DES MOINES—Nearly 250 community college students and leaders participated in the 28th IACCT Student Legislative Seminar at the Holiday Inn, Mercy Campus, on January 27, and the State Capitol on January 28. The theme of the seminar was "Representing Yourself," focusing on the leadership qualities and personal skills necessary to participate in governance and be successful in a career. Sessions included dialoguing with legislators, understanding security issues and honing Caucus skills.
“Iowa Community College Trustees understand the value of community involvement opportunities to improve the lives of students.” said Cheryl Langston, Des Moines Area Community College Trustee and IACCT Board Chair. “The Community College students attending the IACCT Student Legislative Seminar learn how developing leadership abilities and becoming involved in the political process can impact change in their lives, their families, and their communities.”
IACCT serves the 15 community colleges of Iowa, which are the largest postsecondary education system in Iowa. Iowa’s community colleges serve nearly 21 percent of Iowa’s working population. In the 2014-15 college academic year, they served 138,642 credit and 232,480 noncredit students for nearly 9 million hours of education. Iowa’s community colleges are the workforce trainer of Iowa offering a wide variety of short-term and long-term credit and noncredit programs/courses to meet the needs of business and education in their local communities. In the same year, they provided work skills to over 70,000 individuals in their Work-Based Learning Intermediary Network, Workforce and Economic Development Fund, GAP Tuition Assistance, and Pathways Academic Career Education programs.
Photo above: SWCC students are pictured with Beth Kulow (far left), SWCC dean of student services; Fred Shearer (center, back row), SWCC board of trustees member, Corning; Caitlyn Lesan (right of Shearer), SWCC director of admissions; and Senator Tom Shipley-R (far right), District 11, from Nodaway.
Photo below: Students and SWCC employees with Representative Cecil Dolecheck-R (far right), from Mount Ayr.
