A Pentecostal Anchor on University Drive Since 1952
State College Assembly of God began in 1952 as a home missions project, born from a desire to plant a Pentecostal church in the university town of State College, Pennsylvania. More than seven decades later, the congregation at 2201 University Drive still carries that missionary impulse, balancing its role as a neighborhood church with a strong focus on Penn State students and global missions.
From the SCA Café that opens early on Sunday mornings to the youth room that fills with teenagers on Sunday nights, State College Assembly - which the congregation calls SCA - has grown into a multi-generational church. Its ministry stretches from a staffed nursery for infants to a college Bible study at Penn State's HUB-Robeson Center, and its missionary support reaches across continents.
What Sundays Look Like
Sunday is the heart of the week at SCA. The day begins at 9 AM with Pre-Service Prayer, followed by the SCA Café, which stays open until 9:50 AM. The Morning Worship Service starts at 10 AM, with SCA Kids Ministries running at the same time for children from birth through fifth grade. Services are livestreamed for those joining from home, with recent services also available on YouTube.
Services at SCA are described as exciting, casual, and relaxed. Visitors are told to come as they are and expect to feel welcomed as guests. For those new to the church, greeters staff a Guest Reception area in the lobby, where first-time visitors can pick up a small gift and ask questions. An online connection card is available for anyone who wants the pastoral team to follow up after their visit.
For families with children, SCA Kids opens on the second through fourth Sundays of each month. The first and fifth Sundays are Family Sunday, when children stay with their parents in the main service. Parents visiting SCA Kids for the first time are encouraged to arrive ten minutes early to complete the check-in process.
SCA Kids: A Safe, Age-Appropriate Environment from Birth Through Fifth Grade
SCA Kids is one of the most developed ministries at State College Assembly. Children from birth through fifth grade experience age-appropriate classes in a fully staffed, secure wing of the building. Safety is a priority: every staff member and volunteer undergoes initial and periodic background checks that meet Pennsylvania state requirements, and the doors to the children's wing are locked during the service. Parents and authorized adults enter by pressing a button at the door to summon an usher.
The nursery serves infants through 23 months old, with separate classrooms for babies, crawlers, and walkers, and a dedicated staff that cares for each child. First-time visitors provide basic information and any special care instructions, and both parent and child receive matching security cards with a three-digit code. If a parent is needed during the service, the code appears on the monitors on either side of the platform. The security card is required to pick up the child, and children are not released to family members under 18.
Preschoolers ages two through Pre-K enjoy worship time, crafts, interactive Bible stories, and playtime. The K-5th grade class features its own service with worship, creative object lessons, multimedia, games, video, and prayer time. SCA Kids maintains its own Facebook page where families can stay updated.
SCA Youth: Sundays from 5 to 8 PM
SCA Youth meets on Sunday nights from 5 to 8 PM in the Fellowship Hall and Youth Room on the south side of the building, except on the first Sunday of the month. The night begins with dinner and a hang-out time in the Fellowship Hall, then moves to the Youth Room for games, fellowship, and time seeking Jesus together.
The ministry aims to lead students in grades 6 through 12 into a deeper love and understanding of Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit, preparing them to serve God now and as adults. Like SCA Kids, the youth ministry welcomes volunteers through the SCA Family Ministry Team Volunteer Application, which can be returned at the Welcome Center or emailed to the church office.
Chi Alpha at Penn State
College ministry is woven into SCA's identity, given its location near Penn State's University Park campus. Chi Alpha, a recognized student organization at Penn State, is supported and hosted by State College Assembly. Worship and Bible study for college students meets each Wednesday during the school year at 7:30 PM at the HUB-Robeson Center on campus, with doors opening at 7 PM.
For students who need transportation to church, the church offers Sunday van rides. Associate Pastor Paul Waldecker oversees campus ministry and can be reached through the church office for information about Chi Alpha, small groups, or upcoming events.
Life Groups Throughout the Week
Life Groups are central to the discipleship rhythm at SCA. A new season of Wednesday night Life Groups launches each September, meeting on-site at 6 PM for people of all ages. Beyond that main gathering, the church hosts a variety of smaller groups throughout the week.
