Author: State College of Florida

(Bradenton, Fla., March 3, 2020)— State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota (SCF), has named Matt Connell as dean for the College’s Nursing and Health Professions programs.

Connell has served as the director of SCF’s Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) program since August 2011 and began serving as interim dean of Nursing and Health Professions in June 2019. “Matt has done a wonderful job of leading this division for the last several months, and I am thrilled that he will be our permanent dean moving forward,” said Executive Vice President and Provost Dr. Todd G. Fritch.

Connell received his master’s degree in Physical Therapy in 2005 from Quinnipiac University. He spent several years providing professional education workshops for health care and higher education professionals before joining SCF.

Connell says SCF programs are constantly changing to meet the needs of the community. “All of our health professions and nursing programs have seen consistent growth,” he observed. “As medical technology advances, and we get a better understanding of disease processes, we’re seeing folks living longer. We’re seeing more folks that need health care services.”

Connell said SCF is always looking at evolving health care landscapes. “We’re really in tune to how our demographics change in our service region.”

State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota, is the region’s first and largest public college, serving 11,000 students a year. SCF has achieved 100% licensure passing rates for its Physical Therapy Assistant, Occupational Therapy Assistant, Dental Hygiene and Radiography programs. SCF’s Nursing Program has a 98% licensure passing rate, and has the No. 1 online registered nurse (RN) to Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program in Florida. For more information about SCF, visit SCF.edu.

Photo Caption: State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota (SCF), has named Matt Connell as dean for the College’s Nursing and Health Professions programs.

(Bradenton, Fla., Feb.20, 2020) — State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota (SCF) and the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA) Florida are teaming up to provide scholarships for SCF students pursuing a career in the insurance or financial management industry.

The first $500 scholarship was awarded Jan. 28 to SCF student Catherine Ayala, who in addition to taking classes in the Risk Management and Insurance Services Program, works full time for Star Insurance Agency.

Linda Moore, president of NAIFA Florida, said the job of its members is to educate their clients, “We were very excited to have Catherine Ayala be our first recipient,” Moore said. Ayala was able to attend the organization’s Day on the Hill event in Tallahassee where NAIFA members and lawmakers talked about issues affecting the insurance industry.

“The trip to Tallahassee was awesome,” Ayala said. “It was an unforgettable experience by helping lawmakers better understand complicated insurance topics.”

Ayala was introduced to NAIFA members in Tallahassee by SCF supporters James Tollerton and Taylor Collins, vice president and president, respectively, of Professional Benefits Inc. in Sarasota.

To be considered for this scholarship, an applicant must be a Florida resident taking at least six semester hours at SCF, maintaining a minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA, with the intent of pursuing a career in the insurance or financial management industry.

Moore says NAIFA will award a yearly scholarship to a SCF student. “By offering a local scholarship we are hoping to expose students to the insurance and financial services industry and encourage them to pursue insurance as a career path.”

For more information, visit SCF.edu.

Photo caption:

State College of Florida student Catherine Ayala, center, is flanked by Professional Benefits Inc. President Taylor Collins, left, and Vice President James Tollerton in Tallahassee Jan. 28.

(Bradenton, Fla., Feb. 4, 2020) — The Gallery at State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota (SCF), presents “Cross Roads,” an exhibition showcasing the work of photographer Armon Means, with an opening reception Friday, Feb. 21, from 5-7 p.m., at The Gallery at SCF, 5840 26th St. W., Bradenton, Building 11 North.

“Cross Roads” will be on display until April 8. Gallery hours are weekdays, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission is free.

Means will be available before the reception, from 4-5 p.m., to talk about his work.

Means’ work centers on ideas of cultural concerns, minority identity and environmental influences. He is currently an adjunct professor of photography at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Gallery at SCF provides dynamic exhibitions that embrace critical issues and connections between art, education and culture. The Gallery features exhibitions on the Bradenton and Venice campuses, as well as objects from the permanent collection displayed in buildings at all three campus locations, and is inclusive and innovative, holding fast to the best traditions and willing to explore new directions.

For more information about The Gallery at SCF, visit www.SCF.edu/ArtGallery. For more information about SCF, visit SCF.edu.

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(Bradenton, Fla., Feb. 4, 2020) — State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota (SCF) visiting artist Katie Fee will be at SCF Venice, 8000 S. Tamiami Trail, on Wednesday, Feb. 26. Fee will speak about her work in ceramics from 11 a.m. to noon in the Selby Room in Building 800. She will then give a demonstration of her work and techniques from 1-4 p.m., in Building 700, Room 708. Both events are free and open to the public.

Fee is currently operating as an Artist in Residence at the Morean Center for Clay in Saint Petersburg. She holds a B.A. in Studio Art from the College of William & Mary and a Graduate Certificate in Ceramics from UMass Dartmouth. Fee has been on the staff at Peters Valley School of Craft, a long-term resident at Mudflat Art Center, a visiting speaker at Harvard’s Office of the Arts and an assistant at The Penland School of Craft.

Fee draws inspiration from her undergraduate studies of geology and her travels. Her artwork addresses the intersection between geologic force and intimate functionality. Her work has been featured in national and international juried exhibitions and Ceramics Monthly Magazine.

SCF’s new visiting artist program has been developed in partnership with the Morean Center for Clay Residency Program in St. Petersburg.

For more information about art at SCF, visit SCF.edu/Art.

(Bradenton, Fla., Jan. 9, 2020) — State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota (SCF) 2019 winter graduates included 11 students from the College Reach-Out Program (CROP) who are continuing their education at SCF, state universities or independent institutions.

The primary objective of CROP is to identify and assist low-income, educationally disadvantaged students in grades six through 12, and work with them toward the goal of completing postsecondary education. Participants are students who would otherwise be unlikely to pursue education beyond high school without special support and recruitment efforts.

SCF partners with middle and high schools in Manatee and Sarasota counties to motivate students to pursue a college education, strengthen students’ and parents’ understanding of the benefits of a college education, and foster academic, personal and career development. Many CROP participants become the first person in their family to earn a college degree.

SCF congratulates Clairsine Alexis, Sherrod Lee, Esveydy Velasquez, Tamar Mitil, Jahnessa Lambert, Rajeria Evans, Yesica Lopez-Cabrera, Ashley Alexandre, Kimberley Scott, Joanne Gustave and Rachelle Taylor.

For more information about the CROP program, contact Kristen Anderson at 941-752-5257 or AndersK1@SCF.edu.

From left: Jessica Torsell, Clairsine Alexis, Sherrod Lee, Esveydy Velasquez, Tamar Mitil, Jahnessa Lambert, Rajeria Evans, Yesica Lopez-Cabrera, Ashley Alexandre, Kimberley Scott, Dr. Kristen L. Anderson. Not pictured are Joanne Gustave and Rachelle Taylor.