Opportunity Issue 11

In this Issue:

4 GEORGEANE POPLAR CLASS OF 1966

5 DAVID FISHER CLASS OF 1970 & 1985

6 SYLVIA HERMO-FEDRO CLASS OF 1976 & 1998

7 TIM ALCORN CLASS OF 1983

8 AN OPPORTUNITY TO SHINE

Professor Monroe Kennedy spent his college days feeling different. Now he’s teaching students to use their differences to stand out.

12 REINVENTING THE INTERNSHIP

How internships play a permanent role in TRG’s talent development and why the company selects students from LCCC.

14 LCCC CELEBRATES

60 YEARS OF IMPACT

20 FARMING THE FUTURE

Nursing graduate Ethan Moore’s new drone business could have a big impact on Lorain County agriculture.

22 WHERE THEY ARE NOW

LCCC catches up with three recent grads to see where they are now.

24 CREATING A SPARK

LCCC and Spark Theatre Company offer summer camps to create life-changing moments.

26 SHE’S FEELING 22

Recent nursing grad Amanda Badillo begins her dream career in a Cleveland Clinic operating room on her 22nd birthday.

1005 North Abbe Road

Elyria, Ohio 44035

Phone: 800-995-5222

lorainccc.edu

This academic year, Lorain County Community College is celebrating 60 years of serving our community. A lot can change in six decades. Our region’s emergence as the Silicon Heartland, and every industrial strength that came before, illustrates perfectly the transformation that time, when paired with strategic foresight, can usher in. But a lot can stay the same, too. Since 1963, we’ve remained true to our mission to provide affordable, quality education and workforce training to our community.

Over the years, one in four Lorain County residents have taken a class at LCCC and more than 45,000 have earned a degree. The LCCC University Partnership provides access to bachelor’s and graduate degrees from 14 Ohio colleges, all here at the LCCC campus and at a fraction of the cost. After graduation, LCCC alumni fuel our economy as 90% of LCCC grads live and work in the Northeast Ohio region.

Celebrating 60 Years

To ensure our graduates are prepared for the ever-changing demands of local industries, LCCC maintains close relationships with hundreds of area employers. As industry needs evolve, so do the curricula of LCCC’s academic programs and workforce training. All this adds up to a skilled talent pool for employers and good paying jobs for our graduates.

These long-standing employer connections and joint workforce training programs are vital to Lorain County’s economic growth. And they are part of the reason why LCCC was profiled in a book by Harvard University’s Project on Workforce. The book, “America’s Hidden Economic Engines: How Community Colleges Can Drive Shared Prosperity,” explores the ways in which forward-thinking community colleges are designing and implementing new solutions to both adapt to critical needs in the U.S. economy and create new pathways to opportunity for a diverse range of learners.

Our commitment to strengthening the local economy is at the core of who we are as an institution, and I’m honored to help to amplify the vital role community colleges serve as economic engines for job growth and advancing individual and family prosperity.

From employer-connected pathways and streamlined academic programs, to holistic support services and a vibrant campus, LCCC helps students build the future of their dreams. Over the next several months, as we commemorate and celebrate 60 years of impact and leadership, we’ll be sharing stories of the many LCCC alumni who have built those futures and proudly contribute to our thriving community. And you’ll see that, while times have changed and LCCC has not only kept pace with but often led that change, we have also stayed the same when it comes to what matters most. Here’s to the next 60 years and beyond.

Marcia J. Ballinger, Ph.D. President, LCCC

Georgeane Poplar CELEBRATING CLASS OF 1966

Still proud of her antiquated student number “00007,” Georgeane Poplar remembers the excitement of attending her first class at Lorain County Community College.

It was 1964, before the college had its permanent campus on Abbe Road, and courses were held at Garford Elementary School in Elyria. Georgeane Sue Jeager

Poplar’s family couldn’t afford to send her away to college, so she was grateful for the opportunity to earn an associate degree locally.

“It was a brick elementary building and it had three floors,” Poplar recalls. “And I remember sitting in those classes and just being really excited that I was in college, learning and meeting lots of people.”

Poplar’s enthusiasm for learning didn’t come without worry though. And it took some supportive professors to instill confidence in the young Poplar. Professors she remembers to this day.

“Mr. Gallagher was my American history teacher, and he did a wonderful job,” she says. “He told us he was going to teach his class like he would at one of those state universities. And he did.”

After graduating, there was a teacher shortage in Lorain County, so Poplar began teaching fifth grade in Amherst. At the age of 19, she was less than a decade older than her students.

“The first year of teaching is always very challenging, but I loved it,” she says. “Those students liked me a lot because I was young, and I had lots of energy. They had a lot of fun in my class. Way too much fun, probably.”

That first, memorable academic year began a lifelong career in education. Poplar spent many of her teaching years in Amherst, where she grew up. There she taught kindergarten, third, fourth and fifth grades. She also spent time as a guidance counselor and intervention specialist.

