MAY 19, 2022, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- As a welder, Emily Rivera knows what it means to work under pressure and bring two things together. The same is true for her life away from work. Right now, she’s combining full-time work with part-time studies as a GRCC Manufacturing and Industrial Maintenance Technologies student. It’s a lot of work, and she couldn’t be happier. After almost a decade away from school, she has a plan for her future. And she has the Michigan Reconnect program – and its tuition-free assistance – to thank for it. “When I first heard about it, I thought, what’s the catch?” Rivera recalled. “And so, I went for it. And there is no catch. I’m going to school without all the loans I thought I’d have to take out. It’s pretty amazing.” Michigan Reconnect is a state program covering the cost of in-district tuition for residents age 25 and older who don't have a college degree.  Rivera said she was a good student in high school, part of the last graduating class at Wyoming Park High School in 2012, active in sports and willing to push herself in the classroom, including Advanced Placement classes. After graduation she headed to Davenport University to pursue a degree and eventually a career in Human Resources. She also was trying to work full-time. After a year and a half, it all came crashing down. As she looks back now on that time, Rivera is sanguine about that initial post high school misstep. “You know you’re 18 years old, and they tell you that you have to figure out what you want to do with the rest of your life,” she said. “And you’ve probably never even thought about it before. I thought I wanted to do HR, and it turned out I really don’t want to listen to people’s problems all day.” Instead, she learned how to weld, and she learned she liked the manufacturing world. “Manufacturing really piques my interest,” she said. “I’m always in awe of people who can write programs for machines to work, people who can take machines apart and fix them. My time in manufacturing has been eye-opening.” Rivera said that as she worked in manufacturing, she began to ponder the engineering field and dream about a four-year degree in engineering and eventually a career that would meld her manufacturing experience and expertise with her degree in engineering. When she heard about Michigan Reconnect, her dreams started to come to fruition. “I always knew I wanted to go back to school,” she said. “To know I could go back and take my time with it was life-changing. I didn’t want to get burned out again.” She began taking classes on a part-time basis in the fall of 2021 and now takes six credit hours or more every semester, including summers. “It’s super awesome,” she said with a smile. She plans to take her time getting her GRCC associate degree and then transfer to a four-year university – either Western Michigan or Ferris State – to get a bachelor's degree in engineering. And then? Of that, Rivera is not sure. But she’s confident the future is bright. “I feel pretty golden,” she said with a big laugh. Additional information about the Michigan Reconnect program is available at  grcc.edu/reconnect,  by emailing  reconnect@grcc.edu  or by calling (616) 234-3366. This story was reported by Phil de Haan.

May 18, 2022, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- Would it surprise you to know the car wash and auto detailing business is a $12-$14 billion industry in the United States? Chad Lodenstein knows. He’s head of the Automotive Department at in the GRCC School of Workforce Development. He’s also a graduate of the program and used his associate degree to springboard to a bachelor’s degree in Automotive Management from Ferris State and then a career in the auto industry before returning to our campus as an instructor in 2002. And this fall he plans to offer GRCC’s first-ever course in automotive detailing. He can’t wait. “The used vehicle market is so high right now that people are willing to put more money into the car they have,” he said. “Especially here in the Midwest, if we can keep the salt off, keep those interiors nice, it’s a good investment. So, the industry is growing, and there is good money to be made.” Lodenstein said that when he returned to GRCC to teach, he did so because he believes the college is “the best place ever. GRCC gave me so much. The chance to give back was too good to pass up. I want to see our students succeed, and everything I do is for that goal.” The new course fits right in with helping GRCC students succeed, he said. “My hope is that the course will appeal to people who don’t necessarily want to have a wrench in their hands,” he said. “It might even be interesting to people who are not part of our (automotive) program. I could see business students take it if they are interested in maybe setting up their own detailing shop or getting involved in the detailing industry. This can be a great side hustle for people.” The new course at GRCC will be 45 contact hours: one three-hour class a week for 15 weeks. It comes as a result of a former student’s suggestion, Lodenstein said. “I was visiting a student on an internship a couple of summers ago,” he recalled. “The student told me, ‘I really wish the college had a detailing class.’ It got me thinking, and I started doing some research. And I thought, ‘Yeah, detailing is something we should be able to do.’” To get ready for this fall, Lodenstein went back to school. He spent a week in North Carolina, in the classroom eight hours a day, taking a class offered by CARETECH, a detailing training center. He got a hands-on education in interior and exterior cleaning and polishing, sanding and leveling paint correction, ceramic coatings and more. “Taking the class gave me a great structure for what we will offer our students,” Lodenstein said. “It was really set up well, and the materials were great. Plus, they will be a great resource for me, and for our students, going forward too. Being back in the classroom as a student was both exciting and exhausting, he admitted. “It was a great reminder for me,” he said. “I remembered how tiring it can be to be a student. It’s always good for me to be reminded how students have to take in so much material that is new to them and the ways I can be sensitive to their lives and their workloads.” And though it has been a lot of work to plan for and establish the new course, Lodenstein said that as he was considering it and what it would take to bring it to the college, he kept thinking back to President Bill Pink. “Dr. Pink always says that we need to be relevant and responsive,” he said. “This course seemed like a perfect fit for both categories.” This story was reported by Phil de Haan.  

