The Brain Bowl Team at Broward College has a proven track record of victories, on the regional, state and even national level. Do you like trivia?  Have a passion for literature, science, or math? Are you a quick thinker? Do you watch Jeopardy and find yourself answering the questions before the contestants do? Then try out for the Brain Bowl team and join the fun.

Tryouots will be held on the Wednesday the 17th and Thursday the 18th of September in Building 7 Room 177 on Central Campus from 2pm - 4pm.  

What is Brain Bowl?
Brain Bowl is an annual academic competition among teams from participating Florida community colleges. The teams, each consisting of up to five members, first compete in their assigned regions. Winners of the regional tournaments go on to compete in the state tournaments, usually held in February or March. Brain Bowl members also participate in NAQT (National Association of Quiz Tourneys) tournaments, a nationwide college competition. Unlike Brain Bowl, which is limited to Community Colleges, NAQT tournaments are open to all universities.

What are the Rules?
A match begins with a 10-point toss-up round. The moderator asks a question and anyone on the team may answer by "buzzing in" without conferring with other team members. If the answer is correct, the team gets to participate in a 20-point bonus round. The team may confer, but they must answer in 5 seconds. The team with the most points at the end of the 44-question round wins.  Brain Bowl questions cover the four subject areas of the two-year community college curriculum: Humanities, Social Sciences, Mathematics, Natural Sciences. On the other hand, NAQT has Jeopardy style "Pop Culture" questions.

What to Expect
Broward has won the Florida State Brain Bowl Championship 7 times and won the NAQT National Championship in 2006, so we have a reputation to uphold.  The team participates in 4 - 6 tournaments per year, often involving travel to other Florida cities and sometimes out of state.  The team practices on Central Campus in Building 1 Room 140 every Tuesday and Thursday from 2pm - 4pm.  Brain bowl is fun, exciting and challenging.  There is a limited number of scholarship money for students who make the team and qualify.  If you think you have what it takes, come on out and show your stuff.

Team coaches are Professor Rob Fusco and Professor Ronnie Rothschild.  

For more information contact rfusco@broward.edu or rrothsch@broward.edu.

A total of 58 students from Hallandale High School will be dual-enrolled in two Honors courses each term for 2008-2009 in South Campus. The group of high school juniors and seniors qualified due to their outstanding SAT or ACT scores.

They are bused in by Hallandale High School two days a week in order for them to take their college credit classes. Most of the students are attending for the first time, other are in their second year at Broward College.

All this is possible due to the efforts of the students’ BRACE advisor, Ms. Karline Prophet. “[She] has done an outstanding job in bringing her very best students to our attention. She is a great partner!” said Dr. Irmgard Bocchino, Associate Vice President. She continued by saying “I am very happy about the early success of the recruitment efforts for this pilot program.”

Congratulations to all the students.

You need to attend ONE of the following sessions as a requirement for receiving your Scholars Award scholarship. You may attend ANY of the following scheduled sessions for Orientation.

South Campus Orientation
Thursday, June 12, 2008
1:00pm
Building 68, (Southern Breezes Dining Room)

Coordinator: Dr. Barbra Nightingale
Office:Building 69, Room 219
Phone: (954) 201-8873

Central Campus Orientation
Monday, June 16, 2008
1:00 p.m.
Building 17, Room 146

Coordinator: Dr. Lulrick Balzora
Office:Building 1, Room 118
Phone:(954) 201-6671

North Campus Orientation
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
6:00 p.m.
Building 46, Room 233

Coordinator: Dr. Barbra Nightingale
Office:Building 69, Room 219
Phone: (954) 201-8873

 

The Honors Institute is thrilled to announce incredible achievement! Two outstanding BCC Phi Theta Kappa members have been awarded the International Guistwhite Scholarship.

Only twenty $5,000 scholarships are awarded internationally each year.

Join is in congratulating Paola Mariselli, Omega Phi Chapter, North Campus and Kendall Ramsijewan, Alpha Delta Rho Chapter, South Campus!!