Throughout the decades, Poplar has often been a student herself. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Kent State University and her master’s degree from The Ohio State University. Eventually, Poplar found her way back to LCCC, and her old “00007” student number, when she decided to earn a special education certificate through LCCC’s University Partnership with Ashland University. Poplar was thrilled to have bragging rights with the younger students and yet another avenue to boost an already successful and rewarding career.

Today, at 76, Poplar is still working in education. She’s an intervention specialist at Pathways to Success in Oberlin. She knows she’ll retire one day. But for now, she simply “can’t seem to let it go.” And she cherishes the place it all began.

GEORGEANE POPLAR

LCCC GRADUATE

60 YEARS

David Fisher

CLASS OF 1970 and 1985

After David Fisher spent most of his high school days just getting by to stay eligible for sports, he didn’t have much desire to go to college. But his parents encouraged him to give it a try. Thankfully, he did. And choosing an engineering pathway was an obvious choice.

“My mom and dad said I always took apart every toy I have had,” Fisher says.

Two years later in 1970, he earned an associate degree in mechanical engineering from Lorain County Community College. In 1985, he came back for a second degree in electrical engineering. And he’s held a State Electrical Contractors license for nearly 40 years.

“When I was in high school in machine shop class, we had a teacher that made you learn every part of the machine before you could even start it up,” he says.

“And then I remember coming in here. It was all hands-on. And to me, that’s the best way to learn.”

Employers tend to agree – and Fisher’s career is proof of that.

Today, Fisher credits LCCC and its hands-on approach to learning for paving the way for his successful electrical engineering career that included positions with prominent Lorain County companies, like Ridge Tool Company.

“I was Ridge Tool’s first electronic electrician,” he says. “They were getting more into the CNC equipment and eventually they made me an electrical foreman over the whole plant.”

Fisher’s last role was as a senior electrical engineer at Forest City Technologies Inc. in Wellington. He spent nearly 30 years with the company.

“Back when I started, they had about 60 people and they really didn’t have anybody doing electrical work,” Fisher recalls. “It ended up as one of the best moves I’ve made. They designed and built their own production equipment. I saw a lot of things happen there.”

In his decades-long career, Fisher has come across many brilliant minds, who often trained at prestigious universities. And he says the hands-on LCCC education he received holds firm among others’ education. And sometimes, inches out just above.

“I’ve had some colleagues and even bosses who’ve said I taught them more than their education did, in certain aspects, because with me it was all hands on,” Fisher says.

Fisher visited the LCCC campus in 2023, as the college celebrates its 60th anniversary. And as he sat in the new automation lab, which served as the drafting room in the late 1960s, he marveled at the college’s ability to keep pace with industry and keep its education experience based.

“I feel very fortunate that I came to LCCC. I’m able to create things that I design and build, and make them work,” he says. “And it’s a great opportunity for young people today. And it’s right here for everyone.”

DAVID FISHER

Sylvia HermoFedro CELEBRATING

CLASS OF 1976 and 1998

You don’t need to listen to Sylvia Hermo-Fedro talk for long to know she’s a professor at heart. Her command of the radiology field, based on decades of experience, pours out of her. And her voice has that magical mix of confidence and compassion.

Hermo-Fedro is a professor through and through. Even in retirement.

Two years ago, Hermo-Fedro retired from Bowling Green State University as Teaching Professor Emeriti in the Firelands Applied Sciences department. She was also program director for the Firelands campus radiologic technology department.

Her radiology knowledge has depth and breadth. And it all began at Lorain County Community College.

“I was raised in Lorain and LCCC was a perfect fit,” Hermo-Fedro says.

In the early 1970s LCCC already had a strong reputation for excellence in healthcare training. Hermo-Fedro, intrigued by the melding of health and technology, chose radiology.

“Early on we had what we called a ‘base hospital,’” she says. “So, in my first year, I was at the former St. Joseph Hospital in downtown Lorain.”

By her second year, Hermo-Fedro rotated around to various local hospitals, spending two days each week in the clinical setting. In 1976, Hermo-Fedro graduated from LCCC with an associate of applied science in radiologic technology and landed a job at Elyria Memorial Hospital, which is now part of University Hospitals.

While there, Hermo-Fedro began taking more LCCC classes hoping to one day earn a bachelor’s degree. Then, in 1995, LCCC made an announcement. Voters had approved the creation of LCCC’s University Partnership, allowing students to earn bachelor’s and master’s degrees on the LCCC campus. Among the inaugural programs was a Bachelor of Science in Applied Science with a major in Allied Health through Youngstown State University. Hermo-Fedro transferred in.

“It was another perfect fit,” she says. “It was so flexible. Every credit from my associate degree was accepted.”

