Germanna, VDOT partnering to improve Virginia's roads

Secretary of the Commonwealth Levar Stoney announced the establishment of the Virginia Education Center for Asphalt Technology (VECAT) during a press conference on Monday, Oct. 5 at the Jefferson Hotel in Richmond.

Germanna's Daniel Technology Center in Culpeper
 will be at the center of the new VECAT training  program.

The statewide effort involves a partnership of The Virginia Asphalt Association, the Virginia Department of Transportation, and the Virginia Community College System, led by Germanna Community College's Center for Workforce in Culpeper.

“Whether you’re in Abingdon or Arlington, students will now have the ability to further their careers in one of Virginia’s key industries,” Stoney said. “The efforts of this partnership will send a signal to all our competitors that we know what it takes to continue building the new Virginia economy."

VDOT, the VAA and Germanna are partnering on changes to the asphalt-related materials certification classes, the initiation of an asphalt technologist apprenticeship program and eventually an asphalt technologist associate’s degree. 

Germanna will offer training at its Joseph R. Daniel Technology Center in Culpeper beginning in 2017. Much of the training will be available via online classes, but students will be required to take part in labs on site. Several other VCCS schools will be involved in offering labs in order to make the training more accessible. The other VCCS sites have not been set yet.

VDOT's Charlie Kilpatrick with Germanna's Jeanne Wesley,

Martha Okeefe and Ben Sherman

   

The effort will be focused at Germanna with changes to the asphalt-related materials certification classes, the initiation of an asphalt technologist apprenticeship program and eventually asphalt technologist associate’s degree.

Germanna will offer training at its Joseph R. Daniel Technology Center in Culpeper beginning in 2017. Much of the training will be available via online classes, but students will be required to take part in labs on site. Several other VCCS schools will be involved in offering labs in order to make the training more accessible. The other VCCS sites have not been set yet.

The asphalt business is a key industry in Virginia.

•   Virginia has the third largest state maintained highway system in the United States
•    The Commonwealth spends billions of dollars each year on its highways
•     Virginia’s asphalt industry has 50 different companies with more than 130 plants, employing over 10,000 people throughout the Commonwealth
•    The industry contributes nearly $2 billion to the Virginia economy each year

Germanna President David A. Sam, (center) at VECAT launch.

The partnership will support business growth and jobs creation, increased competitiveness for Virginia’s asphalt industry, continuing education for changing materials and practices and create a supply chain to replace retiring workers. This will be accomplished through entry level to advanced training, stackable credentials, an apprenticeship program and the development of a pathway to an associate degree.

Virginia Department of Transportation Commissioner Charlie Kilpatrick said: “each year VDOT invests over $500 million in asphalt paving through new construction and maintenance. With this large investment, it is imperative the individuals involved with the design, production, placement and acceptance of asphalt materials are effectively trained to perform the monumental task of constructing and maintaining Virginia’s roads.” 

“New technologies, innovations in construction practices and changing materials usage are leading to increased sustainability and cost savings,” Richard Schreck, Executive Vice President of the Virginia Asphalt Association said. “But putting these innovations into practice requires the sort of focused training and education that VECAT will provide, deploying research, innovation and best practices to the benefit of taxpayers and the driving public.”

Amy Martin, National Director for the Asphalt Pavement Alliance, recognizes the pressing need for skilled labor in the road construction industry, both today and in the future. “With over 100,000 lane miles in the Commonwealth, having quality labor to support construction, maintenance and inspection of the roadway system is of vital importance. We hope this sets a precedent other states will follow.”

 “Germanna is pleased to partner with the Virginia Asphalt Association in developing these vital certifications and apprenticeships,” GCC President David A. Sam said. “The Commonwealth needs people with the skills to pave, inspect and repair our roadways. And citizens of Virginia need well-paid jobs that make a difference. Our work together in developing these programs helps to close that skills gap and make for a better Virginia.”

Training will be available for:

•  Asphalt production facilities occupations: plant operators, plant technicians, laboratory technicians and asphalt mix designers
•  Asphalt placement site occupations: asphalt paving foreman, asphalt paving crew, asphalt paving superintendent, and density technician
•  Transportation agencies occupations: project manager, project engineer, project inspector, plant inspector, asphalt lab technician, asphalt mix designer/certifier
•  Consulting industry occupations: project engineer, project inspector, asphalt lab technician, and asphalt mix designer/certifier.

Germanna launching drone training for commercial applications

Michael Zitz

Director of Media & Community Relations

Germanna Community College

540/846-5163

mzbeckham@germanna.edu

Ben Sherman

Business & Career Coordinator

Germanna Community College

540/937-2901 (office)

540/661-8291 (cell)

bsherman@germanna.edu

GERMANNA CENTER FOR WORKFORCE  LAUNCHING COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS DRONE TRAINING AT GCC DANIEL TECH CENTER IN CULPEPER

Business drone use is a trend that isn’t likely to fade away. Current commercial uses for unmanned aerial vehicles include the monitoring of agricultural crops, photographing real estate and managing wildlife. Among those in the works are Amazon’s plans to use drones for deliveries. There has also been discussion of using solar-powered drones capable of remaining aloft indefinitely to beam WiFi signals to the ground to provide sparsely populated areas with Internet access.

