Vol State Virtual Community Volunteer State Community College

Alexander Calls Sumner County a Model for Higher Education

2009-07-02T10:33:00.003-05:00

This news release comes from Senator Lamar Alexander's office:

COMPASS Program Provides Free Community College Tuition to Sumner County Students

“More local governments should follow Sumner County’s example and look at ways to provide free community college to qualified students so we can make sure future generations get the education they deserve.” – Lamar Alexander

Hendersonville, Tenn. – U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today told a gathering for the Community Outreach Making Partnerships at Sumner Schools (COMPASS) program—which provides scholarships for Sumner County Students to attend Volunteer State Community College—that Sumner County should serve as a model for education programs across Tennessee and the country.

“This program puts Sumner County on the right track in higher education,” said Alexander, a former U.S. secretary of education and president of the University of Tennessee. “If it weren’t for this program, many Sumner County students wouldn’t have the opportunity to go to college. More local governments should follow Sumner County’s example and look at ways to provide free community college to qualified students so we can make sure future generations get the education they deserve.”

In a February address to the American Council on Education, Alexander suggested working with states and local businesses to make community college tuition-free as well as offering a three-year baccalaureate degree to reduce the cost of attending college by one-fourth and the time it takes to graduate by as much as one-third. In April, following the senator’s suggestions, Nashville-based Lipscomb University announced initiatives to provide full scholarships for qualified community-college students and to allow eligible students to obtain their degrees in three years. Lipscomb also announced a third initiative to allow eligible U.S. military veterans to attend Lipscomb tuition-free.
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For information about the COMPASS Educate and Grow program, including specifics of who is eligible and how to apply, please visit:

http://www.sumnercompass.org/documents/Ed&Grow_TNScholarsApp.pdf

Vol State. Volunteer State Community College.

Ophthalmic grads

2009-07-02T09:28:00.002-05:00

Congratulations to the Ophthalmic Class of 2009!

Characters in Line

2009-06-29T08:31:00.009-05:00

One student plays video games. An older man waits patiently. A baseball player tosses a ball. A woman grooves to music. They all have one thing in common: they’ll soon be standing in line at the Vol State Business Office.

It’s part of a mural project for the cashier’s walls that started in Sue Mulcahy’s Drawing 2 class this spring. Student artists have been working on the project this summer, which has become a bit of a labor of love.

"We were inspired by humor," said Cory Amons. "The idea is people standing in line paying tuition."

"We decided we were going to represent the student body, but at the same time create interesting characters," said Jordan Bickimer.

You may recognize one of the characters. Elkin Brown, a long-time faculty member who died suddenly last year, will be up on the wall, talking to a student in line.

"Elkin did so much for the Art Department," said Amons. "There isn’t one of us who was not effected by Elkin."

"We were amazed by the type of person he was," said Bickimer. "He needed to be immortalized."

Bickimer and Amons are working on the mural with Ray Solorio, Jesslyn Carver, Tim Carver, Carissa Breton and Chris Fowler. They plan to add color to the characters soon, and put them up like wall paper. The background will then be painted to create a uniform look. It should be completed by the end of the summer.

"This thing is in constant flux," said Bickimer. "We’re having to adapt. That’s the way art is.

Tags: Volunteer State Community College. Art.

Glasses to Guatemala

2009-06-24T08:40:00.008-05:00

Vol State Ophthalmic students helped to fit glasses for 738 people during a recent mission trip to Guatemala. Chelsea Allen, Todd Parker, Trillion Ray and Megan Williams helped Dr. Eric Stamper test vision and then find the right donated eyeglasses for the Guatemalans. The Rotary Club of Hendersonville, lead by Dr. Bill Tayor, organizes the annual medical mission trip which also provides dental care and medical exams. Vol State students have been serving in this capacity for several years now. It's a chance to put classroom learning to work and help a community in serious need. Vol State is always looking for opportunities to connect students with the community and take action to help people. Here are some pictures from the trip. Thanks to Rip Lebkuecher who helped to organize the mission and took these photos.