After graduating from the University Partnership in 1998, Hermo-Fedro ran Elyria Memorial Hospital’s Amherst campus radiology and laboratory departments, as well as an imaging center in a newly expanded facility in Avon. Then, in 2000, the opportunity at BGSU came along.

As an educator, watching the evolution of the University Partnership, which now offers more than 100 master’s and bachelor’s programs from 14 partner colleges and universities, has been impressive.

“LCCC saw the need for getting a bachelor’s degree within the county and the University Partnership made it a lot easier for a lot of us,” she says.

SYLVIA HERMO-FEDRO

LCCC

CELEBRATING 60 YEARS

Tim Alcorn

CLASS OF 1983

It all started in the radio-TV department at Lorain County Community College for the current radio play-by-play voice of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Tim Alcorn.

Growing up in nearby Grafton, LCCC was the most affordable and accessible choice for Alcorn after graduating from Midview High School in 1981. Actually, it started before that with the earliest iteration of College Credit Plus.

“I’d gotten a little bit of a taste of LCCC while I was still at Midview,” he says. “Because even 40 plus years ago, they had the program where you could take college

courses while you were in high school.”

And although the look of the current television production studios and facilities have drastically changed in those 40 years, Alcorn believes the value and the caliber of the educational experiences at LCCC have not.

“The hands-on experience that I was able to get here at Lorain County Community College was just tremendous,” he says.

Alcorn says he could easily rattle off a list of fond memories from his time at LCCC, including meeting his wife, Diane, in speech class and invaluable experiences that led to an incredible amount of educational, interpersonal, and individual growth.

After receiving an associate of arts degree from LCCC in 1983, Alcorn took his solid foundation to Kent State University to finish his bachelor’s degree. Having settled on Lorain County as home, he and his wife moved back after graduation and Alcorn started his career at WOBL in Oberlin. In 1992, he transitioned to WEOL in Elyria. Almost 27 years later, he was named the radio voice of the Cavs.

“It was my dream,” he says. “I don’t know if I ever really thought I would end up there as a young boy. I consider myself unbelievably blessed and unbelievably fortunate.”

Alcorn’s hard work and dedication kept his career blazing throughout the decades. But he credits LCCC with the spark that began it all. And he’s proud to call the college an alma mater. “It’s amazing to see where it has come from in the last 40 years,” he says. “And to think where it can still go and where it will go. It’s truly a resource for Lorain County.”

An Opportunity

Physics professor Monroe Kennedy spent his college days feeling different. Now he’s teaching his students to use their differences to stand up and stand out.

His office window faces the north and on early mornings in the summer, the sun shines through the glass and casts light on a single white flower in a vase on his desk. Thousands of tiny white flower clusters surround one that is distinct.

The flower is Queen Anne’s Lace.

“I like Queen Anne’s Lace,” says Monroe Kennedy. “Because there’s a flower in the middle that is different. But it is not put on the perimeter, it’s put on center stage. And so, if you’re in an environment where you feel different, it’s an opportunity for you to shine.”

Monroe Kennedy, Ph.D., is an associate professor of physics at Lorain County Community College. He was a 2023 honoree of the LCCC Foundation Faculty Excellence award.

“When I was a physics student at Case Western Reserve University, I was the only African American student in the physics department the entire time I was an undergrad. I felt the pressure of having to represent not only myself and my family but my race.”

Monroe grew up on Cleveland’s east side, the oldest son of four boys. Both his parents were teachers. His dad taught industrial arts to middle schoolers and his mother was an elementary school teacher.

8

Lorain County Community College

DR. MONROE KENNEDY

LCCC PROFESSOR

Opportunity to Shine

“Being that one flower in the middle that is different than all the others; on one hand, some may not understand why it’s a lot of pressure until the situation is reversed,” he said. “If they are immersed in another culture where no one looks like them, then you begin to feel it.”

Kennedy sits in his physics lab on campus at LCCC as he talks. He speaks with his hands and reaches out with his left hand to make a point. On that hand is his wedding ring. Monroe and his wife, Karen, have been married for 34 years. They met on the CWRU campus and have four children. Karen is a physicist and an electrical engineer. Their oldest son is a mechanical engineering professor at Stanford University and the other is working on his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering. One daughter has a degree in computer science and the other is in college.

The classroom is empty. His students are gone for the day, but his mind is still in motion. He’s asked what he hopes his students take from his class.

“They need to be critical thinkers,” is his immediate answer. “As a critical thinker, you want to look at the evidence and make your own decision based on that evidence. I hope they understand that the universe is orderly and that things make sense. We just need to learn the rules.” At that, he laughs.

Monroe played offensive and defensive line for the football team at John Marshall High School as a freshman, sophomore and junior. The summer before his senior year, he attended the CWRU Minority Engineering Opportunity and Industrial Program. It changed his life.

“I had my ah-ha physics moment that summer in that program,” he said.

He stopped playing football, dedicated his time to science, graduated from John Marshall in the spring of 1986, and went on to earn three degrees from CWRU.

