BUSINESS REP RT
EDUCATION EDITION SEPT/OCT 2016 ISSUE 22
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Partners 4 Member Spotlight: TRMC 6 Mount Pleasant ISD 8 Chapel Hill ISD 9 Winfield ISD 10 Harts Bluff ISD 11 Leadership Mount Pleasant 12 New Teacher Breakfast 13 Northeast Texas Community College 14 Region 8 ESC 16 Texas A&M Texarkana at NTCC 17 Industrial Technology Training Center 18
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Taking to the Next Level New Partners Honeyberry Hill Consulting Rolling Thunder Mobile D J Service Goosehead Stovall/Blackard Agency LegalShield/IDShield - Tina McClain Finish Line Tire & Lube Thrivensity - YoungLiving Essential Oils Northeast Texas Area Crime Stoppers
Renewing Partners A&A&D Food Service LLC - Church's Chicken ABC Auto Parts AEP-Southwestern Electric Power Company Alamo Mission Museum Arnold Walker Arnold & Co PC Bates Cooper Sloan Funeral Home Big Tex Trailer Mfg., Inc. BLK Locksmith Brookshire Food Store Camp Langston Castletop Roofing & Construction Chambers Home Health and Physical Therapy Chambers Home Health and Physical Therapy Chuck Barkow Company Name Cross Country Communications Cutting Edge Lawn & Landscape Designin' Women
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Don Juan's Mexican Restaurant East Texas Broadcasting El Chico Restaurant Elliott Ford Lincoln Firmins Office Supply First Baptist Church Gary's Gun & Pawn Shop Gladewater Baptist Church Hansen's Collision Specialist Housing Authority City of Mount Pleasant IHOP Restaurant #3232 John L. Greene DDS Larry Lawrence Construction Let's Roll Lowe's Luigi's Italian Cafe M.O.M Ministering Our Military Massage Therapy by Krislyn Pierce
Mill's Flower Shop Mount Pleasant Pet Resort Mount Pleasant Rodeo Association North East Texas Credit Union Northeast Small Business Development Center Offenhauser & Company Insurance Outlaw's Bar-B-Que Randy's Burgers Rychlik Auto Wrecker Service Servpro of Paris Stansells City Cleaners & Laundry Inc Staples #1152 The Landing The Lodge Assisted Living/Memory Care The Pediatric Clinic PA Todd Jaggers - Texas Farm Bureau
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Member Spotlight
INCREASING ACCESS TO PRIMARY AND SPECIALITY CARE At Titus Regional Medical Center, our vision is to be your health system of choice, dedicated to healing and wellbeing through a culture of excellence and compassion.
pected to be completed mid-Fall to fully sist in the connection of resources to accommodate the growth in service those who are underinsured. offerings. Two new tools to assist in increasing The Community Care Center, located ease of access to the Family Care Cenadjacent to the main hospital at 1901 ter and Community Care Center involve The Family Care Center, located at Mulberry, is now home to several privisibility into available times with pro1610 South Jefferson, has recently wel- mary care providers, including board viders, and a call center to help with comed two well-loved community phy- certified Internal Medicine physician Dr. appointment scheduling. The wait times sicians to the practice. Silver Sisneros and Dr. Vandana Shah. at both centers are viewable online at Additionally, Dr. Shah is board certified www.titusregional.com, and the Skip Dr. Craig DeLisi and Dr. Rodney Bur- in Nephrology, caring for patients with the Wait virtual waiting room option is row are both board certified in Family kidney disease. available. You simply select the availaMedicine. With their leadership and ble time you’d like to be seen, and we oversight, TRMC continues to expand The Community Care Center is open 7 will hold that spot for you. You can wait urgent same-day appointments with days a week, including late evenings in the convenience of your home or run Advanced Health Practitioners Allison until 9 pm and Saturdays and Sundays errands, even receiving a text reminder Rios PA, Don Roseberry PA, Andrew until 7 pm. A sliding scale payment 15 minutes before your time. Covey PA and Jacob Green FNP. Con- system is also used at this location, struction on the second floor is exalong with financial counseling, to as- The clinics of Titus Regional are also
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now accessible through a centralized call center by dialing 903.577.SICK for same day appointments or 903.577.WELL to schedule routine wellness checkups. The call center’s goal is to connect our community with the right provider at the right time. The one-stop call helps streamline the process of seeing a provider and has proven popular with the community, receiving approximately 7,500 calls received per month.
