In Brief: July-August 2021

Collin College was recently recognized by two organizations for its commitment to veterans.The college was named to the Best for Vets: Colleges 2021 rankings byMilitary Times. This is the ninth time the college has earned this distinction. In addition, for the first time, Collin College received the gold-level status of the 2021 Veteran Education Excellence Recognition Award from the Texas Veterans Commission. A virtual award ceremony was held in July. This spring, 1,039 veterans and military-connected students enrolled in Collin College classes.

Dr. Lee DeBoer, Professor of Criminal Justice, has been elected to the executive board of the American Criminal Justice Association. Dr. DeBoer has served as the primary advisor for Collins student organization, Gamma Alpha Epsilon, a chapter of the American Criminal Justice Association (ACJA), for six years.Each semester he travels with the colleges criminal justice students who compete in crime scene investigation, physical agility, knowledge testing, and handgun competition on the regional and national level. He was nominated to serve on the executive board this year. On April 9, he was elected to serve as vice president for the association. For more information on the association, visit www.acjalae.org.

History ProfessorHollie Teague was awarded her Ph.D. in Sociology from Texas Womans University.

Adjunct Speech ProfessorGabriel Pantojawill graduate with his Ph.D. in Organizational Communicationfrom Texas A&M University in August.

The Public Safety Training Center hosted the McKinney Chamber of Commerce Leadership McKinney program for a day titled Justice System & Community Resilience in July. Based on a curriculum that combines personal leadership skills training and an awareness of the McKinney community, the Leadership McKinney educational experience provides participants the opportunity to engage in dialogue with leaders and field-specific experts on relevant community issues.International law enforcement academy cadets from the United Arab Emirates had a chance to engage with the group, introduce themselves, give their backgrounds, and describe their experience thus far in the academy. The days program was well-received by all participants.

The Collin College Law Enforcement Academy and its international cooperation program with the United Arab Emirates were also featured in the July 2021 International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement (IADLEST) Newsletter. The article is available for view on page 9 of the following PDF link. https://www.iadlest.org/Portals/0/IADLEST_Newsletter_Final_July%202021.pdf?ver=-U7OIahY93wKKmrWsIkdAA%3d%3d

Health Professions Professor Andrea Fields passed the Activity Professionals National Board examination and completed the requirements to earn board certification.

Purchasing Director Cindy White has earned the National Institute of Governmental Purchasing Certified Procurement Professional certification. This certification is anchored in the Public Procurement Competency Framework and is the only certification that targets mid- to executive-level procurement leaders in the public sector.White is among the first professional leaders to earn this distinction.

The Diagnostic Medical Sonography 2021 cohort had a 100 percent pass rate on the American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography SPI registry exam. The national pass rate for this registry exam is only 68 percent. Not only did all 14 of these students pass this exam on their first attempt, but they did so with an average class score of 97 percent on the examination. The Diagnostic Medical Sonography team Director Megan Chambers, Clinical Coordinator Melissa Morgan, and full-time faculty Audri Luebbers also had an outstanding site visit by the Joint Review Committee on Education in Diagnostic Medical Sonography.

Faculty and staff at the Farmersville and McKinney Campuses organized a Crayola Crayons Donation Drive to support the Princeton Chamber of Commerce Back to School Bash for K-12 Princeton ISD Students. Faculty and staff donated 828 cartons of crayons and 724 highlighters, surpassing the target goal of 750. The Farmerville Campus Team assisted in packing the backpacks and engaged with the community on July 31 at Smith Elementary.

Farmersville Campus Executive Dr. Dean Diana Hopes was confirmed as a Farmersville Rotary Club board member for 2021-2022 on July 13. Dr. Hopes will serve as the Director of Service Projects for the club.

The Farmersville Rotary Club has approved educational scholarships for area students who are interested in enrolling at the Farmersville Campus. Interested students will be able to apply for these scholarships during the Collin College Fall application window.

Dr. Diana Hopes has been invited to join the Farmersville Chamber of Commerce Ambassador Program. Ambassadors work closely with board members, volunteers, and the community to enhance the communitys business environment.

Thirty nursing students completed the new LVN to RN Accelerated Program and celebrated with a pinning ceremony on July 8.

The McKinney Campus Makerspace has resumed hosting in-person workshops. Seventeen students attended in-person workshops for vinyl cutting, making t-shirts, and 3D printing 101. The Crochet Corner workshop had both in-person and virtual attendees. The Makerspace staff is preparing more workshops for the Fall.

Officers Brittany Lemalu and Mathew Carmona obtained their Intermediate Peace Officer Licenses.

Counselor Amy Lenhart is a content contributor to the consensus study report Mental Health, Substance Use, and Wellbeing in Higher Education: Supporting the Whole Student published by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, Medicine. The study is available online at https://nap.edu/26015.

Education Professor Courtenay Jauregui recently began serving a year-long term as President of the Board of Directors for Plano Youth Leadership. The mission of Plano Youth Leadership is to provide high school sophomores living in Plano or attending Plano ISD schools with diverse experiences that inspire lifelong leadership development and community involvement. Her term is June 2021-May 2022.

Dr. Barbara Stern and Larry Stern, Psychology professors, served as co-chairs of the 53rd Annual Meetings of Cheiron: The International Society for the History of Behavioral and Social Sciences, June 15-17 (virtual).

