Fall 2013 Edition | Parent Advisory Council

I ♥ COFC

Two-hundred and forty plus years of being student centered, and we like to think we do a pretty good job at it. We invest in putting our students first and offer resources and programs to support them. Our Center for Student Learning (CSL) does just that. CSL exists to help with the development and refinement of: effective learning strategies, time and task management, effective reading, note taking, communication, motivation, self-awareness, and numerous other competencies. Some students may need assistance developing these important skills, while some may just need to hone them.

CSL has walk-in labs, peer tutoring, workshops, and an online library focused on your student’s success with information on everything from note taking to test taking to time management. While it may be hard to ask for help sometime, there are resources both online and in person so that every student has the opportunity to get the help they need. In the game of life, the CSL is like your training camp before the season starts. Gotta hone those skills to win the big game (or get that A in a class)! 45% of our students take advantage of the resources at CSL; which is no surprise, since it supports over 130 courses!

Peruse their website, and encourage your student to do so as well. The Center for Student Learning is located within the Addlestone Library.

Clyde’s Top 10 List

This month, Clyde chatted with Harry and Elena Coniaris from Colts Neck, NJ, parents of Chelsea ‘14, about their Top Ten list of favorite College of Charleston and Charleston activities and moments.

Here is Harry and Elena’s top ten list of Charleston favorites:

The anticipation of driving into the College of Charleston across the Cooper River on the stunning Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge.
Vacations on Kiawah Island; one of which in 2006 our daughter first fell in love with the College of Charleston and INSISTED she would attend one day.
The mother/daughter ritual of shopping on King Street. The father/daughter ritual of running along the Battery.
The College’s affiliation with the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) which has enabled our daughter to work and volunteer for a prestigious medical institution.
Having the College campus exist in the heart of a rich, historical, cultural, and dynamic center of town.
The thrill of listening to and meeting Elie Wiesel at the College of Charleston’s Sottile Theatre on September 25, 2011 during Family Weekend.
The privilege of being a member of The Parent Advisory Council.
DINING, DINING & More DINING! Breakfast at Hominy Grill, lunch at Five Loaves Cafe, dinner at Hank’s, and Coconut Cake at Peninsula Grill.
The uniqueness, the southern hospitality, and the charm of The College of Charleston and its surroundings.
Witnessing the joy & bliss that our daughter has experienced as a College of Charleston student for the last four years…priceless!

5-Minute Professor

This issue, we have the pleasure of hearing from Fran Welch, Ph.D., Dean of the School of Education, Health, and Human Performance.

About Dean Welch

Dean Welch has devoted more than 35 years of her professional life to the education and development of teachers, health professionals and youth. As the dean of the School of Education, Health, and Human Performance, she has overseen planning and construction of a new building for the school; designed and initiated the Teacher Leader program to promote leadership among future educators; implemented the Call Me Mister program to encourage African American males to become teachers; formed the Center for Partnerships to Improve Education; initiated an Early Childhood Summit; and lead several successful national reaccreditations. She has expanded international education opportunities by establishing the English Language Institute at the College of Charleston, facilitating a bilateral agreement with National Kaohsiung Normal University (Taiwan), and launching an exchange program in Ecuador. Under Welch’s leadership, the School has also launched new majors in foreign language education, exercise science, public health, and secondary education; M.Ed. degrees in Languages and Language Education and in Teaching, Learning and Advocacy; and MAT degrees in the Performing Arts and Middle Grades Education. Welch enjoys teaching and often involves undergraduate and graduate students in her research, writing and presentations.

Q&A with Dean Welch

1. What is the Call Me MISTER program?

Research has shown that if an African American male has at least one African American male teacher between grades PK-8, that child is three times more likely to graduate AND go on to college; yet less than 1% of all PK-12 teachers in South Carolina are African American males. The Call Me MISTER program is one of the ways the College is working to address this shortage of minority teachers. The MISTER program (Men Instructing Students Toward Effective Role modeling) is designed to recruit and retain more African American male teachers by providing scholarships, academic support, and the social and cultural support of a close cohort of students. Call Me MISTER was developed by South Carolina’s visionary educational leaders who sincerely believe we can build a better tomorrow by getting our teachers involved today. We currently have an incredible group of 20 MISTERS.

Scholarships play a significant role for many students at the College, particularly those in EHHP who are pursuing careers in education, where teacher salaries tend to be low. Because of this, I have made it my mission to increase scholarship opportunities to help ensure EHHP students graduate with as little debt as possible.