A drone in flight during a demonstration outside
 Germanna's Daniel Technology Center in  Culpeper.

According to Fortune magazine, by July of 2015, there were over 500 businesses in the U.S. cleared by the FAA to operate drones for commercial purposes.

An industry study recently predicted that by the year 2025, the commercial use of drones could add $82 billion and 100,000 jobs to the U.S. economy.

Locally, Germanna Community College will begin using drone flyovers to help Cedar Mountain Stone monitor progress at its Mitchells Quarry. The first flyover, on a date yet to be determined in late October, will take place during a blast at the quarry.

According to Ben Sherman, a Germanna Center for Workforce Business & Career Coordinator based at the GCC Daniel Technology Center in Culpeper, the drones will be doing aerial photography for photogrammetry and using two-dimensional photos to make a 3D point cloud to model progress at the quarry. The goal will be to determine the amount of stone removed. This will allow Cedar Mountain Corporation to more closely monitor the amount of material being extracted from and ultimately sold by the quarry.

This will be part of a new Germanna Community College Center for Workforce program at the Daniel Technology Center in Culpeper focusing on drone training for commercial applications.

Students will learn how to maintain drones and how the actual programming works—how to download information and process it, as well as the necessary flying skills, Sherman said.

The FAA is expected to require increasing levels of training and certification for those who fly drones for commercial use to earn certification, due to safety concerns.

Germanna had already been providing classes primarily for drone hobbyists, including basic flight training and even teaching middle school children to build their own drones using a 3D printer.

“Now we’re going into business and construction applications,” Sherman said.

He said Germanna’s Center for Workforce is prepared to help local businesses navigate evolving  federal and state drone regulations.

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New Career and Transfer Center making sure students on right path

The counselors in Germanna’s new Career and Transfer Center have a question for GCC students:

“Do you know what you want to study and do you know where you want to transfer?”

Marie Hawley and Sheryl Williamson want to make sure students are on the right path--that there are as few missteps as possible. Missteps can be costly both in terms of time and money, they say, slowing students on their way to degrees and costing thousands of dollars in extra tuition and lost earnings. 

Career Counselor Hawley says of the new Center:

“This is an opportunity for students to really put together their career interests, things they’d like to study and make sure the pieces fit together to transfer for a bachelor’s degree.”

 Hawley said that when it comes to certain programs at universities where Germanna has a guaranteed transfer agreement, “we have to inform [students] that you cannot just do general studies and transfer--you need a degree focus.”

For example, she said, Germanna may have a guaranteed transfer agreement with a university, but not guaranteed entry into its business school without certain prerequisites.

Transfer Counselor Sheryl Williamson said: “We try to encourage students to look ahead. … What sometimes happens is that student graduates with that mentality transfer, they are then faced with taking additional math classes.”

“Or not admitted to the program,” Hawley said. “But if you prepare properly, you can align yourself.”

 “If you start at a four-year school, you have to declare a major by your junior year,” Williamson pointed out, adding that Germanna students should be thinking about that major before they transfer.

“The sooner you know where you want to go and what you want to do, the sooner you can match up your course work so it transfers more seamlessly,” Hawley said.

The Career and Transfer Center also offers assessments through the Virginia Education Wizard, counseling and information sessions and workshops in resume writing and mock job interviews. It also brings representatives from over 40 colleges and universities on campus as part of an annual College Fair. This year’s event will be held from 9 a.m. to noon at the Daniel Center in Culpeper and from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 21 at the Fredericksburg Area Campus in Spotsylvania.

The Center also offers resources “to help identify career paths students may not even know exist,” Hawley said.

It also helps connect students and employers for internships.

Williamson and Hawley have over 50 years of combined experience in education.

The Career and Transfer Center is located in room 228 of the Dickinson Building at the Fredericksburg Area Campus in Spotsylvania.

The Center phone number is 540/834-1841.

Email addresses for the Center:

Career Counselor Marie Hawley mhawley@germanna.edu

Transfer Counselor Sheryl Williamson swilliamson@germanna.edu

Sabrina Dunaway sdunaway@germanna.edu

Career and Transfer Center's Sheryl Williamson and Marie Hawley

Get an early start on college with Dual Enrollment

Attention High School Students

Get an Early Start on Your College Education with Dual Enrollment.
Through your school's partnership with Germanna Community College, current high school students have opportunities to take college courses while in high school.  Learn more at an upcoming Dual Enrollment Information Session:

Through Dual Enrollment courses, students gain exposure to college academics, learn from instructors with credentials to teach at the college level,  and have access to GCC Resources that facilitate student success.  Students earn college credit (most of which transfer to 4 year-colleges and universities) while fulfilling high school graduation requirements!

