Del Mar College recognized among top 10 U.S. community colleges selected as finalists for Bellwether Award for Workforce Development
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March
2024
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18:01 PM
Europe/Amsterdam
Continuing Education Division’s collaboration with credit programs acknowledged for stackable Marketable Skills Awards that matriculate toward certificates, degrees in high-demand career fields
Article by Melinda Eddleman
DMC was one of 30 community colleges representing 18 states chosen to compete and one of two from Texas out of the 10 selected to vie for the Bellwether Award for Workforce Development.
DMC Showcases CE to Credit Initiative 1_Bellwether Award Competition 20
The College’s CE to Credit initiative is noted for providing all students, regardless of educational level, a post-secondary education and workforce credentials that prepare them for high-demand careers in the Coastal Bend.
DMC representatives from Continuing Education and the Architecture, Aviation and Automotive Department presented “Building Our Nation’s Workforce One Stackable Credential at a Time” on Feb. 26 as part of competition against nine other colleges representing Arizona, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Carolina (2), Texas (San Antonio College) and Virginia.
St. Louis Community College in Missouri won the Bellwether Award for Workforce Development, and the other nine competitors received a Finalist Award. The 10 colleges were assessed on their showcase table, formal presentation and a Q&A session with judges.
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Being among the top 10 [colleges in this category] speaks to the very tip of the iceberg. There was a lot of hard work underneath that iceberg by the team who created this initiative; and having the rest of the nation touting our program and trying to replicate [this work[ is a special thing.
Dr. Mark Escamilla, DMC President and Chief Executive Officer
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DMC Showcases CE to Credit Initiative 2_Bellwether Award Competition 2024
While strategies to prepare more students for the local workforce through short-term CE occupational training had already been developed as early as 2018, the guiding question was how to move CE students toward completing a post-secondary education and workforce credentials that could lead to earning Level I and Level II certificates or an associate’s degree? Even a bachelor’s degree is possible.
The goal was to prepare ALL students for the workforce … even those who need to earn their high school equivalency. The solution was creating Workforce Skills Awards or WSAs earned through CE programs aligned with pathways developed for academic programs that address high-demand needs among Coastal Bend employers.
WSAs can be earned in less than six months through CE programs and enable students to gain entry-level positions with business and industry. WSAs are also “stackable” or convertible credentials that count toward DMC credit programs, including current high-demand fields such as automotive, building maintenance, heating, air conditioning and ventilation (HVAC), instrumentation, millwright, process technology and welding.
Since starting the CE to Credit initiative, the College has seen success and recognized over 320 WSA graduates who each completed 144 CE units or nine credit hours between 2021 and 2023 with a ceremony as well as held pinnings for those who finished health industry-related training.
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Many community college CE programs across the nation are shifting more toward workforce development training. Del Mar College recognized the compelling need to develop our innovative CE to Credit initiative to provide Coastal Bend residents greater access to post-secondary education and workforce credentialing opportunities required for the high-demand career fields supporting our region’s economy.
Dr. Leonard Rivera, Associate Vice President of Continuing Education & Off-Campus Programs
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He added, “Continuing Education and our collaboration with the College’s credit programs will ensure students reach their goals one stackable credential at a time toward a degree that will take them even further during their careers.”
