QUICK TAKES - DECEMBER 2019

During the Del Mar College Board of Regents regular meeting held Dec. 10, the following individuals and departments were recognized:

• Vice President of Workforce Development and Strategic Initiatives Lenora Keas recognized Dara Betz, a DMC Corporate Services Director and Reserve U.S. Army Major, who collaborated with the Corpus Christi Regional Economic Development Corporation (CCREDC) and Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi’s Lone Star UAS Center of Excellence & Innovation during a national Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV or drone) convention in Las Vegas. Betz was invited to attend the 2019 Commercial UAV Expo of the Americas to represent the College. The Expo is the leading tradeshow and conference focusing on the integration and operation of commercial UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) with more exhibitors than any other commercial drone event in the country. The Expo represents industries covering process, power and utilities, civil infrastructure, construction, aggregates in mining, surveying and mapping, public safety and security as well as precision agriculture. Betz’s extensive knowledge and expertise in UAVs, Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and other related fields and technology has moved these fields forward in the community and the programs offered by the College, putting DMC on the cutting edge of training the workforce for these areas.

• Laura Wright, Technology Education Department Chair and Assistant Professor of Architecture/Drafting Technology, shared with Board members that four Architectural Design III students–Olivia Cavazos, Nickolas Garcia, Diego Diaz and Timothy Tipparach–participated in the Texas Society of Architects (TSA) Student Design Competition in October and performed very well. The DMC students’ participation marked the first time a community college has competed in the TSA event, which also included Rice University, Texas Tech University, Texas A&M University in College Station and the University of Texas San Antonio (UTSA). While UTSA won the competition, jurors praised the work of the DMC team, which addressed the architectural needs of communities facing potential storms like Hurricane Harvey, including:

             • Del Mar College was the only team that addressed the humanity aspect of the project.
             • Del Mar College had the best presentation.
             • Del Mar College was the only team that provided a real, current solution addressing architectural resiliency for
                the duration and aftermath of a storm.
             • The Del Mar College team showed quite a lot of impressive work for a short, 48-hour design charrette.

View remarks by DMC Architectural Design III students Nickolas Garcia and Diego Diaz about their experience as TSA Student Design Competition contenders: