Singcopation is all that jazz!
Congratulations to Professor Bruce Rogers and Mt. SAC's award-winning vocal jazz ensemble, Singcopation, for placing second in the recent Monterey Jazz Festival behind Cal State Long Beach's outstanding vocal group, Pacific Standard Time. Mt. SAC outperformed some of the biggest names in the vocal jazz world, including many university competitors.
On the individual performance level, three of the four outstanding vocalist awards went to current or former Mt. SAC choral students, including Bethany Van Hofwegen and David Johnston (current) and Andrea Calderwood (a former Singcopation member and now a CSULB graduate student).
Under Rogers' masterful direction, Singcopation has amassed an impressive national reputation over the years, having achieved recognition several times by Downbeat magazine as the nation's best collegiate vocal jazz group.
Fermata Nowhere Wins A Cappella Semifinals
Mt. SAC is singing the praises of our award-winning a cappella men's group, Fermata Nowhere, which won the semifinal competition of the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella last weekend.
These talented fellas outperformed university competitors from Berkeley, Cal State Northridge, Point Loma, UC Santa Barbara, Oregon State, University of Oregon, and UC Irvine. Now it's on to the finals on April 18 at New York's famous Lincoln Center, where the Mountie crooners will compete against other prestigious finalists from across the globe, including Yale, Florida State, Missouri State, Ithaca University, Oxford, and the University of the Free State (South Africa).
GO MOUNTIES!
Performing On a High Note!
Congratulations to Mt. SAC students Carlos Noriega (trumpeter) and Daniel Valadez (bassoonist) for being among the 60 talented musicians selected from a highly competitive nationwide pool of 300 university and two-year college applicants to perform in the Small College Intercollegiate Band in conjunction with the College Band Directors' National Association Conference.
Carlos earned additional distinction by performing as the principal trumpeter in the ensemble under the baton of Virginia Allen, faculty member at the Juilliard School in New York and former conductor of the U.S. Army Forces Command Band. The students performed at the University of Texas at Austin on March 28 before an audience of distinguished college band directors and composers.
"Puttin' On the Hits" Raises More Than $20,000!
Congrats to Mt. SAC's 11th annual Puttin' On the Hits lip synch showcase, which raised a record amount this year – more than $20,000 – for scholarships.
Mt. SAC students, trustees, faculty and staff put on a live "concert" to the music of some of the biggest acts around, impersonating mega-stars like The Pretenders, Tina Turner, Aerosmith, Beyonce, Johnny Cash, Billy Ray Cyrus, and Pink. It is one of the most popular events on campus.
"We are really happy with the success of the show this year," said Dr. Terri Long, president of the Mt. SAC Faculty Association, which sponsors the fundraiser. "Given these tough economic times, our students need scholarships more than ever." The scholarship recipients will be announced later this semester.
Mt. SAC Marketing Team Wins Three Awards!
Mt. SAC won with three coveted Paragon Awards — including it's first gold Paragon — at the recent conference of the National Council for Marketing & Public Relations (NCMPR) in Kansas City, MO.
Among the 1,500 entries submitted by some 200 colleges across the U.S. and other countries, Mt. SAC won bronze for the 2008-09 College Catalog, silver for the 50th Mt. SAC Relays Commemorative Booklet, and the coveted gold for Mt. SAC's 2009 "Dream It, Be It" Enrollment Marketing Campaign — judged the nation's best campaign for two-year institutions!
Mt. SAC's award-winning Marketing Team shares the honors this year with the staffs of the College's High School Outreach, Financial Aid, and Admissions & Records departments, as well as the Instruction Team for their contributions to the multifaceted "Dream It, Be It" campaign. Their collective efforts, collaboration, and synergy were vital in producing a truly comprehensive, cross-functional recruitment effort, which largely contributed to a 7% growth in enrollment at Mt. SAC last fall.
NCMPR is the national organization for marketing professionals at two-year educational and technical institutions in the United States, Canada, and UK. Each year it conducts a competition to determine the best in marketing, advertising, media, and graphic design.