In addition to primary care access, Titus Regional Medical Center is also advancing access to specialty care, especially in the areas of heart & vascular and stroke care. The new cardiac catheterization lab is now open and is under the medical directorship of Dr. Stephen Sigal and Dr. Aamer Abbas. Both are board-certified interventional cardiologists. The stroke program also recently completed onsite inspection and is slated to become a designated
Primary Stroke Center mid-Fall. Titus Regional Medical Center continues to evolve as a preferred regional destination for healthcare, with demonstrated high quality scores. For more information on the initiatives at Titus Regional, visit www.titusregional.com.
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Despite Challenges Tigers Roar to Excellence The largest school district in the county faces some of the biggest challenges and has some of the most dedicated staff working head on to overcome. Mount Pleasant ISD is a 5A district under the new classifications that moved districts up one classification to add 6A for the biggest schools in the state. With a 1,300 to 1,400 high school student body and a population of 5,500 stu-
dents across all eight campuses, the demographics set it apart from other districts in East Texas and the state.
While sports and football in particular are a huge part of the campus culture, MPISD is not all about athletics, the award-winning Tiger Dolls and the two-time Sweepstakes-winning Goin’ Gold Band. They have a strong UIL Academics program and its Career Tech Program is one after which other schools in the state seek to model theirs. “Virtually every one of our students takes at least one Career Tech class during high school,” Saxton said. There’s a lot to choose from, including Agriculture, Health Science, Cosmetology, Culinary Arts, Teaching, Business, Horticulture, Construction and Electrical and Mechanical trades, Robotics, CAD Drafting, Graphic Design, Criminal Justice and Journalism. There is even a greenhouse on campus. Students build houses from the ground up and graphic design students have access to a full
MPISD has a long history in the city, beginning in 1851 in downtown Mount Pleasant and has had many facelifts over the decades. Its current high school campus opened on North Edwards Avenue in 1966, and a new football stadium at the same location replaced the old Riddle Street stadium in 2002. Football has been there from the beginning, and with the only other high school in the county skipping the sport, Chapel Hill students head out to Sam Parker Field to enjoy the Friday night lights, cheer on the Tigers and hang with their cross-town friends.
print shop. Students in several of the programs have the option of taking state exams and receiving their certifications while they are in high school and are able to work in those fields when they graduate and continue their degrees or certifications at the next level. “We have quite a few students that take advantage of that to pay for their college,” Saxton said.
The school offers all of the traditional sports, including soccer, but also has a rodeo club, a bass fishing club and recently added swimming. Many of the Career Tech programs also have
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Another unique program is the Dual Language teaching. Students apply to be in the program which offers teaching in English half of the day and in Spanish the other half of the day on all four elementary campuses “The English-speaking students are learning Spanish, and the Spanish-speaking students are learning English,” Saxton said. “We started it with just Kindergarten and 1st grade, and the 1st graders moved up to 2nd grade and the plan is to keep moving students up and eventually have K-4 dual language classes. It moves those who are native speakers to become bilingual at some point in time.” The camaraderie between all the districts in the county is evident from the students to the teachers and the administrators.
“We are about 65 percent Hispanic and about 75 to 80 percent free and reduced lunch,” said MPISD Director of Communication Dr. Judith Saxton. “This presents the district with some unique challenges which we have met head on.” In the 2015-2016 state accountability ratings, the district and each of its campuses met state stands, something not all districts in the East Texas area are able to claim.
articulation agreements with Northeast Texas Community College, and students receive dual credit for the programs they take on campus. The school also partners with the Mount Pleasant Economic Development Corporation and NTCC in the Industrial Technology Training Center in Mount Pleasant.
“The four districts in this county are not competitive. In fact, the four superintendents all meet at least once a month for breakfast along with the CEO of the Chamber of Commerce and talk because they all share the same issues,” Saxton said. “They talk about school finance, standardized testing and other topics. They interact with each other and share solutions.”
