Motown with a Twist Comes to the Wildstein Center

AVON PARK, Fla. – Feb. 23, 2023 – Anna Trebunskaya, a fan favorite from the ABC hit show “Dancing with the Stars,” will star in the Wednesday, March 8 at 7 p.m. performance of Motown with a Twist at the Alan Jay Wildstein Center for the Performing Arts at South Florida State College (SFSC) in Avon Park. Featuring “Keo” Motsepe, who is best known for his Latin and ballroom dancing, Motown with a Twist also stars Jonathan and Oksana Platero from the Fox television network’s “So You Think You Can Dance.”

“This is a spectacular family show,” said Cindy Garren, director of cultural programs.  “We have a special student price of only $20.”

Tickets are available online at sfscARTS.org, at the SFSC Box Office at 863-784-7178, or by visiting the SFSC Box Office at 600 West College Drive on the Highlands Campus in Avon Park, Monday through Friday, between 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.

Motown with a Twist is a sparkling, electrifying night of the Motor City’s most famous songs from Diana Ross & the Supremes, The Jackson 5, Smokey Robinson, and more.  Finalists from television shows “American Idol,” “The Voice,” and “America’s Got Talent” belt out the vocals.

Mykal Kilgore, an award-winning actor and a Grammy and NAACP Image Award-nominated singer/songwriter joins the company as the lead vocalist.            

This performance is sponsored by Drs. P. J. and Mintoo Patel.  

“This production was cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic and I’m delighted that we were able to bring it to Highlands County,” Garren said.           

Prior to the performance, the SFSC Foundation will sponsor a pre-show dinner for $30 per person on the SFSC Highlands Campus in Avon Park.  “The dinners are a big hit,” Garren said. “You don’t have to rush out of a restaurant to get to the theater on time.  The dinner is a short walk on campus from the Wildstein Center.”

AVON PARK, Fla. – Feb. 23, 2023 – On Saturday, Feb. 18, 15 South Florida State College (SFSC) students presented research at the 2023 Florida Undergraduate Research Conference (FURC) at St. Thomas University in Miami Gardens.

FURC is an annual multi-disciplinary conference open to all undergraduate researchers in Florida where students present their research in a poster forum. The conference provides students with networking opportunities, workshops, and professional development programs.

The SFSC students’ scientific research presentations for FURC were varied. One or multiple students may have participated in a research topic under a faculty member who served as mentor on the project. Posters were presented at FURC on these undergraduate research projects:

• “Oral Microbiome as a Risk Factor for Cardiovascular Disease,” by Christopher Colon, Xander Farrow, Colten Meier, Devam Patel, and Rafael Rimoldi Ibanez. Faculty mentor: Dr. Mintoo Patel, Biology instructor.
• “The Role of Oral Microbiota in Gingivitis,” presented by Mikhos Torralba, Jermaine Torralba, Mikylla Torralba, and Ean Cheng. Faculty mentor: Dr. Mintoo Patel, Biology instructor.
• “Bacterial Art: Where Science Meets Arts,” by Angela Huang, Rosemarie Klein, Devam Patel, Josie Wilson, and Zoe Zozzaro. Faculty mentors: Karla Respress, Art professor; Garrett Lee, coordinator, Engineering Program; Anthony Record, director, Museum of Florida Art and Culture; and Dr. Mintoo Patel, Biology instructor.
• “Interactions of Microorganisms and their Enormous Effects on Oral Health Linking to Gastric Cancer,” by Toby Ellison. Faculty mentor: Dr. Mintoo Patel, Biology instructor.
• “Is the ALK-1 Gene the Missing Link Between Vasculature and Neurodegenerative Diseases?” by Isabela Potter, Lia Ayala, and George Livingston. Faculty mentor: Dr. James Hawker, dean, Arts & Sciences; and Dr. Mintoo Patel, Biology instructor.
• “GC-MS Analysis of Bioactive Compounds in Ziziphus Celata,” by Emily Boyette, Luc Alfred, Sarah Arnan, and Toby Ellison. Mentor: Dr. Kate Calvin, Chemistry instructor.
• “Preliminary Studies on the Effectiveness of Industrial Hemp as a Phytoremediator of Polluted Water Bodies,” by Nylla Wilder, Jenna Gutierrez, and Stephanie Basulto. Faculty mentor: Dr. Kate Calvin, Chemistry instructor.
• “Evaluating the Role of the Melatonin in Thyroid Cancer Cell (MDA-T41): Apoptosis and Metabolism Modulation,” by Angela Huang. Faculty mentor: Dr. Daniel Sanches, chair, Natural Sciences, and Biology instructor.

