31
May
2023
|
22:25 PM
Europe/Amsterdam

QUICK TAKES - MAY 2023

The Del Mar College (DMC) Board of Regents acknowledged the accomplishments of two academic areas during the “Recognitions” segment of the May 9, 2023, regular meeting––including the Accounting Program with the Business Administration and Entrepreneurship Department and the Public Service Department. Additionally, the Board granted the prestigious title of “Professor Emeritus” to two former faculty members––retired English Professor Dr. Jonizo Cain-Calloway and retired Sociology Professor Ronald M. Huskin.

Adelfino Palacios_DMC Accounting Professor_May 2023 BOR Recognition_VITA Program

Recognitions
 

Accounting Program faculty members ––including Adelfino Palacios, Jr., CPA and Professor of Accounting, and Adria Vasquez, CPA and Accounting Instructor––and students provided tax return services as part of the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Program during Spring 2023 in the Heritage Campus Venters Business Building. The service resumed after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic with DMC Accounting faculty and students providing this free service for which community members had to make less than $59,182 for tax year 2022. The VITA Program at DMC is conducted in partnership with the Coastal Bend VITA Coalition, which includes several entities––United Way of the Coastal Bend, Goodwill Industries of South Texas, the Internal Revenue Service, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi (TAMU-CC) and Workforce Solutions Coastal Bend––that work collaboratively to assist community members with their income tax returns, marking 18 out of the past 20 years that the College has participated.

VITA Program Recognition_BOR Regular Meeting_May 2023

The area’s resumed VITA Program services assisted more than 700 community members with the processing of refunds that exceeded $1 million total with the assistance of DMC and TAMU-CC volunteers who worked over 800 hours. Additionally, ArcelorMittal Texas HBI, who served as the corporate sponsor, funded stipends for the VITA student volunteers during the tax season. DMC student volunteers included Alma Martinez and Yaneli Diaz, who served as Site Coordinators, Nilda Diaz, Rebecca Peralez and Ambert Robertson. As a volunteer faculty member, Vasquez managed the administrative duties for this year’s VITA Program services at Del Mar College. To all the volunteers this year, “Thank you for providing this service to the Coastal Bend community!”

 

John Hornsby_DMC Regional Police Academy Director and Law Enforcement Instructor

On March 11, the DMC Public Service Department hosted the next general of first responders as part of the Texas Public Service Teacher Association’s (TPSTA) 2023 Statewide Competition held at the Public Safety Complex on the Windward Campus. Over 680 high school students from across the state competed in individual and team events focused on police, firefighting and emergency medical services training. Individual events included fire search and rescue, booking procedures, bunker gear racing, misdemeanor traffic stops, fire and law enforcement agility courses, fingerprinting, intoxicated driver exercises and accident investigations. Team competition encompassed felony traffic stops, building searches, domestic crisis intervention and a team fire agility course, along with “specialized” team events that included cell extraction, crime scene investigation, forensic science and EMT (emergency medical technician) responses.

TPSTA Team Competition_Policing Exercise_031123_Windward Campus

Faculty with the College’s Public Service Department––which includes the DMC Regional Police Academy, DMC Regional Fire Academy, Criminal Justice Program, Emergency Medical Technician Paramedic Program and other public service training offerings––served as judges during the one-day competition. A ceremony was also scheduled with the competitors receiving their awards in Richardson Performance Hall. Law Enforcement Instructor and Director of the DMC Regional Police Academy John Hornsby led the College’s faculty, staff and students as part of the collaboration with the TPSTA in support of competition activities. Other faculty and staff representatives included Law Enforcement Instructor Tchanee Meissner, Assistant Instructor of Law Enforcement Henry Cantu, Assistant Program Director and Assistant Professor of Emergency Medical Services Professions Robert Ruiz and Shaun Meredith, Richardson Performance Hall Manager. Additionally, the following Law Enforcement majors provided support during the competition: Alexes Bryant, Eric Garcia, Jose Gonzalez, Joshua Hawks, Steffin Kemp, Joshua Kent, Daniel Lopez, Rachael Phillips, Vincent Ramirez, Joshua Roque, Jamie Sparks, Jennifer Trevino and Jaylan Winfrey. Students from the Emergency Medical Services Program included Piper Gates, Rose Hale and Christopher Wilson while Fire Science majors included Phillip Bazan, Jacob Garcia, Daythen Leyva and Matthew Villarreal. Way to go! Your support is helping shape our future first responders! (Watch KIII Channel 3’s coverage of the competition)

 

Special Recognition: Board Grants Prestigious Title of “Professor Emeritus” to Two Retired Faculty Members
 

In addition to the two May 2023 recognitions, the Board also granted the most prestigious title that a former faculty member can receive––Professor Emeritus––to two retired faculty. Former faculty members English Professor Dr. Jonizo Cain-Calloway and Sociology Professor Ronald M. Huskin both received the title after retiring from the College in 2022. Dr. Cain-Calloway served for over 25 years with the English & Philosophy Department while Huskin taught in the Social Sciences Department for 21 years. Both individuals were recognized as exemplary educators with many accomplishments between them. (Read the full news release) Congratulations to both Dr. Cain-Calloway and Ron Huskin for this well-deserved honor!

Accolades
 

The College also extends a round of applause to DMC employees for their achievements that benefit the institution and its students.

DMC Awarded Nearly $2.8 Million Title V Grant for Five-year Period
 

DMC officials announced during the May 9 Board of Regents regular meeting that the College was awarded a U.S. Department of Education Title V Grant totaling $2,782,572. The five-year grant takes effect later this year in October and will run through September 2028 in support of the  Del Mar, Conectamos, Continuamos, Completamos or DMC3 project. The funds will allow the College to expand and enhance support provided to underprepared, socioeconomically disadvantaged, Hispanic and low-income students with the project implementing best practices, services and mechanisms to address the challenges DMC faces as it navigates the complexities of student success as a historic Hispanic Serving Institution. Project team members include David F. Trujillo & Associates; Vice President and Chief Academic Officer Dr. Jonda Halcomb; Vice President for Student Affairs Patricia Benavides Dominguez; Dr. Cynthia Bridges, Dean of Communications, Fine Arts and Social Sciences; Dr. Jack Southard, Dean of Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, Kinesiology and Education; Gracie Martinez, Dean of Student Outreach and Enrollment Services; Dr. Matthew Perry, Chair of the Department of English & Philosophy; Dr. Dale Anderson, Chair of the Department of Communication, Languages & Reading; Project SENDA Director David Barrera, Jr.; Career Development Center Director Jennifer Gonzales; and Dr. Kristina Wilson, former Vice President of Planning and Institutional Effectiveness. Goals of the DMC3 project include 1) increasing Hispanic and low-income persistence, retention and graduation rates by implementing Guided Pathways and enhanced onboarding processes, 2) increasing Hispanic and low-income retention rates through enhanced support, advising systems and intervention when students are off track and 3) offering a year-round calendar of professional development activities for all employees, including culturally-relevant and equity-minded pedagogy to improve student learning and student service outcomes.

 

About Del Mar College

Del Mar College empowers students to achieve their dreams. We offer quality programs, individual attention, outstanding instruction through faculty with real-world experience and affordable costs to credit and noncredit students in Corpus Christi and the South Texas Coastal Bend area. Nationally recognized while locally focused, we’re ranked in the top two percent of community colleges in the country granting associate degrees to Hispanic students (Community College Week). Del Mar College focuses on offering our students programs that match current or emerging career opportunities. Whether students are interested in the fine arts, sciences, business, occupational or technical areas, students get the education they need for the future they want at Del Mar College.