Sept. 19, 2022, ALPENA, Mich. -- Audrey Gower, Karissa Ferry and Audrey Torres reach milestones in a doubleheader sweep for the Grand Rapids Community College volleyball team over Alpena Community College, giving the team eight straight wins after an 0-2 start to the season. Ferry earned her 200th career kill and Torres picked up her 400th career kill in a 25-23, 25-15, 25-10 win in the first match of the evening. "Today we came together as a team and played what we like to call, Raider volleyball," said Ferry, who finished with 14 kills and four blocks. "We kept our energy high during both games and had a lot of fun." Gower, a sophomore libero, collected her 600th dig in the second match helping her team to a 25-10, 25-15, 25-16 victory. Torres led the team with 16 kills while adding 21 digs over the two-match sweep. Other team leaders included Gower with 23 digs, Shannon Russell with 35 assists and six aces, and Alena Visnovsky with 14 blocks, including four solos in the second match. GRCC, the pre-season pick to finish first in the new Northern Conference, wrap up its northern trip against Delta College on Tuesday in a single match starting at 4:30 p.m. The GRCC golf team also was in action on Monday, kicking off its fall season with a third-place finish at the Mott Community College Invitational in Flint. This year's team has 10 men, allowing coach John Forton to send two teams to the course. Forton was proud of his players, but noted that they have work to do, especially after a dominating performance by the home Mott squad that ran away with the crown with a 20-stroke victory. GRCC's first team finished with a score of 312, just two strokes back of second-place Muskegon Community College. Freshmen Mason Anderson and Drew Harrington led the Raiders with scores of 76, while sophomores Connor Oman shot a 78 and Sam Foss a 79. The golf team is back in action on Wednesday, playing in the Aquinas College Invitational at LE Kaufman Golf Course in Grand Rapids.

Sept. 19, 2022, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- “What am I doing with my life?” April Shirey found herself asking that question after losing her general management job in the bar and restaurant industry. After packing up her car and moving from California to Grand Rapids, she had been in the field for 13 years. “I had absolutely no clue what I was going to do,” she said. Shirey decided to enroll at GRCC – it would be her second attempt at higher education. Start at GRCC and go anywhere. Every former student has a story to tell about how GRCC gave them the education and opportunity to be successful. “I went to college right after high school, and that was not for me,” she said during a GRCC Foundation event. “I was just doing what I was told: You graduate high school; you go to college, and you get an education. You get married, and you move on. “Well, I tried that, and it was not very successful.” Shirey sensed this attempt would be different: “GRCC welcomed me with open arms.” She found her passion in the study of biogeography and served as president of Gamma Theta Upsilon, GRCC’s chapter of the international geographical honor society. She co-authored a paper on food insecurity among community college students that she presented before many groups, including the annual meeting of the American Association of Geographers. After graduating from GRCC in 2017, she earned a bachelor’s degree in geography from Aquinas College and then a master’s from Western Michigan University. She’s returned to Aquinas, as an adjunct instructor in geography. She’s also board president for Growing Roots Michigan, a disability services and support organization. “I was a returning college student at 30 years old, and I had absolutely no idea what I was doing,” Shirey said. “With a network of amazing professors and people who work at GRCC, I was able to figure it out.” Let GRCC help you start your story. The first chapter starts at grcc.edu/apply

  Sept. 16, 2022, ESCANABA,  Mich.  - The Grand Rapids Community College volleyball team continued its hot streak by defeating Bay College in three sets, making it six wins in a row, with a career-best performance from sophomore middle Alena Visnovsky. Visnovsky earned 12 points, six on the offensive end and six on defense.  "It was good to be able to work on technique these past couple matches," Visnovsky said. "We'd go in for a time out and then get back on the court with a specific goal or an action to tweak. The ability of this team to comprehend and then execute is great to see from the inside." The team, now 6-2 on the season, took care of the Norse in just under an hour, 25-17, 25-7, 25-13. Sophomore Kara Hecht led GRCC in kills with seven and tied fellow outside hitter Audrey Torres with 10 digs to lead the team. Eliza Thelen, Visnovsky and Karissa Ferry combined for 17 of the team's 35 total kills. GRCC, the pre-season pick to finish first in the conference, will have Sunday off before playing a doubleheader against Alpena Community College on Monday, and wrapping up the trip against Delta College on Tuesday.   Meanwhile, back in Grand Rapids, the men's and women's cross country teams battled in their first Michigan Community College Athletic Association meet of the season at the Gainey Athletic Complex. Despite not having the team's All-American runner for the third straight meet, the GRCC men's team battled tough to finish fourth among all conference teams while the women's team finished second among all conference teams. The meet consisted of runners from nearly 30 programs, including NCAA D1, D2 and D3, and NAIA schools.  Northwood University, whose assistant coach is former GRCC coach Garrett Lacy, took the crown on the men's side, while Aquinas College finished first on the women's side.  Lansing Community College was first among all junior colleges in both the men's and women's meet. Mason Kolhoff led GRCC's men with an impressive time of 26:38, earning him 27th place.  Dan Kehoe each cracked the top-100 with times of 28:27 and 28:48. On the women's side All-American Kaylee Scott led the way with running the five-kilometer event in 20 minutes even, finishing in 23rd place. Rose Meyer and Audrey Meyering finished in 33rd and 37th with solid times of 20:33 and 20:41. The cross country teams will travel to Grayling on Friday to compete in the Kirtland Firebird Invitational.  