Congratulations Paola and Kendall! We are all so proud of you! Also, congratulations to Phi Theta Kappa Advisors Professor Juan Calle, North Campus, and Dr. Barbra Nightingale, South Campus, as well as to all of our outstanding faculty who have supported these students in the competition process with great mentoring and letters of recommendation!

BCC is fortunate to have an outstanding Phi Theta Kappan who has been awarded the recognition of national membership on the ALL-USA Second Academic Team. Only twenty chosen nationwide for this honor.

Join us in congratulating Kendall Ramsijewan, South Campus, Alpha Delta Rho Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa. Kendall will be featured in the April 7th edition of USA Today as an ALL-USA Second Academic Team member from BCC! We are very proud of Kendall and her academic excellence and service to the college and the community!

In addition, we have six Phi Theta Kappans who have been recognized statewide as members of the ALL-FLORIDA Academic First Team and ALL-FLORIDA Second Academic Team. Please join us in congratulating First Academic Team Members: Patricio Gonzalez, Paola Mariselli and Kendall Ramsijewan.

Also, congratulations to our Second Academic Team Members: Angelica Aguirre, Christina Frascona, and Ziyad Kadir.

We are delighted to inform that two outstanding students have been chosen to represent BCC in the 2008 National Competition for the Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship: Paola Mariselli and Sarah Santos.

Please congratulate these exceptional students when you see them and let them know that we are all rooting for them in the competition! (The national JKC scholarship winners will be announced by the end of March.)

Both Sarah and Paola have very high GPAs, have demonstrated outstanding leadership as officers in Phi Theta Kappa and service in a number of organizations, such as the Honors Institute and Competitive Edge. In addition, they spent many hours writing and editing the application essays, including a documented research essay. We are planning to feature their research essays in our "Honors Student Showcase" in the near future.

Special thanks to our outstanding faculty who served on the selection committee and donated hours of their time to the selection process:
Honors Coordinators Professor Deborah Hefferin, Dr. Lulrick Balzora, and Dr. Barbra Nightingale (who also serves as a Phi Theta Kappa Advisor); and Phi Theta Kappa Advisors Dr. Juan Calle and Dr. Todd Bernhardt.

Additional thanks to all of the outstanding faculty at BCC whose excellence in the classroom inspired our two finalists, as well as the semi-finalists. In particular, I wish to thank the following faculty who wrote outstanding letters of recommendation for our finalists and semi-finalists:
Dr. Juan Calle, Ms. Mareta Sizemore, Dr. Todd Bernhardt, Dr. Barry Mowell, Professor Deborah Hefferin, Dr. Peter Roundy, Professor Kevin Walsh, and Professor Scott Fiore.
Thank you one and all for dedication and service to our students each and every day!

Please join us in extending congratulations to our BCC Brain Bowl "Blue Team" who qualified at the Regional Tournament (hosted by BCC) to compete in the State Brain Bowl Tournament.

BCC "Blue Team" members Drew Gaddis, Mary Ann Pertierra, Chris Regner, Liz Mignacca and Caroline Mignacca were undefeated until the championship round, which they lost by 15 points to a team from Indian River Community College; the same team that they defeated by over 100 points in one of the morning rounds!

BCC "White Team" members Daniel Alvarado, John Wilson, Jennifer Serrano, Wes Jones, and Richard Schwartz did not qualify for the State Tournament, but they played well and we are very proud of them!

Please congratulate these outstanding Brain Bowl Team members when you see them! Congratulations also to Coaches Prof. Robert Fusco and Prof. Ronnie Rothschild! Their dedication and outstanding coaching is deeply appreciated!

Special thanks are also due to three outstanding faculty members who devoted their day as moderators and judges for the Regional Tournament: Dr. Patrick Smith, Professor Jeff Guild, and Professor Deronn Bowen.

BCC Blue - Ronnie Rothschild, Drew Gaddis, Mary Ann Pertierra, Chris Regner (Front) Rob Fusco, Liz Mignacca, Caroline Mignacca

BCC White- Ronnie Rothschild, Daniel Alvarado, John Wilson, Jennifer Serrano, Wes Jones, Richard Schwartz (Front) Rob Fusco

The 2008 Florida Collegiate Honors Conference, Discover the Treasures of Honors, will begin Friday, February 22 (registration opens at 5:00pm) and ends at 12:15pm on Sunday, February 24, 2008.  The conference will be held in the downtown area of Tampa, Florida where attendees will be able to explore a lively city and discover its own treasures.

