IN THIS EDITION:

“3XL: The Musical”

Achieving the Dream Conference

2014 Women’s Basketball Team

Staff Person of the Year

NCCCS Articulations Agreement

GTCC Cooks for a Cause

Spring Dessert Recipes

and more!

Articles and Photographs by Carla KucinskiDesign and Layout by Cheryl Hemric

Presenting ‘3XL: The Musical”Guilford Technical Community College’s Fine Arts Theatre will debut a new work, “3XL: The Musical,” with book and lyrics by North Carolina native Lori Mannette and music by GTCC drama instructor Giuseppe Ritorto, April 3-5 and April 10-12. All shows are at 8 p.m. at the Joseph S. Koury Hospitality Careers Center on GTCC’s Jamestown Campus, 601 High Point Road.

“3XL: The Musical” follows the hilarious journey of newlywed chefs Nick and Jen, who are offered a dream opportunity to host a show on the Cooking Channel. However, the test audience feels the couple is too fat to be appealing, so the

station gives Nick and Jen the ultimatum to lose weight fast or give up their chance for culinary stardom. Can their relationship survive for better or worse, in fitness and in fatness?

“The media puts the idea in people’s heads that we have to look and act a particular way to be accepted,” Ritorto said. “What I want to say with ‘3XL’ is that we need to accept who we are and forget about the social ideals that consume our everyday lives.”

The play’s initial concept came from Ritorto’s upbringing in Brooklyn, where he was raised by parents who were chefs. The drama and animated personalities in the culinary world became the foundation for the play, but over time a larger message evolved. “The show is about just loving yourself,” Ritorto said. “Be happy with who you are.”

Ritorto and Mannette became fast friends while both pursuing an MFA in musical theater writing from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Although Ritorto moved back to Greensboro after graduation and Mannette remained in New York, the two stayed in contact and vowed to one day create a musical together. They’ve spent the past two years collaborating across the miles on

“3XL.” From New York City to Greensboro, they shared and polished their ideas through Skype and emails, and the occasional face-to-face marathon sessions when Mannette was in North Carolina visiting family. The process has truly been a labor of love.

“I won’t sleep until April,” Ritorto says with a laugh.

June Guralnick, director of GTCC’s Theatre Program, is thrilled to be producing “3XL” and sees the play as a great learning experience for budding drama students.

“I selected this show because it’s a marvelous work with wonderful roles for young actors,” Guralnick said. “And I believe it’s important to enable our students to be involved in the production of new shows by contemporary authors. The experience gained on a musical like ‘3XL’ proves invaluable as our students continue in their theatrical careers.”

About Giuseppe RitortoBrooklyn, N.Y. native, Ritorto discovered his love of theater at age 10 when he acted in “Hello Dolly,” presented by the Greensboro-based Livestock Players. Since then, he has served as musical director at Catawba College, The Barter Theatre in Abingdon, Va, and recently composed an opera, “On a Falling Leaf,” and musical “Sweepstakes!” He teaches drama at GTCC.

About Lori MannetteMannette’s writing credits include “Carolina Breeze,” which has been featured at NYMF, Goodspeed Opera House, the New York Theatre Barn, and was named Best Musical 2012 by the NY Writers Summit; “Dead Woman Crossing” which has been performed at Playwright’s Horizons, and selections of which appear in the Feb/March 2013 issue of “The Dramatist” magazine; “Over the Hill,” and a comedy web series entitled “Sonny and Sherman” produced by Big Thunder Productions and starring Michael Indeglio and Broadway’s Drew Aber. Learn more at http://www.lorimannette.com.

Want to go?What: “3XL: The Musical,” with book

and lyrics by Lori Mannette and music by

Giuseppe Ritorto

When: 8 p.m. April 3-5 and April 10-12

Where: Fine Arts Theatre, Joseph S.

Koury Hospitality Careers Center, GTCC’s

Jamestown Campus, 601 High Point Road.

Admission: Tickets are $15, general

public; $10, GTCC staff and alumni;

$5, GTCC students, and available at the

High Point Theatre box office, located

at 220 E Commerce Ave., High Point,

by calling (336) 887-3001 or visiting

www.highpointtheatre.com. There is an

additional ticket surcharge for patrons

purchasing tickets online.

Etc.: A pre-show dinner will be offered by

GTCC’s Culinary Arts Program at 7 p.m.