Chapel Hill ISD: Where Everybody is Somebody Red Devil pride runs deep. From its humble beginnings as a one-room schoolhouse in the mid-1850s with Kindergarten through 8th grade to adding a high school in the 1990s, Chapel Hill ISD bleeds red and white.
in its monthly Phenomenal Fridays program in which student teams work throughout the year on projects such as business ventures, video productions, blogs or fundraising for an important cause like human trafficking.
The rural district in the southeastern portion of Titus County embraces the challenges and touts the advantages of being a small campus with a Pre-K-12 student population of 1,000. UIL Academics is huge, and basketball is king at the 3A district/community that chooses not to add a football program.
“Part of it is asking those higher level questions, the challenging questions and pushing kids to problem solve. It’s a great experience for kids, and we need to produce more of that.”
One of the more unique aspects of the school’s educational philosophy is the integration over the past few years of the School Enrichment Model, which takes the ideas of the Gifted & Talented program and applies them across the whole student body.
The district is highly-rated in academics, and there is a large focus on college and career readiness. “We are about academic success, but we emphasize moving kids along this path and making sure they are ready,” Levesque said.
“Our business partners are telling us to focus and make sure our students graduate with the softs skills, coding and financial literacy,” he said. While the school has grown from its early days, it still strives to hold onto that small school atmosphere with a common cafeteria shared by all grades.
“It promotes student voice, interest-based strengths and allows students to collaborate in groups on things that matter to them and do problem solving,” said CHISD Superintendent Marc Levesque.
Located in a rural area, the school’s Agriculture, FFA and other career tech programs take a “The big kids can be around the little kids, and high priority. that’s how things should work,” Levesque said. “We are fortunate to have 1,000 students be“For this community it would be wrong to say cause that allows us to spend more time with that everybody here is going to go to a 4-year them. I tell our principals they need to know university, and they don’t have to. every kid.”
The program has been around for 40 years but is just now gaining a foothold in schools. Helping kids find their passions and giving them the freedom and tools to pursue them is how former Chapel Hill High School Principal Brandon Dennard described it.
We need to be asking ourselves what the world The challenges come when teachers have to is in need of, and while 4-year degrees are wear many hats, but they understand that going great, so are 2-year degrees and certifications,” in. Levesque said. “You have to hire people that buy into that and “You can produce $40-$50,000-a-year jobs by want to stay,” Levesque said. “They have to be sending kids over to the Industrial Tech Cenwilling to understand that it’s more than teachter.” ing in the classroom. They are all involved in extracurricular activities, and it works when Chapel Hill students also have an advantage everybody is all in. We are a learning family with the school’s close proximity to Northeast where everybody is somebody.” Texas Community College where they can take a wide range of dual credit courses and graduate high school, in some cases, with enough hours for an Associate’s Degree.
“Dr. Joseph Renzuli (who championed the model) believes that what we do for GT kids, we should do for all kids. The GT community kind of out casted him for saying that, but what the research is playing out is that it’s true. If you take those strategies, they will promote excellence in all of the students,” Dennard said. “The unfortunate part is that it has taken decades for people to see it.”
“We help children look at what their opportunities are and help them define their goals because Millennials and Generation Z kids grow up and want their passion to match their jobs to bring them more happiness,” Levesque said. He said the advances in online education have changed how educators think about learning and teaching, and the logistics of encouraging collaboration and teamwork.
Chapel Hill High School implements the model
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Winfield is Bearkat Country including spelling, writing, math, chess and speaking events.
The campus may be small, but the heart and pride in Bearkat country is huge. Winfield ISD, the smallest district in Titus County, has been
With a student population of 90-95 percent Hispanic, one of the biggest challenges the district faces is overcoming language barriers. Some of the students enter school already bilingual, but a large number have to learn English on day one.
There are also low socioeconomic challenges with just a handful of kids in the district that don’t qualify for free or reduced lunches. “I try not to let our teachers use those things as excuses for not excelling because our kids are
“It takes a little more time and a different level of teaching, so we really work hard to make sure that our staff is trained to provide that type of education for our kids,” Burchinal said. To do that, teachers are required to become certified in English as a Second Language, although all teaching is done in English. around since 1900. With a total student body of 170, the average 8th grade graduating class is “We don’t have a lot of pull out programs, so 15-18. kids get to stay in the classroom for all of their core content instruction rather than being pulled Its longevity is a big accomplishment for the community 10 miles west of Mount Pleasant. “There are still people that say, ‘I didn’t even know there was a school out there,’” said Winfield ISD Superintendent Rhonda Burchinal. The school serves as the centerpiece of the town, opening its outdoor pavilion and playground for community gatherings. The Hshaped school itself, except for one portable building, is still housed under one roof and has a staff of 32, including 14 teachers, typically one teacher for each grade and one class per subject at the junior high level. Sixth graders participate in the junior high sports to fill out the teams. The district offers volleyball, girls and boys basketball, girls and boys track and this year added cross country. They are working on a plan to add soccer, but that’s still on the drawing board.
