Category: Student success

SC4 honors the 96th annual class of graduates

Commencement is an opportunity to honor our graduates who have worked hard to achieve their goal of earning a college credential. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, our May 8 Commencement event was cancelled.

“We are very proud of our graduates and look forward to recognizing their hard work and determination. The College has begun planning a future event to acknowledge the outstanding efforts and accomplishments of our graduates,” said Vice President of Student Services Pete Lacey.

Details regarding a new commencement date will be shared with all graduates via a special letter of invitation once finalized.

Visit sc4.edu/commencement to view the lists of our December 2019 graduates and the graduation candidates for May and August 2020 (as of April 23, 2020). The faculty and staff of St. Clair County Community College are proud of our students’ achievements and wish everyone the very best in their next ventures.

SC4 honors more than 160 students for academic achievements

St. Clair County Community College is proud to honor more than 160 students for their outstanding accomplishments in and out of the classroom during the 2019-20 academic year.

“I’m extremely impressed by our students, who chose to attend SC4 from cities throughout Michigan and beyond. I commend them for their ongoing commitment and hard work throughout the year to achieve their goals,” said Vice President of Student Services Pete Lacey. “The students being recognized by SC4 faculty and staff for their accomplishments are wonderful examples of what can be achieved in the classroom and out in our community.”

Achievement awards in academics, leadership, service and personal accomplishments

Algonac — Timothy Merlo

Allenton — Aubree Smith and Morgan Woods

Armada — Amy Henderson

Attica — Janel Schuh

Avoca — Jamie Hill and Haley Kettlewell

Bad Axe — Bethany Alderman and Melissa Bischer

Capac — Benjamin Geliske, Terra King, Megan Orlando and Candy Vigiletti

Casco Township — Alexis Jarvis

Chesterfield — Amanda Connelly

Clay Township — Tosha Sabbagh

Clyde Township — David Baird, Hunter Davis, Abigail Diller, Nickolas Leonard and Sarah May

Cottrellville Township — Hailey DeMerritt and Amy Watson

Croswell — Eden Jenkins, Mikayla Phetteplace and Thomas Short

East China Township — Randi Adams, Lisa Bassett, Joshua DeCoste, Elsa McClure, Allison Schunk, Michelle Thomas and Katelyn Zoeplitz

Emmett — Renee Bishop, Joseph McCall and Lindsey Tabor

Fort Gratiot Giovonni Carden, Jaden Dunn, Dennis Embo, Taylor Kelley, Delgertsetseg Myagmarshagdar, Kelly Prososki, Haley Relken, Justin Vanbibber and Darrell Washington

Goodells — Tara Peters and Jessica Smoot

Grant Township — Taisha Mentzer

Harsens Island — Kathy Brady

Ira Township — Katherine Janusch

Jeddo — Abby Babel and McKenna Sweeney

Kimball Township — Molly Aguinaga, Allison Cole, Bonnie Hoffman, Alexandra Hunger, Shane Markel, Kaitlyn Meldrum, Lillian Nelson, Rosalyn Smith, Jacob Sroka, Max Thoennes and Paj Yang

Lakeport — Brenton Hisscock, Asmara Miron and Daniel Rich

Lenox Township — Kristin Tober

Lexington — Naomi Wildey and Jessica Willing

Macomb — Michelle Tremper

Marine City — Bonnie Baker, Adriannah Lee and Ryan Scott

Marysville — Brian Bourcier, Shallyn Dasharion, Luke Jolly, Kelly Long, Justin Miller, Ann Mole, Aaron Rogers, Matthew Schaaf, Rachel Schmaltz and Troy Walcott

North Street — Joseph Marcero

Peck — James Welch

Port Hope — Laura Iseler

Port Huron — Chantal Abdou, Morgan Alexis, Jamal Armstrong, Yaneli Besse, Katherine Bosma, Riley Bugg, Maria Bussone, Helena Cage, Kevin Conley, Jack DeMara, Evan Dodge, Jayone Fletcher, Morgan Fulgenti, Porfirio Garcia, Montserrat Garcia-Pajaro, Andrew Geiger, Cortez Giles, Jessica Gottschalk, Dontay Graham, Jennifer Guertin, Ann-Marie Hicks, Cameron Hudson, Joanna Jones, Adam Keller, Alicia Kolman, Drew Mayes, Taylor McDonald, Jalen Miller, Kobi Miller, Jonah Mitchell, Darshana Nathan, Maryssa Nichols, Rebecca Reese, Laura Richert, Caio Rodrigues, Jackson Schenk, Noah Schumaker, Trent Sheldon, Isaac Smith, Daniele Soper, Maleena Stewart, Skyler Streeter Fye, Jacquelynn Tesch, Nelson Thorn, Candelaria Tibble, Dane Vos, Matthew Wedlake, Monique Williams, Kaitlyn Willis, Jessica-Ann Woodard and Jeremy Zimmer