April 3 and April 10 at the Joseph S. Koury

Hospitality Careers Center (first floor

dining room). Reservations are required

and can be made at http://culinary.gtcc.edu.

IN THIS EDITION:

‘3XL: The Musical’

Achieving the Dream Conference

2014 Women’s Basketball Team

Staff Person of the Year

NCCCS Articulation Agreement

GTCC Cooks for a Cause

Spring Dessert Recipes

. . . and more!

Articles and Photographs by Carla KucinskiDesign and Layout by Cheryl Hemric

Three faculty and staff members from GTCC gave presentations at DREAM 2014: The Achieving the Dream Annual Institute on Student Success Feb. 24-27 in Orlando, Fla. Achieving the Dream (http://www.achieving-thedream.org) is a na-tional reform network dedicated to community college student success and completion. GTCC is one of its leader colleges.

Representing GTCC at the conference was: Kristi Short, implementation director for Completion by Design, a five-year Bill & Melinda Gates Founda-tion initiative that works with commu-nity colleges to increase completion and graduation rates for low-income stu-dents under 26; Clark Wright, research

associate for Completion by Design; and Tim Boyd, research associate for Walmart PRESS (Persistence, Retention and Student Success) for Completion, a competitive grant program funded by the Walmart Foundation and ad-ministered by Achieving the Dream to address a common community college reform challenge: engaging full-time and adjunct faculty in student success efforts.

This year more than 1,600 participants

attended the Achieving the Dream conference to share and discuss meth-ods to increase student success. Short, Wright and Boyd presented, “Using Multiple Measures to Predict Academic Success through Remediation: HSGPA, Motivation and You.” The presentation will outline a research study conduct-ed at GTCC that suggests a multiple measures approach to remedial (devel-opmental) placement.

In addition, Short co-presented on the following topics:

• “Connecting the Dots: A Public School System, the Local Commu-nity College and a State University Work Together to Enhance Student Success”

• “Accelerating Developmental Stu-dents into Programs of Study: Mak-ing Headway in North Carolina”

• “Strengthening Transfer Pathways: Tips and Tools for Faculty Engage-ment”

GTCC Presents at Achieving the Dream Conference

2014 Women’s Basketball Team

The women’s basketball team finished the season with an overall record of 26 wins and 6 losses. The team finished 2nd in the Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference and runner-up in the Region X Tournament. Carnique Marks (Western Guilford) was voted to the All-Region X Team. Bria Byrd, Shannon Buchanan, Marcianna Munn and Nyla Allen were all named to the Region X All-Tour-

nament Team. The women’s basketball team is led by head coach Bobby Allison and by assistant coaches DeJuane Bowe, Tiffany Watkins, Mitchell Jennings and Shirelle Butts.

Pictured from left to right - Clark Wright, Kristi Short, and Tim Boyd.

Ed Bowling Named Staff Person of the Year

Ed Bowling, executive director of Completion by Design at GTCC has received the BB&T Staff of the Year Award from the State Board of Community Colleges. With financial support from BB&T, the State Board of Community Colleges established the award in 2001 to recognize excellent performance and com-mitment to the com-munity college mission by the non-teaching staff of the 58 insti-tutions of the North Carolina Community College System and the System Office. The State Board of Community Colleges an-nounced the award on Jan. 17.

“Ed’s leadership, knowledge and commitment have been critical to the success of Completion by De-sign,” said Randy Parker, president of GTCC. “He is an invaluable resource for not only GTCC but also the entire North Carolina Community Col-lege System, which he has impacted through his development and im-plementation of the Completion by Design model.”

“I am very humbled and honored to be recognized for this award,” Bowl-ing said. “It has been a privilege to work across the system with so many people who are dedicated to improv-ing our processes and programs in order to help our students stay in college and attain their credentials.”

Bowling started at GTCC in 2005 as a part-time adjunct faculty member in developmental education and later became a full-time instructor and re-

ceived the 2007 Claire Hunter Award for Excellence in Developmental Education. From there he accepted the challenge of directing GTCC’s

Developmental Education Initiative Grant, where he worked with a wide variety of faculty and staff to improve all aspects of the developmental stu-dent’s experience.

