ACTC Faculty/Staff Receive New Horizons Awards

2016 New Horizons Winners Jonathan Joy, Chrisha Spears, and Roxanne Neal

From left are New Horizons Award recipientsJonathan Joy, Chrisha Spears and Roxanne Neal.

Three Ashland Community and Technical College employees have been recognized by the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) for achievements in the 2015-2016 academic year.

The New Horizons Awards of Excellence recognize the leadership and significant achievements of an outstanding faculty member, administrative staff member and support staff member from each KCTCS College.

Jonathan Joy, Assistant Professor of English, received the Faculty Award. A Huntington resident, he grew up in the Burlington area and graduated from South Point High School. He has a Bachelor in Fine Arts Degree and a Master in Arts Degree from Marshall University.

Joy started at ACTC in 2010 and has received numerous Teaching Excellence and First Among Peer awards. He serves on the Professional amp; Organizational Development, General Education Assessment, AA/AS, Theatre and Fred Charles Committees. For three years, he has coordinated the New Play Festival that stages the works of students in his playwriting class.

I love teaching, Joy said.I enjoy being able to work with students on developing their stories, be it a narrative poem, a ten minute play, or a research project. There's great power in the words we get to play with.

Chrisha M. Spears, Workforce Solutions Specialist / Accelerating Opportunity Coordinator, received the Administrative Staff Award. An Ashland resident, she graduated from Boyd County High School and ACTC. She has a Bachelor of University Studies Degree from Morehead State University where she is currently working on a Masters Degree in Adult and Higher Education,

She started at ACTC in 2010 and is a member of the Staff Executive Council. She serves on the college Valued Employees, USDA Grant Planning, Young Women LEAD Planning, and Graduation committees. She also works with the Ashland Alliance Youth Leadership program and Northeast Kentucky Small Business Awards Committee.

I enjoy working with prospective students to help them realize their potential. Many do not believe that they can be successful in college, and its rewarding to help them reach goals that they once never considered, Spears said. I also enjoy working with area businesses to explore how ACTC can help them fulfill their needs.

Roxanne Neal, Health Sciences Division Assistant, received the Support Staff Award. An Ironton resident and native, she graduated from Ironton High School and ACTC. She has a Bachelors Degree in Technical and Applied Studies from Ohio University Southern and is a Certified Microsoft Office Specialist.

Neal started at the college in 2005 and has received several Staff Excellence Awards and a First Among Peers Certificate. She has served on the Staff Executive Council and the Scholarship/Financial Aid Committee. She is a member of the National Association of Professional Women and the Ironton Area Kiwanis Club.

I love my job and being the go to person for information and a variety of tasks, she said. I like networking with new students, faculty staff and clinical agency representatives, and it is rewarding to see students at the beginning of their program go on and graduate two years later.