“It’s important for students to participate in conferences such as this because it teaches them to communicate and share their ideas and research results with others,” said Dr. James Hawker, dean of Arts & Sciences at SFSC.  “For most of our students, this was the first time they ever presented at a conference.”

At a state or community college, such as SFSC, research has become a significant component of its science curriculum.

“Undergraduate research allows students to delve into their subjects in a much deeper way than regular classwork and promotes critical thinking,” Dr. Hawker said. “It better prepares students for upper division work at a university after transfer. It will also increase their chances of being accepted to their university of choice by demonstrating advanced learning in the first two years of college.”

For more information about undergraduate research at SFSC, contact Dr. James Hawker at 863-784-7329 or james.hawker@southflorida.edu.

AVON PARK, Fla. – Feb. 14, 2023 — Estrellita DeJesus-Martinez walked into the conference room at the South Florida State College (SFSC) Hardee Campus in Bowling Green recently and got the surprise of her life. Her Take Stock in Children mentor, Sandie Perreault, welcomed her with open arms and guided her into the room. On the table was a sewing machine, fabric, and a variety of sewing accessories.

DeJesus-Martinez is a junior at Hardee High School in Wauchula and met Perreault for the first time in spring 2022 through the Take Stock in Children program.

Take Stock in Children is an academically focused mentoring program that guides at-risk students toward successful completion of high school and enrollment in college. It is a statewide program that provides students with a mentor and a two-year state college tuition scholarship. The Take Stock staff also help the student obtain financial assistance for housing, transportation, and other expenses. In return, the student signs a contract to earn at least a grade of C in every class, graduate from high school with good attendance records, maintain good behavior in school, and stay crime and drug free. The SFSC Foundation serves as the lead agency for Take Stock in its service area of DeSoto, Hardee, and Highlands counties.

Take Stock mentors meet with their assigned students for approximately 30 minutes each week during the school year, offering encouragement and advice. They become a friend and a role model, help build a child’s foundation of basic values, assist a student in setting goals and attaining them, guide a child toward an education and a productive life, and give a child hope for the future. A Take Stock mentor will receive training and resources to support their student’s academic success.

When Perreault began to mentor DeJesus-Martinez, she had difficulty pronouncing her name. Because Estrellita is Spanish for “little star,” DeJesus-Martinez suggested Perreault call her “Star.”

During the early days of mentoring, Perreault looked for ways to connect with the young woman and find a common interest to discuss. “It’s a bit challenging talking to a teenaged girl, particularly when she’s very quiet and reserved,” Perreault said. “Trying to keep up a conversation for about a half an hour was kind of tricky.”

Perreault, who hails from New Hampshire and lives in Avon Park during the winters, is a yoga instructor and focuses on fitness and nutrition. In fact, Perreault presented a 30-minute yoga class on Zoom for the Take Stock student-scholars and staff. She is also a member of a quilting club at the Adelaide Shores RV Resort in Avon Park.

Just before the holidays, Perreault’s quilting club sewed cell phone purses and Perreault made one especially for DeJesus-Martinez as a gift. “When Star opened up the package, she said, ‘You made this? I like to sew,’” Perreault said. “So, I discovered that Star and I had something in common. That’s how it started. She also said that she had an interest in crocheting, so I showed her how to crochet. When we talked about her interest in sewing, I asked if she had a sewing machine, so I could send her some patterns. But she didn’t have one. She said that her mother had taught her how to sew, but everything was done by hand.”

