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Rhianna Searle

George School Senior Named Bucks County High School Poet of the Year

Rhianna Searle, a senior at the George School, has been named the 2023 Bucks County High School Poet of the Year, officials at Bucks County Community College announced. Searle, who was first runner-up in last year’s contest, rose to the top of more than 120 entries in the 36rd annual contest, part of the Bucks County Poet Laureate Program administered by the college. For the first-place finish, Searle wins $300 and will be honored with a poetry reading on Saturday, May 13 from 2-4 pm in Tyler Hall 142 on BCCC's Newtown Campus. The event will feature winners, finalists, and judges. The three poems Searle submitted for the contest were entitled “Steady,” “Sugar Snap Peas” and “Springtime Sonnet.” The judges were Tom Mallouk (the current Bucks County Poet Laureate) and Nicole Steinberg (last year's BCPL). In addition to the winner, the judges also named Olivia Cao, a junior Central Bucks High School South, as first runner-up. Second runner-up was senior Eva Houlton from New Hope-Solebury school. Third runner-up was Charlotte Smyth, a junior from Central Bucks High School West. The three runners-up will also read from their works during the celebration. The annual Bucks County High School Poet of the Year contest is another way that Bucks County Community College contributes to the cultural heritage of the region. For more information contact Dr. Ethel Rackin, a Professor of Language and Literature at Bucks and the director of the Wordsmiths Reading Series and Poet Laureate Program at Ethel.Rackin@bucks.edu. Winning poems Steady I slide into womanhood like a glove trying on different sizes testing the waters. Most girls bloom, are written in poems as flowers, green metaphors. I wonder if most of those poems are written by men. I am the knot of roots beneath the soil. As time’s waters roll women are the river stones shifting but standing firm. My own mother smells of muscle balm and quinoa. She sounds like summertime. Women are strong like wintering trees. Stop calling their beauty ephemeral like cherry blossoms. Womanhood is also private fitting in the crevices between stonework and sheets fingers tracing Georgia O’Keeffe patterns; Like cacti in deserts, women hold their own water. Sugar Snap Peas “Let me call my anxiety, desire, then. Let me call it, a garden.” -Natalie Diaz, “From the Desire Field” It’s not that poetry isn’t truth –it’s a trellis. I’d like to untie the knots of my fear like tendons turned tendrils reaching towards the light to transplant myself to let myself be wild and patient I wrap metaphors around my arms like casts after some time I can crack them off, peel them off, I become one not a comparison or a shadow but bones and being. Anger is red. Love is peach colored anxiety No–love is blossoms turned fruit and even fear is fertile. What I mean to say is                        I love younot in spite of but through My love is never adjacent Fear and love are the same poem at different stages of revision, the same sentence, rewritten, translated. Springtime Sonnet “And it’s over!” cry the leaves, as daybreak Chimes. And still and still…when I am leaning Here on you: it’s a sweeter kind of ache. Time is passing away, away, cleaning And rearranging. My ambitions changed. In hearts’ safe chambers, recollections sproutAnd melt as something soft becomes estranged. Now April comes around again with doubtOf Summer, then September. Trees turn green Again, and I will become old and new. And oh the tremor! Oh the thrill–eighteen! And yet…less fear when sitting here with you.              We are young, and caught in April’s arm              And now for just a moment, out of harm.
Group of people posting for photo