Monroe is nearing his 30th year in education and his 7th year as associate professor of physics at LCCC.

“My goal is to let students know that I am a colleague,” he said. “As they are working their way through an experiment that I have presented, I share with them if you can come up with a better way to do it let me know, I’ll institute it and give you extra credit.”

And, that has happened.

“That’s why I am here,” he said as his hands press down on the table in front of him. “I let the students know that their success is tantamount. You should not go out that door with a question that is unanswered.”

He’s asked one last question. What do you want to know?

Monroe crosses his arms and leans back in his chair.

“I’m worried about the advancement of technology,” he said. “What I would like to know is how to protect the vulnerable from being exploited from technological advances and their misuse.”

One more last question. Can you do that with physics?

“I don’t know,” he said. “But, it’s on my mind.”

The vulnerable. Like the lonely flower surrounded in the Queen Anne’s Lace.

“I always keep one in my office,” he said. “Just as a reminder.”

Pathways to Becoming a Registered Nurse

Traditional Nursing Program

Great fit for recent high school grads – you can even take College Credit Plus courses while in high school to prepare!

Licensed Practical Nurse to Registered Nurse

Take your nursing career to the next level.

Paramedic to Registered Nurse

Use your relevant work experience to upskill your career.

Why Choose LCCC?

• LCCC grads are the top choice of local hospital systems

• One of the Highest NCLEX pass rates in Northeast Ohio

• Highly educated and credentialed faculty with direct nursing experience

• Support services designed to help you excel

• Accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing

• Pathways to Bachelor of Science in Nursing available through the University Partnership

Contact us to meet with an LCCC nursing advisor and design your path to a successful nursing career.

440-366-4032

lcccadvising@lorainccc.edu

College Credit Plus Graduate High School with

FREE College Credit

“ When I learned about College Credit Plus, and that I could earn credits at no cost to me, I did not hesitate.”

Garrett Rafn graduated from Avon Lake High School with 58 LCCC college credits.

Learn why 47% of Lorain County high school students, like Garrett, graduate with Lorain County Community College credits.

lorainccc.edu/ccp

REINVENTING THE INTERNSHIP

Internships play a permanent role in TRG’s talent development strategy and the enterprise development company’s students are exclusively from LCCC.

Doyle Bain is a shining example in TRG’s internship program. A year ago he was a software development intern while studying at Lorain County Community College. As a TRG configuration specialist, Bain spent three months configuring smart phones and tablets for customers. When the internship ended, he moved to part time. Then full time. Six months later, he was promoted to Mobile Device Management Engineer.

“Grateful really sums up my feelings about the internship I started at TRG,” Bain says. “Everybody was helpful and supportive in my journey.”

Bain, 23 from Elyria, went from intern to full time within one year. The speed, while impressive, doesn’t matter much to TRG President Sean Kennedy. It’s the path. And he wants more interns to follow it.

“TRG provides a next-level ability here where students can see a clear pathway from intern to part time to full time,” Kennedy says. “Our team has done a great job building that program with LCCC.”

Interns play a permanent, vital role in TRG’s employee recruitment, development and retention strategy. The program successfully funnels future full-time workers into the company, in part, because they feel full time from day one.

“We treat our interns as we treat our full-time employees,” said Kennedy. “We ingrain them in our culture. We teach them our core values. They come in and they’re part of the team.”

The internship program at TRG, which is a subsidiary of TruWest Holdings, is Deborah Santillo’s baby. It was born through a need she knew, as Talent Acquisition Manager, was best filled by LCCC students. At any given time, the Westlake company of 300 can have up to 10 LCCC interns. Santillo says they’re basically assigning TRG’s ongoing entrylevel work to a consistent rotation of interns. And it’s working really well.

Lorain County Community College LCCC

Doyle Bain, mobile device management engineer at TRG

“It’s a win for us because we get these eager, inquisitive minds to teach, encourage and nurture,” Santillo says. “But it also gives these students a hands-on experience in a field that they’re studying.”

Ready to go

Santillo knows that saying TRG is in “enterprise mobility” doesn’t mean much to most people. So, she explains it like this. Imagine a global company, like Nike, Delta Air Lines or JOANN Fabrics (all TRG customers), needs to issue hundreds of iPhones to its employees. All the phones need to be uniformly preconfigured so employees can simply power up and start working.

TRG does that. They do the same for tablets, barcode scanners and other point of sale devices. And that’s just one aspect. From device planning and deployment to repair and ultimately disposal, TRG can touch every point of a customer’s device lifecycle management services.

The repair part is where LCCC interns first came into play. Specifically, the college’s micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) students.

LCCC’s MEMS students work with printed circuit boards and semiconductor chips—the brains inside the iPhones, tablets, and barcode scanners. They develop knowledge in computer science, electronics, soldering, chemistry and mechanics on a microscopic scale. And they walk through TRG’s doors ready to go.

