Volume 4 - May/June 2016
IN THIS ISSUE
Spotlights
The Division of Florida Colleges Congratulates the Spring 2016 Graduates!
We are proud of our students' accomplishments and look forward to celebrating their future successes.
Lake-Sumter State College Partners with Local Tech School to Expand Nursing Education 
Lake-Sumter State College (LSSC) has offered Lake Tech's Practical Nursing students access to the nursing facilities at LSSC's South Lake Campus to bring their students greater access to education.
Broward College to Help Jump-start Tech Businesses
Broward College is soon to launch its 14-week accelerator program, called Venture Formula, to help emerging tech entrepreneurs get a head start.
Degrees to Jobs Summit Connects Business and Education Leaders
Governor  Rick Scott's 2016 Degrees to Jobs Summit held May 24-26 initiated an  opportunity for leaders, members and visionaries of the education sector to connect with business leaders from high-wage and high-demand fields in Florida. The objective of the Summit was to bring these leaders together to analyze ways to better prepare college students across the state for the Florida workforce immediately after obtaining their degrees. 

According to data presented at the Summit, while 98 percent of colleges and universities feel like they're adequately preparing their students for the workforce, only 13 percent of Americans agree with this, and only 11 percent of businesses find recent graduates possess the skills they're seeking. Governor Rick Scott wants to ensure Florida's graduates are ready to start their careers without delay. 

The Summit also placed an emphasis on affordability, as this leads to increased rates of college and university accessibility, attendance and retention and as a result, more skilled, diverse and educated workers in the state. There were over 50  speakers at the Summit from a variety of fields and sectors, including Dr. E. Ann McGee, President of Seminole State College, Dr. Eduardo Padron, President of Miami Dade College, Dr. Jackson Sasser, President of Santa Fe Colleg e, Dr. Thomas LoBasso, President of Daytona State College, Betty Viamontes, Trustee at Hillsborough Community College, Eric Robinson, Trustee at State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota,   Pam Stewart, Commissioner of the Florida Department of Education, Marshall Criser III, Chancellor of the State University System of Florida and our own Madeline Pumariega, Chancellor of the Florida College System.
Chancellor's Clark Maxwell Scholar  Student of the Month                                            -May-
Pedro Borba was selected as the Chancellor's Clark Maxwell Scholar Student of the Month for May. 
 
Pedro is pursuing an Associate of Science degree in Electrical Power Technology at Palm Beach State College (PBSC). Pedro secured an internship with Sikorsky Development Flight Center as an Instrumentation intern which has allowed him to put many of the skills he has acquired through his academic program into practice. His excellent performance during his time there resulted in a full-time position at the Center at the conclusion of his internship.
 
He earned a 4.0 GPA during both semesters of his internship while being a full-time student. Pedro was also asked to be a supplemental instructor for one of the program courses. In this role he assisted fellow students with exercises and tutoring on course content throughout the semester. In addition to this formal role, he has volunteered his personal time to hold informal tutoring sessions on Saturdays.
 
Pedro came to the United States from Brazil in 2006 near the end of his high school career. He credits his current success to his experience at PBSC. His future academic goals include continuing his education by pursuing a bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering and one day becoming a flight technician or instrument engineer.
Chancellor's Clark Maxwell Scholar Student of the Month                                           -June-
Jamie Weaver was selected as the Chancellor's Clark Maxwell Scholar Student of the Month for June.

Jamie is a Health Information Technology student working toward an Associate of Science degree from Florida Gateway College (FGC). Jamie is an active leader on her campus and in her community. She serves FGC as the Legislative Liaison for the Student Government Association and represents her fellow students on several campus committees including Campus Appeals Board, Facilities Committee, Financial Aid Committee and Textbook Committee. 

Jamie also dedicates time to helping her community by volunteering for causes she cares about, such as the Girl Scouts, a local soup kitchen, and the Salvation Army. She also launched an initiative to collect over 150 blankets and jackets for the homeless in her community.  

Jamie's greatest commitment and most important role, however, is that of a single mom to her daughter, Lexi, and a care-giver to her aging parents. Jamie is able to balance leadership positions and duties, volunteering, and hardest of all, motherhood, while still achieving academic excellence at FGC. 
Chancellor's Leadership Seminar Engages Education Leaders
The 15th annual Chancellor's Leadership Seminar was held May 18-20 at Valencia College in Orlando. The 31 members of the 2016 Chancellor's Leadership Class were comprised of education leaders from each of the 28 Florida College System institutions. These members were a part of a three-day leadership development journey that featured insights into successful leadership strategies and methods.

The lessons provided a foundation for these education leaders to evolve their own leadership techniques to prepare them for senior-level administration positions at our colleges. The program offered an opportunity for some of the state's education leaders to increase their understanding and engage in meaningful discourse on some of Florida's most significant higher education issues and goals, as well as a chance to  network and connect with one another. 

Chancellor Madeline Pumariega welcomed the class with her vision on the importance of having an IMPACT (Inspire, Motivate, Partner, Accessible, Curiosity and Transform) as a leader in higher education. Among the guest speakers  was renowned community college dignitary Dr. George Boggs. Several leaders and representatives from Florida College System institutions spoke as well, including the president from Florida SouthWestern State College, Dr. Jeff Allbritten, from Valencia College, Dr. Sandy Shugart, from Pasco-Hernando State College, Dr. Timothy Beard, from Polk State College, Dr. Eileen Holden, and from Chipola College, Dr. Jason Hurst. Tallahassee Community College Trustee and CEO and Founder of Moore Communications, Ms. Karen Moore, also spoke on the importance of colleges developing their own "elevator speech" - who they are, what they do, and why people should care - and the necessity of having an up-to-date crisis communications plan. 
Bill-signing Leads the Way to College Affordability in Florida
On May 23,  surrounded by state education leaders, Governor Rick Scott ceremonially signed HB 7019 at Florida Atlantic University. The bill focuses on keeping the cost of higher education affordable and advancing accessibility in the state. The bill requires the Board of Governors and the State Board of Education to annually review and conceive strategies and policies that promote affordability, including costs outside of tuition that are often a burden to students, such as textbooks. 

