DMC-hosted “Merit Badge College” recently brought 150 Scouts to Windward Campus
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February
2024
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21:00 PM
Europe/Amsterdam
More than 50 College faculty and staff volunteered to teach classes to boys and girls with 33 troops with South Texas Council and others with the Boy Scouts of America; participants learned about life lessons, educational opportunities while earning badges
Article by Melinda Eddleman
While the weather wasn’t exactly cooperative, you could hear the excitement among the 150 Scouts, both boys and girls, on the Del Mar College (DMC) Windward Campus recently. The Scouts were attending the 2024 Merit Badge College co-hosted by DMC and the South Texas Council of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) on Feb. 17.
DMC Professor of Speech and Scoutmaster Michael Jones with Valdar the Viking_2024 Merit Badge College
“The 2024 South Texas Council Boy Scouts of America Merit Badge College was a great success, attracting Scouts from our local council as well as from four additional councils,” said Michael H. Jones, DMC Professor of Speech and Troop 345G Scoutmaster with the South Texas Council and who helped organize the event. “Del Mar College faculty and staff came together to provide this opportunity for youths to explore a number of interest areas and work toward their rank advancements, including course options that are not often available at other merit badge events such as architecture, aviation, crime prevention, drafting, electricity, welding and many other offerings.”
The “learn and earn” one-day camp was revitalized in 2023 after a five-year absence. This year’s Merit Badge College attracted troops from not just the South Texas Council but also units from the Alamo, Capital, Rio Grande and Sam Houston Councils. In all, 33 troops participated, some coming from as far away as Harlingen, Houston, Laredo, Sea Drift, Shiner, Spring Branch, Victoria and other locations.
Scouts in Electricity Class_2024 Merit Badge College
Scouts had the opportunity to earn one to two badges with selection from 23 areas taught by 54 volunteer DMC faculty and staff while also learning about various programs Del Mar College offers. Those who chose a full-day activity pursued badges in welding, cooking or first aid. Other Scouts chose to earn two badges from a selection of 20 other sessions ranging from architecture, aviation, communication and public speaking, crime prevention and finger printing, dentistry, digital technology, law and electricity to geology, entrepreneurship, moviemaking, home repairs, traffic safety and truck transportation, health care professions and woodworking, among others.
Overall, the BSA offers 138 different merit badges that Scouts can earn. During this year’s Merit Badge College, participants could choose from areas that not only touch on life lessons but also potential career paths that the Scouts may pursue later on … even at Del Mar College.
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This event brought many of these Scouts to a college campus for their first time, and some families have reported that their journeys back home were accompanied by conversations about higher education.
Michael Jones, DMC Professor of Speech
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Scouts_Aviation Class_2024 Merit Badge College
During the 2024 Merit Badge College co-hosted by Del Mar College and the South Texas Council of the Boy Scouts of America, 150 Scouts from 33 troops spent their Saturday, Feb. 17, “learning and earning” merit badges while also having the opportunity to see programs and facilities the College offers as part of career preparation. Among the more than 20 classes from which the Scouts could choose was aviation. Pictured are two Scouts inspecting a helicopter used for training DMC Airframe Applied Technology majors. (Credit: CRO Digital Services)
Scouts_Welding Class_2024 Merit Badge College
During the 2024 Merit Badge College, the one-day “learn and earn” event gave 150 Scouts with 33 troops representing five different councils their first opportunity to see a college campus and learn about the many opportunities that higher education can provide. Both boys and girls with the Scouting troops could choose from over 20 classes to earn badges, including a welding class provided by volunteer DMC faculty with the Welding Ap[lied Technology Program. The Feb. 17 Merit Badge College was co-hosted by Del Mar College and the South Texas Council of the Boy Scouts of America. (Credit: CRO Digital Services)
Scouts_Woodworking Class 2_2024 Merit Badge College
As one of the traditional badges that Scouts can earn, some participants chose to hone their skills in woodworking during the 2024 Merit Badge College held at Del Mar College’s Windward Campus on Feb. 17. Co-hosted by DMC and the South Texas Council of the Boy Scouts of America, the “learn and earn” event gave the 150 Scouts from 33 troops the opportunity to experience a college campus while also earning badges and learning life lessons that could be useful in the future. (Credit: CRO Digital Services)
About Del Mar College
Del Mar College empowers students to achieve their dreams. We offer quality programs, individual attention, outstanding instruction through faculty with real-world experience and affordable costs to credit and noncredit students in Corpus Christi and the South Texas Coastal Bend area. Nationally recognized while locally focused, we’re ranked in the top two percent of community colleges in the country granting associate degrees to Hispanic students (Community College Week). Del Mar College focuses on offering our students programs that match current or emerging career opportunities. Whether students are interested in the fine arts, sciences, business, occupational or technical areas, students get the education they need for the future they want at Del Mar College.
