Celebrating National Vet Tech Week

Marcia Leake, associate vice president for human resources, graduated from the Leadership South Carolina program September 8. Each

Marcia Leake year, Leadership South Carolina selects around 50 highly motivated candidates from hundreds of possible applications for its nine-month core program (September to April). The program gives participants an opportunity to advance their leadership qualities while broadening their understanding of issues facing the state. Golden Corner Rotary Club Welcomes New Member Beth Brown

The Golden Corner Rotary Club recently welcomed new member Beth Brown, manager of donor relations for the TCTC Foundation, second from left. Pictured with her are, from left, Rotarians Teddy Martin, club president Steve Moore, and Lorraine Harding.

Mandy Elmore: Training the Next Generation of Engineers

Mandy Elmore, dean of the Engineering and Industrial Education Division and a University of South Carolina graduate, is featured in an article posted on her alma mater’s website.

Tri-County Technical College Celebrates National Veterinary Technician Week October 17–23. First celebrated in 1993, National Veterinary Technician Week takes place in the third week of October each year.

National Veterinary Technician Week provides an opportunity to recognize veterinary technicians’ contributions. Veterinary technicians are critical to the day-to-day function of veterinary practices and play vital roles in preserving animal health and welfare. They’ve been called the backbone of veterinary clinics, and many veterinarians say they wouldn’t dream of opening their practice on any given day without a veterinary technician who serves as an extra set of hands to handle many aspects of patient care, as well as laboratory procedures.

Veterinary technicians work closely with veterinarians and other members of the veterinary team to deliver quality animal health care. Their primary responsibilities in a veterinary practice include animal nursing, administering medications, assisting in surgery, taking radiographs, inducing and monitoring anesthesia, client education, hospital management and laboratory duties.

Tri-County’s program, which is accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), is endorsed by the South Carolina Association of Veterinarians.

TCTC’s Police Department has been awarded nearly $20,000 from the South Carolina Department of Public Safety to purchase body cameras for police officers.

The department will purchase 13 body cameras and accompanying software to update equipment purchased several years ago.

In 2015 former Governor Nikki Haley signed into law a bill requiring law enforcement to wear body cameras. The goal is to increase accountability and build trust with the communities they serve.

Cameras are activated by TCTC officers when responding to a call for service or police interaction.

“The benefits to officers wearing body cameras include promoting transparency with the community and providing an accurate detail of police and citizen interactions,” said Sgt. Billy Albert of the TCTC Police Department.

Amanda Karaganov joined TCTC in August 2018 as a psychology adjunct instructor and recently was promoted to a full-time psychology Instructor in the Social Sciences department. Previously she worked at Marshall I. Pickens Hospital in Greenville. She holds Amanda Karaganov a bachelor of arts degree in psychology from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and a bachelor of science in psychology from Walden University. She is a member of the American Psychological Association.

While an adjunct, she served on the TCTC Faculty Senate and is a SOAR committee member.

Amanda is a member of Mt. Airy Baptist Church in Powdersville. She and her husband, Andrey, live in Easley.

Lynn Gao joined TCTC in September as the accounting manager in our Fiscal Affairs Department. Lynn spent the last six years working at Clemson University’s office of budgets and financial planning. Her last role was as senior budget analyst. Her other work experience includes serving as an accountant at the University of Michigan, where she received the Director Award for financial operations in 2013. In 2008 she received the Outstanding Accounting Theory Award from the University of Southern Mississippi, as well as the CPA exam Silver Medal Award from the Mississippi Board of Public Accountancy.

Lynn holds a bachelor of arts degree in economics from Fudan University in Shanghai PR China and a master of science in economic development and a master of professional accountancy, both from the University of Mississippi.

She and her husband, Zhicheng Dou, live in Clemson and have two children.

Carissa Foster is the lab specialist in the Biology department. She holds a bachelor of science degree in biological sciences from Clemson University.

For the last four years, she has worked at Clemson University as an assistant in the arthropod collection and pesticide regulation departments.

Carissa lives in Pendleton.