May 17, 2022, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – GRCC baseball player Ryan Dykstra was named MCCAA Western Conference Player of the Week after his performance against Jackson College on May 12 in the NJCAA Region XII opening round games. The 6-foot outfielder batted .571, going 4-for-7 against Jackson with two doubles, three runs scored and a walk. He also stole home, which put GRCC up for good in a 2-1 ball game to clinch the series and send the Raiders to the next round of regionals. Dykstra is from Byron Center, attended South Christian High School, and plans to attend and play for Oakland University next year. He leads GRCC in multiple statistical categories, including batting average, .411; slugging percentage, .675; runs scored, 44; hits, 67; runs batted in, 43; doubles, 14; home runs, 7; and total bases, 110. GRCC finished second in the conference and is headed to the final four of regionals, facing conference champion Kellogg Community College, in a 3 p.m. matchup on May 19. The tournament will be played at Siena Heights University's baseball field in Adrian, Mich. Should the team lose, it will play at 7 p.m., and if they win they will play next on May 20 at 1 p.m.

May 17, 2022, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- Stephanie Duron admits her first go-around at GRCC a dozen years ago was a bit of a mess. After graduating from Cedar Springs High School in the spring of 2009, she decided to live at home and become a fulltime student at GRCC that fall. “I was a pretty typical high school student,” she said. “Involved in some plays, decent grades. And I was of that generation where we were told you had to go to college after high school. So that’s what I did.” Part of her Cedar Springs experience included a TV production class, so she figured she’d study communications in college and maybe end up in a TV production job of some sort after graduation. “I really didn’t know what I wanted to do,” she said. Her first semester saw her taking 12 credit hours but without some of the drive and motivation she’d had in high school. She soon realized she had probably taken on too much. “I passed maybe two of the four courses,” she said. “So, I was on academic probation, and instead of coming back, I decided to take some time off.” She returned again for the winter semester in 2011. And again, things did not go well. This time she ended up on academic suspension, so she decided to enter the workforce on a fulltime basis and began a series of jobs – first some retail positions and eventually administrative assistant type posts at a law firm and a hospital. Soon enough she began to feel the nudges to go back to school and get a degree. A career in human resources – based on experiences she had had with both good HR people and bad HR people – intrigued her. But she was married, had a couple of kids, money was tight, and she tried to resist those nudges. Until she heard about the Futures for Frontliners scholarship program. The state program covers the cost of in-district tuition for people who worked in essential fields during the state's COVID-19 shutdown.  While the application period is closed for Futures for Frontliners, many residents age 25 and above are eligible to attend GRCC with in-district tuition covered through the Michigan Reconnect program.  Frontliners was exactly what Duron needed to turn the nudges into a push. “I had two little girls,” she said. “And I remember I would often think about how they looked up to me and what I would be showing them if I went back (to college). That I’d be showing them it’s never too late. When Governor Whitmer announced the program (Futures for Frontliners), I thought ‘you’d be pretty dumb to not take advantage of this.’” And take advantage she has. “The program changed my whole life,” she said. Stephanie re-enrolled at GRCC and started her first semester in 2021. She hasn’t stopped since, including summer school classes both last summer and this summer! “It was tricky to adjust to being back as a college student in my 30s,” she said. “I started slow, only taking six credits a semester since I was still working part-time and taking care of kids.” But Stephanie soon found her rhythm and soon was getting all As and becoming a regular on the Presidents List. “I also got myself off the academic probation that followed me from 2009,” she said with a laugh. She’s now approaching the finish line on an associate’s degree in Business Management and so grateful to GRCC that she said she’d love to find a job at the college after graduation and pay it forward to the next generation of students. In her words: “I owe this place.” This story was reported by Phil de Haan.

