Achieving the Dream announced today the recertification of Northern Essex Community College as an Achieving the Dream Leader College, a national designation awarded to community colleges that commit to improving student success and closing achievement gaps.

Leader Colleges have demonstrated how data can inform policy and practice to help community college students achieve their goals, resulting in improved skills, better employability, and economic growth for families, communities and the nation as a whole.

Northern Essex was one of 16 community colleges recognized during the recertification process, which institutions must undergo every three years. Northern Essex has been active in Achieving the Dream since 2007 and was first named a Leader College in 2011.

Funding and support from Achieving the Dream has allowed Northern Essex to carefully review and measure current practices and develop new initiatives to help improve student outcomes such as retention and graduation rates.

As a result of its participation in Achieving the Dream, the college has created math tutoring centers in Haverhill and Lawrence; introduced supplemental instructors in challenging courses; developed a College Success seminar; expanded and improved academic advising services; and made several new policy changes with an eye toward student success.

“The work of improving student success is critically important to our education and economy,” said Carol Lincoln, Achieving the Dream senior vice president. “These 16 institutions have demonstrated that better student outcomes are possible when institutions focus on policies and practices that help students learn at high levels and overcome challenges life throws at them. These colleges are working hard to move the needle for whole cohorts of students, and deserve recognition for their relentless efforts and promising achievements.”

The others are: Bunker Hill Community College in Boston, Mass.; Community College of Beaver County in Monaca, Pa.; Community College of Philadelphia; College of the Mainland in Texas City, Texas; Delaware County Community College in Media, Pa.; Galveston College, Texas; Highline Community College in Des Moines, Washington; Lee College in Baytown, Texas; Montgomery County Community College in Bluebell, Pa.; Phillips Community College of the University of Arkansas in Helena-West Helena, Ark.; Renton Technical College, Renton, Washington; Roxbury Community College in Roxbury Crossing, Mass.; San Jacinto College in Pasadena, Texas; Tacoma Community College, Washington; Westmoreland County Community College in Youngwood, Pa.

NECC baseball alumnus Joe Sousa participated in the last NECC Alumni Baseball game in 2010.

Did you ever play baseball at Northern Essex Community College? If so, the NECC athletic department is looking for you to attend its second Knights baseball Alumni Day featuring a home run derby, alumni game and barbeque on Sunday, October 19, from 2 to 6:30 p.m.

This event is open to the public. While alumni are invited to participate in the alumni game, all are invited to participate in the home-run-derby.

The baseball team has enjoyed impressive seasons over the last several years with four trips to the NJCAA World Series since 2006.

“This will be the second alumni day for baseball and we are very excited about bringing back all NECC alumni for this day,” said Susan MacAvoy, NECC’s athletic director. “This is a great day in which I personally enjoy seeing all the past student-athletes and catching up.  With the recent success of the NECC baseball program it would be great to have them all come back. There are so many that help build this program to where it is today it is a great way to celebrate the past but give to the future of the program.”

MacAvoy says the Alumni Day gives NECC baseball players an opportunity to connect and reminisce while showing support for the current student athletes.

Ticket prices are $25, $40, $100, to $150 depending on how many events you want to attend and if you want to sponsor an ad in the media guide.

The 2010 NECC alumni baseball team.

The event will begin at 2 p.m. with registration and t-shirt distribution. The home-run derby begins at 2:30 p.m. followed by the alumni game at 3 p.m. The barbeque will follow from 4:45 to 6:30 p.m.

Proceeds for the event will support the NECC Knight baseball team for the upcoming 2015 baseball season.

Individuals must register online to participate in the alumni day events. To register, visit Eventbrite at by October 1. For additional information contact NECC Athletic Director Sue MacAvoy.

Northern Essex offers a number of different sports teams for both men and women including baseball, women’s volleyball, softball, women and men’s basketball, and women and men’s track and field. Additional information can be found on the NECC athletic official website of Northern Essex Athletics.

Martha Melendez is the new intern at WHAV.

Northern Essex Community College student Martha E. Melendez, a liberal arts major, journalism/communication option, has joined WHAV as an intern. Her responsibilities include contributions to news gathering and reporting, producing the “Community Spotlight” program and on-air broadcasting.

Melendez, a resident of Lawrence, attended Greater Lawrence Technical High School, where she earned a certificate in marketing communications.

“The opportunity to work in an environment like this one is terrific, because good communication skills, both personal and technological, are the key to success in any field of endeavor,” says Melendez.

The WHAV call letters have been associated with local broadcasting since 1947. WHAV is today operated by Public Media of New England Inc., a not-for-profit corporation. Since 2004, the call has served the Merrimack Valley’s pioneer Internet radio station at WHAV.net and a number of public access cable television stations in Andover, Haverhill and Methuen, and Plaistow and Sandown, N.H. The station is also heard over AM 1640 in northern Haverhill and Plaistow, N.H. The Federal Communications Commission has tentatively selected WHAV to receive a new FM license at 98.1 MHz.

NECC offers an Associate Degree in Liberal Arts with a journalism/communication option, which prepares students for transfer and for careers in print or broadcast journalism,including jobs with newspapers, magazines, publishing, television or radio.

