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[Mike Rowley] Hello and welcome to Dateline Delta.

I'm Mike Rowley, a member of Delta College Board of Trustees.

On today's show, we will sit in on an award winning author's presentation who recently visited Delta and watched the latest episode of Perspectives.

We'll hear how a student is finding their way the Delta Way.

And learn about dual enrollment and financial aid opportunities.

To conclude today's program, we'll visit our automotive program and learn about Girls Day Out.

Delta College recently welcomed Dr. Rebekah Taussig to campus as part of the Presidents Speaker Series.

The self-proclaimed scrappy misfit invited us into her experience of living in a body that looks and moves differently than most, and discussed barriers that bar others from inclusion.

Let's listen in.

[Dr. Rebekah Taussig] There are a lot of layers to living in a body that is so often at odds with the built world.

But one of the hardest parts of that whole set up for me has always been the worry, the fear of being a burden on the people around me.

Right?

It's a it's a feeling that can make me feel like, maybe it'd be better if I just didn't go.

Maybe it'd be better if I just stayed home this time.

So later that night, my friends carry me back down three flights of stairs.

And Shane is driving me home in the rain, and he's just sort of humming to himself in Shane fashion.

And I'm sitting there with my cheek against the window, just like, spiraling a little bit.

You know, these are my new friends.

And I'm thinking, like, is Shane going to think twice before he asks me to hang out again?

And finally I just blurt out, I'm so sorry you had to carry me up and down those stairs.

And I knew, I knew what Shane was going to say, because it's the same thing that most people say in that situation, which is like, no big deal.

Like easy peasy.

We wanted you there.

Which is all kindly meant, but I'm there for the whole scene, right?

Like I see the perspiration and the strained muscles, and none of it looks easy peasy.

But Shane's at something different.

Shane said, well, I'm sorry, that apartment complex doesn't have an easy way for you to get inside.

And it was a tiny reframe, right?

But it actually stunned me in that moment because Shane was saying, like, okay, there was a problem there, right?

Something happened, but you weren't the problem in that situation like that design wasn't great.

That place was really inaccessible.

And that is a problem.

And I had never thought about it that way before.

[Mike] Now it's time for the next installment of Perspective.

Where Delta's president, Dr. Michael Gavin, shares a community college perspective on national topics in higher education.

[Dr. Michael Gavin] A major point of pride for Delta College is our accreditation.

There are two kinds of accreditation One is an institutional accreditation which ensures that the entire institution has a point of quality that is determined by a number of different subsets of categories, by external evaluators.

At our last evaluation for accreditation, we had superlatives in all categories, meaning that we as an institution offer quality programing or are fair to students, and also are offering credit for, learning at a fair price.

That is not true of all institutions, and I would encourage anybody to think through the kind of education that they want to get based on the accreditation that institution has.

There are some institutions out there that potentially will, make promises on the kind of education that one can get, but they're not necessarily accredited.

And subsequently, students will pay a lot of money without a credential that's worth much at the end.

That's not the case at Delta for the because of the institutional accreditation.

But we also benefit from having particular workforce programs that are accredited by external bodies.

And those programs ensure not only that the students have learned what they have to learn, but they have a stamp of approval so that an employer might say to a potential interviewee or interviewer that, the student has gone to an excellent program.

For instance, our nursing program in all of our health programs are accredited by external creditors, where we have peer reviewers coming from, the external external from Delta, and they validate that we're teaching in the correct way, and that all the safety and concerns that a person might have with regard to health are being met before someone graduates.

And the same thing is true of early childhood education and engineering.

Where both of those programs, are validated by external peer reviewers.

Experts in the field who ensure that what students are learning in the classroom, as well as how we run the programs themselves, will allow students not only to learn, but also keep people safe in those jobs where it is actually a huge concern.

Well, you don't want an engineer building a bridge that's going to fall apart, and that's not going to happen if you come to Delta.

So we are very excited about the notion of excellence and quality at Delta College.

And we've been validated, especially in the last ten years, with superlatives from external reviewers.

And we're very proud of that.

[Mike] The next student feature is on Isaiah Kabban, a dual enrolled student who will be graduating high school this spring with two associate degrees from Delta.

Let's hear how Isaiah discovered his passion for public policy.

To discover what you want to do, you have to do what you want to do unapologetically.

I started in my sophomore year taking one class and the first semester.

