VGCC President honors South Campus faculty and staff
The president of Vance-Granville Community College, Dr. Stelfanie Williams, recently recognized the college’s South Campus for excellence by awarding the “Vanguard Cup” to the team of faculty and staff there.
South Campus , located between Creedmoor and Butner, thus became the first recipient of the cup, a newly established honor for departments at VGCC. An inscription on the trophy states that the cup is meant to recognize “exceptional team performance toward the college mission, vision and strategic plan.” In this case, the campus was cited for making measurable gains after implementing specific strategies related to official college goals: empowering and supporting students. During the 2014-2015 year, the South Campus faculty and staff achieved large increases in the completion rates for two courses, Environmental Biology ( BIO 140 ) and Introduction to Computers ( CIS 110 ).“The outstanding faculty and staff at South Campus are to be commended for their commitment to helping every student succeed,” President Williams said.
Cecilia Wheeler, the dean of South Campus, recalled that the strategy was developed after campus officials noticed an unusually high rate of students not completing those two courses. “In talking with our students, I learned they were withdrawing because they did not understand how to complete and submit their assignments through the online publisher resources that were companion pieces to their textbooks,” Wheeler said. The campus then implemented focused software training and technical support for students in the two courses, leading to the positive results.
Wheeler said that other teams at VGCC contributed to the success of the strategy, including the Computer Education department, the Academic Skills Center and the Institutional Technology Committee. “This is a perfect example of what we can accomplish when we work collaboratively and focus on helping our students be successful,” she said.
VGCC’s South Campus offers a variety of education and training programs, including Adult Basic Skills , Cosmetology , Electronics Engineering Technology , Human Services Technology , Mechatronics Engineering Technology , Medication Aide, Nurse Aide and Radiography , in addition to general education courses for the College Transfer program. For more information, call (919) 528-4737.
Above: Members of the faculty and staff at VGCC’s South Campus pose with the “Vanguard Cup.” They include, seated, from left, instructor Frankie Frink (English instructor), Sonya Copeland (Academic and Career Coach), Diane Blalock (Receptionist), Geraldine Cash (Administrative Assistant to the Dean), Tina Moll (English Tutor), Jonathan Sparks (Psychology Instructor) and Jonathon Jackson (Bookstore Clerk); standing, middle row, from left, Jason Bryan (English instructor), Seletha Pherribo (Academic and Career Coach), Wesley Williams (Program Head, Engineering Technologies), Cecilia Wheeler (Dean of South Campus), Randy Bryant (Computer Education instructor), Erin Folz (Mathematics instructor), Reba Bullock (Granville Early College Liaison), Tracy Wallace (Program Head, Human Services Technology); and standing, in back, from left: Bernard Hargrove (Custodian/Housekeeper), Delton Farmer (Business Administration instructor), Don Medlin (Mechatronics instructor), Dr. Kambiz Tahmaseb (Biology instructor), Roberta Freeman (Library/Open Lab Technician), Jillian Davis (Developmental Math instructor) and Calvin Crews (Custodian/Housekeeper). Not pictured: Nancy Jackson and Emily Coburn (Cosmetology instructors), Natasha Thompson (History instructor), Sharon O’Geary (Human Services instructor), Greg Wilson (Developmental English instructor), Stacey Soles and Lewis Daughtry (Radiography instructors). (VGCC photo)
