Grand Rapids Community College has been named a lead recipient of the Strengthening Community Colleges Training Grant and will receive $5.5 million from the U.S. Department of Labor. This is the second award GRCC has received from the Strengthening Community Colleges Grant program and is the only college in Michigan to receive this award.  The grant money will be used to implement systems changes in order to remove barriers, support enrollment, nurture academic success, and prepare students for jobs that pay family-sustaining wages and offer career development opportunities. GRCC, together with Muskegon Community College, will partner with West Michigan Works! and other industry stakeholders to identify workforce needs of the multiple employers in West Michigan’s tech industry and validate job skills and career pathways.  The direct benefits to students include: More work-based learning experiences with employers in the tech industry Expanded degree and certificate offerings in Data Science, AI, and Automation to support jobs of the future  New tech career pathways that go from the Career Tech Centers to GRCC and then on to four-year institutions Additional opportunities from learning digital skills to advanced skills in cybersecurity, robotics, communications, broadband, and more Faster retooling of programs to accommodate in-demand skills and credentials New program additions at both colleges — GRCC will build a Communications and Broadband Installation program “The work this grant will cover is tied directly to the Right Place’s Tech strategy,”  stated Dr. Charles Lepper, GRCC President.  “It will allow us and our partners to achieve and sustain five systems changes—employer engagement in the tech sector, a decentralized career services model, expansion of credit for prior learning protocols, expanding options for students in tech career pathways, and flexible instruction with optimized course scheduling. “ “Michigan’s community colleges play an important role in building a talent pipeline for the good paying jobs that can be found across our state,”  said U.S. Senator Gary Peters. “I was proud to support funding for this grant program, which will allow Grand Rapids Community College to strengthen its workforce development programs and help prepare students for in-demand careers.” GRCC is grateful for Senator Peters who wrote a letter of support to the Department of Labor and for Representatives Scholten and Glanville for championing the educational opportunities this grant will provide community college students and the economic impact it will have on West Michigan and beyond.  “GRCC continues to set the bar for career path training and education,”  said U.S. Representative Carol Glanville. “This 5.5 million dollar federal investment speaks to the quality programming they provide. From skilled labor to advanced manufacturing, culinary arts, information systems, healthcare, and childcare, they have created intentional partnerships to help fill the talent needs of our region, connecting students to high-demand, good-paying jobs. This grant, combined with state-sponsored programs such as Michigan Reconnect and the Michigan Achievement Scholarship and the $16.8M capital investment, serve as catalysts to support GRCC in their work to help achieve the state’s goal for 60% of adults to have a professional certificate or degree by 2030.”  “Everywhere I go, I hear from business leaders about the worker shortage in in-demand industries here in West Michigan. Now, we’re investing $5.5M to help close that shortage and equip Grand Rapids Community College students with the skills they need to build careers with high-paying, family-sustaining wages. I want to congratulate Grand Rapids Community College leadership, faculty, and students on this incredible victory, and I can’t wait to see how this funding will change lives here in West Michigan,”  said Rep. Scholten. The total amount of the award is $5,515,501.00, which will fund 95% of the program.

April 17, 2024, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -  In March, the Grand Rapids Community College Marketing and Communications team earned three Paragon awards from the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations. GRCC competed with 210 community and technical colleges from the United States and Canada.  The 2023 GRCC Foundation Annual Report made history by earning the top award in the Annual Report category for the third year in a row. The Annual Report showcases the work of the Foundation and the impact it makes by managing financial gifts to support and promote students, employees, and community learning.  GRCC also earned a Gold Paragon for its Instagram page (@GrandRapidsCC) in the Social Media Page category.  “When you tell your college’s story well, you ensure that students can find themselves, and the support and services they need, at your institution,” said Jeff Julian, immediate past president of NCMPR. “It’s evident in the winning entries that our members are committed to serving their students.”  GRCC earned a Bronze Paragon in the Wild Card Category for revamping the college’s eateries: Foodology, the Quiet Cafe, and the Heritage Restaurant. The Paragon Awards are a one-of-a-kind national competition that recognizes outstanding achievements in design and communication among marketing and public relations professionals at community and technical colleges. The 2023 Paragon Awards drew 1,531 entries from 210 colleges across the country and were judged by professionals from the marketing and public relations industry.  This story was reported by Kiana Vu

Due to the ongoing Division Avenue construction project, the City of Grand Rapids will convert both Lyon and Fountain Streets into two-way traffic between Division and Ransom beginning Monday, April 29. This will have a big impact on vehicle and pedestrian traffic. Please be extra attentive and aware as you travel to and from campus as others may not know about the traffic shift.