Volunteer State Community College.

Student travel opportunites

2009-06-22T10:29:00.006-05:00

Hey students....do you want to learn about different cultures and countries with overseas travel? We have a travel study program that not only organizes the trip and the class work, but also helps to pay for some of the expense. Here's a note from Dean Espey about how you can get involved:

Volunteer State Community College students will have an expanded opportunity for travel/study in the Tennessee Consortium for International Studies (TnCIS) program in 2010. The TnCIS Program will expand to include new programs for 2010 in India, China, Italy and the Czech Republic.

These programs will be in addition to existing programs planned to continue in a number of countries including England, The Netherlands, Scotland, France, South Africa, Greece, Spain, Brazil, Mexico, Jamaica, and Ireland.

Fifteen Vol State students took part in the 2009 program studying and traveling in seven of the TnCIS program countries and 215 total students from across the state TBR system took part in 2009, slightly more than double the number from 2008.

VSCC faculty will be involved in 2010 with Mr. Keith Bell scheduled to teach in the South Africa program, Ms. Tonya Daniels scheduled to teach in the Mexico program and Dr. John Espey schedule to teach and Direct the Ireland program.

TnCIS programs involve an immersion in the culture of another country and an opportunity to study at foreign site. Each program involves visiting historical and cultural sites and cities in the host country. Students from VSCC will be eligible to apply for scholarship assistance through the VSCC International Education Committee. All programs involve travel/study that begins soon after the completion of the Spring 2010 Semester and usually last about three weeks.

Information about each program’s cost, dates of travel study, and applications for scholarship assistance will be available during the forthcoming fall and Spring Semester. Students can fill out a brief form in the Academic Business Division that will allow them to be kept up to date on forthcoming meetings and deadlines

John H. Espey
Academic Dean, Business Division
Chairman, International Education Committee

So, what is the travel study experience like? Here's a You Tube video of Vol State Paralegal students on a travel study trip to London: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkszX9hy0Hg

Looking for a Student Writer

2009-06-15T15:36:00.002-05:00

The Vol State blog needs a student writer for the fall and spring semesters. If you enjoy writing, social media (facebook, twitter, blogs, you tube) and you love to learn new things this may be just the job for you. The candidate must be a Vol State student for the fall and spring semester. It pays for about 10-15 hours a week. We're doing interview in the next couple of weeks. Interested? E-mail us at PR@volstate.edu

Volunteer State Community College.

Vol State Baseball Players Go Major League

2009-06-15T08:18:00.004-05:00

This is from our friends at the Gallatin News Examiner:

Vol State's Garton, Cooney selected in MLB draft

By Craig Harris
The News Examiner

Josh Garton expected to be selected in this year’s Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.Chase Cooney did not.However, both Volunteer State Community College baseball players will soon be making their way into the professional baseball ranks as they were selected on Wednesday.

“I’m thrilled,” said Garton. “I was really speechless. “It didn’t matter to me who (selected me).”Cooney added, “It was the biggest surprise ever. I was watching it, and they called my name. The only thing I did was put my head down and say, ‘thank you God.’”

The duo helped the Pioneers to the Tennessee Junior and Community College Athletic Association/Region VII Tournament championship after a sixth-place finish during the regular season. Vol State fell to Middle Georgia in the East Central District Playoff, falling short of the Junior College World Series.Garton – a rightfielder – concluded his sophomore campaign with a .398 batting average, 10 doubles and 21 home runs. He was a first team all-conference selection who first began receiving attention prior to the 2008 MLB draft.