“LCCC does a great job preparing their students,” Santillo says. “We’re set up to succeed with them because LCCC has laid that foundation.”

Broadening the intern pool

“When we find something successful, we don’t just let it lie,” Santillo says. The TRG team found so much value in the MEMS internship program, Santillo decided to broaden its intern pool. She landed on software development and cybersecurity students. These information technology interns help with the configuration part of TRG’s offerings.

Hannah Liddy, 19, is studying cyber and information security at LCCC. Matthew Szlempa, 20, is in the software development program. Both say the team-focused environment TRG has built makes it easy to collaborate, ask questions and learn from others. And both accepted part-time roles with the company in August 2023.

To increase the intern momentum, Santillo and Kennedy made another commitment to LCCC students. The pair teamed with leaders from the LCCC Foundation to start a scholarship program. It’s solely for LCCC students who complete their internships at TRG.

“We know students are trying to go to school in an affordable way and this program helps them fund their education,” Santillo says. “It was another way that we could make our employees stronger, strengthen that partnership with LCCC, and continue to grow the internship program.”

TRG summer 2023 interns (left to right) Matthew Szlempa, Roman Giannuzzi, Norah Ali, Ivan Cortez Rios, Hannah Liddy

Learn more about Earn and Learn internships.

1963 The State of Ohio grants LCCC’s charter on July 15, 1963.

63

1966 LCCC moves to its current location on Abbe Road, making it the first community college in Ohio with a permanent campus.

1971 LCCC receives full accreditation by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, the highest ranking accrediting association of higher education institutions at that time.

LORAIN COMMUNITY COLLEGE 1963

1972

The Health Sciences building opens.

LORAIN COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE

1963 - 2023

LCCC Presidents

1963-1970

• Dr. Max Lerner

1970-1971

• Thomas Bowen (Interim)

1971-1986

• Dr. Omar L. Olson

1986-1987

• Dr. Richard R. Mellott (Acting)

1987-2016

• Dr. Roy A. Church

2016 - Present

• Dr. Marcia J. Ballinger

1975 Learning Resources Center (first library) opens.

1980 The C. Paul Stocker Humanities and Fine Arts Center opens and presents its first season.

1984 The Nord Advanced Technologies Center opens and is the first on a community college campus in Ohio.

1988

The Mabel L. Ewing Activities Center opens.

75 80 84 88

60 YEARS

• Lorain County citizens approve the creation of the University Partnership, bringing bachelor’s and master’s degrees to the LCCC campus.

1998 The University Center building opens to house the University Partnership program.

2001

The Patsie C. Campana, Sr. Engineering and Development Center opens.

2001 LCCC’s first outreach center, the Lorain Learning Center, opens in downtown Lorain at the St. Joseph Community Center.

• County Commissioners, Chamber of Commerce, Ohio Department of Development and LCCC create the Great Lakes Innovation and Development Enterprise, a regional business incubator.

2004 LCCC enrollment tops 10,000 students in fall semester for the first time in the College’s history.

• LCCC is named one of the state’s fastest-growing colleges.

• The Lorain County Early College High School opens on campus, providing firstgeneration college students the opportunity to earn both a high school diploma and an associate degree simultaneously. 04 98 95

1995 The John A. Spitzer Conference Center opens.

• NEO LaunchNet opens on campus to provide free access to business and entrepreneurship support services for students and alumni.

• Innovation Fund is created to assist emerging technology entrepreneurs.

2006 LCCC Fab Lab opens, the first of its kind on a community college campus, making invention accessible to the community.

2007 The Richard Desich Business and Entrepreneurship Center opens to inspire, support and connect entrepreneurs.

2007 LCCC opens the Wellington Learning Center.

2008 Barbara and Mike Bass Library/Community

2011 Renovated College Center building re-opens.

LCCC IMPACT

14

2012 Innovative Learning Opportunities for Tomorrow (iLOFT) opens in a renovated building that was the original college library.

• The University Partnership Ridge Campus learning center opens in North Ridgeville.

The Richard A. Desich SMART Commercialization Center for Microsystems opens.

• Lorain Learning Center relocates to the City Center on West Erie Avenue.

15

2015 Achieving the Dream names LCCC as a Leader College of Distinction, a national designation awarded to community colleges that commit to improving student success and closing achievement gaps.

2018 LCCC is authorized to offer Ohio’s first bachelor of applied science in microelectronic manufacturing degree.

• LCCC is named the top community college in the country for Excellence in Student Success by the American Association of Community Colleges. 18

2013 The Ben and Jane Norton Culinary Arts Center opens.

2014

2014 The Laboratory Sciences LifeShare Science and Health Education Center building opens.

2019 LCCC unveils the expansion and renaming of the Patsie C. and Dolores Jeneé Campana Center for Ideation and Invention, home to a digital manufacturing line, industrial 3D printing lab, expanded Super Fab Lab and virtual reality cave.

