East Central College recognizes students who have demonstrated superior academic achievement each semester.
Upon completion of at least 12 semester credit hours with a Spring semester grade point average between 3.50 and 3.84, students are acknowledged by placement on the Vice President’s List.
For the Spring 2022 semester, there were 183 students on the list.
East Central College recognizes students who have demonstrated exemplary academic achievement each semester.
Upon completion of at least 12 Spring semester credit hours with a semester grade point average of 3.85 or greater, students are acknowledged on the President’s List.
There were 131 students named to the list from the Spring 2022 semester.
East Central College students were recognized last week for leadership, academic excellence, club engagement and success in the classroom.
ECC’s Campus Life and Leadership annually holds a Student Achievement Night awards ceremony to celebrate the outstanding accomplishments of students.
Students are nominated for awards by faculty who recognize academic excellence, perseverance, and contributions to a culture of student success both in and out of the classroom.
These awards are given to student leaders to recognize their contributions as stewards of student engagement on campus. Students are nominated by their club advisors.
The following students were honored for their service as club officers:
Awards of academic distinction are given to students by faculty members in recognition of academic excellence.
Though these students will likely have a high mark in the gradebook, a student chosen for this award should also demonstrate an understanding of the course material, be an active participant in class, and contribute to the larger culture of succeeding and high-level thinking in the classroom.
The following Union students were given awards for academic distinction:
Spirited Falcon awards are given to students by faculty members in recognition of perseverance, a consistent willingness to learn and improve, and measured improvement as deemed appropriate by the faculty nominator.
This award is designed to honor students who, despite any obstacles they may face during their semester, demonstrated a continued commitment to their education and success as a student. The following Union students were given Spirited Falcon awards:
East Central College is once again offering one free summer class to soon-to-be high school juniors and seniors.
The First Class Tuition Pass, formerly known as Three for Free, is available to the Class of 2023 and the Class of 2024, and it allows for students to take one summer tuition-free course.
The course can be worth up to five credit hours. Students must sign up before Monday, June 6, when summer classes begin.
This is the fourth year that ECC is offering a free course to high school students, according to Early College Programs Director Megen Strubberg.
“This opportunity allows high school students in our area the chance to get a jump start on their college journey,” she said. “Affordability is an important consideration for all students and families when making decisions about college.
“The ability to take a course for just the cost of fees and books is a real benefit,” Strubberg added
Students are only responsible for fees and textbooks. The program is available in Union, Rolla and online. For in-person classes, students can expect to pay between $10 to $30 in fees per course. Online course fees are $45. Text book costs are in addition to course fees.
Strubberg noted that the intent of the program is to encourage students to continue taking dual credit classes during the summer. The program is part of an ECC strategic plan goal to increase opportunities for college credit for students in the community.
The East Central College Board of Trustees on Feb. 7 approved a slight increase in tuition costs beginning in the fall 2022 semester.
There will be a $5 credit hour tuition bump for students who live within the district, outside the district and for international students.
ECC Vice President of Finance and Administration DeAnna Cassat said the increase was determined by a subcommittee of the Budget Advisory Committee focused specifically on tuition, which presented its findings to administrators.
She explained the tuition subcommittee’s focus was on intentional, long-range planning and key factors such as a predicted declines in high school population both nationally and in Missouri were considered.
In addition, gradual tuition increases over larger, less frequent increases are preferred by the subcommittee, administrators and trustees.
“Smaller increases over time are easier for our students than larger sporadic increases,” Cassat commented.
She further explained the tuition subcommittee includes staff and faculty from different departments at the college who collaboratively work together to establish a recommendation.
“It is a very collaborative group that put a lot of work into this decision and provided a lot of data and information,” she said.
ECC ranks in the Top 5 in least costly community colleges among the 14 institutions in Missouri regarding tuition. More than half of the community colleges in the state will raise tuition for the Fall 2022 semester.
Cassat noted that the tuition increase is 4.5 percent, which is lower than the 7 percent nationwide inflation rate.
Tuition and fees also are lower than the amount students receive in A+ funds and Pell grants.
“That is really important to us,” Cassat said. “We want to stay under those thresholds for our students.”
ECC President Dr. Jon Bauer added that a full-time student taking 15 credit hours will pay $4,300 in tuition and fees. Students who qualify for Pell grants receive $6,500 in federal aid.
Tuition Tiers
There are three tiers of tuition at ECC. Tier 1 includes most programs, as well as general education classes. Tier 2 consists of classes in culinary arts, industrial maintenance technology, nursing and precision machining programs.
There will be no change to the Tier 3 tuition, which includes health care programs at ECC Rolla, radiological technology, surgical technology and licensed practical nursing (LPN) programs.