Photography Lab Coordinator Anna Fritzel had an exhibition titled Meet the Teachers at Blue House Too at Watters Creek in Allen, June 11-July 25.

Professor Sonia Iwanek addressed the Texas Congressional Delegation members, including Senator Ted Cruz, advocating for the Veteran Families Health Services Act of 2021 while attending the National Infertility Association and American Society for Reproductive Medicine Virtual Conference.

Dr. Monica S. Gallamore completed the professional development course, Developing Short Term Education Abroad Programs, through the National Association of Foreign Student Advisor & Association of International Educators (NAFSA) in June.

Dr. Kim Gerber completed the 2021 Appreciative Advising Institute.

Dr. Tara Lewis presented at the National Association of Colleges and Employers at their annual convention. Her presentation focused on career readiness competencies that colleges should work toward developing in their student lifecycle planning/training.

Farmersville Campus Executive Dean Dr. Diana Hopes was invited by Friendlee News in Greenville and The Heart of Farmersville to conduct social media interviews and speak about the new campus, programs, and services; both interviews were held in June.

The Collin College Foundations annual All College Day Silent Auction set a record of $21,495 to support student scholarships. The auction featured more than 350 items donated by faculty, staff, vendors, and supporters. Thank you to Staff Council, Collin College Foundation, and everyone who donated auction items, volunteered for setup, or purchased auction items. Special congratulations to auction chairs Andrea Mersiovsky and Candace Hamilton-Meserole for a blockbuster auction.

In August, Chef Ron Reczek was honored at the Texas Chefs Association Convention as the Dallas Chapters Chef Educator of the Year for 2021. Chef Reczek is a full-time faculty member teaching at our Frisco Campus and the colleges incoming discipline lead for Culinary/Pastry Arts. He is an active member of the American Culinary Federation and the Texas Chefs Association.

Dr. Kerry Loinette, Professor of Speech at Plano Campus, recently had an article published on the National Communication Association (NCA) website revisiting a project she had participated in with the organization. The project,which was supported by a generous grant from the Lumina Foundation,was created toanswer the question,When students complete a program of study in Communication, what should they know, understand, and be able to do?Dr. Loinette was one of only 30 people nationwide who were invitedto create the NCAs list of LOCs (Learning Outcomes in Communication). That original project is here:www.natcom.org/learning-outcomes-communication. Dr. Loinette was published this summer at www.natcom.org/spectra/revisiting-locs-do-they-stand-new-normal, where she shared her thoughts on how well, or not, these LOCs would stand up in a pandemic and post-pandemic world.

In July, Dr. Lupita Murillo Tinnen, Academic Dean at Plano Campus, chaired the National Conference of Academic Deans Preparing for the Future: Whats Ahead for Academic Leadership session.

Dr. Rachel Gunter, History professor at Plano Campus, co-wrote and appeared in the Documentary Citizens at Last: Texas Women Fight for the Vote, which aired on PBS World Channel in July and nationally in August. The next showing is Aug. 30 at 10 p.m. Visit www.citizensatlastfilm.com/broadcast-schedule for other listings.

Courtyard Center Executive Dean Karen Musa presented Continuing Education a Collaborative Approach to the National Conference of Academic Deans. The presentation resulted in two inquiries for other higher education institutions, St. Thomas University and Quinnipiac University.

Dean Brenden Mesch presented during the 2021 AT&T Summer Learning Academy to students throughout the world in July. The presentation focus was How to Maximize Success in Your Job Search, in a collaborative presentation with Robert Vega of The University of Texas at Austin. This is an AT&T venture to engage nearly 100,000 students in Information Technology careers.

Art student Shea Ameen recently received prize compensation for winning the design portion of the Wylie Mural Project. Carole Ehrlich and John Treadwell, members of the Public Arts Advisory Board for the City of Wylie, delivered a check with Ameens prize winnings earlier this month. The city is searching for a location for Ameens mural after the originally planned location became unavailable.

Music and Art Lab Coordinator Erika McIlnay is participating in the International Conference on Contemporary Cast Iron Art, which is working on producing three international online exhibitions to help promote the 2022 conference in Berlin.

Lab Coordinators Alex Johnson and Erika McIlnay had an exhibition at the Goldmark Cultural Center and were mentioned by Glasstire, KERA, and Dallas Culture Map.

Polysomnographic Technology Director Amber Allen has been asked to serve on two panels at the Certification in Clinical Sleep Health (CCSH) Innovation Conference for the Society of Behavioral Sleep Medicine in Nashville in September.

Araceli Solis, Director of the Respiratory Care program, recently co-presented a lecture with Respiratory Therapy Professor Kelley Reynolds regarding ultrasound integration into the curriculum for the Coalition for Baccalaureate and Graduate Respiratory Therapy Education (CoBGRTE).

The Robotics/STEM and Crime Scene Investigations (CSI) summer camps at Farmersville Campus drew 31 students to participate in the camps. This is the first time the camps have been held at Farmersville Campus.

Leon Deutsch, Director of Medical Assisting Advanced Practice, presented to the Farmersville Rotary Club in July. Deutsch shared information about the program and current and future plans for the program at the Farmersville Campus.