National Park College hosted its annual Employee Recognition Day May 11 in the NPC Wellness Center gymnasium to present awards to an outstanding alumnus, faculty member and staff member for 2017 and to recognize employees for their years of service, community service and retirement.
The Outstanding Alumni award was presented to Nancy Anderson, superintendent for Cutter Morning Star School District. Anderson graduated from Lake Hamilton High School and attended Garland County Community College as a nontraditional student and a working wife and mother.
Anderson completed her teaching degree at Henderson State University in Arkadelphia and has worked in education in Hot Springs. She later completed her master's degree in administration and has served as an assistant principal and principal.
Her doctorate in educational leadership was recently earned from Lamar University. Anderson worked to remove Cutter Morning Star from the state's financial distress list after just one year.
"I often refer to myself as a lifelong learner," Anderson said. "National Park College provided the foundation for me to continue my education to the highest degree possible in my field of study. I am very grateful to the many professors and individuals that had profound influences on my thinking and helped shape me to be the person I am today."
The Outstanding Faculty award was presented to Rebekah Robinette, instructor of anatomy and physiology and microbiology. She also attended Garland County Community College.
Robinette was active in the Alpha Beta Psi chapter of the Phi Theta Kappa honor society and student-led tutoring. Her experiences with faculty and the skills gained through the Medical Laboratory Technology program led her to North Carolina's High Point University where she worked in a biotechnology company full-time. Robinette went on to attend a doctoral program in Biomedical Science at the University of Florida College of Medicine where she performed groundbreaking medical research in microbiology and immunology.
Her research culminated in a wealth of expertise in the subject matter and publication of three primary authorship and five coauthorship articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals. She shares her experience and expertise with the students at NPC through her courses in Microbiology and Anatomy and Physiology.
Robinette was one of the first instructors to complete Quality Matters certification for her online microbiology course. She serves on the Blackboard Student Orientation Committee and the Facility Master Plan Committee, is a PTK adviser, serves as the vice president/president elect of the Oklahoma/Arkansas Region for PTK, participates in the mentoring program and has a reputation with her students for excelling in the classroom.
The Outstanding Staff award was presented to Bill Ritter, director of Adult Education. He is also a graduate of Lake Hamilton and Henderson, where he earned a master's degree in public school administration.
Ritter has 18 years of experience in education and manages 34 full- and part-time staff members for five centers throughout the Hot Springs area. Under his direction, the Adult Education program has continued as one of the premier programs in the state, leading the state in progress made by students and ranking second in number of diplomas earned.
Adult Education established a partnership with the Garland County Sheriff's Department under Ritter to operate a fully equipped classroom at the Garland County Detention Center, which is now the only correctional education program in the state that allows inmates access to internet-based learning tools. More than 40 high school diplomas and 225 Workforce Alliance for Growth in the Economy certificates have been earned by inmates.
Since July 2015, 889 inmates have taken part in detention center programs. Ritter worked with district court judges and personnel to establish an Alternatives to Incarceration program. Qualifying offenders can be sentenced to education or job training instead of jail time.
"The goal of these partnerships is to reduce the rates of reoffending and making our community a safer place to live," Ritter said.
Employees to receive service pins for extended years of service were Suzan Davis, 30 years; Darlene Gentles and Wanda Holden for 25 years; Gerry Griffin and Allan Mesko for 20 years; and Tena Brown, Kim Terrazas and Judy Throgmartin for 15 years.
Service pins for 10 years of service were presented to Sara Brown, Melba Dalton, Paula Ford, Becky Fugate, Suzanne Hendrix, Brian Kroening, Diane Meredith, Donna Nevill, Connie Poteet, Shelly Tankersley and Britt Turner. Employees recognized with pins for five years of service were Kelli Albrecht, Barry Ballard, Sharon Bradley, Wade Derden, Lizzette Feighl, Tusha Glapion, Kim Holsomback, Nathan Looper, Bob Otwell, Jennifer Seward, Suzy Still and Carolyn Vining.
Retirees recognized for their service were Melba Dalton, evening coordinator; Bunny Everett, campus nurse; Cathy High, administrative specialist TRiO; Kelly Pickett, anatomy and physiology instructor; Becky White, nursing instructor; Carolyn Vining, administrative support supervisor; and Danah Wright, administrative specialist for the Learning and Acceleration Division.
School on 05/24/2017