Sept. 16, 2022, PETOSKEY, Mich. - The Grand Rapids Community College volleyball team kicked off its first-ever swing through Northern Michigan by sweeping North Central Michigan College – and searching for Petoskey stones. The team is playing in the newly created Northern Conference of the Michigan Community College Athletic Association, and facing several new opponents. GRCC is playing five games over a five-day period on the road trip, and coaches planned educational experiences along the way. The team started the northern swing and conference play defeating North Central, extending its win streak to five matches. "I was pleased with the way we executed after such a long delay," assistant coach David Rawles said. "We got better with every point and finished on a high note.  Loved to see everyone contribute on the roster."  The team won 25-19, 25-15, 25-15, with the Timberwolves making their conference debut. Sophomore middle hitter Alena Visnovsky shined, almost meeting her personal goal of three points per set.  She totaled six kills against just one error, hitting .455.  She also added an assist and earned herself the defensive save of the game, which ended up resulting in a Raider point. Sophomores Kara Hecht and Karissa Ferry both hit .500 for the match and GRCC combined to hit a solid .269 for the match. Every GRCC player got to see action and 11 different players scored at least one point. The team, now 5-2 on the season, totaled 12 service aces and had just two reception errors. GRCC takes another new opponent Saturday at 1 p.m., heading over the Mackinac Bridge to face Bay College in Escanaba.  The team then takes a break on Sunday before playing a doubleheader against Alpena Community College on Monday, and wrapping up the trip against Delta College on Tuesday.   The MCCAA split into three conferences this year in five sports due to the addition of three additional schools to the association. North Central Michigan College, Bay College, and Delta College, are first-year programs. GRCC was the preseason favorite to win the newly created conference based on a coaches’ poll.

Sept. 16, 2022, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. --  Grand Rapids Community College is an ArtPrize venue this year, but the college this year has connections beyond the entries in the Paul Collins Art Gallery. GRCC assistant professor Matthew Schenk has entered his work, “Twin Apocalypse - Latoya Whispers to the Old Masters,” into ArtPrize this year. You can find it in downtown Grand Rapids at the Gerald R Ford Presidential Museum. Schenk has taught in GRCC’s Visual Arts Department, part of the new School of Liberal Arts, since 2019. He shared the motivation for his ArtPrize entry in his artist statement: “In 1839 the late French painter Paul Delaroche was the first to say ‘painting is dead.’ In 1915 Kasmir Malevich's Black Square heralded the end of painting. The abstract expressionists told us that imagery in painting is over. “There is talk of the Anti-aesthetic in Postmodernism.There is Post-Postmodernism. There is Odd Nerdrum and Kitsch. “There is a constant debate of ‘What is Art?’ and what isn't, ‘Who is an artist?’ and who isn't. Much of this discussion is handled by the ‘Art World.’ “There has been dialogue concerning the end of art and the loss of aesthetic import (Donald Kuspit) and of art being replaced by ‘Postart’ (Alan Kaprow). “Art is over. “The media informs us that this is the End of Days and the social and economic state of the world is in ruins. I am painting in the Apocalypse”. Before joining GRCC, Schenk taught illustration and medical illustration at Ferris State University’s Kendall College of Art and Design for 11 years. From 1997 to 2005, he was a coordinator and production supervisor at Columbia Tristar Children’s Entertainment, now Sony Television Animation, where he worked on “Jackie Chan Adventures,” “Men in Black: The Animated Series” and “Jumanji.” Schenk received a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from Michigan State University and a master’s in figurative painting from Academy of Art University. You can learn from Schenk in AT 130 Two-Dimensional Design I, AT 131 Color, AT 132 Digital Foundation, and AT 216Digital Painting. Schenk is respected throughout the Grand Rapids art community. He has been invited by Kendall College to be a visiting artist on Oct. 28. Join the conversation and learn how art and culture have influenced the world. Enroll in AT 106 History of Art Since 1400 - a seven-week class taught by GRCC adjunct instructor Elizabeth Raubolt starting on Oct. 18, 2022. The Paul Collins Art Gallery is hosting three ArtPrize entries, showcasing digital animation, pen and ink technique and acrylic painting. ArtPrize 2022 runs from Sept. 15 to Oct. 2 and features 750 entries in the interactive art competition. The Collins Art Gallery is found on the fourth floor of Raleigh J. Finkelstein Hall, 143 Bostwick Ave. NE. From Sept. 15 to Oct. 2, the gallery will be open from 1-8 p.m. Monday through Friday, noon to 8 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday. Guests visiting during the weekend should enter through the doors on the south end of Finkelstein Hall Level G2, near the iconic lion fountain, or through the skywalk connected to Parking Ramp A. Signs or staff will direct you to the gallery.