Two classes in the second semester.

I took three that summer, and I just kept building on and building on.

And while I did that, I discovered new passions.

English is one thing that has been influential in my Delta journey.

I've taken many English classes, and it was really through recent African American history, taking campaigns and elections during the election cycle.

When I realized that my path could lead me to something different, something unexpected.

In my sophomore year, when I started taking classes, I had no direction.

I had no path.

I didn't even know if attending a four year institution was something that I could do.

And so as I started taking classes and realizing that I could excel, and as I rapidly grew, I started taking on initiatives outside of just school itself and sports.

So I attended Boys Nation, the American Legion program, and there are two students picked from each state, and they're sent to Washington D.C., and we run a mock government.

Im on the national policy team.

I will do lobbying efforts, with Congress, during the school day actually.

And what Delta brings to the table is I am not in a physical classroom, during the school day.

So I've been able to take on zoom meetings.

So the drive comes from knowing that if I reach for the stars, I can eventually end up on the moon.

[Mike] Delta College's dual enrollment program allows area high school students to take classes at Delta and use those credits to fulfill both high school diploma and college program requirements.

To learn more about this increasingly popular opportunity, we spoke with Kayla Rahn, Dual enrollment and early middle college outreach and enrollment coordinator.

[Kayla Rahn] Dual enrollment is the opportunity to earn college credit while still in high school.

So all of our students are current high school students taking college classes.

Benefits of dual enrolling in high school is to get to test out a college class, potentially earn some college credit And these credits transfer.

Dual enrollment students pay the same rate as our in district students.

But most students that are in these programs are sponsored by their high schools.

So they're paying little to nothing out of pocket.

So throughout the years, we've seen a pretty steady increase in dual enrollment.

Right now we have 20% of our student body are high school students taking classes.

And that's been growing over the years.

And we also have 61 high school partners.

And that's just a ton of different students having opportunities to take the classes.

Students interested in getting started with dual enrollment should always start with their high school.

They need some approvals, to be able to take the classes.

So a conversation with your high school counselor.

And then they can start that application if they're approved.

Typically dual enrolled students during their junior year take 1 to 2 classes a semester, right.

Depending on your high school schedule, if you're involved in sports.

If you've got a job.

We know that college takes time.

So students tend to have a little bit lighter load.

Students can take up to ten classes as part of dual enrollment.

And each school has some unique requirements on the type of classes that are covered.

So we have a lot of students taking general education classes that aren't part of their high school curriculum.

But we've also got some students that, are just exploring business opportunities or some different things, as potential majors.

[Cassidy Kline] The early college program has opened up many doors for me as giving me the opportunity to get college credits done in high school and go ahead and get my associates following high school.

And I will also have a certification in Phlebotomy Tech.

certified nursing assistant, health certification.

And then also along with that, my associates in sonography.

And by having the early college program, all this will be paid for and I'll be able to come out of high school with college credits and a whole associates degree paid for.

[Kayla] On rare occasions, there are some students that are able to graduate with a Delta degree before they're high school diploma, just based on the way timing works.

But we also have a lot of students that do our middle college program and do that plus one year, and they are graduating high school and college at the same time.

If you've got questions about dual enrollment, talk to your high school counselor and then visit the information on your screen.

[Mike] Paying for a college education can often feel like a major hurdle standing between you and your degree or certificate, but it doesn't have to be.

There's financial support available to help.

And it all starts with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, better known as FAFSA.

To help navigate this important step, we spoke with Elvina Sika, assistant director for financial Aid.

[Elvina Sika] Financial aid or resources available to assist students in funding their college education, so they don't have to pay out of pocket?

To get started applying for financial aid, students would have to go to the federal government's website at FAFSA.gov and they'll fill out an application.

There's two applications currently available, one for the ‘24 25 school year.

For the ‘25 26 school year, there's another FAFSA for that will be available.

So students can also complete that at this time.

So once a student completes the FAFSA and the college receives the financial aid results from the FAFSA completion, the different types of aid that students can apply for and receive is the federal Pell Grant.

There's work study, which is student employment.

There's federal direct student loans, which is borrowed money.

And the newest ones are the state of Michigan programs for, recent, high school graduates from ‘23 and beyond.

They'll qualify for the community college guarantee, which will assist with tuition and fee charges.

Is an in district student, right?

