The Blue & White is published weekly for St. Petersburg College employees and interested visitors. It is designed for you to be able to scan the headlines quickly. If you are interested in an article listed below, click on the link and you will be directed to that article. You also can view the paper version locations or the printable pdf. Calendar items with a specific deadline are marked with an *. Apollo finalists announcedFour outstanding sophomores are finalists for the Apollo Awards, the highest honor an SPC associate degree recipient can achieve. The finalists include an Early College student, a member of the first graduating class from that program in which students earn an associate degree and a high school diploma simultaneously. One finalist will be named the Apollo Award winner at the college’s 109th commencement ceremony on May 9. The award, given each year since 1966, is presented by the St. Petersburg College Alumni Association. Winners are chosen for their leadership, scholastic standing, community service, honors and awards. The finalists, in alphabetical order, are: Margaret Beck
Margaret Beck is graduating with a 4.0 grade-point average. She has served as both Vice President and Legislative Representative for the Student Government Association at her campus and was voted “Best of the Best” Legislative Representative in 2006-08. Beck is a member of Phi Theta Kappa – Eta Nu, SPC Honors College and SPC Medical Club, and has served as SPC Student Republican Association President since 2006. She has presented topics in 2008 and 2009 at SPC Honors College conferences, 2008 Florida Collegiate Honors Council Conference and 2009 Southern Regional Honors Council Conference. She was named St. Petersburg/Gibbs Honors College Student of the Year in 2007-08, named to the Servant Leader Hall of Fame in 2006-07 and named to the SPC President’s Honor List from 2006-present. In addition to her academic excellence, Beck also has found time to volunteer for the SPC Relay for Life, St. Vincent de Paul blanket/food drives and the All-Children’s Hospital Telethon. She volunteers with the SPC Natural Sciences/Student Activities Department, Bayfront Medical Center Admitting Department and the Pinellas County Republican Party. Beck intends to pursue a medical career and become a surgeon. "Involvement with student organizations has honed my leadership and communication skills, tools that I will continue to utilize in every facet of my community, and I am eager to continue this after graduation. These tools, combined with the genuine interest professors have taken in my academic success, have convinced me there are truly no limits on my future education." Colin Del Degan
Colin Del Degan is graduating with a 3.92 grade-point average. As a membership team leader at his campus’ Phi Theta Kappa chapter, he takes the lead role in planning membership ceremonies for new recruits. These planning skills, along with his membership in the college’s Democrat and Republican Club, allowed him to set up relations with campaign headquarters during the recent election, offering members of the club an opportunity to volunteer as well. Staying active politically, Del Degan has debated in SPC’s Great Debate, served as proctor for SPC’s Mock Election and attended Congressman Bill Young’s RNC watching party. He has participated in fundraisers for the benefit of hurricane victims, volunteered for book collection in his campus’ Better World Books Drive, and participated in Relay for Life 2008 and Field of Screams through Phi Theta Kappa. He is a member of the President’s Honor List and a recipient of the 2008 Derby Lane Scholarship. Del Degan hopes to earn a degree in accounting and become a CPA. He would like to eventually open his own accounting firm, specializing in tax law. "Now that my journey for my A.A. degree is finally coming to a close, I can truly reflect on how beneficial SPC has been to my personal development. It has been an amazing ride."
