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July 25, 2011 - Special Mid-Summer Edition |
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Did
You Know? Dr. Jose Adames Named Acting President
Dr. Adames joined Bergen last August as academic vice president, previously serving as provost and associate vice president of academic affairs at Union County College and as a faculty member, director, associate dean and dean at Kean University. The acting president earned a doctorate in applied linguistics from Teacher’s College, Columbia University, and a M.A. and B.A. from Seton Hall University. His honors include the 2009 International Exemplary Leader Award, 8th Annual International Leadership Conference of the Chair Academy, Nashville, Tennessee and the 2009 William U. Harris Award from the Middle States Regional Forum, The College Board, Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. Adames has served as an evaluator and evaluation team chair for the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. Board Vice Chair Meets President Obama
Bergen Board of Trustees Vice Chair Cid Wilson (standing, far right) visited the White House along with the other members of the National Museum of the American Latino Commission, including television star Eva Longoria (sitting, second from right), to present President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama with the commission’s final report. Vice Chair Wilson has served on the commission for the past two years. The group's recommendations include the establishment of a new national museum in Washington D.C. dedicated to the history and contributions of American Latinos. Center for Peace, Justice and Reconciliation Awards Scholarships
(From left) Center for Peace, Justice and Reconciliation Director Thomas LaPointe, scholarship winner Lilly Poulson and Acting President Dr. Jose Adames. The Bergen Community College Foundation and the College’s Center for Peace, Justice and Reconciliation have announced the award of scholarships to three students for their writing about conflict resolution. Lilly Poulson, a 23-year-old psychology major from Teaneck, took top honors – a $1,000 Foundation scholarship – in the center’s first Peace Scholarship Challenge. She hopes to continue her education at Columbia University or New York University. Rick Marren, a 29-year-old U.S. Army veteran and engineering major from Dumont, garnered second place honors and a $750 scholarship. He will transfer to Stevens Institute of Technology or New Jersey Institute of Technology and major in mechanical engineering. Third-place finisher, Luis Muriel of Lodi, received a $500 scholarship. He hopes to attend Rutgers University. “We posed a question that revolved around conflict and creative solutions to conflict,” said Thomas LaPointe, assistant professor of composition and literature and director of the Center for Peace, Justice, and Reconciliation. “The students had to think of ways to engage with others or solve the conflict without engaging in violence.” Bergen formed the Center for Peace, Justice, and Reconciliation last year with a $1 million challenge grant from an anonymous donor. Two members of the Foundation Board of Directors, Joseph Basralian and Seta Nazarian Albrecht, are leading fundraising efforts to match the $1 million grant. Bergen Students Become Beacon Scholars
(From left) Beacon scholars Burke Barr, David Shapir, Joselida Mercado and Hannah Chon. The judges of the annual Beacon Conference have recognized five Bergen students as “Beacon Scholars” for exceptional academic research and writing among community college students throughout the mid-Atlantic region. The students presented their papers at the conference at Lehigh Carbon Community College in Schnecksville, PA. The students are: • Hannah Chon of Fort Lee: “Edgar Allan Poe's British
and American Gothic;” Mentor: Professor Dorothy Altman; Ms. Mercado won the Outstanding Presenter Award in her category, Literature (Short Stories). The Beacon Conference also recognized Khari Akpan, of Englewood, as a Beacon scholar. However, Mr. Akpan, who worked with Professor Altman as his mentor, was unable to attend the conference to present his paper, “Truth, Douglass, and Jacobs: Escaping the Abuses of Slavery.” Held every year since 1993 on the first Friday in June, the Beacon Conference for Student Scholars at Two-Year Colleges recognizes and celebrates the achievements of outstanding college students in academic research and writing. Students selected for the top three papers in each category present their papers at the annual conference, where judges weigh originality and quality of research, written work and oral presentation. Golf Team Aces Region XIX, Earns Trip to Nationals
(From left) (From left) Yong Jin Wang, Jin Jeon, Coach Tom McGovern, Chris Zito, Young Eom Han, Gary Samborgna and Evan Bussanich. In May, the Bergen Bulldogs golf team captured the school’s ninth Region XIX golf championship, besting Ocean County College by seven strokes, 625-632. The victory earned the Bulldogs a berth in the NJCAA Division III National Golf Tournament hosted by Jamestown Country Club, Chautauqua, NY in June. At the tournament, Bergen finished seventh as a team, with Jin Jeon, of Paramus, leading Bergen’s individual scorers with a 315 to place 23rd out of 88 golfers. For his efforts, third-year head coach Tom McGovern earned Region XIX Division III Golf Coach of the Year honors. |
Faculty Focus
Inside Higher Ed, a leading higher education online news source, recently profiled the College’s World Languages & Cultures program and faculty, asking “what’s Bergen’s secret?” to maintaining a robust program that offers 13 languages. Members of the department, including (front, from left) Yan He, Department Chair Dr. Magali R. Jerez, Bridget Connolly, Mazooz Sehwail, (back, from left) Kuniko Minakawa, Tiziana Quattrone and Amy Chang were photographed for the article. Dr. Jerez, Ms. Quattrone and Mr. Sehwail were quoted. Click here to read the piece. Faculty & Staff Highlights
The College’s Office of Public Relations received a 2011 Pyramid Award for its Multicultural/Diversity Communications campaign from the Public Relations Society of America, New Jersey Chapter. The campaign, a series of posters and other materials used to promote the College’s Latino History Month celebration, was led by Wilson Aguilar (pictured right), supervisor of graphics services, who designed the posters and drew the content. Ken Hunter, APR, R&J Public Relations and Immediate PRSA Past President (pictured left) presented the award at a June 15 ceremony.
Kate Plessing, director of the International Student Center, presented her work, “Strategic Planning for Careers in International Services” at the NAFSA: Association of International Educators Annual Conference & Expo, May 29 – June 3 in Vancouver. She also was named the NAFSA Two-Year Institution Representative for the New York/New Jersey region. Featured Event - Scientist James Hansen
James Hansen, climate scientist and director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, will speak at Bergen on Thursday, September 22, at 7:30 p.m. in the Moses Family Meeting & Training Center. The event, hosted by North Jersey Public Policy Organization, brings one of the nation’s leading research scientists and climate change experts to campus. Find Us on Facebook
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| This newsletter is produced by the Office of Public Relations for the faculty and staff of Bergen Community College. Please send items to insidebergen@bergen.edu. |
Hackensack | Paramus | Meadowlands |
Bergen offers summer classes at its Hackensack location, the Ciarco
Learning Center, beginning August 8 and ending August 25?
The
Bergen Community College Board of Trustees has appointed Dr. Jose
Adames acting president. 
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