PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
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The
month of May in is the busiest (and happiest) time on our college! It is marked by ceremonies celebrating heroic
achievements and excellence. We’ve had
awards ceremonies, honor society induction, graduations, retirement parties and
Commencement. The long and challenging
semester ended with applause, cheering, laughter and tears of joy. Below, you’ll find a highlight of this happy
season.
The 50th annual
Commencement went off without a hitch.
The event also marked the start of our yearlong 50th anniversary
celebration. The evening was very
successful on several fronts. Back by popular demand, the recessional featured
the Line of Honor where our graduates walked west past a line of faculty who
have contributed to their educational experiences. The pathway took the
graduates, along with faculty, family and friends, to the Health and Sciences
Complex grassy area for photo opportunities and additional refreshments. Many thanks to all those who participated in,
planned or volunteered at the event. You made a difference in helping us to provide a fun, safe
and meaningful celebration!
We heard inspirational messages from keynote speaker
Christina Deckard and student speaker Timothy Snowball. Christina wanted to
become a physicist, but was not permitted to enroll in physics classes at a
four-year university because she was a female. The year was 1978. So, she
returned to her El Cajon home and enrolled at Grossmont College in the Fall
1979 semester. She was the only girl in her physics class at Grossmont College,
and earned an “A” in Robert James’ physics class. Christina transferred to San Diego State
University to earn a bachelor’s degree and master’s degrees from SDSU. She also
taught math and science as an adjunct instructor at Grossmont College from 1989
to 1998. Today, she is an internationally recognized expert in laser
technology.
Timothy did not graduate from
high school, but he graduated with honors with two associate degrees in
Political Science and University Studies. Unfortunately, frequent episodes with
depression left him with a deficiency of units, so he left high school during
his senior year and started working in restaurants. At age 25, with
encouragement from family and friends, he applied to Grossmont College and
enrolled in an American politics class. "Before Grossmont, I did not even
know that Political Science was a college major," he said. In his three
years at Grossmont, Timothy has earned a place on both the President's and Vice
President's Lists and induction into Grossmont College's chapter of Phi Theta
Kappa, an international honors society that recognizes and encourages academic
achievement of two-year college students. Timothy will attend UC Berkeley in
the fall and is a shining example of how Grossmont College changes lives
through education.
As the kickoff to our yearlong 50th anniversary
celebration, we introduced five alums, each one representing each of the
previous five decades. The alums included: Jose Molina Serrano, jazz guitarist,
song writer, producer and band leader (2000s); Sheila Erickson, a nurse manager
in charge of the Acute Stroke and EEG departments at Sharp Grossmont Hospital
(1990s); Brad Daluiso, former NFL player and current financial planning
specialist with Morgan Stanley Smith Barney (1980s); Clara Harris, founder
of Heartland Human Relations
Association, now called the Center for Social Advocacy, and a recent inductee
into the San Diego County Women’s Hall of Fame (1970s); and Ron Oliver with
Edco Disposal (1960s). Ron, who served as student body president during
1966-1967, was adorned in a tie-dye t-shirt with wire-rim granny glasses (think
John Lennon glasses). When his name was announced, Ron stood up and flashed the
peace sign. However, his theatrics were mild compared to his campaign for
student body president in 1966. For the candidates’ debate, he received
permission from the Federal Aviation Administration and arrived in a
helicopter, landing in the campus’ Main Quad area in front of the library.
The Grossmont College Police Academy
celebrated on May 6 the graduation of 20 cadets who comprised the 31st Academy
Graduating Class. The 415 hours of training lasted about 8 months, from
September 11 to May 6. In addition, the
Grossmont College Corrections Academy
held its graduation of 64 cadets on May 13.
Our School of Nursing
recently held its graduation pinning ceremony for its Class of 2011, which
included 47 graduates who earned a two-year associate degree in nursing. The
pinning ceremony is a tradition for graduations of new nurses and the pin bears
the Grossmont College seal and mascot. Established in 1967, Grossmont’s School
of Nursing has graduated more than 5,000 nurses during its four-decade history.
The nursing program is approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN), and is currently in its third year of a five-year accreditation
by the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC). Grossmont
also offers an accelerated path to a bachelor’s degree in nursing for Grossmont
nursing graduates through Grand Canyon University (GCU) in Phoenix. Under a
transfer agreement with GCU, Grossmont nursing students can begin earning their
bachelor’s degree in 16 months following their final semester at Grossmont.
Grossmont students also may be eligible for scholarships if they maintain a 3.0
grade-point-average while enrolled in GCU classes.
Our Office
Professional Training (OPT) program graduated its class of Spring 2011 of
22 students on Friday, June 3. The graduates received a total $3,350 in
scholarships, which they can use for further education and/or job search
expenses. The majority of the graduates, 15, majored in Insurance with seven in
accounting and eight in banking. Nine graduates completed “double majors” and
one completed a “triple major.” Three students – Kathy Austin, Marcia Berger,
and Kim Casillas – each received a national InVEST (Insurance Vocational
Education Student Training) scholarship for $500. OPT also received a generous check from this
group. The OPT program has been training
students at GC for 26 years since 1985. With the newest class of 22 graduates,
we now have graduated 2,180 students from the program. In addition to acquiring
professional skills, the OPT program helps its graduates obtain employment and
become economically self-sufficient.
