Annual Hurricanes and Healthcare Conference set for March 19

Employees from hospitals, nursing homes and other health care facilities will prepare for the state’s dangerous weather and emergencies it can cause at the upcoming Hurricanes and Healthcare Conference.

The annual conference is scheduled for March 19 at the Coliseum. Participants will join sponsors Bay News 9, the Tampa Bay Times, Progress Energy and Ready Alert Services.

In existence for more than 30 years, the conference is a collaboration involving SPC, the Tampa Bay Regional Hurricane and Health Care Planning Coalition, Metropolitan Medical Response System, the Florida Health Care Association and local county emergency management offices.

“This is the largest and oldest program in the state to educate the health care industry. It is a ‘must attend’ for health care facilities,” said Ed Smolik, Director of Facility Services and leader of Emergency Management at Morton Plant Mease. Smolik is a founding member of the coalition.

Attendees will learn about 2013 weather expectations and storm planning from local weather experts. Conference participants also will:

• hear from Hurricane Sandy, boots-on-the-ground emergency management experts
• learn about the challenges facing those at a facility that has been evacuated multiple times due to a storm
• how to use social media to discover and distribute storm information
• how to build solid, sound emergency evacuation and sheltering-in-place plans

Get more information about the conference, a brochure and the day’s agenda or register at www.spcollege.edu/hurricane. The Coliseum is located at 535 Fourth Ave. N., St. Petersburg.

For conference questions or more information, contact LaNona Robinson at 727-341-3376 or robinson.lanona@spcollege.edu.

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SPC named Business of the Year for Economic Advancement

St. Petersburg College received the Business of the Year for Economic Advancement award from the Clearwater Regional Chamber of Commerce at the annual awards dinner earlier this month.

The award, presented by city council member Doreen Hock-DiPolito, cited the college’s contribution to economic development, including the Collaborative Center for Emerging Technologies, Corporate Training’s Learn to Earn program, and the college’s Veteran Services program

Anne Cooper, Senior Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs, accepted the award on behalf of the college.

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Fee waiver, other prizes at SPC Study Abroad Fair

The Center for International Programs hosted the first evening of the SPC Study Abroad Fair at the Tarpon Springs Campus on Monday, Feb. 4.

SPC student Mason St. Martin won a waiver for the program’s $200 application fee.

More dates are set for the fair both this and next week at other SPC campuses. Students will have the chance to win prizes such as application fee waivers for the program.

Study Abroad faculty had an opportunity to discuss how each of their programs work. After the general discussion, students interested in a specific program talked directly with faculty leading that program and asked questions.

One of the most exciting parts of the evening for students was a free drawing. Random winners for a variety of prizes were chosen.

SPC student Mason St. Martin was the top winner, receiving a waiver for the Study Abroad $200 application fee! St. Martin was so excited and thankful for this prize that he quickly submitted his application for the Spain program the following morning!

This was the first time SPC has offered students the opportunity to waive the $200 application fee for Study Abroad.

Instructor Tim Wolter answers questions about the Study Abroad program.

Drawings for additional waivers will be held at the next three Study Abroad Fair events:

Wednesday, Feb. 6, St. Petersburg/Gibbs Music Center, 6-8 p.m.
Monday, Feb. 11, Clearwater ES 104, 6-8 p.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 12, Seminole Digitorium, 6-8 p.m.

Learn more:
Invite your students to stop by and learn more about these programs.
• Belize
• Costa Rica
• England
• Ireland
• Italy
• Spain
• High School program

Questions?
Please call 727-341-4355

See more photos from the event on the college’s Facebook page.

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‘School, Work, Life’ student event draws crowd at SP/G

Students wait in line to sign in at the School, Work, Life event at the St. Petersburg/Gibbs Campus on Thursday, Jan. 31.

More than 400 students, faculty, staff and vendors attended the inaugural School, Work, Life community resource fair at the quad at the St. Petersburg/Gibbs Campus on Thursday, Jan. 31.

The event was an opportunity for various community and college services to come together to help students learn healthy ways to maintain balance between school, work and life.

