The Chapter is dedicated to fostering student  business skills

Yavapai Community College’s chapter of the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA)—an organization dedicated to developing student business and leadership skills—earned multiple individual and chapter honors at the national FBLA conference held last week in Dallas, Texas. This marked the College’s first appearance at a national FBLA conference in 24 years.

“It’s great to receive this kind of national recognition,” said FBLA Advisor Deanna Baker in the College’s June 9, 2025, press release.

Yavapai’s four-member team was named a 2024–25 Distinguished Chapter, one of only eleven collegiate programs nationwide to earn this designation. The chapter also received the Golden Seal Chapter Award, an honor granted to just 15 percent of FBLA chapters across the country. In addition, the team was recognized as Arizona’s Outstanding Chapter of the Year, and Baker was named Arizona’s Outstanding FBLA Advisor of the Year.

The students also competed in a range of individual contests against the nation’s top FBLA talent. Luke Smith placed in the top 12 out of 47 competitors in the Job Interview event. Jackson James earned seventh place among 39 participants in Impromptu Speaking.

For more details about the Yavapai College FBLA chapter and its achievements in Dallas, visit yc.edu/v6/news/2025/06/fbla.html.

Highest achieving students were honored at annual recognition event on the Verde Campus

A press release from Yavapai Community College announced that the Sedona Center/Verde Campus accounted for eleven of the 35 top academic scholars across all disciplines in the College’s 2022-2023 academic year.  They were honored at separate Evening of Recognition ceremonies at the Prescott and Verde Valley Campuses.

The Press release from the Community College, authored by JJ McCormack and issued April 19, 2023, in part, follows below:

The annual events recognize students who, as YC President Dr. Lisa Rhine put it in her remarks at the Prescott campus event, “had to reach in deep, sacrifice and commit to excellence in their work. Individually and collectively, the students we honor today embody our college’s mission—to make the world a better place through our ideas, our innovations and our engagement with one another.”

Rhine also praised YC faculty and staff for their contributions to the honorees’ success saying, “Across the disciplines, you are developing and shaping ideas that make a positive and lasting impact on our future and I thank you for your efforts.”

YC Vice President of Academic Affairs, Dr. Diane Ryan, speaking directly to the student honorees at both ceremonies, said: “You are a testament to resiliency and determination. You have shown us anything is possible and we are proud of you and all of your accomplishments. You are an inspiration to all of us.”

The college’s highest student honor, the President’s Award for Excellence, was bestowed on future engineer Aidan Skoch at the Prescott Campus and future nurse, Taidyme Mae, at the Verde Valley Campus.

A YC Honors student and vice president of the Phi Theta Kappa honor society, Aidan was lauded as an “exceptional” student and leader who “always seems to be five minutes ahead” of his professors in class. Aidan is one of four YC students who earned All-Arizona Academic Team scholarships this year. After graduating this spring, he plans to pursue mechanical engineering at Arizona State University.

A first-year nursing student at the Verde Valley campus, Taidyme serves as the president of the Student Nursing Association. “Taidyme is an effective and vital force with the Verde SNA chapter and exemplifies the ability to inspire, guide, delegate and mobilize students,” her nomination stated.

Finalists for the President’s Award for Excellence this academic year were Chasity Bryant and David Wauters on the Prescott campus and Staci Fowler and Pam Gonzales on the Verde campus.

Earning the Vice President’s Award for Academic Accomplishment on the Prescott Campus was Visual Arts student Zoe Harman. Finalists were Keenan Hammack, Rosa Laban and Megan Young. The Vice President’s Award winner for the Verde Campus was 84-year-old lifelong learner Carolann Chambers. Matthew Rickman-Jones was a finalist for the award.

Following is a list of this year’s Outstanding Students by discipline from the Sedona Center and Verde Campus:

English & Humanities. Shane Danielson

Visual Arts—Ceramics, Nicholas Jackson

Communications, Brian Jackson

Psychology, Travis McIntire

Sociology, Faith New

Construction Building Trades, Jared Hawley

Culinary Arts, Arabella Licher

Viticulture & Enology, Joseph Monks

Heating, Ventilation & Air Conditioning, Hector Mario Zapata- Sanchez

Nursing, Hannah Pierce

Becomes the most awarded Phi Theta Kappa Chapter in Community College history

Yavapai Community College’s Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society Chapter received a fourth-place ranking out of 1,290 other national and international chapters for the award of the Most Distinguished Chapter at  the national convention in Denver earlier this month.

Phi Theta Kappa recognizes the academic achievement of college students and provides opportunities for its members to grow as scholars and leaders. Established in 1918, Phi Theta Kappa has a presence on almost 1,300 community college campuses in 11 nations. The American Association of Community Colleges has recognized Phi Theta Kappa as the official honor society for two-year colleges since  1929. More than 3.5 million students have been inducted since 1918, with approximately 250,000 active members in the nation’s community colleges.

Denise Woolsey, the lead advisor for the 25-year-old chapter,  described the fourth place ranking as “unprecedented” as she requested the Community College purchase a trophy case for the cache of awards the chapter has earned this academic year at the regional and national levels.