Following the awards ceremony, which will begin at 6:00PM, all attendees will be escorted via Tampa’s own streetcar system to the beautiful Ybor City Museum Garden for an evening of food, music, and fun. 

For more information contact the Honors Institute or visit http://www.floridacollegiatehonorscouncil.com/

When: Feb, 22nd 2008.
Where: Downtown area - Tampa, FL.

There is a new scholarship available for students interested in transferring to Nova Southeaster University. This scholarship opportunity is available to BCC students who have successfully graduated with an Associate degree and plan to transfer to Nova Southeastern University (NSU). Preference will be given to students who have a 3.5 GPA and are members of the Honors Institute, Phi Theta Kappa and the National Scholastic Honors Society. Eligible Bright Futures students and students who are majoring in nursing, education and other critical shortage areas as determined by the state of Florida will also be considered.

In order to be eligible, students must:

• • Apply for federal, state and other student financial aid after January 1, 2008 by completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) with NSU’s school code (001509) and apply for the Florida Resident Access Grant (application provided by NSU).
    
  • Students must have unmet need for tuition as determined by NSU’s Financial Aid office after applying for federal, state and other student financial aid following NSU’s requirements.
  • Not be in default on a federal student loan or owe a refund on a Pell Grant or Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG).
  • Successfully completed an Associates degree with a 3.5 cumulative GPA at BCC
  • Be a Florida resident.
  • Be a U. S citizen or eligible non-citizen.
  • Have applied for and been accepted to an eligible bachelors degree program at NSU.

Scholarship Deadline: March 3, 2008

Contact: Sharlene Funchess
Student Financial Services-Scholarship Department
225 E Las Olas Blvd, Bldg 31, R132
Fort Lauderdale, Fl 33301
Tel: (954) 201-7620
mailto:sfunches@broward.edu

 

We would like to announce that we are accepting applications for The William E. Greene Scholarship for International Study, a full scholarship (including tuition, program fees, room and board, insurance and airfare) awarded on a competitive basis to a small number of students who are interested in spending a full semester of study abroad at one of the following:

• International Center for Management and India Studies (ICMIS), Bangalore, India
• Center for American Education (CAE), Singapore
• International College of Seville (ICS), Seville, Spain
• Brookdale College of Ecuador (BCE), Guayaquil, Ecuador

Applications are due by March 15, 2008 for the fall term of 2008.

You may contact the office of International Education at 954.201.7706/7 or by looking under the William E. Greene Scholarship link on the BCC Website at http://www.broward.edu/internationalEducation/

For forms, guidelines and criteria click here.

BCC will host the Regional Brain Bowl Tournament Friday, February 1, 2008. It will take place between 8:30am – 2:00pm at building 17, Central Campus. Two teams from BCC will participate along with one team from Indian River Community College and another team from Florida Keys Community College. Students are welcome to attend the matches.

This is the qualifying tournament for the State Brain Bowl Tournament taking place in March. Only the first and second place finishes will advanced, however third place will have a shot at a wild card bid based on points scored per match.
 This tournament is the qualifying tournament for the State Brain Bowl Tournament in March.  First and second place finishers advance, with the third place team having a shot at a wild card bid based on points scored per match.

When: Friday, February 1, 2008.
Where: Building 17, Central Campus.
Time: 8:30am - 17/146 - Greeting / Continental Breakfast.
          9:00am - 17/48/409 - Competition.         

For more information on Brian Bowl please click here

Congratulations to Tanya Jackson, winner of the 2007 Mary Jo Henderson Scholarship! This $500 scholarship was established in honor of our own Dr. Mary Jo Henderson, former Director of the Honors Institute at BCC, in recognition of her outstanding contributions to the founding of the Florida Collegiate Honors Council. It is presented annually to one outstanding Florida Community College Honors student (out of 28 nominees) who graduate in the Spring semester. The FCHC will officially present this award to Tanya at the annual convention at FIU this February.

