A packed Ocean Center rocked with applause time and time again during two commencement ceremonies celebrating more than 4,200 new Daytona State College graduates on May 13.
More than 4,200 students were added to the ranks of Daytona State alumni. Ab additional 552 candidates who are expected to graduate by summer’s end also were recognized.
President Carol W. Eaton opened the exercises and addressed the candidates, citing their smart choices, hard work, family support and many accomplishments. Noting that each class makes its own mark on the history and tradition of the institution, she said “the Class of 2013 is no exception.”
This year's commencement honored 410 bachelor’s degree recipients, along with another 71 expected to complete their degree this summer. Among them are 269 graduates of Daytona State’s Bachelor of Applied Science in Supervision and Management degree, marking a milestone of over 1,100 students who have earned the credential since it was launched in 2006 as the college’s first baccalaureate degree offering. Since then, Daytona State has added eight additional bachelor’s degrees in Education and Engineering Technology. Commencement also brought to nearly 1,500 the number of graduates who have earned a bachelor’s degree at Daytona State, including candidates for summer semester graduation, since the institution transitioned from a community college to a four-year-degree-granting state college.
The Class of 2013 also features nearly 2,000 associate of arts graduates, including seven who were named to the state’s All-Florida Academic Team. More than 2,100 students, including candidates for summer 2013 graduation, earned their associate of science, associate of applied science or certificate credentials.
Of the 828 veterans who were enrolled at Daytona State this past year, 198 earned their academic credentials during commencement.
This year more than 1,500 graduated with honors, including 300 with high honors, and 110 were inducted into the international honor society Phi Theta Kappa, based on their leadership skills, scholarship and community service.
Twenty-four Falcons this spring were named to Who’s Who Among Students in American Junior Colleges, and 16 students were inducted into the Daytona State College Hall of Fame, the highest honor that faculty can bestow upon a student.
Since its founding in 1957 as Florida’s first comprehensive community college, Daytona State has awarded more than 86,000 degrees and certificates.
See more commencement photos and videos at DaytonaState.edu.
Hacking, phishing, viruses, identity theft and cyber stalking are the nemesis of technology users and developers, and when these often devastating cybercrimes are committed, it’s time to call on a cyber forensics expert to come to the rescue.
Daytona State College is the lead institution in a consortium whose goal is to advance cyber forensic education in the southeastern United States. The consortium is comprised of nine colleges from Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas, and operates as the Southeastern Advanced Cybersecurity Education Consortium (ACE). Its work will be funded by a National Science Foundation grant totaling $1,834,931 over four years.
“The principal goal of this project is to develop online course materials to train students in core knowledge, skills and competencies involved with digital forensics,” said Dr. Philip Craiger, associate professor in the college’s School of Engineering Technology and one of the principal investigators for the grant. “This core is being developed from multiple sources, including the Department of Defense Cyber Crime Center, National Institutes of Standards and Technology, and existing ATE (Advanced Technological Education) Cyber Security Centers.”
Cyber forensics is a means to gather, process, interpret and use digital evidence related to cybercrime. Evidence gathered in cyber forensics investigations often is used in criminal prosecutions. The field also involves the study of evidence from attacks on computer systems to learn what has occurred, how to prevent them from recurring and the extent of the damage.
Dr. Mark Pollitt, also a Daytona State engineering technology faculty member and principal investigator for the grant along with Craiger, said consortium schools will offer an associate-level course in digital forensics, as well as four baccalaureate-level courses, including introductory and advanced digital forensics, incident response and network forensics, and Linux administration.
Information technology professionals in need of continuing education or retraining also are able to take advantage of the online courses, which provide hands-on experiences through the use of video demonstrations and desktop virtualization technologies.
Daytona State already teaches the courses as part of several associate of science degrees and its Bachelor of Science in Engineering Technology. The goal is to make the courses consistent among each consortium school, which also includes Macon State College, South Piedmont Community College, Trident Technical College, Armstrong Atlantic State University, Brevard Community College, Hillsborough Community College, Pensacola State College and St. Johns River State College.
Craiger and Pollitt are among the nation’s leading experts in cyber forensics. Pollitt is a 30-year veteran of the United States Marines, Coast Guard and FBI, where he was chief of its computer forensic unit and director of the Regional Computer Forensic Laboratory Program. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences. Prior to joining Daytona State, Craiger was assistant director of the University of Central Florida’s National Center for Forensic Science. He also is a member of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences.
More details about the grant can be found at www.DaytonaState.edu/ace.
A new issue of the Journal of
Florida Studies has been released this spring at Daytona State
College.
The journal, published by Daytona State’s Center for
Interdisciplinary Writing and Research, is a peer-reviewed electronic publication dedicated to the study and appreciation of Florida. It features an eclectic mix of research articles, poetry, fiction, photography and other digital arts that reflect on some facet of the Sunshine State’s past, present and future.