Perreault met with her quilting club and told everyone about DeJesus-Martinez and her interest in sewing.

“All a quilting group needs to hear is that a young person is interested in sewing, and they were ready to adopt Star,” she said. “Before I knew it, people were handing me money and supplies. One of my friends at Adelaide Shores was getting rid of her Brother sewing machine.”

Perreault had the sewing machine checked, cleaned, and oiled because she wanted DeJesus-Martinez to have a machine that works well. “A lot of people gave me fabric,” she said. “Quilters always have fabric left over. I bought Star a cutting mat, some rulers, and a rotary cutter. With some of the money I got, I bought her a bag to put her machine in. It has all these deep pockets that you can put items in, such as thread. So, I bought her a lot of thread, extra needles for her machine, an extra blade for her rotary cutter, a sewing kit with a tape measure and scissors, and straight pins. So, Star’s fully stocked.”

Perreault and Ben Carter, Take Stock in Children student services coordinator, planned the surprise get-together for DeJesus-Martinez at the SFSC Hardee Campus. “Ben Carter and I met her outside. I said, ’Star, I have a surprise for you.’ She walked into the room and had this big smile on her face. I said, ‘This is for you. You expressed an interest in sewing.’ I told her the whole story about how my club gathered together to do this for her.”

“I figured that if Star has never used a sewing machine, I would have to teacher her everything about it,” Perreault said. “We started with basics, such as how to wind a bobbin and how to thread the machine. The machine has several different stitches, so I showed her each of those and how to stitch them. She really caught on quickly.”

Perreault wanted to give Star a brief project they could work on together. She had brought along nine 3.5” squares that they sewed into a nine-block square that could be used to make a trivet.

Not only is Perreault delighted to have found a common interest with DeJesus-Martinez, but she’s proud of her academic accomplishments. “Star’s a really good student. She’s taking calculus and she had a 104 average in it. She’s taking English and she’s starting a class on Adobe Photoshop. That will be great for her, because she’s interested in computer graphics and animation.”

“There’s such a need for Take Stock mentors,” Perreault said. “It’s so rewarding to be one. You’re helping a low-income student, eventually, go to college. Personally, I have a full schedule and fitting another thing in was not an easy task, but it’s been worth it. Now, I feel like I’m being rewarded through Star.”

To become a Take Stock mentor, call 863-784-7343 or 863-784-7440 or email: tsic@southflorida.edu.

AVON PARK, Fla. – Feb. 7, 2023 — South Florida State College’s (SFSC) Construction Trades program at the Crews Center in Avon Park, Fla. recently received National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER) accreditation through 2027.

According to its website, NCCER is a not-for-profit organization that, with the support of construction CEOs and association and academic leaders, created a standardized training and credentialing program to nurture a safe and productive workforce for the construction industry. NCCER is headquartered in Alachua, Fla. and affiliated with the University of Florida’s M.E. Rinker Sr. School of Construction Management.

“We passed the NCCER audit with flying colors,” said Fred Hayes, coordinator, SFSC Construction Trades Programs. “There were no issues, no gray areas, nothing that needed to be corrected. We passed in July 2022 and we received the notification recently that we had achieved the accreditation to become an NCCER-certified training center and testing center. That means any outside entity that needs to get NCCER training or use an NCCER-certified testing center can come to us. We are now the only institution in this area that’s certified and accredited to do that.”

SFSC uses NCCER’s curriculum for its Construction Trades programs. “I spoke with them about SFSC becoming an accredited training facility as well as testing facility some time ago,” Hayes said. “For the first year, we were in a probationary period. I set up SFSC’s account with them and I became a Certified Master Trainer for them. That way, I could train all the instructors that teach any of the NCCER programs, which includes our welding instructors and the different trades — electrical, plumbing, masonry, and carpentry instructors. So, everyone’s well versed in the NCCER program and what they teach. After that first-year probationary period, the audit was conducted through an independent auditing source. NCCER is strict on following their standards. They want a facility to have credibility.”