May 16, 2022, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Dr. Juan Olivarez, who guided Grand Rapids Community College through 10 years of growth as president, will return to the role on an interim basis while the GRCC board of trustees search for a permanent successor to outgoing President Bill Pink. Trustees on Monday unanimously voted to appoint Olivarez, who was GRCC’s eighth president, serving from 1999 until 2008, and who was named president emeritus in 2018. “Dr. Olivarez knows this college because he helped shape it to become the success it is today,” said David Koetje, chairperson of the board of trustees. “He has long been respected for his leadership here at GRCC and in our greater community. There are challenging times ahead of us, and GRCC’s mission remains vital. Dr. Olivarez is remembered for bringing people together and expanding opportunities for students so more people could take advantage of a quality education. His experience and vision will ensure this college continues moving forward at full speed while we select our next president.” The trustees are in the process of selecting a firm to guide a national search to replace Pink, who was tapped to become president of Ferris State University starting on July 1. GRCC trustees are planning public sessions to discuss the selection process and timeline. Koetje said the trustees hope to have Pink’s successor selected by end of the year. “GRCC is such a special place for me, and I’ve been proud to have stayed connected over the years,” Olivarez said. “I’m excited to be able to come back, work with this strong team and ensure the work of this college continues without missing a beat.” Olivarez will become GRCC’s third interim president. Dr. Patricia Pulliam served in the role in 1998 and 1999, and Dr. Anne Mulder in 2008 and 2009. The son of migrant workers from Benavides, Texas, he was the first Hispanic president of any Michigan college or university. Olivarez was an educator in the Grand Rapids Public Schools for more than 20 years before becoming GRCC’s Dean of Institutional Research in 1991. As president, he worked to increase access to a quality college education and cultivated student-serving partnerships with local businesses, public entities, and nonprofit organizations. After retiring from GRCC in 2008, Olivarez became president and CEO of the Kalamazoo Community Foundation. He was named Aquinas College’s seventh president in 2011, retiring in 2017. He was a distinguished scholar in residence for diversity, equity, and inclusion at Grand Valley State University’s Dorothy Johnson Center for Philanthropy between 2018 and 2021. Olivarez has served on many national and regional boards and committees, including the Van Andel Education Institute, First Steps Kent, the Council of Independent Colleges, Educational Testing Services, High Education Research & Development Institute as well as the National Institute for Literacy.

May 16, 2022, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- Hector Belmont was at a crossroads: He wanted to go to college, but he’d have to make sacrifices and hard choices to make that happen. “From a very young age, I knew I wanted a college degree, but I didn’t know the work it would take to attain it,” he said. “Having the identity of being an undocumented student, I was not able to receive financial aid.” 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. When fear of deportation prompted his mother and siblings to move back to Mexico, Belmont made the difficult decision to remain in Michigan and pursue his college dream. “I told my ama (mother) that I was staying in Michigan because I was going to make their sacrifice count,” he said. GRCC, with its affordable tuition, was the perfect place to start. “My experience at GRCC was valuable for many reasons,” Belmont said. “First, I was able to finish my Associate of Arts degree in two and a half years. The affordable cost of tuition at GRCC was one of the main reasons I was able to attain a college education. Secondly, GRCC laid a strong educational foundation for me.” The times he spent hanging out with friends at the Raider Grill are among his favorite memories – topped only by learning of the GRCC scholarships he had been awarded. While it was difficult navigating college without his family, Belmont became part of an extended family of friends who were ready to help when needed. “From giving me rides to school and buying me food when I didn’t have the money, to giving me a place to sleep – these are just some of the things that they did that helped me move along!” he said. “Every time any of them did something for me, it was the fuel that kept me going. They didn’t have to help, but they did, and I felt that it was only right to pay them back by doing and accomplishing what I said I was going to do, which was graduate!” After earning his associate degree in 2010, Belmont transferred to Grand Valley State University, graduating in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree in Spanish Literature. He is working on his master’s degree in higher education with an emphasis on adult education at GVSU and expects to graduate in December. In 2020, Belmont was hired as a program advisor for GVSU’s TRIO program, which provides academic advising, tutoring, mentoring, financial guidance, counseling and other support services to help students from disadvantaged backgrounds. This month, he starts his new position as an academic advisor with GVSU’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Belmont, who plans to earn a doctorate someday, is proud of his educational journey and grateful to those who helped him along the way. “I knew that staying in the USA would take me out of my comfort zone and, at times, make me homesick,” he said. “However, my determination and tenacity allowed me to keep moving forward and allowed me to navigate the unknown, while conquering so many new things.” His first degree, from GRCC, “will always have a special spot in my heart.” “GRCC gave me the opportunity to start my goal of being a college graduate,” he said. “This institution helped me understand that I had the potential to be more, and it gave me the tools that helped me be successful in the rest of my educational journey. GRCC is a great place to start.” Let GRCC help you start your story. The first chapter starts at grcc.edu/apply .