• The Aspen Institute recognizes LCCC in the Top 150 U.S. Community Colleges.

• LCCC adopts the its new strategic plan that declares a bold goal of 10,000 individuals earning a degree or certificate by 2025.

2020 Achieving the Dream awards LCCC the Leah Meyer Austin Award, a national prize reserved for network colleges that show the greatest, sustained improvements in student outcomes and student success.

9,069 SPRING 202 3 91%

LCCC is authorized to offer a bachelor of applied science in smart industrial automated systems engineering technology. 21

2023 The Aspen Institute and the Community College Research Center name LCCC as one of 10 colleges selected for the Unlocking Opportunity initiative, aimed at improving student outcomes in higher education.

2021 LCCC launches Career by Design, a college-wide focus on supporting individual and family needs related to career and employment.

• Harvard University’s Project on Workforce releases a book featuring LCCC as one of five exemplary community colleges nationally contributing to regional economic growth and opportunity.

2022 LCCC is recognized by Achieving the Dream as a 2022 Leader College of Distinction.

LCCC graduate Ethan Moore’s new drone business could have a big impact on Lorain County agriculture

Ethan Moore’s drone is a head-turner. Literally.

“People driving by will slow down and then turn around and come back,” Moore says. “They all ask, ‘Is that what I think it is?’”

Yes, it’s an impressively large drone. The DJI Agras T40 is equipped with a 40-liter tank, eight propellers, and two spray nozzles. It was designed specifically for agricultural applications. And Moore has built his business around this specialized equipment.

In 2022, Moore launched Lake Erie Drone, LLC, a company offering a new type of pesticide and fungicide application for local farms. His target customers are the smaller farms, less than 100 acres, commonly found in Lorain County. Most often these farms sit near residential homes, raising issues with crop duster application.

“What’s really cool about the drone is that it pushes the chemical into the canopy of the crop,” Moore says. “So, it’s not drifting off into the environment or toward people’s homes.”

He adds that the low-altitude application and downdraft produced by the propellers helps the spray hit the lower rungs of the crops, where it’s needed most. And, compared to ground rig application, there’s no compressing the soil or crushing crop.

“I’m really proud that this business and this service provide local farms with a very high-quality product that’s being applied in the most effective and efficient way,” he says.

ETHAN M0ORE

LCCC GRADUATE

First things first

The idea for Lake Erie Drone was seeded back in Moore’s high school days. While attending Wellington High School, Moore, now 22, built a small drone for an audio/visual class.

“The whole project was really interesting and so cool,” Moore says. “That stuck in the back of my head.”

At the forefront of Moore’s mind, however, was finishing high school with as many college credits as he could. He enrolled in Lorain County Community College’s College Credit Plus program and with the LCCC Wellington Center nearby, maxing out on credits was really convenient.

“I started dabbling with College Credit Plus in my sophomore year, but as that year went on, I could see that earning a degree while in high school was viable,” Moore says.

With the exception of band class, Moore exclusively took LCCC classes during his junior and senior years. And when he graduated from Wellington High School in 2019, he earned his associate of science degree from LCCC, too.

“CCP got me started on an adult path when I was younger,” he says.

Moore says he knew exactly where that adult path would lead. After graduation, he enrolled in LCCC’s nursing program.

At just 17 years of age, he was among the youngest to ever do so.

“Nursing is a great profession where you get to help lots of people,” Moore says.

“And it runs in my family. My mom’s a nurse, my grandmother’s a nurse, I have uncles and aunts who are nurses.”

A leap of faith

After earning his associate degree in nursing, Moore began working as a clinical nurse in the intensive care unit at Mercy Health – Lorain Hospital. He also moved right into LCCC’s University Partnership with Ohio University and earned his Bachelor of Science in Nursing by fall 2022.

Most weeks, Moore works three 12-hour shifts in the ICU. His days off belong to Lake Erie Drones. And he had to jump through several regulatory hurdles, involving both the Federal Aviation Association and the Ohio Department of Agriculture, to get to this point.

“It was a pretty big leap of faith,” he says. “It was a big upfront investment, and I needed to apply for all these different certifications.”

Summer 2023 was Moore’s first with an operational business. And he was busy.

“I’ve found steady business in Lorain County, and we’re providing a service that our farmers are very happy with,” Moore says. “And I’ve met with a lot of the landowners, too.”

Moore says some of those generational farmers and landowners have become more than customers. They’re now mentors. And they’re excited to see someone as young as Moore taking an interest in agriculture.

“There are a lot of people moving out of farming, for one reason or another, and today’s farmers are acutely aware of that,” Moore says. “So many have brought me under their wing and provided me with resources.”