Sept. 15, 2022 - GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Soccer is coming to Grand Rapids Community College, a move that Athletic Department leaders say is a response to a growing interest in the sport nationally and an increasing number of requests from potential student-athletes.  Athletic Director Lauren Ferullo said men’s and women’s soccer teams will be ready to compete in fall 2023. It will be the first time GRCC has fielded soccer teams. "I'm ecstatic to be able to add men's and women's soccer to our offering of sports here at GRCC," Ferullo said. "As a former college soccer player and head coach, the sport is near and dear to me.” Ferullo said soccer is currently the most asked about sport from prospective student-athletes when they visit campus. “Adding the teams will create opportunities for our students in the community that we serve,” she said. Soccer is the most followed sport in the world and is growing in popularity in the United States. The FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international soccer championship, is planned to be played in the United States, Canada and Mexico in 2026. Interest in the sport increased in 1994, when four World Cup matches were played in Michigan in the Pontiac Silverdome when the United States hosted the tournament. Currently GRCC offers volleyball, women's basketball, men's basketball, golf, baseball, softball, men's cross country and women's cross country.  Soccer will be the first new sport introduced since the cross country program was resurrected in 2014. The Michigan Community College Athletic Association includes five colleges with men’s and women’s soccer programs: Muskegon Community College, Schoolcraft College, Jackson College, Ancilla College and Lake Michigan College fielding teams. Kellogg Community College, St. Clair Community College and Delta College have women’s teams. Ferullo said the Athletic Department will hire coaches and recruit players starting immediately.

Sept. 14, 2022, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- Gaith Ghlaim’s calling is to help and be of service to others. Since he was young, Ghlaim always knew that he wanted to go into the medical field. Becoming a pharmacy technician is his first step. Last fall, Ghlaim started the Pharmacy Technician program offered through GRCC’s Workforce Training department. “I was afraid a little but I was also so excited to be in this program,” he said. “This program is a perfect fit for me and has allowed me to really be helpful to so many people.” A pharmacy technician is an allied health specialist who, under the supervision of a licensed pharmacist, assists in the various activities of the pharmacy department. The 16-week pre-certification program teaches everything needed to take the national Pharmacy Technician Certification Board Exam. Ghlaim received much support from the program instructor. “I was always bothering the instructor but he was so helpful. He helped me even when it was not the usual office hour times. He was so great!” The Pharmacy Tech program is designed in a hybrid model, with both virtual and in-person elements. This allows students to learn at times that are convenient. Most of the program is offered online with hands-on practice in three in-person lab experiences. Ghlaim appreciates all the support he has received from the GRCC staff. “When I enrolled, I worked with a career coach who helped me so much. They connected me to the MTEC Champions Scholar grant and I qualified so I was able to take the program at no cost.” The program prepares students to work in a retail or hospital setting. Ghlaim is working at a Meijer Pharmacy. “GRCC is so awesome. It has job developers to help you connect to jobs. Sydney Plaggemars has been amazing. I thought that she would only help me while I was in the program but she continues to be a great resource for me.” In addition to working at Meijer, Ghlaim is continuing to take classes at GRCC and plans to transfer to Ferris State University and become a pharmacist. Next program begins October 17, 2022. Go to grcc.edu/healthcare for more information.