There's also the reconnect scholarship program for students that are 25 and older Financial aid can be complicated and intimidating, but for families and students that need assistance, Delta College provides workshops.

We have several workshops each month going on through August.

For students that want to get started for the spring semester.

The FAFSA for does have a deadline of June 30th, 2025, where the FAFSA has to be completed for this school year.

But for the upcoming ‘25-2026 school year, FAFSA completion is going on now And, the deadline is not until June 30th of 2026 for, students that want financial aid for next school year.

If you're thinking about coming to college and you need some money to help you pay for your college education.

Financial aid is a great tool.

Can provide, financial resources to students.

And all you have to do is just get started, get admitted to the college, fill out the financial aid form, and get started today.

[Mike] Students in the Automotive Service Technology program at Delta get hands on experience using state of the art equipment.

In addition to training on gas engines, Delta students learn about electric vehicles.

To hear more about this program we spoke with Jay Minard, associate professor in the Automotive Service Technology Program [Jay Minard] Our ASEP program has been around since 1979.

We were the first ASEP program in the United States.

Our comprehensive program, I believe, has been around a little longer than that.

However, the General Motors ASEP Program allows direct placement into General Motors dealerships and direct manufacturers education as well as college education.

So they get their fundamentals.

The comprehensive program is more geared towards all makes models, so they, will get a little taste of everything.

Although our majority of our vehicles in our fleet are General Motors because of their generous donations to us, and we have vehicles that are as new as 2024.

So we have a lot of mid, like maybe ten years old at our oldest and up to brand new models.

We have associate of applied science in both our ASEP and our AUTO program, the comprehensive program.

Our certificate programs range from an advanced certificate in Automotive Service Technology, to under car specialist maintenance and light repair specialists.

Now, we have transfer agreements with high schools all over the state of Michigan right now.

Where essentially people that are coming from a high school career center can articulate two full semesters of core automotive classes for free to our program and then carry right on with the rest of the program.

Now, that being said, people can come in here, we can help them get jobs.

They work in the field, they'll intern in the field at that point, if they want to stay in the field and not further their education, they can.

If they choose to get a bachelor's in the future, their gen ed courses that they took here will transfer to other institutions and also their automotive classes can also be used for electives.

So there are other opportunities and I have had several students that have moved on from here to Northwood to get their bachelor's in aftermarket and in business.

Our facilities are state of the art.

We have brand new state of the art laser alignment systems.

We have just gotten installed brand new Hunter alignment, in-ground hoist, brand new alignment systems back here.

We have new, snap on John Bean equipment on the other side, which is what most of the dealers are using right now.

But the students are working on brand new turbocharged, direct injected vehicles with the newest scan tools with the latest software.

They have tools provided to them here to work on vehicles.

They don't need to bring their own tools.

We have industry standard, special tools that are fully available to do the jobs correctly.

We have a variety of engines from Chrysler, I have some Hondas.

I have some Toyotas, a lot of GM engines, obviously.

Fords.

I've got power stroke diesels.

Duramaxs, you name it, we got it right down the line.

And when students come here, we give them a basic engine to take apart first.

And then from there what are you interested in.

And we'll let them take apart things that are really in their wheelhouse that they want to learn about.

And that really gives a really, well, well-rounded learning experience for them.

We have two full time, automotive faculty at this point.

Between the two of us, we have roughly 50 years experience in the fields.

Our adjunct or part time instructors are all in the field currently and working within dealerships and shops in our tri county area.

So there is a wealth of real world knowledge that we have to share here.

So a student will get everything necessary.

There are no questions that can't be answered.

Our courses are very hands on.

Our courses are I would have to say at this point, 90% hands on would be a fair assessment of classroom versus hands on.

Intro level classes will have more lecture time because we're doing basic, education on basic principles.

However, when you get through those classes, it's all hands on from there.

Every day you're out in the lab, every day you're putting tools on vehicles.

Every day you're learning something new.

You're learning how to read service information.

You're learning how to read schematics.

You're learning how to diagnose vehicles.

We're learning how to fix why something broke, not just fix that it's broke.

Right now, we have extensive electrical education within our current curriculum.

Everything is immersed in electrical, and we do our best to make sure students are very comfortable with the material, while going through the program.

We offer plenty of extra time outside hours.

We help students come in and tutor them.

We do whatever it takes to make sure that the students feel confident and comfortable with what they're working with.