Florida College System Chancellor Pumariega was joined at the event by Ava Parker, President of Palm Beach State College, trustee members and Student Government Association leaders. The bill requires Florida College System institutions and state universities to make a public announcement of any increases in tuition or other related fees, like course materials, ahead of registration so students can factor in the costs. 

"It doesn't matter where you are in the state, you have a shot at a great education," Governor Scott said at the signing. "It shouldn't matter what family you came from. You live in this great state, and you have an opportunity."

"Access to an affordable college education is the pathway to real opportunity in our 21st century global economy," Chancellor Pumariega stated. "Florida continues to lead the way with our Florida Colleges serving over 813,000 students!"
A New Guide to Helping Students Make Successful Transfers
Nationwide, the percentage of students enrolled in state and community colleges who go on to transfer and complete their bachelor's degrees is low. Due to this, researchers at the  Community College Research Center (CCRC) at Columbia University's Teachers College and the Aspen Institute's College Excellence Program have developed a guide that details ways in which colleges can achieve higher transfer turnouts and higher graduation rates. The Aspen Institute published the guide called the Transfer Playbook.

For their research, the CCRC and the Aspen Institute took data from six colleges across the nation with university partnerships that had much higher completion rates than the national average. Among these six colleges was the Florida College System institution, Broward College. The CCRC and the Aspen Institute studied these six colleges' best practices to find out what they were doing that worked. They found three methods common to ensure student success, even beyond college. The methods include:
  • Prioritizing transfers at both the college and partner universities
  • Clear program maps that align curriculum with the universities'
  • Advising for transfer students
The key to these six colleges' success, including Broward College's, is establishing, maintaining and tailoring a partnership with a university, and being willing to take action for the sake of the students' future prosperity.
An Open Educational Resources Grant Prioritizes Affordability
With textbooks costing roughly a third of the amount a student spends to earn an associate degree, often students are detered from earning their degree. Studies have shown textbook fees create a significant barrier to graduation and retention rates. Achieving the Dream, a national community college reform network, in conjunction with the investors William and Flore Hewlett Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Great Lakes Higher Education Guaranty Corporation, the Shelter Hill Foundation and the Speedwell Foundation, has initiated a grant to solve this issue.
 
Awarded to 38 colleges in 13 states across the nation, the grant provides funding for institutions to create degree programs using high-quality open educational resources (OER). This initiative will create an entire database of digital, open courses available to other institutions and the public at large, intended to decrease costs and increase retention. OER uses digital and interactive courseware that allows students to actively engage in class materials without having to bear the additional costs. The grant requires these institutions to design new degree programs using OER. Among the Florida College System institutions, Florida State College at Jacksonville (FSCJ) and Broward College received the OER grant.
 
By the end of the grant, FSCJ plans to implement two OER degree programs: Asso ciate in Arts and Associate in Science in Human Services. 
Chancellor Pumariega Keynotes the 2016 Florida College Access and Success Summit
Florida College Access Network, better known as Florida C.A.N.!, held their 2016 Florida Access and Success Summit May 11-12 in Lake Buena Vista. The Summit brought together a mixture of leaders in the education, nonprofit, and business sectors to evaluate and formulate a way to increase accessibility and retention to higher education and promote greater economic opportunity. 

Passionate and dedicated leaders and enthusiasts gathered for the two-day event to forge partnerships and develop ideas with the success of the student in mind. The Summit focused on pertinent higher education topics such as college affordability, diverse and changing student populations, career pathways, aligning workforce and community needs, and more. 

Among the diverse collection of prestigious speakers were representatives and leaders from Wells Fargo, the Helios Education Foundation, the U.S. Department of Education and various Florida colleges and universities.The closing luncheon keynote speaker was the Florida College System Chancellor Madeline Pumariega. Chancellor Pumariega delivered an impactful speech focusing on the importance of not only access to college, but readiness, asserting it as the pathway to college and future success.   
Indian River State College's William and Helen Thomas STEM Center
Located in the middle of Florida's Research Coast, Indian River State College's Pruitt Campus in Port St. Lucie is an ideal location for their biomedical research center. The William and Helen Thomas Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Center was named after William and Helen Thomas, whose Charitable Trust helped fund the $19.5 million project. Opening at the start of 2013, the STEM Center is a sprawling 56,000 square-foot, three-story facility. It boasts several state-of-the-art laboratories and technologically-advanced classrooms that allow presentations to be transmitted between both the Pruitt Campus and IRSC's main campus in Fort Pierce. 

The building supports research and testing in a wide range of STEM fields like genetics, ecology, molecular science, botany, microbiology, and engineering. It offers an occasion for greater economic development, scientific research, and higher learning, helping to bring a more diverse and highly-skilled workforce to the state's Research Coast. The STEM Center collaborates with nearby research facilities including the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies and the Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute to give over 60 IRSC students an internship opportunity each semester. This gives IRSC students an unbeatable opportunity to work, train and assist in an active laboratory with expert technicians, teachers and scientists by their side.