Reading, PA – On October 30, 2018, Reading Area Community College (RACC) and Lebanon Valley College (LVC) signed a dual admissions agreement outlining academic pathways between their institutions for students wishing to pursue a baccalaureate degree starting fall, 2018. 

Dr. Susan Looney, RACC president states, “Establishing partnerships with our regional colleges and universities provides our associate degree graduates with affordable pathways to their bachelor’s degree close to their home and work. Pennsylvania is rich with transfer opportunities for RACC students interested in highly specialized programs, such as Lebanon Valley College’s Actuary Science Degree, Music Business, and accelerated Accounting/MBA program.” 

RACC students accepted under the Dual Admission Agreement will also qualify to enroll in courses at LVC that are not offered at RACC but are required for completion of the LVC bachelor’s degree. Tuition for up to two of these courses taken prior to transfer to LVC will be charged at the LVC Community College partner discount rate.

“Community college students do very well at LVC,” says Edwin R. Wright, LVC vice president of enrollment management. “They are well prepared to jump right into upper-level courses and complete their bachelor’s or advanced degrees. LVC is looking forward to welcoming more students from RACC as a result of this collaboration.”

Other benefits of RACC- Lebanon Valley College Dual Admissions Agreement for RACC students/graduates include LVC early advising, a free application to the college, and generous merit and transfer scholarships.  

For more information about this new community college partnership, please contact Jodi Corbett, RACC director of academic partnerships, 610.607.6219.

The Career Services office at Reading Area Community College is hosting a Government and Non-profit Job Fair on November 13, 2018, from 12-3pm in the Student Union Building on the RACC campus. The event is open to all RACC students and graduates. Job seekers from the general public are also welcome to attend. “We are expecting more than 22 employers,” says Jen Gittings-Dalton, career development specialist at RACC. “We have employers hiring in multiple majors and career areas so we encourage all types of job-seekers to attend.”

Employers attending the fair include: Abraxas Academy, CareerLink Community Support Services, The US Census Bureau, Customs and Border Protection, Imperium Management Services, Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, Olivet Boys & Girls Club, PA National Guard, PA State Police, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, St. Luke’s University Health Network, Threshold, U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, United States Air Force, US Navy, US Army, and the YMCA of Reading and Berks County.

Job seekers are encouraged to dress appropriately for interviewing and bring multiple resume copies. RACC students may create or improve their resumes by visiting the RACC Career Center, and also get help with interviewing and job search skills and any career-related questions. The Career Center is located in room B-220, Berks Hall; students may drop by during office hours or make an appointment by calling 610.607.6246.

This is the third year that the Government and Non-profit Job Fair has been held at RACC, with positive reviews from past attendees and employers. It is our hope that even more employers from the region will take advantage of this opportunity to connect with students and alumni of RACC’s many programs, and with many community job seekers as well.

“We are proud of our students and we are proud of our community. The people of Berks County are well-known for their hard work and loyalty, and RACC interns, students, and graduates add talent and skills to that foundation,” says Gittings-Dalton. 

For more information or to register as an employer please contact Pat Edgar, Career Center Specialist at 610.607.6246, careercenter@racc.edu or visit the Career Services webpage.

Washington, DC– On Thursday, October 11th, 2018, the Academic ESL Program at Reading Area Community College received national recognition as one of the four finalists in the Associate category at the Celebracion de Excelencia for evidence-based practices supporting the success of Latino and other students in its program. Celebración de Excelencia is an annual recognition event that gives national prominence to the year’s Examples of Excelencia and finalists by bringing together practitioner leaders with private, public, and philanthropic sector leadership. This annual recognition is held in the nation’s capital and is organized in cooperation with members of Congress, other elected officials, and educational leaders. In 2018 there were 139 total nominations from 27 states, DC, and Puerto Rico from which 21 finalists were chosen for their evidence of effectiveness in the ways their institutions and communities serve Latinos. In 2018, the 21 finalists represented 7 states including California, Kentucky, Maryland, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, and Puerto Rico.

While ESL enrollees make up only 5% of the college’s population, their program offers support for all multilingual students enrolled in credit courses through the Multilingual Learning Center. Through intentionally structured curricula, engagement in relevant and contextualized activities, and leverage of students’ use of their native languages to aid English acquisition, their program develops non-native English speakers’ proficiency in academic English to become college-ready.

Prior to 2012, an average of 24.6% of Latinos in ESL attained college-readiness in one year; now, the average is 40.6%. While overall ESL rates show a 9.2% increase in those who successfully complete freshman composition since 2012, Latino students have demonstrated the most growth, with an average increase of 13.1%.

For more information visit the ESL Program's website, or call 610.607.6224

October 9, 2018/Written by David Mekeel/Reading, PA

A few weeks ago, someone asked Dr. Susan D. Looney where she saw Reading Area Community College being five years down the road.