Gezime Ismaili
Gezime Ismaili is graduating with a 4.0 grade-point average. She is President of Phi Theta Kappa, Treasurer of the High Achievers Club and is an SPC Student Ambassador. Ismaili has been named to Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges, the 2009 All-Florida Academic Team and the President’s Honor List for three terms. She also has received the Chevrons and Bars award, as well as the Track and Field varsity award from 2007–09. She has spent time outside of the classroom volunteering at the Dr. Mack J. Williams Awards and Habitat for Humanity, and has given more than 120 volunteer tutor hours in accounting and statistics. Ismaili is an Early College student, participating in college and high school activities simultaneously. As a high school student, she has served as the Library Committee President, Track Team captain, Magazine Editor-in-Chief, Multicultural Leader and as a member of the Principal’s Leadership Council and the National Honor Society. Ismaili hopes to pursue a career in executive health care management. "Growing up in Kosovo during wartime influenced my perception of education and the American dream. My SPC experience equipped me to seek opportunities in reaching my potential, to persevere through the struggle of pursing goals and to view the world in a different way." Melinda Thackrah
Melinda Thackrah is graduating with a 3.96 grade point average. Thackrah was named the 2008 Honors College Scholar of the Year and was nominated for Who’s Who Among Students in America’s Junior Colleges in 2008 and 2009. She was the 2008 recipient of the Vilma Zalupski “Continuing the Dream Scholarship” award. Thackrah organized and led “Election 2008,” an Honors College fundraiser, to raise awareness of diverse party viewpoints and the importance of the right to vote during last year’s election. She has been a presenter at college, state and regional levels of Honors Council Research conferences in 2008 and was the student coordinator for the Second Annual St. Petersburg College Honors College Research Conference. An active member of Phi Theta Kappa, she participated in the organization’s “Tau Zeta Street Clean-up” last November. She also has worked as a volunteer bell ringer for the Salvation Army and volunteers for Revolutions Dance Company, a non-for-profit organization that teaches the physically impaired to dance. Thackrah hopes to pursue a doctorate and return to St. Petersburg College as an academic librarian. "Part of a leadership role demands setting an example for others to follow and I think that I have succeeded in that through campus activities and my volunteer work." Emergency Notification testOn April 24, the college will test its Emergency Notification System. All means of the notification will be tested at the same time. After the test we will send you a survey to see how the college did.
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Listen to a sample 
Tickets are $5. Tickets and information are available by calling the Tarpon Springs Performing Arts Center at 727-942-5605 or The Palladium at 727-822-3590. Admission for SPC students is free. Discounts Palladium: Faculty, staff and students receive a 10 percent discount to all shows produced by the Palladium or its partners at the Palladium. |
Friday, April 17
St. Petersburg College Concert Chorus: Mendelssohn’s “Elijah,” with the 130-voice choir, along with soloists Todd Donovan, Marilyn Michael and Brad Meredith. Mendelssohn’s legendary oratorio commemorates the 200th anniversary of his birth. 7:30 p.m., Palladium. Free admission.
April 17-May 10
American Stage in the Park: Altar Boyz, 8 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday, Demens Landing, St. Petersburg. $11-$14.
Saturday, April 18
Course: How to Look at Art, with Arthur R. Blumenthal, Director Emeritus of the Cornell Fine Arts Museum at Rollins College. 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art. Registration required by April 10. $75 members, $85 non-members, includes lunch and coffee breaks.
April 18-19
Florida Orchestra Masterworks Concert: Schumann: Symphony No. 2, Stefan Sanderling, Conductor; Katherine Young, oboe. 8 p.m. Saturday, April 18, Mahaffey Theater; and 7:30 p.m. Sunday, April 19, Ruth Eckerd Hall. $19-$65.
NEW - April 21
Jazz in the Stacks Concert, 7:30 p.m. West St. Petersburg Community Library, St. Petersburg/Gibbs Campus. Free.
Thursday, April 23
Student Recital, 12:30 p.m., St. Petersburg College Music Center. Free.
Thursday, April 23
Opening reception: The 28th Annual congressional High School Art Competition and Exhibition. 7 p.m. Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art Auditorium. Free.
Thursday, April 23
St. Petersburg College Percussion Ensemble Concert, 7:30 p.m. St. Petersburg College Music Center. Free.
April 23-25
CoMotion Dance Theatre Concert, 8 p.m. Clearwater Campus Auditorium. Free.
Friday, April 24
St. Petersburg College Band Concert, 7:30 p.m. St. Petersburg College Music Center. Free.
NEW - April 24-May 5
Student Charrette Art Show, Fine Arts Building, Tarpon Springs Campus. Reception April 25. Free.
April 24-May 9
The 28th Annual congressional High School Art Competition and Exhibition. Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art Auditorium. Free.
Saturday, April 25
St. Petersburg College Spring Chorus Concert, 3 and 7:30 p.m. St. Petersburg College Music Center. Free.
Saturday, April 25
Dick and Derek at the Movies, with legendary pianists, Dick Hyman and Derek Smith. 8 p.m., Palladium. $50 VIP (includes reception with the artists) $25, $20.
Monday, April 27
St. Petersburg College Orchestra Concert, 7:30 p.m. St. Petersburg College Music Center. Free.
Thursday, April 28
Encore 2009 Chamber Series: C’est Magnifique! Zamparas, Sforzini and Landmeyer, the final Encore concert of the season, featuring an all-star trio that includes former Florida Orchestra principals Mark Sforzini (bassoon) and Catherine Landmeyer (flute), along with Grigorios Zamparas (piano), in a program of works by Debussy, Sforzini, Poulenc, Saint-Saens and Beethoven. 7:30 p.m., Palladium. $10, $15, $20.
