Funding roundup

Northwestern Michigan College’s Great Lakes Maritime Academy boasts a training ship, State of Michigan. With new federal funding, upgrades can be made to the ship’s docking area. (Photo: NMC)

Northwestern Michigan College’s (NMC’s) Great Lakes Maritime Academy (GLMA) will get some needed upgrades this summer thanks to a $1 million allocation in the federal 2018 omnibus spending bill, which Congress passed last month. The funds to GLMA doubles the funding the academy received last year.

NMC will use the funds to improve the docking area of the training ship, State of Michigan. The work will take place between May and August, while the ship is out of the harbor on its annual summer training cruise.

“The federal funds are crucial to the academy and key to our being able to ensure the program at Northwestern Michigan College’s Great Lakes Maritime Academy maintains U.S. Coast Guard approval,” Superintendent Rear Adm. Jerry Achenbach said in a release.

In addition to the $1 million, the academy likely will be reimbursed for all fuel costs incurred on the upcoming cruise, which could reach nearly $200,000.

Florida

Florida SouthWestern State College’s (FSW) School of Business and Technology got a boost with a five-year, $25,000 pledge from Lee County Electric Cooperative (LCEC). The college will use the gift to provide materials for several areas of study, including crime scene tech labs, and construction and engineering materials.

In recognition of LCEC’s support, the college for five years will feature the company’s name at the welcome lounge at its school of business and technology.

Illinois

McHenry County College (MCC) received a $650,000 National Science Foundation (NSF) grant for scholarships and inventive programming for students interested in pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

Over the next five years, the program will provide up to $10,000 in scholarships to at least 40 MCC students. The students also will receive one-on-one guidance from a faculty member, tutoring, a professional mentor and research and internship opportunities.

Dr. Gina Santori’s donation of $250,000 will help nursing and health care students. (Photo: Waubonsee)

Waubonsee Community College students in nursing and health care programs will benefit from a $250,000 donation from Dr. Gina Santori.

“I’m on the advisory board for the nursing program, so I’ve seen its quality first hand. I’ve seen the surgical techs up close. I know they are great,” Santori said.

Santori also has served on the Waubonsee Community College Foundation board since 2014 and established a nursing scholarship in 2013. As a donor, she reviews the applications for the nursing scholarship.

“I am always struck by the diversity of the applicants,” she said. “These are real people who have had real struggles in their past and now want to help people. Their backgrounds will give them an advantage in working with patients.”

Santori has had her own challenges. At 17, she was an unwed mother who had not finished high school. She started her college education at Truman College, a two-year college in Chicago. Santori went on to become a podiatrist and is now finishing an additional doctorate degree in bioethics.

North Carolina

Rowan-Cabarrus Community College received a $3,000 grant from the Gene Haas Foundation to support students in the computer-integrated machining field. The grant will provide scholarships for students in the program to use for any college-related expenses.

About the Author

Tabitha Whissemore
Tabitha Whissemore is a contributor to Community College Daily and managing editor of AACC's Community College Journal.
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