out to specifically work on language,” she said. The district also works closely with the Region “We have an area that’s cleared and leveled, 8 Education Service Center, utilizing its reand we have a sprinkler system. We are finding sources in those areas. a coach and there's the expense, but it’s something I would love to get because that is a pre- “Their ESL consultants work with our staff and dominant sport here,” she said. we use what’s called sheltered instruction strategies or English language learner strategies” The Bearkats have also started participating in Burchinal said. UIL academic competitions in several subjects,
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certainly capable of meeting expectations with the right amount of time and the right type of instruction.” Burchinal calls herself the “Winfield Cheerleader” as she touts the district’s pros and faces head on its challenges. “The advantage of being a small district is the sense of community and sense of family. When kids start school here, every teacher in the building knows them already. We get to know the kids and their families probably a lot better than bigger districts,” she said. “We know the things that affect their learning inside or outside the school, and we can target those things.” Bearkat pride runs not only among the students, staff and educators. The parents are diehard Green and Black fans as well. “It’s a unique community that heavily supports its kids,” Burchinal said. “To our parents, their kids getting an education is highly important because for most of them, they know that’s their way out of poverty. They highly respect and revere educators and teachers, and they are involved in everything. The parents pack out the cafeteria and the gymnasium for any event.” Burchinal said the district reminds her of what schools used to be like years ago. “I tell people about it, and nobody really understands until they come work here,” she said.
Harts Bluff Embraces Its Past to Build Its Future Once a Bulldog, always a Bulldog. Harts Bluff ISD alumni would wholeheartedly agree. In fact, many of the district’s teachers graduated from the PreK-8 rural Titus County school, got their degrees and came back home.
The district also sets itself apart by using a project-based learning approach to education.
“We’ve continued to grow through the years, but we’ve always been cautious about maintaining that community and some of those old ways that Harts Bluff has been known for,” said Dr. Lyle DuBus, the district’s superintendent. “We know that’s one of the things that makes us special, so we want to keep that atmosphere.”
“Our teachers in “The Bridge” don’t have traditional classrooms. They are all in a collaborative learning environment, rotating between their areas depending on how they’re teaching,” DuBus said. While the district holds onto the legacy of its rich one-room history, with an old-style school bell that rings, it also embraces the modern tools and forward thinking of today’s educational advances.
“We don’t let our teachers stand up and lecture the traditional way. We believe in It started out as a one-room schoolhouse, and small groups and teaching with projects today with a student population of 575 and and experience learning,” DuBus said. class sizes of 16-18, the school strives to main- The district’s new addition added last tain that close-knit community feeling among its year was built with those concepts in students, faculty and parents. mind.
The benefits of having Pre-Kindergarten through 8th grades in one building are many. “That is so unique. Even as middle school kids, you’ll see your Kindergarten teacher. That makes a strong community. It really makes an impact knowing those kids from age 5 to 14.” In the 2015-16 school year, the district added its Pre-K program, giving teachers yet another year with the kids during their stay at Harts Bluff.
whole child. We don’t teach to a test. We know that test scores are important, but that’s not our focus. Our children are much more than the sum of a score on a piece of paper, and that’s how we treat them,” DuBus said. “That’s one thing that attracted me to Harts Bluff. We teach a little different here on purpose. We know we are building a future.”