The National award winner is an OPT
instructor. Bob
Captain, our Insurance instructor in the OPT program, has been recognized by
InVEST as 2011 Instructor of the Year (he also won this award in 2001). Bob
received the National award this week at a meeting of the Insurance Brokers and
Agents of San Diego as part of its I-Day celebration. In his acceptance speech,
Bob mentioned that teaching Insurance at Grossmont College means a lot to him
because he trains students who will later enter the industry; and then he has
the opportunity to work with them as colleagues.
Grossmont Middle College
High School
will graduate 38 seniors on Monday, June 6, at 5:30 p.m. The high school is a
collaborative effort between the Grossmont Union High School District and
Grossmont College. High school students concurrently take classes for both high
school credit and college credits for admission to
a four-year degree. By the time they graduate from high school, most students
have approximately 30 units of college credit. This year’s graduating class of
38 students has earned approximately $150,000 in scholarships.
VOTE FOR GC AS SAN
DIEGO’S BEST
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Every member of the
Grossmont College family is encouraged to vote online for Grossmont College as
the Best Local College in this year’s 15th annual San Diego’s Best Readers’ Poll from the San Diego
Union-Tribune. Let’s not miss this opportunity. The competition is stiff. Voting takes place June 3 through 25.
This year, you will need to be logged in to vote for GC. You can register to
vote at www.signonsandiego.com.
If you try to vote and you are not logged in, you will be automatically sent to
a login/registration page to login or create a new account. When you are logged
in, you will be able to vote once per day per category. Look for Grossmont
College under the “San Diego Life” category. Grossmont was selected as “San
Diego’s Best” in 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008 and 2010. This year’s winners will be
announced in September in the Union-Tribune and on www.signonsandiego.com.
STUDENTS OF
NOTE
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We
want to acknowledge the recent “Students of Note” ceremony that featured honors
to 12 students who were nominated by Grossmont College faculty and staff.
Students are nominated based on struggles they have had to overcome in order to
achieve their goal of graduating or preparing to transfer to a university.
Among the recent honorees was a student with cerebral palsy who is confined to
a wheelchair. Another honoree was born
deaf but it wasn't discovered until he was two years old. Another honoree was a
student who lost her 8 year old son while she was attending school. Instead of
it destroying her, his death motivated her to push forward and complete her
education. Also honored was a student from Africa who had been orphaned as a
young child. The Students of Note
program is run by our EOPS department.
UPCOMING EVENTS
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·
Our nursing students will participate with an exhibit booth in the San Diego East County Chamber of Commerce’s
Summer Healthcare, the largest annual free health fair in San Diego’s East
County region, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday June 11, at the Grossmont
Center mall near the movie theaters. Our students will provide information
about the nursing program and our college. The Chamber expects more than 75 exhibit
booths will feature health screenings for strike, blood pressure and blood
glucose/diabetes, as well as the latest information on health-related
techniques and products.
·
The Student Activities Window (Building #36) is open from 8 a.m. to 2
p.m. and 3 to 6 p.m., Monday through Thursday, for any staff member interested
in purchasing discounted tickets to the 2011
San Diego County Fair. Unlimited and single-day admission tickets are
available, along with ride coupons. For more information, contact Irene Bauza,
ext. 7603.
·
“Grossmont College, Celebrating 50 Years!” Our 50th anniversary
commemorative book is now on sale at the campus bookstore. The cost is $19.61
(classes began 50 years ago on Sept. 11, 1961). Let me encourage all faculty
and staff to buy your copy of this historic book. Don’t delay because quantities are
limited. Be the first in your department
to own your piece of Grossmont College history. Discover little-known facts you
never knew before. A portion of proceeds
from each book benefits the Grossmont College Foundation enabling the support
of student scholarships and college programs.
Books can be purchased online or at the bookstore.
·
The Hyde Art Gallery has
announced its 2011-2012 exhibition schedule. It includes the following:
ü
Selections from our permanent collection (mixed media), Aug. 22-Sept.
15.
ü
Adjacent and tangental painters (painting), Oct. 3-27.
ü
Artists who teach (photography), Nov. 14-Dec. 15.
ü
Works by Lea Anderson (sculpture), Jan. 23-Feb. 23.
ü
Kim, Reibstein & Berning (ceramics), March 12-April 12.
ü
Art student exhibition 2012 (mixed media), May 7-17.
PADRES GAME WITH EAST COUNTY CHAMBER
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Since Grossmont College is a member of the East County
Chamber of Commerce, all faculty and staff are invited to join the Chamber for a special night at a Padres game
on Wednesday, Aug. 3, in a 7:05 p.m. game against the L.A. Dodgers. For the
discounted price of $26 per ticket, you will receive one field level reserved
seat and one voucher good for a hot dog and small soda. All GCCCD employees
will sit together in the section. For more information or to reserve your spot,
please contact Juan David Londono at JLondono@padres.com, or
call (619) 795-5193.
BUDGET NEWS
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Discussion is continuing
regarding proposed changes to the spending plan in the governor’s May Revise.
Agreement is expected to be reached by June 15, although it is unclear whether
there has been any movement toward agreement on either the tax extensions or
additional spending cuts needed to make the budget balance. With the pressure
to pass a budget by June 15 this year, without which legislative pay checks and
per diem payments would be forfeited for the first time, there is some optimism
that a deal can be reached in the next few weeks.
