Wallace State cheerleaders Kevin Williams and Kenna Alexander root for the faculty/staff team.
HANCEVILLE – A friendly game of basketball kicked off the Spring 2017 Learning Communities events at Wallace State Community College. The student team was victorious over the faculty/student squad by a score of 44 to 57, avenging a loss in a similar game in 2016.
Lauren Salerno, Wallace State’s theatre instructor and a liaison for the Learning Communities program, welcomed more than 100 students, faculty and staff to the game, which she described as a fun way to kick off the spring semester and welcome students to the Learning Communities concept.
“The basketball game was a fun opportunity for the student/faculty and staff to break away from the classroom and have some down time,” said math instructor Dana Adams, who coached the faculty/student squad. “I enjoyed coaching my peers even though they didn’t need much coaching.”
“It was great for our students,” said Beth Bownes-Johnson, Dean of Academic Affairs at Wallace State. “A huge thank you to everyone that participated.” Along with the teams, the Wallace State Pep Band and the Wallace State Cheerleaders added to the atmosphere of the game.
Josh Butts of Springville, a graduate of the welding program who is now taking business courses at Wallace State, said he enjoyed the game and getting to interact with students and the faculty and staff. “I wish we could do more things like that,” he said. “You see a lot more smiles than with bookwork.”
Butts, who is president of the Wallace State Fishing Club, said his team really wanted to win this game against the faculty and staff. “They won by one point last year and they beat us in softball [in the fall kickoff]. We wanted to go in and defeat them.”
Learning Communities courses are offered each semester. These courses, usually meeting at 9:30 a.m., offer students the opportunity to participate in organized group-learning activities outside of the classroom. Students share common experiences centered on their academics and community, achieve a deeper understanding of their course's subject matter, build relationships with one another, and learn together. Learning Communities events may include viewing a film, attending a performance or game and/or listening to a guest speaker.
For more information about Wallace State Community College, visit www.wallacestate.edu or call 256-352-8000.
