MESA, Arizona – Mesa Community College (MCC), Chandler-Gilbert Community College (CGCC) and Scottsdale Community College (SCC) will honor 10 high-achieving students who have been named to the All-Arizona Academic Team during an awards luncheon on Feb. 18. Seventy-three community college scholars from across the state will participate in the ceremony, which celebrates their outstanding academic achievements and distinguished leadership skills.
Judging to select the recipients consisted of three rounds. In the first round, a group of local business, civic, education and government leaders reviewed applications and chose the recipients of the award. Only two are selected from each campus of the college. Those recipients’ applications were then forwarded to Washington, D.C. for second and third rounds of judging by representatives from various federal agencies and national education associations who scored them. Those scores were used to rank the students for first, second or third state team. First team members receive a $1,000 scholarship, second team members a $750 scholarship, and third team members a $500 scholarship to one of Arizona’s state universities.
Chandler-Gilbert Community College
CGCC Pecos Campus students:
Lori Fusak (First Team) and Whitney Vizzini (First Team)
Fusak plans to earn a bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Mass Communications and become a publicist while continuing her work with the homeless. Vizzini will earn her juris doctorate and own a law firm in Arizona as well as continue to build homes with Habitat for Humanity.
CGCC Williams Campus students:
Cassandra Roose (Second Team) and Cecile Sharp (First Team)
Roose plans to complete medical school to become a neurosurgeon and devote a few years to Doctors Without Borders. Sharp plans to become a social worker serving the elderly population of Maricopa County.
Mesa Community College
MCC Southern & Dobson campus students:
Alisha Brown (Second Team) and Valerie LaGrande (First Team)
Brown will use her bachelor’s degree in Global Health and Health Policy to improve health services and living standards in destitution regions. After earning a bachelor’s degree in social work, LeGrande would like to help women recover from trauma and addiction.
MCC Red Mountain campus students:
Andrew Sypher (First Team) and Jonathan Talos (First Team)
Sypher plans to be a foreign diplomat with a career in civil service after earning a bachelor’s degree in political science. Talos will use his bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering to pursue biomedical entrepreneurship.
Scottsdale Community College
Scottsdale Community College students:
Dawn Taylor, (Third Team) and Gabriela Hebronova (Third Team)
Hebronova plans to become a nurse practitioner. Taylor plans to start a company that helps families raising special needs children.
The guest speaker at the ceremony will be Kathleen Stefanik, an MCC 2012 All-Arizona team member and Founder/CEO of GAIA International, a non-profit organization that works with farmers in developing countries to improve soil quality and increase crop yield.
Students who make the All-Arizona Academic Team may become candidates for several additional awards, including the USA Today All-USA Community College Academic Team, Coca-Cola All-State Community College Academic Team, the New Century Scholar program, and the Guistwhite Scholarship. The additional awards will be announced in USA Today on April 19.
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Contact
Mesa Community College - Dawn Zimmer, 480-461-7892, dawn.zimmer@mesacc.edu
Scottsdale Community College - Jonathan Higuera, 480-425-6637, jonathan.higuera@scottsdalecc.edu
Chandler-Gilbert Community College - Cathy Chlarson, 480-732-7030, cathy.chlarson@cgc.edu
Chandler-Gilbert Community College is one of ten Maricopa County Community Colleges, the largest community college system in the country. CGCC serves the higher education needs of more than 19,000 students at four locations in the Southeast Valley of the Phoenix metropolitan area -- the Pecos Campus in Chandler, the Williams Campus in Mesa, the Sun Lakes Center in Sun Lakes and the Communiversity in Queen Creek. CGCC offers degrees and certificates in a variety of fields, university transfer, workforce development programs, and continuing education, along with nationally recognized programs in service learning, learning communities, and civic engagement. For more information, visit cgc.edu or call 480-732-7000.
Mesa Community College is nationally recognized for its high-quality educational programs, which include university transfer, career and technical, workforce development, and life-long learning. Host to 40,000 students annually, MCC offers more than 200 degrees and certificates at its two campuses and additional locations. Our diverse student body hails predominantly from the East Valley region of metropolitan Phoenix, and international students from 50 countries enrich the learning experience. Award-winning faculty dedicated to student success provide the education and training that empower MCC students to compete locally and globally. Celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2015, MCC is one of 11 colleges that comprise the Maricopa County Community College District. For additional information, visit mesacc.edu.
Scottsdale Community College is a learner-centered college recognized for high quality, accessible educational opportunities, and for innovation in teaching, learning and support services. A vital community partner, SCC collaborates with the diverse communities that we serve. Students can earn transfer credits to a university or four-year college and they can choose from more than 100 academic degree programs and certificates of completion. Whether you are pursuing advanced higher education goals, knowledge and opportunities to improve your professional prospects or a life-long learner seeking stimulating pursuits, SCC has something for you. For more information, visit scottsdalecc.edu
About PTK
Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, headquartered in Jackson, is the largest honor society in American higher education with more than 1,285 chapters on two-year and community college campuses in all 50 of the United States, Canada, Germany, Peru, the Republic of Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, the British Virgin Islands, the United Arab Emirates and U.S. territorial possessions. More than 2.5 million students have been inducted since its founding in 1918, with approximately 135,000 students inducted annually.
The Maricopa County Community College District is an EEO/AA institution and an equal opportunity employer of protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.