That being said, we just got our approval passed for our brand new hybrid and electric vehicle degree program, advanced certificate program.

What that's going to do is offer students another path off of the advanced certificate, or off of their associate's degree to add core electrical and hybrid curriculum to their path.

Right now our fleet consists of a couple of Chevy Volts, two Malibu hybrids and a, Toyota Prius.

I am currently working on getting a couple more full battery electric vehicles to round our fleet out.

But our hope is to be able to provide not just to our current young students that are coming up through the ranks and going into college and first time learners.

But we're hoping to be able to provide our area hiring partners in the tri county area to be able to educate their seasoned technicians on this technology so they can broaden their service offerings.

Job placement is everywhere.

Our students can literally walk out of here and get a job wherever they want.

There's all ranges in ways for them to be hired.

So there's no worry about our students not being able to get hired in our area or outside of our area.

For more information, please visit the information that's on your screen.

[Mike] The Girls Day Out is a daylong event that provides middle school girls with a day of hands on science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM activities.

The goal is to pique their interest in exploring traditionally male dominated career fields.

To tell us more about the day's activities, we spoke with Diane Lobsiger-Braden, a skilled trades professor.

[Diane Lobsiger-Braden] Well, Girls Day out is a nationally recognized event where we bring girls from the middle school community into, explore a day of STEM activities and STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math.

So we want to introduce these girls to these activities with the hope that they're really interested in the activities and that they will eventually go on to pursue careers in Stem fields.

So the day's activities occurred at the main campus and at our Saginaw campus location.

And we had 60 presenters throughout the day.

And these presenters were Delta faculty and staff.

They were faculty and staff from other universities and colleges throughout the area.

We also had presenters from Dow, Hemlock Semiconductor and Michigan Sugar.

And we had a lot of volunteers that also helped us throughout the day, Attending the presentations today were almost 800 girls from various schools throughout our communities.

We had 14 schools attend this year.

And the schools were able to come and explore different areas of STEM and learn some different fun activities and a lot of different hands on activities for the girls throughout the day.

So we started the day off at the gym where we had a speaker, Dr. June Teisan, give a presentation to the girls So after we had our opening ceremonies, the girls all went to their different activities and we had a wealth of different activities throughout the day where the girls could attend, and learn about different STEM activities.

Well, the reason for this event is to really keep girls interested in STEM.

We find that girls might be interested in STEM in their middle school years, But then as they get into high school, we lose these girls.

They they lose interest and we lose them.

So we wanted to give them a message that they don't need to lose their dreams, that we want to expose them to all these different, fun activities and really pique their interest.

So that they can remain interested throughout their lifetimes and have some really great careers.

The day was sponsored by money we received from a grant and that allowed us to purchase all the supplies that we needed and lunches for the girls and to offset some of their bussing costs.

So today's events were a huge success.

We were able to welcome so many girls throughout the community and offer them exciting hands on activities where they could, open up their minds and learn more about STEM activities.

So please join us for next year.

The dates been set, so November 7th will be our next Girls Day Out event at Delta.

We hope to see you there!

[Mike] Thank you, Diane and all those involved in coordinating this outstanding event.

Now let's see what's on the Dateline Delta Calendar of Events.

[Announcer] The Delta College Planetarium will be hosting a series of shows during the month of April.

For more information about these shows and events happening at the planetarium, visit their website at delta.edu/planetarium.

The Great Lakes Bay Health Center will be bringing their mobile medical unit to Delta's main campus on Monday, April 7th from 9 a.m. till noon.

Most insurances are accepted.

A sliding scale is available for the uninsured.

The unit will be parked in the F wing parking lot.

Delta college's main campus will be hosting Transfer Mondays, which occurs the second Monday of every month.

Students can meet with transfer institutions to get their questions answered.

The event will occur on Monday, April 14th from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. in N005.

For further information on these events or other campus activities, contact the Office of Marketing and Public Information at 989-686-9490, or visit our website at www.delta.edu [Mike] Well, that wraps up our show.

Please join us again on April 20th when we highlight what's happening here at Delta College.

One of America's leading community colleges.

Now, I leave you with the sights and sounds of Delta College for Dateline Delta, Im Mike Rowley Thanks for watching.

Local production scene on Delta College Public Media are made possible with support from viewers like you.

Thank you.