All posts by Kimberly Gaskin

St. Pete College Internship leads to Full-time employment

internships

After completing an internship, St. Petersburg College (SPC) student Bryan Denski was recently offered a position as a web developer for Little Frog Innovations in Largo, FL.  Originally, Denski was offered an internship position by his former boss Tom Rask, as a replacement of the former web developer Ian LeBlanc. LeBlanc proved to be a great resource for Denski as he acquired web programming skills from SPC.

In time, LeBlanc formed Little Frog Innovations and offered Denski a full-time position as a web developer for the company. Denski jumped at the opportunity. Working closely with LeBlanc, helped Denski to become proficient in the field and he is now able to “build complete web sites from scratch for clients as well as provide further support and maintenance.” Recently, he created an app that the assembly team will be using to log their work so that management can account for their time and view the length of time it takes to complete tasks.

 Currently, Denski is in the process of completing his AS degree in Computer Science and in the future he would like to continue on to pursue a Bachelor’s degree at a university. To enhance his skills, he is taking a couple extra courses from the Mobile Devices Certificate program at SPC. He is grateful for all the assistance he received from Tom and Ian and looks to the future with great optimism.

VOLOGY CEO Barry Shevlin Visits SPC’s Clearwater Campus

expo
Barry Shevlin CEO Vology

As part of an initiative by the Career Center to promote A.S. degrees and certificate programs, St. Petersburg College (SPC) hosted an event on the Clearwater campus on Wednesday September 12th, which featured Vology founder and CEO, Barry Shevlin and his team. Vology is a local company located in Oldsmar, Fl. According to SPC’s College-wide Outreach Coordinator Rod Davis, Vology “offers networking and telecommunications IT enterprise solutions to small, mid-sized and large businesses worldwide.  Vology is presenting a wonderful opportunity for College of Computer & Information Technology graduates. Mr. Shevlin has a vested interest in the hiring of our SPC/CCIT students in the future.”

Throughout the discussion, Shevlin stressed importance of marketability when searching for employment. In a Q& A session, he offered helpful hints about how to accomplish this. These include:

 

  •  Update your resume as regularly as possible, using “buzz words” that would be picked up by search engines.

 

  • Join a social network such as LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter to interact with employers and others to be informed about employment opportunities.

 

  • Be prepared before an interview. This means doing your research about the company in order to help convince the employer why you would be a good asset to the company. Looking at news items and articles that feature the company is a good way to become knowledgeable about them.

  • The main thing to look for in a company is stability.

 In closing, Shevlin stated that it is important to “look for a company that would invest in you.”

 

 

Classes begin this fall for HITT program

Certifications

If you are unemployed and you are interested in a career in the Information Technology field, the Tampa Bay Hi-tech program (HITT) may be the right choice for you. By means of a grant, students are provided tuition for books and fees for certification training. For the purposes of St. Petersburg College, students can earn certifications in the following areas: Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA-CT), Microsoft Certified IT Professional: Server Administrator (MCITPS-CT), and C# Programing (CSHARP-CT). Currently, there are a total of 30 people enrolled in the certificate programs.  With the exception of the CCNA-CT, the MCITPS-CT and CSHARP-CT are 18 credit hour programs, whereas CCNA is a 12 credit hour program.  For additional information about enrollment and eligibility, please contact Rachel Gelbmann at 727-608- 2479.

Jose Chandler Serves Internship at Plate Smart Technologies

internships

Though Jose Chandler has worked in the computer industry for several years, he recently decided to return to school to pursue his true passion- Computer Science. With the assistance of College-wide Internship Coordinator, Ms. Susan Biszewski-Eber, Chandler was able to serve a paid internship with Plate Smart Technologies in Oldsmar, FL, where he currently works. Chandler said that this internship opportunity helped him to gain more experience in the Computer Programming field.