“We are using a lot of modern innovative approaches. All of our kids, 4th grade and up, have either an iPad or a Chromebook that they can take home every night. We still use textbooks, but a lot of our textbooks are online and we do a lot of research,” DuBus said. Some of the unique educational areas available are Robotics and Outdoor Education, which includes archery and fishing. Our school serves the population of northern Titus County, a farming and rural community. Because of that, I thought it was important to teach and continue to pass those skills on,” DuBus said. DuBus said the district also doesn’t focus on test scores. “My board and I want to educate the
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In January 2017, the Mount Pleasant-Titus County Chamber of Commerce will once again launch its biennial Leadership Mount Pleasant program. Designed to connect citizens of Mount Pleasant to the community in deep and meaningful ways, the program aims to encourage civic engagement through hands-on education, real world interactions and the opportunity to leave a lasting mark on the city by completing a project or meeting a demonstrated need by the end of the six month program. Topics to be explored will include: poverty,
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diversity, healthcare, social services, local government, economic development and education. The program will also include a two day trip to Austin with the Chamber's Governmental Affairs Committee where participants will be able to meet and interact with state legislators to discuss issues of great importance to northeast Texas. Graduates of this dynamic program will have an understanding of the interconnectedness of the topics covered and the need for fully engaged and empowered citizens who will work
together to insure a prosperous and dynamic future for Mount Pleasant. Applications for the program will be available in September and will be distributed throughout the community and made available on the Chamber's website. Businesses are asked to nominate employees to apply who have demonstrated civic-mindedness and who have expressed a desire to become a community leader in Mount Pleasant. Leadership Mount Pleasant will run from January to July 2017.
New Teachers Welcomed to Titus County The Chamber’s Education Committee, in part- employees of Titus County businesses are nership with presenting sponsor Superior Mort- being educated today in classrooms across our gage, welcomed the newest educators to the county. These teachers will be working to develop entrepreneurs, innovators and leaders of Titus County schools at the annual New tomorrow’s workforce. We cannot start early Teacher Breakfast on August 9th. Faculty and enough to support the work that happens in our staff from Mount Pleasant, Chapel Hill, Harts schools.” Bluff, Winfield, Northeast Texas Community Many Mount Pleasant businesses also see the College, Texas A&M Texarkana at NTCC and value of supporting education and giving a Region 8 were represented. warm welcome to the new teachers who are investing in our young people. The event is designed to connect businesses with educators, a partnership that the Chamber Sponsorships were provided by over twenty believes is of significant importance. Chamber members. “Education and business go hand in hand,” “The sponsorships these local businesses Chamber CEO Katie Stedman said. “The future provided made this breakfast possible, and we
are most grateful for their support,” said Stedman. Education Committee Chair, Amy HInton, has been overseeing this event for the past __ years and is a champion for business and education working together. “Titus County business and industry believe in supporting education and the strength it adds to the economic fiber of our community,” said Amy Hinton, Chair of the Education Committee.
Presenting Sponsor Superior Mortgage
Donors East Texas Broadcasting Thurman's Pro-Med PharGold Sponsors macy Guaranty Bank & Trust Kindle Light School Texas A&M University - Texarkana @ NTCC Harts Bluff ISD East Texas Phone Repair and Satellite Service Dekoron Mount Pleasant Tire and Brake, Inc. Brookshires Mount PleasRegion 8 Service Center ant Denney Land Surveying, LLC East Texas Children's RE/MAX Paramount -Brad Buchanan Dentistry PA Texas Farm Bureau - Todd Jaggers EDH Electric Everett Toyota of Mount Pleasant Durrum Chiropractic and Apples for the Teacher Family Wellness Gift Bag Sponsors Pilgrim Banks
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For many years Mount Pleasant relied on satellite instruction from Paris Junior College and Kilgore College for local access to higher education. That all changed when Northeast Texas Community College began its first fall semester on its brand new 7-building campus in 1985. From the start they did things right. “In its earliest years, our college had the highest percentage of PhDs of any community college in Texas because they initially hired faculty with the intention that they would be
phase got underway in early June.
campus.”
Phase 2 includes upgrades to the Humanities Building, the mall plaza area, the Learning Resource Center, Student Union Building, the Administration Building, Business Technology and Industrial Technology buildings. Work on the Math/Science Building is expected to begin close to the end of the year. Johnson said the project is well ahead of schedule.
Along with its commitment to providing quality campus facilities, NTCC’s commitment to quality instruction for those on the university or workforce track is stronger than ever. Johnson said there has been a significant expansion of the college’s workforce training efforts in the last eight years.
