Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Achieve60AZ Alliance Formed to Boost College Degree and Certificate Attainment

Last week, a community-based alliance of business, philanthropic, and education organizations came together with AZ Governor, Doug Ducey, to announce a statewide goal to increase the educational attainment of all Arizonans. 

Today, only 42% of residents (ages 25-64) in the state currently hold a post-secondary certificate, associate’s degree, bachelor’s degree, or higher – that is fewer than four out of every 10 working adults. Post-secondary completion must be top priority in Arizona in order to boost economic prosperity and national and global workforce competitiveness.

The goal - to ensure that 60% of Arizonans 25 and older have a certificate or college degree by 2030 - is the charge of the alliance. The partners that have joined Achieve60 believe in the value and power of education to change lives and positively influence society. 

Arizona community colleges are proud partners of Achieve60 and are perfectly positioned to address the achievement gap.  Statewide, community colleges serve more than 300,000 students each year, confer more than 43,000 certificates and degrees, and transfer nearly 11,000 students to in-state universities.

The Maricopa Community Colleges alone, offer programs in 95% of the highest demand occupations in the Greater Phoenix area. Each year, nearly half of our 27,000 graduates leave a Maricopa college with an Associate’s degree or a Certificate of Completion in an occupational area of study. 

Relevant workforce training is imperative, but student success goes far beyond the classroom.  The K-12 bridge programs, university transfer pathways, developmental education courses, tutoring, advising, mentoring, and career guidance that community colleges offer are crucial to the success of our students.  The collective effort of the community colleges and the entire Achieve60 alliance will result in greater awareness of the importance of post-secondary education, a knowledgeable and innovative workforce, a higher standard of living, and a thriving business community.

I encourage you to go to ACHIEVE60AZ.com to learn more. 

Maria Harper-Marinick, Ph.D.
Chancellor



Thursday, September 22, 2016

CGCC and Maricopa Community Colleges Offer Support and Guidance to ITT Tech Students


In response to the recent closings of three ITT Tech campuses in Maricopa County, the Chandler Gilbert Community College and the Maricopa Community College District are offering support, advice, and academic counseling to the affected students who are in various stages of academic degree or certificate completion.

Chandler Gilbert Community College encourages former ITT Tech students to contact us or the Maricopa Community College nearest them to help them navigate their transition, or complete the online ITT Tech Student contact form. Doing so will ensure that each student will receive individual attention and academic advisement. In this process, enrollment specialists will help students navigate academic program selection, transcript review, and financial aid needs.

Students who complete the ITT Tech Student contact form will be contacted within approximately 7 business days. Access the form by clicking here.

We look forward to seeing you at Chandler Gilbert Community College or at any of the Maricopa Community Colleges.

Tuesday, September 20, 2016

"Dodging Bullets" Solo Show Coming to CGCC Performing Arts Center

Chandler-Gilbert Community College (CGCC) Performing Arts Department is excited to host “Dodging Bullets,” the acclaimed solo show featuring Arizona State University Professor David Barker on Friday, October 7 at 7pm at the Pecos Campus.

Born from a very real, tragic and life-altering experience, David Barker’s latest work is as personal as it is extraordinary.  It is personal in that this solo performer plays ten different roles, including his own mother, in order to immerse the audience in the moment when his brother-in-law tried to kill Barker and his sister.  The quality of Barker’s performance and the fact that everything actually happened to him, an average middle-aged guy who at the exact time of the incident was searching for a meaningful experience in life, makes the show extraordinary.

“We are thrilled to welcome Professor Barker to CGCC and look forward to his performance,” said Randy Wright, Performing Arts Director at CGCC. “Barker’s performance is powerful, entertaining and very real. His ability to transform into10 different characters is astonishing, and we encourage the community to take advantage of this opportunity to see him live.”

On the fateful day of the attack, Barker accompanied his sister and 15-year-old niece on a stop at his recently-divorced sister’s home to pick up asthma medication for his niece. “I went along to protect my sister,” Barker said. “We approached the house and Dr. Jack, my sister’s ex, appeared at the front door and ordered me to leave. Dr. Jack is a high-strung control freak, so when I refused to leave he attacked me.  We grappled briefly and he ran back into the house. My sister, niece and I were in complete shock. He came back with a gun and began to fire.”

This true story plays out with cinematic twists and turns including SWAT teams and arrests as well as the more intimate and revealing story lines of Barker’s parents’ declining health and the trauma he suffered as a result of the Dr. Jack incident.  At the end of this thrilling 65-minute journey, the audience dynamic with Barker is transformed; he is no longer just an actor on stage, but a person with whom you just shared a unique experience. 

