The CeSIL Report for Thursday, January 31

SMCC Blood Drive

The American Red Cross blood donation bus is returning to the South Portland campus on Tuesday, February 12th and Wednesday, February 13th, 10:00 am - 4:00 pm.

You could make someone's Valentine's Day extra special by giving the gift of life. Every two seconds someone in the U.S. needs blood. More than 38,000 blood donations are needed every day. We're still catching up after the Superstorm Sandy shortfall and the drop in donations that happens when the thermometer drops.

The actual blood donation typically takes less than 10-12 minutes. The entire process, from the time you arrive to the time you leave, takes about an hour. And they usually have some tasty snacks after donation...

To make an appointment, please call the American Red Cross @ 1-800-RED CROSS.

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Call to Arms Heeded

Last week's call to arms for The Beacon received great response. We're looking forward to reading articles and columns from the new writers who stepped forward. There is still room for more voices, especially in the Sports and Business areas.

We are in definite need of a person to cover the sports of SMCC - teams, intramural, people getting together for fun - and the teams in our area. While the Patriots might be out of the Superbowl, we still have hockey (Pirates & Bruins), basketball (Celtics & Red Claws), and baseball will be heating up (Red Sox & Sea Dogs). 

On the Business front, there are a lot of people working on some fun and profitable things (Business Club, Investment Club, Entrepreneurial Center). Don't keep it a secret. You never know where the next best idea or great business partner will come from.

If you are interested in contributing to The Beacon, contact Chuck Ott: cott@smccme.edu

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C4 Winner

In 2012, Phi Theta Kappa introduced C4 :Community College Completion Corps. 

C4 is an initiative to encourage community college students to obtain their associates degree.

In November and December, our Phi Theta Kappa chapter (Alpha Chi Nu) held two signing events to encourage students to commit to complete. By completing the pledge form and signing the banner, students indicated their commitment to finish their degrees. To help facilitate and encourage student success, Alpha Chi Nu held a drawing for an iPad ~ and the winner was Chad Plourde.

Chad is completing his degree in the Communication and New Media Studies program. He's a busy dad, a talented multi-media artist and an active participant in his community. When he walked into the CeCIL office to pick up his new iPad, he had a big grin on his face. “This will really help me in my Social Media Marketing class!” he shared.

Congratulations to Chad and to all students who have made the commitment to complete!

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