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Northeast Represented by Two
Presentations at Commission on Colleges Conference
It is a rare honor for a college to be selected to present a
program at the Southern Association’s Commission on Colleges (COC)
annual conference, an event that attracts several thousand
educators from around the southeast. However, at this year’s
conference, Northeast Alabama Community College will have
not one but two presentations to make before members of the COC. One concurrent session is to feature Don Reeves, NACC
Instructor of Philosophy and Religion, and Robert Moehr,
Media Consultant. They will present the program “From Classroom
to Community: A Real-World Connection Beyond Public Relations.”
Their presentation will describe NACC’s involvement in the
Appalachian Teaching Project, sponsored by the Appalachian
Regional Commission. Over the past four years NACC has involved
faculty, ethics students, and the community in research and
action concerning issues of importance to the Appalachian
community: the widespread production and use of crystal meth, a
dramatic increase in the Latino population, and area poverty and
hunger. Students from NACC, under Reeves’ direction, have
annually presented findings of their research at a symposium
sponsored by the ARC in Washington, DC. Each project also
resulted in a documentary video.
“As a community college, we naturally want to be involved in the
important issues of our community,” stated NACC President Dr.
David Campbell. “The work Mr. Reeves, Mr. Moehr, and our
students have done illustrate how a college can make a
difference in helping those in need within a community. We are
very proud of their work and accomplishments. We have had great
support for this from so many sponsors in our service area as
well.” Also featured at the COC conference is NACC’s participation in a
poster session. The NACC poster chronicles the events that led
to the college’s annual Latino Festival, held on campus each
summer. Susan Barron, director of the Latino Festival, Martha Banks, and Lynde Mann created a professionally
produced poster that will be on display at the COC Conference.
The title of this presentation is “Reaching Out to a New
Community: the NACC Latino Festival.” The poster shows through
images and text how NACC developed the idea for the Latino
Festival after an undocumented Latino student from a local high
school was awarded a scholarship to the college. Under
regulations at the time, undocumented students could not be
awarded state-funded scholarships. At the time the scholarship
was granted, NACC officials did not have information that the
student was undocumented. Since a scholarship commitment had
been made, however, NACC personnel obtained private scholarships
and donations to permit the student to enroll and attend the
college. “We made the scholarship offer,” Campbell recalled, “and
we wanted to be good for our word.” As a result of the episode,
NACC leaders worked with members of the Alabama Department of
Postsecondary Education to change state board policy that now
permits undocumented students who graduate from an Alabama high
school and who have attended that school for two years to be
able to receive institutional scholarships and pay in-state
tuition. “The change in the state board policy has permitted
many excellent Latino students to attend college,” Campbell
said. “We are very pleased that we could play a role in this
change.” NACC’s involvement in this case eventually led to the
establishment of an annual Latino Festival that is held at the
campus. The Festival features Latino arts, crafts, customs,
foods, and music. “The Festival is just our way of permitting
new neighbors to get to know each other and their cultures a
little better,” Campbell stated. “The Festival is
family-oriented and is always one of the highlights of the year
for us.” The COC Conference is to be held December 7-10, 2007 in New
Orleans, Louisiana. NACC is fully accredited by the COC. While
at the conference, NACC’s Campbell will attend a meeting held
especially for members who serve as chairs of COC Visiting
Evaluation Committees. Campbell has chaired or served on these
committees throughout the South. “The COC through the years
substantially has raised the bar as far as the quality of higher
education in the South is concerned,” Campbell stated. “We at
Northeast think that active participation in the COC is one of
the best ways to constantly improve the college and provide an
outstanding education.” Martha Banks serves as NACC’s
accreditation officer at Northeast and has been instrumental in
arranging the presentations at the COC conference. Presenters at the SACS COC Annual Conference in New Orleans
December 7-10 include, left to right: Martha Banks, SACS
Accreditation Liaison; Susan Barron, Events Coordinator; Lynde
Mann, Assistant to the SACS Accreditation Liaison; Don Reeves,
Instructor of Philosophy/Religion; and Robert Moehr, Media
Consultant.
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