Retention Scholarship Bridges the Gap for Students in Need

 

In the fall of 2011, the NECC Board of Trustees voted to create a Retention Scholarship to bridge the gap between the free financial aid a student receives and the full cost of their education including tuition and fees, health insurances, books, and supplies.

At that time, trustees decided to set aside $200,000 each year for these need-based scholarships recognizing students who have demonstrated academic progress and have completed 12 credits (certificate programs) or 24 credits (associate degree programs).

“We want to invest in the potential of needy students,” said Tina Favara, interim dean of enrollment services, who gave the presentation along with Alexis Fishbone, director of financial aid.

In 2013/14, 187 scholarships, averaging $796.09, were awarded.

In addition to the financial benefits of the scholarship, students are required to complete and follow an academic plan and they also receive one-on-one support. As a result, participants in the program are achieving impressive retention and graduation rates. The 2011/12 group, for example, had retention rates for 2 to 3 semesters of 79% and graduation rates of 59%. The 2012/13 group had even better performance with retention rates of 83% and graduation rates of 61%.

“This scholarship was created to address declining state support for higher ed,” said President Lane Glenn. “We want to be sure we’re not excluding anyone because of an inability to pay.”

Other community colleges are interested in setting up similar scholarship programs, and Favara and Fishbone recently presented at the February 2015 Achieving the Dream Conference.

President Receives Favorable Evaluation

 

Trustees reviewed a letter from DHE Commissioner Richard Freeland in which he enthusiastically endorsed the board’s positive evaluation of President Lane Glenn for the 2013/14 academic year.

The evaluation focused on five of President Glenn’s priorities including development of the Lawrence site; improvement of student learning; improved support services; career preparation; and promoting a culture of learning.

Some of the highlights included:

• NECC outpaced Achieving the Dream institutional averages on all 10 categories reviewed in the benchmarking study

• New programs linked to regional employment needs were created, most notably in health care and manufacturing

• NECC’s 62% retention rate for first-time students is the highest of all 15 community colleges

• NECC is the only Massachusetts public campus qualified as a Hispanic Serving Institution and the percentage of students receiving Pell grants is, at 65%, tied with Roxbury Community for the highest percentage among the 15 community colleges.

• The percentage of students who pass a college-level math course within two years of enrolling in developmental math course at NECC is growing, and averaged 24% over the most recent three years, which is in the top third of community colleges

• President Glenn has been a leader in the statewide effort to promote learning outcomes assessment and was recently named chair of the Statewide Task Force on Assessment

• The college is achieving cost savings by participating in the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM)’s Accelerated Energy Program and statewide initiatives to bring down IT costs

Budget Update

 

President Glenn reported that the college’s budget for FY15 had to take a mid-year hit of $278,000, due to Governor Baker’s 9C cuts, which were necessitated by budget shortfalls.

The college has addressed these cuts by deciding not to fill open positions, he said.

“Because we’ve been managing finances well, we have been able to weather the cut this way.”

The governor’s proposed budget for FY16 includes a $9 million increase for community colleges. “It’s a little less than last year and less than half of what we received the year before but the good news is that it’s not a cut.”

Student Trustee Shares Food Concerns

 

Student-elected trustee Kelsey Terry shared concerns about the quality and price of food offered on the college’s Haverhill and Lawrence Campuses.

She said she’s been receiving complaints from students, who are not happy about the choices and miss the cafeteria that was previously located on campus but is now the location of the Haverhill Campus bookstore.

David Gingerella, vice president of administration, explained that it can be difficult for a food vendor to turn a profit at a community college since there’s no base of residential students, which is why costs are higher.

President Glenn asked Trustee Terry to meet with Gingerella and discuss options.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Saturday, March 28, Northern Essex Community College will host a special open house event in the new Dr. Ibrahim El-Hefni Allied Health and Technology Center at 414 Common Street, Lawrence. The event will run from 10 a.m. to noon and is free and open to the public.

