Germanna announces faculty Learning Environment Award winners

Germanna Community College has announced its Spring 2015 faculty Learning Environment Award winners.

The awards recognize extraordinary and exemplary contributions to the learning environment by fulltime teaching faculty in one or more of the following areas: Teaching, Scholarly and Creative Engagement, Institutional Responsibility, and Service to the college or the community.

Winners of Learning Environment Awards for Spring 2015

Vanessa Sekinger

Kelley Lloyd

April Morgan

Leigh Hancock

Patricia Parker

Mike Read

Carolyn Pevey

Carrie Lowry

Brenda Robinson

Jean Lauzon

Eric Vanover

David Marsich

Brent Wilson

Wen Maier

Angela Sheaffer

Camille Mustachio

Jerry Miller

Diane Merkel

Brenda Dixon

Marie Messier

Jamie Lennahan

John Stroffolino

Gayle Wolfe

Monique Lewis

Kellie Bradshaw

Gretchen Warren

Julie Fasano

Jessica Matheson

Maury Wrightson

Shawn Shields-Maxwell

Caring faculty at Germanna made all the difference for Christina Martino

Christina Martino says she chose Germanna Community College because students are “not just another number” here.

The 20-year-old Martino, who was elected 2013-14 Student Government Association vice president, is a Spotsylvania County native who was home-schooled. She will be the student commencement speaker when she graduates tomorrow during 7 p.m. ceremonies at the Fredericksburg Expo Center and plans to transfer to Liberty University in the fall.

“My older sister went here and said there’s one-on-one attention from the professors. The class sizes are smaller and the faculty is much more involved here than at most colleges. I’m really impressed by how much they care about the students.”

Martino is considering going into special education as a career.

“I had some experiences in high school working with autistic children and I really enjoyed it,” she said.

Martino also cited affordability as a factor in her decision to start

She said she would tell others considering starting at a community college and transferring to get their bachelor’s degree that, “for me, it’s been a great option. Germanna provides great resources—including free tutoring—along with faculty who care about you and your personal success. I think there’s a '13th grade' misconception about community colleges. Like most things in life, community college is what you make it. I think Germanna provides what’s necessary and goes above and beyond in helping students.”

She cited psychology Prof. Michael Shockey and English Prof. Cheryl Huff as examples of faculty members who provide university- quality instruction with personal attention.

“They really care about the students and love their jobs,” Martino said.

Join Germanna faculty, students, alumni on Spring Break 2013 tour of Italy

A group of people from the Germanna community will be traveling to Italy for Spring Break, 2013. The group will be visiting Rome, Florence and Venice seeing the highlights of this beautiful country.

Tour Itinerary

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Day 1 Start Tour •

Day 2 Ciao Venice Meet your Tour Director, travel to Venice & check into hotel Dinner en route to Venice •

Day 3 Venice Landmarks Venice Guided Walking Sightseeing Tour with Whisper headsets St. Mark’s Square, Basilica, Doges’ Palace visit, Glass-blowing demo •

Day 4 Venice--Florence Travel to Florence Verona Tour Director-led Sightseeing Tour Romeo and Juliet balcony, Roman Arena Italian Pizza dinner •

Day 5 Florence Landmarks Florence Guided Walking Sightseeing Tour with Whisper headsets Palazzo Vecchio, Piazza della Signoria, Chiesa di Santa Croce, Ponte Vecchio, Duomo visit, Leather workshop, Gates of Paradise, Giotto’s Bell Tower, Dante's house Baptistery visit, Leaning Tower Dinner •

Day 6 Florence--Rome Travel to Rome Rome Guided Walking Sightseeing Tour with Whisper headsets Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel visit, St. Peter’s Basilica visit, Colosseum visit, Piazza Venezia, Forum Romanum visit Dinner •

Day 7 Rome Landmarks Rome City Walk Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navona Authentic Trattoria Dinner •

Day 8 End Tour

Tour Fee Includes:

Round-trip airfare

6 overnight stays in hotels with private bathrooms

Full European breakfast daily

Dinner daily

Full-time services of a professional Tour Director

Guided sightseeing tours and city walks as per itinerary

Visits to select attractions as per itinerary

Guided sightseeing tours with high-tech headset as per itinerary

Tour Diary™

Note: On arrival day only dinner is provided; on departure day, only breakfast is provided

This trip has limited availability left so be sure to get in quickly to secure your place! Tour fees will go up on June 26. The tour is being organized and led by Germanna faculty.

Email Prof. Kellie Bradshaw at kbradshaw@germanna.edu with questions, and for sign-up information, or go to https://www.explorica.com/sign-up.aspx and enter Bradshaw-9149. This trip is open to students, alumni, staff, faculty, adjuncts, and their families.