Category: Student success

Qatar native finds friendship, encouragement and passion at SC4

Qatar native Nasser Al-Attiyah found friendship, influential professors and a new passion nearly halfway around the world at St. Clair County Community College in Port Huron, Mich.

Nasser Al-Attiyah graduated in 2007 from Qatar Academy, an international I.B. school in Doha, Qatar. Connected to the Port Huron area through family members who had previously attended SC4, Al-Attiyah enrolled at the college in fall 2010.

“My cousin, a Port Huron local at the time, called SC4 an excellent starting spot for pursuing higher education,” Al-Attiyah said.

While at SC4, he joined the music club and participated in various campus activities, served as a student speaker for multiple events, and started his Tang Soo Do study at PKSA Karate Port Huron.

“Clubs and campus activities allowed me to bond with people at the college,” he said. “I met a few other students whom I am still in contact with today. Being able to break the initial barrier of meeting new people in a completely new environment at that stage was crucial to my acclimation. They were some great people too.”

According to Al-Attiyah, other great people he met included college faculty and staff members.

“Patricia and Jim Frank still remain as two of the most influential professors I’ve ever had at any level. They constantly pushed boundaries and prioritize learning and engaging discussions over grades and homework quotas,” he said. “And the administration as a whole was incredibly supportive when anything got confusing or needed straightening out. Pete Lacey, Carrie Bearss, and Angel Niederkohr, in particular, went above and beyond to make sure I was settled in and had everything in order. I am forever grateful for all they did.”

Al-Attiyah transferred from SC4 to Arizona State University in 2012 to study international agribusiness (food security issues) and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in 2016.

Since graduation, he enlisted in Qatar’s Military Officer Cadet Program and currently holds the rank of Lieutenant. Following that, he joined Qatar’s government-run agricultural company Hassad Qatar where he is a member of the team that oversees operations.

Al-Attiyah also continued his training in Tang Soo Do. He earned a second degree black belt in 2018 and participated in the 16th World Tang Soo Do Championship, representing Qatar for the first time in the tournament as the sole member of the team, and winning the gold medal in heavyweight sparring on his first try.

“I have since been recognized as the highest-ranking Tang Soo Do black belt in Qatar (and the Gulf region as a whole), all thanks to the Tang Soo Do school which was initially across the street from SC4 in downtown Port Huron,” he said. “I still attend and visit twice a year to train with the same instructors that have been training me for more than nine years.”

While he aspires to further his martial arts training and open up his own school, Al-Attiyah really wants to lead the charge in advancing agriculture in his region.

“As one of the few people truly specialized in this field, it has become my responsibility to educate and inform as much as possible to help develop this sector,” Al-Attiyah said. “With my background and experiences at SC4 and ASU, I feel well equipped to have a great impact.”

Lifelong learner and alumna Barbara Beck-Donovan (1928-2019) gifts $1.6 million to SC4, People’s Clinic

Upon her passing on May 6, 2019, SC4 and the Community Foundation of St. Clair County learned of a $1.6 million gift from Barbara Beck-Donovan, which will provide approximately $800,000 to SC4 for the creation of two scholarships and $800,000 to an endowment fund for the benefit of the People’s Clinic for Better Health at Lake Huron Medical Center.

Beck-Donavan attended SC4 – then Port Huron Junior College – from 1946 through 1947. She then transferred from SC4 to Michigan State University where she received a bachelor’s degree in 1949. Beck-Donovan taught English at Port Huron High School until her retirement. Upon retirement, the avid reader returned to SC4 and took a class every fall and winter semester between 1990 and 2019.

Beck-Donovan was well known among the faculty and staff at SC4. One professor who got to know Barbara, Professor Suzanne O’Brien said, “like many of my colleagues, I was greatly saddened by the loss of Barbara Donovan. A former English teacher and literacy teacher for the County Jail, she never failed to inspire me throughout the twenty-plus years she took classes at SC4. She radiated strength, independence, and had a passion for arts and travel. Barbara was a woman of substance, and I will miss her.”

