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May 08, 2003 Special Commencement Issue
Contacts for News Media Representatives:
suzanne.higgins@gcmail.maricopa.edu 623.845.3808
george.martinez@gcmail.maricopa.edu 623.845.3605
On May 16, GCC will hold its 38th annual Commencement ceremony, adding to the college's 302,000 alumni worldwide. Here are just three of many student success stories among graduates in the Class of 2003. Each student featured lives in the West Valley and is available for interviews by phoning Suzanne Higgins, 623-845-3808.
GCC STUDENT RECEIVES $93,000 SCHOLARSHIP TO SMITH COLLEGE
A recent news story referring to the Maricopa colleges, stated "...what they offer is attracting not only more and more students but more and more top students." Kait Greiser-Kaman, 35, Glendale Community College Honors student, Peoria resident, college newspaper editor, and recent scholarship recipient, is a perfect example of one of those top students. While achieving a 3.9 grade point average, Greiser-Kaman also participated in student government, Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, the student mentoring program, and numerous volunteer activities on campus. Due to graduate from GCC with highest honors for her AGS degree on May 16, she recently accepted a scholarship/grant package exceeding $31,000 a year from prestigious Smith College for women in Massachusetts. The package, renewable as long as her grades meet certain standards, will total $93,000 over the three years it will take her to complete a double major in Anthropology and Sociology. Greiser-Kaman will move to Massachusetts in August and plans to live on campus. She cites her involvement with the new GCC Mentoring Program as key to her success. (Photo attachment below.)
PERFECT GRADES LAUNCH CAREER FOR AUTOMOTIVE STUDENT AT GCC
For only the fourth time since 1996, a Glendale Community College student graduating from an automotive program has achieved a perfect 4.0 grade point average. Michael Polinsky, 30, of Sun City, will receive an A.A.S. degree in Automotive Technology from GCC on May 16, graduating with Highest Distinction and as a member of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. Polinsky participated in the Automotive Service Educational Program (ASEP), which is sponsored by General Motors. ASEP prepares students for employment as automotive technicians while they earn a two-year college degree. Students must take a core of general studies classes (English, math, communication, humanities, social science) in addition to their automotive classes. They must also apply for entry into the ASEP program and take mechanical aptitude tests. Additionally, they must be sponsored in the program by an auto dealership where they work when they are not in class, getting further on-the-job training beyond the classroom. Only 24 students are accepted into this program each year and not all of them make it through the rigorous course work. Polinsky was highly motivated to succeed in this program, having lost his prior job at a power plant in Nevada due to cutbacks. He is impressed with the ASEP program, calling it "an excellent program with great instructors." He has particularly high praise for program head Gar Gaekel, describing him as "a terrific teacher who really knows his stuff. All the guys in the program really like him--and the two women do too." Polinsky said that a graduate of GCC's ASEP program has the potential of making $35,000 a year upon completion of the program, and the potential for up to $60,000 after a few years on the job and earning A.S.E. (Automotive Service Excellence) certification.
NEW LANGUAGE IS NO BARRIER FOR GCC STUDENT EARNING TWO DEGREES
On January 10, 2000, Rafael Sanchez entered the new millennium, the United States, and Glendale Community College at roughly the same time. He was 18 years old, had just graduated from high school in Mexico, and spoke virtually no English. This bright and motivated young man settled in Glendale and enrolled in classes at GCC. He started with English as a Second Language (ESL) and other classes that either carried no credit or were not transferable to another college. These are the building blocks with which non-English speaking students must begin. For the next three and a half years, his part-time job at a landscape firm and his focused concentration on his studies carried him through all the classes needed to graduate and transfer to a university. His path of academic excellence ultimately led him to the completion of two degrees--an Associate in Arts and an Associate in Science. Along the way he not only passed his classes, but excelled at them, working his way into GCC's prestigious Honors Program. He will receive his degrees on May 16 as a 21-year-old Honors Graduate with plans to finish his Bachelor's Degree at ASU--yet another GCC success story.
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 | May 08, 2003 Special Commencement Issue |
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