Latest DMC News
- DMC History Professor Dr. Bryan Stone Designated Today as a Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation “Piper Professor”Article by Melinda Eddleman Colleagues with the Del Mar College (DMC) Social Sciences Department and administrators filed into History Professor Dr. Bryan Stone’s classroom one by one this morning. Students in the faculty member’s class, HIST 1302 U.S. History 1865 to Present, looked a little perplexed. But, the purpose became clear when College officials presented Dr. Stone with a certificate designating him a 2024 “Piper Professor,” along with a $5,000 honorarium check and commemorative gold pin. The recognition comes from the San Antonio-based Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation with nominations for the pinnacle of Texas higher education awards submitted by invitation only. Each year, the Piper Foundation honors only 10 professors from public and private two- and four-year colleges and universities from across the state, and the honor recognizes educators’ dedication to the teaching profession and their outstanding academic, scientific and scholarly achievements. As a 2024 Piper Professor, Dr. Stone joins 10 other honorees named before him from Del Mar College since 1960. He’s also the first nominee since 2005 to receive the distinction. Fellow History Professor Dr. Mark Robbins, who nominated Dr. Stone for the award, noted, “Bryan is a model scholar-teacher who excels at every aspect of being a professor at a community-minded institution. He is a prolific author of three books and many articles, a supportive colleague who brings out the best in those he works with and a dedicated member of the local community who is eager to share his time and expertise beyond the College, so it’s a great honor to have Bryan as a colleague and a pleasure to see him receive this well-deserved award.” With over 27 years of teaching experience from previous teaching positions and his role at DMC, Dr. Stone joined the College’s faculty in August 2004 as an Assistant Professor and moved up the ranks to become Professor in 2015. He is the 2019 recipient of Del Mar College’s own award that recognizes exceptional teaching, the Dr. Aileen Creighton Award for Teaching Excellence, and a 2021 Teacher of the Year Award recipient for which the College’s student body selects. Dr. Stone has now added the Piper Professor Award and humbly noted, “When I received notification that I was one of only 10 recipients in the state, I was thrilled and grateful but also more than a little surprised. After a quarter of a century teaching in community college classrooms, trying to support my students and colleagues as well as I can, trying to keep up with a profession that keeps changing and always unsure if I was succeeding, it’s extremely meaningful to receive this confirmation that it’s working.” His colleague Dr. Robbins added, “Bryan imparts on his students a style of learning history that is simultaneously exciting, complex, thought-provoking and deeply relevant. Hhis students come away from his classes ready to engage pressing issues in their national and local communities and with the skill sets to not only excel in further history coursework but also to succeed outside the classroom.” In fact, outside the classroom, Dr. Stone has served on 24 College committees during his tenure, ranging from academic, peer and program reviews and hiring to institutional rebranding, strategic planning, professional development and student support, among others. He has also provided insight and expertise while serving in different roles with outside organizations such as the City of Corpus Christi Landmark Commission, Congregation Beth Israel Corpus Christi, the Austin Jewish Film Festival and Southern Jewish History (managing editor) as well as served as an expert witness regarding the history of antisemitism in Dallas as part of a death row inmate’s application for a new trial. Dr. Stone has authored three books, including The Chosen Folks, Jews on the Frontiers of Texas (University of Texas Press, 2014), Memories of Two Generations: A Jewish Life in Russia and Texas, the Memoir of Alexander Z. Gurwitz (University of Alabama Press. 2016) and Neither Fish Nor Fowl: A Jewish Family on the Rio Grande, the Memoir of Morris S. Riskind (Texas Tech University Press, forthcoming 2024/2025). Additionally, he has penned numerous articles and given presentations locally as well as during conferences across the country. The practicing historian has even been interviewed for video documentaries and by National Public Radio. Prior to joining the College’s Social Sciences Department faculty, Dr. Stone taught at The University of Texas at Austin (UT-Austin) and Dawson Community College. He earned his bachelor’s degree in English (summa cum laude) and his doctoral degree in American Studies and Civilization from UT-Austin and a master’s degree in English from the University of Virginia. FYI: Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation “Piper Professor of the Year” Awards The Texas-based Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation currently honors 10 professors from colleges and universities from across the state each academic year. The honor recognizes educators’ dedication to the teaching profession and their outstanding academic, scientific, and scholarly achievements. Each honoree receives certificates naming them a “Piper Professor,” a gold commemorative pin, and a $5,000 cash honorarium. Each year, eligibility for nominations is by invitation only from the Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation with the name of only one nominee allowed from the Texas institutions asked to participate. Eleven Del Mar College faculty members have received the distinction of “Piper Professor” since 1960 with the most recent honor awarded May 1, 2024. Those honorees include: 2024 – Dr. Bryan Stone, History 2005 – Jackie Ganshow, Speech Communication 2002 – Dr. Ken Weatherbie, History 1996 _ Dr. Norman Delaney, History 1993 _ Mary Thorpe, Geology 1984 – Dr. Ronald Williams, Engineering Technology 1974 – Frances Dushek, Mathematics 1971 – Dr. Aileen Creighton, English 1966 – Dr. P.E. Smith, Chemistry 1963 – B.E. Schulze, Physics 1960 – Katherine Evans, English EDITOR'S NOTE: Click photos to enlarge, read cutlines and download high resolution JPEGs.
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