College plans more ‘Alumni Speak’ seminars

“I wanted to be a rock star, but I ended up as an accounting major at UT,” said Russ Sites to a round of laughter at a recent seminar at the Division Street Campus.

Organized by Assistant Dean Mike North, “Alumni Speak” presented three Pellissippi State alumni who talked about how the College had influenced them and helped them achieve their goals. The event was co-sponsored by the Pellissippi State Foundation Alumni Relations Office. Current students, faculty and staff filled the audience.

“It’s so true that you have smaller classes at Pellissippi State and access to the teachers,” said Sites, who is nearing completion of a bachelor’s degree. “And you’re probably being taught by instructors who have a lot of experience.”

The seminar was designed to let current students see how former students who have “walked a mile in their shoes” triumphed over real-world challenges to pursue a career or higher education.

Alumna Rebecca Napier is now an English instructor at Pellissippi State. She graduated from here and went on to earn a bachelor’s and master’s degree in English from the University of Tennessee.

“There were large classes at UT,” she said, “and they made me appreciate that when I was going to Pellissippi State, I was able to make connections. I have relationships with some of those Pellissippi State professors to this day.”

Vrondelia “Ronni” Chandler is now associate director of Project GRAD in Knoxville, a program designed to help at-risk students succeed academically. She told the audience what happened to her as a nontraditional, working-adult student with children.

“I kept a list of the courses I needed to get a degree at Pellissippi State and crossed them off one at a time when I finished them. I could see the progress I was making.”

Chandler advised the students to “know what you want, so you can zero in on what you have to do. It will motivate you.”

North echoed the speakers’ thoughts.

“That’s what we want students to understand,” he said. “If they’re focused on their goal, Pellissippi State is the place to go. We have small classes and a variety of creative ways students can take college-level work.”

Following this second seminar in the “Alumni Speaks” series, students said they benefited from attending the events.

“I really liked hearing how other people overcame things and still finished,” said Judy Padilla.

Kandis Wright agreed: “It lets you see people who were where you are now and how they made it.”

Pellissippi State will present a third “Alumni Speak” at the Division Street Campus this spring. The seminars are sponsored by the Division Street Campus and Pellissippi State Foundation Alumni Relations.

The Pellissippi State Foundation exists to develop friends and funds for support of the educational, cultural and service goals of Pellissippi State.

For more information about the “Alumni Speaks” seminars, contact Alumni Relations at 694-6528.