PRESIDENT’S REPORT | March 2013
Community college grads outearn bachelor’s degree holders
The St. Charles Community College Student Veteran Organization received six military flags as a gift from Hal Berry, SCC professor of history and theater.
SCC history professor donates military flags SCC received six military flags as a gift from Hal Berry, SCC professor of history and theater. The new flags, representing the Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard, along with the POW/MIA flag, were first used during SCC’s November 2012 Veterans Day Celebration and currently are on display outside the college’s student veteran lounge in the Administration Building on campus. “The flags are an outstanding reminder of our service to our country,” said Angela Peacock, president of the SCC Student
Veteran Organization. “SCC has been very supportive of our veterans here, and I’m proud to pursue my education here.” Berry served in the U.S. Navy and has been teaching at SCC since the first classes began more than 25 years ago. He has more than 40 years experience as a teacher, a bachelor’s degree in social sciences and three master’s degrees in history, film and theater. To learn more about services for veterans on campus, the Student Veteran Organization and Honoring Military Families Scholarship at SCC, contact Tomi Schwandt at 636-9228268 or tschwandt@stchas.edu
Student Veteran Organization to hold Military Family and Community Expo The Student Veteran Organization will host the SVO Military Family and Community Expo from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Wednesday, April 3, at SCC. The Expo will provide current service members, veterans and military families access to extensive and diverse resources and
support. Organizations with ties to the veterans community have been invited to have a table in the SSB auditorium to promote their services and provide materials. The event is free and open to the public. Enjoy booths, BBQ and fun activities for the entire family!
Berevan Omer graduated on a Friday in February with an associate’s degree from Nashville State Community College and started work the following Monday as a computer-networking engineer at a local television station, making about $50,000 a year. That’s 15 percent higher than the average starting salary for graduates – not only from community colleges, but for bachelor’s degree holders from four-year universities. Omer, who is 24, is one of many newly minted graduates of community colleges defying history and stereotypes by proving that a bachelor’s degree is not, as widely believed, the only ticket to a middle-class income. Nearly 30 percent of Americans with associate’s degrees now make more than those with bachelor’s degrees, according to Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce. Other recent research in several states shows that, on average, community college graduates right out of school make more than four-year graduates. The average wage for graduates of community colleges in Tennessee, for instance, is $38,948 – more than $1,300 higher than the average salaries for graduates of the state’s four-year institutions. “There is that perception that the bachelor’s degree is the default, and, quite frankly, before we started this work showing the value of a technical associate’s degree, I would have said that, too,” says Mark Schneider, vice president of the American Institutes for Research, which helped collect the earning numbers for some states. And while by mid-career, many bachelor’s degree recipients have caught up in earnings to community college grads, “the other factor that has to be taken into account is that getting a fouryear degree can be much more expensive than getting a two-year degree,” Schneider says. Read the whole story at www.hechingerreport.org.
SCC hosts 16th annual High School Math Tournament SCC, in cooperation with Great Plains Math League, hosted the 16th annual high school math tournament Saturday, March 9, in the Administration Building. Made possible by an SCC Foundation minigrant, SCC charged only $1 per student this year. SCC encouraged both first-time and returning students to get involved. The tournament, for high school students in grades 9-12, showcased mathematical skills and allowed students to compete professionally among peers to win awards, compete at the state event and qualify for scholarships. “We always look forward to this event and seeing students enjoying and pursing mathematics,” said Joe Howe, SCC mathematics professor. Eleven schools participated, including 42 students who took home some 49 ribbons and trophies.
A team from Fort Zumwalt South High School prepares for competition in the 15th annual Robotics Challenge on Friday, March 1, at St. Charles Community College.
SCC and General Motors sponsor 15th annual Robotics Challenge
April 14 – Women’s Softball vs. Maple Woods, 1 p.m. stchas.edu/athletics
Future engineers from middle and high schools in St. Charles and Lincoln counties put their STEM subjects – science, technology, engineering and math – into practice on March 1 at the 15th annual Robotics Challenge hosted by General Motors Wentzville Assembly Center and the St. Charles Community College Workforce Development Department. Student teams designed, built, programmed and presented robots made with LEGO® MINDSTORMS® robotics kits, modeling them after a real-life automatic storage and retrieval system GM uses to manufacture automobiles. Brian Steber, senior manufacturing engineer at the General Motors Wentzville Assembly Center, wrote the challenge for students to follow, using LEGOs and cookies. “It’s a great opportunity for students to learn skills used in manufacturing careers, and have some fun at the same time,” said Steber. Students were judged on their teamwork, presentation, design and engineering. The judges were current and retired engineers, from a variety of backgrounds. Following the competition, judges offered expertise and words of encouragement to the students.
April 27 – RUN. LIVE. LEARN. run events and wellness expo, stchas.edu/run
SCC Marketing Department brings home two awards from national competition
Through May 5 – Art Department Faculty Exhibition, FAB Art Gallery
SCC received two national-level Paragon awards from the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations, an affiliate council of the American Association of Community Colleges. The SCC Office of Marketing and Communications took home Silver Paragons in the Sports Brochure category for the 2012 Women’s Soccer Guide and in the Annual Report
FAFSA Frenzy helps students, families learn how to apply for college aid The Missouri Association of Federal Student Aid and the Missouri Department of Higher Education partnered to bring the College Goal Sunday program, called FAFSA Frenzy, to SCC on Feb. 17. FAFSA Frenzy assists students and parents with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) process by having financial aid professionals on hand to help.
CALENDAR NOTES March 22-24 – Young People’s Theatre, The Scarlet Pimpernel, stchastickets.com April 6 – Men’s Baseball vs. Crowder, SCC fields, 1 p.m. stchas.edu/athletics
May 10 – Rhythm & Ribs scholarship fundraising event, SCC campus, rhythmand-ribs.com See more events at stchas.edu/calendar.
“You are all awesome,” said David Bluhm from Boeing. “The skills that you are learning in this process, believe me, they are real,” Bluhm said. There were 18 teams, organized into two middle school divisions one high school division. First place went to Doofensmer TZ from Barnwell Middle School in the gray division, Cookie Commanders from Barnwell Middle School in the maroon division and K.I.S.S. Industries from Fort Zumwalt South High School in the black division. General Motors Wentzville Assembly Center donated LEGO® MINDSTORMS® kits to the first-place teams. Second place teams were “NMS Cougars” from Fort Zumwalt North Middle School in the gray division, the “Smart Cookies” from Barnwell Middle School in the maroon division and “Bananaz” from Fort Zumwalt South High School in the black division. Third place teams were the “Robo-Rebels” from Assumption in the gray division, “Platy Droid Anonymous” from Barnwell Middle School in the maroon division and Winfield High School in the black division. For more information on the Robotics Challenge or other school-business programs, contact Tammie De Los Santos tdelossantos@stchas.edu.
category for the college’s 2011-12 Annual Report. “These are the most prestigious awards for community college marketing and public relations professionals,” said Heather McDorman, vice president for marketing and communications. “We’re fortunate to have top-level talent here at SCC.” The awards were announced at the annual NCMPR national conference in Chicago in March.