Riley Township — Krissa Cabral and Robyn Heffner

Sandusky — Renee Young

Smiths Creek — Tara Brown, Christina Robinson and Jennifer Winkler

St. Clair — Genevieve Decker, Leigh Knox, Eva Kue, Mario Mejia, Nicole Miller, Mary Newberry, Timothy Ries, Jacqueline Sikora, Noah Simone, Jared St. James, Ashley Stone and Stacy Young

Yale — Peter Eldracher, Craig Gerlach, Breanna Mason, Kayla Plenda and Edward Takacs

All SC4 Academic Team, All Michigan Academic Team winners

Maria Cejmar of Fair Haven and Lillian Nelson of Kimball Township

Faculty Memorial Awards

Thomas Short of Croswell is the award winner of the Faculty Memorial Award for a continuing student. Other nominees included Katherine Bosma of Port Huron, Maegan Donajkowski of St. Clair, and Kathryn Oliver of Capac.

Shannon Dinsdale of St. Clair is the award winner the Faculty Memorial Award for a graduating student. Other nominees included Elsa McClure of East China Township, Lillian Nelson of Kimball Township, and Brendan Pittiglio of Algonac.

$1 Million fund created to help SC4 Students

PORT HURON – SC4 is providing $1,000,000 in emergency aid funding to support SC4 students impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. The money is available to currently enrolled SC4 students who are experiencing additional financial need caused by the public health emergency. Awards are available to help students who are working toward the completion of a certificate or degree.

This one million dollars in funding to support SC4 students includes $954,739 received as part of the Federal Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act recently approved by Congress, as well as additional college emergency scholarship funds dedicated to supporting students. Awards are in addition to any other financial aid support the student may have received.

Students experiencing challenges are asked to complete a brief form online at sc4.edu/CARES. Additional details about the program are also available on that webpage.

Emergency aid is intended to help students with expenses that may affect their ability to attend SC4, including things such as housing, transportation, basic living needs and other college-related costs. Students experiencing hardships due to unemployment or reduced financial support from their families are encouraged to apply.

TRIO student keeps a focus on big goals

Nelson Thorn has big goals, but it hasn’t always been easy to keep moving toward them. Loss of close relatives and the financial burdens of being an independent student have meant that he’s had to keep focused on what he wants to accomplish in life. Fortunately, SC4’s TRIO program has been there to help, along with many other sources of support and encouragement on campus.

Initially, Thorn was attracted to the flexibility SC4’s nursing programs offered to students.

“I chose SC4 because of the programs, class sizes, resources, and student involvement,” he said. “And with the addition of the student housing, I had a place to call home for my first year. (Manager of college housing) Nathanial Shrapnell helped me tremendously.”

When personal difficulties happened, Thorn turned to SC4 campus resources for help.

“One of the hardest barriers to face was losing a few relatives. The staff and my professors helped me to stay in school and keep up my grade point average. And then I applied to the TRIO program.”

“TRIO gave me more personalized, hands-on help. I was struggling with deciding a major and planning my transfer pathway, and TRIO supported me in my academic success,” Thorn said. “I was also interested in the events TRIO holds for its students, including college tours, concerts, plays, and volunteer experiences.”

Thorn has plenty of people to thank for his success as a student at SC4, starting with TRIO staff support Amy Hengehold and director Jessica Brown and especially his TRIO advisor Shawne Jowett.

“I don’t know if I would be graduating without her help!” he said. Others who have been particularly inspirational are his first academic advisor Stacy Healy, SC4’s coordinator of student activities and services Sherry Artman, director of behavioral intervention and support services David Goetze, and Testing Center staff members Kim Heering and Kelly Lindsay.

“They have been unconditionally supportive and have been mentors to me, from just talking with me and allowing me to express myself to helping me find additional support and resources,” Thorn explained. “And special thanks to my friends who have become family and have been my rock for the past two years.”

Thorn plans to transfer to the University of Michigan to pursue bachelor’s degrees in psychology and business administration, with a concentration in entrepreneurship. He’d also like to complete a master’s degree before he turns 30.

He recommends TRIO to anyone who’s eligible for the program. “With longer advising appointments, support services, and tutoring, any college student would find TRIO beneficial.”