April 15, 2024 Grand Rapids, Mich.  - Ten Grand Rapids Community College students will compete in this year’s MWest Challenge venture competition with the opportunity to win up to $3,000 for the best new business idea.  A total of 26 student teams from six West Michigan colleges and universities will compete from 5 to 9 p.m. April 17 on the first floor of GRCC’s Wisner-Bottrall Applied Technology Building. One hundred student teams applied for the opportunity to compete by submitting a three-page executive summary, including 57 teams from GRCC. Teams from Aquinas College, Calvin University, Cornerstone University, Kendall College of Art and Design, and Kuyper College also were selected to compete. The competition is like the “Shark Tank” television series that gives budding entrepreneurs the chance to secure business deals except, in this case, student entrepreneurs are competing for cash prizes while benefiting from feedback from a panel of judges and networking with investors. GRCC students have won in each prize category over the past 10 years of the competition, said Felix Pereiro, professor and head of the Business Department.  “GRCC students put in the hours necessary to compete against the very best college students in West Michigan - facing juniors, seniors, and MBA students from top four-year universities.” Pereiro said. “And their work and dedication will pay off, as it has in previous years.” Student competitors from GRCC Seven-minute finalist round with a first prize of $3,000, second prize of $2,250, and third prize of $1,500: Nik Thomasma presenting The Waltz Method  An alternate of Camila Garcia will present Havana Hideout in the event Thomasma is not able to present. Three-minute Innovation Showcase pitch with two first prizes of $1,000, two second prizes of $750 and two third prizes of $500: Juan Botello, Tristan Scheidel, and Amanda Hughes presenting P.A.S.S.: Personal Advice Support Services Kaitlin Kamps presenting Animal Therapy Oasis  Francisca Mata, Eduardo Armijo, Marissa Fraire, and Robert Bolthuis presenting Helping Hands Camila Garcia presenting Havana Hideout The following alternates will present during the Innovation Showcase in the event any of the originally selected candidates are not able to take part: Ethan Veenstra and Miguel Suarez presenting Homekits Larry Bovia presenting Healthy Hound Sarah Strange and Liliana Arevalo presenting Happy Gardens Full-time faculty, adjunct faculty and staff help make the MWest Challenge a success. Many thanks to all those involved including Tom Miller, Brent Alles, Kay Markovic, Daniel Anderson, John Sebestyen, Bill Gayle, Brian Daily, and Kim Lodewyk. Faculty, staff and community members are encouraged to attend to support GRCC students.  Please RSVP here .  This story was reported by Amy Soper

April 12, 2024, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Have you ever thought about how astronauts eat? Not just how they consume food in a zero gravity environment, but what is in their meals?  Chef Jenn Struik is a faculty member with the  Secchia Institute for Culinary Education at Grand Rapids Community College . She teaches courses such as food science, and nutrition and menu planning. She has her own business offering weekly meal prep, private in-home dining experiences, cooking classes, restaurant consulting and more.  For the last two years, she has also been coaching teams of high school students for the NASA HUNCH Challenge. In this challenge, teams develop recipes that can be served to astronauts aboard the International Space Station. Students create new dishes around a theme, taking into account food processing procedures and nutritional requirements so that their items will meet the standards of the NASA Johnson Space Center Food Lab.  “Sending food into space is not as easy as it seems,” she said. “There are a lot of limitations. For example, some foods – like bread - can’t travel in space. Astronauts need healthy meals with the right combination of fiber, calories, and sodium. Not surprisingly, they also would like something that tastes good!”   Last year, Chef Jenn and Werner Absenger, program director for the  Secchia Institute for Culinary Education , coached two teams all the way to the HUNCH Challenge finals. Students from CareerLine Tech Center competed in the meal challenge, and students from Kent Career Technical Center took on the edible packaging challenge.  “We spent about seven months perfecting a recipe for Austrian Steak Soup and plans for edible cargo boxes,” Struik said. “These students invested so much time, but the hard work paid off. Both teams made it to the Top 10 and went to Johnson Space Center in Houston for the final competition. For me, the exciting part is that these students are exposed to a myriad of food-related careers. You don’t have to be a restaurant chef to find a fulfilling career in food.”   This summer, Chef Jenn is also headed to Kentucky’s Morehead State University to participate in SpaceTrek. SpaceTrek is a two-week space systems engineering residential summer program for 9th –12th grade girls. She will speak about food science and share her NASA HUNCH Challenge experiences.  “Nutrition information has changed significantly,” she said. “I want to help students understand how to navigate this essential knowledge for whatever career they have in mind.”    While in Kentucky, Chef Jenn is also leveraging a connection she made through another one of her exploits: a 2023 appearance on Food Network’s “Chopped.”  “Let me tell you…the pressure is real!” she said. “The show is not staged. You really don’t know what ingredients are in your basket until you open it up.”   Viewers familiar with the show may think the ingredients are the hard part, but Chef Jenn would argue differently.  “The hardest thing for me was cooking in an unfamiliar kitchen,” she recalled. “You’re under tremendous time pressure, and don’t know where anything is or how the equipment may differ from your own. I was ultimately “chopped” in the final round but it was a great experience and I met some amazing people.”  Now Chef Jenn and Chef Brittani Ratcliff, one of her “Chopped” cohort members, will be joining forces to conduct a food science workshop and do some pop-up cooking at Sawstone Brewing Company while visiting Kentucky.  “I hope we sell a lot of food!” she said. While the publicity and the travel are fun, that’s not the lure for Chef Jenn.  “I’m so proud to say that I’m a GRCC culinary school graduate,” she said. “I get to introduce GRCC and culinary careers to students around the country. I hope students see that there are a wealth of careers in this field.” This story was reported by Julie Hordyk

