New Employees

Please welcome the following new GCC employees approved by the MCCD Governing Board on May 25, 2004: Philip Brown, Business/CIS; Denise Nunley, Mathematics; Randall Peterson, Nursing; Lynn Watson, Nursing; Craig Neumann, Testing; and Annette Fisher, Business/Accounting.

Commencement

My thanks to everyone who had a hand in commencement. The GCC speakers were stellar-- Associated Student Government president John Misirlakis who gave the student comment and Chemistry Faculty George Wittenberg who gave the Faculty Comment. We are also grateful to Cardinals Head Coach Dennis Green for delivering the keynote address. Special thanks to College Advancement, Enrollment Services, Maintenance and Operations, Media, Music (GCC Band), Safety, Student Services and many others who worked hand-in-glove to produce a flawless event. This is a very special evening for our graduates and their families, and I am proud of the good work you do every year to make it a memorable one.

Other Ceremonies

GCC hosted several other end-of-semester ceremonies of great significance as well; I was pleased to attend the Honors Award Banquet, the CAP (Chrysler) Banquet, the ASEP (GM) Banquet, the ASSET (Ford) Banquet, the Pinning Ceremony for Nursing, the Fire Science Academy Ceremony, and the Police Academy Ceremony. I am well aware of the planning and work required to host these events, and I thank everyone involved for their efforts.

President's Scholarships Awarded

Recently, almost 400 seniors from Valley high schools were awarded President's Scholarships for study at GCC during the next two academic years. This number is larger than in any prior year and totals $960,000. President's Scholarships are awarded to seniors who apply and meet the eligibility requirements. To be eligible, applicants must either graduate in the top 15% of their class, or achieve specific test scores on the ASSET college placement tests.

GCC Family Is Far-Flung This Summer

I know that many GCC folks have gone or are going to interesting places this summer for study, teaching, work, or play. To mention just a few: Holly Beene went to South America in May and is currently teaching in Mexico; Marla DeSoto is participating in a faculty exchange program in Australia; Suzanne Higgins is leaving soon for Kenya with a group that will build a school and church; and Bruce Thomas is on a faculty exchange program in China.

Enrollment for Summer and Fall

Enrollment for summer is down slightly and fall is up from this time last year. Fall is enjoying higher enrollment, thanks to the efforts of Enrollment Services, Marketing, and Academic Advisement in promoting the "register-early" campaign. Currently, 2004 fall FTSE is more than 10% above this time last year.

Long-Term Campus Landscaping Project

Al Gonzales and his grounds staff have put a lot of thought and planning into the improvement of the shade corridor in central campus. Al aptly explained the need to remove the African Sumacs that line the central malls--removing the least healthy ones first. Their life span is shorter than many trees and several are getting sparse and bedraggled looking. I applaud the choice of the Ficus Nitida to replace them over time. Al assures me that this tree can reach a prodigious size and has an enormous canopy that creates a great deal of shade.

Community Education Builds Web Site

Thanks to the efforts of Suzanne Smelser and Bobby Sample, GCC's Community Education Program now has its own web site, linked to the GCC web site. All of the interesting non-credit classes for children and adults are listed there with detailed course descriptions. I encourage you to visit the site--you might find an interesting class for yourself or a family member! www.gc.maricopa.edu/noncredit

Congratulations:

To GCC Psychology Faculty Dr. René Díaz-Lefebvre for receiving the Maricopa Community Colleges Foundation Employee Recognition Award.

To GCC Enrollment Services employee Dina Mathias who just received her MBA from Grand Canyon University.

To GCC Program Advisor Herminia Lopez who also just received her Masters Degree from NAU.

To the GCC Track Team for their performances at the NJCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at South Plains College in Levelland, Texas.

To GCC Fitness and Wellness Director Louise Keogh who not only received first place from United States Masters Swimming (USMS) for being the top female swimmer, age group 30-34, in the 2003-2004 USMS swim competition, but just found out that she is ranked first in the world in the 200 meter breaststroke for Masters Swimming (women aged 30-34) and is also ranked third in both the 50 meter and the 100 meter breaststroke.

To instructors and students in the GCC Agribusiness and Urban Horticulture Program who recently celebrated the grand opening of their "outdoor classroom" project. Various classes over several semesters have created a wonderful outdoor "event site" near the AG Building that will enhance the campus and provide a wonderful space for many campus events.

To GCC sewing instructor Belva Barrick, who wrote the featured cover story for the recently-published July 2004 issue of SewNews magazine. Titled "Learn to Sew With Knits," it is a detailed article with many drawings and photos illustrating esoteric techniques of sewing with knit fabrics.

Dr. Phillip Randolph
President
Glendale Community College