“Last year, I didn’t even watch the draft,” noted Garton. “I had attention but it was late. It would have been a real big surprise. “This year, I had all that attention. I figured one team would nab me in those 50 rounds.”Garton was a 12th-round selection by the Cincinnati Reds.“I thought I was going to go a little bit later,” explained Garton, who is a Guelth, Ont. native. “My advisor (from True Gravity Sports and Entertainment Consulting, Inc., which is a Canadian-based company specializing in Athlete Representation, Event Management and Strategic Consulting) called me in the 10th round. He said expect a call from Cincinnati in the 12th round, so he blew the surprise for me.”Garton went through pre-draft workouts for eight different professional organizations – the Reds, Kansas City Royals, Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago White Sox, San Francisco Giants, Atlanta Braves, Toronto Blue Jays and Florida Marlins – but one team that he didn’t work out for, the Cleveland Indians, showed the most interest.“All that attention started in the fall showcases,” noted Garton. “That’s when I started getting the packages and phone calls. Cleveland, their scout was all over me and wouldn’t leave me alone. I thought Cleveland was going to take me, but any team was fine with me. “I’ve heard my personality and my work ethic on and off the field (is what stood out). I’m just going by what they said. I wouldn’t say I was always in the gym or in the cage, but that’s the most important thing to me, your work ethic off the field.”

Garton has signed with Florida International University but plans forego his opportunity to continue his college career and sign with the Reds. Cooney and Garton become the fourth and fifth Pioneers to get drafted during Crossland’s coaching tenure at VSCC – in addition to Stevie Delabar (a right-handed pitcher who was a 43rd-round pick by the Los Angeles Angels in 2002), Chad Etheridge (an outfielder who was a 45th-round selection by the San Diego Padres in 2002) and Bubba Pfister (a shortstop who was picked by the Detroit Tigers in 2000).

“Going to Vol State was a lot better idea than going to a four-year school for sure,” emphasized the 21-year-old Garton. “Coach (Mike) Crossland has been through it all. He helped me out a lot. The guy knows his stuff.”

Vol State. Volunteer State Community College

5 Tips for Credit and Collections

2009-06-11T13:59:00.002-05:00

This is part of a series of blog entries for businesses from Charles Alexander, the Director of the Tennessee Small Business Development Center at Vol State.

In this economy, customer budgets have been stretched to the max. As many of you may have discovered, the last person to get paid may be you, the business owner. Although it may be understandable from the customer’s point of view, you are in this recession as well, and the people you owe money to (insurance, rent, loan, payroll) will not care that you have not received all of your money. According to the Commercial Collection Agency Association, the probability of collecting on a bill drops to 70% after 90 days. And it plummets to 23% after a year.

So what is the best way to handle slowing payments? Do you kick and scream for your money? Should you just bury your head in the sand and hope that it all works out in the end? How about a happy medium? Let’s take a look at some proven collection methods. I’ll warn you there are no silver bullets or magic pills, just good old fashioned proven processes.

1. Create payment guidelines and get it in writing – This will create clear expectations of prompt payment. Make sure that the payment guidelines are on your order form, brochure and/or Web site. Also make sure they clearly spell out your terms of sale and payment options. Do not use generic terms, such as “due on receipt” and then not follow through. This will set the wrong example. If you say due on receipt, and the customer doesn’t pay immediately, then penalize them for late payment.

2. Review Accounts Receivable reports frequently – Assuming that you have an accounting system in place, you should have an Accounts Receivable report that you can review at least on a weekly basis. This report will tell you what customers are 30, 60, and 90 days late. If you make this analysis a recurring task, just like processing payroll or any other weekly task, you will make it a habit of being informed about collection issues.

3. Send a series of reminders – As soon as the payment date is missed, you need to have a system in place that reminds the customer. Using letters, emails, or phone calls will work. You can use software, such as QuickBooks®, to assist you in setting up reminders and even for processing collection letters. Also if you have a late payment charge policy, you need to enforce it each time.

4. Be consistent with your collections process – One of the toughest things about staying on top of the collections process is getting too comfortable with the status quo of a tight cash flow. Sometimes you may think it is easier to put the pressure on yourself, your business, and even your family then it is to listen to hard luck stories or to chase deadbeats. But the simple truth is that your business and your stress level will be in much better shape if you are willing to make the tough decisions.

