This is my second post and I would like to say that I am very much looking forward to pursuing my dream of becoming a teacher. I have finally applied and have been accepted to Granite State College ( just waiting for transcripts to come in). As I think about my future career as a teacher, I will utilize my experiences at GSC to become better prepared to enter the classroom of the 21st Century. After researching and learning more about GSC, I am more excited to begin my courses so that I can finally make my goal of becoming a teacher a reality. Today I was talking with a friend of mine and I had mentioned GSC - she told me that she had graduated from the college with her associate and bachelor's degrees, and that I would really enjoy my courses and the learning experience. I would like to say THANK YOU GSC for helping me continue my educational journey, and for being so helpful and kind throughout the admissions process. A special thanks to Doug Cooper, Jodi Quinn, and Cara Newton for being so friendly, kind , and caring.
Name: Dan DeQuoy
Graduated: 2015
Location: Manchester/Concord
Degree: B.A. Individual Studies English Language Arts with teacher certification in Elementary/General Special Education
GSC has allowed me to achieve my goal of becoming a teacher, without having to change my whole life. Through online courses, field experience, and working in a district, I didn't need to "stop working" to student teach which was better for me and my family, and financially! GSC educators are very knowledgable and realistic. I received my bachelor's degree and dual teaching certification in only a few years - Granite State College is the best option for students who want to maintain their life and career while furthering their education.
- Kelsey
It's official. Our mobile classroom is up and we're ready to enroll students at our new co-location at Nashua Community College for the Fall term!
On Thursday, July 26th, we co-hosted a celebration with NCC to announce our new partnership. The highlight of the event was the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony.
Here's an "action shot" of NCC President Lucille Jordan, Governor John Lynch, Mayor Donnalee Lozeau, and GSC President Todd Leach cutting the ribbon!
The courses offered on NCC's campus are designed so those with an associate degree can easily leverage this experience into an affordable bachelor degree program. We will be featuring classes for the B.S. in Business Management, B.S. in Psycholgoy, B.S. in Applied Studies (Management Option), the B.A. in Individualized Studies, Teacher Certification Courses, and classes in the Masters Degree in Project Management and M.S. in Leadership programs.
Click here to learn more!
I am teaching a Foundations in Early Childhood Education course online at Granite State College this semester. It is a course that I have not taught before. Many of the people in the class are involved in the early childhood field, but need the coursework for their certification. Their first assignment was to introduce themselves and tell a little about their interest in the field of early childhood. It amazes me how many of the students talked about how much they love what they are doing. Almost every person in the class mentioned how much they love their job. Early Childhood education is not a high paying career field. It is also not an easy job, but it is one of the best jobs on the planet. Imagine working with young children who are excited about things such as butterflies in a garden, or clouds in the sky. Adults are usually too busy to notice the little things, but young children spend their time noticing these things. It is great to see so many people working in a field that they love and taking the time to improve their understanding of the field through online undergraduate education courses at Granite State that may lead them to an Associate Degree or a Bachelor's degree in early childhood, or even special education teacher certification.
Have you ever wondered if a college education was a good idea? Have you debated with yourself about going back to school, spending all that money to find out things you already know? Have friends told you there is no purpose in going to college?
Well, think for a minute about what you want to be doing 5, 10 even 20 years from now. Do you want to be doing the same thing you are doing now? Are you up to date with the latest technology for your field? Well a college education can help you to change careers or get up to date with the technological advances in your field. Recently I spoke to someone who started college right out of high school but then stopped. He works in the landscaping field. He wishes he knew something about running a business so he could work for himself. I suggested college courses and he said no way was he going to sit around in a classroom. Then I suggested on line courses. You can take them when your schedule allows it. You can take the courses you need for your career, or you can put together a program of classes for a particular degree. He is considering the idea and maybe you should too!
Did you know that Granite State College offers many different kinds of degree programs? They have on line and face to face courses to meet your needs. Maybe you want Special Education Teacher certification after being a paraprofessional for many years. Maybe you are thinking of an undergraduate psychology degree, or a health care management program. Consider the options and consider that things are changing so fast in our society, that without training, it will be hard for anyone to be prepared for a career, even 5 years from now. Don't be left behind. Think about your reason for a college education.
The Education Programs team at Granite State is highly focussed on quality and innovation and I was particularly pleased to read several commendations in the review teams site visit report. Some excerpts from the report truly highlight the great work being done at Granite State College:
"Granite State College Post Baccalaureate Teacher Certification program is to be commended for outstanding course and program design, which embodies the development and application of a standards-based, best practices curriculum."
"Granite State College Post Baccalaureate Teacher Certification program is to be commended for its extensive systematic process of assessment and evaluation of programs, teacher candidates, and faculty advisors."
