Heart of West Michigan United Way salutes GRCC employees for supporting greater community

Grand Rapids Community College was saluted by the Heart of West Michigan United Way for its efforts supporting our greater community.

GRCC has been a partner with United Way for decades, with employees donating more than $700,000 during the last 10 years.

United Way Vice President Kim Ritz and account executive Scott Sorenson presented President Bill Pink and Misty McClure Anderson, executive deputy to the president and board liaison, with the 2020 United Way Top Campaign Award.

The honor goes to an organization running a best practice campaign with increased involvement in the current year campaign.

From 2019 to 2020, GRCC employee giving increased by 47 percent along with the total United Way campaign dollars raised by GRCC employees increasing by more than 20 percent.

GRCC employees met the college’s $25,000 donation goal, recognizing the needs of students and community members increasing during the pandemic. 

United Way helped college students, partnering with the Kent County Commission to donate $48,000 to GRCC’s student food pantry, and providing $10,000 for the pantry earlier in the year through its Coronavirus Response Fund.

Marisol Blanco named Michigan AmeriCorps Site Supervisor of the Month

Congratulations to Associate Director of the College Success Center Marisol Blanco, named Michigan AmeriCorps Site Supervisor of the Month. 

From the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Development:

“Blanco is dedicated to student success and retention. In addition to overseeing the College Success Center activities and staff, Marisol also serves as the AmeriCorps site supervisor for two College Completion Coaches that serve there. College Completion Corps places AmeriCorps members on college campuses across Michigan to support first-generation, low-income, and students of color with a focus on college persistence and completion.

“Drawing on her own experience as a low-income, first-generation college student, a Michigan College Advising Corps alum, and a GRCC Success Coach, Marisol works to bring forward ideas like FastTrack and other coaching initiatives to improve student success at GRCC. When talking to the coaches serving under her, it is clear that Marisol is an exemplary leader that is focused on staff development as well as student success. Since Marisol knows the value of member training and development, she ensures her AmeriCorps members receive plenty of professional development and training opportunities throughout their service year. Her college completion coaches express that she has been a great mentor to them, encouraging them to try new projects, and helping them achieve their personal career goals.

“As a servant leader, Marisol focuses on rapport and team building to create a cohesive team and promote a healthy team dynamic, creating a warm and welcoming environment for College Completion Coaches as much as permanent staff. From her dedication to lifting others up, to maintaining a cohesive team, she embodies the values and goals of AmeriCorps and the College Completion Corps program.”

Ready for a new beginning: Come see four campus building transformations

Click here for an event map

Community Open House at the Lakeshore Campus

Coming Soon: Fall 2021 employee learning opportunities

Coming to an Online Center enrollment tile near you! Your patience is appreciated as an excellent schedule of learning opportunities for faculty and staff is curated and developed. 

New sessions on new topics as well as popular favorites will be available this Fall. Some are in person, others are virtual.

Watch for another announcement in GRCC Today when the sessions are open for registration — it should be by the end of this month!

Any requests? Questions? Contact angelasalinas@grcc.edu

Thank you for your support of employee learning!

Pool Closure August 3 and 4

The pool will be closed for the 10am-1:30pm shift today (August 3) and for the 6am-8:15am shift tomorrow (August 4), due to unforeseen circumstances.

We apologize for the short notice and any inconvenience this may cause. Please stay tuned to your email for more updates. If you have any questions, please let us know.

-Ford Fieldhouse Operations Team

Welcome back to campus Ice Cream Social with Ohana Ice

Reconnect with your GRCC Family and enjoy a frozen tasty treat!

The Ohana Hawaiian Shaved Ice truck is visiting the Tassell MTEC, DeVos Campus, and the Main Campus, so be sure to save the date on your calendar!

Tuesday August 24

11:30am-1:00pm at the Tassell MTEC (near front entrance)

2:00-4:00pm at the DeVos Campus (Admin. Bldg parking lot)

Wednesday August 25

12:30-3:00pm at Main Campus (at the South end of the Commons)

The Quiet Cafe closed Wednesday

The Quiet Cafe will be closed Wednesday, August 4, 2021

GRCC In the News, 08/03/2021

GRCC Lakeshore Campus plans community open house

August 02,2021; secondwavemedia.com

West Michigan has been watching Grand Rapids Community College’s new Lakeshore Campus take shape, and residents finally will be able to get a first look inside this month.

Architecture firm appoints new associates

August 02, 2021; Grand Rapids Business Journal

TowerPinkster promoted six employees to join its shareholder group as associates.

… With more than 15 years of industry experience, (Ryan) Eversole leads the firm’s growing structural engineering department. Throughout the course of his career, he has been involved in structural design, project management and construction administration for projects across multiple industry sectors. Most recently, he has worked with clients including the Gerald R. Ford International Airport, Grand Rapids Community College, Byron Center Public Schools, Forest Hills Public Schools, Kalamazoo Public Schools and Lowell Area Schools.