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Presidential Report: October 24, 2011WelcomeA warm Seminole State College "welcome" to our new Trustees: Wendy Brandon, CEO of Central Florida Regional Hospital and a member of our Foundation Board; Alex Setzer, a government relations specialist with Southern Strategy Group and one of our graduates; and Scott Howat, Director of Legislative and Congressional Relations for Orange County Public Schools. Welcome to Wendy and Alex and Welcome Back to Scott! And even as we are welcoming new Trustees, we are saying "good-bye" to Dr. Jim Henningsen, the next President of the College of Central Florida in Ocala. Congratulations, Jim! Next month, we will be honoring our two retiring Trustees, Lisa Greer and Chick Gregg. KudosSeminole State's Lady Raiders Golf Team took home a 3rd place trophy in their first event; a 6th place finish in their second tournament; and 3rd place at the St Leo College Invitational. Congratulations to Coach Christa Teno and the Lady Raiders! Two of our Grindle Honors students, Brandon Carpenter and Matthew Hopper, were selected to travel to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama to develop a prototype vehicle to roam Mars. Brandon and Matthew will participate in the three-day experience sponsored by the National Community College Aerospace Scholars program in November. They were among just 48 students from 25 states selected for the program based on web-based assignments that centered on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) content. Congratulations, Brandon and Matthew. According to the 2010-11 Florida Community College Activities Association's (FCCAA) Academic Report, our athletes soared. The State's student athlete graduation rate was 66.7 percent, while ours was 87 percent. The State's average student athlete transfer success rate was 71.4 percent, while Seminole's was an impressive 96 percent! Congratulations to our student athletes, our coaches, and to our faculty and staff who help them succeed. Angel Nater, a Professor and Program Manager in our Emergency Medical Services Department, was selected for Harvard University's Institute for Medical Simulation. He attended the week-long program which was a Comprehensive Instructor Workshop in Medical Simulation. Congratulations, Professor Nater! Dr. Scott Freeman, Professor of Psychology, recently received his Ph.D. from Barry University. Scott's dissertation was entitled "Spirituality in the Personal and Professional Fulfillment of Marriage and Family Counselors." Congratulations to Dr. Freeman! And more good news about student success...The National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses scores for the third quarter were released last week. Our graduates (121 of 125) passed the exam with a pass rate of 97 percent. This is one of the highest pass rates in the State and certainly in our Central Florida area!! Other area school results were:
The State average is 88 percent and the National average is 85 percent. We are so proud of our graduates, Associate Dean of Nursing Cheryl Cicotti and the entire Seminole State College Nursing faculty and staff! In addition to this great news, our nursing faculty also received other great news...on Thursday, at the Association of Florida Colleges' Convention, they will receive the "2011 Chancellor's Best Practice Award" in the Workforce Education category. This year's award is for "The Practicum Culminating Simulation Experience." Nursing Professor Laura Aromando will be accepting the award on behalf of Seminole State. Congratulations to all! Sad NewsOn October 10, we lost one of our shining stars. Professor Sherry Jenkins. Sherry touched so many lives that it is hard to find the words to express the huge impact that she made on our students -- and on us -- both inside and outside of the classroom. Sherry's memorial service this past weekend was a wonderful celebration of an incredible woman! On October 20, we lost another very special friend, Bob Schmidt. Bob was diagnosed with terminal cancer about a month ago and lost his battle Thursday night. Bob was a retired engineer and a Seminole County Public Schools teacher. In 1974, he was named Florida's "outstanding technical educator of the year." Bob also taught drafting and design for several years at Seminole State, and in 2005 donated $100,000 to establish an endowed scholarship at the College. He directed that the funds go to students attending Seminole State's Adult High School and GED programs, Seminole and Lyman High Schools and Crooms Academy of Information Technology. Each year since 2005, Bob has added money to the scholarship. Bob wanted his legacy to reflect his life's work of helping students and dedicated his estate, estimated at more than $2 million, for endowed scholarships at Seminole State College. Bob believed in people, in their goodness and in their abilities. The gift, which is the largest individual donation in the College's 46-year history, will enable countless students to realize their dreams. Scott Howat asked that a resolution be drafted that could be adopted by the Board with the intention that it would be presented to Bob after today's meeting. When I told Bob last Thursday morning about it, and that he might have company on Monday morning, he replied, "You better hope that I will still be here." Well, Bob left us last Thursday evening, but what an incredible legacy for a "poor boy from Ohio" as Bob termed himself. I would like to read the resolution and ask that the Board adopt it. Other NewsLast week, we signed the agreement with the Wayne M. Densch Foundation for $2 million over 10 years that will be dedicated to scholarships for First Generation students. Through the agreement, our Partnership Building will acquire a name! The American Association of Community Colleges has asked that Seminole State College serve as the official host institution for the AACC international convention that will be held at the Marriott World Center in Orlando next April. We have said "yes" and will begin planning events that will be held for about 2000 of our colleagues from around the world. |
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