Participating groups included:

• 2-1-1 Tampa Bay Cares, Inc.
• African People’s Education and Defense Fund, Inc.
• Agency for Persons with Disabilities
• Bay Area Pregnancy Center
• Community Action Stops Abuse (CASA)
• Community Law Program, Inc.
• Florida Resurrection House
• Lighthouse of Pinellas
• LiveFree! Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Pinellas County
• Operation PAR, Inc.
• Project GRACE
• Tampa Bay Harvest
• SPC’s Men Achieving Excellence (MAX)
• St. Petersburg College
• Uhuru Solidarity Movement
• SPC Internship Office
• National Alliance on Mental Illness Pinellas County
• Suncoast Hospice
• United Way HandsOn Suncoast
• The Edible Peace Patch Project
• BayCare Health System – Student Assistance Program
• SPC Women on the Way (WOW)
• American Red Cross
• Homeless Emergency Project, Inc.
• SPC Corporate Training
• All Children’s Hospital
• Gulfcoast Legal Services
• SPC Learning Support Commons and Writing Studio

The event also featured food, music and a drawing for three Kindle Fire HD Tablets. The student winners were:

• Keeyawna Barnes, Associate in Arts
• Nicole Jensen, Management and Organizational Leadership
• Joseph Stringer, Associate in Arts

Visit the SPC Facebook page to view an online photo gallery from the event.

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SPC Study Abroad Fair coming soon

A great opportunity is coming in February to learn about earning credit for required or elective credit courses at St. Petersburg College while studying abroad.

The Study Abroad Fair will be held at different SPC campuses Feb. 4 – 12. The event is open to current and prospective students, their parents and SPC employees. The first 10 students will receive a free T-shirt and other prizes. Drawings also will be held for application fee waivers for the program.

The fair allows faculty leading each trip to talk directly with those interested in participating. Students who participated in previous years Study Abroad trips will also attend, offering peer-to-peer advice and sharing their experiences. Study Abroad team members will be at the fair to guide students through the application process and provide information about scholarships.

Learn more about the following programs:
• Belize
• Costa Rica
• England
• Ireland
• Italy
• Spain
• High School program

When and where:
Monday, Feb. 4, Tarpon Springs FA 132, 6-8 p.m.
Wednesday, Feb. 6, SP/Gibbs Music Center, 6-8 p.m.
Monday, Feb. 11, Clearwater ES 104, 6-8 p.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 12, Seminole Digitorium, 6-8 p.m.

Learn more:
Please call 727-341-4355

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Upcoming SPC fair promotes success in ‘School, Work, Life’

This month, St. Petersburg College will host “School, Work, Life: Connections to Help You Achieve Your Dream,” an event focused on increasing student awareness of the many resources available to help them succeed both in and outside of the classroom.

On Thursday, Jan. 31, the fair will be hosted at the St. Petersburg/Gibbs campus. It’s aimed giving students the opportunity to learn about the numerous resources, organizations and non-profits in our local community and on campus that can assist them. More than 20 groups will be attending the fair and meeting with students.

The college is committed to student success. Our faculty and staff realize that many factors influence how they do in the classroom. SPC wants to provide them with ways to help them overcome any difficulties they may be having that could hinder their progress in school, work or life.

At the event, food will be provided to students with their ID and a prize drawing will be held for students.

Important information:

• The fair runs from 12 to 2 p.m.
• The event will take place on the St. Petersburg/Gibbs Campus quad
• Lunch will be provided for all
• Students who visit half of the tables at the fair will be entered into a prize drawing. Cards will be available for them to get stamped at each table and enter the drawing.

Participating organizations:

• African People’s Education and Defense Fund, Inc.
• Agency for Persons with Disabilities
• Bay Area Pregnancy Center
• BayCare Health System – Student Assistance Program
• CASA Community Action Stops Abuse
• Community Law Program, Inc.
• The Edible Peace Patch Project
• Florida Resurrection House
• Lighthouse of Pinellas
• LiveFree! Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Pinellas County and Operation PAR, Inc.
• NAMI Pinellas County Florida – National Alliance on Mental Illness
• Project GRACE
• St. Petersburg College
• SPC Internship Office
• SPC/MAX Club
• Suncoast Hospice
• Tampa Bay Harvest
• 2-1-1 Tampa Bay Cares, Inc.
• Uhuru Solidarity Movement
• United Way HandsOn Suncoast
• Women on the Way

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Forum series on incarceration kicks off at SPC campus Feb. 6

The Institute for Strategic Policy Solutions at St. Petersburg College will host the first in a series of four forums on prison reform on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 6-8 p.m. at the Seminole Campus Digitorium (UP 160).

