A PUBLICATION OF THE COCHISE COLLEGE FOUNDATION
FALL 2013
Competitive Advantage: Gym overhaul enhances athletics experience Page 7
BOARD PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE It’s been about a year since I vacated my seat on the Cochise College Governing Board and turned my full attention to “retirement” and serving as chair of the Cochise College Foundation board. The foundation has grown dramatically since I joined some years ago, when board members brought their checkbooks to meetings in order to keep it going. We’ve done well, thanks to all the people who have pledged their support of student success during the last 46 years. We now manage more than 100 scholarships that provided in excess of $340,000 to students last year. However, Cochise College needs you now more than ever. At this writing, it anticipated a reduction in operating dollars in excess of more than $1 million. This is partially due to a recent decrease in full-time student equivalent, upon which state funding is based, and a reduction in equalization funds available to colleges in areas with low property values. It also follows steady declines in state funding per student, which now stands at $259 but exceeded $1,000 six years ago. It’s difficult to stand out in the crowd when you’re receiving the same (or less) funding as everyone else, and while scholarships are greatly appreciated and beneficial to students, no amount of them can help the college recoup losses in areas that impact services. Gifts in support of academic or capital needs can. If you or someone you know is considering a charitable contribution, I urge you to take a long look at the most accessible higher education in your community, Cochise College. Consider the services provided, your favorite program, or something new you think would be relevant and make a significant impact on your community. You can help purchase equipment, enhance instruction, and expand programs that prepare students for realworld jobs; these, too, support student success. You can help Cochise College come out on the other side of these budget challenges a stronger and even more viable institution.
Jan Guy Board President Cochise College Foundation
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Cover: A Douglas Campus gym renovation that united the weight room and fitness lab helps the college showcase one of its competitive advantages - its athletics program.
Board Officers Jan Guy, President Gail Zamar, Vice President Bob Strain, Secretary Mark Battaglia, J.D., Treasurer Board Members Yolanda Anderson Chuck Chambers Jean Giuffrida Cindy Hayostek Karen L. Justice Gene Manring Dan Rehurek, Ph.D. Ruben Teran, J.D. Board Member Emeritus Shirley Gregory Linda Staneart Ex-Officio Members J.D. Rottweiler, Ph.D. (ex-officio) Honorary Members Marsha Arzberger Cochise College Foundation Staff Denise Hoyos, Executive Director Sheila Selby, Foundation Coordinator Rose Berumen, Administrative Assistant “Accolade” is published by the Cochise College Foundation, 4190 W. Highway 80, Douglas, AZ 85607. (520) 417-4100 Contributors Rose Berumen Liz Manring Sheila Selby Ed Roskowski Rick Whipple Printing/Mailing Keith Ringey Carol Riggs “Accolade” inspires charitable contributions in support of Cochise College by raising awareness about competitive advantages of the college and the activities of the Cochise College Foundation, which promotes student success through scholarships, facilities development, and program support. By supporting Cochise College, the Foundation endeavors to increase the college's accessibility to our diverse and changing communities.
FROM THE COCHISE COLLEGE PRESIDENT If it weren’t for Cochise College, Patricia (Behr) Morriss doesn’t believe she would have finished a college degree, let alone retired from Tombstone High School after a 28-year career as a physical education teacher. Leo “Butch” Lynn credits Cochise College as “that marvelous bridge” for his love of the dramatic arts and music to a higher education at Northern Arizona University, where he graduated before going on to work as a publicist for many famous faces. And, John Sauer recalls living at the Gadsden Hotel during residence hall construction and being one of the few Arizona members of an early Cochise basketball team. He went on to the University of Arizona and now runs a Tucson firm that markets and distributes promotional products. It turns out that Pat, Butch and John were Cochise College students at the same time, and they all attended Alumni Weekend 2013 at the Douglas Campus, where activities included the famous Pit Fire Festival, campus tours, an open house for the newly renovated gymnasium, a barbecue, and the pit fire exhibit. Quality interactions with alumni couldn’t be planned, but they happened anyway. Small crowds of people with something in common make for great conversation and story-telling. And everyone I talked with told of the same appreciation for the value of their time here at Cochise. There’s pride in every tale. This year, Cochise is making a comprehensive effort to track down the 30,000-plus people who’ve earned degrees and certificates since 1964. Whether they’re right around the corner or on the other side of the world, we need them. Their stories underscore our quality. They inspire others to enroll. They can help tell our story to legislators and donors, and their charitable gifts can stimulate change or help fill holes in our budget. We expect that it will be some time before we are surrounded and supported by the kind of alumni community you’d find at a university. The youngest university in Arizona has had 65 more years than Cochise (not to mention a different student life experience entirely) to polish its alumni outreach. But we trust that a bit of investigative work and communication will help us identify those who recognize their Cochise experience as the foundation for later success. Stay tuned!
J.D. Rottweiler, Ph.D. President Cochise College jdr@cochise.edu
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Calling All-Arizona alumni! Each year, representatives from the state’s community colleges get together to plan the All-Arizona Luncheon, an event that recognizes top students named to the All-Arizona Academic Teams. Two students from each college campus are typically named to first, second and third academic teams and receive tuition waivers to complete their bachelor’s degrees at a state university from the Arizona Board of Regents. The honor is a student’s ticket to baccalaureate completion, but it also puts master’s and even doctoral degrees within reach. If you are one of Cochise College’s numerous All-Arizona alumni, we’d like to hear from you! Your experiences after Cochise can inspire others to apply for All-Arizona status and help demonstrate that advanced degrees and the careers that require them are, indeed, accessible. Email alumni@cochise.edu to tell us where your All-Arizona honor took you.