At its September 3 meeting, trustees welcomed Kelsey Terry, the college’s new student trustee. A resident of Amesbury, Terry is majoring in biology, psychology, and philosophy and her long term career goal is to be a veterinary clinical pathologist. Read more.

The Multi-State Collaborative to Advance Learning Outcomes Assessment:

NECC participates in the fall 2014 Pilot Study

 Measuring what students are actually learning is important for many reasons, and for the past five years, Northern Essex has been involved in a state-wide initiative to support the use ofcommon assessment tools for use by public institutions in the state to evaluate authentic student work.

The college participated in a statewide pilot in the spring of 2013 using these tools to assess students’ skills in the area of critical thinking, quantitative literacy, and written communication.

This fall, the college is participating as a member of a consortium, involving Middlesex and North Shore community colleges, in a nine-state collaborative pilot designed to assess and compare students’ learning outcomes results across states.

As Dr. Ellen Wentland, associate dean, academic and institutional effectiveness explained to trustees “A grade doesn’t tell you anything about a student’s strength and weaknesses,” she said.  “We decided that collecting authentic work and evaluating it would be a very effective way of measuring learning.

To learn more visit the MA Department of Higher Education’s website.

Enrollment Likely to Be Down this Semester

President Lane Glenn reported that enrollments are likely to be down this semester by approximately 6.5 percent.

He attributed the decrease to a number of factors including the improving economy—community colleges traditionally lose students when people go back to work; changes in the college’s ESL program, which now has one less level; and smaller high school graduating classes.

He also noted that enrollment is still higher than it was before the recession which drove enrollments to the peak.

He said NECC is being cautious about revenues and expenditures while being wise about recruitment efforts.

Appointments of New Full-Time Personnel are Affirmed

Trustees affirmed appointments that were approved by President Lane Glenn over the summer, based on authority delegated by the Board of Trustees.

State appropriated professional appointments include: Sandra Guy, associate professor, Health Information Technology; Aaron Monero, assistant professor, Developmental Writing; Sarah Courchesne, assistant professor, Natural Sciences; Donna Tanner, assistant professor, Elementary Education; Jamie McLennan, instructor, Nursing; Jennifer Fielding, coordinator of library services; Alicia Blain, financial aid counselor; Jeffrey Williams*, career/veterans affairs counselor; Sharon McManus, staff assistant, Professional Development; Michael Hearn, director of libraries; Richard Sommers, manager of facilities systems & project administration; Richard Haskell, director of fiscal services; Elizabeth Donovan, procurement analyst, and Jaime Haddad, enrollment/academic counselor.

State appropriated classified positions include: Timothy Godzik, storekeeper II; Analcis Minaya, EDP entry operator IV, Enrollment Services; Maureen Lundergan, administrative assistant II, Foundational Studies & Liberal Arts & Sciences; and Anne Eshbaugh, Clerk IV, Marketing & Communications.

Non-state appropriate professional positions include: Maureen McGonagle, events coordinator, Administration & Finance.

*from part-time to full-time status.

Dr. Howard Dean will visit Northern Essex Community College’s Haverhill Campus on Wednesday, Sept 24 as part of a new speakers series titled “Movers, Shakers, and Opinion Makers.”

Dr. Howard Dean will visit Northern Essex Community College’s Haverhill Campus on Wednesday, Sept 24 as part of a new speakers series titled “Movers, Shakers, and Opinion Makers.” Free and open to the public, the presentation will take place at 11 a.m. in the Hartleb Technology Center, 100 Elliott St, Haverhill, MA.

A former chairman of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), presidential candidate, governor of Vermont, and a physician, Dean currently works as a part-time independent consultant focusing on the areas of health care, early childhood development, alternative energy, and the expansion of grass roots politics around the world.

During his presentation, Dean will discuss how the internet has been a driving force in many successful political campaigns in recent years, a concept that he calls “The Internet Revolution 2.0: A New Age of Politics.”

He believes that a base of grassroots supporters combined with cutting edge technology have fundamentally altered the way campaigns are run in America.

Dean began his career in public service in 1982 when he transitioned from a full-time practicing physician to an elected representative in Vermont. Dean served as governor for 12 years – the second longest serving in the state. Dean left office in Vermont to run for president in 2003 where he implemented innovative fundraising strategies such as use of the Internet.

As chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Dean created and implemented the “50 State Strategy” and the development of 21st century campaign tools. Dean is credited with helping Democrats make historic gains in 2006 and 2008. Under his leadership, significant resources were dedicated to revitalizing the party by building and strengthening the organizational tools, technological capabilities and infrastructure required to win while laying the foundation for a long-term Democratic majority.

Before entering politics, Dean graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in political science in 1971, and received his medical degree from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City in 1978. Upon completing his residency at the Medical Center Hospital of Vermont, he went on to practice internal medicine in Shelburne, Vermont.

This event is made possible with support from the NECC Fund and Northern Essex’s Academic and Student Affairs.

For more information, contact Richard Padova, Global Studies Department, rpadova@necc.mass.edu or 978 556-3297.

Northern Essex Community College’s offers a Liberal Arts Degree with a Political Science Option. For more information, visit the website.

or contact admissions, 978 556-3700 or admissions@necc.mass.edu.