William Cooper is an enrollment counselor. He previously worked as an admissions counselor at Gardner-Webb University and Erskine College. He taught English in Korea from 2013 until 2015. He is a graduate of Erskine College and is currently enrolled at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. William lives in Greenwood. “This award is such an honor—and a surprise. My background is in manufacturing,” said Melinda, who spent 20 years working in plant management and later as an entrepreneur who owned two businesses. “There are so many great educators who are deserving of this award. That’s why this really is so special.” Melinda transitioned to education in 2017 “because I always wanted to teach,” she said. “I’ve had great mentors on campus. There is a long list of people I could thank. Everybody at TCTC has been willing to help me from day one. I’ve taken advantage of professional development opportunities whenever I could and I’m not afraid to ask questions,” she said. “My leadership style has always been very personal. In manufacturing and in my businesses, I knew all of the Lynn Gao employees very well. The same is true of my students and the faculty and staff.” She says she stays true to the College’s mission of transforming lives, one student at a time. “I help students in and out of the classroom and even after graduation. I take it very seriously.” Melinda teaches College 120 academic and career readiness where students learn about life not just school and work. She also teaches Manufacturing 101 and Manufacturing 102, where students get an introduction to the manufacturing environment, the vocabulary and what to expect in the workplace. They visit plants and get a first-hand look at where they could be working. “I have a true love for the under-resourced student population. Some have never had a positive influence in their lives. I get to see the transformation when they end up in a different place. It’s exciting for me when potential students come in. I tell them the past doesn’t matter. All I care about is the person in front of me. The words I live by are love, respect and acceptance. If you go there, you won’t ever go wrong,” she said.

Carissa Foster William Cooper

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The Health Education Division hosted its inaugural Student and Faculty Conference September 29 in the Anderson Hall Events Center on the Pendleton Campus.

Students and faculty from the Associate Degree Nursing, Practical Nursing, Medical Laboratory Technology, Surgical Technology, Expanded Duty Dental Assisting, Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), Medical Assisting, Pre-Pharmacy, and Veterinary Technology programs attended.

The goal of the conference, conceived by Dr. M. Ahmad Chaudhry, dean of the Health Education Division, was threefold. “The first goal was to bring students and faculty together to introduce new developments in the healthcare field,” he said.

The conference keynote speaker was Dr. Linda Ward, associate professor at Clemson University. Her speech was titled “What’s New in Genomic Healthcare.” “Participants were able to acquire knowledge in areas they were not familiar with, thanks to the cutting-edge information from Dr. Ward,” said Dr. Chaudhry.

Another goal was to highlight the work that faculty and students are engaging in across divisions and departments. For example, Surgical Technology faculty and students collaborated with robotics instructors in the Engineering and Industrial Technology Division. In addition, Veterinary Technology and Expanded Duty Dental Assisting collaborated on a radiology project, and Practical Nursing, Veterinary Technology and EMT collaborated on a pharmacology project. Medical Assisting and Medical Laboratory Technology worked together on microbiology project.

The groups presented posters and videos to illustrate their work. “The idea is that they were learning together through cross collaboration,” said Dr. Chaudhry.

The final goal of the conference was to provide a platform for all student clubs in the division to highlight the work they had been doing and to get to know each other.

“Conference feedback revealed that faculty are super excited and invested in the work, as evidenced by 100 percent participation,” he said.

Makenzie Green is no stranger to volunteerism. She had been involved in her honor society’s community service projects as a student at Easley High School. As a first-year medical assisting student at TCTC, she was excited to see that her coursework required individual and group service-learning projects during her two years of study. Her work with the Piedmont Emergency Relief Center (PERC) this semester has ignited a sense of giving back to her community that will go beyond the classroom, she said. Located on Main Street in Piedmont, PERC is a non-profit agency that provides emergency food assistance, as well as other services, to families and individuals in need.

Makenzie admits she didn’t realize the number of people in need until she attended a weekly PERC food drive when she witnessed “a line of people that started at the PERC on Main Street and stretched for nearly three miles down the road. This exposure taught me that I want to continue to help in the best way possible. When my service-learning hours are completed, I won’t stop coming to volunteer,” she said

She usually volunteers on Thursdays and Sundays when she organizes shelves of food and helps with food distribution. “It’s all about giving back,” she said. “When a bright and energetic young lady calls you on the phone and expresses her desire to do her college servicelearning project within our organization, we jump at the chance to have somebody who is self-motivated like Makenzie Green, and we admire how she is so concerned about people and food insecurities within our community,” said Lisa Ouzts, who works Makenzie Green with PERC. Service-learning provides students with opportunities to develop civic engagement skills. The experience is designed to integrate meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to deepen a person’s understanding of the learning experience. Laura McClain, program director for medical assisting at TCTC, has incorporated service learning activities into the curriculum since she joined the College in 2014. She believes community service keeps students engaged and provides an opportunity for them to give back to the community. “Our students are patient advocates and need to be aware of services available to assist those who may have a need,” Laura said.