STRAIN ELECTED TO ACCT BOARD By Liz Manring Cochise College Governing Board Chair Jane Strain has been elected to the Association of Community College Trustees Board of Directors as the Pacific Regional Director. The ACCT, founded in 1972, is the nonprofit educational organization of governing boards, representing more than 6,500 elected and appointed trustees of community, technical, and junior colleges in the United States and beyond. Its purpose is to strengthen the capacity of community, technical, and junior colleges and to foster the realization of their missions through effective board leadership at local, state and national levels. Strain is the first Cochise College governing board member to serve on the ACCT board. “I’m excited,” Strain said. “This is a supreme opportunity for Cochise College and for Arizona. It's going to be an amount of work; this is a hands-on board.” The Pacific Region covers all of the United States’ western-most states — Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, California, Alaska and Hawaii — the Yukon Territory and British Columbia in Canada, as well as the Mariana Islands, Republic of Palau, Marshall Islands and American Samoa. “The best part is talking to the trustees from all of those places, and their stories are just incredible,” Strain said. “We're supposed to be this giant liaison, the person who pushes information down, gets information back, and makes sure trustees have current information about what's going on.” Strain was appointed to the Cochise College Governing Board in 1998 for Precinct 3 and was re-elected in 2000, 2006 and 2012. She was chosen as the chair of the Cochise College board this past January and has served as the college's ACCT representative for the last eight years. In addition to two annual national events ACCT holds each year, Strain also will attend the ACCT board of directors annual retreat. In May, Strain participated in the Flinn-Brown Civic Leadership Academy, sponsored by the Flinn Foundation and the Thomas R. Brown Foundations; the academy helps prepare and support Arizona’s future state-level civic leaders. In her time as a trustee for Cochise College, involvement in ACCT and through training seminars, Strain has learned much about the importance of an educated college board. “There's research where they've linked the level of education of the board with how well the institution does in accreditation,” she said. “Those boards that aren’t educated in the business of the trustee world, a whole distance field of study, statistically do not do as well. The more trustees are educated in the business of being a trustee, overall, their board functions better with their CEO and the better the school does on these accreditations.”
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‘Reasonable Man’ elected to Governing Board By Liz Manring Cochise College’s most recently elected board member is no stranger to education, community colleges or public service. Dennis Nelson and his wife, Lou Ann Sterbick-Nelson, retired about two miles north of Naco in 1998 and have remained active in nearby communities ever since. Nelson, a former judge, has previously served on the Bisbee City Council and currently sits on the Copper Queen Community Hospital board of directors and is a member of the Bisbee Rotary Club in addition to the Cochise College Governing Board, to which he was elected in January for a six-year term. Nelson’s prior experiences in public service, in Cochise County, Alaska and the Pacific Northwest, have been more beneficial in his first year on the college governing board than his knowledge as a judge. “City councils are a little more contentious, while the college board is more collegial,” he laughed. “It's a play on words, but it really is much more pleasant. … Working with JD Rottweiler, the college president, what I've noticed is it's consistently about doing what's in the best interest of the students. We’re constantly thinking of the students first before we do anything else. That's been the most salient thing that's come to my attention. They live up to that.” Nelson grew up in Alaska and earned a Bachelor of Arts in history from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and a Master of Arts in secondary education from the University of Alaska Anchorage. He received his Juris Doctor from Gonzaga University, where he met his wife, who also holds a law degree and is a former attorney. Nelson was a magistrate in the Kodiak court for the state of Alaska for four years. While living in Kodiak, he was also a public school district governing board member and taught GED courses at the community college. The couple then moved closer to Sterbick-Nelson's family in Washington, where Nelson served as a judge for tribal courts, before retiring to southern Arizona.
Our Mission Cochise College provides accessible educational opportunities that are responsive to a diverse population and lead to constructive citizenship, meaningful careers and lifelong learning. The Cochise College Foundation promotes student success through scholarships, facilities development, and program support.
“The community college offers a door to job opportunities, to better life experiences,” he said. “Arizona has a horrendous high school dropout rate, and this offers an opportunity not only for kids, but also adults. My mother was 48 and got her GED, and it opened up a whole new world for her, and it does that for so many people. Just having this educational resource here is wonderful. Cochise County is truly blessed to have a college.”
Ways to Give Donor contributions help provide thousands of dollars in scholarships and program support each year. You can help support these and other college activities in a variety of ways.
Sterbick-Nelson said her husband has always had a vested interest in the communities in which they’ve lived, and she describes Nelson as “brilliant and very kind.” “He's very low-key, peaceful and just very level,” she said. “There was an interim association of tribal judges from the Northwest, and when he left there in 1998, they gave him a plaque calling him the ‘Ultimate Reasonable Man.’”
• Establish an Annual or Endowed Fund • Planned Gifts • Personal Property • Real Estate • Cash and Pledges • Matching Gifts
Nelson said he intends to keep active on boards, councils and in other forms of community service for as long as he can.
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“The people who came before me provided me with a good education and opportunity, and I’d like to continue with that tradition,” he said. “Like so many of us, I was the first person in my family to graduate from college, and community colleges offer a way to get out of that lower income strata and improve yourself. Besides, knowing stuff is fun; I really enjoy it.”
