Best of
Florida Schools 2002
Web-Only Categories
1
•
2
•
3
•
4
•
5
•
6
•
7
•
8
•
9
•
10
11
•
12
•
13
•
14
•
15
•
16
•
17
•
18
•
19
•
20
Back
Continued
Best Floor Plan
Seminole Community College is
giving students the building blocks for careers in construction. When the
explosive growth of commercial and residential building projects left the
central Florida area with a shortage of 11,000 workers, the school teamed up
with the local construction industry and sought state funding for a training
facility. The initiative resulted in a new 47,000-square-foot Center for
Building Construction that will give students foundations in high-demand
fields. “From entry-level construction apprenticeships to advanced
construction management, from architecture to interior design to real estate
and appraisal, SCC has developed comprehensive courses meant to meet
workforce demands in multiple branches of the industry,” says Shelley
Ouellette, media and public relations coordinator. TB
Contact Ouellette at ouellets@scc-fl.com.
Best Watersports
Many schools have great pools, but Broward Community College has
itsTigertail Center, a full watersports complex right on campus. Students
can sign up for credit classes or just follow up an interest in sailing,
swimming, snorkeling, kayaking, or windsurfing. The center does trips to
Cocoa Beach, Peace River, and the
Florida Keys for bargain prices where students can get out there and try any
water activities they wish. "The weekend trips are very popular," Laura
Zorza, office manager of the Tigertail Center, says. "We have to turn people
away because we get so much response."
As the center moves into its new building on Tigertail Lake, students can enjoy the new 4,800-square-foot facility with its beach volleyball area and boathouse containing more than a dozen 15-foot mono-hull sailboats and 25 windsurfers. "We were elbow-to-elbow in the old building, and we're really excited about the move," says Bill Metcalfe, director of the center. He plans to offer surfing lessons for beginners and up. The center will also continue its Adventure Learning Ropes Challenge, high- and low-level rope courses that help students build listening and cooperation skills as well as fitness. "The low course builds a lot of skills," Zorza says. "The high course is all about personal challenge." SRR
Contact Tigertail Center at ttlwater@broward.edu or call Metcalfe at 954-989-2824.
Best Break Fast
No, it wasn't a breakfast. It was a break fast, ending a day of fasting
during the month of Ramadan, held by the Muslim Student Association at
Florida State University. The event was held as part of Islam Awareness
Week, and the MSA invited teachers and students to share an Indian and
Middle Eastern banquet after sunset. "We expected about 80, but more than
120 showed up," says Hiba Abdul-Rahim, MSA vice-president . "Our goals were
cultural exposure and to enrich and educate people about our religious
experience." Some of the faculty and students attending fasted throughout
the day with the MSA members to share their experience more fully.
After beginning the event with prayer, guest speaker Dr. Mohammed Yunus, former president of the Islamic Circle of North America, delivered the talk, "What is Ramadan?" "People loved the food and thanked us for inviting them," Abdul-Rahim says. SRR
Contact the Muslim Student Association at msa_fsu@yahoogroups.com.
Best New Student
Organization
Like good wine, non-traditional college students say they get better with
age. Unfortunately, most colleges and universities ignore their needs. At
Santa Fe Community College,
however, MANTAS is cultivating the older student population.
The Mature And Non-Traditional Aged Students group formed last summer to serve the needs of Santa Fe’s 350 students who are over the age of 50. “It’s a population that hasn’t been served by traditional student activities,” says Dan Rodkin, MANTAS advisor. “We look for the kind of things these students need, then try to find folks on campus who can provide the resources.” MANTAS wants to meet both the social and academic needs of its members. Older students typically feel socially alienated from the younger students, and they often have difficulty adjusting to new technologies and resources. The group already has held several pot-luck dinners as a way for the older students to meet and greet. They also have offered computer training courses and tours of new library facilities. JL
Contact Rodkin at dan.rodkin@santafe.cc.fl.us.
Best Howl
The "howl!"-ing is louder than ever at Lake City Community College.
The school's on-line literary magazine, howl!, earned attention in
last year's "Best Of Florida Schools." For this year's edition, creator Dawn
Reno told us she was hoped to include more art and music. She and Co-Editor
Dr. Rhonda Morris have done exactly that.
The site displays multimedia presentations of art, music, poetry, essays, and fiction. The editors plan for the next issue to feature music designed specifically for the issue and performed by the LCCC choir.
So are the editors most excited about the interactive nature of the site or the more dynamic HTML usage? "We're most excited about the involvement we're getting from students," Morris says. "We're seeing a rise in students committed to English and writing because of their involvement." SRR
Visit www.dawnreno.com for more information.
Best Business BookAt Webber International University, President Rex Yentes swears by the children's book If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, which he says is the perfect business-management “text.” Knowing that students and parents often push for more upscale housing, campus services, and fancy recreation centers, Yentes says the book visually demonstrates that more is not necessarily better or desirable. “Things just seem to get bigger and bigger, and how there are more and more demands for things that aren't really necessary, or have little to do with education,” Yentes says. “Of course, all of us experience that when we start to deal with budgets, etc. I use it mostly as a joke. Somebody says, ‘We just have to have the latest gadget.’ I usually reach back and hand them the book. Now people have gotten so accustomed to my reference that I just have to look in the direction of the book. They’ll say, ‘Oh we know...mouse...cookie.’ End of discussion.”
As Executive Vice President Deborah Milliken says, “That book’s our president’s answer to the question: how does a small private, non-church affiliated business school stay in good financial condition in our uncertain times? The answer: sound financial planning, conservative spending and budgeting, and long-range strategic planning that rarely leaves room for impulse buying. It’s a real ‘catch phrase’ on this campus.”
Contact Yentes at rexyentes@hotmail.com.
Back
Continued
1
•
2
•
3
•
4
•
5
•
6
•
7
•
8
•
9
•
10
11
•
12
•
13
•
14
•
15
•
16
•
17
•
18
•
19
•
20
Copyright © 2006 Oxendine Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved
Best Of 2002 Index
Best of Florida Schools 2002
Home
Nominate your school for the
2003 Awards
|