A Q&A session about the experience will take place immediately following Barker’s performance. Leslie Marna, Director of My Sister's Place in Chandler, a non-profit formed to serve victims of domestic violence, will lead the discussion in an effort to increase awareness of the organization’s mission.

Admission is free!  Do not miss out on your chance to see Dodging Bullets. The event will be held inside the Arnette Scott Ward Performing Arts Center located at 2626 E. Pecos Road, Chandler, AZ 85225.

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month at CGCC

In celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month, CGCC is hosting a Hispanic Heritage Festival on Thursday, October 13 from 11 am to 1 pm inside the Student Pavilion. The event will feature samples of Hispanic foods, entertainment and information about local Hispanic community organizations.

Each year, Americans observe National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15, by celebrating the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America. The CGCC event is sponsored by the Hispanic Student Organization, Office of International Education Program and Student Life.
The event is free and open to the public. For more information on the event or CGCC's Hispanic Student Organization, please contact Greg Wojtovich at 480.857.5213.

CGCC is Hosting Desert Code Camp 2016

Calling all Coders! Chandler-Gilbert Community College, in partnership with the Southeast Valley .NET User Group and the City of Chandler will host “Desert Code Camp” on Saturday, October 8, 2016 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., at CGCC’s Pecos Campus in Chandler. 

The Desert Code Camp is an intensive, all-day, technology conference where participants immerse themselves in the most cutting edge coding trends and leading software of our time.  Students and regional software development professionals will be together for a full day in seminars, presentations and networking events. 

Furthermore, this is a free event that is part of an international trend in which peer groups of all platforms, programming languages and disciplines focus on coding and software development.  In doing so, they learn tips and tricks on new technologies and discover new approaches to problem solving. 

More than 100 sessions are currently slated, ranging from Game Development, HTML5 and Linux Operating Systems to Software Development using Java, .NET and Ruby on Rails.  Participants are encouraged to visit the official event website, oct2016.desertcodecamp.com, in order to: 
•    Check out the list of the sessions at http://oct2016.desertcodecamp.com/sessions/all
•    Create an account at http://oct2016.desertcodecamp.com/user/register.
•    Let us know you are coming at http://oct2016.desertcodecamp.com/confirmattendee.

This event is free and open to the public. For more information, please reach out to Joseph Guadagno at jguadagno@hotmail.com or dial (602) 293-6767.

We look forward to seeing you at camp.  Sign up today!

Project 3D Upcoming Events

The Office of Student Life and Leadership kicked off the Project 3D forum series on September 13 with the official launch event inside the Student Pavilion at the Pecos Campus. A variety of local civic organizations including the Arizona Democratic Party, Arizona GOP, League of Women Voters, East Valley Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Chinese American Phoenix Chapter gathered to educated students on key political issues and register them to vote in the upcoming presidential election.

Project 3D creator and CGCC student Curran Vinson was featured on 12 News where he discussed the vision behind the events and his hope to inspire students to get involved in political change. Click here to view the 12 News segment.

Upcoming Project 3D

•    9/27/2016 - “This Land Is Your Land, This Land Is My Land”: Politics of the Wall, 7pm- 8:30pm Agave Community Room
•    10/5/2016 - Project 3D and Rock the Vote Event, 11:30am - 1pm, Student Pavilion
•    10/18/2016 -Shots Heard Around the World: The Politics of Gun Control in America, 7pm - 8:30pm Agave Community Room
•    11/1/2016 - Social Justice, Diversity, and the New American, 7pm - 8:30pm, Agave Community Room

The voter registration portion of Project 3D is being conducted in connection with Rock the Vote, a non-partisan group that focuses on educating and registering young voters and getting as many as possible to turn out to the polls. This event will include live entertainment, food and guest speakers.

The Project 3D forums are free and open to the public. Refreshments will be provided. For more information, contact katherine.haar@cgc.com or call 480-732-7150.

Monday, September 19, 2016

CGCC Student featured on Channel 12 News

Curran Vinson, CGCC Student. Photo credit: 12News
CGCC student Curran Vinson was featured on 12 News last Thursday to promote the launch of Project 3D. Check out the story here!

Thursday, September 15, 2016

CGCC Instructors Back In Action at Military Bases Abroad

Scott Adamson and Linda Meng
Two Chandler-Gilbert Community College (CGCC) mathematics faculty, Scott Adamson, PhD., and Linda Meng, have re-enlisted with the Department of Defense Education Agency (DoDEA) to teach college and career ready standards to U.S. educators at military bases overseas. 

For the second year in a row, Dr. Adamson and Professor Meng joined a cohort through the Charles A. Dana Center International Facilitation Fellow Program – a DoDEA Mathematics Professional Learning Initiative, to be trained in Austin, TX and subsequently deployed to their individually assigned bases.  In 2015, Meng served at the U.S. Army Base in Daegu, South Korea and Adamson was at the U.S. Naval Base in Yokosuka, Japan.  This year Meng and Adamson were assigned to U.S. Army Garrison, Ansbach, Germany and U.S. Marine Corps Air Station, Iwakuni, Japan respectfully.

