During Paul D. Camp Community College’s commencement held May 13, President Dr. Paul Wm. Conco presented awards recognizing significant contributions to the college and the community:

GRADUATION AWARDS

• PDCCC’s VCCA Showcase Winners—Annually, the Virginia Community Colleges Association sponsors showcases at its state convention that feature outstanding faculty and staff from its 23 colleges in the Virginia Community College System.

Faculty criteria include excellence in teaching, significant contributions to education and the community college, and professional/personal development. Support staff include significant contributions to education and the community college, plus professional and personal development involvement.

Nominated and selected by their peers at PDCCC, those receiving Faculty Showcase Awards were Renee Felts, associate professor of Information Systems Technology; Ronette Jacobs, instructor of English; Teresa Harrison, a financial aid officer; and Ruth Waldo, executive secretary to the vice president of Financial and Administrative Services. Conco presented each recipient with a framed award.

• Excellence in Education Award—Conco also presented the PDCCC annual Excellence in Education Award to Ronette Jacobs. Jacobs was cited by her PDCCC peers for helping to support writing components across the curriculum and her active involvement in various committees, including the Developmental Program Faculty Team and the Planning and Effectiveness Committee.

Her commitment to the college is apparent in her many engaging roles, which include sponsor and founder of the Literary Club, facilitator for the annual Literary Festival, sponsor for the first student trip to the Edgar Allen Poe Museum in Richmond and organizer for the first book clubs for open discussion.

She developed a new course on creative writing and served as a planner, chaperone and participant for the college system’s Student Leadership Conference this past fall and served on its planning and review teams for the English curriculum.

• J. Paul Councill Jr. Community Service Award—Conco presented the annual J. Paul Councill Jr. Community Service Award to Bobby B. Worrell, who served as executive director of the Elms Foundation from 1996 through 2010 after retiring from 44 years in the banking industry. Described as a “quiet leader,” he has supported many community organizations during his career. He also served as a director and chairman for PDCCC’s Local College Board.

On Worrell’s retirement, a PDCCC scholarship was established by the Elms Foundation to honor his role as the former executive director of the foundation, which administers grants and scholarships for the Camp, Ruth Camp Campbell and the Camp-Younts foundations.

STUDENT AMBASSADORS NAMED

Thirteen students have been selected to serve in a prestigious public relations and student support group at PDCCC for the upcoming year.

Serving as representatives of the college, the student ambassadors will assist the President’s Office and the Office of Institutional Advancement with events and functions, such as registration, fund raisers and career fairs. Nine of the new ambassadors served as ushers and helped with the reception at graduation.

Student Ambassadors for 2011-2012 include Victor Williams, Karen Jenkins and DeShong Woodley, all of Suffolk; Josiah Barrett, Emmalia Colendrino and Hannah Barrett, all of Wakefield; Kimberly Holmes, Zachary Gurganus and Melissa Reid, all of Franklin; Paul Bryant of Courtland; Joshua Stacey and Pamela Kiger, both of Smithfield; and Brenda Anyanwu of Zuni.

Students are nominated by a staff or faculty member, and then selected based on criteria that include a minimum grade-point average of 3.0, demonstration of leadership abilities, communication skills and positive attitude regarding self, the college and the community. For information on options available at PDCCC, call 569-6700 or visit the college website at www.pdc.edu.

DR. PATSY JOYNER is the vice president for institutional advancement at Paul D. Camp Community College. Her email address is pjoyner@pc.vccs.edu.