Friday, April 26, 2024
Since 1854 — News from Montcalm County and Ionia County, Michigan
While Todd Ballard may be in his first year of teaching at the Montcalm Area Career Center, it’s become evident to his students that their instructor possesses no shortage of knowledge and teaching experience.
Hired as the MACC’s automotive technology instructor beginning this school year, Ballard brought with him 25 years of teaching experience with previous experience at the Mecosta-Osceola Career Center, Ferris State University and Naperville Central High School.
Having been a hairstylist for 20 years, Katrina McGuire is more than experienced when it comes to cutting the hair of numerous clients, from her mother, longtime clients and new customers who walk through her door for the first time.
Upon deciding in 2022 to leave the comfort of an established hair salon and open up her own studio, the Sheridan resident didn’t know what the future would have in store for her.
At age 17, Kayla Sterzick is well on her way to having already gained the “college experience” as a dual-enrolled student, even before stepping on the campus of the University of Michigan (U of M) next year.
A senior at Saranac High School, Sterzick started taking classes at Montcalm Community College (MCC) during her junior year.
Saranac High School has been a longtime participant with Montcalm Community College’s dual enrollment program.
Bill Bishop came to Montcalm Community College as an adjunct instructor in 2004 and joined the faculty full-time as a business instructor in 2013.
Bill truly loves being part of this institution. He especially enjoys staying connected with former students, hearing about their successes, and witnessing personal growth and development in rewarding careers cultivated during their studies at MCC. His areas of instruction include Accounting, Taxation, Business and Management. Bill serves as the Department Chair of MCC’s Accounting, Business, and Criminal Justice Studies, and is the co-advisor of the college’s Business Professionals of America (BPA) Club.
Montcalm Community College’s Alumni & Friends choir concert, “Great Stories Told in Song,” is April 28 at 4 p.m. in the gymnasium in the Activities Building on the college’s Sidney campus. Admission is free.
Choir Director Val Vander Mark said she is excited to showcase a variety of numbers related to popular literary pieces and to collaborate with area musicians and children.
From developers aiming to take on their next housing project to young adults searching for their first home, there’s one element at the center of bringing everyone together to ensure there’s enough affordable, attainable housing to go around: Municipalities.
During a panel discussion at the annual United Way Community Leadership Conference in December 2023 at Belding High School, United Way Montcalm-Ionia Counties Executive Director Terri Legg invited three individuals who, between them, represented a diverse collection of cities and villages in Montcalm and Ionia Counties.
For 16 years, Jason Jakubowski lived out his desire to work in law enforcement, serving the community of Big Rapids as a police officer to keep its residents safe.
But along that path, Jakubowski felt a continued calling that left him wondering if perhaps his talents could be best served in another capacity — teaching others to pursue that same dream of working in public safety.
My gardening hobby has been steadily increasing over the last decade or so, going from a few herbs and a rosebush by the house to a large plot in the yard to the addition of a second plot by the shed.
This year, I invested in something I’ve been wanting to try for a long time: A greenhouse.
For many homeowners, their driveway isn’t something they take much note of until it begins to noticeably decay, crack and perhaps develop potholes.
Kai Lum, owner of Supreme Seal Coating in Greenville, is a local expert on home driveway maintenance, and last week he agreed to share some industry secrets with the Daily News.