April 10, 2024, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Grand Rapids Community College is pleased to announce an impressive slate of award winners who will be honored at the April 25, 2024, commencement ceremony. These new awards honor the diversity, commitment and talent of graduates, faculty, and community supporters. Graduate of Excellence Awards Jodi Holland (General Associate Degree with Baking and Pastry Certificate): achieved a lifelong goal of attending college thanks to the Michigan Reconnect Program. Linda Morfa Limonte (Associate of Liberal Arts in Pre-Anthropology): conquered the twin challenges of adult learning and ADHD with encouragement from her family. Ashley R. Smith (Certificate in IT Computer Support): changed careers with a second degree at GRCC and leveraged the hands-on experience of the mentorship program. Kathryn (“Kat”) Waller (Associate of Nursing): chose to grow in her healthcare career; overcame challenges and persevered to become a GRCC nurse. Yasmina Zimmer (Associate Degree in Biology and Geology): came to GRCC after completing her GED and fell in love with the earth sciences. Distinguished Alumni Award Ruth Straayer Kelly (Class of 1974): leveraged her foundation at GRCC to live a life of public service as a teacher, community activist and elected official.  Faculty Emeritus Award Dr. Robert Long (Biology Professor from 1986-2018): excelled during his career as an encourager of students and a mentor to his peers. GRCC Champion Award Corewell Health : works tirelessly to leverage their resources, expertise and influence to champion and amplify GRCC’s impact within the community. “We are thrilled to honor these individuals and organizations because they represent the high caliber of education we provide to students from all walks of life,” said Dr. Charles W. Lepper, President of GRCC. “Community colleges have a distinct role among our country’s educational institutions. We focus on affordability and flexible learning that equip students with exactly what they need to achieve their goals. Whether it’s students just starting their career journeys or students returning to embark on a new career, we serve people of all ages and all experience levels with excellent, practical education that prepares them for the next step.”     Lepper said people like Dr. Robert Long embody the spirit of GRCC’s entire faculty. “We surround our students with professionals who are passionate about sharing their subject matter knowledge,” Lepper said. “And with the help of community partners like Corewell Health, we are able to provide the hands-on, practical experience that gives students confidence and competence in their chosen professions.” To learn more about GRCC’s Commencement, please visit the website . About Grand Rapids Community College GRCC was established in 1914 - Michigan's first community college - and is focused on making college education accessible and affordable. Classes are scheduled in person and online, on weekdays, evenings, and Saturdays at locations throughout Kent and Ottawa counties. We offer traditional liberal arts and occupational career pathways, adult education courses, and skilled training courses and apprenticeships. 