Sept. 13, 2022 GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Grand Rapids Community College’s Paul Collins Art Gallery is hosting three ArtPrize entries, showcasing digital animation, pen and ink technique and acrylic painting. ArtPrize 2022 runs from Sept. 15 to Oct. 2 and features 750 entries in the interactive art competition. The Collins Art Gallery is found on the fourth floor of Raleigh J. Finkelstein Hall, 143 Bostwick Ave. NE. From Sept. 15 to Oct. 2, the gallery will be open from 1-8 p.m. Monday through Friday, noon to 8 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday. Guests visiting during the weekend should enter through the doors on the south end of Finkelstein Hall Level G2, near the iconic lion fountain, or through the skywalk connected to Parking Ramp A. Signs or staff will direct you to the gallery. The entries include “Inexcusable,” which features pen-and-ink drawings by teacher Ginger Creasy in collaboration with student Jessica Newell, which explores the intricacies of nature. “I am collaborating with one of my art students with the thought of creation and its wonderful intricacies from the largest mammal, hidden in the designs of the ocean, to the smallest of creation, and the complicating designs of organisms,” wrote Creasy, of Twin Lake, Mich., in her artist’s statement. “This is really a hidden adventure for all to enjoy. ‘Inexcusable’ is what we think about when we see the complicating designs of what seem simple. Nothing in nature is simple! For instance, why don't ducks’ or geese, or even penguins’ feet freeze? DESIGN! You will find this somewhere in my art piece.” Creasy, who is entering ArtPrize for the eleventh time, said there is a story behind everything I chose to put into this piece. Newell’s piece, although separate, relates also to creation, particularly the golden ratio which describes predictable patterns on everything from atoms to huge stars in the sky.” “Derivations of a Gothic Arch Part 2” is a digital animation by Morehead State University instructor Gary Mesa-Gaido. The six-minute digital animation with sound moves through multiple iterations of a gothic arch being pushed and pulled in a multitude of directions and shapes that all tie back to the gothic architectural element of the arch. Mesa-Gaido has been an artist for more than 30 years, and his work has been displayed in international, national, regional and state-juried and invitational exhibits. His pieces have been viewed at diverse venues, including the Abraham Lubelski Gallery in New York, the Museo ItaloAmericano in San Francisco, and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Cleveland, plus museums and galleries across the United States. “Landscapes in my mind’s eye,” is an acrylic-on-canvas piece by Seongbae Cho, was inspired by a summer trip to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National parks. He said the title comes from the words of Ansel Adams My title for his entry was inspired by acclaimed landscape photographer Ansel Adams. “I think the word, ‘mind’s eye’ would show the meaning of my paintings,” he said in his artist’s description. “I traveled to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National parks last summer. I stayed in the park and explored great nature. I saw huge mountains, river, falls, geysers, hot springs, and wild animals. I felt something beautifully and imagined I lived in paradise. I am seeking to capture the inherent beauty in nature in my artwork.” Cho was born in Seoul, South Korea expresses the beauty he sees with various methods; abstract landscape paintings, representative landscape paintings, and digital images that he produces with a computer program. Since 2010, he had five solo exhibitions and has taken part in several group shows in South Korea. He also showed his digital paintings at the Muskegon Museum of Art and at the ArtPrize in 2021. GRCC student Christina Hindle y has an entry nearby at Park Congregational Church, titled “For the Love of Hope and Harmony.”  The  piece is 14,114 paper-quilled hearts  mounted on a board that is four feet by eight feet and arranged to resemble a sunset. Paper quilling is a centuries-old craft that uses thin strips of paper that are then formed into shapes; these shapes are combined into further shapes via artistic pinching and the strategic use of glue. Hindley estimates that the project totaled hundreds of hours of work from December 2021 to July 2022. But the time invested, she added, was for a greater goal. “My purpose is to show everybody that we are a lot more similar than we are different,” she said. “All of the hearts are individual but similar and then put together in what looks like a sunset because that's something that everybody can see all over the world from anywhere you are. So, it's a unifier. I feel like there's just so much division right now. I wanted to do something to pull people together.”    