The new in-district tuition rates will be $115 per credit hour for Tier 1 classes. In-district rates for Tier 2 classes will be $139 per credit hour.
The cost for dual-credit and dual-enrollment courses in the 2022-23 academic year will be $58 per credit hour, an increase of $3 per hour.
Out-of-district rates will be $161 and $195 per credit hour for Tier 1 and Tier 2, respectively.
The rates per credit hour for out-of-state students will be $235 for Tier 1 and $286 for Tier 2. Tuition for international students will be $241 per credit hour for Tier 1, and $306 per credit hour for Tier 2.
Student Fees
There was a $3 increase per credit hour in student fees also approved by trustees, bringing the total to $30 per credit hour. In addition, there are slight changes in the areas where the fees will be spent. Listed below is the fee breakdown and how it was changed:
• Student Activities $9 per credit hour (previously $8.50).
• Support Services $1 per credit hour (no change).
• Technology $3 per credit hour (no change).
• Facilities $8 per credit hour (no change).
• Security $9 per credit hour (previously $7.50).
There is a little over two months until the deadline to apply for East Central College’s Nursing program, a highly competitive program with a limited number of seats.
Applications for the program are due Dec. 1 for classes that begin in August 2022. Students in the Fall 2022 cohort would graduate in May 2024.
The ECC Nursing Program is available in both Union and Rolla. To find out if you are ready, please make an appointment with an advisor today.
For more information, visit the nursing program website at www.eastcentral.edu/allied-health/nursing/.
The nursing program prepares graduates to pass the NCLEX-RN, with the goal of readying the grads to be registered nurses in diverse health care settings.
Last year, NursingProcess.org ranked ECC’s nursing program No. 4 in the Midwest among 660 nursing schools offering associate’s degrees.
The colleges were evaluated nursing schools throughout the region on four factors — national test pass rates, academic quality, the nursing school’s reputation and affordability.
ECC offers two programs leading to an Associate of Applied Science Degree in Nursing. This program prepares students to become registered nurses.
The main campus in Union, as well as the Rolla site, offer a complete pre-licensure program (generic) for those interested in becoming a registered nurse. A Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN) to RN Bridge program is also available at the Rolla location for LPNs interested in becoming registered nurses.
The classroom and clinical components of the curriculum are interrelated to provide a strong background of the student in attaining the objectives of the program and in becoming a safe and competent practitioner.
The Chi Delta Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa at East Central College in Union recently was recognized for individual accomplishments and the work of the chapter.
Each year the honor society chapter participates in regional and international programs related to research and service projects and then report on their work to the statewide organization, according to Kevin Dixon, PTK advisor of the Chi Delta Chapter.
Once the reports are submitted each year, they are judged by the PTK headquarters staff.
On June 14, PTK Missouri Regional Coordinators Jo and Steve Fritts presented the 2021 Missouri Regional Awards hardware to the award recipients in the Chi Delta Chapter.
Typically, an in-person awards ceremony is held in March to recognize the recipients.
However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. There was not an in-person ceremony this year, said Dr. Wendy Pecka, contact advisor for the Chi Delta Chapter.
“We are very proud of the hard work you put into these submissions,” she told the PTK members. “I only wish you all could have participated in the convention in person to understand how exciting it is for your work to be honored with these awards. Not every chapter gets to experience this.”
Listed below are awards the Chi Delta Chapter received:
Following are individual awards that members of the Chi Delta Chapter received:
Dixon explained that the Honors in Action projects involve scholarly research that lead to a service project for the community.
The Union chapter’s 2020 project was “Slicing the Stigma on Community College,” and the students prepared a PowerPoint that was sent to local high schools on the benefits of starting at a community college.
The College Project is focused on providing a service to the campus or college, and last year’s program began a project of revamping the look of trash receptacles on campus to make them more “visible” in hopes campus littering will decrease. That project will be continued into this fall, Dixon added.
PTK membership is by invitation only. Students must have a 3.4 GPA as a full-time student for a semester to join PTK. Once they are inducted into the honor society, students must maintain an overall GPA of 3.2.
Membership is open to all majors throughout the college, including anyone working toward a degree or certificate.
Recent East Central College graduate Alexis Kinnison is part of a select group of students who have earned a leadership scholarship and will participate in the WebsterLEADS Program at Webster University this fall.
Kinnison, of Union, is a member of the Class of 2021. She graduated from ECC with an Associate in Fine Arts degree, and she plans to study to be an art therapist.
“At Webster I will continue my fine arts degree with an emphasis in ceramics, and also begin psychology and therapy courses,” she said.
“Being an art therapist is a way for me to help others in my community and connect with them through making art.”
During her time at Webster, Kinnison will be part of the WebsterLEADS (Learn Evolve Apply Develop and Serve) leadership certificate program, which continues for students each year they attend Webster University. The program includes interactive courses, workshops, retreats and practicum work.
