Category Archives: Opening Day Meeting

Excellence in Education Staff Award Winner Laurie Witczak

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The winner of the Staff Excellence in Education Award for 2011 was Laurie Witczak in the Tutoring Department.

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From her nomination form:

  • “You hold yourself to extremely high standards and you manage to keep everything running smoothly without sacrificing efficiency or quality.”
  • “You understand that each student comes to GRCC with different needs, skills and abilities.  You work with each student and are able to bring out their strengths and encourage them to grow.”
  • “You are always willing to look at a situation or problem and think outside the box to come up with creative solutions that will work for everyone.”

Video of Laurie’s well-received acceptance of the award available here:

 

Excellence in Education Faculty Award Winner Professor John Dersch

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Mathematics Professor John Dersch was the recipient of the 2011 Excellence in Education faculty award last week at the Opening Day event.

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Some of the comments on his nomination form included:

  • “You are dedicated to teaching and you have a reputation for being tough on your students, yet you demand more of yourself than you do of them.”
  • “When you meet students who need to be challenged beyond what is offered, you are willing to design independent studies or seminar classes to meet their needs.”
  • “You hold yourself accountable for your students’ learning and progress through your classes.  You spend an ungodly number of hours grading homework that you collect from all of your classes – you are the benchmark for many in your department.”

Video of the award ceremony and John’s heartfelt comments here:

Gordon Hunsberger Arena Named at Opening Day – Photos Video

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Yesterday GRCC’s newly renovated arena was named the Gordon Hunsberger Arena after the longtime GRCC athletic director, football coach, faculty member and alumnus.  The naming opportunity came in the form of a leadership gift from the David and Carol Van Andel Foundation.

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The arena underwent a $1.1 million overhaul, including installation of a new floor, plus lighting, sound and acoustics improvements in 2010, as a part of the GRCC Works…Ask Anyone Capital Campaign. In addition to being the home court for GRCC athletic teams, the Gordon Hunsberger Arena is used by the community for various purposes and special events. Over 3,900 students use the arena each semester for GRCC wellness courses.

Video of Opening Day is available here: High Bandwidth or Low Bandwidth

Opening Day Learning Opportunity with Scott Lewis JD NCHERM

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We are hosting Scott Lewis as a keynote speaker as part of our School Meeting Program. We are excited about the information that he will provide that will help us serve students.

“Making A Difference: Managing Difficult Situations and People”
W. Scott Lewis, JD, NCHERM

More and more, people in services and academic settings find themselves having to manage difficult situations and people. Preventing the disruption before it begins is key, but managing difficult people is a learned not innate skill. Using proven techniques, the presenter will draw on actual cases from his experience managing various environments and his training in diffusing difficult situations to teach participants how to prevent and handle these delicate situations by staying centered. These techniques have been presented to over 1,000 educators, managers and supervisors in the corporate and higher education environment, as well as to front-line staff and law enforcement.

Thursday, August 25 from 2:00-4:00 p.m.
2nd Floor Multi-Purpose Room, Student Community Center

RSVP is requested here.

For questions, please contact the Dean of Student Affairs Office at 616-234-3925

Photos: Opening Day – Winter Semester 2011

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The Winter 2011 semester kicked off this morning with news and insight from Dr. Ender (on the Compensation Study and the college’s financial picture among other things) along with a few videos profiling the numerous accomplishments of 2010, the revised Strategic Planning process, and a teaser of the updates coming to GRCC’s website.  The campus was also introduced to GRCC Police Chief Rebecca Whitman and Communications Director Raul Alvarez.

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Photos: Opening Day 8/26/10

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GRCC Employees gathered in the Fieldhouse for Opening Day to hear from college president Dr. Steven Ender.  In addition to learning about the new Innovation Challenge, the college honored faculty member Steve Abid in the Social Science department and staff member Julie Parks in the Workforce Training department with the “Excellence in Education” award.  Afterwards, all employees assembled on the Bostwick commons to be photographed in the shape of the GRCC “flying C’s” logo.

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Click here for more photos.

Also available is the video shot by Media Technologies of the entire presentation:

Opening Day All Employee Meeting 8/26/10

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Opening Day kicks off in a big way on Thursday, August 26, 2010 in our newly renovated field house.  The schedule includes:

7:30 a.m. – 8:15 a.m. Continental Breakfast

8:15 a.m. Dr. Ender’s Welcome/ Presentation

9:15 a.m. Assemble on Bostwick Commons for GRCC Annual Photo

10:00 a.m. School Meetings Begin

It  will be great to see everyone again!