Look for more news reflecting Cochise College’s strategic priorities in future publications: • Competitive advantages • Excellence • Everything speaks • Completion
Sterbick-Nelson now manages the Belleza Gallery in Bisbee and creates artwork in her spare time. Nelson taught a paralegal class as a member of the Cochise College associate faculty shortly after moving to the area. He said he appreciates the accessibility that community colleges provide.
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Team’s moving actions memorable for basketball alum By Liz Manring The gym is hot. Drills are nonstop. And coaches keep yelling for more energy and better effort. It’s a typical men’s basketball practice on a Friday afternoon in Stronghold Gymnasium. “Man, I miss this place,” Pete Morales laughs. And he’s completely serious. Morales is a 2000 Cochise College graduate and former Apache basketball player who was on the team that achieved the program’s first Region I championship and went to the national tournament. You might also recognize him as the Coronado (El Paso) High School boy’s basketball coach who had something to do with a story that went viral in February. In the final game of last year’s regular season, Morales and his Thunderbirds squad welcomed their team manager, Mitchell Marcus, who has a developmental disability, to suit up for the game and play in the final minute. Try as they might to get him a basket, each shot fell short and the final pass from his teammates went off his hands and out of bounds. But on the following inbound play, the opposing team’s player Jonathon Montanez passed the ball right to Mitchell, and he turned around to make a shot, sending the whole crowd into a roar of cheers.
Coach Jerry Carrillo
The video has been shared across countless Facebook profiles and Twitter feeds and has thousands of views on YouTube. The story was featured on CBS Evening News, ESPN and the Ellen DeGeneres Show. Morales, the players and parents were invited to NCAA and NBA games. “It was a great experience, because it was for an amazing person,” Morales said. “For one decision to let somebody live their dream, it’s something I’ll never forget.” Coaching the opposing team, the rival Franklin High School Cougars, that night was another Cochise alum, Todd Bostic, who played during 2001-03. “There’s a documentary filming in El Paso right now, telling the story,” Morales said. “We’re still getting calls about it, so it’s truly been an amazing experience.” Morales, originally from El Paso, took the job at Coronado three years ago. His teams have now won back-to-back district championships after a title drought that went back to 1992. He said his time spent at Cochise under head men’s basketball coach Jerry Carrillo stuck with him as he completed his time as a player and became a coach himself. “It’s doing things the right way, paying attention to detail, not only on the basketball court, but in life as well,” Morales said. “Every day, he taught us you’re either going to come to work or not. That’s the mindset we established with our team.” He said buying into that concept is what made the 1999-2000 Cochise men’s basketball team successful. Morales went on to complete his bachelor’s degree in education and close his playing career at New Mexico Highlands University, followed by earning his master’s degree in athletic administration from Sul Ross State University. Returning to his old campus in Douglas in mid-October, Morales not only noticed the renovated gymnasium lobby and locker rooms, but he also wondered where the townhouse-style dorms were when he was in school. Picking up a basketball and taking a few shots in the gym, though, felt exactly the same. “If I could come back, I would do it in a heartbeat,” he said. “Just to be around this atmosphere. You want to be here, and you want to learn each and every day.” Pete Morales ('00)
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New face lifts athletics environment By Liz Manring Cochise College completed an overhaul of athletics facilities at the end of the summer, with Stronghold Gymnasium seeing an expanded weight room and locker rooms, significant improvements to the baseball field, and new offices. Stronghold Gymnasium was built in 1967, the last building erected as part of the original construction plans of the Douglas Campus, which opened in 1964. Since then, the gym has never seen an all-inclusive renovation. Funding of similar deferred maintenance projects is going to be a bigger challenge moving forward, as schools no longer receiving capital funding from the state are forced to balance tough decisions between upkeep of aging facilities and investing in academic programs. “The people who have come through the facility said, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me; this is so nice,’” said Athletic Director Bo Hall. “The ones who knew what it looked like are saying, ‘Wow.’ And the new people who wouldn’t know the difference are saying, ‘Wow.’” Everything in Stronghold Gymnasium except the basketball court and bleachers was overhauled. The locker rooms were renovated and moved from one side of the building to another. Previously separate, the weight room and fitness lab were united into one expanded space. The lobby received a makeover, coaches’ and athletic director offices were moved, and the physical training room was enlarged. Teams now have a space in which to watch game films. In addition to the gym, the baseball field saw renovations to the dugouts, backstop, fences and bullpens. Hall played baseball for the Apaches, graduated in 1971 with an Associate of Arts degree, and returned to Cochise in 1984 as an instructor and coach before becoming the athletic director. He remembers many walls being knocked down and built up in other places over the years and recalled when what used to be the print shop was the wrestling room and what used to be the fitness lab was the gymnastics room. Members of the Cochise women's basketball team, which last year sent seven players to Division I and II schools, work out in the remodeled weight room and fitness lab. Photo by Rick Whipple
“We didn’t have women’s athletics when that space was built, so one of the problems we’ve always had is locker room space for visiting teams, which is fixed now,” Hall said. “We’ve seen a lot of improvements across the entire Douglas Campus, not only in this facility, which will benefit all our students as well as athletes. I think what we’re seeing is our president has made a commitment to the Douglas Campus.”