She responded that she saw it as being much the way it already is, with all the great things that have been going on simply being taken even further.

Looney relayed the story to a crowd gathered Monday afternoon inside RACC's Miller Center for the Arts. She said she sees students of all ages learning and succeeding. She said sees a welcoming environment that's also nimble and aggressive, able to quickly meet workforce needs.

She said she sees supportive faculty and staff, an administration that truly leads, a schoolwide ethos of never settling for the status quo. She sees graduates ready to continue their education or enter the workforce.

She said she sees herself healthy and active - still doing her 5 a.m. workouts and still leading, honored to be the steward of a great institution.

"I see myself always being #RACCProud," she concluded.

Looney will have a unique ability to make all that happen. She is, after all, the woman in charge.

Although she has been on the job since July, the 50-year-old officially took the reins as RACC's sixth president during an inauguration ceremony Monday afternoon.

Dressed in a black gown with gold piping, a purple sash around her neck and a black cap on her head, she raised her right hand and repeated her oath of office. Then, with a medallion placed around her neck and a wooden mace in her right hand, she turned to face a crowd on its feet and applauding wildly.

Looney replaced Dr. Anna D. Weitz, who retired after serving as RACC's president for 11 years.

'The Four Agreements'
During her inauguration speech, Looney said that she will lead based on four principles developed from the book "The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom," by Don Miguel Ruiz.

She said that she will be impeccable with her word.

"There will be no empty promises," Looney said.

Second, she said she won't take things personally, that when she has a disagreement she won't let it poison relationships or cloud decisions.

Third, she said she won't make assumptions, instead always striving to dig deeper and learn more.

Finally, she said she will always strive to do her best.

Those principles, Looney said, will help her focus on what she calls the four hallmarks of a community college - the things by which she will measure RACC's success.

Those hallmarks are access, opportunity, excellence and hope.

Prior to her own remarks, Looney got a chance to hear what some others had to say about her. She listened to glowing reviews from the likes of state Sen. Judy Schwank and Berks County commissioners Chairman Christian Y. Leinbach. She heard from faculty and board members and a current RACC student.

Each spoke of Looney's unique path, about how she went from a high school dropout to a successful harness racer to a nervous community college student to a teacher and administrator.

Leinbach said that very few take a straight line from high school to their ultimate career destination, and Looney knows that well. He said her path makes her the perfect person to understand the often nontraditional tracks upon which RACC students find themselves.

Pair from her past
The most poignant words about Looney came from two people from her past. The first was Trudy Rich.

Twenty years ago, Rich was an introverted mother of a small child. She ended up taking a temporary job in accounts payable at a manufacturing plant and decided she could do the job better with a little more understanding. She signed up for night classes at her local community college.

"My first class was taught by the great Dr. Looney," she said.

She said Looney was endlessly supportive and encouraging, the type of teacher who would do anything for her students.

"Her office door was always open," Rich said.

Looney pushed Rich, first as a teacher and later as a mentor. With her support, Rich thrived, and today owns her own accounting business.

"Thank you, Dr. Looney, for changing my life," she said.

Similarly, Looney pushed Jan Clapp, not as a student but as an employee. Looney told Clapp that there was a job opening at Delaware Technical Community College, where Looney was then an assistant to the campus director and the director of corporate and communication programs, that was perfect for Clapp.

It was a job Clapp had no intention of taking.

"I'll see you Monday morning at 8:30 a.m.," she recalls Looney telling her, saying that Looney ended up convincing her to take the job.

"Susan Looney doesn't take no for an answer," Clapp said.

Of course, Clapp said, Looney was right. Clapp loved working at the community college, even after Looney pushed her to take over handling federal grants just two months into her tenure.

"Susan had complete faith in my abilities," she said. "She was always there to support and encourage me."

Clapp said that Looney was always a leader, not a boss. She sees the best in people, and recognizes potential and knows how to nurture and use it.

"She created a culture of 'I can; I will,' " she said.

Monday's inauguration ceremony followed a week of celebration that included, among other things, a costume parade, a flash mob dance party, a fun run, a concert and an inaugural reception.

Written by: Reading Eagle/October 5, 2018/Reading, PA

Reading Area Community College students and staff boogied in the quad Thursday, part of the school's ongoing celebration of the upcoming inauguration of its new president, Dr. Susan D. Looney.

The college this week marked Smile Week, which featured events like creating a smile postcard to give to fellow students, staff members or family members; painting smiley rocks; and a scavenger hunt.

Thursday, there was a smile parade through campus with participants dressed in smiley costumes, followed by a flash mob. Students and staff also had an opportunity to decorate smile cupcakes.

Looney's inauguration will take place Monday at 2 p.m. in the Miller Center for the Arts.