To be considered for the competitive program, applicants must have proven leadership involvement.
The leadership scholarship requires a minimum 3.0 cumulative grade point average. Applicants also must document extracurricular activities and leadership involvement.
According to Kinnison, she strengthened her leadership skills while a student at ECC.
“During my time at ECC, I was vice president and then president of art club. I was also a student worker in the art department, where I had the best mentors to teach me,” she said.
“Through these experiences, I learned a lot about the importance of community and what it means to be a leader,” Kinnison added. “Leadership is about bringing people together. Especially through the trying times of COVID, having these groups was very valuable.”
She further added that she developed professional habits and practices that will help in continuing her education and in a career.
“I’ve learned responsibility, communication and persistence. Being able to further practice and learn this through the WebsterLEADS program is very exciting,” Kinnison said.
Kinnison admits that she wasn’t always leader among her peers.
“Growing up, I was probably the shyest kid in school,” she said. “My mom had to place a heart sticker in my palm just to get me through the school day.
“You can only imagine how excited she was to get the phone call that I had won the leadership scholarship that I had worked so hard for.”
While president of the Art Club this past year, the club created a wall mural in Hansen Hall. The mural includes a quote by French artist Edgar Degas, “Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.”
“The mural project hopefully is the start to what my career may look like in the future,” she said.
East Central College’s efforts to assist students in returning to college to complete their degree was recognized by the state in a “White Paper” report published earlier this month.
ECC’s Finish Your Investment (FYI) degree reclamation program is part of a nationwide initiative — named Degrees When Due. The program is sponsored by the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) and supported by the Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development (DHEWD).
ECC was the only community college recognized in the DHEWD report for its reclamation program during the 2020-21 academic year. The state agency applauded ECC’s communication and outreach during planning and implementation of the FYI program.
DHEWD also credited ECC for creating a well-balanced campus-wide team to support the degree reclamation program, which can be used as a model for other higher education institutes.
ECC’s FYI program was designed to guide students who’ve completed college credits at the College to help them complete a degree.
There were 742 former students targeted, of those, 39 “auto graduated” due to the number of credit hours they already had obtained. Another 31 students applied for admission; 20 enrolled in courses; and five ultimately earned a degree.
Laura Deason, associate registrar, was recognized June 14 by the ECC Board of Trustees for her work in examining student records and then determining that the 39 “auto graduated” students were eligible for degrees.
“We firmly believe for the students that have returned it is life-changing,” Robyn Walter vice president of academic affairs was quoted in the DHEWD publication.
The White Paper recounted a story published by ECC about Mercedes Mangrum, 26, who was motivated to finish her degree after a four-year pause. She was just 12 credit hours away from an associate degree.
“My decision to complete this semester was solely to give myself options for future endeavors. As an older student, I did feel more focused and ready to complete my degree,” Mangrum said.
According to the DHEWD, a key part of successful reclamation programs was building a campus team tasked with cross-campus collaboration strategies to retain current students and support adult reengagement.
ECC’s team was composed of about 15 employees from varying areas of the College.
Plans call for a continuation of the FYI program at ECC, to help meet the needs of a diverse demographic of students, including first-generation college students, low-income students, single parents, and veterans.
East Central College students have recognized instructors for their dedication and passion for education.
This is the first time the Outstanding Instructor Awards have been presented at ECC, and more than 80 students nominated their favorite instructors, with many faculty members receiving multiple nominations.
Students also left heartfelt comments and notes of gratitude which were later shared with the instructors, along with a certificate recognizing the award recipients.
Listed are the faculty members who have received the 2020-21 Outstanding Instructor Awards by their students for their commitment to students and their devotion to education and teaching:
Adisa Velic
Anna Schwein
Ann Boehmer
Anne Estes
Dr. Aurelia VonTress
Dr. Beth Rozema
Dr. Cori Derifield
Courtney Brandt
Dr. Elizabeth Flotte
Grace Austin
Gregory Stotler
Gregory Stratman
Jason Durbin
Jennifer Higerd
Dr. Jennifer Judd
Jenny Kuchem
Jessica Van Leer
John Hardecke
Joshua Stroup
Julie Chirban
Keith Pulles
Kevin Dixon
Larry Pierce
Laura Roselli Insall
Leigh Kellmann Kolb
Lesley Peters
Lisa Hanneken
Lucy Crain
Matthew Gifford
Dr. Matthew Monzyk
Nancy Hayes
Rachel Howard
Dr. Richard Hudanick
Dr. Robert Mahon
Dr. Russ Henderson
Shawna Flanigan
Sue Henderson
Tanner French
Theodore Coburn
Timothy Derifield
Tracy Mowery
Dr. Wendy Pecka