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Meet a Few of Our Faculty and Staff

RCTC Faculty and Staff

  RCTC is one of a very few number of community and technical colleges in the country to have had several Fulbright Scholars.  The Fulbright Program, the most prestigious educational award program in the country, is the flagship international educational exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and is designed to “increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.” In the past few years, RCTC has had six Fulbright Scholars. Lillyam Arroyave (Paraguay), Lynn Guenette (China), Laurel Panser (Morocco), Julie Rodakowski (India), Darlene Voeltz (Peru & Argentina and Morocco), Virginia Wright-Peterson (Algeria).

  The RCTC Outstanding Educator Committee selected Pam Whitfield and Lori Halverson-Wente as recipients of RCTC’s Outstanding Educator award (formally known as faculty-of-the-year) and Sara Endel as the recipient of the Outstanding Part-Time Educator award.  Pam and Lori were also two of four Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU) two-year faculty members who captured the MnSCU Board of Trustees Excellence in Teaching Awards.

 The Post-Bulletin recognized Jerry Casper’s stage version of “Candy Freak” as an entertainment highlight from 2009.  The play was written and produced by Jerry, a RCTC Speech/Theater instructor, and was based on the Rochester Reads book about our addiction to candy.

  Dr. ViAnn Olson was the recipient of the Rochester Area Math and Science Partnership (RAMSP) 2009 Outstanding Educator Award.  Award recipients demonstrate the following in their work: promote and advance high student achievement; exhibit leadership and support for continuous improvement; promote math, science and technology careers; and demonstrate collaboration and leadership among RAMSP districts, business and higher education partners.

 Lori Halverson-Wente’s Cambodia service project was recognized as one of three national winners with the Community College National Center for Community Engagement’s 2010 Service Learning and Civic Engagement Collaborative Award. Lori accepted the award at the CCNCCE National Conference in Scottsdale, Arizona, where she also presented a one-hour workshop showcasing RCTC’s Cambodia project.