In 2011 GTCC selected Ed Bowl-ing as executive

director of Completion by Design, a national, five-year initiative funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foun-dation to increase completion rates among young, low-income students. To launch the project, GTCC col-laborated with a cadre of four other North Carolina Community College (Central Piedmont Community Col-lege, Davidson County Community College, Martin Community College and Wake Technical Community College). Bowling has led the North Carolina cadre to develop, implement and bring to scale a model that will serve as the standard course to com-pletion for students in North Caroli-na community colleges.

“From the beginning of Completion by Design, the intent was to eventual-ly scale this work across the system,” Parker said. “Ed has worked closely with senior staff at the System Office to develop an initiative to spread the work of Completion by Design to other community colleges. His work over the past three years has signifi-cantly impacted the North Carolina Community College System.”

GTCC’s Communication and Foreign Language Speaker’s Series presented a talk by Julia Humbles, a Freedom Rider during the Civil

Rights Movement, on Jan. 30 on GTCC’s Jamestown Campus.

GTCC Communication Instructor Cherie Avent (left) with Julia Humbles (right).

The GTCC Foundation hosted a reception for President’s Society members and friends on Feb. 25 at Grandover Resort. The President’s Society is the cornerstone of the GTCC Foundation’s giving programs. Unrestricted gifts of a minimum of $1,000 or more made during the

college’s fiscal year qualify for annual membership.

Representatives from GTCC’s faculty, staff and students as well as industry and community leaders have been participating in planning

sessions to develop the college’s strategic plan for 2014-2015.

As part of the 5th Annual Small Business Summit on Jan. 3, Senator Kay Hagan visited GTCC’s Jamestown Campus where she shared a few remarks about job growth in N.C. The 5th Annual Small Busi-ness Summit is a free event presented by the GTCC Small Business

Center, the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce, the High Point Chamber of Commerce and the Guilford Merchants Association.

Entrepreneurs, potential and existing business owners learned from local experts skills to improve their business and business plan.

The international journal, “School Sci-ence and Mathematics,” has published an article by Dr. Jim Car-rier, professor of computer technologies at Guilford Technical Com-munity College, in its February issue (Volume 114, Issue 2).

Carrier’s article, “Student Strate-gies Suggesting Emergence of Mental Structures Supporting Logical and Abstract Thinking: Multiplica-

tive Reasoning,” represents 10 years of cutting-edge research pertaining to the

identification of student cognitive strategies. The piece summarizes ways that teachers can quick-ly identify successful behaviors in students and reward those behaviors, thus changing the way students and teachers interact.

“For many students, developing mathematical reasoning can prove to be challenging,” Carrier

explains. “Such difficulty may be ex-plained by a deficit in the core under-

standing of many arithmetical concepts taught in early school years. Multipli-cative reasoning is one such concept that produces an essential foundation upon which higher-level mathematical thinking skills are built.”

Published monthly, October through May, the School Science and Mathe-matics journal emphasizes research on issues, concerns and lessons within and between the disciplines of science and mathematics in the classroom.

Carrier has been teaching computer technologies at GTCC for 10 years. He received GTCC’s Excellence in Teach-ing Award in 2012.

To read the full article, please visit http://tinyurl.com/qbdw6qq.

On Feb. 21, the North Carolina Com-munity College System and the Uni-versity of North Carolina General Administration, which represents the 16 public university system, signed a new articulation agreement that will allow community college students to seam-lessly transfer to one of North Carolina’s public institutions of higher learning.

At Guilford Technical Community College from 2009 to 2012, 1,126 stu-dents have transferred from GTCC to one of the 16 public universities in the University of North Carolina system. In fact, every UNC system campus in the state has at least one former GTCC student on its campus. North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State Uni-versity, the University of North Carolina Greensboro and the University of North Carolina Charlotte are the top three schools of choice for college transfer for GTCC students.

Nearly 24,000 students who began their studies at a NC community college are

now undergraduates on UNC campus-es, accounting for more than half (54 percent) of all UNC transfer students. Those numbers are expected to grow in the years ahead, and smoothing the transfer process for these students and providing a clearer, more direct pathway to a baccalaureate degree are crucial to meeting North Carolinians’ educational goals and North Carolina’s future work-force needs.

Since 1997, a joint agreement (Com-prehensive Articulation Agreement, or CAA) has outlined how specified student credit hours transfer between the two systems. While the guidelines worked well in 1997, they no longer meet student needs. The revised transfer agreement will save students and families both time and money and will stretch taxpayer-funded dollars. It is a win for both systems and for students who are seeking a more direct cost-efficient path to career and educational success.