Though the reasons as to why these volunteers recommitted to this service are both personal and varied, the common thread is to fulfill a sense of duty to our country, military families and the field of mathematics.
“In a small way, this program allows me the opportunity to support our military families serving our nation around the world. Specifically, I had the opportunity to build relationships with and support the teachers on base who impact the children and families stationed at the base in Iwakuni,” explained Adamson.  “Through this program, I can share my experience and knowledge of teaching and learning mathematics with the teachers who can then provide these children with a positive school experience.”

Military families often times feel isolated from what is happening “back in the states” and this DoDEA programs helps to ensure their children’s education is at the same level with the latest standards back home.

“I believe it is very important that the children of soldiers receive an education on par with children in the states,” shared Meng. “I also believe that mathematics education needs to evolve to better meet the needs of students, no matter where they live, and these new standards are addressing this change. For me this opportunity was a wonderful way to combine the two.”

It being the second year of the program, not only were the teachers more confident and better prepared, but the curriculum was more sophisticated as well.

“This year we had the opportunity to take a deep dive into two very important mathematical topics – place value and fractions. While last year was an introduction to the new standards, this year focused teachers more on learning effective strategies for helping their students to have a positive experience with making sense of important mathematical ideas,” shared Adamson.

More experience also brought with it more responsibility in year two.  For instance, Meng was assigned four schools in the southern Bavarian region of Germany compared to just one school in South Korea last year.  And more schools meant more teachers to train from a broader range of grade levels, but our CGCC faculty gladly welcomed the work and the impact they were able to make. 

“My son is serving in the U.S. Army as his career. I see first-hand the struggles his family has experienced during his service,” reflects Meng.  “He is the fourth generation of Mengs to serve in the U.S. Army, although he is the first to make it a career.  So this is my way of supporting him, his family, and all the other soldiers and their families who are serving our country, as well as honoring a family's commitment to our nation.”

For more information on the Charles A. Dana Center International Facilitation Fellow Program visit www.utdanacenter.org.

Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Empty Bowls Fundraiser Fights Hunger One Bowl at a Time

Event Benefits Thousands of Local Families in Need

Chandler-Gilbert Community College (CGCC) has teamed up with the Chandler Christian Community Center (CCCC) to fight hunger and raise money for families in need through its Empty Bowls Service-Learning fundraiser event. The event will be held Tuesday, September 20 from 10:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. inside the Pecos Campus Student Pavilion.

Attendees can purchase their own hand-crafted ceramic bowls designed by CGCC Ceramics student artists for $10, and enjoy a cup of soup donated by Dilly's Deli, Fry’s Liberty Market and Paradise Bakery. All proceeds benefit the CCCC to feed those in the community who might otherwise go without food. 

"We are grateful for the opportunity to support Empty Bowls for CCCC through service-learning. It is a unique opportunity for Ceramics students to apply what they are learning in their courses to meet needs in the community," said Alexandra Cannell, Service-Learning Coordinator at CGCC."

Empty Bowls at CGCC is part of a district wide fundraiser that raises funds for families in support of World Food Day (October 16), a day of action for people around the world to come together to declare their commitment to eradicate hunger. Empty Bowls raises thousands of dollars annually for local charities. Last year's event raised over $5,000 for the CCCC.

For more information, contact Service-Learning at 480-732-7069 or by email at alex.cannell@cgc.edu.

Tuesday, September 13, 2016

Cooper Hall Opens at CGCC William’s Campus

Cooper Hall, Chandler-Gilbert Community College’s (CGCC) newest building, officially opened its doors to students, faculty and staff last month at the Williams Campus. The 11,820 square-foot multifaceted building, welcomes students with a variety of programs including math, electrical utility technology, history, engineering and business.

“We at Chandler-Gilbert Community College are excited about the opening of Cooper Hall and the opportunities this new learning environment will provide to our students,” said William Guerriero, CGCC Interim President. “Cooper Hall is another example of the College’s commitment to providing students with the latest technology to optimize learning and teaching.”

Cooper Hall’s emphasis on engineering, science and technology is intentional and appropriate given its namesake’s legacy. Cooper Hall is named after United States Air Force Colonel Leroy Gordon “Gordo” Cooper, Jr.  (March 6, 1927 – October 4, 2004), better known as Gordon Cooper. He received flight training at Perrin Air Force Base, Texas, and Williams Air Force Base, Arizona. After earning a bachelor’s degree in aeronautical engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology in 1956, Col. Cooper went on to become an aerospace engineer, test pilot, United States Air Force pilot and one of the Mercury Seven, the original NASA astronauts who manned the first flights into space.