Tanya Jackson is an outstanding civil engineering student and active Phi Theta Kappa member/officer at South Campus. Last year, she received the South Campus Dean's Award at the Honors Award Celebration, May 2006. She is featured here in the Honors Student Hall of Fame.

In an effort to protect student privacy and combat the risk of identity theft, BCC (and the Honors Institute) will now identify students using a unique student identification number instead of the student's social security number. Starting this term, ALL Honors forms require your Student ID# (SID).

To obtain your Student ID, please go to the BCC homepage and log on to MyBCC (on the left side) using your social security number. After signing in, you will see a small box at the top of the page with your Student ID.

Updated forms are available on the forms page.

The Honors Institute is proud and excited to announce that its website was selected as a 2006-07 Best Practice in Student Services Online by the Center for Transforming Student Services (CENTSS)!

One of 10 technology services selected out of more than 50 nominees, the Honors Website was recognized for its unique features and effective use of internet technology to serve Honors students and faculty. We invite you to read the press release below. An online profile on the website is featured on the CENTSS website as an example for other institutions to emulate. The profile describes the website's services, development, etc. The Honors Institute also has the privilege of displaying the CENTSS Best Practice seal on its website.

CENTSS Press Release

Center for Transforming Student Services Names New Best Practices Boulder, CO– The Center for Transforming Student Services (CENTSS) has just selected 10 higher education services as “best practices” in student services online. Selected from more than 50 submissions, in response to the center’s second annual call for best practices, these services demonstrate ways in which institutions make effective services available over the Internet, providing models for other institutions to emulate. Those selected include: AskAU—Athabasca University in Canada implemented a smart FAQ system that provides answers to students’ most commonly asked questions via natural language searches. Quest—Ball State University in Indiana developed a career services tool to explore the university’s majors and career opportunities. Honors Website—Broward Community College in Florida launched a one-stop site for information and services relevant to the college’s prospective and current honors students and honors faculty. Resume and CV Training Tools—Capella University in Minnesota devised career services tools to assist students in writing better resumes and CVs. Live Advisor—City University in Washington state developed a synchronous chat advising program that’s integrated with its student data system for current students and provides transcripts of discussions. Orientation to Online Learning—Metropolitan State University in Minnesota created this service to welcome students to the university and online learning. E-Counseling—San Diego City College created e-counseling services using VoIP to provide private counseling appointments and group workshops. Catalyst Guides—University of Washington produced guides for students seeking independent, how-to assistance in the use of technologies. RUReady—University of Utah designed a self assessment and learning tool that allows prospective students to gauge their readiness to take calculus and other college-level math courses and to remediate specific academic areas of weakness. Online Concierge Service—Walden University in Minnesota offers personalized support for students from the time of enrollment until graduation. The center’s best practice profiles provide detailed information about each service, such as key features, goals, outcomes, technology infrastructure, and lessons learned. In addition to offering these best practice profiles, CENTSS licenses its Online Audit Tool to institutions interested in benchmarking their online student services. Other CENTSS resources include links to articles related to providing services online and invitations to workshops and other events focused on providing better service to students with the use of technology. About the Center for Transforming Student Services (CENTSS) The Center for Transforming Student Services (www.centss.org), founded in fall 2005, is a virtual resource for higher education institutions interested in assessing the quality of their student services offered via the web. WCET, the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system (MnSCU), and Seward Inc. are CENTSS partners. About WCET WCET, a nonprofit organization based in Boulder, CO, is an internationally recognized leader in advancing the effective use of technology in higher education. Its members are higher education institutions and government agencies, nonprofit organizations, schools, and corporations that are providers and users of educational telecommunications. For more information, see www.wcet.info About MnSCU The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system comprises 32 state universities and community and technical colleges serving the higher education needs of Minnesota. The system serves about 240,000 students per year in credit-based courses and an additional 130,000 students in noncredit courses. For more information, see www.mnscu.edu About Seward, Inc. Seward Inc. provides high-quality, return-on-investment-based e-learning and e-business solutions to educational institutions, businesses, professional organizations, and government agencies, nationally and internationally. For more information, visit www.sewardinc.com.