For a complete listing of all the winners, go to www.ncmpr.org
KSAK Has Its Biggest Year at the Golden Mike Awards
Mt. SAC radio broadcasting students had their best year ever, with 90.1 KSAK winning six Golden Mike awards at the Radio and Television News Association of Southern California's annual awards ceremony held recently at the Universal Hilton in Hollywood. KSAK's six Golden Mikes this year tied for most awards with Southland stations KFI, KFWB, and KCLU.
Student Daniel Nolte (Walnut) won a Golden Mike for Best Radio Traffic Report in Division B for radio stations with fewer than five full-time staff. The award was Nolte's fourth Golden Mike as a radio broadcasting student at Mt. SAC.
KSAK won the Best Documentary award for its "A Voice In Your Life" tribute to the late Don LaFontanie, known as the king of voiceovers. LaFontaine, who died in 2008, was the voice of more than 5,000 movie trailers and television and radio commercials estimated in the hundreds of thousands.
The Mt. SAC station also won three Division B Golden Mikes for its "Sense on the Dollar" series, a consumer program that deals with how to save money and be environmentally responsible. The series won awards for Best Use of Sound, Best Business and Consumer Reporting, and Best Individual Writing.
KSAK operations coordinator Cason Smith (Rowland Heights) and students Karlo Sy Su (Walnut), Danny Saldana (West Covina), and Jeff Bowe (San Dimas) together won the Division B Best Radio Sports Segment award.
The Mt. SAC radio station has won 14 Golden Mikes in the past four years.
The Radio and Television News Association of Southern California annually honors the best in radio and television, ranging from the major networks to college stations.
Faculty Program Gets Exemplary Award
Mt. SAC's Developmental Education Faculty Certification Program has received the Exemplary Program Award from the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges for 2008. The award was presented to the co-directors of the program, Mt. SAC professors Rick Stepp-Bolling and Lori Walker, at the January meeting of the California Community College Board of Governors in Sacramento.
Created in 2002, Mt. SAC's Developmental Education Faculty Certification Program focuses on professional development to educate and inform Mt. SAC faculty about the developmental education needs of students on campus. Since its inception, 74 full-time faculty members and six adjunct faculty members have taken part in the program.
"The Certification Program promotes cognitive, social, emotional and professional growth of all individuals, at all levels, and is sensitive to individual differences and special needs that characterize each of us as 'developing' learners," said Mt. SAC's Academic Senate President, Michelle Grimes-Hillman.
The Exemplary Program Awards were established in 1991 by the Board of Governors to recognize outstanding community college programs. As many as two California Community College programs receive cash awards of $4,000 and up to four programs receive honorable mention plaques. The awards are sponsored by the Foundation for California Community Colleges and provide an excellent opportunity for colleges to showcase exceptional programs.
Mt. SAC “Mows Down” Competition in National Turfgrass Contest
Students in Mt. SAC's Turfgrass Science Program literally "mowed down" the competition by garnering first-place honors at the recent annual conference of the National Sports Turf Managers Association in San Jose.
In a highly competitive field of college and university teams from across the country, Mt. SAC sent two teams – one taking home the first-place trophy and a $4,000 cash award and the other team placing third. The prize money will be used to purchase necessary lab equipment.
First-place team members were: Pat Escalera, Geoff Miller, Chaz Perea, Hector Ramirez, and Noe Cardenas (alternate). Third-place winners were: Ricardo Guerrero, Giovanni Murillo, Ryan Rosebeary, Ed Schmachtenberger, and Tom Skelton. During the past three years, Mt. SAC students have achieved two first-place finishes and two third-place rankings. Prior to the contest, students spent more than five months in intense study and preparation. Topics ranged from pest recognition and disease identification to water management and drainage.
"It's very satisfying to do as well as we did," said horticulture professor Brian Scott, who served as coach along with professor Steve Dugas. "The competition just shows us where we stand in relationship to the top-notch turf programs in the country. This is an extremely difficult test, and all of our prep work paid off."
Demand for turf management specialists is increasing, according to Scott. "Opportunities for students in this industry are tremendous," he said, noting that Mt. SAC is among the few local colleges offering such a program.