For more information, please visit the Germanna Community College
http://www.germanna.edu/dual-enrollment/

Getting to Know: Donna Alexander, Student Success Coach

 Germanna Community College has launched a Student Success Coach Program. The coaches stay with students all the way through their time at Germanna, giving them the help they need to succeed in college and in life.
We'll meet each of the coaches in a series of Q&A profiles--Student Success Coach Donna

Donna Alexander

Alexander works with students at GCC's Fredericksburg Area Campus in Spotsylvania.

·     Where are you from?

I'm from London, Ontario Canada. I now live in Fredericksburg.

·     Where did you go to high school and college and what degrees do you have?

I went to high school in London, Ontario Canada and then attended two years at Fanshawe College in London, Ontario, where I obtained a Medical Administration diploma.  In 2000 I married a Marine and moved to a place I had never even heard of, Beaufort, S.C.  I started working at The University of South Carolina as a program specialist with a trio program.  I started taking courses toward my Bachelor’s Degree.  After my husband retired, he started a second career in D.C. and we moved to Fredericksburg in 2004.  I started taking more courses at Germanna.  After 8 years of assisting students and encouraging them to obtain their education, I decided to resign my position to do the same.  I graduated in May 2014 with my B.S. in Business and Psychology from Liberty University.  I'm deciding on which program I will take toward my master’s.

·     How long have you worked at Germanna?

I worked here from 2004 to 2012 in Tutoring Services; I came back to work at GCC Locust Grove Campus Counseling from February to June, 2014.  I started back on September as a Student Success Coach.

·     What do you like about working at Germanna? About being a Student Success Coach?

I love that Germanna employees are so committed to the academic success of each and every student! It is wonderful to be part of an environment in which we are all working together with the same purpose.

Being a Student Success Coach allows me to spend much more time with students.  I had always felt when I was in tutoring, that sometimes it isn’t the material of the class the student struggles with.  I saw students struggling with confidence.  They didn’t have someone telling them they could do this.  They didn’t have someone cheering them on.  Now I get to actually do this with students, and I couldn’t be happier.

·     What’s the biggest challenge you face in your job?

So far, the only challenge has been getting students to make initial contact.  Once they do and I can explain what my role is in their academics, they are thrilled. 

·     What’s your advice for Germanna students?

Follow directions and go to all your classes.  For instance, if an instructor wants you to complete a paper in a certain style and length and gives you a due date,  give them what they ask for.  Most of all, take advantage of the free resources available when you need help.  You never have to go it alone at Germanna!

·     For students graduating from high school and thinking about college?

If you are thinking about college, go to Germanna first.  You'll not only save a considerable amount of money, but you will become part of a very comfortable environment with staff that are here to see you succeed!  It will make the transition to higher education much smoother.

·     For older students thinking about returning to college?

There is the feeling for older students that they are going to be the only one. Germanna has many mature students and that's why a community college is a great environment for a returning student.  As a mature student myself, I understand the rigors of balancing work, children and life.  Germanna has the resources available to help with that.

·     What misconception does the public have about community colleges and community college students?

I'm not sure, but perhaps they think that community college is not as prestigious as a four-year institution, but with Germanna’s guaranteed transfer admission agreements, it makes sense to start here.  Here at Germanna the classes are smaller and much more affordable.  Also, the resources to help with the transition to college are more personal.

·     Are you married and do you have children?

I'm married to a retired Marine, Denny; and have a 12-year-old daughter, Olivia.  I also have four grown, inherited children (I hate to say step).

·     Fun fact about you?

I love trivia so much that I read trivia books and play Jeopardy and Trivial Pursuit on my game system at home. 

·     What’s your favorite book?

"The Collected Works of Edgar Allan Poe"

·     Your favorite movie?

"Bridesmaids," "The Avengers," and "Raiders of the Lost Ark"

·     Your favorite TV show?

"Game of Thrones" and "Modern Family"

·     Your favorite sport and team?

Hockey of course! The Montreal Canadiens.

Culpeper, Germanna talk about the future

Dozens of Culpeper leaders from the fields of business, education and politics met last week with Germanna Community College officials incuding GCC President David A. Sam during a “visioning” session at the Daniel Technology Center to discuss a wish list of things they’d like from the college in the future.

Germanna Dean of Professional and Technical Studies Denise Guest writes suggestions gathered during a Culpeper Visioning Session at GCC’s Daniel Technology Center.

In essence, they want Germanna to help them build a  future Culpeper where good careers that pay well allow their children and grandchildren to stay and raise their own families.

Germanna President David A. Sam talks with Culpeper leaders about the county’s future

Among the things mentioned as possibilities:

• An increasing selection of Dual Enrollment classes, which allow students to earn transferrable college credit at their high schools—in some cases getting their associate’s degree before graduating from high school

• An elderhostel

• Agricultural technology.

• Nanotechnology

• Expanded workforce training partnerships

• Transportation to the college

• More apprenticeships

• Expansion of partnerships with public schools

• More campus life to attract traditional students

• Increasing support for entrepreneurism