MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

November 2014
Posted by Rebecca Bell
Thanks to a $22,500 grant provided by ExxonMobil Foundation, Midland College (MC) will be able to establish the Midland College Water Monitoring Center, directed by Mr. Greg Larson, faculty member in Biology. Mr. Larson is an authority on water quality in the Pecos River, having worked for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) as a field biologist specializing in this area for 23 years. ExxonMobil is providing the funding through its 2013 Educational Matching Gift Program. The donation represents a 3-to-1 match of donations made to the Midland College Foundation by ExxonMobil em...
November 2014
Some might say that the most important part of Tallahassee Community College's (TCC) new Wakulla Environmental Institute (WEI) is already complete. After all, the breathtaking natural spaces that define TCC's recently acquired 158-acre property in rural Wakulla County, Florida, are destined to become the institute's most widely used classrooms. Nevertheless, it was with great excitement that the college broke ground for the institute's first building in April of 2013. TCC President Jim Murdaugh and WEI Director Bob Ballard—with the help of TCC trustees and local and state dignitaries—celebrate...
October 2014
Every time she attends a class at Tidewater Community College's Academy for Nonprofit Excellence, Melia Trost has another "aha" moment. Whether it's a marketing recommendation, website help, or advice on event planning, Trost takes back practical recommendations she can implement at Samantha Makes It a Little Easier, Inc., a nonprofit she started in 2012 that provides needy children with medical equipment. "I love the classes; they're wonderful," Trost said. "I knew enough about being a volunteer, but not the nitty-gritty. It's a business." Trost completed her Certificate in Nonprofit Manageme...
October 2014
Dr. Linwood Powell, Chair of the State Board of Community Colleges, presented the Distinguished Partners in Excellence Award to representatives of College of the Albemarle (COA) and Currituck County at a Board of Trustees meeting in spring 2014. This prestigious North Carolina Community College System award recognized the college's and county's collaborative efforts and vision in building the Regional Aviation and Technical Training Center in Currituck County.  "This honor is affirmation that the college and Currituck County have engaged in a significant opportunity for workforce and economic...
September 2014
Emergency planning has become a part of institutional life in America. Schools and community centers regularly prepare and practice what to do in an emergency. Volunteer State Community College (Vol State) students and faculty have taken part in a two-year project to help particularly vulnerable organizations: child care centers. State law requires that child care centers have emergency plans. But it's tough for a small business or nonprofit to find the time or expertise needed to develop a plan. Vol State classes have prepared and distributed emergency planning kits for child care centers in...
September 2014
Posted by Teresa Rivenes
Great Falls College MSU, located in rural big sky Montana, has been working hard to bring unique educational opportunities and skills to students across Montana and the nation. According to Dr. Heidi Pasek, Chief Academic Officer, "This is a changing world, and we need to adapt to the needs of our students using all of the resources at our disposal." Great Falls College MSU has demonstrated adaptation through three truly unique opportunities—the SIM Hospital, NANSLO remote science lab, and SWAMMEI program. Simulated (SIM) Hospital Great Falls College MSU is extremely proud of its nursing and...
July 2014
The proliferation of composite materials used in our aerospace, transportation, infrastructure, and recreation sectors is creating a growing need for waste management and sustainable practices. Couple this with current and pending legislation, and it becomes clear why businesses need to focus on new recycling technologies. Although many companies have extensive research and development efforts underway, including both reclamation and re-use of composite materials, training people for careers that utilize recycling technologies is new for educational institutions. One college helping to lead th...
July 2014
There's a little-known crisis occurring across the nation; a problem not many are aware of or would expect. Unless you're an educator. Specifically, a college educator facing a new class of freshmen. Because, it turns out that 66 percent (Complete College America, 2011), or about two-thirds, of your students, all of them recent high school graduates, are not going to be ready for what you are about to teach them. What does this mean? It means that those students, instead of jumping feet first into freshman year, will spend extra hours and dollars taking remedial courses in math and English jus...
June 2014
This year's Kid's Vision for Life See to Succeed event at San Jacinto College impacted approximately 1,133 school children from the Pasadena Independent School District (PISD). Out of those who visited the college for free eye examinations, 96 percent were issued eye glasses, and 154 received medical referrals for further eye care treatment. This is See to Succeed's third year in delivering free eye glasses to PISD children in need. "The beauty of this partnership is that our students are able to receive the tools they need to become successful," said Renea Ivy, associate superintendent of Pas...
June 2014
An anonymous person stated, "E-learning doesn't just 'happen'! It requires careful planning and implementation." New Mexico State University Alamogordo (NMSU-A) understands this statement and is working diligently to become an institution known for the quality of its online instruction.  Online education began at NMSU-A in the late 1990s. In the early 2000s, interest in online education began to grow among a small but significant percentage of the faculty, primarily as a means of providing greater access to students in NMSU-A's 6,627 square mile service area. The number of courses offered onl...