 “The greatest benefit I received from this experience was learning how to get involved in a field that requires teamwork. This helped me learn how to handle issues, share ideas, and apply the programming skills I acquired from St. Petersburg College (SPC),” Chandler said.  For students who plan to serve an internship at SPC in the future, Chandler suggested that they “take as many programming classes they can handle prior to completing the internship, especially Virtual Studio, which is still the most useful in the programming industry.”

 

 

Amy Apicerno Joins College-wide Internship Department at St. Petersburg College

internships

With the recent retirement of Deborah Montalvo, the College-wide Internship Office welcomes a new face to the group. This fall, Amy Apicerno has joined forces with College-wide Internship Coordinator Susan Biszewski-Eber to expand the internship program at St. Petersburg College (SPC). Apicerno said that becoming a College-wide Internship Coordinator at SPC should be “a fairly easy transition,” since she has worked for the University of Massachusetts in the Career Services department where she dealt with internship placement. She has also orchestrated several career fairs and student committees.

“My goal is access and retention. That is why I was drawn to SPC. I believe in Dr. Law’s plan and I am very excited about the upcoming semester,” Apicerno said. With the help of Biszewski-Eber, Apicerno hopes to expand the program out into the community and continue to build relationships with businesses. She further stated that “it has been fun going to the different events as I learn to connect the pieces.”

To be successful, Apicerno suggests that students take advantage of learning as much as they can while interning prior to entering the workforce, since interning will help them explore what they want to do. She suggests that they should strive to build a resume, network and gain marketable skill sets, since this could lead to marketable employment. Apicerno also suggests that students should take advantage of Optimal Resume, an online tool to “help link students from SPC with employers for internship and fulltime positions.” This is a password protected system that provides students with opportunities to build their resume application materials, as well as practice and receive feedback regarding their interview skills. Students are also provided with employer opportunities and a forum to apply. Apicerno said in some cases, employers even conduct first round interviews utilizing Optimal Resume.

For more information, please contact the SPC Internship Office at interns@spcollege.edu or (727) 341-3019 today!

How to be successful in online courses

online learning

In today’s high-paced society, many are seeking ways to expedite the learning process. With technology advancement on the rise, colleges and universities are gravitating to online learning, since it affords students and faculty the opportunity to access information in a timely manner and allows them to work in convenient locations. Before deciding whether online learning is the best choice, it is important to consider what form of learning is best suited for you.

For example, if you enjoy independent study and you are self-motivated, online classes may be the right choice for you. With this mode of learning, students are afforded the flexibility of completing coursework outside of the classroom setting. However, students must be very organized in order to be successful in this type of course. Additionally, it is imperative to become familiar with course material prior to the start of the course. If problems occur or students need help with assignments, they are encouraged to seek the help of the instructor immediately via e-mail. If this is not successful, then students should schedule an appointment during office hours with their instructor.

These are just some suggestions that would make online learning an enjoyable experience. So before classes begin, carefully consider if online courses are the right fit for you. For more information about how to be successful when taking online courses please visit the College of Computer & Information Technology’s web site for the online policy .

Get Certified with the Tampa Bay High Tech Training Program

Certifications
One of the CISCO labs where industry certification exams are administered

Starting this fall, Worknet Pinellas and the Tampa Bay Workforce Alliance are working closely with St. Petersburg College (SPC) to provide students with the opportunity to become certified in Information Technology and Telecommunications fields. The purpose of the Tampa Bay Hi-Tech Training (HITT) program is to equip people with the skills that are in demand for a competitive job market. It is designed to provide funding for training in these fields. Participants have the opportunity to pursue careers in the following areas: Network Administrator, Engineer or Specialist, Project Support Engineer, Systems Architect and Web Programmer.

This grant provides tuition for books and fees for certification training. For the purposes of St. Petersburg College, students can earn certifications in the following areas: Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA-CT), Microsoft Certified IT Professional: Server Administrator (MCITPS-CT), and C# Programing (CSHARP-CT). Testing will take place in the CISCO labs at SPC’s EpiTech Campus in Largo, Fl. For more information, please contact Special Projects Coordinator Maryanne Harkey at 813-397-2023 or e-mail her at harkeym@workforcetampa.com .