“CGCC is thrilled that Cooper Hall will help to preserve Gordon Cooper’s contributions to our nation’s pre-eminence in space exploration through the fields of engineering and science,” said Guerriero. “His legacy will continue to live on through our students and this building.”
   
Designed by Phoenix-based firm Gabor Lorant Architects and DNG Construction, LLC., Cooper Hall features four general classrooms, two engineering and applied technology labs, faculty offices, a conference room and support spaces. The building was funded by the 2004 Maricopa County Community College District bond, built to LEED Silver certification standards and includes 100 percent LED lighting, carbon neutral carpet and ground concrete floors.

An official grand opening event for Cooper Hall will be held at 2 p.m. on October 21st at the Williams Campus located at 7360 E. Tahoe Ave, Mesa, 85212. 

Friday, September 9, 2016

CGCC names Head Coach for Men's Soccer

Chandler Gilbert Community College welcomes new head coach for men's soccer.
First year head coach Richard Esperti comes to the Coyotes with 24 years of coaching experience at high school and club level soccer.

Coach Esperti is taking over the helm after 12 years of excellence as the head coach of Gilbert Mesquie High School (2002-2014), as well as a successful two years with Gilbert Highland High School (2014-2016). He has obtained a NSCAA Premier Diploma and is looking forward to leading the Men’s Program at CGCC this fall.

Please join us in by providing Coach Esperti with a warm Coyote welcome and support your team by coming out to the next game.


CGCC Welcomes Amanda Omar to Women's Volleyball

Chandler Gilbert Community College is pleased to welcome Amanda Omar to Women's Volleyball.

Amanda Omar comes to CGCC with 20 years of coaching and training experience. She has coached in the ACCAC for the last five seasons as an Assistant Coach at Phoenix College and an Assistant Coach for the AZ Region's professional women's volleyball team the AZ Sizzle.

Coach Omar has a Masters Degree in Coaching and Athletic Administration from Concordia University, is CAP II certified and a Master Instructor for Volleyball Conditioning and Performance through USAV. She is Gold Medal Squared Certified, and holds additional certifications as a Group Fitness Instructor through ACE and is also a certified  R.I.P.P.E.D. Instructor. Currently, she is the AZ AAU District Director for Volleyball and at various times throughout the year works with the Nokaoi Showcase, The Volleyball Factory, and All-American Volleyball Camps. She is extremely excited to be a part of  the CGCC Athletic family. 


Come out and support women's volleyball at the next game, find the schedule here.

Tuesday, September 6, 2016

Cooper Hall Opens at CGCC William’s Campus

Cooper Hall, Chandler Gilbert Community College Williams Campus

Cooper Hall, Chandler-Gilbert Community College’s (CGCC) newest building, officially opened its doors to students, faculty and staff last month at the Williams Campus. The 11,820 square-foot multifaceted building, welcomes students with a variety of programs including math, electrical utility technology, history, engineering and business.

“We at Chandler-Gilbert Community College are excited about the opening of Cooper Hall and the opportunities this new learning environment will provide to our students,” said William Guerriero, CGCC Interim President. “Cooper Hall is another example of the College’s commitment to providing students with the latest technology to optimize learning and teaching.”
Cooper Hall’s emphasis on engineering, science and technology is intentional and appropriate given its namesake’s legacy. Cooper Hall is named after United States Air Force Colonel Leroy Gordon “Gordo” Cooper, Jr.  (March 6, 1927 – October 4, 2004), better known as Gordon Cooper. He received flight training at Perrin Air Force Base, Texas, and Williams Air Force Base, Arizona. After earning a bachelor’s degree in aeronautical engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology in 1956, Col. Cooper went on to become an aerospace engineer, test pilot, United States Air Force pilot and one of the Mercury Seven, the original NASA astronauts who manned the first flights into space.

“CGCC is thrilled that Cooper Hall will help to preserve Gordon Cooper’s contributions to our nation’s pre-eminence in space exploration through the fields of engineering and science,” said Guerriero. “His legacy will continue to live on through our students and this building.”
   
Designed by Phoenix-based firm Gabor Lorant Architects and DNG Construction, LLC., Cooper Hall features four general classrooms, two engineering and applied technology labs, faculty offices, a conference room and support spaces. The building was funded by the 2004 Maricopa County Community College District bond, built to LEED Silver certification standards and includes 100 percent LED lighting, carbon neutral carpet and ground concrete floors.

An official grand opening event for Cooper Hall will be held at 2 p.m. on October 21st at the Williams Campus located at 7360 E. Tahoe Ave, Mesa, 85212.