PRESIDENT’S REPORT | December 2013
SCC political science professor receives 2013 Emerson Excellence in Teaching Award
Tiffany Ramirez (left) receives the Missouri Community College Association Student Leadership Award from Zora Mulligan, MCCA chief executive officer, at the 49th MCCA convention held Oct. 30-Nov. 1.
Missouri Community College Association recognizes four from SCC Two faculty, one student and one alumna from St. Charles Community College were recognized by the Missouri Community College Association at the 49th annual MCCA convention held Oct. 30-Nov. 1 in St. Louis. Hal Berry, SCC professor of history and theater, received the MCCA Senior Service Award in recognition of his service to the college, which began in 1987 as a founding member of the SCC faculty. Paul Roesler, SCC professor of political science, received the MCCA Global Educator Award. Roesler has been working to increase the level of understanding of international affairs and issues at SCC for his entire career. Tiffany Ramirez received the MCCA Student Leadership Award. She enrolled at SCC in 2012 and got involved in campus activities. She is president of the Student Senate and previously served as vice president. She is also a member of Tau Upsilon Alpha, the national honor society for human services students. Dr. Natalie Greene received the MCCA Distinguished Alumni Award in recognition of
her outstanding achievements while attending and after graduating from SCC. Greene started her postsecondary education at the age of 29, when she enrolled at SCC to finally begin pursuing her lifelong dream of being a doctor. She is currently a resident at Mercy Hospital. After completing her residency, she will become medical director and physician for the Macoupin County Health Department in Illinois. Sen. Tom Dempsey received the MCCA Distinguished Legislator Award. Dempsey serves Missouri’s 23rd Senate District, which includes part of St. Charles County. SCC president Dr. Ron Chesbrough said that Dempsey was chosen to receive the award because of his strong commitment to his constituents and for his leadership in the Senate. Wendy Brown, registration assistant for SCC’s Continuing Education Department, was elected to the MCCA Board of Directors at the annual convention. She will serve as Classified Staff Department vice chair for the 2014 session.
Ron Pettus, associate professor of political science at St. Charles Community College, was selected to receive an Emerson Excellence in Teaching Award. “Ron Pettus is knowledgeable, a RON PETTUS good communicator SCC Associate Professor of Political Science and passionate about political science,” said Chris Breitmeyer, SCC vice president for academic and student affairs. “He is a great teacher and mentor who exemplifies the instructional ideals and mission of the college.” Pettus began teaching after retiring from McDonnell Douglas/Boeing. He teaches American Government as well as State and Local Government, where students hear from community leaders and visit the county jail, emergency preparedness facilities of St. Charles County and the courts to see their local government in action. He also teaches Introduction to Egyptology and has led study trips. Pettus has a master’s degree in international relations from Washington University, a master’s degree in political science from University of Missouri-St. Louis and a bachelor’s degree in physics from the Missouri University of Science and Technology. The Emerson Excellence in Teaching Awards program recognizes more than 100 teachers from kindergarten to college professors who are examples of excellence in the field of education in the St. Louis metropolitan area.
SCC FOUNDATION UPDATES ESP – Some 222 Employee Sponsored Program (ESP) members signed-up or renewed their pledge/donation for another year, including 18 new members. ESP members fund scholarships, campus enhancements and Celebrations of Life gifts. Mini-Grants – After reviewing the 37 mini-grant applications, Richard Jensen, Foundation Board member, donated $3,500 to guarantee funding for myriad of nursing, allied health and ACE Tutoring Center requests. All other awards will be made within the normal process and announced early in December. Nursing and Allied Health – The Nursing and Allied Health Programs received a generous in-kind donation from Phoenix Textile Corporation. The company donated various healthcare linens (gowns, bedding, lab coats, sheets, bedspreads) to from a wish list created by NAH. Foundation Scholarships – Foundation Scholarship packets and recommendation forms are now available online at stchas. edu/scholarships and in hard copy. More than $65,000 is available for tuition and book scholarships for the 2014-15 academic year. The deadline to return applications is March 3, 2014. Gifts – Tribute gifts have been received in memory of the late Helen Schnare, long-time SCC supporter. Recently, gifts to SCC were made in lieu of wedding gifts for Foundation Board member Michael Lissner. And, the Fine Arts Department received photography equipment from Hoyt Ussery III as in-kind gifts.
Hsianlan Eschenbrenner, past Employee Sponsored Program scholarship recipient.
SCC soccer teams conclude successful year The SCC men’s and women’s soccer teams both recorded successful seasons including trips to the Region XVI finals. The men’s team finished the regular season with a record of 12-3-1. They went undefeated in the MCCAC Conference and took home the conference title. Cougar players Fernando Franco, Valrick Fullins, Valmiro Gonzalez and Nick Hufford were named first team MCCAC All-Conference. Josh Gwaltney, Collin Hennessey and Ramon Perez were named second team MCCAC AllConference. SCC Head Coach Thomas Kearns was honored as MCCAC Men’s Soccer Coach of the Year. The men advanced to the Region XVI tournament, consisting of all the NJCAA
soccer teams in the state of Missouri, and were edged out in the Nov. 2 championship game against Jefferson College. Franco, Gonzalez and Hufford were named first team Region XVI All-Region. Fullins was named second team All-Region. The women’s team also finished with a winning regular season record of 12-7. Like the men, the women advanced to the Region XVI tournament final and took second, falling 2-0 to St. Louis Community College in the championship game on Nov. 2. Cougar players Christina Conley, Katie Martin, Hayley Miller and Alex Reiter were named first team All-Region for Region XVI. Alyssa Coons, Megan Reis and Ashlynn Reiter were named second team All-Region.