According to her longtime friend and retired CPA Thomas F. McTaggart, Beck-Donovan was most passionate about art and literature. “Barbara loved books and learning about art and literature from different perspectives. She took several classes over because she liked getting viewpoints from different instructors. She also was fortunate to be able to take many trips overseas to places such as France, Italy, Spain and Egypt to see in person what she learned about in classes and books. And, of course, she never stopped teaching others. She had a wonderful ability to help people understand things using creative methods.”

“Barbara was a beloved member of our community and her presence on our campus will be missed,” said SC4 President Dr. Deborah A. Snyder. “SC4 students will benefit greatly from her generosity and love of learning for generations to come. We are incredibly grateful.”

SC4 alumnus making mark on communities and youth in Arizona, Washington

St. Clair County Community College alumnus Sean Barton is committed to providing stability and growth for communities and youth through sports and education.

Barton currently serves as director of curriculum and strategic initiatives at STEM Sports in Phoenix where he leads strategic planning efforts and manages and develops a curriculum that fuses STEM and sports for students in grades K through 8. Prior to that in Phoenix, he worked as chief operating officer at the NABI Foundation, which provides educational programs for Native youth.

“I feel fortunate and blessed to be compensated financially for my work – helping others through servant leadership in the education and athletic sphere. Yet the greatest compensation comes from doing something every day that is intrinsically valuable/that I love.”

Barton also left a sizeable footprint in the state of Washington via his roles at the Archdiocese of Seattle and the French American School of Puget Sound. He worked as the assistant director of athletics at the Archdiocese of Seattle and served as athletics director, extended day director, middle school physical education teacher and summer camp program director at the French American School of Puget Sound.

“The opportunity to work in settings that provide stability and growth for communities and youth brings me immense joy,” Barton said. “I aspire to continuously embrace and capitalize on opportunities that support educators, students, and parents and families throughout my career. This includes both professional and personal/volunteer work.”

A Port Huron Northern High School graduate, Barton attended SC4 on a basketball scholarship from 1996 to 1998. He attended SC4 again in 2005.

“SC4 provides a valuable, financially responsible academic experience for an array of ambitious minds, young and mature,” he said. “I had several quality courses and instructors during my tenure at SC4, which provided a solid foundation to succeed in both my academic and professional endeavors.”

Barton transferred his earned credits in 2006 to the University of Phoenix in Bellevue, Wash., graduating in 2008 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He then went on to earn a master’s degree in business administration with a focus on entrepreneurship from Northcentral University in 2014.

Registration open for SC4 late-start winter classes

Registration is open for late-start winter semester classes at St. Clair County Community College. Seats are still available in 12-week classes starting the week of Feb. 10 and eight-week classes starting the week of March 16. Classes are available in Port Huron and online.

Late-start classes allow students to earn credits at a faster pace. Class topics include biology, business, English, math, political science, psychology, sociology and more. Examples of some specific courses offered this winter include:

  • ART120 – Art Appreciation
  • BIO110 – Cell Biology Basics
  • BUS150 – Principles of Business
  • BUS153 – Business Law
  • BUS252 – Consumer Behavior
  • CIS297 – The CIS Professional
  • CJ101– Introduction to Criminal Justice
  • ENG101 – English Composition I
  • ENG102 – English Composition II
  • HE101 – Math Related to Drug Administration
  • HE102 – Medical Terminology
  • HE112 – Medical Law and Ethics for the Allied Health Professional
  • HIS101 – History of Western Civilization to 1715
  • HIS150 – History of U.S. 1877 to Present
  • MTH111 – Plane Trigonometry
  • PS101 – Introduction to Political Science
  • PSY180 – Introduction to Psychology
  • SOC101 – Principles of Sociology

Current students can search for all courses and sections
at sc4.edu/schedule. They can register and pay for classes online in the SC4 Portal at portal.sc4.edu.

New students can start at sc4.edu/starthere.

Registration service also is available at SC4’s One-stop Student Services Center located in the Dr. James C. Acheson Welcome Center on the corner of Erie Street and Glenwood Avenue on the Port Huron campus. Hours of service are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Friday.

For more information, contact SC4 Enrollment Services at enrollment@sc4.edu or 810-989-5500.