{"id":8997,"date":"2024-04-17T15:24:53","date_gmt":"2024-04-17T15:24:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/?p=8997"},"modified":"2024-04-17T15:25:19","modified_gmt":"2024-04-17T15:25:19","slug":"grcc-announces-2024-commencement-awards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/17\/grcc-announces-2024-commencement-awards\/","title":{"rendered":"GRCC announces 2024 commencement Awards"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-8998 alignright\" src=\"http:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1.jpg 700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>April 10, 2024, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Grand Rapids Community College is pleased to announce an impressive slate of award winners who will be honored at the April 25, 2024,\u00a0commencement ceremony. These new awards honor the diversity, commitment and talent of graduates, faculty, and community supporters.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Graduate of Excellence Awards<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u00a0<strong>Jodi Holland<\/strong>\u00a0(General Associate Degree with Baking and Pastry Certificate): achieved a lifelong goal of attending college thanks to the Michigan Reconnect Program.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0<strong>Linda Morfa Limonte<\/strong>\u00a0(Associate of Liberal Arts in Pre-Anthropology): conquered the twin challenges of adult learning and ADHD with encouragement from her family.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0<strong>Ashley R. Smith<\/strong>\u00a0(Certificate in IT Computer Support): changed careers with a second degree at GRCC and leveraged the hands-on experience of the mentorship program.<\/li>\n<li>\u00a0<strong>Kathryn (\u201cKat\u201d) Waller\u00a0<\/strong>(Bachelor of Nursing): chose to grow in her healthcare career; overcame challenges and persevered to become a GRCC nurse.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Yasmina Zimmer\u00a0<\/strong>(Associate Degree in Biology and Geology):<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>came to GRCC after completing her GED and fell in love with the earth sciences.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Distinguished Alumni Award<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Ruth Straayer Kelly<\/strong>\u00a0(Class of 1974): leveraged her foundation at GRCC to live a life of public service as a teacher, community activist and elected official.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Faculty Emeritus Award<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Dr. Robert Long<\/strong>\u00a0(Biology Professor from 1986-2018): excelled during his career as an encourager of students and a mentor to his peers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>GRCC Champion Award<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Corewell Health<\/strong>: works tirelessly to leverage their resources, expertise and influence to champion and amplify GRCC\u2019s impact within the community.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u201cWe are thrilled to honor these individuals and organizations because they represent the high caliber of education we provide to students from all walks of life,\u201d said Dr. Charles W. Lepper, President of GRCC. \u201cCommunity colleges have a distinct role among our country\u2019s educational institutions. We focus on affordability and flexible learning that equip students with exactly what they need to achieve their goals. Whether it\u2019s students just starting their career journeys or students returning to embark on a new career, we serve people of all ages and all experience levels with excellent, practical education that prepares them for the next step.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lepper said people like Dr. Robert Long embody the spirit of GRCC\u2019s entire faculty.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe surround our students with professionals who are passionate about sharing their subject matter knowledge,\u201d Lepper said. \u201cAnd with the help of community partners like Corewell Health, we are able to provide the hands-on, practical experience that gives students confidence and competence in their chosen professions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>To learn more about GRCC\u2019s Commencement, please visit<a href=\"https:\/\/u7061146.ct.sendgrid.net\/ls\/click?upn=u001.gqh-2BaxUzlo7XKIuSly0rC-2Bp2H2WJgj9Ywew0cd-2Bwahai4C5Dsy35Q5BBifOHoCcZbdd20RnOe8maPMACo4JCU3h97gHT-2BGbUXXRMBcfHEq0-3DOcTF_rc8Zj3BSNH5akzAZc0Y-2FC3G-2FsGW-2Bnn1Y-2BNHAV3TKzOWjL-2BhGRDttOEV40wy-2F6ueC9Yug5AG7kf-2FT7vprh-2FIzuPahw4kLRHq-2FmHhp0O4n4eb0Sk42OelNmh058wrtIXcMJ5tBdzq2zOOyPnvk5bfIcuVDG97E5Jyht2-2Fk26ua36MzebzN9v0kohkckMz-2BU9u-2B9UF-2F0eI3lS5dVZmeW9ZgN3GSOswR3qS-2FyEexcKcpfjs1eAeEvF2fJNG8ZbJ3Pct9X73hV-2FWhuZh1ZBQLqf-2F0MPDs4TvOsZAZo-2Fh9wDRcaydPrIncPps4nuDqVIr3fm7nI-2B8FMS8WHSF4Tm2daDh-2Bgw-3D-3D\">\u00a0the website<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>About Grand Rapids Community College<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>GRCC was established in 1914 &#8211; Michigan&#8217;s first community college &#8211; and is focused on making college education accessible and affordable. Classes are scheduled in person and online, on weekdays, evenings, and Saturdays at locations throughout Kent and Ottawa counties. We offer traditional liberal arts and occupational career pathways, adult education courses, and skilled training courses and apprenticeships.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>April 10, 2024, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.\u00a0\u2013 Grand Rapids Community College is pleased to announce an impressive slate of award winners who will be honored at the April 25, 2024,\u00a0commencement ceremony. These new awards honor the diversity, commitment and talent of graduates, faculty, and community supporters. Graduate of Excellence Awards \u00a0Jodi Holland\u00a0(General Associate Degree with Baking<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8998,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_rtcl_gb_attr":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"wf_post_folders":[198],"class_list":["post-8997","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles"],"aioseo_notices":[],"rttpg_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1.jpg",700,467,false],"landscape":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1.jpg",700,467,false],"portraits":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1.jpg",700,467,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"large":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1.jpg",640,427,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1.jpg",700,467,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1.jpg",700,467,false],"rtcl-gallery":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1-700x462.jpg",700,462,true],"rtcl-thumbnail":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1-320x240.jpg",320,240,true],"rtcl-gallery-thumbnail":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1-150x105.jpg",150,105,true],"psacp-medium":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1.jpg",500,334,false],"rpwe-thumbnail":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/GRCC-Commencement_04_2023_AS_033-1-45x45.jpg",45,45,true]},"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"LaPrensa Newspaper","author_link":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/author\/laprensa\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":"<a href=\"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/category\/articles\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Articles<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"April 10, 2024, GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.\u00a0\u2013 Grand Rapids Community College is pleased to announce an impressive slate of award winners who will be honored at the April 25, 2024,\u00a0commencement ceremony. These new awards honor the diversity, commitment and talent of graduates, faculty, and community supporters. Graduate of Excellence Awards \u00a0Jodi Holland\u00a0(General Associate Degree with Baking","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8997","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8997"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8997\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8999,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8997\/revisions\/8999"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8998"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8997"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8997"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8997"},{"taxonomy":"wf_post_folders","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wf_post_folders?post=8997"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}