Archive for May, 2008
Bald is beautiful: RCHS seniors earned $2.5 million in scholarships, deputy superintendent shaves head
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David Canine, deputy superintendent for the Richland Collegiate High School of Mathematics, Science and Engineering (RCHS), never imagined how cold air would feel on his bare head. He went bald Monday after he promised to shave his head if the RCHS class of 2008 applied for and received $1 million in scholarships to colleges or universities in Texas and across the United States. Those students took him seriously, and their cumulative scholarship total to date is $2.5 million.
“$2.5 million is so far beyond anything I could have imagined! That’s almost $20,000 per student,” says Canine.
RCHS, housed at Richland College, was first opened in the Fall of 2006 as unique program where 11th and 12th graders could complete their last two years of high school by taking college courses. Potentially, students could earn their high school diploma and their associate’s degree simultaneously. This spring, RCHS will graduate its first class of 129 seniors. Of those students, 122 received their associate’s degree earlier this month.
With the $2.5 million in tow, many of these students will be transferring to major colleges and universities, both in and out of state, with at least 60 credit hours from Richland.
“The scholarships, the school’s [TEA] “exemplary” rating, and the 122 Associate degrees the graduates earned demonstrate the quality of our students and success of the RCHS. More than half of the graduates earned a grade point average of “B” or better taking nothing but college courses. I am glad that the four-year universities recognized how hard our students worked to earn these grades and rewarded them for their efforts,” says Canine.
Applications for fall 2008 incoming juniors are now being accepted. For additional information, visit www.richlandcollege.edu/rchs or call 972-761-6888.
Published by admin on May 16th, 2008 tagged Uncategorized | Comment now »
This week’s RLC update
Institutional Effectiveness - Five administrators from Texas A&M University’s Division of Finance, Office of Budgeting and Analytical Services, and the Office of Employee Services recently visited Richland to learn about the college’s approaches to performance excellence, including setting measures and targets, tracking key performance indicators, and aligning strategic goals with budget processes; performance management; and professional development. Kay Eggleston, Richland Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness and Economic Development; Fonda Vera, Richland Dean of Planning and Research for Institutional Effectiveness; and Roy Bond, Richland Associate Dean for Organizational and Staff Development, hosted the representatives from TAMU’s Continuous Improvement Team.
Community and Economic Development - Richland College hosted the Dallas City Council on May 7 for its second special community meeting, with a focus on sustainability. Mayor Tom Leppert presented President Steve Mittelstet a proclamation honoring Richland College for its local and national leadership in sustainable community building through its performance excellence strategy, as recognized by the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. Prior to the City department presentations on progress with their sustainability initiatives, Dr. Mittelstet welcomed the Council on behalf of the students, faculty, and staff of Richland College and RCHS and introduced GREENRichland co-chairs David Henry and Eddie Hueston. Richland’s presentation stressed all three elements of the sustainability “triple bottom line” (social equity and justice; robust economy; healthy planet) in both its operations and its focus on embedding sustainable community building skills throughout its curriculum for civic responsibility - as well as various sustainability priorities at DCCCD colleges and District offices. In the commendations and questions which followed regarding Richland’s high-quality instruction and affordable tuition, Dr. Mittelstet praised Richland’s faculty and the DCCCD Board of Trustees for their systematic tax revenue and tuition increases that ensure quality, while maintaining both rates in the bottom 3-4 community colleges in the state, linking these strategies to the “social equity” and “robust economy” aspects of sustainable community building. Council members praised the successful RCHS innovation as one more example. City Manager Mary Suhm, during the pre-session dinner buffet in the band hall, complimented Richland staff for the excellent logistics and accommodations planning with City Hall, led by Whitney Rosenbalm, Jennifer Owen, and Bethany Wright and Richland’s Police, Theater Technicians, Facilities/Grounds, and Humanities personnel. Mayor Leppert, City Manager Suhm, and Dr. Mittelstet pledged to continue and augment their many sustainable community-building partnerships.
Student Success - Congratulations to four talented Richland student writers who took DCCCD honors in the recent League for Innovation writing contest. Richland is the only college to place in each of the four contest categories: Fiction First Place - Katie Beagle ($100 prize) for “In the Pattern of the Grain;” One-Act Play Second Place - Michael Bush ($50 prize) for “Pitching Corn;” Essay Second Place - Georgia Rives ($50 prize) for “The Dying Season;” and Poetry Third Place - Paula Newman ($30 prize) for “The Pack.”