They’ve also provided Moore referrals within their close-knit network. And he hopes their discussions continue to include positive remarks about his business, because as the spraying season winds down, Moore gears up for the next phase. Seeding cover crops.

“Cover crops align with sustainable farming,” Moore says. “It helps with soil conservation, erosion reduction, and water quality.”

Equipped with a seed spreader and having conducted preliminary tests, Moore views this as a natural extension of Lake Erie Drones’ agricultural solutions.

“This is just the beginning,” he says.

...starting new careers.

Keith Adkins has been a truck driver, a line cook and a retail associate. But it wasn’t until he came to Lorain County Community College that he found a career.

“I’ve always liked computers, and once I decided to leave retail, I started to see that working in IT could be a job I’d enjoy doing,” he says.

It had been almost 20 years since Adkins, 37, had attended college. But the transition was easier than he expected. And as he worked toward an associate of applied business in network communications technology, opportunities knocked.

An advisor told Adkins he qualified for LCCC’s Students Accelerating In Learning (SAIL) program, which helps students overcome academic and financial obstacles that might hinder completion.

“SAIL fully paid for college and covered most of my books, so I could focus on my classes,” he says.

He also learned about an internship in the information technology department at University Hospitals in Elyria. Adkins breezed through the interview process because the skills he learned in class were exactly what the interviewers were looking for.

“By just describing the things I was doing in class, I was checking all the boxes,” he says.

In May 2023, Adkins earned his degree and when his internship ended in August, Adkins moved to full time.

“Without the knowledge I got at LCCC, I would not be able to get into the IT field,” he says.

...enrolling in LCCC’s University Partnership.

Amanda Rooney unearthed a new career goal while serving in the United States Air Force. And after four years of service, she came to LCCC to achieve that goal.

Rooney was a senior airman stationed in Fort Gordon, Ga. She worked as an intelligence analyst alongside the National Security Agency. When she wasn’t tied up with top-secret intel, Rooney spearheaded an inner-city education program for active-duty military members. It began with one gym class and took off from there.

“It evolved and I realized, I’m pretty good at this,” she says.

In 2016, Rooney returned home and began working toward her associate of arts degree with plans to become a teacher. She says LCCC’s flexibility and student services helped her balance a busy home life. The mother of two enrolled her son in LCCC’s Children’s Learning Center, a model early childhood program for children 18 months to 12 years old.

“Having my son there gave me dedicated study time,” she says.

This fall, Rooney enrolled in the University Partnership with Ashland University to earn a Bachelor of Science in Education. She hopes to graduate in two years and start the new career that emerged years ago.

“LCCC has a lot to offer,” Rooney says. “There are so many resources that can help students succeed in different aspects of their lives.”

...transferring credits.

When Sheliya Cordero graduated from Lorain County Early College High School, she earned an associate of arts degree from LCCC at the same time she earned her high school diploma. Then she transferred 74 credits to The Ohio State University.

With all her general education courses complete, the first-generation college student expects to graduate with her bachelor’s degree in four years, double majoring in social work and psychology. And just one year after that, she’ll earn her master’s degree in social work.

“I would like to work with children, either in foster care or even in psychiatry,” she says.

It’s a future she can see clearly, thanks to LCCC.

“Early College at LCCC helped me succeed in many ways,” Cordero says. “It taught me resiliency and helped me figure out along the way the different roads I could take.”

During her junior and senior years, Cordero selected college courses that interested her. And through these courses she discovered her future path. Cordero was also able to spend time volunteering at University Hospitals Elyria Medical Center. The experience that solidified her interest in social work and mental health.

“I’m thankful for the Early College High School staff that were on campus making sure we were succeeding,” she says. “LCCC is my home.”

CREATING A

LCCC partnership with Spark Theatre Company creates life-changing moments for young performing arts students

The actors stood side by side under the bright lights of the stage. In perfectly imperfect unison they raised their clasped hands into the air. And with ear-to-ear smiles and eyes that shined brighter than the lights, they took it all in. Their joy. Their pride. The applause. Then the performers lowered their hands and folded into their final bow. And the curtain closed.

But as it did, a new world seemed to open. The performers, ages 8 to 18, were part of a performing arts summer camp put together by Spark Theatre Company and Lorain County Community College. In its second year and funded by the LCCC Foundation, the camp teaches students the basics of acting, dancing and singing. Campers also learn the technical side of theatre, including lighting, set design, and costuming.

The camp’s counselors, who are both LCCC students and local theatre professionals, guide the students throughout their experience. Each day, the campers worked within age-based groups to create original performance content. The groups wrote a full script, alongside a Northeast Ohio playwright, and selected accompanying songs. Then the two-week camp concluded with a final performance in the Stocker Arts Center’s Cirigliano Studio Theatre in front of family and friends.

“It was really magical to see the children’s growth throughout the two weeks, and to watch as their creativity and collaboration culminated on stage,” said Jeremy Benjamin, director of LCCC’s theatre program.