5. What to do if all else fails – Many of you know that you will not always win in the collections process and there has to be some type of resolution. You may have to sacrifice at least 50% of the debt to collect anything at all. This may mean that, at some point, you may have to be willing to sue or send the debt to collections. Either option may be costly, but if the debt is significant enough it may well be worth it. Sometimes you may just need to know when enough is enough, and give up on the debt and chalk it up as a lesson learned. I would suggest that should always be your last option.

If you have any questions on what is legal and what is not legal you can always review this link to make sure that you are following federal guidelines:

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre27.pdf

You can reach Charles at Charles.alexander@volstate.edu

Had a Blast Today!

2009-06-10T15:25:00.005-05:00

Great turnout for Vol State Registration Rocks today...more than 600 people. Dusty and the guys with Lincoln County Process rocked! Thanks to Game Stop for a wild "Streetfighter 4" competition.

Remember, this just kicks off the Fall Class Registration season...you can register online at any time and come in to see an advisor or get help from 8am to 4:30pm each weekday. If you haven't applied yet make sure you see admissions first, or apply online. Admissions and Advising are both located in the Rame Building. For Livingston just visit the main building for help...by the way we will be holding a Registration Rocks event on July 29 at the Livingston campus. Here are some pics from today.

Volunteer State Community College.

We're on for Registration Rocks Outside

2009-06-08T08:49:00.003-05:00

We've been watching the weather forecasts in regards to Registration Rocks from 11am to 2pm on Wednesday, and it looks like we are set to hold it outdoors as planned. Everything will be held on the Plaza in the center of campus and on the library lawn near-by. Registration Rocks is basically just a fun day to come to campus, see an advisor, register for fall classes, talk to campus clubs and organizations, and ask some questions. We'll have a rock band playing, free Subway subs for the first 500 visitors and a video game contest sponsored by Game Stop.

June 10 marks the first day that everyone can register for fall classes, which is why we hold Registration Rocks that day. Up until now only current students could register, and starting June 10 it opens up for everyone. But you don't have to register on that day. You can apply to the college, visit with advisors, and register at any time over the next couple of months. Just remember that class slots fill up quickly, so you will want to get registered early to get the classes and class times that you really want.

We hope to see you there...and yes, parents and friends are invited as well!

Vol State-Belmont Nursing graduates

2009-06-04T08:29:00.001-05:00

Holly Andrews walked across the stage at Belmont University, not just as a happy graduate but also the first of her kind. She is in the first group of students to complete the nursing program in a partnership between Volunteer State Community College and Belmont University. The mother of four made the career choice because of the important role nurses played while she was delivering her children in the hospital.

“I thought: I could do that for the rest of my life. It was just getting up the nerve to do it,” Andrews said.

Andrews is joined by Jordan Banks and Jessica Brazil as the first Vol State group to graduate from the program. They took a set of classes at Vol State that matched up to Belmont nursing requirements. After graduation from Vol State and acceptance into the Belmont program, all of their courses transferred to the bachelor’s of science in nursing degree. Vol State administrators say the program is continuing to grow in popularity.

“Belmont, of course, is a premier institution,” said Dean Nancy Morris. “The students in all of their medical programs get high scores. They have state of the art facilities and a low student to professor ratio.”

Banks and Brazil both served as officers in the Belmont Student Nurses Association.

College was a family affair for Andrews. Her husband Danny has been working two jobs while she was in school.

“This is just what we have to do to make a better life for our kids,” she said. “You just have to juggle things. You take it one day at a time.”

Andrews returns to Vol State to offer encouragement to the students considering the nursing program. She is looking for a job in the very area that first inspired her.

“I really want to work in labor and delivery,” she said.

For more information about the Vol State-Belmont nursing program partnership visit www.belmont.edu/nursing and click on “vscc partnership” or call 615-230-3261.
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Registration Rocks offers free food, music for anyone considering college

2009-05-22T12:59:00.003-05:00

Take Rock and roll, food, fun, and add a little sunshine, and you have the makings of a pretty good summer day. Vol State is offering all of that and hands-on help for students interested in registering for Fall Classes. “Registration Rocks” is a chance for people considering college to visit the campus and explore what the school has to offer. The outdoor event will be held on June 10.