Students learn from inmates during in-depth tour of prison For some 30 criminal justice students, an all-day field trip makes for a lasting impression. Each semester for the past 10 years, Larry White and Wayne Book, SCC adjunct professors of criminal justice, take a group of students to the Potosi Correctional Center (PCC), a maximum security prison. Fred Johnson, deputy warden at PCC, provides the students a thorough tour of the facility with a correction’s officer ready at each stop to provide a detailed explanation of what they are seeing. These stops include the Protective Custody Hall, the Administrative Segregation Hall and a Missouri Department of Mental Health/Missouri Department of Corrections area where mentally ill inmates are housed. Students are taken to One Hall, the area that houses the most antisocial and disruptive inmates, and they learn how the institution deals with these dangerous individuals. Since
PCC is the home of Missouri’s Death Row, the students are instructed how PCC has comingled the death row inmates with the general population and how this change in procedure has been good for both the general population and, especially, for capital offenders. After the students have received a thorough introduction to the inside of this Level Five maximum security institution, they are taken to a classroom of sorts to meet with five or six inmates who are either on death row or serving life in prison without the possibility of parole. These inmates give the students an idea of why they are in PCC, and then the students spend an hour asking the inmates questions. The offenders are forthright and often admit to their crimes and, in many cases, share what prompted them to commit murder. The professors say the day is a tremendous learning experience for the students and that it also is good for the inmates who offer advice on how to make sure others do not end up like them.
NOTES OF DISTINCTION
Three from SCC honored by local magazine
L to R – Robert Sandfort, Baerbel Johnson and Dr. Ron Chesbrough at the Family History Workshop Day on Nov. 2.
SCC hosts Family History Workshop Day Baerbel Johnson, international research consultant from the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, hosted a Family History Workshop Day on the SCC campus Nov. 2 focusing on German heritage. The SCC Continuing Education class was presented by the St. Charles County Historical Society. Participants explored German records and resources on FamilySearch.org and Ancestry.com, continually growing websites. The presenters provided comparisons of available materials and suggested strategies for effective use.
Shortly after being named to the 2014 Military Friendly Schools® list in October, SCC released a video honoring veterans and calling attention to the need to support their reintegration into civilian life. View it at tinyurl.com/SCCGotYour6.
One St. Charles Community Under her leadership the SCC Workforce College leader and two Foundation Development Department works to board members were recognized develop a well-equipped workforce in among the “Beyond the Best: Top 50 the college’s service area by partnering in Business Awards” by StreetScape with public and private entities to offer Magazine. The Oct. 17 awards resources to employers, employees and ceremony recognized St. Charles schools, and has secured millions of County executives, employees and dollars in funding for the college through board members. federal, state and private sources. Amanda Sizemore, SCC AMANDA SIZEMORE Also honored at the ceremony were SCC Director of Workforce director of workforce development, SCC Foundation Board members Scott Development has managed and implemented Lewis, Cottleville city administrator and workforce development programming and chief of police, and Mike Lissner, partner at Acropolis consulting projects for more than 20 years. Investment Management.
LU-SCC Nursing and Allied Health Sciences Center receives recognition St. Charles Community College and Lindenwood University’s collaboration on the Nursing and Allied Health Center was a finalist in the inaugural St. Louis Regional Chamber Arcus Awards, which celebrate the achievement and honor the leaders who are propelling the St. Louis region forward. The Arcus Awards 2013 were held on Tuesday, Nov. 26, at the Hyatt Regency at the St. Louis Arch. The Arcus Awards 2013 event builds on the Greater St. Louis Top 50 Awards, which the Arcus Awards now replaces. Arcus Awards were presented to companies in seven distinct categories: Bioscience, Financial and Information Services, Health Science and Services, Multimodal
Second-year SCC student nurses check vitals as they work and learn in a simulation lab.
Logistics and Advanced Manufacturing, Economic Inclusion, Educational Attainment, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. The awards align with the St. Louis Regional Chamber’s ONE Plan, a strategy adopted by the St. Louis Regional Chamber’s broad community of leaders united for economic prosperity throughout the entire St. Louis bi-state region. In addition, the Ameren Corporate Citizenship Award and the BMO Harris Bank St. Louis Spirit Award were presented during the event.
MARK THE CALENDAR Music and entertainment are coming to the Donald D. Shook Fine Arts Building Theater this month. For additional information, visit stchas.edu/artsoncampus.
Faculty Recital 8 p.m. Dec. 7, FAB Theater
SCC Orchestra Winter Concert 8 p.m. Dec. 12, FAB Theater
SCC Concert Band Winter Concert 8 p.m. Dec. 9, FAB Theater SCC Singers & Chamber Concert 8 p.m. Dec. 10, FAB Theater
Irving Berlin’s White Christmas, Young People’s Theater 7 p.m. Dec. 20-21, 2 p.m. Dec. 21-22, FAB Theater
SCC Jazz Combos Winter Concert 8 p.m. Dec. 11, FAB Theater
SCC Opera Workshop 8 p.m. Jan. 12, FAB Theater