Rachael Endrizzi, co-founder and artistic creative director for Spark Theatre Company, knows just how magical those moments can be. She once was one of those students.

A SPARK

“I found my voice through theatre as a young child,” said Endrizzi. “I was very shy and was enrolled in drama classes in elementary school to help me gain confidence in speaking and socializing with peers.”

The story behind the Spark

After graduating from Elyria High School, Endrizzi enrolled in LCCC’s theatre program. The experience helped her get into the American Musical & Dramatic Academy in New York City. She also studied Film & Media Studies at New School University. Each school played its part in Endrizzi’s successful acting, directing and teaching career.

“I didn’t expect theatre to lead to a lifelong passion and career for me, but it did,” Endrizzi said. “And even if it hadn’t, I gained so many valuable skills that would have supported me in nearly any profession.”

Endrizzi still travels the country performing and directing. But her heart remains in Elyria. In 2017, she and Claire Simpson founded Spark Theatre Company to bring more arts to Lorain County. The nonprofit’s mission is to celebrate the power of young people through professional theatre, igniting the desire for children to create their own stories both onstage and off.

Making memories that last

That creative spark was clear throughout the camper’s final performance where they portrayed villains feuding on a game show to see who succumbs to cute things; magical sisters attending superhero school to avenge their destroyed home; and members of an “Evil Supervillain Headquarters of Evil” that test the perfection of superheroes living in “Perfect City.”

“We got to have the imagination of superheroes,” said camper Aviana Delgado, 11. “We were learning the character, and the personality of the character, and how we can build off the character’s personality.”

In learning those things, Haley Conrad, 15, saw that each student, no matter their age, contributed to something much bigger.

“I like how we all came together to work as a team and create this huge dance and play,” she said.

For Iris Hughes, 10, who played one of the magical sisters on stage, the most important moment of their two-week experience happened off stage.

“My favorite part was making my very first friend, on the very first day,” Iris said. Endrizzi says those memories, often defined by a spark of connection, companionship, and confidence, are the ones that last. They did for her. And the opportunity to experience those moments will always be present at Spark Theatre Company and LCCC.

“The college does a wonderful job connecting students with the community and connecting the community with the arts,” Endrizzi said. “For those looking for a place in the arts, there is a place for them at LCCC.”

SHE’S FEELING 22

Nursing graduate Amanda Badillo begins dream career in Cleveland Clinic operating room on her 22nd birthday

Last year, Amanda Badillo gave herself the ultimate birthday gift. On August 14 the Lorain County Community College nursing graduate turned 22. And she began day one as an operating room nurse with the Cleveland Clinic Fairview Hospital.

Badillo is now moving through the orientation process and serving in two roles. She’s working as a circulatory nurse who admits the patients and makes sure the entire operating room is running smoothly, and a scrub nurse who works in the operating room with the surgeon, anticipating and preparing for their equipment needs. Both roles allow the Elyria resident, who thrives in fast-paced, intense situations, to be the type of nurse she hopes to be.

“I want to connect with my patients and my coworkers,” Badillo said. “I want to make sure that the patients who come into this surgical suite, which can be a very intimidating place, are comfortable and relaxed. And that they have trust in the team.”

Badillo said she was prepared to take on anything the position brings her way because of the education and training she received at LCCC. After graduating from Open Door Christian Schools in 2020, Badillo entered LCCC’s associate degree in nursing program. She knew the years ahead would be strenuous.

But Badillo found comradery among her classmates and guidance from her instructors. And during clinical rotations, she focused on the one reason she was in the program—patients. She also developed her approach to patient care.

“Every time I was with a patient, I always thought about how I would want to be treated,” Badillo said. “With assessments, I would ask the patient for their permission before I did anything.”

Badillo says it’s important that every patient feels as though they’re an equal team member in their care. And to make that happen, communication is vital.

“Patients need to know what’s going on to be more at ease,” Badillo said. “A big part of healing the body is making sure you have the right mentality to do so.”

In May 2023, Badillo earned her associate degree in nursing from LCCC and a month later, she passed the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses. At the LCCC nursing graduation ceremony, Badillo was awarded the Florence Nightingale Student Nurse Award for Nursing Excellence.

“I was honestly surprised by that because there were so many awesome nursing students that I think everybody there deserves the award,” Badillo said.

Amanda believes every graduate earned recognition because of how intense and rigorous the LCCC nursing program is.

“There is no room for mediocrity. There are no exceptions,” she said. “And with that high standard, you have to absolutely give it your all.”

AMANDA BADILLO

LCCC GRADUATE

VIDEO

Do you . . . Want to work from home?

Enjoy working with people?

Need a career change?

LCCC Insurance

Fast-Track Online Program

This certificate will prepare you for remote work positions with local companies who are actively hiring for well-paying entry-level positions. With only three online classes, you can be prepared to land a job that fits your life.