“The video game contest is popular. This year it will be run by Game Stop,” said Eric Melcher, Communications Coordinator for Vol State. “Everyone who plays will get a score and we’ll have prizes for the top finishers.”

The rock band The Lincoln County Process will perform outside on the plaza and Subway Subs will be provided for the first 500 people.

“June 10 is the date when fall registration is open to everyone, so we wanted to have some fun and help people get started,” Melcher said. “If you’re ready to register or even just considering college this will be a good way to get going.”

“Registration Rocks” will be held on Wednesday, June 10 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the Vol State campus at 1480 Nashville Pike in Gallatin. It is free and open to the public. For more information call 615-230-3570

End of the Season for Pioneer Baseball

2009-05-17T18:01:00.004-05:00

It's the end of the road for the Vol State Baseball Team, who lost Saturday night to Middle Georgia College 2-1 in 10 innings. The Warriors will advance to the Junior College World Series. It was still an amazing season for the Regional Champion Pioneers, so congrats to Coach Crossland and everyone on the team. You gave us many exciting moments and battled until the end!

East Central District Baseball Championship Update

2009-05-16T15:16:00.003-05:00

The Pioneers lost game 1, 7-8, after 11 innings of play. The game was rain-delayed, and ended around midnight.

Tournament Schedule

Friday, May 15 at 6:00 pm (Middle Georgia College defeated Vol State 8-7)

Saturday, May 16 at 2:00 pm DELAYED UNTIL 7:00 pm

Sunday, May 17, at 1:00 pm.

District Championship Games Streaming Live Online

2009-05-15T09:52:00.007-05:00

In case you can't make it to the games in person this weekend, you can listen to a live stream of the games thanks to Tennessee Sports Net!

Get out to the game tonight!

2009-05-15T09:52:00.004-05:00

The Vol State Baseball Team takes on Middle Georgia College tonight at 6pm in Gallatin. It's the first of a best of three match-up to see who goes to the Junior College World Series. Come out and show your Pioneer Pride!

Vol State cheers on the Regional Champion Pioneer Baseball Team

2009-05-12T09:37:00.000-05:00

The Volunteer State Community College Baseball Team won the Region VII championship game on Friday with a 10-4 win over Dyersburg State. Now they get ready for a big match up to determine a trip to the Junior College World Series in Grand Junction, Colorado. The Vol State Pioneers will host a best 2-of-3 series with the Georgia state champion in Gallatin beginning Friday, May 15 at 6:00 p.m. They will play on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. and then Sunday at 1:00 p.m. if necessary. The teams are part of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). The college is encouraging alumni, supporters and all baseball fans to come and cheer the team on to victory. All games will be played at the campus baseball field, 1480 Nashville Pike in Gallatin. For more information call 230-3233.

· NJCAA Region 7 Champion – Volunteer State Community College (32-20)
· NJCAA Region 17 Champion – Middle Georgia College (41-18), Cochran, Georgia

Cheer on our Region Champion Pioneers!

2009-05-11T10:27:00.004-05:00

Congrats to the Vol State Baseball Team! They won the Region VII championship game on Friday with a 10-4 win over Dyersburg State. They will host a best 2-of-3 series with the Georgia state champion beginning Friday, May 15 at 6:00 p.m. They will play on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. and Sunday at 1:00 p.m. (if necessary). That means we need fans out there to root them on. Show your Pioneer Spirit and let's wish the Baseball Team the best of luck!

Volunteer State Community College

Summer courses for kids at Vol State

2009-05-08T09:27:00.000-05:00

Summer Camp courses are coming back to Volunteer State Community College this June and July. The classes will include Art Safari, Awesome Chemistry, Youth Leadership and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. The weeklong, inexpensive activities are designed for kids from rising sixth through eighth grade. Summer sports camps will provide fun instruction for kids in grades one through 12.