The themed Spring 2013 issue, called “CONTACT,”
commemorates the 500th anniversary of the European encounter with Florida. In
1513, Juan Ponce de León set foot on the east coast of our state, instigating a
long and complicated relationship between Spain and Florida, according to the
journal’s editor-in-chief, Dr. Casey Blanton.
“The journal interprets
‘contact’ widely, offering historical articles on a range of topics: the tricky
relationship between white settlers and Seminoles in 1859, Florida’s ghost towns
and the brutal Matanzas massacre of 1564, when hundreds of French settlers were
mercilessly slaughtered by Spanish soldiers,” she said.
Scientific
essays explore Florida’s battle with invasive, non-native species such as the
Brazilian pepper tree and, perhaps more insidious, the exotic fungus Raffaelea
lauricola, which is quickly killing red bay trees up and down our coast.
In addition to these academic articles, this issue offers poetry,
photography and book reviews.
For more information, contact Blanton, BlantoC@DaytonaState.edu, or Managing
Editor Michael Flota, FlotaM@DaytonaState.edu.
Daytona State College Women’s Golf Team captured the 2013 NJCAA National Golf Championship, edging Redlands Community College by 11 strokes and Seminole State College of Florida by 16 shots with a 1211 team score in the four-round tournament held at Longbow Golf Club in Mesa, Arizona. This is the sixth NJCAA title for the women’s golf program, as the Lady Falcons have now won the championship in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2010, 2011 and 2013.
“This group of young ladies really dug deep and fought hard for this win”, said head coach Laura Brown. “I am extremely proud of this team and their hard work and dedication this year paid off in the end when it counted. They had a great time in Arizona and our focus was to simply enjoy the competition and stay in the moment and they did that really well.”
Daytona State’s goal going into the tournament was to bring back the National Championship to Daytona at the end of the week. “The key was to stay consistent with our scores and remain in contention”, said Laura Brown. Daytona State finished the first round with a team score of 303 which landed them in a tie for third place, but just two shots off of the lead. Daytona State posted a 305 in the second round which was good enough to tie them for the lead. With a third round of 300, DSC moved into first all alone with a nine stroke advantage over defending national champions, Redlands Community College. DSC’s final round of 303 gave the Lady Falcon’s an eleven shot team victory, as they edged Redlands by another two strokes on the final day.
So Young Hwang, DSC’s standout freshman from South Korea finished second individually with scores of 78-73-71-72. “So Young has been such a consistent performer for us this year and she really delivered for us when we needed her”, said Coach Brown. Erin Selfridge finished 7th overall with scores of 72-79-75-78. The sophomore from Fleming Island, FL was instrumental in this win, as her scores were consistent and she turned her final round around when DSC needed her to. “I had found out that Erin was seven over par through eight holes in the final round and that the team competition was getting a little tight. I went up to Erin and told her I really needed her to grind it out and it was time to step it up and she did just that. She was one under par on the remaining eleven holes”, Coach Brown stated.
Freshman, Mary Dawson finished third in the line-up for DSC and in a tie for eighth in the tournament. She posted scores of 75-77-77-77. “I’m very proud of Mary and of her scores in the tournament, said Laura Brown, “this was a very impressive showing for a freshman and will help with her confidence heading into next season.“ Sophomore Megan Garland posted scores of 78-77-77-76 and finished in 10th place individually and rounded out Daytona State’s top four players. “These four players were the key to our success all year”, stated Brown, “they were my top four all year and proved their strength at the national level. I am so happy for them and proud of their accomplishments. They truly deserve the honor of being National Champions. Sophomore Callie Kitchens rounded out Daytona State’s top five with scores of 83-78-82-83.
The Lady Falcons return two players from this group for the 2013-2014 including So Young Hwang and Mary Dawson. Both players earned All-American Honors, with Hwang earning first team honors and Dawson earning second team honors.
It’s official. Daytona State College’s District Board of Trustees has prohibited the use of tobacco products on all college property effective Aug. 1.
The new college policy, which follows a national trend in higher education, notes that the ban is a matter of Daytona State’s responsibility to provide a “safe, healthy and productive learning environment for students, employees and visitors.” Individuals still may smoke in their personal vehicles parked on college property.
Melanie McDonough, program director for the respiratory program, was among many college employees and students who advocated for a tobacco- free campus policy. She noted that the ban was not an attempt to penalize tobacco users. "Seventy percent of American smokers want to quit,” she said. “Most are just unable. This policy is about educating. It’s about not enabling. We need to be a part of the reason for people to quit.”
According to the American Non-Smokers’ Rights Foundation, as of April 5 this year there are at least 1,159 college campuses nationwide that have gone 100-percent smoke-free. Of these, 783 have gone entirely tobacco-free, with still more considering their own policies. Among them are nearly all institutions in the Central Florida region which have already adopted tobacco-free campus policies or are considering them.
A packed Ocean Center rocked with applause time and time again during two commencement ceremonies celebrating more than 4,200 new Daytona State College graduates on May 13.