BCCC and Philadelphia Building Trades Announce Historic New Partnership

Officials of Bucks County Community College (BCCC) and the Philadelphia Building & Construction Trades Council today announced the launch of the “Bucks County Community College Building & Construction Trades Pre-Apprenticeship Program”, which is believed to be the first of its kind in Pennsylvania. The 11-week course offers BCCC students the opportunity to study many skilled Building Trades disciplines. Skilled building and construction workers are in high demand. To help fill the need, BCCC has partnered with local Building Trades unions to offer its students free training and career service assistance. The launch of this new program is funded through a PA Department of Labor and Industry PAsmart grant. Participants will learn from industry experts with extensive experience in their fields at the state-of-the-art Center for Advanced Technologies (CAT) on the Gene and Marlene Epstein Campus at Lower Bucks in Bristol, PA. The 11-week, 288-hour curricula will provide the fundamental education necessary for graduates to apply for a Registered Apprenticeship Program (RAP) to potentially secure a high-paying, family-sustaining job. Additionally, students will earn OSHA-10 and Aerial Platform Lift Safety certificates. “The Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades Council is ecstatic to be partnering with Bucks County Community College on this unprecedented new Pre-Apprenticeship Program,” said Building Trades Business Manager Ryan N. Boyer. “This innovative program, taught by our experienced Trades’ instructors, will provide students who are interested in a career in the unionized construction trades with industry-specific knowledge and a significant edge on other apprentice training program applicants.” “Bucks County Community College is proud to join forces with the Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades Council in this historic partnership,” said Dr. Felicia L. Ganther, President of Bucks County Community College. “Bucks is committed to providing students with pathways to meaningful and relevant career opportunities, and this collaboration furthers that commitment. We are thrilled to welcome our first cohort of students to this inaugural program!” Joining Boyer and Dr. Ganther on the dais were BCCC Board Chair Tom Jennings and Associate Vice President Tracy Timby. For many young people, a traditional four-year college degree is not a viable option, for various reasons. The Philadelphia Building & Construction Trades Council Apprenticeship programs provide young people with the opportunity to “earn while they learn”, along with entry into family-sustaining careers in the unionized construction industry, upon graduation. This unique Pre-Apprenticeship Program being offered by BCCC and the Trades offers participants a potential gateway into a highly-coveted Philadelphia Building Trades Apprenticeship Training Program. The inaugural cohort of the BCCC Pre-Apprenticeship Program begins April 10, 2023 and will feature a total of eight students. With the current staff of seven Building Trades instructors, the BCCC Pre-Apprenticeship Program can accommodate as many as 32 students over the next two years under current grant funding. For more information, contact Program Manager Christine Harvie at christine.harvie@bucks.edu.

Blog


Start Smart at Bucks County Community College

7/28/21

Since you’re reading this right now, you’re likely already thinking about college and what that journey will look like. Maybe you’re still in high school or a recent grad. Perhaps you’re a parent doing some incognito research to give your child a “gentle reminder” to think about their future. Or maybe you’ve been at a job for a few years and are now ready to work towards your degree. No matter what your student story is, we at Bucks County Community College are here to help you start smart. Now that sounds great, but I’m sure you’re wondering what “start smart” actually means. To put it simply, it means to achieve all of your academic goals through an affordable, quality education, which we are proud to offer you here at Bucks. But don’t just take our word for it. Here are 4 reasons why beginning your academic career at Bucks is a smart decision: SAVE $$$ You don’t have to pay top dollar for a quality education. Period. Our tuition rates can save you THOUSANDS over the course of your degree. TRANSFER WITH EASE Have your sights set on a bachelor’s degree? We can help get you there. We have more than 25 admission agreements with local colleges + universities that allow the credits you take here to be seamlessly transferred, and you can continue your studies without skipping a beat. TAKE CLASSES NO MATTER WHERE YOU ARE Don’t live in Bucks County? No problem! We offer a variety of remote learning course options that you can access wherever you are, including dozens of degrees and certificate programs that can be completed 100% online. YOU'RE NEVER JUST A NUMBER We know it’s a cliché, but it’s true here at Bucks. Whether you’re taking in-person, online, hybrid, or hy-flex courses, our small class and campus sizes allow you to develop strong relationships with your professors, our staff, and your classmates. Whether you need some extra help with your math homework, are confused about your financial aid package, require accommodations, or have questions about anything at all, we’re here for you.  Ready to start smart at Bucks? Our admissions team is happy to help get you started and answer any questions! Click here for more info or email admissions@bucks.edu.


girl in cap and gown holding diploma and flag Commencement

Commencement

Bucks holds a commencement ceremony every spring in May. Eligible graduates from that year are welcomed to walk in the ceremony. Details about commencement are announced during the Spring semester.

Commencement