 |
|
|
"Poised to become a national leader"
Maine's community colleges win Kresge Foundation grant
The Foundation for Maine's Community Colleges has been awarded an $810,000 grant from The Kresge Foundation to support the work being done at Maine's seven community colleges to help more students achieve a college degree. The grant will enable all seven colleges to join the Achieving the Dream (ATD) network, a national initiative that aims to help more Americans achieve success in higher education.
Participation in ATD will enable the colleges to work one-on-one with national experts over the next three years, using evidence-based approaches to improving student outcomes. The award builds on a strategic focus on student success that has guided the MCCS in recent years.
In announcing the award, William F. L. Moses, managing director of The Kresge Foundation's Education Program, noted:
"Maine is poised to become a national leader in demonstrating how low-income, first generation and under-represented students can succeed in college. This award is a testament to the collaborative approach that Maine's community colleges are taking to improve student outcomes, and it recognizes the promising work already underway across the Maine Community College System."
|
|
New programs. New skills. New opportunities.
 |
|
|
MCCS President Derek Langhauser and YCCC President Barbara Finkelstein officially open YCCC's new instructional facility in Sanford.
|
Maine's community colleges are offering new programs this fall to meet the changing workforce needs of the Maine economy. Program options have been added in surveying and police operations at CMCC; medical coding at EMCC; health sciences at SMCC; and sustainable agriculture at KVCC.
A generous gift from Lisa Gorman to The Foundation for Maine's Community Colleges has made it possible for SMCC to add a department chair to lead its courses and programming for English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL).
And when classes started this fall, MCCS students gained access to new facilities and new equipment that will help provide them with the skills they need to fuel the Maine economy.
They include:
- A new 7,000-square-foot instructional site at YCCC's Sanford location. The new space houses the college's expanded precision machining program and is nearly triple the size of the former site.
- New equipment and an upgrade to NMCC's Automotive Collision Repair Lab, the only program of its kind in Maine. The investments in the lab, made possible by a grant from The Foundation for Maine's Community Colleges, will enable NMCC to add a second down-draft paint booth.
- A renovated Howland Hall at WCCC, "dedicated to the trades" and housing the college's heavy equipment, power sports, drafting, and related mechanical trades.
|
|
Laid off from their jobs, two NMCC students take charge of their future
|
|
|
Daniel and Chantelle Anderson
|
Daniel Anderson of Fort Kent was a millwright at Evergreen Manufacturing in Madawaska. It was a job he loved and that paid well enough to take care of himself and his family. His wife, Chantelle, also worked at the company, packaging perfume bottles for shipping.
When the company announced layoffs, the couple's plans to buy a house were put on hold while they considered their options.
"I've been a mechanic all of my life and on more than one occasion, I've been laid off due to business closures," said Daniel. "This time, I want to turn it around and find a need in the community and I'm going to try and fill it. I'm tired of being laid off and constantly looking for work. I want to be in charge of my own future."
Determined to build a more financially stable life, the couple took advantage of the federal Trade Adjustment Assistance program and enrolled at NMCC. Daniel is now studying in the college's plumbing and heating program and Chantelle in business administration. Both are working toward their associate degrees and are on track to graduate in 2018. And they are confident their skills will be in demand when they return to the workforce.
|
|
|
|
|
Brown trout raised at SMCC.
|
These fish stories start at SMCC
Students enrolled in SMCC's marine science technology program are helping to keep fishing alive in a local Maine river and getting hands-on experience at the same time.
Students recently released into the Spurwink River in Scarborough 50 brown trout they raised in the college's marine science aquaculture tanks. The project is a partnership with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife's fish hatchery in New Gloucester. The hatchery provides the juvenile fish that are grown in the college's tanks.
|
|
|
Marine Science student Dallin Brimley scooping trout from an aquaculture tank.
|
Marine Science Professor Brian Tarbox has arranged the release of the fish each semester for more than a decade. The partnership helps the state save money and gives students a hands-on learning opportunity.
"I hope this gives me the experience to get an internship next summer. It also teaches me new information to have under my belt," said SMCC marine science student Matt Prout. "Who knows, I might end up working in a hatchery."
|
|
From fish to game
If wild game and cooking are your thing,
check out the schedule of workshops offered at our colleges in partnership with the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Learn how to cook venison at SMCC on Nov. 19, or turkey, venison, and moose on Nov. 29 at KVCC. Waterfowl, fish, and hare will be featured in future workshops.
|
|
|
|
|
Zachary McManus
|
From KVCC to the wide world
Zackary McManus participated in the
MCCS Early College for ME program while a student at Lawrence High School. He then enrolled at KVCC and graduated in 2013 with an associate degree in electrical technology. His next step was Maine Maritime Academy where he earned a bachelor's degree in marine engineering operations this past May.
Zackary is now employed by American Maritime Officers as a 3rd assistant engineer. "I keep the power on, operate and maintain the plant. The company puts its multimillion-dollar ships in our hands." His career path? Chief engineer. His office? The globe. What's he likes best? "Being able to see the world and getting paid for it."
|
|
News Briefs
An update on NMCC graduates who broke the mold
For the past few years NMCC has recognized students who are "breaking the mold" by defying gender sterotypes in their career choices.
Read the stories of where some of these students are now and the career paths they pursued after graduation.
|
|
|
Old Town Police Officer Ryan Bailey explains a recent training exercise to EMCC students.
|
E
MCC criminal justice students prepare for real-life situations
As part of EMCC's two-year criminal justice degree program, students complete a range of courses that blend academic instruction with hands-on learning. Recently students have participated in traffic stops and search warrant training as part of a month-long experiential learning program. Other topics have included racial sensitivity, interrogation practices, and crime scene response.
NMCC instructor and students introduce drone technology to Aroostook fields
Wayne Kilcollins, an NMCC wind power instructor, along with former student Caleb Gordon and current student Alex Dubay, did important work this summer using technology to strengthen and support agriculture in Aroostook County. Using unmanned drones and computer-based global information systems, the trio gathered information on 45 Maine potato fields and provided farmers with real-time information to help determine the best treatment of current and future crops. Their work was featured in a
Bangor Daily News article.
MEREDA helps community college students pay for college
Fourteen Maine community college students have been awarded $1,500 scholarships from the Maine Real Estate & Development Association (MEREDA). This is the third year the organization has provided scholarships to students in MCCS building trades, engineering, and business programs. In announcing the awards, Paul Peck, MEREDA president, said: "We are pleased to help these deserving students achieve their goals, and our members look forward to the contributions they will make to our industry."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