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College seeks memorabilia New fund benefits Bisbee in advance of 50th graduating seniors When Lisa Acuña Morris passed away in April 2007, people anniversary started sending money to her parents, presumably to help with
The year is 1964.
The Beatles appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show. Lyndon Johnson was elected president. The government issued the Warren Report, concluding that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. The surgeon general declared that smoking causes cancer. St. Louis won the World Series. And Cochise College opened. The excitement of having a new college that provided access where none previously existed pervaded those early years. And how things were different! A 1966 alum will tell you there were no women’s sports. I-10 didn’t exist, so all sorts of people traveling east to west and back again passed through Douglas, Ariz., sometimes stopping to give a performance. The populations of Douglas and Bisbee dictated the placement of the college’s first location. The college served the “outlying” areas of Fort Huachuca, Willcox and Benson almost immediately. Later, it opened a second campus in Sierra Vista, as well as centers in the smaller communities, making educational opportunity accessible to a growing number of traditional and adult students throughout the county. What do you remember and cherish about Cochise College? It’s preparing to celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2014-2015, so we’d love to know. Bring us your memorabilia, your college pennants, your photos, and your stories. Email or call the Office of External Affairs at (520) 417-4735 or berumenr@cochise.edu. Items can be mailed to Cochise College, Office of External Affairs, 4190 W. Highway 80, Douglas, AZ 85607.
expenses. But Bill and Cathy Acuña didn’t feel right spending it, so they decided to use it to make higher education more accessible to students in their hometown of Bisbee. Prior to her death at the age of 39, Lisa worked as a respiratory therapist at Tucson Medical Center. Diversity and people contact drew her to that career, and she also was interested in the work of transporting emergency patients or working at locations across the nation as a rotating therapist. “Anything that has to do with the lungs has to do with me,” she said in a 1992 article published in “Career World” magazine. Lisa had undergone five brain surgeries, been declared cancer free, gotten married, and had six excellent years, according to her mom, before cancer was found in her liver. Bill and Cathy managed the scholarship themselves, at first awarding it to students pursuing healthcare training, and later simply to those in need. Hearing their story, representatives of the Bisbee 1,000 Great Stair Climb asked them to participate in the annual event by making and selling breakfast burritos and using the proceeds in support of the scholarship. That was six years ago. Now, the Acuñas have established a new fund with the Cochise College Foundation, which next year will work with Cochise College to identify recipients who are Bisbee High School graduating seniors earning a 2.0 to 3.5 grade point average and enrolling in any area of study at Cochise College. The fund will award a $500 scholarship annually, and the Acuñas hope to grow it into an endowment in order to be able to award the scholarship in Lisa’s name in perpetuity. In addition to knowing that their daughter lives on in the educational attainment of those they’re helping, the Acuñas also have the good fortune of remembering her through their great granddaughter, Lisa Marie. Bill, a Bisbee native, and Cathy, who moved there at the age of 10, also have a son, Richard, who works as a police officer in San Antonio. Students will automatically be considered for the scholarship when they complete their federal aid application next spring; the priority deadline is May 1. Contributions to the Lisa Acuña Morris Scholarship can be made at cochise.edu/give or mailed to the Cochise College Foundation, 4190 W. Highway 80, Douglas, AZ 85607.
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Clinical experience puts face on autism Story and photos by Liz Manring Cochise College students needed a place to complete part of their final year of the nursing program. Echoing Hope Ranch welcomed them.
Echoing Hope opened its doors in Hereford last January as a place for teens and adults with autism to be productive in a peaceful, supportive environment. The ranch offers residential services as well as a day program.
Students who successfully complete their nursing degree are eligible to take the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses, also known as the NCLEX-RN. But first, second-year students must finish a rigorous year-long schedule that rotates them through hands-on clinical units in med-surg, advanced med-surg, surgical rotation, critical care and mental health, culminating in preceptorship: a one-on-one intensive with a registered nurse. Linda Vincent, a full-time instructor at Cochise since 2010, teaches and coordinates the mental health sessions each year. When the Southeastern Arizona Psychiatric Health Facility in Benson closed at the end of last spring, she had to find a new place for her students to complete that rotation. From left, Kristi Cormier, Angela Humphries and Sarah Cook.
That's where Echoing Hope Ranch came in.
Cochise nursing student Angela Humphries colors with Jesus at Echoing Hope Ranch.
“We started this because there’s such a lack of programs, really across the nation, but specifically in Cochise County, there aren't many services at all for people with autism,” said Marla Guerrero, executive director of Echoing Hope. “Most of our board of directors have either children or grandchildren with autism. Our goal is to create a program that we can serve people with autism as they age with a program that's allowing them to grow and discover and become even more complex people than when they were in school.” During their mental health rotation, which lasts three weeks, Cochise students must also attend group organization meetings within the community, such Continued on page 10
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Autism Continued from page 9 as Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), and the Wellness Connection, in addition to working with Echoing Hope for one eight-hour session. “This way, they have something in their mental toolkit, to be able to say to a future client or patient, ‘I know how to get you the help you need,’” Vincent said. “These organizations have been incredibly receptive to having our nursing students. These people have found ways of coping with issues in their lives and can offer a phenomenal perspective for the students to be able to take away for their future work.” Stephanie Williams, 28, was one of the first Cochise nursing students to work with Echoing Hope residents. She said she was anxious at first, since her personal experiences with mental health were limited prior to her visit, but she left with a new perspective. During her day at the ranch, she sat with residents and removed seeds from spaghetti squash, painted clay sculptures and worked on creating picture cards to be used with daily schedules. “It's very different than when we go to the hospital and things are very structured,” Williams said. “The atmosphere at the ranch is very relaxed and you just follow the lead of the residents. But there is that push to have them step outside the box and try new things.”