April 8, 2024 GRAND RAPIDS, Mich . — When Anika Ojeda-Cea (pictured left) and Sandra Johnson (pictured right) took their first geography class at Grand Rapids Community College, they never imagined it would change the direction of their lives. Yet today both students are not only planning to pursue advanced degrees and careers related to geography, they’re also flying to Honolulu this month to present their own academic study at the American Association of Geographers’ annual meeting. Their study on the impact of eighth grade reading proficiency and teenage pregnancy is sure to capture the interest of conference attendees, said Professor Michael DeVivo, who directs GRCC’s award-winning geography program and taught both students. “This is the first time these phenomena have been mapped in an analytical manner, and the results of their research have significant policy implications,” said DeVivo, who described Johnson and Ojeda-Cea as stellar students. It was DeVivo who inspired both women to pursue  careers in geography .  Johnson enrolled at GRCC in 2022 using the  Michigan Reconnect program, which offers tuition-free access for those age 21 or older to pursue an associate degree or occupational certificate at a community college. Johnson’s goal was to finally earn an associate degree — any kind of associate degree. “Over the years, I’d taken every possible college major because I had no idea what I wanted to do for a living,” said Johnson, now 41. “But then I took world regional geography at GRCC with Professor DeVivo and I thought, ‘I love this! This is great!’ “Now I’m graduating this spring from GRCC, transferring to Aquinas College to get my bachelor’s and looking at either the master’s program at Western Michigan or the PhD program at Michigan State,” Johnson said. Ojeda-Cea traveled abroad for years before returning to Grand Rapids several years ago. In 2022, she started at GRCC in hopes of earning an associate degree. She, too, was intrigued by the possibilities of a geography degree after taking her first course with DeVivo. “Geography encompasses so many different things; it’s just not physical geography with maps and locations. It’s also the human and cultural side of it,” Ojeda-Cea said. Today’s geographers engage in exploration and discovery to benefit society.  In that spirit, the women decided to join forces on a research project and found that one in five girls reading below basic proficiency in eighth grade will become pregnant in high school. Compared to girls with above average reading proficiency in eighth grade, less proficient girls were 4.4 times more likely to have incorrect knowledge about pregnancy risk factors, leading to misuse of contraceptives, Johnson said.    “This is important because through solving teenage pregnancy, we can interrupt the cycle of generational poverty, we can address homelessness, we can address the need for foster care, incarceration rates and interrupt or address drug use,” Ojeda-Cea said.  “All these risk factors come from poverty and could be resolved, at least in part, by funding reading programs.” The women will present their paper at the Honolulu conference, April 16-20. When Ojeda-Cea graduates from GRCC, she plans to pursue a degree in integrative studies at Grand Valley State University and, potentially, a master’s at Western Michigan. Both said the quality of education they’ve received at GRCC made all the difference in the world to them — and their futures. Johnson said she loves sharing her passion for geography and hopes to one day teach the subject at a community college. “Geography is everywhere and I embrace the opportunity to tell people about it,” Johnson said.   This story was reported by Beth McKenna.

GRCC Hosting Free Community STEM Day on April 13 April 4, 2024 GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Families can get a peek into the worlds of anatomy, zoology, genetics, robotics and more during Community Stem Day from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 13. “We are excited to offer this free community day,” said Kristi Haik, dean of the School of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. “STEM career growth far outpaces other fields. STEM exposure is important for all students. That’s why we are hosting this free day of fascinating experiences in all facets of STEM.” Students will be able to explore a host of hands-on STEM-related activities, including building balloon cars, making slime, designing robots, dissecting owl pellets, examining cheek cells, and much more. "GRCC faculty and students look forward to hosting a fun, interactive science day for all ages," said Professor Leigh Kleinert of GRCC’s biological sciences department. "We will have more than 25 different activities going on simultaneously." “We want to inspire young students with fun, cool activities,” Haik continued. “We hope that by exploring STEM activities and meeting professionals in the field, students will believe STEM is for them,” Haik said. “We also hope to welcome them back to GRCC some day through the host of STEM pathway programs that we offer.” All of the programs and activities are free and open to the public. Starting at 10 a.m., the John Ball Traveling Zoo will offer a 45-minute program beginning on the hour, every hour. All of the other programs are available on a continuous, drop-in basis from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Free parking will be available from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in both parking ramp A and parking ramp B. Parking ramp A is located at the corner of Fountain Street and Ransom Avenue. Parking ramp B is located at the corner of Bostwick Avenue and Lyon Street. Volunteers will be on hand to provide directions and maps of the activities. For more information about all the programs that will be offered and their locations, please visit grcc.edu/STEMday . Special thanks to University of Michigan LSA Transfer Bridges and GRCC School of STEM for sponsoring this event. To learn more about GRCC, please visit the website . About Grand Rapids Community College GRCC was established in 1914 – Michigan’s first community college – and is focused on making college education accessible and affordable. Classes are scheduled in person and online, on weekdays, evenings, and Saturdays at locations throughout Kent and Ottawa counties. We offer traditional liberal arts and occupational career pathways, adult education courses, and skilled training courses and apprenticeships.