Former Lieutenant Governor Bill Ratliff was honored last week at the Northeast Texas Consortium of Colleges and Universities (NetNet) summer conference held on the Northeast Texas Community College Campus. Ratliff was recognized for being a driving catalyst in the formation of the consortium in the 1990s while serving on the Texas Legislature. NetNet is the collaborative effort of 13 higher education institutions to bring state-of-the-art technology and a wide range of instruction to 50 rural Northeast Texas counties.

By Nubia Sanchez, The Eagle newspaper staff

Northeast Texas Community College students and faculty members recently traveled to Washington D.C. as a part of the NTCC Travel Study Course program.

Rosalie Chambers recently gave $500 to the Work Scholarship Program at Northeast Texas Community College. The gift was made in honor of Dr. William and Kathy Chambers. Chambers (center) is pictured presenting the check to Nita May (left) NTCC Director of Development and Dr. Jonathan McCullough, NTCC Executive Vice President for Advancement. To learn more about the†Work†Scholarship†Program, contact McCullough at 903-434-8115 or give online today at†www.ntcc.edu/give.

Jennifer Harland,†Manager of External Affairs for AEP SWEPCO†(center), recently made a $1,000 contribution to The Northeast Texas Community College Work Scholarship Program. Dr. Kevin Rose (left), NTCC Vice President for Instruction and Dr. Ron Clinton (right), NTCC President, accepted the gift on behalf of the NTCC Foundation. The funds will be used to sponsor a student enrolled in the program this summer.

Northeast Texas Community College recently received formal notification that its Funeral Service program has been granted a three-year accreditation with the American Board of Funeral Service Education (ABFSE). This makes NTCC one of only five funeral service education programs in the state of Texas. †Students who graduate from the program with an Associate of Applied Science Degree in Funeral Services are eligible to sit for certification exams in both funeral directing and embalming.

Scott Wesson recently gave $10,000 to create the Jerry Wesson Honors Scholarship at Northeast Texas Community College. †The scholarship is in the honor of Scott?s father, Dr. Jerry Wesson, for his legacy in higher education. When the college opened, he was an original member of the college?s administrative staff as the first Dean of Student Services. † Later, he served as Vice President of Student Services for many years. The perpetual scholarship will benefit students participating in the Honor's Northeast program at NTCC. †Dr. Wesson (right) is pictured above with Dr.

The Northeast Texas Community College Agriculture Department will host the Northeast Texas Ag-Stravaganza June 29 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the NTCC Ag Complex. The event, sponsored by NTCC, Creative Insight Community Development and the Ark-Tex Council of Governments, will introduce two new agriculture initiatives coming to Northeast Texas.

Guests will learn about Texas Golden Kiwis and how this and other new hybrid crops are changing the agricultural landscape ? and how they can work on local farms.

Dr. Ron Clinton, NTCC President, served on a Presidents Panel at the Northeast Texas Regional Alliance Workforce and Economic Prosperity Summit in Mount Pleasant Wednesday. He was joined by Dr. Pam Anglin, Paris Junior College; Dr. Emily Cutrer, Texas A&M University - Texarkana; and James Henry Russell, Texarkana College. The event discussed ways to produce skilled workers in Northeast Texas. Julian Alvarez, Commissioner Representing Labor for the Texas Workforce Commission, was the keynote speaker.

Submitted by Dr. Andrew Yox, Honors Director

The Honors Committee of Northeast Texas Community College presented a gift to Dr. Joy Cooper, recently, recognizing her 10 years of service on the college?s Honors Committee.†† During her tenure, NTCC?s honors students have obtained 40 national awards, with an unprecedented 10 national citations gained in the just the last academic year, including two Jack Kent Cookes--one to Student Representative Committee member, Alicia Cantrell--and two Hites Awards.

Honors Director, Dr.

Thomas and April Bliss recently presented the Northeast Texas Community College Foundation with $2,000 for scholarships. The Sharon Bliss Memorial scholarship is in memory of Thomas? mother,†who had a long career as a respiratory therapist.†This scholarship†benefits a student studying health sciences at NTCC. The Bradyn Dawn Loy Memorial Scholarship†is†in memory of the Mount Vernon High School student and friend of the Bliss family.