where we are all part of something bigger than ourselves,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Scarfo, a fourth-year biology major<\/a> with a minor in business<\/a>, said she is also looking forward to\u00a0THON\u00a0Weekend.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI am most excited about meeting Four Diamonds families and seeing the children on the dance floor.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

How to support<\/p>\n

Community members can support\u00a0Penn State Scranton\u2019s THON<\/a>\u00a0efforts by contributing through the campus\u00a0THON Donor Drive<\/a>. Donations made through the drive directly benefit Four Diamonds and help fund pediatric cancer research and family support programs.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"DUNMORE, Pa. \u2014 Penn State Scranton has announced its 2026 THON dancers, Alexis Colasurdo and Airiana Scarfo, who…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":100844,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[178,180,179],"class_list":{"0":"post-100843","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-scranton","8":"tag-scranton","9":"tag-scranton-headlines","10":"tag-scranton-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100843","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=100843"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100843\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/100844"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=100843"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=100843"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=100843"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}