“We thought this was going to be a three-year project, and instead it’s about an 18-month project,” he said. The construction, while causing some logistical disruption on campus, ushers in an exciting new era for the 30-year-old campus, making the structures more inviting for existing and incoming students and adding practical improvements.
preparing students to move on to university,” said NTCC President Dr. Brad Johnson. “That’s been a very valuable thing for this college, and we have kind of kept that core faculty through the years.” According to the NTCC website, due to the quality of instruction, Northeast received full accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools in January 1987, one full year ahead of schedule. Fast forward to present day, the campus is undergoing a facelift after a $20 million bond election authorized much needed renovations to the interior of the seven original buildings and infrastructure upgrades. The first phase the underground utility infrastructure - was completed in the spring while the second
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“We don’t necessarily need more square footage, but we do need our facilities to function. We need good, robust internet in the classrooms and decent technology,” Johnson said. “We also need spaces that are reconfigured to fit the way students today learn and socialize. So we have added gathering spaces and made electrical power easily accessible across the
“There were some parts of our local economy, particularly manufacturing, that the college had intended to serve when it first opened but had to cut due to setbacks in the beginning,” Johnson said. “Ramping up those programs has been our focus for years. Industrial Maintenance has been put in place, and we’ve expanded the automotive program to include the Shelby High Performance Academy. We are adding Robotics and a CNC program. CNC is what Priefert uses to cut their steel.” Johnson said the college has been doing what he called right-sizing over the years. “We have closed four programs, but opened five new ones, and are starting two more programs this Fall. It is a constant process of
struction and what comes out in the end is as good as or better than that at any other institu- The college’s reputation in the educational tion in the state and most of the country as world and in the workforce for having rigorous well.” classes goes back to NTCC’s commitment to hiring highly qualified professors. Johnson said a high percentage of incoming students need remediation in one way or an- “Faculty recruit faculty. Administrators offer other, and 82 percent receive some kind of packages, but at the end of the day, good faculfinancial aid. ty are motivated by what they believe their environment lets them do, to pursue their passion,” “These are students who have real barriers to Johnson said. pruning and adding,” he said. New additions attend college and what we’re able to do include Patient Care Technician, Medical Aswith them during the time they are here sisting and Funeral Services Education. On the really changes their lives,” he said. athletics side, the college offers baseball, softball, soccer and rodeo. The college’s philosophy is summed up in three words: “Exemplary learning op“We are organized, staffed and committed to portunities.” having a real impact on the students so that when they leave us they are better than they “Exemplary speaks to that quality issue, were when they walked through the doors,” he and learning emphasizes the responsibilsaid. ity of the student, which is why I like the third word, opportunity. Not everybody What truly sets NTCC apart from a typical com- that comes to us chooses to take admunity college is its commitment to high quality vantage of the opportunities given to core education. them,” Johnson said. “That is a very important function of the college. It’s the oppor“We are a small college, but the quality of intunity that we offer.”
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Region 8 ESC Helps Bridge Education Gap related to students identified as dyslexic, English language learners, Gifted and Talented and special education services. Fitts said the Region 8 ESC also maintains an active Career and Technical Education program. “The staff offers numerous professional From the largest to the smallest school, the development and technical assistance opporturichest to the poorest district in Titus County, nities on topics related to careers and industry, the Region 8 Education Service Center offers a along with direct certification programs adchance for everyone to have a more level play- dressing more than 20 areas,” Fitts said. “The ing field. CTE activities also include industry walkthroughs and assistance with CTE dual The Region 8 ESC, one of 20 Regional ESCs credit programs.” the State of Texas created in 1967, is an important resource for teachers, administrators Help in implementing state and federal proand school staff. grams, school operations and technology services are all areas of expertise they offer the “At Region 8 we use words like commitment, districts. dedication and family as the backbone of what we do and who we are,” said Region 8 ESC “Our staff provides training in instructional techExecutive Director David Fitts. “The service nology and integrating current technology in the center plays an extremely vital role in the East classroom as a tool for teaching and engaging Texas area being able to maintain a high aca- students,” Fitts said. demic