Nursing students Angela Humphries, left, and Sarah Cook build blocks with Rachel at Echoing Hope Ranch.
Williams said when she entered the nursing program, she had her sights set on working in oncology, but after experiencing other aspects of the medical field, she said she wouldn't be surprised if she ends up looking into pursuing a career in mental health.
“Now, I don't feel like an expert, but I know how to recognize autism and I now know that I can give a future patient some information that might help to better care for them,” she said. “We study the book, and we need to know the black and white of it so we can pass our tests, but to put a face to what we're learning and put someone's life and real-time experience to what we're reading in the book, our learning comes full circle, everything connects.” Guerrero said the ranch's primary mission is looking for every available opportunity for residents to experience growth, which means the community is an essential and integral part in achieving that goal. Other student organizations are itching to get involved, too; Cochise College Student Government of Sierra Vista is planning a day trip to the ranch to paint fences. “Students bring an incredible energy, positive attitude and willingness to try anything,” Guerrero said. “The freshness they bring is so delightful, and they usually come up with great results.”
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ONLINE JOB PLATFORM SERVES ALUMNI, EMPLOYERS An online job-search and posting tool is now available to Cochise College alumni and students, as well as local employers. College Central Network is an online platform that connects alumni and students with off-campus jobs. Job seekers can search listings, create a resume, apply for jobs, build a career portfolio, attend career events and more. Employers, locally and beyond, register through EmployerCentral.com, a division of the College Central Network, to be able to post jobs. Managed by the college Human Resources office, the platform provides a real service to Cochise College constituents and underscores the college’s role in workforce development.
NEWS OF ALUMNI & FRIENDS Michael (Munster) Acevedo attended Cochise from 1983 to 1985 and remembers a prank in which someone cut the batting tunnel nets the same weekend the final cuts for the baseball team were made. Acevedo went on to become a teacher, athletic director, and baseball and golf coach. He is employed with Tucson Unified School District. Aaron Ahearn, who last attended Cochise in 2011, is a military intelligence collector with the U.S. Army. Nathan Aloisio (’13) is a material coordinator with Vicks Lithograph & Printing in Yorkville, NY. William Alsobrook (’12) of Utah is a human intelligence analyst with BKM Global. Donald Barnes earned an AAS in electronics in 1999 and the Cisco Networking Technician certificate in 2007 and is now pursuing a bachelor’s degree. Deborah Barrett (’89, ’92) earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Western International University and is HBSS technical lead with government contractor Modus OperandI, Inc. Jose Carpenanunez (’09) is an electronics engineer and intelligence sergeant with U.S. Army Reserves Defense Contract Management Agency.
John Sauer (’66) was recruited to the first Cochise College basketball team and here poses with the 2013-2014 Apaches. Imagine his surprise when he arrived for Alumni Weekend in October and discovered an oversized photo of his teammates on the wall of the renovated gymnasium. He owns Walt’s Distributors, a marketing and promotional products company in Tucson. Gary Cross (’97), retired from the U.S. Air Force 162nd fighter wing, taught English as a Second Language, and is race director for the Arizona-Sonora Ultra Runners and Walkers. Catherine (Witt) Davis (’10) is a program services evaluator with the Department of Economic Security Family Assistance Administration and recently enrolled her son at Cochise College. Lawana Diffie (’72) worked in information technology for many years and now owns Two Flags Computer Training Co. in Douglas.
Lynn Edgar (’82) earned a degree in music and is a systems librarian with Texas Tech University.
Adam Hurst (’09) studied intelligence operations at Cochise and is a student at the University of Utah.
Terah Milledge last attended Cochise in 2011 and is a maintainer with the U.S. Air Force in Alaska.
Michael Farrell (’13) studied intelligence operations human intelligence collector and went on to enroll full time at the University of Arizona.
Kenneth Lebowitz (’10) combined American Military University and Cochise College credits to complete his degree in human intelligence collector.
Carol Geyer (’03) is a certified nursing assistant in Sierra Vista.
Melissa Loreto (’94) is a correctional officer with the Arizona Department of Corrections.
Cochise College history faculty were an inspiration for George Montano, who played baseball from 1972 to 1974 and transferred to Northern Arizona University to earn a degree in secondary education with a minor in history. Today, he is a principal with Douglas Unified School District, where he’s been a teacher, baseball coach and administrator for 30 years.
Bridget Hayes (’90) describes her associate degree in professional administrative assistant as the beginning of a new life. She went on to earn a bachelor’s degree and is now the lead finance billing operations manager with AT&T and resides in Birmingham, Ala.
Lydia (Chavez) MartinezRivera (’09) is a registered nurse with HealthSouth R.I.T.
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Continued from page 11 Cynthia (Alderman, Schenk) Nelson (’06) is an air traffic controller with the U.S. Army. Leilani Nissen (’83), a former cheerleader and physical education department employee, is a teacher with Mesa Public Schools. Sherry Nolen (’88) is trying to reconnect with old friends. Contact alumni@cochise.edu if you’re interested in getting in touch.
