THE FOLLOWING IS A DANVILLE AREA COMMUNITY COLLEGE RELEASE
DANVILLE — In its storied history, DACC has produced four faculty who received national recognition from the Association of Community College Trustees as winners of the prestigious Meardy Award. No other community college in the country can boast of more than two Meardy winners.
Science Professor Kathy Sturgeon is the last Meardy winner still teaching at DACC. The former dean of Math, Sciences, and Health Professions returned to the classroom last year on a mission: Revamping DACC’s engineering program.
While she was a dean, Prof. Sturgeon introduced a waiver program that awards two free classes (a $1,000 value) for students who receive a B or higher in Calculus I and Physics I. Says Prof. Sturgeon, “Students who do well in both disciplines tend to be successful in engineering. These are students who ought to consider engineering as a major.”
During this past semester, Prof. Sturgeon introduced the second part for her plan to enhance DACC’s engineering program—by adopting a hybrid option. Prof. Sturgeon says, “The lab is the face to face component. All lectures are done online. The labs will be conducted in a one-week period, during finals weeks. This allows students who live both inside and outside the District to reduce travel cost.”
An engineering degree can open many doors for students. “There are many types of engineering. Once a student chooses a type, there are several separate career paths for each category. The salary is around $80,000.”
Prof. Sturgeon also points out that students graduating with an Associate in Enginerring Science from DACC have transfered to some of the nation’s top engineering universities, including the University of Illinois, where they do as well as or better than the students who started at that university.