The Book of Acts study meets on the first and third Mondays in homes in the Boalsburg area. A Ladies Bible Study with Pat Lysak meets Wednesdays at 9:30 AM in Room 100, working through the book of Mark. Friends, a small group for girls in third through fifth grade, meets Wednesdays from 6 to 7:30 PM in the SCA Kids Room. Faith Over Fashion gathers women ages 16 and older every other Thursday from noon to 1 PM to work through a book that looks at fashion through a Biblical lens. Glory Grams, a ministry for women 50 and older, meets Fridays at 6 PM in Room 100 for prayer, mentoring, and intergenerational connection with younger women and mothers.
Anyone interested in leading a Life Group can submit their contact information and proposed subject matter to the church office for approval.
A Heart for Missions, at Home and Abroad
From its founding as a home missions project, State College Assembly has built missions into the core of its identity. The church supports missionaries and mission agencies both domestically and internationally, and partners locally with the Pregnancy Resource Clinic and with Chi Alpha at Penn State.
Each March, SCA hosts a three-week Missions Conference featuring missionary keynote speakers and a specific ministry or missionary funding project. Throughout the year, the church offers Mission Bible Studies and gatherings, and partners with other local churches to provide Perspectives on the World Christian Movement, a 13-week course covering the Biblical basics of missions, unreached people groups, and other missiological subjects.
The church teaches that every Christian has a role in the Great Commission, whether through intercessory prayer, encouragement, hospitality, sacrificial giving, or going to the mission field. SCA points members to resources such as the Joshua Project, Assemblies of God World Missions, and Mission Frontiers for further study and prayer.
What SCA Believes
State College Assembly holds to the classic statement of faith of the Assemblies of God. The church teaches that the Bible is the inspired and only infallible and authoritative written Word of God, and that there is one God eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The congregation affirms the deity of Jesus Christ, his virgin birth, his sinless life, his miracles, his vicarious and atoning death, his bodily resurrection, his ascension to the right hand of the Father, and his personal future return to earth in power and glory. SCA also believes in the Blessed Hope, the rapture of the Church at Christ's coming, and teaches that salvation comes through repentance and faith in the precious blood of Christ, with regeneration by the Holy Spirit as essential for personal salvation.
Other distinctives include the baptism in the Holy Spirit according to Acts 2:4, given to believers who ask for it; the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a holy life; the redemptive work of Christ on the cross providing healing of the human body in answer to believing prayer; and the resurrection of both the saved and the lost, one to everlasting life and the other to everlasting damnation.
Core Values
The church summarizes its values in seven words: Relationship, Ministry, Prayer, Generosity, Evangelism, Faith, and Worship. Each one shapes how the congregation interacts with one another and with the surrounding community. The mission statement frames the church's desire to help individuals grow upward in intimacy with God, inward in relationship with one another, and outward in influence with the local and global community, moving forward together in the purposes of God.
Worship, Tech, and the Pastoral Team
The SCA Worship Team, led by Worship Arts Pastor Makhonyola Khoza, exists to create an atmosphere of worship that exalts the name of Jesus through music. The team rehearses Thursday evenings at 6:30 PM and Sunday mornings at 8 AM. The SCA Tech Team serves the same vision through sound, video, and other media.
Lead Pastor Steve Siliman has been with SCA since August 2012 and has been in ministry since 1997. Associate Pastor Paul Waldecker came on staff in October 2015 and oversees campus ministry and other duties. Family Ministries Pastor Melissa Golden joined the team in April 2015 and oversees SCA Kids and SCA Youth. Worship Arts Pastor Makhonyola Khoza has been in ministry since 1995 and joined SCA in August 2023.
Planning a Visit
SCA meets at 2201 University Drive in State College, just minutes from the Penn State campus. The church office is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 AM to 4 PM and can be reached at (814) 238-3800 or frontdesk@scassembly.org. Visitors are encouraged to fill out the online connection card so the church can give them the VIP treatment on their first visit. Online resources are also available for those interested in water baptism, making a decision to follow Christ, or submitting a prayer request.
Whether someone is a longtime State College resident, a Penn State student looking for community, or a family new to the area, State College Assembly of God welcomes them with the same message it has carried since 1952: growing upward, inward, and outward in the purposes of God.