Local News

St. Clair County Community College has received an Innovation of the Year Award from the League for Innovation in the Community College for its work in establishing its interactive, STEAM-based Experience Center. The college won the award in the category of Community Engagement Education and Forward-thinking Partnerships.

This year, the League nationally awarded 57 winners, including just four from Michigan. SC4 team members recognized for their work on the Experience Center include President Dr. Deborah A. Snyder, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Kirk Kramer, Executive Director of Budget and Project Management Becky Gentner, Institutional Technology Manager Spencer Hazlewood, Project and Purchasing Manager Jessica Smith, Professor of Physical Science Suzanne Doherty, and Professor of Biology Carrie Dollar. Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum Director Mel Drumm also was recognized.

“We are honored to receive this award,” says Dr. Snyder. “The Experience Center is a place where students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members of all ages can feel engaged and inspired. We are grateful for the continued support, collaboration and leadership of our community, here on campus and far beyond.”

SC4 announced an official partnership with the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum and its Unity in Learning initiative on the 16,000-square-foot center in fall 2018. The center — the only one of its kind in the region — provides interactive teaching and learning opportunities for students and guests of all ages through exhibits, field trips, and educational programming opportunities.

Located in the college’s Clara E. Mackenzie Building, the center features interactive displays, traveling exhibits, 3-D pens and technology, a circuit center, a coding station, a virtual reality simulation, an augmented reality sandbox, a fossil dig area and larger-than-life exhibits in its Dr. Bassam H. Nasr Science Museum — including a woolly rhinoceros skeleton replica, T-Rex and Mastodon skull replicas.

Future Experience Center enhancements include a Jacob’s Ladder display that highlights the power of electricity and a gifted Tarbosauras skeleton cast thanks to the SC4 Foundation and two Community Foundation of St. Clair County donor advised funds.

Additionally, the Experience Center is a growing regional field trip destination, partnering with the St. Clair County Regional Educational Service Agency (RESA) to ensure field trips seamlessly align with K-12 science-based curricula in the region. For more information on scheduling a visit, please send an email to experiencecenter@sc4.edu.

Lawren Ruiz has been named the Employee of the Month for May. She has worked at McLaren Port Huron for seven years and currently works in Care Management.

 Ruiz was nominated by her peers because she lives the hospital values every day. Staff, patients and families alike are treated with warmth and caring. She goes to great lengths to make sure customers are not only satisfied but wowed. She is always willing to help and always gives individual attention to others when working out a problem or when questions are asked. Ruiz creates a positive, happy work environment. She keeps her coworkers smiling, on time, organized, and informed. Ruiz is a very hard worker, takes pride in what she does, has a great sense of humor, and makes moments matter.

 This employee recognition is given to individuals who consistently live the values, mission and performance standards of McLaren Port Huron. Honorees are nominated by a co-worker, physician, volunteer, and/or customer.

To learn more about McLaren Port Huron, visit www.mclaren.org/porthuron.

The St. Clair County Community College Foundation recently approved $100,500 in new scholarships for the upcoming 2019-20 academic year. Students pursuing programs in all fields of study at the college may benefit from the scholarships, especially those in health sciences.   SC4’s health sciences programs are getting a big boost thanks to a Capital Outlay project approved by the Michigan State Legislature to support higher education job training and fund $4.9 million of the $9.8 million Health Sciences A.J. Theisen Building renovation. The renovation accelerates the expansion of programs, allows for a more interdisciplinary approach to patient care, and will serve more students via advanced teaching systems.

Those students pursuing degrees in nursing, radiologic technology, medical assisting, respiratory therapy, health information technology, and other health science-related majors were given preference during the selection process this year.

Tim Carter is a local poet, who has published three books, with his most recent entitled Living In God’s Rhyme.   Carter says he has written poetry for almost fifty years, but his poems have taken on a deeper meaning of faith as he has become closer in his walk with God.  He writes every day, mapping out where he has been, where he is and where he is headed.

Living In God’s Rhyme, Carter says, was written and published, pretty much on Facebook.  He is featured on two Facebook Pages, “God Still Rhymes” and “Tim Carter Books”.  Those who have reviewed his work have said many of the poems focus on love and his growing faith in Jesus.  The books may be purchased on Amazon, at BarnesandNoble.com – on his website at timcarterbooks.com and they can be ordered in-store at Barnes and Noble.  Carter says his writings are ways for him to become stronger in his faith, express his beliefs to others, and give God the praise he deserves.

Port Huron Township Supervisor Robert Lewandowski was elected President of the Michigan Association of Township Supervisors (MATS) at a meeting of the membership on May 30, 2019. Supervisor Lewandowski will serve a two-year term with MATS, working with township supervisors from among the 1,240 townships in the State of Michigan.  The MATS mission, under the leadership of the President and board, includes, but not limited to, enhancing the professional standing of township supervisors through education and training, fostering cooperation and communication among all township supervisors, and addressing legislative or other matters relating to the supervisor’s responsibilities or township government.

More than double the number of cities, villages and counties combined – townships provide strong roots for Michigan’s citizens. The Michigan Association of Township Supervisors was established in 1998 by a small group of township supervisors seeking a way to better network with each other and to ensure their educational needs were met. They were seeking ways to strengthen the quality of municipal government and administration in Michigan’s rural communities.