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Gwinnett Tech Celebrates Commencement

TCSG Commissioner Ron Jackson

Commissioner Ron Jackson of the Technical College System of Georgia offered the 2012 graduates of Gwinnett Technical College a clear directive, “Choose to become a person of influence.”

Speaking at Monday night’s commencement ceremony at the Gwinnett Arena, Jackson also advised graduates to “always show gratitude, return generosity and offer thanks. Never forget those who help you along the way.”

Over 600 graduates crossed the stage to receive congratulations from Jackson and Gwinnett Tech President Sharon Bartels. The college projects that it will ultimately confer more than 3,200 awards to over 1,200 individual graduates when all grades and graduation applications are finalized.

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Jackson EMC Donates to Legacy of Lives Campaign

Jackson EMC Board Chairman Otis Jones (left of check) and Randy Dellinger, Gwinnett District Manager, Jackson EMC (right of check) join Gwinnett Tech health science students and President Sharon Bartels (center back).

Jackson Electrical Membership Corporation has donated $5,000 to Gwinnett Technical College, supporting the college’s Legacy of Lives Campaign.

Gwinnett Tech’s Legacy of Lives campaign unites business, healthcare and civic leaders to support the education and training of the healthcare professionals needed for the region. GTC’s new Life Sciences Center, opened Fall 2011, is a vivid example of strong partnerships between business and education and the resulting quality of life benefits for the community.

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Kenyan Education Leaders Visit GTC Campus

The Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) and Gwinnett Tech hosted international visitors this week, showcasing Georgia’s successful approach to technical education and workforce development.

The TCSG Office of Global Initiatives hosted the Honorable Professor Margaret Kamar, Kenya’s Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology (MOHEST). The Honorable Professor Kamar; her personal assistant, Ms. Bartoo Perpetua Jerono; and Mr. Benard Islambo, MOHEST Chief Technical Education Officer met with Commissioner Ron Jackson; Deputy Commissioner Dr. Josephine Reed-Taylor, and Assistant Commissioner Dr. Sanford Chandler.

The group toured Gwinnett Tech with GTC President Sharon Bartels and the college’s executive leadership team, visiting the college’s Life Sciences Center, skilled trades division and on-campus Hudgens Early Education Center.

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GTC Students Receive Awards and Scholarships at 2012 Ceremony

Gwinnett Tech’s 2012 Awards Ceremony marks the end of another year of success for GTC students. Family and friends filled the Gwinnett Center Performing Arts Theater to watch their loved ones receive awards and scholarships in honor of their outstanding achievements.

“It’s a night where our students are able to be recognized for their hard work [and] enthusiasm and get to share it with their family and friends,” says Gwinnett Tech Foundation Executive Director Mary Beth Byerly.

Throughout the course of the evening nearly $200,000 in scholarship funds were awarded through the Gwinnett Tech Foundation with the support of local business leaders like Clyde and Sandra Strickland and Matthew Holtkamp.

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Gwinnett Senior Leadership at Gwinnett Tech Now Accepting Applications for 2012-2013 Class

Gwinnett Senior Leadership (GSL) is accepting applications for its 2012-2013 leadership class until July 1.

Gwinnett Senior Leadership is open to those 55 years and older who live or work in Gwinnett County. The goal of Senior Leadership Gwinnett is to make seniors more aware of what’s going on around them, so that they can help contribute to the county success with their unique backgrounds and experiences. Each leadership class is limited to 30 members.

“We want to arm seniors with information so they can make a difference in the county,” says Anna Shackelford,  chair, Gwinnett Senior Leadership..

To request an application, please email lchristopher@gwinnetttech.edu or call 678-226-6316.

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GTC Instructor of the Year: Holly Sanders

A natural curiosity drives Holly Sanders, surgical technology instructor and recipient of Gwinnett Tech’s 2012 Rick Perkins Award for Excellence in Technical Education. Her never-ending quest to find the next piece of the puzzle is an energizing attribute that spills over into the classroom and continues to shape Sander’s outlook.

“Holly Sanders is an enthusiastic, innovative instructor,” says Victoria Seals, vice president of academic affairs for GTC. “She not only believes in technical college education, Holly is a product of technical college education, having received her surgical technology diploma from GTC in 2007.”

Sanders has a unique perspective on the value of the work-ready skills students gain from technical school training. After graduating from Kennesaw State University, she worked for a local biological medical device company dissecting organs for later use. This work piqued her curiosity as to what happens next in the process and led her to pursue more specialized training at GTC. By 2008, she was playing pivotal role on a medical team that harvested organs for transplant.

 
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GTC Chef Makes Nutrition Elementary

Chef Kerri Crean knows how to get kids excited about healthy eating. Starting this year, the Gwinnett Tech Culinary Arts program director has been sharing her passion for nutritious, tasty cuisine with local elementary and pre-k students as part of First Lady Michelle Obama’s Chefs Move To Schools initiative.

The program lets volunteer chefs help nearby schools find healthy alternatives to traditional school meals, while also educating students about the benefits of a well-balanced diet. Crean says she hopes to inspire a few young minds in the process. “It is about nutrition, but it’s also about helping kids get excited about food and start opening up their imaginations past chicken nuggets and pizza,” she says.

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Construction Education Will Now Set Him Apart

The owner of a small construction business in Colorado building vacation homes for more than 17 years, Corey Gibson moved his family to Georgia in 2009 to be near his aging mother. His reality check has been that Gwinnett is flooded with good construction workers just like him who have “all the experience and skills sets, but not the education.”

After trolling the job boards, sending out scores of resumes and staying in touch with local employers, Corey decided to enroll in GTC’s Commercial Construction Management program. “I appreciated the open enrollment opportunity and no SAT scores to contend with.” He is on track to complete his degree this spring and has scheduled his Georgia Work Ready Certification assessment.

 
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Fascination with Forensic Science Drives Teaching Career

Courtney Ross has always been fascinated by biology and forensic science and has a special affinity for working with microscopes. He laughingly admits that may be born from having grown up watching televisions shows like CSI and others.

That bond with life sciences continues to fuel Ross’s own personal education track, leading him from a Bachelor of Science degree in biology, a Master of Science degree and certification in biomedical science to his current status as a doctoral candidate in health administration. Ross is fully immersed in his career as a full time Gwinnett Tech instructor of anatomy and physiology and general biology, as well as an evening adjunct instructor at the college.

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Unusual Path Lands Math Instructor Erin Cooke at GTC

“I took a strange and unusual path to get to Gwinnett Tech,” says math instructor Erin Cooke. “After finishing my undergraduate and master degrees in secondary math education, I couldn’t find work where I was living in South Carolina, so I decided to change my career path.”

Much to her dismay, one semester into her coursework for landscape architecture, Cooke realized she missed teaching. She stuck with it and now comments that the experience brought to life the true meaning of the phrase many of her students use, “I’m not a math person.” For Cooke, being a ‘math person’ in a creative and subjective environment gave her a new appreciation for students who struggle with the mathematical concept of one right answer for every equation.

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