level.” Region 8 ESC also has forged strong partnerThe center serves 48 school districts, 162 cam- ships the University of Houston, University of puses, 12 counties and more than 61,000 stu- Texas at Austin, Texas A&M-Texarkana, Texas dents. Workforce Solutions and the Texas Department Fitts said Titus County is blessed to have great of Agriculture to provide professional developcommunity support for all of its school districts, ment services, including assistance for Pre-K and the role the ESC plays only enhances that teachers and childcare centers, principal and level of support. Its purpose is to help school superintendent certification programs and child districts improve student performance in all nutrition programs. areas, enable districts to operate more efficiently and economically and implement state initia- The facility Region 8 ESC occupies today has tives. enabled the center to expand its offerings to the school districts and the community. The center The services it provides are wide-ranging from was originally located in the old Mount Pleasant professional development and technical assis- High School building on Riddle Street. In May tance with a curriculum and instructional focus, of 1986, staff moved into a new building on to required training for board members, bus North Edwards Street in Mount Pleasant and drivers and business managers. then in 2012 bought the former Pilgrim’s Pride World Headquarters building on U.S. Highway Curriculum and instruction specialists provide 271 just north of Pittsburg. on-sight, one-on-one or small group technical We have 16 meeting rooms, two conference help for teachers in all core subject areas, incenters, an exhibit hall, a science lab, two comcluding instructional modeling and teacher puter labs, four video conference rooms, the mentoring. Professional development and tech- Apples for the Teacher store and the Heav’nly nical assistance opportunities include trainings Foods cafe,” Fitts said. The new building gave
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the service center the ability to host academic trainings and events that it couldn’t have possibly done in its former location. The partnerships between Region 8 ESC, educational entities, the support of the business community, and parents are all vital to the success of students. “Education can be difficult if a district does not have community support,” said Fitts. He further elaborated that support is desperately needed more so now with the accountability system being strengthened, extremely demanding STAAR and EOC student assessments and an A through F rating system that is on the horizon. He called it a “high stakes world for all educators” and said results matter. “Let’s not kid ourselves. Results matter to a lot of people. In the final analysis, your success as a school district will be predicated on the achievement results earned by students under your charge,” Fitts said. Fitts said Titus County is blessed to have great schools, and Region 8 will continue to fight for them and the other school districts they serve. “In Texas, we have never given up on our public schools. We cannot afford to do so.” Fitts said educators must be the beacon of hope that allows young people to “prosper, grow and truly be the next great generation.”
Dr. David Fitts
A&M Texarkana-NTCC Partnership Flourishes Currey – Instructor of Education, Mandy Stringer – ITV Facilitator, Sarah Giles – Student Worker. Brandon Barron, Academic Advisor for A&M-Texarkana’s main campus, visits the A&M-Texarkana at NTCC site to advise business students through the semester. Opportunities for Mount Pleasant residents to earn a bachelor’s degree right here at home continue to grow through the partnership between Northeast Texas Community College and Texas A&M University-Texarkana.
“We have a fantastic team to serve A&MTexarkana students at the NTCC site. Each has unique skills and gifts to make our team more resourceful and serve our students better,” Coke said.
Since establishing A&M-Texarkana degree programs on the NTCC campus in the late 1990s, the partnership has enabled students to earn 4-year degrees in several programs of study. It started with the Teacher Preparation Programs, the Bachelor of Science of Interdisciplinary Studies with four Teacher Certification options, and has since added Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Business Administration, Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences, Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies with four Teacher Certification Programs, Bachelor of Science in Nursing and a Master of Science in Nursing.
It’s also beneficial for economic growth in the area. “I believe that potential employers looking to relocate to this area will look to see if there is a community college where they can send their employees to receive the necessary education and training, but also to receive or further their higher education opportunities through earning a bachelor’s or master’s degree on the NTCC campus through A&M-Texarkana,” Coke said. “Because of the NTCC and A&M-Texarkana partnership, we are an advantage that some communities of our size cannot always offer to potential employers. A&M-Texarkana is opening doors of higher education opportunities in partnership with NTCC to prospective students that might not be able to achieve the dream of not only earning an associate degree, but a bachelor’s or even master’s degree. The sky is the limit. We are very fortunate to have NTCC as our partner.”
