August 2023

All the classes. All the books. All the College's new looks!

Highlights

Random Acts of Knowledge and a picture of a brain

Themed Courses Coming to a Community College Near You

Remember when you were in college and had to take all those courses that were required but you thought didn’t really apply to your career? Hey – we've all been there. By now you probably realize the skills and knowledge you gained from those classes were important, but how cool would it have been if some of those courses were themed to go along with your field of interest? Well, HCC is pretty cool because that’s just what is happening to some of our highest-enrolled classes. Check out this recent Random Acts of Knowledge podcast to hear Dr. Wayne Bass talk about how some of our humanities courses will be themed to fields like health care, environment, environmental technology, agriculture, and business and economy. Almost makes you want to be a college freshman again. Almost.

Group photo of people holding a banner in front of a building

Go West, Young College

Heartland strengthened our partnership with Mid Central Community Action (MCCA) this summer as we cut the ribbon on the renovated 4,500-square-foot space in West Bloomington. The facility will be home to a new HCC instructional space preparing students for jobs in building maintenance, construction, and other work-ready programs. Having an instructional space on the west side of town will hopefully remove some barriers for area residents to attend Heartland.

Community Members Earn Heartland Bling

For the third consecutive year, Heartland Community College honored some of our local citizens with the Presidential Medallions. Presented at the annual Elevate Heartland event on June 16, the Medallions are given to people who live out the College’s aim to enrich the community through exemplary service, philanthropy, and dedication to advancing opportunities in education. This year’s honorees included Dr. Jerry and Carole Ringer, Dr. Larry and Marlene Dietz, John and Mary Penn, and Robert (Bob) Brucker.

Gift for Heartland Alumni

Are you an alum of Heartland Community College? We have the offer of a lifetime for you! Well, maybe not a lifetime, but we have the offer of the week surely. Regardless of how many exciting offers you have, make sure to take advantage of this one. If you are an alum, make sure to get your “HCC Proud” alumni lapel pin. And if you’re looking for the right occasion to wear it, may we suggest True Blue Tuesdays?

Josh Fitzgerald with an ICCTA representative

Statewide Recognition for Heartland Students, Faculty

The folks at the Illinois Community College Trustees Association (ICCTA) are definitely familiar with HCC. At this year’s ICCTA Awards Banquet in June, several Heartland Hawks walked away with awards. Josh Fitzgerald, Humanities and Fine Arts adjunct instructor, was honored as the ICCTA Outstanding Adjunct Instructor of the Year. Rodney Billerbeck (‘23) was named recipient of the ICCTA Illinois Student Trustee Scholarship. Current Student Trustee Andria Merkle was awarded the ICCTA Gregg Chadwick Scholarship, an award in memory of the former HCC Trustee.

The HCC baseball team and a large group of HCC employees sitting in the bleachers at the HCC FRC

We Are the Champions

National championships look good on us, as proven again this year - most recently by the HCC baseball team. They brought Heartland our fifth national championship since we began our athletics program in 2008 (softball, 2009; women’s soccer, 2020; Super Smash Bros, 2023; NBA2K, 2023; and baseball, 2023). Our baseball Hawks came back victorious from the NJCAA DII World Series in June, making us proud once again. They defeated Southeastern Iowa Community College 8-6 in the final game of the series to win the title, causing us all to summon our inner Freddie Mercury.

Board member Becky Ropp, a baseball player, and baseball coach Chris Razzo holding the national championship trophey

More National Kudos

As if our latest national championship wasn’t enough reason to celebrate, two of our baseball Hawks earned some individual national kudos as well. Fielder Sam Antonacci was named 2023 NJCAA Division II Player of the Year. The 2023 graduate has committed to Coastal Caroline University to continue his playing career.

Not to be outdone by his players, HCC baseball coach Chris Razo has also been nationally recognized after a stellar season. The American Baseball Coaches Association named Razo the 2023 NJCAA Division II National Coach of the Year. Razo played baseball for Heartland for two years before transferring to ISU.

Putting the "Student" in Student Athlete

Heartland has always stressed that our student-athletes are students first. That message has been received loud and clear by our talented 2022-2023 Hawks. For the last academic year, Heartland has set a record for the number of student-athletes named to the NJCAA All-Academic First Team. They are eligible to earn academic honors by achieving an overall GPA of 3.6 or higher.

Distinguished Alumnus Award Nominations Open

Seeking Distinction

As you can see, excellence is a trademark of Heartland. We have not only impressive students and staff, but also very accomplished alumni. Now’s the time to recognize them. Nominate them for the Distinguished Alumnus Award. Nominations are due September 15. The winner will be recognized at the Celebration of Excellence on November 8.

Still to come...

Week of Welcome

Week of Welcome will take place 8/28-9/1.

College Closed

The College will be closed on September 4 in observance of Labor Day.

Heartland Night Out(side)

The annual fundraiser will take place on September 7. Get your tickets now.

Random Knowledge to Make You Just a Little Smarter

Didaskaleinophobia is the acute fear of going to school. Maybe that’s what we needed to save Ferris from.

Let's Get Social

That's all for now. In the meantime, check out our Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn for the latest happenings. Spread the love and share our stuff on your own pages.

Raegan Rinchiuso

Associate Director, Marketing

(309) 268-8167

raegan.rinchiuso@heartland.edu