New Vice President for College Advancement

On August 1, Melanie E. Jones will join the York Tech team as our new Vice President for College Advancement. Melanie is an experienced fundraising and marketing professional with extensive experience in developing and expanding advancement programs at institutions of higher learning. Most recently, she served as the Vice President for Institutional Advancement at Allen University, Columbia, South Carolina since February 2008. Her areas of responsibility included development, alumni and parent services, communications and marketing, sponsored programs, church and community relations, and special events. Prior to her tenure with Allen University, Melanie was employed at Saint Augustine's College, Raleigh, North Carolina, where she served as Director of Development and External Affairs. Before her move to North Carolina, Melanie served as a high school chemistry teacher in Chattanooga, Tennessee and as a program manager at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Melanie is a 2007 graduate of Leadership North Carolina, where she served as class leader. In September 2010, she was named Young Professional of the Year by the Greater Columbia Chamber of Commerce. Melanie is a graduate of Spelman College, Atlanta, Georgia where she received a bachelor's degree in chemistry and mathematics. She also earned a master's degree in educational leadership from Tennessee Technological University, Cookeville, Tennessee. Melanie is a native of Huntsville, Alabama.

We look forward to having her on the team!

Board Approves Tuition Increase

Occasionally, I come to you with news that is more of a necessity than a cause for celebration. I recognize that this is one of those times. At our most recent Commission meeting, the Board voted to approve a tuition increase of $5.50 per credit hour (or 3.93%). Also, the Commission approved the removal of the tuition cap to allow the College to begin charging tuition and fees for all credit hours taken, beginning fall 2011. Other fees will remain the same for the coming academic year.

The decision to increase tuition was a difficult one. We take our students financial burdens very seriously. The need for change was driven by decreases in State support resulting from changes to the State’s formula for allocating funding and the requirement that the College’s tuition stay above the minimum value established by the State. The College believes that this increase represents a reasonable balance of its financial needs and those of its students.

Please see the related press release for more information.

Graduates Pass National Exams!

Thirteen of our dental hygiene students graduated on May 10 and recently took the National Board Dental Hygiene Exam. I’m happy to report that all of the students (100%) passed their exam on their first attempt. In addition, 92 percent of the students passed the SC clinical exam (only one student missed by just .75 points). The one student plans to retake the exam in the near future. I greatly appreciate the hard work of Edna Martin, Wanda Hayes, Pam Sherer, Dr. Charles Crosby, and Ginny West for preparing the students for the licensure exams.

In addition, our Radiologic Technologists graduates sat for the ARRT (American Registry of Radiologic Technologists) certification exam within five days of graduation and all passed. This cohort scored the highest mean average score in at least a decade, possibly ever, of 91.2 out of 100. At the present time, York Technical College's Radiologic Technology program results for 2011 place us in the 92nd percentile of programs nationally (and a few internationally). This ranking is not just for two-year Associate degree programs but all Radiography program graduates including four-year Bachelor degree graduates in Radiologic Sciences sitting for this exam. Congratulations Michele Wells and Kim Ford!

In many cases, learning outcomes can be challenging to measure and difficult to adjust our strategies for success. In other fields, such as this, we see the direct results of a focus on those outcomes and the great job faculty do to help students achieve. Thank you all for your dedication to our students’ success!