In Brief: October 2024

English Professor Anthony Alas had a short fiction essay "East Village Cowboy" selected for publication in Bookends Review.

Academic Scheduling Specialist Serena Meyer, Student Success Coach Jeremy Walker, Associate Dean Jill Nugent, Professor Meena Beri, and iCollin Campus Provost Sarah Lee will present at the Online Learning Consortium conference in November.

Government Professors Tyler Young and William Geisler presented " Political Polarization – A Historical Review and Contemporary Analysis of America's Political Climate" for the McKinney Campus Constitution Day event. About 120 students attended.

Theatre Department alumnus Michael Urie recently returned to Apple TV in the series Shrinking, starring opposite to Jason Segel and Harrison Ford. Urie also stars opposite Sutton Foster on Broadway in "Once Upon a Mattress."

Communications Studies Professor Jenny Warren has been chosen to be the First Vice President of the Eastern Communication Association's 2026 annual convention. The Eastern Communication Association (ECA) is a professional organization of scholars, teachers, and students of Communication Studies. 

Workforce Coach Sean Sweeden was honored for the tireless work he does to support veterans through the region in September as the 2024 recipient of the Hershel Woody Williams Veteran of Honor. This award honors veterans for their military service as well as for their giving back to the veteran community.The award is named in honor of Woody Williams, who received the Medal of Honor his heroism during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II and spent 75 years giving back to veterans and Gold Star Families.

On Sept. 27, Dual Credit Directors Seth Rutledge and Lindsay Moore facilitated a field trip for 130 ninth graders from the inaugural Wildcat Collegiate Academy in Plano ISD to visit Plano Campus. Students toured the campus with stops in the health science lab, multiple art studios, the commercial music studio, theatre workshops, the John Anthony Theatre, the Black Box theater, the Anthony Peterson Center for Academic Assistance, and The Art Gallery. The group also ate in the Cougar Café and had their Collin College IDs made.

Polysomnographic Technology Program Director Amber Allen spoke at a webinar titled “Using Education to Address the Sleep Tech Shortage” in early October. Two hundred fifty people attended the webinar, including 48 international attendees. Her stipend for the talk was donated to the Collin College Foundation and was matched in part by the webinar’s sponsoring organization – Cadwell – for a total of $2,250.

Congratulations to Jose Perez Castillo and Cem Atlamis for winning the ITA Regional Tournament Doubles Title, Sept. 28. The win qualified for play in the National ITA Cup in Rome, Georgia in October.

Dr. Brenda Carter, executive dean of the Celina Campus has received multiple appoints recently, including the Celina Education Foundation, Methodist Celina Medical Center as an advisory board member, Leadership Celina as an advisory board member, and the BobCat Council for Celina ISD, which provides input on district initiatives.

Part Time Fire Instructor Brian Luyster has been selected to compete at the Grimpday Rope Rescue Competition to be held in Geneva, Switzerland next June. Luyster is a firefighter/paramedic with the Lewisville Fire Department competing on Team ResQtex along with firefighters from the Woodlands, Magnolia, Conroe, Austin Travis County EMS, and Vertical Integrity Rescue. This elite group of specialized rescue technicians is the only team from the United States of America and will compete among 30 teams representing 23 countries. The competitors are all are members of either Texas Task Force 1 or Texas Task Force 2, which function as the state’s two urban search and rescue (US&R) teams that responding to natural disasters.  

On Sept. 24, the Technical Campus hosted more than 300 attendees for the COCO BEST Robotics competition.

On Sept. 28, the Technical Campus hosted more than 1,100 students, teachers, and industry representatives for the Youth Career Exploration event in partnership with Workforce Solutions for North Central Texas.

On Oct. 9 the Technical Campus hosted more than 200 students, teachers, and employers for the first annual City of Allen Manufacturing Day with the Allen Economic Development Corporation and Allen ISD, splitting time at the AISD STEAM Center and the Technical Campus. Provost Brenden Mesch moderated two panel sessions: one with employers and one with students to help capture lessons learned and advice for the future.

The Technical Campus hosted a Fall Construction Career Fair on Oct. 10 with 23 employers and 91 students attending. The event raised $5,000 in scholarships for Construction program students.