DMC Among Top 10 US Community Colleges Recognized for CE to Credit Initiative_Receives Finalist Award
Del Mar College received recognition as one of the top 10 U.S. community colleges selected to compete for the Bellwether Award for Workforce Development by the Bellwether College Consortium. DMC representatives competed during the Feb. 25-27 Community College Futures Assembly in San Antonio and earned a Finalist Award for the College’s innovative Continuing Education (CE) to Credit stackable process that matriculates students’ Workforce Skills Awards earned through CE programs into aligned academic credit programs. Pictured with the award is Associate Vice President of Continuing Education & Off-Campus Programs Dr. Leonard Rivera (left); Paul Creacy, Interim Chair of the Architecture, Aviation and Automotive Department; Elizabeth Zamora, Career Training Program Manager for CE Industrial Trades; Senor Director of Continuing & Community Education Rachel Benavides; and Dr. Mark Escamilla, DMC President and Chief Executive Officer. (Credit: Bellwether College Consortium)
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
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- “Fiesta! Philip Hii” … Celebratory Concert with DMC Wind Ensemble to Feature Retired Faculty Member, Guitarist This Thursday, April 18Article by Melinda Eddleman He was born in Sarawak, the largest state in Malaysia, and started playing guitar at age 10. But, after winning a national competition in his home country in 1975, he left for New Zealand to study law. Chasing a legal career changed direction when he won the New Zealand National Cup with his instrumental talent that earned him an appearance on national television. At that point, retired Del Mar College (DMC) Professor of Music Philip Hii took a pathway toward music and earned a bachelor’s degree from Victoria University of Wellington and then furthered his studies in England and Germany before moving to the United States in 1983. He then earned a jazz-arranging diploma from Berklee College of Music in Boston before acquiring a Master of Music degree from the renowned program at the University of North Texas prior to joining DMC’s Music faculty in September 1988 to teach future performers and educators. As a recording artist, Hii’s career has included releasing critically-acclaimed Compact Discs (CDs) featuring his transcriptions for guitar of works by classical composers Bach and Chopin as well as his own compositions. And as a performer, Hii has traveled across the United States and around the globe. Hii retired last July with a 35-yeaar career at the College but will return this Thursday, April 18, to give a farewell performance during “Fiesta! Philip Hii.” The guitarist, recording artist and former Del Mar educator will join Music Department colleague and conductor Dr. Abel Ramirez and the DMC Wind Ensemble for the celebratory concert featuring Hii collaboratively playing Concerto for Guitar and Band by Juan A. Perez as well as Intermedio from El Baile de Luis Alonso by Geronimo Gimenez. The event will also include special guests in addition to Hii’s performance. The free concert begins at 7:30 p.m. in Richardson Performance Hall on the Heritage Campus, located at 101 Baldwin Blvd. (78404). Get online directions and campus map. Questions may be directed to the DMC Music Office at 361-698-1214 or music@delmar.edu. Those honoring Hii also invite individuals to “sign a virtual card” to wish him a “Happy Retirement!” As a performer, Hii has traveled extensively across the United States, Mexico, Germany and New Zealand. As a recording artist, he has released three CDs. Those releases include Johann Sebastian Bach: New Transcriptions for Guitar, which received critics’ rave reviews in Germany, England, Japan and the United States; Stream of Consciousness, a compilation of original works arranged for solo guitar and synthesizers; and Fréderíc Chopin: Nocturnes, featuring works by the famous composer that Hii transcribed for guitar himself with nine of the 11 pieces on that CD being world premiere recordings. When released, Hii’s Bach CD was one of Guitar Player Magazine’s picks of the month, noting “His passionate rubato and penetrating tone contribute to a thrilling performance,” while The Washington Post called the CD “exciting” and “dazzling.” Acoustic Guitar Magazine labeled him “the Heifetz of the classical guitar.” Additionally, Hii was America Public Media’s featured artist on Performance Today on May 6, 2015, when he played his transcriptions from the Chopin: Nocturnes CD. The performance aired on National Public Radio all over the country, including local KEDT Radio 90.3. As a popular classical music radio program, that year Performance Today was broadcast to nearly 300 public radio stations nationally and reached approximately 1.4 million listeners. Among Hii’s other credits, he is well-published and has had numerous articles in Soundboard, Guitar International, Gitarre und Laute and American String Teacher for which he is a former AST Guitar Forum Editor. Additionally, six of Hii’s Bach transcriptions have been published by Guitar Solo Publications. Hii has served as a member of the New York City Classical Guitar Society Artistic Advisory Board, and his most recent project has been a series of books called The Art of Virtuosity. So, keep your calendar open this Thursday as DMC celebrates retired Professor Hii. It’s not “farewell” but rather “Fiesta! Philip Hii!”