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Charles Prest attended Cochise from 1999 to 2000 and is now an adjunct faculty member at Maricopa Community College. Terence Puhlman (’01, ’03) is a contractor with Booz Allen Hamilton. Marisela Flores Rendon started her education in Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico, before her family moved closer to the border and she became an ESL student and earned a degree in 1987.
A pilot with United Airlines, Sally Roever-Work (’80) was a flight instructor at Cochise after graduation and then earned a bachelor’s degree in aviation management from Southern Illinois University through a program offered to civilians at Davis Monthan Air Force Base. She also worked for Frontier Airlines and Midway Airlines, and her experience includes cargo, corporate and Federal Aviation Administration work. She’s flown the DC-3, DC-9, B-727, B737, and A-320. Rodney Scott, who attended in 1989 and again in 2008-2009, works in exporting and quality control. Kimberly Sonner (’04) is a licensed practical nurse with Fresenius Medical Care in Chesapeake, Va. Jordan Summers studied intelligence operations as a military student until 2008 and is now pursuing a bachelor’s degree. Karen Thomas, once a resident of the dorms, studied liberal arts and graduated in 1977. She retired as an office worker. Robyn (Brown) Vogel’s friendship with two Australian baseball players who’d been recruited to Cochise resulted in her playing basketball from 1982 until her graduation in May 1984. She recalls lifeguarding and spending summers in New Mexico with a fellow athlete. She received a scholarship to attend Western New Mexico University but ultimately returned to Australia, where she resides today.
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Eamonn Walsh (’11) retired from the U.S. Army and now works for NASA as a security police officer at Wallops Island Launch Facility in Virginia. Bruce Wertz attended Cochise from 1966 to 1968, later transferring to New Mexico Highlands University to play tennis and earn a bachelor’s degree in history. He worked at his family’s sporting goods store, then as a substitute teacher with the Las Vegas (New Mexico) City Schools, as a tennis coach, and later as a clerk, retiring in 2011. Tracy Wilkins (’13) is a registered nurse with Tucson’s Northwest Medical Center. After earning a registered nursing degree, (Helen) Marguerite Wright (’06) worked in rehabilitation at a Sierra Vista health facility, then moved to a job at Meadows Regional Medical Center in Vidalia, Ga. Today, she is a super pool registered nurse, dispatched to cover the four acute care hospitals in the Lee Memorial Health System in Florida’s Lee County. IN MEMORIAM Col. Roy A. Kane, Administrator, May 21, 2013 • George Huncovsky, Faculty Emeritus, Sept. 10, 2013 • Laurie Stratton, Administrative Assistant, Nov. 4, 2013 • Steve Strom, Security Officer, Nov, 8, 2013 Share your news and updates at www.cochise.edu/alumni or email alumni@cochise.edu.
Scholarships alleviate financial pressure By Liz Manring
2013-14 SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS
The Cochise College Foundation awarded more than $340,000 in scholarships for the 2013-14 school year and honored recipients and donors at a dinner in September. The foundation is a nonprofit organization that promotes student success at Cochise College through scholarships, facilities development and program support. The foundation is led by a board of directors, and it's supported by donors who create and contribute to student scholarships. Benson resident Cherry Moffit is one of the Cochise College students who was awarded a foundation scholarship for this year. The freshman nursing student and single mother spoke at the foundation's annual dinner held on the Sierra Vista Campus on Sept. 5 about the impact financial assistance has made on her life already this academic year. “For me, it was important to have the scholarship because it let me focus more on my career in nursing,” she said. “I was able to drop down part time in work. … I’ve always wanted to be a nurse, so I started my career off working as a certified nursing assistant, then became a patient care technician, and now I'm able to progress toward my future as a nurse.” Moffit began pursuing her goals early; as a high school junior, she started on her CNA license and worked at a nursing home. For the last 11 years, she's worked in a pediatric ICU as a patient care technician, and during that time, she lost her son in a car accident. “This tragedy inspired me even more to pursue my career as a nurse,” she said. “I’m also active with the bereavement committee through my job in the pediatric ICU. It is something very special that holds a true meaning of helping others in need.” In addition to scholarships, the Cochise College Foundation provided more than $128,000 in support of college programs, including adult education, the art department, athletics, aviation, the Center for Economic Research, the Creative Writing Celebration, the library and student services. Donors interested in supporting student scholarships and other college activities can do so in a variety of ways, such as establishing an annual or endowed fund, contributing planned gifts, personal property, real estate and matching gifts, or donating cash and making pledges. For more information about giving to the Cochise College Foundation, visit www.cochise.edu/give or call (520) 417-4100.
When Cherry Moffit, Benson, Ariz., decided it was time to go back to school, a scholarship helped her balance work, studies and family. Photo by Ed Roskowski.
