Three Rivers College faculty celebrated holding three successful events within two months during a regular board meeting on Wednesday.
TRC President Dr. Wes Payne was pleased to announce the Feb. 3 Hall of Fame Banquet and concurrent Alumni Reunion Weekend was “well attended” and proceeded smoothly. This banquet was the public’s first look at Coach Gene Bess
“We unveiled the community-sponsored Gene Bess statue in front of Libla (Family Sports Complex). So all in all, big weekend, lots of success, came off without any problems.” Payne was especially impressed, “given that we were socked in with ice and snow for the entire week leading up to it.”
Several athletes and supporters were inducted into the TRC Hall of Fame during the event. They were contributor Don Crandell, 1976-78 men’s basketball player Danny Foster, 1984-86 baseball player Chuck Malone, 2010-2012 softball player Mallory Siebert and 2012-2014 women’s basketball player Anna Vogt.
Agriculture and forestry instructor Kathryn Clark reported the Ag Connect convention in January was a hit with the community and a return to the event’s agricultural roots.
Clark, who was also president of Ag Connect, sought feedback on how to make the former Ag Expo more streamlined and focused.
“I went this summer around to different industries in agriculture to pick their brains, ask ‘What would you like to see?’ And so we revamped it to this Ag Connect format.”
Friday’s attractions included booths and workshops for farmers, college students and more, like TRC’s virtual welding and career development trailers. Saturday was geared toward children and families with a petting zoo and a focus on modern homesteading.
She also reported nearly 200 people attended the Salute to Ag Dinner and awards ceremony.
“So all in all, we’re looking to grow and expand. We’ve already met to take feedback on what to do to make it better next year,” Clark said.
Finally, music professors William “Buddy” White and Cindy White recapped the Feb. 9-11 Jazz Festival.
Cindy White reported a testimonial from festival clinician Ron Sikes highlighted the value of community colleges. Sikes graduated from Jefferson Community College and now teaches high school jazz in Festus.
“He knew that as a freshman in college, had he gone to a university he would not have succeeded,” she said.
Approximately 850 people attended the festival, including the families of All-District Jazz Band students from Jackson, Cape Girardeau, Poplar Bluff and Dexter high schools. TRC also welcomed a new school to the event — Kelly High School in Scott County.
“They like to come here because this is not a competitive festival. They’re about to visit those competitive festivals. They get a learning clinic here and perform in front of an audience, so it gets them...in shape to play for the competition that they’re very soon going to be undergoing,” Buddy White said.
CFO Charlotte Eubank reported the school’s financial position was positive.
“You can see on that tuition and fees number, we’re closing it very close to our budgeted amount. Not only did we budget some decrease in enrollment, but we’ve actually seen some increase in enrollment in our spring term.”