The revised CAA will go into effect

for new college transfer students in fall 2014. Focused on increasing student success, the revised agreement better defines transfer options for community college students and establishes distinct pathways to degree attainment.

In addition, the revised CAA:

•Establishesfoundationalcoursesthatwill transfer to all UNC campuses to meet general education requirements;

•Improvestransferstudentsuccessbyrequiring coursework that helps stu-dents map their academic pathway from community colleges to universities;

•Encouragescommunitycollegestu-dents to complete an AA or AS degree before transferring to a UNC campus by guaranteeing entry as juniors with full transfer credit.

With this combined effort of North Carolina’s two public higher education systems, the outlook for student edu-cational achievement in less time at a lower cost has never been brighter.

NCCCS Signs Articulation Agreement

Professor Published In International Journal

As part of GTCC’s continued efforts to train students and technicians on the latest vehicle systems, General Motors has donated a 2012 Chevrolet Camaro to GTCC’s General Motors Automotive Service Educational Program (ASEP).

This is the fifth vehicle General Motors has donated to GTCC’s GM ASEP pro-gram this academic year. The company previously donated four vehicles: a 2013 Chevrolet Cruze, a 2012 Buick La-Crosse, a 2012 Chevrolet Traverse and a 2012 Chevrolet Silverado.

“These new vehicles ensure that we can provide students with training, skills and certifications on the latest vehicle

systems in the industry,” said Joshua Gilbert, GM ASEP coordinator and instructor in Automotive Systems Tech-nology at GTCC.

GTCC is one of only four schools in the nation offering the GM ASEP certifi-cate program. The program was created in response to GM dealers’ needs for qualified service technicians. It rep-resents a partnership between General Motors, the college, dealerships and the student. This is a two-year associate degree program that prepares a graduate for a challenging and rewarding career as a GM-trained automotive technician. Upon completion of this program, the graduate will also be qualified to test for

ASE certification.

Students in the program are sponsored by dealerships and spend eight weeks out of every semester performing paid, hands-on, co-op training at that deal-ership. The course work is based on the same curriculum used in all of the Au-tomotive Service Technology programs, but is focused on the service, mainte-nance and repair of GM products.

GM ASEP is a limited enrollment pro-gram. In order to qualify for enrollment into the program you must meet college entrance requirements and be employ-able in the automotive industry. Learn more at tinyurl.com/n86wshq.

GTCC and Guilford College have devel-oped an articulation agreement between both institutions that will allow students to transfer seamlessly to Guilford College. The agreement will offer students a clear pathway from an associate degree to a bachelor’s degree.

GTCC has articulation agreements with other private institutions as well as existing statewide articulation agreements, including the Comprehensive Articulation Agree-ment (CAA), established to ease the transfer of credits between North Caro-

lina’s 58 community colleges and the 16 UNC institutions, and the Independent Comprehensive Articulation Agreement (ICAA) between a limited number of private N.C. colleges and universities that endorse the agreement.

The articulation agree-ment between GTCC and Guilford College is unique in that it’s a partnership between an individual four-year college and only one or more commu-nity colleges.

Representatives from GTCC and Guilford College signed the articulation agree-

ment on Jan. 22 on GTCC’s Jamestown Campus. The agreement is effective immediately.

“Guilford Tech is proud to partner with Guilford College on this initiative to help students achieve their educational and career goals,” said Dr. Randy Parker, pres-ident of GTCC. “Through this articula-tion agreement, students now have a clear pathway to a bachelor’s degree at Guilford College, where they will continue to re-ceive a quality liberal arts education and excel in their chosen professional field.”

“Guilford College was founded in 1837 to serve the children of local Quaker families,” said Kent Chabotar, president of Guilford College. “While our students now come from all walks of life and all over the country, we remain deeply com-mitted to serving residents of Guilford County and the entire Piedmont Triad. We’re honored to partner with GTCC to provide students with a path to an excellent liberal arts education at Guilford College.”

General Motors Donates Vehicle To Automotive Program

GTCC and Guilford College Sign Articulation Agreement

GTCC President Dr. Randy Parker (left) signs articulation agreement with Guilford College President, Dr. Kent John Chabotar.