NCCER credentials are accepted and recognized across the United States. “When our students take a module test, it’s done online, it’s recorded instantly within the NCCER system, and we get the instant feedback for it,” Hayes said. “All the students’ grades are registered in the NCCER system, so it’s available anywhere they go in the country. For instance, if we had students who heard that Alaska pays phenomenal money in construction trades and wanted to work for a contractor up there, the contractor may ask, “What do you have to show me that lets me know that you are telling me the truth about what you know?” The student can go to NCCER.org and punch in their credentials. Everything that the student has achieved in their programs at SFSC will come up.”

Not only are students who successfully complete SFSC’s Construction Trades programs ready to go to work, but they’re equipped with a good quality set of hand tools. The tools are included in the course tuition to use in SFSC’s training facilities. When the students complete the program, they can take the tools with them.

SFSC’s Construction Trades program includes eight-week certificate courses in Basic Construction Electrical, Basic Carpentry and Roofing, Intermediate Carpentry and Roofing, Basic Construction Plumbing, and Basic Masonry. Other courses offered are Handyperson Academy for Home Repairs, Introduction to Construction Trades, EPA Refrigerant Exam, and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) 10-Hour General Industry. SFSC can also customize training to fit a business or organization’s specific needs.

To learn more about these programs and funding opportunities for job training, see the Construction and Utility Trades Class Catalog on the SFSC website at: https://bit.ly/3DzYoqv, call 863-201-7195, or email fred.hayes@southflorida.edu.

AVON PARK, Fla. – Feb. 1, 2023 – The exhibition, “Atmospheres,” features large black-and-white photographs by Lakeland, Fla. artist Nabil Harb and is on view at the South Florida State College (SFSC) Museum of Florida Art and Culture (MOFAC) in Avon Park from Wednesday, Feb. 15 through Friday, April 7, 2023. Meet the artist and enjoy free refreshments at the artist reception for the exhibition on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 12:30-2:30 p.m. at MOFAC.

“Nabil Harb’s photographs are taken in and around his home town of Lakeland, Fla., and he is passionate about the local history and culture that is rapidly being lost,” said Anthony Record, MOFAC curator.

Harb has lived and worked in New York and elsewhere, but after graduating with an MFA from Yale University in 2021, he returned to Lakeland to continue his photographic work. Harb believes he creates his best work in Lakeland because it’s where he grew up, and he knows the area so well. “If I want to shoot someplace here and I don’t know the person who owns it, I know someone who does,” said Harb, speaking from his office at Florida Southern College where he is a visiting professor.

Whether he’s photographing on dance floors during performances at Florida’s oldest gay bar, on hunting trails at night from the back of a pickup truck, or going outside to photograph in the middle of Hurricane Ian, Harb is fascinated by the unique history and sensory experiences of his hometown. He has built an intimate photographic archive that represents his research, wanderings, and local network.

Merging science fiction and Southern Gothic traditions, Harb’s photography allows the viewer to see visual complexity and historical connections in pictures of places that are easy to miss, especially in a place like Lakeland which Harb describes as a “pass-through town” between Tampa and Orlando.

The title of the exhibition, “Atmospheres” refers to Harb’s interest in depicting the humid and heavy air of Florida, as well as other ways that water travels in fog, rivers, and storms. Harb is interested in the relationships between water and the city’s infrastructure, and he relates this interaction and movement of water to the movement of roads and highways, as passages that can open up and physically connect all of these places and points in time that make up the disappeared and disappearing histories of Lakeland.

Learn more about Harb and see examples of his work by viewing the MOFAC-produced video at youtube.com/@mofac_sfsc.

MOFAC is located at on the SFSC Highlands Campus at 600 West College Drive in Avon Park. For more information about the exhibition or MOFAC, call the Museum Office at 863-784-7130 or visit mofac.org.