May 2014
Step UP is a grassroots program that evolved from the 25 member, cross-functional Developmental Education Committee that, in 2003, sought to create a program to improve the success and retention of developmental education students. The objective was to design a program at Howard Community College (HCC) that would provide positive support and encouragement to students as they make the often difficult transition and adjustment to college. After researching programs and interviewing students, a model for Step UP was created. The program was piloted with five coaches and students in spring 2005. A...
May 2014
Greenville Technical College and Clemson University announced in November 2013 an agreement to educate the advanced manufacturing workforce to serve the automotive, transportation, and other high-tech sectors. According to a memorandum of understanding signed by Greenville Technical College President, Dr. Keith Miller, and James Barker, then president of Clemson University, the vision is for collaboration between a leading research university, an innovative technical college, and advanced manufacturers, creating a center that enhances the development and implementation of advanced manufacturin...
April 2014
On the second floor of an otherwise unassuming office building in Bellevue, WA, Donna Hudson is leading a lecture on environment and community. It's the type of scene you'd expect to see in a movie depicting college life: The professor asks a question of the class and in short order, a lively discussion is underway that quite possibly brings up more questions than are asked. It's the kind of student-teacher rapport most of us rarely get to experience—let alone on a regular basis. As class progresses, however, it becomes clear that this class is more than just a picture-perfect college experien...
April 2014
From left: Brett Mellington, LEDA Manager, Business Development and LCTCS Board member; Bud Barrow, CEO, Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center; Kathy Bobbs, CEO, Regional Medical Center of Acadiana and Women's & Children's Hospital; Laurie Fontenot, Dean of Nursing, Allied Health, and Safety, SLCC; David Callecod, President/CEO, Lafayette General Health; Dr. Natalie Harder, Chancellor, SLCC A new program at South Louisiana Community College (SLCC) will help fill a growing need within Acadiana's healthcare industry. SLCC administrators, along with the Lafayette Economic Development Au...
March 2014
Posted by Maya Durnovo
In 2009, the Northwest College of Houston Community College (HCC) proposed the development of a Center for Entrepreneurship in response to local business leaders who requested assistance in reviving an economically declining area of town. The leaders sought ways to create jobs and revitalize the local business community. Seven key strategies were developed to address this challenge: The creation of strategic partnerships with key economic drivers: management districts, chambers, Community Development Financial Institutions, Greater Houston Partnership, Houston Minority Supplier Development Co...
March 2014
In May 2013, over 70 students in the first class of Early College High School at Midland College (ECHS@MC) received associate degrees during Midland College's (MC) 40th commencement ceremony. A week later, in a separate ceremony, the 17- and 18-year-old college graduates received high school diplomas when ECHS@MC observed its first high school graduation ceremony at the Al G. Langford Chaparral Center on the MC campus located in Midland, Texas. ECHS@MC is a joint educational commitment by Midland College and the Midland Independent School District (MISD). The majority of students attending th...
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December 2013
Lone Star College System (LSCS) is joining colleges across Texas to encourage students to successfully complete their educational goals through participation in the Commit to Complete initiative. This initiative was created as part of Texas Completes, which brings together three community colleges and five community college systems—Alamo Colleges, Austin Community College, Dallas County Community College District, El Paso Community College, Kilgore College, Lone Star College System, Odessa College, and South Texas College—with a common vision to rethink college practices, transform community c...
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December 2013
The Great Ideas for Teaching (GIFT) Center and the Teaching & eLearning Support (TeLS) team at Yavapai College recently ran a very unique professional development challenge that included Ben and Jerry's ice cream and generated over 300 pages of writing from faculty in just nine weeks! In a nutshell, the two centers challenged the college faculty to write 25 sentences a week about teaching and learning for nine consecutive weeks. Out of about 300 possible full time and adjunct faculty, 17 rose to the challenge. The faculty who signed up were asked to write the words online, where they could...
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December 2013
As Iowa's economy slowly recovers, renewed hiring has shed light on a new challenge: the state's increasing gap between the skills employers need and the skills potential workers actually possess. Roughly 50 percent of Iowa's available jobs and growing career areas are considered middle skill, requiring more than a high school education but less than a four-year degree. However, 66 percent of Iowa's unemployed or underemployed have no recognized educational credentials past high school. The same study highlighted that worker shortages stretch far beyond the current workforce, meaning the comin...
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November 2013
The curtain rose in July on another Front Range Family Theatre production, and this year's production of Jackie and the Beanstalk at Front Range Community College (FRCC) brought total attendance to these summertime productions to nearly 20,000 children and adults since 2004. Student Giovanni Martelli (Jackie) sells the family cow in a productionof Jackie and the Beanstalk. Family theater is just one example of outreach activities central to the strategic priorities of FRCC, the largest community college in Colorado with campuses in Fort Collins, Longmont, and Westminster, and a learning center...

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