Coke called it a partnership with NTCC because they encourage students to earn their two-year degrees at the community college level and then continue pursuing their education through their programs and stay close to home. She said many students are nontraditional learners who have families and full-time jobs. A&M-Texarkana at NTCC students also have the opportunity to study abroad through undergraduate education courses each semester. A&M-Texarkana now offers a doctoral degree in Education Leadership for teachers and Laura Currey works closely with A&Mschool administrators to earn their doctoral Texarkana at NTCC’s education partners in the degree, Coke said. area to ensure we provide the best training and A&M-Texarkana also has articulation agreeeducation for teacher candidates. “We are “We here at A&M-Texarkana are excited about ments with NTCC in Community Health, Funer- fortunate to have such strong relationships with the growth of our partnership with both NTCC al Service Education, Occupational Therapy Titus County school districts and Region VIII and the Mt. Pleasant community,” Interim ProvAssistant and Physical Therapy Assistant with Education Service Center to serve our Teacher ost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. the Bachelor of Applied Arts Sciences Program Preparation Program,” Currey said. Gary Stading said. “We want this partnership to (BAAS). The articulation agreements, known as continue to grow. We are always looking for 2 + 2 program agreements, create a seamless “You’re able to earn your bachelor’s degree on additional degree opportunities, in which by transition from NTCC’s associate degree prothe NTCC campus. The course instruction is partnering with NTCC, will benefit the regrams to the bachelor’s degree programs face to face at the NTCC campus, ITV or online gion. The current degrees that we offer only through A&M-Texarkana. courses,” Coke said. “Most of the courses are represent a sampling of what we hope to offer either in the evening or online.” in the future.” “The 2 + 2 plan shows the student clearly what classes they need to enroll in with NTCC to Adults who have been in the workforce for 20 to For more information about the Education graduate with an associate degree and then 30 years and find they cannot go any higher in Leadership graduate programs, please contact finish their bachelor’s degree with A&Mtheir career fields are increasingly turning to the Dr. Amy Burkeman at Texarkana,” said Kelly Coke, A&M-Texarkana A&M-Texarkana’s BAAS program at NTCC to Amy.Burkeman@tamut.edu or (903) 223-3076. at NTCC Director of Programs. earn their bachelor’s degrees. Texas A&M University-Texarkana at NTCC is housed in the University Health Science Building on the NTCC campus. The staff includes Shannon Reynolds - Secretary, Jennifer Perez – Academic Advisor and Recruiter, Ms. Laura
“Our program is a CAEL (Council for Adult and Experiential Learning) recognized program, which speaks highly of our BAAS faculty and executive leadership team at A&M-Texarkana,” she said.
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Industrial Technology Training Center: Building a Strong Local Manufacturing Workforce The Industrial Technology Training Center in Mount Pleasant opened its doors in the fall of 2011. The facility, located off Interstate 30, was created as a partnership between Northeast Texas Community College, the Mount Pleasant Economic Development Corporation and Mount Pleasant ISD.
The ITTC is utilized by more than 200 high school and college students each week. More than 80 students have received degrees or certificates from the program When local industry, workforce and educa- since it began, with 26 completing during tional leaders began discussing the vision 2015-2016 school year. for the center, there were two overriding Smith said many students who may not messages. have traditional college in their future need to know that this is an option for them. Its mission is to provide specialized training “Our workforce was getting older and that meets the demands of regional emyoung people were not coming into manuployers. Currently, industrial technology, facturing, and we needed a workforce electrical occupations and computer-aided trained to use technology and to program drafting courses are being taught at the and service it,” said Mount Pleasant Ecofacility. Graduates of the program have the nomic Development Corporation Executive skills and knowledge to begin a successful Director Charlie Smith. career as an industrial maintenance technician with regional, national, and internaNTCC’s Industrial Technology and MPISD tional manufacturers. Career & Technical Education departments co-facilitate the center, and area high ITTC’s experienced faculty, small class school students can earn dual credit hours sizes, and self-paced instruction make the through its programs.
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program a unique learning opportunity for students seeking to learn new job-skills or upgrade existing skills.
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MOUNT PLEASANT BUSINESS REPORT An official publication of the Mount Pleasant/Titus County Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Council 1604 North Jefferson | Mount Pleasant Texas 75455 903.572.8567 | mtpleasanttx.com Mount Pleasant/Titus County Chamber, Publisher Katie Stedman, Editor in Chief Mandy Stringer, Layout Lynda Stringer, Contributing Writer Sam Guzman, Contributing Photographer Echo Publishing Co., Printing