In Brief: April 2023

Collin College students earned top marks in the Texas SkillsUSA Postsecondary competition in Houston, April 14-15, with two students earning spots in the national SkillsUSA competition. SkillsUSA is a national organization dedicated to developing the country’s workforce through personal, workplace, and technical skills. In addition to training opportunities, SkillsUSA provides competitions to reward students for their hard work learning their crafts. This year is the first time current Collin College students have participated in the competition. This year’s winners were: Winferd Vermillion – First Place, Collision Repair Technology; Lisa Dorman – First Place, Photography; James Vaughan – Second Place, Collision Damage Appraisal and Total Loss Evaluation Technology; Scott Lumley – Second Place, Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration; Emory Eagles – Second Place, Photography; Cameron Tackman – Third Place, Automotive Service Technology; Jack Warren – Third Place, Photography. The winners were awarded gold, silver, or bronze medallions and a certificate commemorating their accomplishments. Dorman and Vermillion advance to the national SkillsUSA competition later this year because of their gold medal success. Many other students from Frisco Campus, Plano Campus, and Technical Campus also participated in the competition and earned valuable experience for their hard work.

Talitha Agudelo of Plano Campus was named the 2023 Region IV Outstanding Student Leader from a Two-Year Institution by NODA, the Association for Orientation, Transition, and Retention in Higher Education. Agudelo is a student assistant and student ambassador with Student Engagement at the Plano Campus. The Outstanding Student Leadership Award is designed to give special recognition to students for their creativity, energy, enthusiasm, and outstanding abilities. Region IV comprises Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, and Arkansas. The 2023 Region IV award winners were announced during the NODA Regional Conference in early April. Winners from Region IV advance for consideration in NODA’s annual awards process.

Ten Collin College students were named finalists in the Commercial Music and Classical Music divisions of the Spring 2023 Dallas-Fort Worth National Association of Teachers Singing area auditions held at Texas A&M University-Commerce in late March. Eighteen students from the Applied Voice Studios of Natalie Arduino and Casey L. Carter competed. Finalists in Commercial Music were: Bradley Hobert – Second Place, CM 13; Kirstyn Smith – Third Place, CM 5. Finalists in Classical Music were: Abraham Guerra – First Place, CL 4A; Gina Heley – First Place, CL 11; Rafael Pelaez – First Place, CL 8A; Clara Moos – Second Place, CL 5A; Brooke Waters – Second Place, CL 7A; Adam Arntson – Third Place, CL 6A; Eric Evans – Third Place, CL 88; Sofia Guerra – Fourth Place, CL 3A. Abraham Guerra also won Joanne Clowe Outstanding HS TBB Vocalist. Congratulations to these students on their success.

McKinney Campus Music Professor Dr. Alicja Usarek was elected College Chair of Region 24 for the Texas Music Educators Association. 

The RN-to-BSN program expects 23 graduates in May. 

Professor Osa Ossei recently completed her Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner degree. She is now double-certified in family and psychiatric nursing.

Jacqueline Grayczyk, manager for Financial Aid and Veterans Services, will conclude her last term as an executive board member for the Leadership Wylie program in May 2023. Grayczyk graduated from the program in 2018 and has been a liaison and member of the executive board since then.

The March 1 "Spring into your Career Fair" drew 30 employers and 120 job seekers to the Farmersville Campus. Several employers that participated in the event have contacted Dr. Dawn Gomez, the Farmersville Career Center manager, to inform her that they successfully hired a job seeker from the fair.

More than 200 students and community members attended Farmersville Campus’s Movie on the Lawn event to watch “ Top Gun – Maverick.” Area restaurants were in attendance serving food.

Dr. Diana Hopes presented the Northeastern Collin County Economic Development through Job Training and Education Program to local officials from Farmersville and Princeton, including mayors, council members, economic development corporation directors/coordinators, and other city leaders, as well as Collin College administrators.

The program is designed to increase awareness of workforce needs and fill the employment gap in the northeastern part of the community. Collin College convened the program, and those in attendance will meet quarterly to continue to discuss collaborative partnerships. The next meeting will be held the first week of June. 

More than 215 students and community members attended a Night of Magic at the Wylie Campus.

The Frisco Campus hosted the Partnering 4 Student Success Conference in March with 36 concurrent sessions on topics relevant to teaching and student support, such as: How to effectively use color in math lectures, Supporting and assessing students’ reading processes, Putting a positive spin on negative comments: Making sense of student evaluations, and Supporting students with an autism spectrum disorder. The keynote speaker was author Flower Darby, with a 90-minute presentation on Teaching strategies to foster persistence, motivation, and engagement in online and in-person classes. More than 200 educators from 11 schools across the region registered for the conference. Thank you to the conference planning committee members, Conference Services, Catering, and Frisco Campus plant operations for helping the event run smoothly.

Plano Campus Dean Kristen Streater and Dual-Credit Director Lindsay Moore hosted 15 upper-level administrators from Plano ISD at the Plano campus for a meeting, campus tour, and luncheon on March 28. Professors from the Plano campus, the Collegiate Academy at The Colony, and the McKinney campus met with content specialists from Plano ISD to discuss expanding dual-credit course options in Plano ISD.

Trauma Day will be held on May 6 at the McKinney Campus. Trauma Day is designed to test students in realistic scenarios and reinforce what they have learned in class while instructors look on and gently guide them.

David Malone, director of the Business Intelligence System (BIS) Data Warehouse, presided over the Texas Association for Institutional Research conference as president. Dr. Nicolas Valcik, director of effectiveness analytics, made two presentations at the conference. Dr. Tom Martin, vice president of institutional research, made one presentation.