St. Petersburg College Hires New Outreach Coordinator

College of Computer and Information Technology

Recently, St. Petersburg College (SPC) hired Outreach Coordinator Rod Davis who is based out of SPC’s Clearwater Campus. Since this position is new, Davis expressed great enthusiasm and believes “it is a necessity to have someone in a position such as this one; given the direction the college is headed.” Prior to assuming this position, Davis was the Coordinator of Student Life, the Advisor for Male Outreach Initiative and the Interim Director of International Programs at SPC.

“I hope to recruit and retain students. My main goal is to advise students and help them gain insight into projected paths of careers in the Information Technology field. I want to help them understand what is involved with each career path and ensure successful completion of courses.” In the past, Davis has worked for Fortune 100 companies and Tech Data. He said that the skills he acquired from those companies enable him to have “a keen eye to what students need.” He hopes to utilize his corporate experience in this new role as Outreach Coordinator to better serve students.

In the months ahead, Davis hopes to develop a good rapport with the Academic Chairs throughout the college. He plans to hone in on what businesses want so that he can work with the Deans and instructors to equip students for the workforce.

The College of Computer & Information Technology adds two new courses to Curriculum

computer programs

The College of Computer & Information Technology is now offering two new courses this fall.  These courses are part of the new Technology Management A.S. degree.  CGS 1301, Introduction to Information Systems, is being offered the second eight weeks online.  CGS 2631, Collaborative Technologies is also being offered the second eight weeks. The prerequisite for both of these courses is CGS 1100, Computer Applications, which is being offered the first eight weeks. 

The course descriptions are as follows:

 

 

 

Prerequisite: CGS1100 – Computer Applications. This course is designed to provide students with a foundational understanding of Information Systems (IS) as they apply to the computer industry. Topics will include Information Systems fundamentals; IS infrastructure; organizational and business strategies for Information Systems, Managing Information Systems; Information Systems for commerce and collaboration; business intelligence and Enterprise Information Systems; security, privacy and ethics for Information Systems. 47 contact hours.

 

 

 

Prerequisite: CGS 1100. This course is designed to teach students how to interact using shared collaboratively communication tools and resources. Students will learn how to identify and apply Web based social collaboration technologies for business and personal use. Major topics covered include; identifying the differences between Web 1.0 2.0, 3.0, reviewing collaboration software (DropBox, Google Docs, SharePoint), communicating using social media sites (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, FourSquare, Tumblr), organizing and applying web syndication to online data. 47 contact hours.  For more information, please call the information line at 727-341-4641.

Jerry Vaughan joins CCIT Advisory Committee

College of Computer and Information Technology

Jerry Vaughan has been in the Information Technology field for the past 32 years. He grew up in the St. Petersburg / Clearwater area, where he attended and graduated from Dunedin High School. Vaughan received his Associate’s degree from St. Petersburg College (SPC) and then transferred to the University of South Florida in 1980. The majority of his career was spent in the financial industry. With the exception of Antarctica, Vaughan has had the privilege of traveling to all the other continents. He has been the Chief Operating Officer of several software companies over the years. Since retirement, he has made a decision to give back to the colleges and universities he attended.

In an effort to give back to the SPC community, Vaughan wrote a letter to Dr. William Law stating that he would like to get involved with an advisory committee or the Board of Trustees. He sent his resume to Dr. Sharon Setterlind, Dean of the College of Computer & Information Technology department (CCIT), and she invited him to join the CCIT Advisory Committee.  Vaughn hopes that his experience in the corporate world would aid him in helping young people to be good problem solvers and help them think analytically. He hopes to use his expertise to inspire more young people to enter the IT field.

“I think my practical work experience would be very valuable to the committee. In the near future, I want to evaluate the current curriculum, looking at what programs are solid and which ones need work. I want to orchestrate a plan to achieve this goal.”