Thursday, April 30
Student Recital, 12:30 p.m., St. Petersburg College Music Center. Free.
Thursday, April 30
Side Door Jazz: Nate Najar Trio with Chuck Redd, featuring Palladium favorite Najar, along with John Lamb on bass, and Washington D.C. jazz favorite Redd on vibes. 7:30 p.m., Stavros Great Room, Palladium. $20.
Friday, May 1
St. Petersburg College Piano Concert Series: Dolores Gadevsky, solo recital, 7:30 p.m. St. Petersburg College Music Center, St. Petersburg/Gibbs Campus. Free.
May 1-3
Florida Orchestra Masterworks Concert: Brahms: Symphony No. 3, Stefan Sanderling, Conductor; Karen Gomyo, violin. 8 p.m. Friday, May 1, Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center; 8 p.m. Saturday, May 2, Mahaffey Theater; and 7:30 p.m. Sunday, May 3, Ruth Eckerd Hall. $19-$65.
May 2
Florida Artist Group: 58th Annual Exhibition Members Opening Reception. 7 p.m. Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art Fine Arts Lobby. Free to members. $10 for guests.
May 3- July 19
Florida Artist Group: 58th Annual Exhibition. Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art Auditorium. Free.
May 15-17
Florida Orchestra Masterworks Concert: Mahler Symphony No. 2, Resurrection, Stefan Sanderling, Conductor. Featuring the Master Chorale of Tampa Bay, Richard Zielinski, artistic and music director. 8 p.m. Friday, May 15, Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center; 8 p.m. Saturday, May 16, Mahaffey Theater; and 7:30 p.m. Sunday, May 17, Ruth Eckerd Hall. $19-$65.
Check out the upcoming events at the Florida Orchestra in their online calendar:
April | May
This article and other health information are available on our Wellness blog.
Wellness Challenge survey results
More than 100 Wellness Challenge participants completed a survey to evaluate the first collegewide team event.
Here is a summary of survey feedback:
A majority of participants agree that a wellness program is important and would like to see the Wellness Challenge continue. 50% of participants surveyed said that they would like to see the Challenge continue during each term.
The survey question “Did you make a lifestyle change?” offered positive feedback and comments; 61% of those surveyed said that a positive change was made. When asked what change was made, respondents shared these comments: “I have lost 15 pounds and truly think before I eat!,”“Drinking more water, watching fat intake, eating more fruits and veggies,” and “Am diligent in exercising 30 minutes a day, where I was somewhat ambivalent before. Am also vigilant in eating the five servings of fruits and veggies.”
Accountability, encouragement and team camaraderie were listed as some of the more useful aspects of the challenge. One employee comment sums it up: “Team was the most helpful. We shared ideas and data and encouraged each other to continue."
In addition, there were many suggestions on how to make the next challenge even better!
The next challenge will be scheduled for fall (date not determined) and will incorporate many of the positive changes suggested by participants. Clearly stated revised guidelines and a user-friendly tracker and other positive changes are in store.
Congratulations to all that participated. Everyone is a winner for taking steps to improve personal wellness.
To explore additional wellness updates, visit the SPC Wellness blog.
Locker Room: SPC baseball team battling for second in conference
With three Suncoast Conference games remaining, the college baseball team is in second place in the conference, one game ahead of Pasco-Hernando Community College.
Manatee CC clinched the conference title last week. Manatee is 17-5 in the conference and SPC is 12-10.
Finishing second is important because it is an advantage in determining the second conference representative for the state tournament in Winter Haven May 8-12.
The second place finisher meets the winner of a one-game playoff between the third and fourth place finishers. The state representative is based on a best-of-three series with the third and fourth winner.
SPC ends its season with a critical two-game series with PHCC starting Saturday at PHCC, then closes the regular season at home Monday at 6 p.m. at Carpenter Complex.
The softball team is second place after taking doubleheaders from South Florida CC and Pasco-Hernando CC. Polk CC leads the conference and Manatee, which has led most of the way, is third. The top three finishers advance to the state tournament April 30-May 3 in Winter Haven.
The team ended the conference 14-6, the same record as Polk CC, but SPC’s head-to-head record against Polk left SPC in second place.