Aida Estellean Wick Scholarship Stephanie Aguilar Maria Espinoza Noemi Sogan Claudia Velasquez Alice P. Chancellor Memorial Scholarship Yvonne Antemann Rebekah Brown Kristi Cormier Ann Flake Serena Hernandez Micheal Kaiser Cynthia Martell Tanya Mays Kathya Moreno Marcia Penunuri Danielle Twite Elviana Villasenor Xavier Zaragoza Askew Childcare Scholarship Mandy Beckler Sharon Gloshay Iva Hodges Jessica Rust Michelle Williams Barnes & Noble "Full-Time” Scholarship Melissa Bawkin Alexis Benton Katherine Decker Haydee Hallett Devian Hurtado Michelle Williams Barnes & Noble "Part-Time” Scholarship Whitney Cordero Nora Luna Patricia Venegas Jessica Wooldridge Battaglia Family Scholarship Brigette Rubi Christine Shelton Benjamin V. and Astrid C. Blom Memorial Scholarship Angela Lucero Sarah Nikkari Benson Merchant's Association Scholarship Karma Cook Betty Starysky Memorial Scholarship Jackie Bruce Whitney Cordero Deborah Page-Thompson Marcia Penunuri Loren Porter Brigette Rubi Christine Shelton Aaron Smith Lorena Vasquez Jessica Wooldridge
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Bill Saathoff Memorial Scholarship Mario Gutierrez Brenda Axline Memorial Scholarship Amy Van Wesep Stephanie Williams Xavier Zaragoza Carlotta S. Madril Scholarship Victor Lopez Charles C. and Frances T. DiPeso Memorial Scholarship Casey Whitney Charles J. Dunn and William Dunn Scholarship Juan Romero Christina M. Flores Memorial Scholarship Xavier Zarazoga Clara V. Memorial Ellis Scholarship Devian Hurtado Sergio Leyva Saul Ocanas Nevarez Kayla Parra Jeremiah Rebustes Joel Villa Classified Association Full-Time Scholarship Brittany Arevalo Melissa Becerra Jackelene Garcia Sharon Gloshay Kristina King Angela Lucero Alexis Lugo Sierra Phillips Heather Robinson Michelle Williams Classified Association Part-Time Scholarship Christine Chaney Amanda Lewis Nora Luna Rebecca Moore Aaron Smith Classified Association Scholarship "Meet Your Major" Scholarship Yeongil Kim Jesus Meneses Cochise College Nursing Scholarship Marcia Penunuri Cochise College Scholars Scholarship Natalie Melton Sarah Nikkari Stephany Romero Jessica Sueskind Cochise County Independent Insurance Agents Scholarship Rebecca Moore Col. Isabelle Bagin Scholarship Mandy Beckler Angela Humphries Darryl Duncan Memorial Scholarship Alan Gillespie Deanna Sims Memorial Scholarship Kayla Gonzales Tirsten Luna Jennifer Olsen Shanyia Parker Stephany Romero Casey Whitney Dick Curtis Memorial Scholarship Stephany Icedo
Dick Wilkinson Memorial Scholarship Melissa Bawkin Distinguished Phi Theta Kappa Graduate Scholarship Kasey Busick Don and Virginia Butterfield Scholarship Kayla Parra Jeremiah Rebustes Doyle T. Smith Jr. Memorial Scholarship Colin Acey Dr. and Mrs. Rehurek Scholarship Angela Lucero Sierra Phillips Dr. Dwight Wensel Memorial Scholarship Ashley Alston Dr. John and Mary Eaton Scholarship Natalie Melton Dr. Kerry Henrickson Memorial Scholarship Danielle Twite Dr. Ralph Arnold Nursing Scholarship Tanya Mays Sharon McFate Heather Robertson Vivian Sealey Patricia Zarate Estelle L. Mountcastle Memorial Scholarship Sharon McFate Geeks and Nerds Scholarship (Full-Time) Brittany Arevalo Micheal Kaiser Alexis Lugo Tirsten Luna Michelle Williams Geeks and Nerds Scholarship (Part-Time) Cynthia Franklin Jennifer Gruden Nora Luna Ludim Retana Kara Strawn Steven Upson German American Club Scholarship Loren Porter Guy Hollis Memorial Scholarship Natalie Melton Herrmann Scholarship Karma Cook Honors Program Fund Melissa Becerra Ricardo Martinez Elizabeth McLaughlin Jackie Pekar Dawn Strasshofer Blake Suarez Jessica Sueskind IME BECAS Fund Cassandra Aguilar Cruz Arellanes Jesus Atondo Blanca Castro Karina Cortinas Luis Herrera Andrea Mares Pablo Montan
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Fernando Pacheco Alexandra Peralta Ingwald Rosok Memorial Scholarship Kayla Gonzales Brittney Ray Juan Romero Victor Valdez International Student Scholarship Jose Corral J. Douglas and Lillie Wright Scholarship Melissa Becerra Jackelene Garcia Louie Garcia Monica Garcia Magdalena Hernandez Devian Hurtado Victor Lopez Alexis Lugo Saul Ocanas Nevarez Jessica Baylis Bousfield Art Scholarship Rhonda Marcel Joe and Gladys Ziede Memorial Scholarship Sergio Leyva John Cramer "Full-Time" Scholarship Melissa Becerra Mandy Beckler Jackelene Garcia Michelle Williams John Cramer "Part-Time" Scholarship Amanda Lewis Christine Shelton John F. Richards Memorial Scholarship Allison Ford Emily Gudvangen Kenneth Gunter Memorial Scholarship Klancy Best Joshua Winans Kurdeka-Michelich Family Fund Seth Brymer Lisa Diane (Smith) Speer, RN Scholarship Jennifer Olsen Louis and Mary Towle Memorial Scholarship Sharon Gloshay Madelyn Pinto Memorial Scholarship Anissa Flores Darrell Jackson Tiffany Lopez Jonluke Villasenor Manny Rivera Scholarship Cintia Barraza Stephany Icedo Mansker Accounting Scholarship Kara Strawn Michelle Williams Margaret Kent STEM Pathway Scholarship Andrea Acuna Alexander Akridge Andrew Barney Alisson Bucher Aaron Cangiolosi Jose Capestany Xenia Correa Cedric Dorn Adam Douglas