2. What is the Cradle to Career program and how will it impact the opportunities for your students?

The College of Charleston was selected to be a host incubator for the Tri County Cradle-to-Career Collaborative (TCCC) program for three years while TCCC works to form their own non-profit corporation. Anita Zucker, business leader, philanthropist and College supporter, has been the impetus behind the vision and implementation of this program. The goal is to utilize collective impact to improve education in our community by using a data-driven approach to evaluate indicators like graduation rates, educational achievement, work force and college readiness rates. The College has been involved as a partner in this organization since its earliest phases, and as Dean, I will continue to be an active member of the organization, working in close partnership with their new CEO once hired.

One of the reasons CofC was selected was because of the great repository of resources—including our building, our materials, and our own students and faculty. Our teacher education students and faculty will be involved in this collaboration. We will work together to support the programs, analyze the data, and identify ways to better utilize the resources available within our community to positively impact education.

TCCC’s goals are ambitious yet attainable:

Every child will be prepared for school.
Every child will be supported in and out of school.
Every child will succeed academically.
Every child will graduate from high school prepared for post-secondary education and/or employment.
Every student enrolled in post-secondary education will complete it successfully and will enter a career.

It is safe to say, that CofC students will have some sort of impact on the achievement of each and every one of these goals.

3. What is our Teacher Leader Program?

The Teacher Leader program fosters the professional development of highly motivated students by providing them with challenging extracurricular opportunities in the education community. Our goal is for Teacher Leaders to fully understand the educational landscape and to give them the tools to traverse this landscape as effective communicators, problem solvers, and innovators.

The Teacher Leader program is highly selective, with a maximum of ten participants per year. They are self-nominated with a faculty letter of recommendation, and the program takes place their senior year. Recently, the current group of Teacher Leaders went to Washington DC to explore and experience all aspects of education. Their experience included meeting with the United States Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, and his staff. After their visit, the staff told the Teacher Leaders that if they were not told otherwise, they would have thought they were seasoned teachers, and not in the process of completing their degrees.

4. Could you tell us about your new degree programs, and how they fit into your vision for the School?

The School of Education, Health, and Human Performance (EHHP) has three new degree programs which launched in the past year – Foreign Language Education, Exercise Science and Public Health. These new degrees reflect how attentive our faculty and administration are in listening to the academic needs of our students and the demands for these professions in our community. Our School is committed to growing and evolving to fit the needs of the students and faculty, while positively impacting our community in general.

In Teacher Education, all of the programs are now majors. Until recently, students could minor in secondary and foreign language education, doing the work equivalent to a major while only receiving minors in those specialized areas. Research says that to be an excellent teacher, you need to know what and how to teach. Since CofC is in the business of preparing excellent teachers, we were determined to ensure our students had the major curriculum to back that up.

In Health and Human Performance, our BS in Public Health is the now the fastest growing major at the College. Exercise Science is also seeing a rapid increase in students. Up until a few years ago, when they were concentrations, these programs were not as well known. The faculty heard that students had a desire and passion for these Health and Human Performance curriculum, but they were buried in a concentration.

Being a student centered institution, those concentrations rapidly grew into majors, and we continue to graduate successful students who go onto careers and graduate schools.

Events You Don’t Want to Miss

There is never a dull moment on campus or in the city of Charleston! Make sure you mark these dates on your calendar as can’t miss events. Spring is packed full of Charleston events, so many of those dates are included here. You might want to choose one of these phenomenal Charleston experiences as a good time to come visit your student!

College of Charleston Events

Charleston Events

Bookmark cofcsports.com to get the schedules as they come out for all of our 21 varsity sports that make the College proud!

What We’re Watching

Orientation is your first big introduction to the College of Charleston family for both you, and your student. We want the College of Charleston to feel like home to your student, and we want you to feel confident that they will grow and flourish into the stellar people they are. Our Department of New Student Programs puts on a top notch orientation program—10 throughout the summer! Since we focus on our students, what else would we do but hand the camera to our students to make this video about orientation and the Class of 2017!

What Your Kids Don’t Tell You

CofC is packed full of resources to support your students. We are also packed full of newsletters to share our news, successes, planning, and student experience. Here are some helpful links to our various campus newsletters to help keep you informed!

Bookmark the The College Today news page as there are always informative announcements and releases about exciting and admirable events regarding our campus, students, faculty, and staff.

Parents’ Fund

The Parents’ Fund supports scholarships, networking opportunities, and exceptional faculty focused on your student’s success. For more information, visit the the Parents’ Fund webpage.