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Presidential Report: Sept. 17, 2012Welcome I’d like to officially welcome Meghann Sellers to the President’s Office as our new Executive Assistant. Meghann brings a wealth of knowledge to the position, having previously supported Jim Henningsen. Meghann graduated from Seminole State's Honors Program with an Associate in Arts. She plans to pursue her Bachelor of Science in Business Information Management right here at Seminole State. Welcome, Meghann! Kudos Seminole State has a new doctor in the family. Dr. Angela Kersenbrock, associate vice president for the School of Career and Professional Programs, recently defended her dissertation, which was titled “Adult Students and the Community College Baccalaureate: A Qualitative Analysis.” Congratulations, Dr. Kersenbrock! Congratulations to Coach Christa Teno. Christa was named the LPGA’s 2012 Southeast Section Coach of the Year! This is an amazing accomplishment when you know that coaches from the NCAA, the NAIA, and the NJCAA were all considered. But, our own Christa prevailed! Respiratory Therapy Professor and Program Manager Mark Carey received notice in August from the Department of the Air Force that he has been promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. Congratulations, Lt. Col. Carey! Congratulations to Dr. Joe Sarnovsky and his facilities staff for achieving a first in Seminole State’s history. Building L is now LEED Gold Certified. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, and it acknowledges measurable green building design, construction, operations and maintenance solutions. Congratulations to Joe and everyone who had a hand in this achievement! And, while we are congratulating Joe, this past weekend, he led Seminole State to amazing success in the American Heart Association Heart Walk. In true Joe – and Seminole State – fashion, we exceeded all of the goals set for this event with 22 teams, 263 walkers, and donations exceeding $16,000 toward a $13,000 goal. Many congratulations to Joe and all who worked so hard to support our community and the American Heart Association! On Sept. 7, SACS approved our request to offer a Pharmacy Tech degree and diploma, giving us the green light to proceed. Congratulations to Dr. Angela Kersenbrock and all who made this possible. Congratulations to Seminole State student Monica Figueroa, who won a 2012 Hispanic Heritage Scholarship worth $5,000 from the Hispanic Heritage Scholarship Fund of Metro Orlando. Monica is finishing her Associate in Science degree in Interior Design and plans to pursue her bachelor’s. Monica is the 19th Seminole State student to win a Hispanic Heritage Scholarship since its inception in 2000. Student Affairs Reorganization A long-standing intent of Student Affairs has been to re-design operations at the Sanford/Lake Mary Campus to the integrated service delivery model that is currently used at all other campuses. The conversion at S/LM was delayed, in part, due to constrictions in space and the anticipation that a new Student Services building was on the horizon. Given our enrollment demand, and the uncertainty of state PECO funding, we are moving ahead to implement this staffing redesign with the goal of better serving our students. The concept of the redesign has been communicated to Student Affairs staff members over the past two years during Professional Development Days, and also in the past year through bi-weekly updates. Approximately nine full-time and 15 part-time positions will be re-classified and posted as 12 full-time and two part-time Student Success Specialist positions, which will require at least a Bachelor’s degree. Impacted staff members were notified by teams from both Student Affairs and Human Resources on Sept. 13 and may apply for any positions for which they are qualified. HR will also support their efforts if they seek positions outside the College. Upcoming Events Seminole State College, in conjunction with UCF’s Global Perspectives and the Seminole State Humanities Department, is hosting atomic bomb survivor Koko Tanimoto Kondo on Thursday, Sept. 20, at 8 p.m., in the Concert Hall. Kondo, a graduate of American University who travels the world as a peace advocate, will discuss her experiences growing up in Hiroshima after this horrific event. The event is free and open to the public. The Fine Arts Gallery opened the 2012-13 season with an exhibit by Orlando photographer Bob Michaels. Mr. Michaels is showing his collection, entitled “Cuba: People,” a selection of photographs taken on more than nine trips to Cuba between 2009 and 2011. Convocation will take place Sept. 25. Breakfast will run 7:30-8:15 a.m., with the program set to run 8:15-9:30 a.m. Reclaiming the American Dream - The American Association of Community Colleges Initiative This past week, I was in Washington participating in the first meeting of AACC's initiative to "Reclaim the American Dream." As you know, the effort is an ambitious one that is being funded by Gates, Lumina, Kresge and others. The goal of this two-year project is to establish best practices, benchmarks and pathways that will assist all 1167 community colleges in being more successful with our graduation and achievement rates. There is obviously much more involved in the nine topics that 110 of us are tackling. I was privileged to be named as one of five co-chairs, and a member of the Steering Committee, for this effort. Meetings Just a reminder that Scott will be representing you at the meeting of the Trustee Chairs at Valencia on Oct. 8. Alex will be representing you at the Association of Community College Trustees in Boston on Oct. 10-13. And we hope that all of you can attend the Annual Trustee Meeting on Nov. 1 at Innisbrook. And, Scott, I hope you won't be surprised to learn that the College and your fellow Trustees have nominated you for the Association of Florida Colleges Outstanding Trustee Award that will be given at AFC on Nov. 1. Congratulations, Scott! I also believe that we want to change the November Board meeting since it occurs during Thanksgiving week. Would Dec. 3 work for everyone, with the December meeting being cancelled? (Dec. 3 was approved at S/LM in place of Nov. 19 and Dec. 17.) And select a location for the Oct. 15 Board meeting (S/LM was selected). This will be under Other Business at the end of this meeting. |
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