Most of the summer enrichment courses take place weekday mornings until noon. There will be 12 courses offered including: Acting Up-A Theatrical Experience, Living Biology, Beginning Golf, Sign Language, Spanish, CPR/First Aid for Family and Friends, Babysitter Certification, and Small Engine Repair. The sports camps cover basketball for boys and girls, softball and baseball. Vol State coaches and experts from the area will help kids build their skills.

The sports camps are $35 each for four days and the other courses are $89 for five days. Babysitter Certification and CPR are one day classes that cost $75 and $55 respectively. For a complete list of classes and to sign up visit the website at www.volstate.edu/FunSummer or call Vol State Continuing Education at 615-230-3358.

Baseball Wins!

2009-05-08T09:00:00.001-05:00

The Vol State baseball team won last night against Dyersburg State (12-5). They will play today at 1:00 p.m. against Columbia State. If they win, they will play Dyersburg State in the championship game at 4:00 p.m. Go Pioneers!

Baseball and Softball Tourney update

2009-05-07T09:41:00.002-05:00

The Vol State baseball team won yesterday against Walters State (9-3). They will play today at 6:00 p.m. against the winner of the Cleveland State/Dyersburg State game being played this morning. The softball team lost yesterday and are out of the tournament.

Go Pioneers!

The Break-Even Point for Small Businesses

2009-05-06T14:55:00.004-05:00

What is break-even? I could give you a multitude of different definitions and formulas that could make your head spin. However, I think I will opt for the down-to-earth definition. Break-even is the point at which you are not making any money and you are not losing any money. You are simply breaking even.
Knowing your break-even point is one of the most important pieces of information that a business owner should know. Whenever I ask someone if they know what their break-even is, I always get the answer of “I have a ballpark idea of what it is”. This is not good enough to make important decisions in your business such as hiring additional personnel, buying a piece of equipment, or offering a new product or service. You need to know exactly how much money it takes to break-even.
There are a variety of different ways to calculate your break-even point. For the sake of this article, let’s use the simplest one, which is:

Breakeven = Fixed Costs (FC)/Gross Margin (GM)%

Fixed costs are any costs that your business incurs whether you make money or not, such as, rent, utilities, insurance, executive salaries, office expenses, etc.
Gross margin percentage is what you make after you pay immediate expenses associated with the product or service you offer. This could be materials to make the product, payroll for the service, and even other costs associated with creating or delivering the product or service. For example, if your gross margin is 70%, then for every $1 you generate, you will immediately use $.30 to pay for immediate expenses and the gross margin will be $.70. You can then use the $.70 to pay for your fixed costs.

Let’s take a look at the example below to calculate break-even for Ava’s Landscaping Inc.

Fixed Costs = $4,000
Rent, utilities, insurance, office expenses, executive salary (Ava’s salary)

Gross Margin% = 50%
Covers costs of gas, mulch, direct personnel (person that landscapes the yard)

Break Even = $4,000/50% or .5 = $8,000

This means that Ava’s Landscaping Inc.will have to generate $8,000 every month just to pay the bills. So how many yards will Ava’s Landscaping Inc. have to service to break-even? Divide the break-even point by the unit cost. In this case, the break-even is $8,000 and the average service fee is $50 per yard.

$8,000/$50 = 160 yards to service

This means it will take 160 yards a month to break even. This will now equip Ava with the information she needs to be successful in making business decisions, such as pricing, when it is time to hire more personnel, marketing needs, etc.

"So, what're you doing after graduation?"

2009-05-01T14:00:00.000-05:00

I spoke with two students about their plans after they graduate next week.

Jodi Perry

What are graduating with a degree in?
"Psychology."

What do you plan on using your degree in?
"I got into the Honor's Program at Middle Tennessee State University. I start in the fall."

What are you going to miss about Vol State?
"The instructors were great and really worked with me. I have epilepsy and it's been a hard road for me."

So what are your plans after finishing school completely?
"I want to open my own non-profit for abused and disabled children."