During the open house, prospective students and community members will have the opportunity to tour all sites of NECC’s Lawrence campus, explore the college’s many available degree and certificate programs, and attend financial aid workshops.  Over 30 campus organizations will be on site throughout to provide pertinent information about campus services. Featured among them are representatives from Student Engagement, Financial Aid, Admissions, and Career Services, as well as faculty members from a vast array of academic programs.  Several popular transfer colleges will also be present.

The Lawrence campus houses the majority of the college’s health care programs and features multiple state-of-the-art classroom and lab spaces, a high-tech health education simulation center, an information literacy lab, a library, and much more. Tour participants will be treated to a first-hand look at each of these campus facilities and an overview of their offerings.

To learn more about the upcoming open house event, contact Enrollment Services at 978-556-3700 or admissions@necc.mass.edu. For more information on programs offered through NECC’s Lawrence and Haverhill campuses, please visit www.necc.mass.edu.

With campuses in Haverhill and Lawrence, Northern Essex Community College offers over 70 associate degree and certificate programs as well as hundreds of noncredit courses designed for personal enrichment and career growth.  More than 7,400 students are enrolled in credit associate degree and certificate programs on the Haverhill and Lawrence campuses; and another 6,700 take noncredit workforce development and community education classes on campus, and at businesses and community sites across the Merrimack Valley.  Northern Essex is the only state college located in the lower Merrimack Valley Region of Massachusetts. For more information, visit the website at www.necc.mass.edu.

Lina Garcia Kosko credits her sister’s deafness for leading her to Northern Essex’s Deaf Studies Program and Northern Essex for helping her find balance in her life.

“At Northern Essex I learned to set priorities, have good communication, and understand my family’s needs. These are the main components that made me a successful working mom and student.”

The 27 year-old will graduate in May with an associate degree in deaf studies and a great foundation to become an American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter. The mother of two young girls, she currently holds a 3.9 GPA.

Lina’s story really began with her older sister who was born deaf into a household that knew little about raising a deaf child and knew less about the deaf community.

Nearly 15 years ago, her sister and father traveled to the United States from Columbia so she could receive a cochlear implant. Once they were educated about the deaf community, they embraced her deafness. She refused the cochlear implant.

Lina, her mother, and another sister followed them to the U.S. The entire family learned English. Her deaf sister also learned ASL.

After high school, Lina earned a medical assistant associate degree. At work she was often asked to translate English to Spanish or vice versa. One day, a colleague noted that if she learned ASL she would be trilingual.

With that as an incentive, she enrolled in NECC’s Deaf Studies Program.

“I love the program,” she says. “It is amazing to see how all the classes connect with my life and all that I have been through with my big sister. Even though I have had a sibling in the deaf culture, I never understood it. This helps me understand.”

Following graduation, she will transfer into Framingham State University’s bachelor degree program in interpreting. Her ideal job, she says, is to be a trilingual interpreter within the Spanish community.

The Navy Band Northeast Pop Ensemble will present a free concert at Northern Essex Community College’s Hartleb Technology Center on the Haverhill campus, 100 Elliott St., on Friday, April 10, at 7 p.m.

This event is open to the public. 

Under the direction of Lt. Gregory Fritz, the band – which is one of 11 official bands of the U.S. Navy worldwide, is a concert band that performs a wide variety of musical styles including traditional band music, popular standards and patriotic favorites. Songs may include Irish Tune form County Derry, Jupiter from the Planets, Bluejackets on Parade, Swanee, Battle Hymn of the Republic, and a Nat King Cole Medley.

The band, which is attached to the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, and serves the military and civilian communities throughout the Northeastern United States, is comprised of 45 talented professional Navy musicians from across the country.

Seats are general admission on a first come first serve basis.

This event is sponsored by the NECC Music Department. NECC offers an Associate Arts Degree: Music Option. The program is designed to give students a strong foundation in music. The program is suited either to students who want to transfer to a four-year college or those who want to begin or continue an interest in music.

For additional information contact Michael Lecuyer at mlecuyer@necc.mass.edu.