Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
JOHN LUPINO, left, GCC board chairman, administers the oath of office to Susan Murphy, of Ironwood, at the regular monthly meeting of the Gogebic Community College Board of Trustees. Murphy replaces David Martinson, who resigned to pursue career opportunities that may conflict with serving as a trustee.
By TOM STANKARD
Ironwood - The Gogebic Community College Board of Trustees swore in board member Susan Murphy and formally said goodbye to out-going board member David Martinson Tuesday evening.
Murphy raised her right hand and was administered an oath of office, saying she will faithfully discharge the duties of the office according to the best of her ability.
"I am honored to be part of the board of trustees," she said.
According to GCC, Murphy, an Ironwood resident, is a member of the Kiwanis Club, the Ironwood Area Scholarship Foundation, the DalPra/Gogebic County Scholarship Committee, the Ironwood Historical Society and the Ironwood Theatre. Murphy is also a former board member for the Grand View Health System, the Ironwood Housing Commission, the Downtown Ironwood Development Authority and is a past president of the Ironwood Chamber of Commerce.
Martinson was given a plaque honoring his participation and commitment to the board. GCC Board Chairman John Lupino said "Martinson served with dedication as a board member from July 2006, through Nov. 2015."
Lupino said "Martinson served with exemplary leadership as a trustee and he consistently acted in the best interest of the college and its students."
Holding his plaque, Martinson said it was a "pleasure working with everyone" and thanked them.
Moving forward with the agenda, Jeanne Graham, dean of student services, provided an update on GCC's enrollment status. This semester, Graham said the college has 1,005 students enrolled this semester who are taking a total of 10,779 credits hours.
According to information provided at the meeting, retention rates for the 2014-15 fall-to-spring semester was 79 percent. The following year, it rose to 81.3 percent.
"For us to have retained as many students as we did and to have gotten so many new students, these are great numbers."
To obtain the increased retention rate, Graham said the college called every single unregistered student. She said faculty members also encouraged students to register early before going home for winter break.
"It really worked," she said. "For use to come up 2 percent is huge."
Also on the agenda, the board approved three staff appointments.
The board approved to appoint Nicole Bretall, of Bessemer, as assistant to the learning resources director. According to GCC, she holds a master's and bachelor's degree from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. Bretall also brings over ten years of library experience working with public, technical, reference and interlibrary loan services. Bretall will commence her duties on February 15.
The board approved to appoint Jane Williams, of Bessemer, as the assistant to the allied health director. Williams has a master's degree from St. Cloud State University and a bachelor's degree from the University of Wyoming. Before working at GCC, Williams taught for six years in a K-12 setting. She was also an office manager. She is also the co-producer and musical director for the Historic Ironwood Theatre's HIT Idol. Williams will begin her duties on February 2.
The board also approved a list of additional on-campus and off-campus adjunct faculty for the spring 2016 semester.
