Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Basketball alum goes pro

An article in the July 25 issue of Alaska News-Miner notes that Andrew Kelly '12 of the Alaska Nanooks has signed to play one year with Club Sindri in Hofn, Iceland. Kelly was the 2013-14 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year. Club Sindri is one of 18 teams in the Second Division of the Icelandic Basketball Federation.

Monday, July 28, 2014

Two alumni pitch for the NY Yankees in same game

Jeron Long '12
 Two Chandler-Gilbert Community College baseball alumni pitched in a double A game for the New York Yankees on July 13. The starter Jaron Long ’12 secured the win and James Pazos ’10 secured a save.

James Pazos '10
“It’s extremely rare to have two alumni from the same community college both pitch for the same team in the same game and record a win and a save,” said Russ Luce, CGCC baseball coach. “We are fortunate to have such quality players come through the college and continue on to play at such a high level.”

Both Long and Pazos play for the Trenton Thunder, a minor league affiliate of the New York Yankees.

Read about the game

Thursday, July 24, 2014

Baseball pitcher is among top 12 in nation

Jon Ferrendelli
Chandler-Gilbert Community College (CGCC) baseball pitcher Jon Ferrendelli was named to the First Team All American in Division II by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NCJAA) in June. Selected from a pool of national nominees, Ferrendelli was one of 12 to be selected to the team and is the fourth baseball player from CGCC to receive the honor. Ferrendelli was also named Academic All American for his consistent academic excellence.

“It was phenomenal to have Jon as part of our team. He excelled both academically and athletically,” said Russ Luce, CGCC baseball coach. “When we brought him on, we had aspirations that he would be a good player, but we didn’t anticipate that he would become one of the best – as a player and a student – in the entire conference.”

Ferrendelli finished the 2014 season 7-2 with a 1.38 ERA over 91 innings pitched.  He struck out 100 batters and allowed only 19 runs (14 earned) on the season. During his two years with the Coyotes, Ferrendelli finished 13-4 with a 1.71 ERA and 158 strikeouts over 168 innings.

Ferrendelli graduated in May with high distinction, earning an associate degree in business finance. He is headed to Wichita State on a baseball scholarship to pitch for the Shockers.

CGCC selected as noteworthy Arizona community college

Chandler-Gilbert Community College was selected as one of ten "Noteworthy community colleges in Arizona" in an article posted July 15 on Schools.com.

Among having one of the highest first-year retention rates in the state in 2013, it lists the college's variety of degree and certificate programs in common and niche disciplines, free career services, one-on-one advising and support services designed for midlife career changers as reasons for selection. Read the full article.

New college fitness center offers inexpensive options for Southeast valley residents

The new Coyote Center opened on the Chandler-Gilbert Community College Pecos Campus on July 15. Included in the new building is a 4,000-square-foot fitness center offering a full line of cardiovascular equipment, resistance training machines, a complete free weight section with Olympic lifting platforms, and an outdoor turf field. There is also a 1,800-square-foot group fitness room. 

Community members can enroll in a non-credit class for $80 and have 15 weeks of access to the fitness center. If they sign-up for the two-credit class (PED115), they’ll have access to the fitness center as well as be able to drop into any open group fitness class including yoga, pilates, bootcamp fitness, stretch and relaxation, meditative yoga, tai chi and zumba.

Access to the center means access to the staff who have advanced degrees in exercise science and personal training or strength and conditioning certifications through accredited organizations such as the American College of Sports Medicine, National Strength and Conditioning Association, or National Academy of Sports Medicine.

Other free services available to anyone who enrolls include exercise program design, blood pressure checks, body composition assessment, body circumference measurements, cardiovascular fitness assessment and muscular strength/endurance assessments.

The fitness center opens on Tuesday, Sept. 2. Hours are Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed on Saturdays and Sundays.

For more information call the fitness center at 480-732-7200 or visit cgc.edu/coyotefitness.

Monday, July 21, 2014

Retention is focus of CGCC predictive model


A Business Officer article profiling college 'big data' projects highlights Chandler-Gilbert Community College's predictive retention model which helps predict, based on a variety of factors, those students who are more likely to need support to complete their studies.

The article titled "Predictive Patterns" by Margo Vanover Porter interviews Bradley Kendrex, associate dean of finance and business services, as he and his team including Theresa Wong, director of research, planning and development, try to answer how the college can know earlier when a student is at risk of leaving.