GTCC Cooks for a CauseGTCC President Randy Parker and Culinary Instructor L J Rush participated in the Aggies Go Red Cook Off event on Feb. 7 at North Carolina A&T State University to help raise awareness of heart disease in women. They competed against Chancellor Harold Martin of N.C. A&T, Chancellor Debra Saunders-White of North Carolina Central State University and President Rosalind Fuse-Hall of Bennett College for Women to create a heart-healthy meal. Dr. Parker and Chef Rush prepared Seared Salmon Fillets with Spicy Corn and Tomato Salsa (recipe follows).

Seared Salmon Fillets with Spicy Corn and Tomato Salsa

Servings: 5• 5 fresh 5-ounce skinless boneless salmon fillets • 3 tablespoons olive oil • 1 teaspoon kosher salt • 1 teaspoon pepper • Olive oil nonstick spray for pan (or 2 ounces liquid)

Spicy Corn and Tomato Salsa• 2 ears of fresh sweet corn (cut from cob)• 2 medium tomatoes or 1 large fresh tomato (about 8 ounces, seeded and

diced)• 1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped • 1 ½ teaspoons fresh oregano, chopped • 1 clove fresh garlic, minced• 2 ounces green pepper, diced• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced• 2 tablespoons olive oil • 1 teaspoon kosher salt • 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper• 2 ounces red onion, diced • 2 ounces fresh lime juice• 1 whole lime cut into wedges

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Place cut corn on sprayed baking sheet and roast in the oven. Roasting can be done on stove top in hot skillet as well. In a mixing bowl combine corn, jalape-no peppers, diced tomatoes, onion, green pepper, salt, black pepper, oregano, cilantro, garlic, 1 ounce of olive oil and 2 ounces of lime juice. Mix well, set aside in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Meanwhile, rinse salmon with water and pat dry. Rub with 1 ounce of the olive oil and sprinkle with salt and black pepper. Add one or two salmon fillets top side first to a very hot skillet with 1 ounce of olive oil. Allow to sear on each side until light caramel color, about one minute each side. Remove from skillet and place on sprayed cookie sheet. Repeat this procedure until all salmon fillets have been seared. Add the remaining olive oil to pan if needed.

Place the seared salmon in the 450 degree oven for 4 to 6 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Top salmon with salsa and wedge of lime.

Nutrition information per serving: 120 calories; 7.5 g fat; 120mg cholesterol; 31 mg sodium; 29 g carbohydrates; 1.2 g fiber; 4.2 g sugar; 35 g protein.

Recipe courtesy of Chef L. J. Rush

Desserts for Spring!

Rainbow Popcorn• 5 cups of popped popcorn• 2 tablespoons butter• 1 1/2 tablespoons light corn syrup• 1/4 cup sugar• 4 tablespoons Jello - flavor of your choice

DirectionsPlace popcorn in a large sized bowl so that you have plenty of room to mix. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a small saucepan, combine butter and corn syrup over medium heat. Once melted, add sugar and jello. Stir constantly. Bring to a boil and stir for about another 2-2 1/2 minutes.

Drizzle over popcorn and quickly stir to coat.

Pour out onto baking sheet. Spread as evenly as you can. Let bake for 10 minutes. This will make popcorn crunchy.

Repeat recipe to create more flavors.

Once cool, break apart. Serve colors separately, or mix them all together for a fun confetti look perfect for Spring!

Recipe contributed from a GTCC Staff Member.

Easy Marshmallow Bark• 1 bag white chocolate chips {12 oz}• 3 cups mini rainbow marshmallows• 1 TBSP shortening• Sprinkles or other pastel color candies / toppings• Cookie Cutters in bunny or egg shapes (optional)

DirectionsMeasure out 3 cups of marshmallows. Line an 8x11 glass dish or a half-sized cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Put white chocolate and shortening in a medium sized glass bowl. Melt chocolate in the microwave for 1 minute. Give it a small stir, then return to the microwave and repeat in 30 sec-ond increments, until chocolate is completely melted.

After chocolate is melted, add marshmallows and stir to coat. Be sure to do this fairly quickly because you do not want the marshmallows to melt.

Transfer mixture to prepared pan and spread evenly. Shake sprinkles on top to decorate.

Place in the freezer for 20 minutes until chocolate is set.

Remove from freezer and allow to return to room temperature. Cut in pieces using cookie cutter shapes or simply cut into squares. If using cookie cutters, be sure to spray edges with cooking spray prior to cutting. Enjoy!Recipe contributed from a GTCC Staff Member.

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