In fact, there were five commendations in all and each speaks to the commitment to quality our education team has. I congratulated the Education Programs team on this recognition from the visiting team.
To be considered for an Alumni Merit Scholarship, GSC students:
• Must be an undergraduate enrolled in a degree program, or a student enrolled in the Post-Baccalaureate Teacher
Certification Program.
• Must have completed a minimum of twenty-four credits at Granite State College.
• Must have completed a minimum of four terms at Granite State College.
• Must have a 3.5 grade-point average or better.
I was one of the lucky ten who received this scholarship in 2009. It enabled me to be able to take an extra course that year and graduate the following June with my classmates. Last year I participated in the fund raising phone-a-thon as a way to “pay-it-forward” to the next generation of scholarship recipients. This past weekend I once again spent my Sunday afternoon at the Granite State College Concord NH college campus to reach out and call past donors and alumni to ask for their contribution to this great cause. This year was no different than last; the generosity of the alumni, staff and faculty of Granite State College is heartwarming to say the least. Many of those currently experiencing difficult times still offered to donate $10.00 and those in better circumstances asked to increase their donation amount from last year.
Thank you to all of those I spoke with this past weekend. Your generosity, commitment and well wishes to the current students of GSC working towards their own adult college degree are well received and appreciated.
We are offering some very interesting courses here at our Claremont NH College: Psychology of Occupational Stress, Short Fiction and Natural History of Northern New England - to name a few. At our Lebanon NH College, we're offering Law and Society, Principles of Marketing and American Popular Culture - just for starters. I often find myself wanting to take several classes at each location, but alas, there just aren't enough hours in the day to do EVERYTHING I want to do.
I'm taking a couple online courses: Principles of Economics and Continuous Quality Improvement in Health Care. Woot! I'm excited because my daughter is also taking an Economics course - at her high school. Maybe we can be study buddies! We'll see how that goes...
BTW, our new catalog is now available online, here's the direct link: GSC 2010-11 Catalog. You can find out about all of our Majors and Minors, our Post-Baccalaureate Teacher Certification Program and read Course Descriptions for all the courses we offer.
This particular student, let's call her Miranda, works in a local elementary school. While she enjoys her role as a para-educator, she really wants to pursue Teacher Training Education. As a former high school dropout, Miranda didn't think she was equipped to go to college, but once she attained her G.E.D., she realized that she was thirsty for more. She decided to apply to GSC, the New Hampshire State College that offers Affordable College Study, and she's eager to start her Childhood Education Courses this fall.
Miranda wants to work with children that have special needs. At GSC, she will pursue a B.S. in Individualized Studies: English Language Arts -- which will enable her to meet the federal Highly Qualified Teacher requirement, and the Post-Baccalaureate Teacher Certification in General Special Education. The reason Miranda chose GSC, she told me, was because she could continue to work in her chosen field while taking Evening College Classes. I'm willing to bet that she will also find, as I have found, that taking classes with other adults of all ages provides a rich educational experience. GSC is the college in the University of New Hampshire System that specializes in Adult Higher Education.
The excitement Miranda expressed -- when she saw evidence that her abilities are indeed college-level -- is one of the reasons I love working at Granite State College. It's such a great feeling to watch someone's face light up at the realization of their possibilities! Our students are so invested in their education, because many of them already have real-world experience, and they are incredibly motivated to do well in their studies. They want the most out of their education. And we at GSC are here to cheer them on!
So, here I am writing my first blog post. It's a little intimidating because I've never blogged before. But there's a first time for everything and I'm excited about this new endeavor. Of course the challenge will be finding the time, between working and classes and family responsibilities.
It helps that I am surrounded by other adult college students, many of whom can relate to my balancing act, because they are also working full-time while taking part time classes. In fact, many of my classmates are only able to afford their adult college classes because at GSC taking just one class a term means that they are eligible to apply for financial aid. Another huge incentive is that the difference between in-state and out-of-state tuition at GSC is only $15 per credit! Offering the lowest tuition of all four institutions in the University of New Hampshire System, GSC is a NH state college where my classmates and I can earn an affordable bachelor degree, associate degree or even teacher certification.
I suppose I sound like I'm going for a hard-sell. But that's only because I have such a positive impression of Granite State College. One of the best aspects of my job at GSC is being a point-of-contact for prospective and new students because I want so much to help people see their potential become reality. If a student calls our Claremont NH College, needing to know how to post a comment to the discussion board in Blackboard for their online class, I can walk them through it over the phone, because I've been in their shoes.
When a potential student calls or walks into our center for the first time, they are often worried about how they'll handle taking adult college courses on top of their work and family responsibilities, and I can relate. But it really is doable! For me, taking online classes is one way I have been able to manage to keep all the balls in the air, so to speak. Sure, my first online class was a little scary in the beginning, but my classmates were incredibly helpful - explaining where to find resources and how to submit assignments. It was a great feeling to learn some new technology along with the actual course material. That's just one of the perks of taking online classes for college!