Amy Oaks

What are you graduating with a degree in?
"I'm graduating with a University Studies degree."

So, why did you decide on Vol State?
"It's cheap; and my father gets a state discount so it was even cheaper."

What are you plans now?
"Um, I'm not sure. I actually had a baby along the way so I'm going to be taking off a semester. And then, I'll be going back to school to be a social worker or teacher."

What made you want to get a degree in University Studies?
"I don't know what I want to do yet. So, (University Studies) is a basic degree that will be able to transfer anywhere."

By the way, follow @volstatecampus on Twitter to keep up with the college over the summer!

Vol State. Volunteer State Community College.

How to Study for Final Exams

2009-04-28T10:47:00.003-05:00

It's that fun time of the year again!

Instead out being outside enjoying the awesome weather we've been having on campus playing hacky sack, most of us have been shackled to our textbooks, flashcards, and PowerPoints studying for the final exams.

Feel overwhelmed and don't know where to begin? Here are a few tips to calm your nerves and get you settled to ace your exams:

- Choose a place to study away from distractions. There are plenty of places all over the Thigpen Library to nestle down and study. If you plan on studying with a group, make sure it's made up of classmates that you're not necessarily friends with. That way your time spent studying in a group is more about covering the material and not socializing.

- Studying for 30-45 minutes at a time with a 5-10 break in between help your comprehension
and give your mind a chance to rest. Also getting at least 8 hours of sleep is a must. Nothing will kill your comprehension worse than being tired during the test.

- Taken from suite101.com, "Ask your professor for help. If you're confused about your notes or the readings, go to the resident expert. This works much better if you don't put off studying until the last minute. It's a good idea to read through all of your notes before you start to study, so that you can inquire early about things that confuse you."

- Follow this How.com guide to study anything... It's really useful when you're studying something that's not the most exciting thing in the world.

If all else fails, you can always resort to cramming before your big final. Here's a video from HowCast.com on how to cram:

Vol State. Volunteer State Community College.

Lady Pioneer Signings

2009-04-24T09:01:00.001-05:00

Rossview’s Evans Becomes a Vol State Lady Pioneer

Rossview High School and Westmoreland native Heather Evans today signed her national letter of intent to continue her basketball career at Volunteer State Community College. The 5’11” senior post player averaged 12.7 points and seven rebounds per game this season and was named to The Leaf Chronicle All-Area 1st Team. This was her second season being selected to the team.

“We feel Heather has an opportunity to be an impact player for us as a freshman,” said Lady Pioneer head coach Jason Montgomery. “She uses her body well and has great touch around the rim. This combined with her strong work ethic should let her develop into a productive collegiate player.”

Heather joins a Vol State team coming off a record breaking season that saw the team finish 27-4 and capture the TCCAA Western Division title for only the third time. In addition, the team finished as conference runner-up and ranked 15th in the nation in the final NJCAA poll.

Vol State Signs White House Heritage’s Chelsea Hannah

White House Heritage star and 2009 Robertson County girl’s basketball player of the year Chelsea Hannah became the newest member of the Volunteer State Community College women’s basketball program this week. The senior guard who averaged 16 points per game was joined by her family as she signed her letter of commitment with Vol State head coach Jason Montgomery.

Hannah brings a wealth of experience from a successful prep career with her to Vol State. The 5’8” guard amassed over 1700 career points during her career and was named an All-District selection all four years during her high school career and in 2009 was named her team’s MVP.

“We feel Chelsea has the skill set to be a very solid collegiate player,” said Montgomery. “She possesses good size, can attack the basket or shoot the three pointer, making her very difficult to defend.” Hannah will join with eight returning letter winners of last season’s 27-3 team that finished TCCAA Western Division Champions and TCCAA / Region VII Runner-up.

The combination of a solid returning group and a good recruiting class has Montgomery very optimistic about next season. “Obviously with what we have here now we are not satisfied with our results from last year and can’t wait to go to work with the team we have now,” he said.

For more information on Vol State athletics visit www.volstate.edu/athletics.