Employee Success - Konley Kelley, Richland Assistant Dean of Corporate Services, and Carolyn Jefferson, Mountain View Senior Training Consultant, presented a two-hour pre-conference session and a 90-minute breakout session at the recent Texas Administrators of Continuing Education conference in Austin. The pre-conference session provided a snapshot of DCCCD contract training using responses from a survey completed by peers at DCCCD campuses. The breakout session focused on selling techniques, including a mock sales call, and both sessions received very positive feedback. The collaboration is indicative of cooperative relationships among DCCCD Contract Training Council members.
Richland Collegiate High School graduates Catherine Dennis, Salsabeal Hassanin, Stephanie Herd, Benjamin Luong, Charles Manion, John McKnight, Ihsan Yassine, and Joshua Welch were collectively awarded $240,000 in academic scholarships from the University of Texas at Dallas. The scholarships range from the categories of Academic Recognition $2,000 per year; Academic High Recognition $4,000 per year; Academic Distinction $1,000 per year for on-campus housing; and Academic Honors covering all tuition and fees, as well as $3,000 per year cash stipend, and $1,000 per year for on-campus housing.
Published by Jenni Gilmer on May 12th, 2008 tagged Award/Honors, Richland Collegiate High School | Comment now »
This week’s RLC update
Institutional Effectiveness - Four administrators from South Texas College in McAllen, Texas, recently spent the day meeting with key Richland staff members, benchmarking successful technological initiatives including Richland’s Registration Pager System, Who’s Next software, and intervention programs targeting students on academic suspension and financial aid probation. Oscar Lopez, Richland Dean of Admissions, Advising and Registration, and Cindy Berry, Director of Academic Advising, hosted the representatives from the Admissions, Registrars and Advising offices of STC.
Community and Economic Development - In partnership with the GISD, Garland Association for Hispanic Affairs, and Richland’s Community Outreach and Financial Aid departments, Richland’s recent Financial Aid Fair assisted 35 families in completing financial aid forms online. This event augmented the 50+ families assisted at another RLC Financial Aid Fair held last month.
Student Success - Richland student Keome Rowe earned the Congressional Award Gold Medal and will be presented with the medal by U.S. Senators Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn and U.S. Rep. Sam Johnson on June 19 in Washington, D.C. The Congressional Award is a public/private partnership created by Congress to promote and recognize achievement, initiative, and service in America’s youth. The Congressional Award provides a unique opportunity for young people to set and achieve personally challenging goals that build character and foster community service, personal development, and citizenship.
Employee Success - Richland Art Gallery Coordinator Randall Garrett recently built a solo installation as part of NFO-XPO, an art fair in Chicago. Randall has curated, performed, and shown work in Texas, Miami, New York, Puerto Rico and Chicago, most recently performance and installation work in 2007 at artist-run spaces “Polvo” and “Motherland. ” Two Richland College adjunct art faculty members are currently exhibiting works at Dallas galleries. Simeen Ishaque’s “Babelating” has a collaborative installation with artist Diane Sikes at the 500X Gallery. “Babelating’s” mixed-media, site-specific anti-war commentary and Keith Williams’ “Ambient Scenes,” using figures, animals, objects, and landscapes to create surreal narratives, recently opened at the South Side on Lamar’s Janette Kennedy Gallery. Fred Sweet, Richland 3-D Art Coordinator, and his advanced ceramics students Nathan Portnoy and Mark Westbrook recently participated in a special weekend clay and kiln wood-firing workshop in Edom, Texas, through a collaboration between the ceramics departments of Richland, Tyler Junior College, and Montgomery College in Conroe.
Richland faculty are working in close collaboration with Richland Collegiate High School (RCHS) juniors this week to help them succeed in both their Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills testing and final week of college class review. The state of Texas requires all 11th grade students to take and pass exit-level examinations in English, mathematics, science, and social studies, during mandated testing dates throughout the state, in order to be eligible to graduate from high school. RCHS juniors and their instructors are collaboratively meeting the challenge of simultaneously succeeding in rigorous high school requirements and college-level course work.