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Palm Coast Songwriters Festival Discount Tickets
Join us April 30 at the Flagler/Palm Coast Campus Amphitheater for a special kickoff show of the Palm Coast Songwriters Festival. This will be an amazing music event where you hear the stories behind the songs and hear them performed by incredible artists. In addition, we’ll also celebrate the newly renovated Alan Smolen Center Amphitheater.
This special event features recording artist Michael Ray who has four top 10 hits along with other charted hits. Michael will be playing with his great songwriter friends Brock Berryhill (“What Happens in a Small Town,” “Good as You,” and “Homesick”) and Josh Phillips (“Dirt Cheap,” “Angels Working Overtime,” and “The Man He Sees in Me”); plus the amazing Wynn Varble (“Waitin On a Woman” and “Have You Forgotten”), Matt Alderman (“Can’t Have Mine” and “Truth About You”), Karen Staley (“Keeper of the Stars” and “Take Me As I Am”), and Ashley Estevez (local songwriter now making her mark in Nashville).
Beginning March 15, DSC students and staff will receive a limited time discount for general admission tickets for $20 per ticket. (Regular general admission is $30 per ticket; limit of two discounted tickets per purchase). A portion of the ticket proceeds will be donated to the Flagler County Education Foundation for the purpose of funding scholarships to Daytona State College students.
For more information or to purchase tickets, go to www.palmcoastsongwritersfestival.com and use the discount code DSCSTUDENTS or DSCSTAFF.
Expanding the On-Campus Living Experience
Our capital campaign to build a second student residence hall on the Daytona Beach
Campus is underway and you are invited to help our students!
The new facility, which is expected to house approximately 256 students, could open as early as Fall 2026.
Our first residence hall has been a resounding success. It opened to full capacity in Fall 2022. It is already at full capacity for the upcoming academic year. And we have received more than 1,000 student housing applications in less than one year.
When we began studying the possibility of building housing on campus in 2018, a study we commissioned showed the college could support more than 500 students. Initial plans for the second residence hall call for approximately 52,000 square feet of space and approximately 256 beds.
We know that students who live on campus are more engaged with their instructors, utilize academic support systems more frequently, and participate more in on-campus activities.
With the DSC Foundation, we’re launching a $15 million capital campaign. Donations from the community will ensure our residence hall will be an affordable and accessible option for students. We need your support. Make your gift here, or contact the Daytona State College Foundation at Foundation@DaytonaState.edu or by calling (386) 506-3195.
You can learn more at the new residence hall web page and keep tabs on the campaign’s progress.
Honoring Employee Rachael Dougherty
It is with great pleasure that I share news of Rachael Dougherty receiving a Service Excellence Award this week at our Senior Executive Staff meeting.
A native of Clearwater, Rachael led learning development with the City of Port Orange, USF and Seminole County, providing programs featuring hands-on activities and discussions that led to cross-organization collaboration.
Rachael joined us in 2022 as a project director, funded through a WAVe grant under the Career and Technical Education Pipeline program. In this role, she ensured that career pathways programs had the equipment and supplies needed to prepare high school students for a successful transition to DSC. In 2023 she was named director of the Department of Learning & Development and is now key to so many of the College’s successful training events.
Rachael consistently demonstrates initiative, adaptability and sharp problem-solving skills that improve processes and boost efficiency. She manages multiple projects with ease. This year alone she provided oversight and leadership for the Fall and Spring Planning Weeks and the Academic Excellence Symposium, supported chair leadership training and transformed Adjunct Excellence Day into a multi-event series for part-time faculty. She’s also overseen ongoing development efforts like the Association of College and University Educators (ACUE) modules and upcoming staff education days.
Please join us in congratulating Rachael for her outstanding service and commitment to our mission.
Honoring Employee Koby Klayson
It is with great pleasure that I share news of Koby Klayson receiving a Service Excellence Award this week at our Senior Executive Staff meeting.
Koby joined us first as a student, having graduated from Seabreeze High School. Following a stint as an intern in the Marketing & Communications Department, he jumped at an opportunity to take on a full-time position with the Department of Academic Innovation in 2023.
Koby has taken the lead with Learning Management System training support for faculty and was one of the first PowerBI users outside of IT and Institutional Research / Institutional Effectiveness, supporting data-driven discussions around faculty development and student achievement. He has also worked with the teaching and learning team to promote the Association of College and University Educators (ACUE) courses, contributing to a rise in the number of DSC faculty earning national teaching certifications – an achievement shown to boost student success.
Koby has played a key role in appropriate use of AI in academic settings, creating an AI flowchart for faculty that supports the development of AI literacy grounded in academic integrity. He has also been instrumental in supporting the College’s online peer review process, coordinating actions tied to Quality and High Quality course designations in the Florida Sunshine catalog.
Even though much of his work is behind the scenes, his technical, organizational and
communication skills have benefitted thousands of students, and he has proven himself
to be a valuable member of the DSC family.
Please join us in congratulating Koby for his outstanding service and commitment to
our mission.