Barbara Brownsmith, ABE/GED PREP/AHS coordinator, has had several personal "thank you" visits from ABE/GED students in the past month. Students have stopped by to express thanks for all the help, encouragement and support from instructors and office staff in this program area.
ESL Instructor Margaret Bradshaw spent two weeks in China as a volunteer English teacher. During July, Bradshaw traveled to China to work with elementary school teachers at an English camp so they could teach English to Chinese children. While Bradshaw was away, Theresa Poorbaugh substituted for her, and the 20 A-B Tech students presented her with a "thank you" for her teaching.
Tina Fountain, Equipment/Facilities Inventory coordinator, won first place in the Pecan Appetizer Recipe Competition at the 2006 Mountain State Fair with her recipe for Pucker-Up Spread.
Combine dates, raisins and 1/2 cup wine in bowl. Cover and soak overnight, transfer date mixture to food processor. Add remaining ingredients. Process until spreadable, but still slightly chunky, adding wine to thin consistency if desired. Serve with crackers, melba rounds or crunchy veggies.
Nominations for the Invitational Award may be dropped in any student suggestion box or sent in the campus mail to Elizabeth Scarbrough. The nominations are due by the 15th of each month and will be awarded on the last working day of the month.
The forms will be available online as well as by the student suggestion boxes, Records and Registration, the Business Office, the LRC, and the division offices. Faculty, staff and students are encouraged to nominate individuals for the award.
Barbara Gargiulo, HRD Computer Literacy instructor at Goodwill, received an email from a student praising her teaching. "Your patience is amazing as we (like a nest of birds waiting to be fed begged for your attention) interrupted you as you made sure that each and every one of us understood each concept you so diligently explained over and over to us. You made learning fun."
A-B Tech's Medical Laboratory Technology students had a 100 percent pass rate on the national exam from the American Society of Clinical Pathologists. The eight graduates passed with an average score of 624 compared to the national average score of 485. A minimum score of 400 is required to pass.
All five of the college's phlebotomy students who pursued professional certification from the same agency also passed their exam.
Chelsea Smith, daughter of David Smith, Humanities and Fine Arts chair, received a 2006 James W. Entringer College Scholarship from Selective Insurance Group. Debra Smith, Chelsea's mother, is a claims management specialist for Selective's Southern Region.
David Smith, Humanities/Fine Arts chair, has been selected as managing editor for the North Carolina Community College System Virtual Learning Community for the 2006-07 cycle. This will be his third year serving in that role. He will oversee the developing, editing, and migrating to Blackboard 7.1 of selected courses.
Shelley White, Human Resources Development coordinator, has been appointed as chair for the Western region of the North Carolina state HRD Advisory Board for 2006-07. The board serves in an advisory capacity to the State HRD Office and fulfills an important role for the statewide program, including developing strategic plans and goals for the HRD program and planning regional staff development workshops.