Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award for Best Musical, the Broadway phenomenon RENT finishes out the Riverland theatre season. The play performs two weekends starting April 20. Considered a modern day classic, RENT is a ground-breaking musical that resonates across generations and reminds us there’s “No Day But Today.” With a book, music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson, RENT is recommended for audiences 14 and older due to language and mature content.

A new Riverland Parent Center opened for business today in partnership with the Austin-based Parenting Resource Center to provide support services to college-age pregnant and parent students. The center is located in Austin West, room A239, and will be staffed by trained Parent Educators from the Parenting Resource Center and Riverland mentors Bruce Heiny, Juan Perales, and Andy Swank.

Riverland Community College will be hosting a Job and Career Fair on Wednesday, April 25 from 9 a.m. to 12 noon at its Albert Lea campus. Over thirty businesses and organizations will be attending, representing Albert Lea, Austin, Owatonna, Rochester, Mankato and their surrounding communities. Job Seekers will learn about full- and part-time career opportunities in healthcare, services/trades, manufacturing, retail and hospitality. Riverland, Workforce Development, Inc. and the WorkForce Center are coordinating this event.

A theatrical presentation illustrating the 515 discriminatory Minnesota laws against same-sex couples and their families based on marriage will be presented at 5:30 p.m., prior to Saturday evening’s 7:30 p.m. performance of RENT at the Riverland’s Frank W. Bridges theater at the Austin Campus.

515 – The Tour features six actors including Riverland Alum, Bryan Gerber, who also produced and directs the show. Gerber is from Adams and attended Southland High School before attending Riverland.

During summer, Riverland Community College offers credit classes geared toward students who want to complete a full semester of coursework in a shorter term.

Riverland has expanded its course offerings this summer to accommodate more learners. Besides offering general studies classes in the traditional classroom setting, there are many opportunities to complete courses online.

Riverland Community College announces two new articulation agreements with Cardinal Stritch University. This collaboration enables Riverland students to complete their Associate in Arts (AA) degree with a Business Emphasis or Associate in Science (AS) degree in Business then transfer those credits to Stritch’s Bachelor of Science (BS) in Management degree.

Riverland Community College is pleased to announce the students whose academic achievement placed them on the 2012 spring president’s and dean’s lists. Riverland congratulates these individuals for their outstanding academic accomplishments.

Last Month, Riverland sent 553 graduates either into the world to enter the workforce or onto another institution to continue their education. The commencement ceremony is the culmination of our students’ dedication, discipline and self-sacrifice, and the Riverland community celebrates their success. Commencement is always one of the more rewarding days of the year for our employees as we witness the joy the event brings to our hard-working students and their families.

Commencement brought to mind a recent Star Tribune article written by Maureen MacDonald Swan. Swan, from a family who valued education, earned degrees from Vanderbilt, Harvard, Purdue, Washington University, Dartmouth and Notre Dame. She investigated students attending elite schools versus those attending state schools like Riverland and which produces better (more marketable) students.

Winona State University will offer its RN-BS Completion Program during the fall 2012 semester Riverland Community College’s Austin campus. Arranged into eight nursing courses, the RN-BS Completion Program can be completed on a full-time or part-time basis. Delivery methods include traditional classroom and online learning assignments as well as clinical experiences in the student’s home community. A total of 120 credits are required to earn a baccalaureate degree.

Riverland Community College is a partner in a regional center of excellence receiving nearly $3 million to educate and train manufacturing technicians.

“This grant will help us advance our goal of increasing the quantity, quality and diversity of manufacturing technicians,” MnSCU Chancellor Steven Rosenstone said in a news release. “Employers from across the state tell us they are concerned about the shortage of skilled technicians. Meeting this need for highly skilled workers is vital to keeping Minnesota manufacturers competitive in the global marketplace.”

Riverland Community College has added two new coaches to lead the Blue Devils athletics teams for women’s volleyball and men’s soccer.

In June 2010, Riverland Community College announced Cycles for Success, a scholarship program that is a milestone in our college history and is especially significant because of its transformative effect on local education. The Hormel Foundation made this program possible by funding the new Cycles for Success scholarship program with $1 million over five years.

The program supports graduating high school students who might not pursue a postsecondary education because of financial barriers. The program focuses primarily on assisting “traditionally underrepresented students” within the middle fifty percent of their class ranking who have few resources available to them.

The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Board of Trustees today appointed Kent Hanson interim president of Riverland Community College.  His appointment is effective Aug. 2.

In recommending Hanson’s appointment, Chancellor Steven Rosenstone said, “Kent Hanson is an experienced, thoughtful and effective leader. His record of success in collaborating with students, faculty, staff and community leaders will serve the college and its campuses in Albert Lea, Austin and Owatonna well. I am confident that Riverland Community College will be in very capable hands.”

The Minnesota Job Skills Partnership (MJSP) recently awarded Riverland Community College a $100,000 grant from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development for a Post-acute Care Nursing Competency Training project. MJSP works strategically with businesses and educational institutions to train or retrain workers, expand work opportunities, and keep high-quality jobs in Minnesota.

Riverland Community College Theatre Director Lindsey Duoos Williams announced the Theatre Department’s 2012-2013 season today. The season is themed around “reimagining the classics;” each show is a new or lesser-known interpretation of a familiar, classic work.

After nine years at Riverland Community College, my delightful career as its president came to a close on August 1.

I thank all of you who have made my nine years at Riverland so rewarding. Your support of this wonderful college is a powerful example of how all of us working together can help students achieve extraordinary results.

Riverland Community College has been awarded the 2012 Minnesota Outstanding Postsecondary/Adult Agricultural Education Program by the National Association of Agricultural Educators (NAAE). NAAE recognizes the nation’s most successful agricultural education programs by highlighting the local programs and teachers that achieve success. Winners are educators who have developed an outstanding agricultural education program at either the postsecondary or adult education level. Applicants are judged on a variety of criteria, including teaching philosophy, effective classroom and experiential instruction, development of partnerships, and professional growth.

Riverland Community College has hired Matt Bissonette as the new director of training and development. He replaces Doug Parr, who retired earlier this year. A Stewartville native, Bissonette’s experience includes Walt Disney, Jostens, the nonprofit sector, as well as his own consulting practice working with executives and organizations. Bissonette’s education background started with a bachelor’s degree in Biology from the University of Iowa. Later he received his master’s degree in Transformational Leadership from Bethel Seminary and a Post-Secondary Teaching Certificate from Bethel University.