QUICK TAKES - JULY 2019

Executive Director of Development and the Del Mar College Foundation Mary McQueen, CFRE, will serve as President of the Texas Association of Community College Foundations (TACCF) for the two-year term running 2019 through 2021. TACCF connects like-minded fundraising professionals through an annual conference and facilitates regular, high-value exchanges of information and ideas through a state-wide listserv. Among only a small handful of similar organizations in the country, TACCF focuses on increasing the professionalization and effectiveness of members through education, interaction and the adoption of standards and ethical practices. McQueen joined the College and has overseen the development, grants and alumni offices, along with operation of the DMC Foundation, since September 2010. She successfully reorganized her divisions, implemented an online scholarship application process, revitalized the alumni program and raised $2.6 million in new gifts her very first year with Del Mar. Since then, the DMC Foundation now ranks in the top 10% of community college foundations with assets of $20 million and five-year average fundraising at $3.1 million per year. McQueen has been a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) since 2005. Visit the Del Mar College Development/Foundation web pages to learn more about activities and ways to support DMC student scholarships at: www.delmar.edu/foundation/index.html

The DMC Small Business Development Center (SBDC), which falls under the auspice of the College’s Workforce Programs and Corporate Services Division, received the Eagle Award from the Small Business Association Harlingen District. The award recognizes area partners who most strongly support nomination efforts for National Small Business Week. Local nominations go on to compete at district, regional and national levels. Under the leadership of SBDC Director Ann Fierova, the College’s SBDC submitted three nominations this year with two winning at the district level and then competing regionally. SBDC Certified Business Advisor James “Jamey” Jones nominated Joe Perez with Smoothie King, who won Small Business Person of the Year, while SBDC Rural Program Manager and Certified Business Advisor Celia Garza nominated Max Salinas with Max Underground Construction, LLC, who won Minority Small Business of the Year. Nominations are extremely time-consuming and also supported by other SBDC staff, including Program Coordinator Monica Benavides Stuber, who coordinated nominees’ pictures for the packets. Of receiving the award, Fierova noted, “We intend to do everything we can to keep the Eagle Award in Corpus Christi.” The College’s SBDC serves an 11-county area. To learn more about their services, visit their web pages at: www.delmar.edu/sbdc/index.html