SLA graduation ushers in future leaders

SLA Graduates
Texas Southmost College students celebrated graduation from the Student Leadership Academy at the TSC Arts Center Gold Room.

Students that participated in Texas Southmost College's Fall 2015 Student Leadership Academy (SLA) gathered at the Gold Room in the TSC Arts Center on Dec. 3 to commemorate the completion of the academy, and to be certified as a TSC Leader.

The SLA is a program open to all TSC students that are currently enrolled. Once a student enters the SLA, they participate in a 10-week program that includes workshops and community service.

The workshops are designed to help SLA students develop and enhance interpersonal communication skills in the workplace and everyday life. In addition, participants undergo 20 hours of community service to reinforce ties within the community.

"A lot of students come in and have no work experience," said TSC Student Development Specialist Virginia Sandoval. "Through SLA, they get the chance to network with other students that have similar interests. They also learn about leadership opportunities and how to be a leader on-and-off campus."

Fourteen students graduated SLA with a new set of skills and received certificates of completion.

"We learned about diversity, how to treat others, communicating with a team, and how to be an effective leader," said SLA graduate T.J. Gutierrez. "What I learned in SLA will be of great help in the future."

About Texas Southmost College
Originally established in 1926, Texas Southmost College currently offers the first two years toward a bachelor's degree, along with career and technical education leading to certificates and associate degrees, college preparatory studies to prepare students for college-level work, workforce training, and continuing education. Recently selected as a Bright Spot by the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics, TSC offers 53 programs of study leading to an associate degree or certificate. TSC became independently operational in the fall of 2013, after engaging in a 20-year contractual arrangement with a public university.