The forum, titled Does Incarceration Reduce Crime?, features a panel of five experts in academia and law enforcement. Panelists will explore the questions of effectiveness, taxpayer costs, emerging public safety research and practices and the extent to which incarceration succeeds in reducing crime.

Panel members include: Daniel D’Amico, William Barnett Professor of Free Enterprise Studies, Loyola University, New Orleans Julie Ebenstein, Policy and Advocacy Counsel, Florida Branch of the American Civil Liberties Union Anthony Holloway, Chief of Police, City of Clearwater Marc Levin, Director, Center for Effective Justice, Texas Public Policy Foundation/Right on Crime Dr. Allison DeFoor, Chairman, Project for Accountable Justice, will serve as moderator.

The forum is a collaborative effort with the Florida State University Project for Accountable Justice, a coalition that combines academic research and practical solutions with the goal of helping state lawmakers reform the state prison system. The partnership includes ISPS, Florida State University, Baylor University and Tallahassee Community College.

Future programs in this series will address pretrial decision-making, juvenile justice and citizen oversight of the criminal justice system. The series is free and open to the public but advance registration is requested online or by phone at 727-394-6251.

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Forbes: community colleges tickets to workforce success

According to a recent report in Forbes, a two-year degree in a technical field can give you a leg up on the competition for a job. A recent study by CollegeMeasures has found that graduates of technical programs in three states are outearning their peers with non-technical two-year degrees and bachelor’s degrees. In the fall, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that job growth was highest for those with occupational associate degrees, known as the Associate in Science degree.

St. Petersburg College’s Director of Workforce Services Jason Krupp said, “Offering 40 A.S. degree programs, SPC is strongly positioned to provide training to meet the growing need for skilled workers in this area. These programs are receiving increased attention and momentum nationally.”

In addition, many of the fastest growing occupations in the country now require only a two-year degree, according to federal labor experts. Among those careers, SPC offers quality training and credentials in the following: veterinary technology, physical therapist assistant, dental hygiene, medical equipment repair, emergency medical technician and paramedic.

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Honors College Research Conference at SPC set for Jan. 30

Students, faculty, staff and community members are invited to attend SPC’s 6th Annual Honors College Research Conference, “Expanding Knowledge through Interdisciplinary Education” on Wednesday, Jan. 30, at the EpiCenter starting at 8 a.m.

Honors College faculty Roy Slater is the keynote speaker. Students will share their research through oral and poster presentations on a variety of topics including:

• Literature
• Humanities
• Medicine
• Social Science
• Physical Science

RSVP by completing our Conference Participation Survey.

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Seminar aims to help male SPC students reach their potential

An upcoming seminar, hosted at SPC’s Clearwater Campus, aims to help the college’s male students maximize their potential at school and in life.

Encouraging success and offering support, the free seminar “Keys to Manhood” targets the college’s male students. It features a variety of breakout sessions designed to help men succeed academically, personally and professionally.

The event, the first of its kind at SPC, will include Florida House Rep. Darryl Rouson as a keynote speaker. Scheduled for Feb. 1, the seminar was organized based on a private donation to the St. Petersburg College Foundation from Transamerica.

Organizers hope participants will gain knowledge and learn about resources that will allow them to excel in college and in life.

Nationwide college enrollment is lower for men. At SPC, 40 percent of lower division students are male.

Designed by men for men, breakout sessions during the seminar are:

• What career is right for me?
• How to be an All-Pro Dad
• Mo’ Money
• Juggling Everyday Life
• How to Get an A in Class
• Overcoming Legal Obstacles
• Top 10 Communication Mistakes Students Make and How to Correct Them
• Maximize Your Veterans Benefits
• Student Success First Hand

Participants can attend the event for part or all of the day. The seminar runs from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Clearwater Campus. Registration is encouraged as seating may be limited. Breakfast, lunch and transportation from each of SPC’s campuses will be provided.

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