Florida Senate - 2010                            (NP)    SR 2830
       
       
       
       By Senator Negron
       
       
       
       
       28-03957-10                                           20102830__
    1                          Senate Resolution                        
    2         A resolution recognizing the students, faculty, staff,
    3         alumni, and Board of Trustees of Indian River State
    4         College as they celebrate “50 Years of Innovation” as
    5         an institution of higher learning in Florida.
    6  
    7         WHEREAS, the Florida Legislature approved the creation of
    8  Indian River Junior College and Lincoln Junior College in 1959,
    9  establishing the first institutions of higher education on
   10  Florida’s Treasure Coast in 1960, and
   11         WHEREAS, the two institutions merged in 1965, and
   12  governance of Indian River Junior College shifted in 1968 from
   13  the local school board to a district board of trustees,
   14  concurrent with the addition of occupational and adult education
   15  programs and, in 1970, resulting in the renaming of the expanded
   16  institution as Indian River Community College, and
   17         WHEREAS, Indian River Community College began to expand
   18  educational access in the region by establishing four branch
   19  campuses, the Mueller Campus in Vero Beach in 1976, the Chastain
   20  Campus in Stuart in 1982, the Dixon Hendry Campus in Okeechobee
   21  in 1986, and, in 1992, the St. Lucie West Campus in Port St.
   22  Lucie, a rapidly growing joint campus with Florida Atlantic
   23  University, and
   24         WHEREAS, in 2008, the institution was granted authority to
   25  confer baccalaureate degrees in education, nursing,
   26  organizational management, health care management, and public
   27  safety administration, and was renamed Indian River State
   28  College, and
   29         WHEREAS, throughout its history, Indian River State College
   30  has encouraged excellence both in and out of the classroom, with
   31  consistently strong student representation on the All-Florida
   32  Academic Team and achieving international recognition for the
   33  swimming and diving team’s National Championship winning streak,
   34  which is the longest current winning streak in any
   35  intercollegiate competition, at any level, and
   36         WHEREAS, Indian River State College is fundamentally
   37  committed to the advancement of science, technology, education,
   38  and math, leading the charge in the transition of the region
   39  into the “Research Coast” by creating a skilled workforce and
   40  helping to attract life science, digital media, and other
   41  emerging technology firms, and
   42         WHEREAS, Indian River State College has been honored for 3
   43  consecutive years as the nation’s top community college in
   44  technology by the American Association of Community Colleges,
   45  and now offers more than 100 programs leading to bachelor’s
   46  degrees, associate degrees, technical certificates, and applied
   47  technology diplomas, and
   48         WHEREAS, Indian River State College remains fully committed
   49  to the mission of positively impacting lives by “making
   50  possibilities a reality,” and
   51         WHEREAS, more than 35,000 students annually and more than a
   52  million students during the past half century have walked
   53  through the open doors of Indian River State College, increasing
   54  their earning power and improving their quality of life, and
   55         WHEREAS, the past 50 years have witnessed Indian River
   56  State College’s evolution into a dominant educational,
   57  technical, and cultural center on Florida’s Treasure Coast,
   58  providing innovative leadership in the areas of economic
   59  development, workforce responsiveness, high-quality, affordable
   60  education, and, most importantly, student success, NOW,
   61  THEREFORE,
   62  
   63  Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Florida:
   64  
   65         That the students, faculty, staff, alumni, and Board of
   66  Trustees of Indian River State College are congratulated on the
   67  occasion of their Golden Anniversary and in the celebration of
   68  “50 Years of Innovation.”
   69         BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution, with
   70  the Seal of the Senate affixed, be presented to Indian River
   71  State College President Edwin R. Massey as a tangible token of
   72  the sentiments of the Florida Senate.