Sept. 12, 2022, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- Alec Alvarado doesn’t remember exactly where he heard about GRCC’s TRIO Educational Opportunities Center. He thinks he saw an ad on Facebook. But he knows with 100 percent certainty what TRIO has done for him and his future. “It’s changed my life,” he said. TRIO is a set of federally funded programs that support first-generation, low-income students throughout their college experience. The Educational Opportunities Center connects people with programs and services that help with high school diploma or GED certificate completion, tutoring and mentoring, career exploration, financial assistance and completing college admissions and enrollment processes. The work covers a region of 13 counties. GRCC was awarded a five-year, $1.16 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to create the center, where unemployed or low-wage workers, prospective first-generation college students, and other adult learners can work with campus specialists to explore higher education options and connect with on- and off-campus resources and programs to support their educational goals. Alvarado can attest to that. “After I saw that ad, I called them,” he said. “They literally walked me through the whole thing. I told them I was a bit intimidated about how to apply, what to expect. But they made it so easy.” He noted, too, that GRCC got him reconnected to his tribe -- he’s part of the Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians -- and that because of his heritage, he pays no tuition thanks to Michigan’s Indian Tuition waiver. Alvarado is now approaching the finish line of the Construction Electrician Certificate program, which prepares graduates for placement in an Electrical Apprenticeship program. Once hired and registered as an Apprentice Electrician, students may request to have their certificate articulated into credit that applies to their state-required training. The course runs for 18 weeks, with students in class from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Alvarado loves it. “I really like working with my hands, and I really like being active,” he said. “I’m learning a lot, and the time just flies by.” He’s also making his two kids proud, he said, especially his 6-year-old son. “To have my kids be proud of me means a lot,” he said. “My son, he was really happy when he realized I go to school like he does. He sees me put on my backpack. It’s pretty great.” Like a lot of students, Alvarado thought college was what he was supposed to do right after high school. So, when he graduated from Northview in 2017, he applied and was accepted to GRCC, and that fall, five years ago now, he started taking classes on the downtown campus. “I wasn’t ready,” he recalled recently. “I felt like I wasted my time. I had no idea what I wanted to do, really. I decided to go work for an automotive factory. I had a young son, and I needed to take care of him, too.” The money was decent, but something was missing. “I was figuring it out as I went along,” Alvarado said. “But I also wondered if there was more.” Alvarado had heard about electricians and the electrical field as a high school student but didn’t know a lot about the profession. Now, he said, the sky is the limit. “Before this (program at GRCC), I didn’t know this kind of stuff or if I was going to be any good at it,” he said. “And I fell in love with it. Now this is what I feel like I’m going to do for the rest of my career. I give a lot of credit to the TRIO program for helping me see a future I’m excited about.” Additional information about the TRIO Educational Opportunity Center is available by email at eoc@grcc.edu , by phone at (616) 234-3399 and on the web here . This story was reported by Phil de Haan.

Sept. 12, 2022, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich . -- When it’s time to get serious about your future, GRCC is there for you. “GRCC afforded me the opportunity to follow through on my dreams without sacrificing life outside of school. While it was an incredibly busy time in my life, I still had a balance – able to work and spend time with my children," Caitlin Owens said. “In 2016, I was a single mother of two, and while I had some years of experience and some college credits under my belt, I really didn’t have anything to show for it." Start at GRCC and go anywhere. Every former student has a story to tell about how GRCC gave them the education and opportunity to be successful. Owens decided to enroll in GRCC’s Education program, partly to show her children how hard work pays off. “The instructors at GRCC are second to none,” Owens said. “While I had years of experience in early childhood education before, GRCC is really what cemented my passion for education, families and developmentally appropriate practices.” She quickly found work in her chosen field after earning her associate degree in 2018. “I started at Head Start (for Kent County) right after graduating from GRCC with my associate degree,” she said. “I began as an associate teacher. The following year, I became a teacher, obtained my bachelor’s degree in child and family development, then was promoted to early learning coach specialist and associate supervisor, and became a site supervisor in February of this year. It’s definitely been a whirlwind!” Owens’ home life was also becoming busier during this time. “By 2018, I was married and finished my last course at GRCC two weeks after having baby No. 3,” she said. “Baby No. 4 came one week after graduating with my bachelor’s degree. The baby-degree correlation is not something that will continue with subsequent achievements!” Owens, who will begin work on a master’s degree in educational leadership at Central Michigan University in the spring, says GRCC provided her with the support she needed when she returned to the classroom. “Instructors were understanding but also pushed me and challenged me in ways that were meaningful,” she said. “GRCC afforded me the opportunity to follow through on my dreams without sacrificing life outside of school. While it was an incredibly busy time in my life, I still had a balance – able to work and spend time with my children.” Let GRCC help you start your story. The first chapter starts at grcc.edu/apply