May 13, 2022, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Three players on the Grand Rapids Community College golf team earned postseason awards after success at the MCCAA/Region XII Championships this week. Arie Jackman finished first among 40 golfers, earning medalist honors and back-to-back All-Region and All-MCCAA honors. Matt Denharigh was fourth overall and earned All-Region and All-MCCAA for the first time. Conner Oman finished his freshman campaign in 10th place and become the final member on the All-MCCAA team. GRCC will be heading to the national championship tournament for the fifth year in a row, and the second straight year for Jackman. Last year, GRCC won the region and finished 11th amongst 19 teams at nationals. The team tied for the conference championship this year, marking their 13th straight title. It also finished runner-up in the MCCAA and region. This year's four-round national championship will take place in Joplin, Mo. starting on May 17. 

May 13, 2022 GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Union High School juniors learned about opportunities in higher education – and what it takes to succeed there – from Grand Rapids Community College staff, students and alumni during a Raider Takeover Day on Wednesday. The event, first offered in 2019, is aimed at helping students learn about opportunities in higher education, and how they can be successful in preparing for college, and thrive once they start attending. “Raider Takeover is an opportunity to bring the college to the community,” said Marisol Blanco, associate director of GRCC’s College Success Center. “We focused on connecting with students and engaging in meaningful discussions to help them see college as a possibility.” Presentations included a panel of current and former GRCC students sharing their experiences and answering questions. The goal is to give the Union students a glimpse of college life and explore how to make the transition from high school to college. Union students then returned to classrooms to hear presentations from specialists from GRCC’s College Success Center, Academic Advising, Admissions, Financial Aid, Occupational Support Services, Student Employment, Student Success and Retention, and the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Students learned about topics including student activities, workforce training programs and other aspects of attending college. Students also learned how Challenge Scholars and the Grand Rapids Promise Zone scholarship work cohesively to remove cost as a barrier to higher education, covering all expenses for eligible students. Presenters shared their own educational journeys, and helped students realize there are support services across GRCC to help them be successful.

May 12, 2022 - ADRIAN, Mich. - The Grand Rapids Community College baseball team is moving ahead in the NJCAA Region XII tournament after two come-from-behind victories against Jackson College in the quarterfinals on Thursday. The team used a big eighth inning in game one to win 6-4, and were victorious in the nightcap 2-1 after scoring the go-ahead run on a double steal in the sixth frame. GRCC has won 16 games in a row since a 3-3 tie against Calvin University on April 19 at LMCU Ballpark. Jackson, seeded fourth in the tournament, scored early with a sacrifice fly in the first game against fifth-seeded GRCC. Jackson tacked on one more run in the fourth inning, and GRCC got on the board after an RBI single by Xander Reisbig in the sixth inning. GRCC scored five runs in the top of the eighth. Jackson closed the gap by scoring two runs, but GRCC held on for a two-run victory. Jared Berkenpas picked up the victory, allowing two earned runs while striking out six. He is now 8-2 on the season. Game two was a pitcher's duel, with Drew Murphy on the mound for Grand Rapids against Noah Stants for Jackson. Down 1-0, Andres Rivera-Calderon lined a single to left to score Zacarias Salinas to tie the game. GRCC’s Ryan Dykstra scored the go-ahead run in the bottom of the sixth inning with runners on the corners with a double steal. Eliott Traver picked up his 10th save of the season by retiring Jackson in order in the final inning. Dykstra led the offense on the day with four hits and Rivera-Calderon added three. The team will continue play in a double elimination four-team tournament starting May 19, with the opponent and game time to be determined.