Because I really enjoy the occasional human interaction, I also take face-to-face evening college classes, as well as weekend intensive classes. I find that I can fit these into my hectic schedule quite nicely. Currently, I'm taking Managing Diversity as a weekend intensive, and The Emerging U.S. Health Care System online. It's a splendid combination of formats and learning!
Well, I better get back to the books, because I want to make sure I get my assignment in before the deadline tomorrow.
Anyway what struck me is the attitude of some of these young people. They are not "buying in" to the college right after high school tradition. As a matter of fact many of them are looking at ways to get involved in the global community for a year or two before going "back to school" to earn a degree.
Some are looking at AmericaCorp, Habitat for Humanity, and other global service opportunities. They are seeking ways to expand their experiences as a world citizen, gain a better understanding of how the world works, meet some people with similar values and aspirations and concerns, and share their passion for giving back. Some want to be able to use this time to get to know themselves better. Many are considering smaller, less well known colleges or universities. Some are pursuing their own interests distance learning universities and online classes. And yes, the truth be told, some just don't know what they want to do, but they know that the traditional path just isn't the right thing for them now.
Some are looking at the experiences that their parents have had both in academics and in the business world. Many think about deferring college to enlist in the military. Some are considering adult education certificate programs or getting into an adult education diploma program that allows them to go to school while pursuing a job or their passion. They've seen their parents working while getting their degrees (undergrad as well as post grad work). They've seen their parents go back to get a second degree or certificate and start a new career. They have learned that education is the key to their future, but it doesn't have to be down the traditional path.
For all of the caterwauling about today's generation (every generation past has complained about the one they created), there are a lot of bright kids (okay, parents, you can acknowledge that you did a great job with your kids....there, feel better?). I came away from this conversation feeling pretty good about the next generation of learners. They are taking charge of their own education. They have challenged the system, the teachers, the parent, and even the business world. They have options that we never heard about, they are courageous, they are afraid of the future, but not paralyzed by their fear. It feeds their desire to get outside of their comfort zone. They know that you can hit the reset button and recover if you make a mistake. They are not afraid of doing something they haven't done before. They create opportunities, they create their future, they create our future.
They will change the way education will be delivered in the years to come and they will complain and be overly concerned about the next generation.....and somewhere down the road, some one will have a conversation with a group of the next generation and find out that this new generation, like the ones before it, will create a world of new knowledge and opportunities for living, for working and even for learning.......
They are using online courses, accelerated undergraduate programs, and distance learning in ways that create opportunities for those in academics to create the future of colleges and universities. They are creating new careers and new technologies that are creating opportunities for colleges and universities to grow and evolve faster than ever before.
The adult learning community is listening and responding! Never before has there been so many options for today's learning community to access education. Never before has there been so many options and academic programs to purse so many unique and innovative degrees. Never before has the academic world been more ready to serve and support the adult learning community.
So, graduates (high school, tech school, community college, college and university grad, and even you post-grad learners) when you get ready to turn to the college and university community to continue and support your education and career advancement goals, we will be there, ready to give you the education you need to continue your journey as a lifelong learner......
See you in class......
As a part of my Adult Education Certificate as I achieve my Reading Specialist certifictaion, I am taking a course called Perspectives in Children's LIterature. There are so many career opportunities in education that I could probably veer off in many different directions. However, my passion is to someday teach reading to first and second graders.
Perspectives in Children Literature is one of the most fun classes that I have taken toward my major at Granite State College because I love children's books. I love everything about them. I love the way they smell. I love the vivid colors often used to illustrate them. And, most importantly, I love to read them to a group of young, enthusiastic children.
Until recently, I had not met an author of children's books although I have always hoped to, someday. Our course instructor, Heidi Zollerman invited her friend Marie Harris into our classroom for a visit! Not only is she the author of Primary Numbers: A New Hampshire Number Book and G is for Granite: A New Hampshire Alphabet, she is also the Poet Laureate of New Hampshire!
We were all so honored and happy to have her join our class for the evening as we interviewed her about such topics as the writing process, the construction of a children's book, formulas for writing them, and going for it; taking the chance to write one if there is a desire to do so.
Meeting a published children's author, as an adult learner at Granite State College, adds yet another dimension to the learning process. My success as an Elementary School Teacher/Reading Specialist relies upon a good solid foundation of multi-faceted adult educational experiences of which this is certainly one!
Marie Harris presented herself to us happily -- humbly too though. She met us most respectfully, as the students we are, on our own missions toward success. I think I speak for our entire class when I say a very gratuitious Thank You to Marie for taking time out of a busy schedule to introduce herself to us.
Leslie Bowering
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