The team ends its regular season with a doubleheader Saturday at 1 p.m. at Eddie C. Moore in Clearwater against Lake Sumter CC. The team closes the regular season at home April 26 against Miami Dade College at noon.
This is the big week for the tennis team. Despite a 7-11 record, the team is optimistic entering the state tournament Saturday and Sunday at Hillsborough CC. The top two teams at the state tournament advance to the national event.
For results please visit www.spcollege.edu/athletics.
Earth day at SPC
Environmental clubs at each St. Petersburg College campus have announced Earth Day activities that will take place Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
Tuesday - Seminole Campus
- Environmental Science Club will run environmental documentaries in the Digitorium, 10 a.m..
- Lecture series with speakers from the U.S. Green Building Council, the Clearwater Marine Aquarium and Seminole Public Works, University Partnership Center lobby, 12:45 p.m.
- Representatives from Tampa Bay Watch, the Clearwater Marine Aquarium, Pinellas County Utilities, Pinellas County Extension, the SPC Office for Sustainability and the Seminole campus Environmental Club will operate information booths in the UPC lobby.
- Tree planting, 1:30 p.m.
Wednesday - Clearwater Campus
- Club Green will run environmental documentaries, including the SPC-produced and WEDU-aired “Go Green, Tampa Bay” and pass out informational flyers and envelopes filled with plant seeds donated by Hallmark Development of Florida, Inc. in the quad, noon.
- A live oak tree donated by Florida’s Finest Landscape Services, Inc. will be dedicated by Provost Stan Vittetoe and planted on campus, 1:00 p.m.
Thursday - St. Petersburg/Gibbs Campus
- Friends of Florida Environmental Club will serve free smoothies and sponsor a build-your-own salad bar.
- Representatives from Pinellas County Utilities Recycling, Pinellas County Extension/Florida Yards and Neighborhoods, Keep Pinellas Beautiful, Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA) and the Sierra Club will be on hand to educate students on the environmental benefits of recycling, locally appropriate landscaping and pest control, litter removal and prevention, mass transit and environmentalism.
- The campus quad will play host to a drum circle.
Student activists recently created environmental clubs on each SPC campus to sponsor and encourage events such as those listed above.
“These student activists make up the next generation of leaders,” said Jason Green, SPC’s Sustainability Coordinator. “They realize the importance of creating a community of college students who care about their environment and appreciate the need to leave their world in a better, more sustainable place than as it was found.”
To learn more about SPC’s environmental club activities, visit www.spcollege.edu/sustainability or contact Jason Green at 727-341-3283.
Onward & Upward
Cathy King, Sarah Moseley and Beverly Hindenlang, faculty in the College of Nursing, were speakers at HSPN '09 conference in Tampa on March 17. HPSN is the largest education, training and networking medical simulation community in the world.
They presented the findings from their work on the ‘2007 Succeed Florida Critical Professionals Nursing Program' grant. They developed an educational project to provide ADN nursing faculty a broad overview of the Simulation Center for Nursing Excellence (SCENE), which is a ‘hospital-like' environment with high-fidelity and low-fidelity human patient simulators (HPS) as patients.
Literature has shown that faculty members need time and instruction to become skilled in using HPS as a teaching strategy. In addition, research concludes that HPS provide an optimal learning environment when there is experienced faculty available to operate HPS and manage the complexity of the simulated patient responses.
On SPC-TV
Here is the broadcast schedule for the original cultural programs recorded by SPC for broadcast on the college station. SPC-TV can be seen on Bright House 620, Knology 19 and Verizon 47 in Pinellas County.
Monday 9 p.m., Wednesday noon and Saturday 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. For details on other Department of Music events, visit the Department of Music Web site.
» The Music Center Presents: St. Petersburg College Band
Sunday noon and 9 p.m.; Friday 8 p.m.
» A Night at the Palladium: Harambee; African Culture Showcase
Monday 9 p.m.; Saturday 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. For details on other Palladium events, visit the Palladium Web site.
» A Night at the Palladium: An Evening with Rosa Rio
Sunday 11 a.m. and 8 p.m.; Tuesday 9 p.m. For details on other Palladium events, visit the Palladium Web site.
» A Night at the Palladium: Nathan Laube
Monday 8 p.m.; Friday 9 p.m.
For details on other Palladium events, visit the Palladium Web site.
» A Night at the Palladium: Valentine and Stardust
Wednesday, 9 p.m. and Saturday at noon and 9 p.m. For details on other Palladium events, visit the Palladium Web site.