Ivory Emineth Manuel Enriquez Yi Gerard John Gonzales Tyler Gridley Andre Hall Benjamin Hatch Paul Houston Benjamin Irwin Cody Iwertz Brooklyn Jenkins Tristan Jones Samantha Lanoue Robert Millhollon Krysten Moore Kayley Moss Dale Mundt Jose Nevarez Thao Ngo Nicholas Pehrson Ian Pottebaum Richie Ren Victoria Sanders Jeffrey Scott Justin Serfino Tristin Solarzano Kyle Swift Dayna Wright Alex Zhao Mario J. Mersinger Memorial Scholarship Melissa Becerra Martha Bordelois Spanish Club Scholarship Khody Denton Mikki Waddell Scholarship Kassandra Wilhelm Music Program Fund Scott Lewis Northrop Grumman Aviation Scholarship Karlo Favela Northrop Grumman Innovation Campus STEM Scholarship Roberto Coronado Louie Garcia Magdalena Hernandez Jazmin Hernandez Kayla Parra Pearl Ables Memorial Scholarship Annette Haygens Paula Chaffin Mastin Memorial Scholarship Rafael Aponte Philip Wells Phyllis Davis Memorial Scholarship Jennifer Olsen Project Graduation Scholarship Patrick Wegner Mark Westermann Krista Westover Robison Family Scholarship Amanda Lewis Rosemont Copper Company Scholarship Lorena Vasquez SGT. M. Matthew Merila Memorial Scholarship Danielle Campos Sid and Ione Mosow Scholarship Angela Lucero Southern Arizona Foundation Scholarship Mandy Beckler Angela Humphries Cherry Moffit Jennifer Olsen
Marcia Penunuri Rachel Rodriguez Amy Van Wesep Xavier Zaragoza Patricia Zarate Spikes Scholarship Devian Hurtado Sergio Leyva Jeremiah Rebustes Daniel Rosales Jr. Steve Thrasher Scholarship Rachel Rodriguez Sulphur Springs Valley Electric "Full-Time" Scholarship Sarah Cook Judith Egner Loren Porter Jessica Sueskind Sulphur Springs Valley Electric "Part-Time" Scholarship Jennifer Gruden Mario Gutierrez Taylor Family Memorial Scholarship Meranda Wilkes Theodore Gebler Tuition Grant Scholarship Edelmira Alcaraz Karolina Arce Marco Espinoza Jenniffer Estrada Miguel Gomez Margarita Gonzalez Alexis Grambs Sebastian Guevedo Brenda Ramirez Damian Ramirez Michelle Rodriguez Jose Salazar Wilda Kuntz BPO Does #230 Memorial Scholarship Devian Hurtado Kayla Parra Daniel Rosales Jr. Willcox Center Fund Scott Phillips Wolslager Foundation Scholarship Louie Garcia Breanna Glaze Heather Hunter Karen Knudtson Jose Livanios Katie Martin Ricardo Martinez Sarah Nikkari Kaitlyn O'Rahilly Shanyia Parker Nathan Posey Anna Reza Danitza Robles-Hoyos Cameron Tarbox Ashley Watkins Women & Children's Hope Foundation Bisbee High School Scholarship Kayla Gonzales Jonluke Villasenor Women & Children's Hope Foundation Douglas High School Scholarship Kayla Parra Jeremiah Rebustes
Cochise College Foundation
2012-2013 ANNUAL REPORT Growth of Total Assets at Year End
Fund Balances at Year End Unrestricted $842,091 11.5% Dollars
Temporarily Restricted $4,592,1591 62.5%
Permanently Restricted $1,905,183 26%
Total = $7,339,433
$8,000,000 $7,000,000 $6,000,000 $5,000,000 $4,000,000 $3,000,000 $2,000,000 $1,000,000 $0 2009
2011 2012 Fiscal Year
2013
Total Assets = $7,339,433
2013 Expenditures
2013 Income Permanently Restricted $55,000 2%
Unrestricted $665,594 30%
2010
Administrative $78,113 15%
Scholarships $344,614 65%
Program Support $104,379 20%
Temporarily Restricted $1,507,138 68%
Total Contributions = $2,227,732
Total Expenditures = $527,106
Includes investment and gift income. Unrestricted includes net assets released from restriction.
During 2012-2013… Gifts to the Cochise College Foundation resulted in: • The awarding of more than $340,000 in scholarships • The provision of more than $128,000 in support of college programs, including Adult Education, Art Department, Athletics, Aviation, Center for Economic Research, Classified Association, Compact Program, Creative Writing Celebration, Library, Nursing/Allied Health, Professional Development, Nursing Department, and Student Services/Tutors.
Cherry Moffit was the guest speaker at the foundation's annual meeting in September. Photo by Ed Roskowski
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FIRST GRADS Dr. Bill Harwood, Cochise College president in 1965, congratulates the first graduating class, which consisted of Freddie Necoechea, right, Maretta Ramirez and Norman Hill. If you know their whereabouts, call (520) 417-4735 or email alumni@cochise.edu.
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