“I expected we would do well, but we knocked it out of the park,” Woolsey said of the  chapter’s ranking, which is based on the scores earned for projects Chapter members created, researched, and reported to regional and international officials. “It was really cool to see this little, tiny chapter from Arizona compete well with the big schools,” she said.

The Community College chapter also picked up a Distinguished College Project award at the international conference, winning for a collaboration with Community College President Dr. Lisa Rhine aimed at making available mental health resources easier to discover and access via the college website. “The goal of the college projects is to produce something that really helps students on our campuses. This will definitely help them. It’s so needed,” Woolsey said.

The members also earned a Distinguished Honors In Action (HIA) project award at the international conference. The chapter’s HIA project team researched the positive effects of reading to children at a very young age. An actionable result of the project – literacy partnerships with area schools – is in development and expected to roll out next fall.

In addition to the fourth-place ranking and the two Distinguished Project awards delivered at the international conference, the Chapter also received a Distinguished Chapter Award and a Distinguished Officer Award – one of only 20 – for Chapter Vice President Chasity Bryant. A nursing student, Bryant previously was named the top chapter officer in the region.

The Community College chapter captured multiple awards during the regional conference hosted by Yavapai Community College in March. All of the regional and international awards combined to make the 2021-2022 chapter the most rewarded ever.

Two of  the seven students are studying on the Verde Campus:  Amy Heiling (Avondale) and Sierra Romero (Cottonwood); all received tuition-free state university transfer scholarships

Seven Yavapai Community College students were selected for  membership on the 2020 All-Arizona Academic Team.  The were awarded  tuition-free state university transfer scholarships because of  their academic success, leadership forays and community-service contributions.

In a press release from the Community College, President Dr. Lisa Rhine said that “these seven students found their purpose at Yavapai College and a springboard for achieving their personal and career goals. They are role models for everyone, at any age and in any phase of life, considering launching their dreams at YC.”

You may view the January 28 news release authored by J.J. McCormick by clicking on the following link.  https://www.yc.edu/v6/news/2021/01/all-arizona-academic-team.html 

The the seven students selected for their outstanding work as reported and described in the Yavapai Community College press release are:

Johnathon Damschorder of Prescott Valley is pursuing an associate of arts degree at YC’s Chino Valley Agribusiness and Science Technology Center. A father of two and a member of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, he plans to transfer to Arizona State University and pursue a career in sustainable agriculture.

Cassidy Farias of Hilo, Hawaii, is an aerospace science student at YC’s Career and Technical Education Center. She is a member of the Yavapai College Honors Program and PTK, is a K-12 tutor, lifeguards and volunteers for Catholic Charities. She plans to continue her aerospace studies at ASU and pursue a career in the travel industry.

Amy Heiling of Avondale is studying agriculture technology management at YC’s Verde Valley Campus. She is a member of PTK, the YC RecoverSmart Club and volunteers at the Page Springs Fish Hatchery. She plans to transfer to the University of Arizona and pursue a career in natural resource management and wildlife conservation.

Hannah McGee of Prescott is studying aerospace science at CTEC. She Plans to continue her studies at ASU and pursue a career in engineering. She is a YC scholarship recipient and is a neighborhood and community food drive volunteer.

Autumn Ré of Prescott Valley is earning her associate’s degree at the YC Prescott campus and plans to transfer to Northern Arizona University where she will study human services. She aspires to be a social worker in a children’s hospital. Autumn is a member of CHP, PTK and the college’s Students of Leadership program. She is a K-12 tutor and has spearheaded personal skills workshops, student leadership conferences and virtual connection events for students while attending YC.

Sierra Romero of Cottonwood aspires to a career in film and digital media. She is studying film and media arts at YC’s Verde Valley Campus and plans to continue her studies at NAU. A martial arts instructor, Sierra is a member of CHP, PKT and SOL, and is an animal rescue volunteer.

Kari Warne of Prescott is an Administration of Justice student at YC’s Prescott Campus. She plans to continue justice studies at the UofA and pursue a career in federal intelligence. She is a member of PTK, CHP and SOL. She volunteers for the YC Foundation, serves with AmeriCorps, is an advisory board member for the National Center for Prevention of Community Violence; and is the YC Philosophy Club president.

Two from East County; Scholarships provide tuition-free attendance at an Arizona university

Yavapai Community College President Dr. Penny Wills announced at the January 16 Governing Board meeting that eight  Community College students were awarded prestigious 2018 All-Arizona Academic Team scholarship awards. The award means they may continue pursuing their academic careers tuition-free at any Arizona university.

The eight honorees are: Casey Barr, Gilbert, Ariz.; Jimena Canchis, Bagdad, Ariz.; Nichole Carabin, Clarkdale; Spencer Coffin, Chino Valley; Ann Nardo, Prescott Valley; Megan Pickrel, Prescott; Terri Schuett, Prescott Valley; and Savannah Windes, Camp Verde.

Bill Helm has written a great story about Clarkdale’s Nichole Carabin and Camp Verde’s Savannah Windes for the Verde Independent.   You may read his online story by clicking here.

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 Yavapai College Foundation and Yavapai College providing scholarships to 15 recent Yavapai County high school graduates who will attend Yavapai College in the fall–4 from the Verde Valley

The recipients are from schools throughout the county. The YCF scholarships are funded by private donations from Foundation members and the community at large. These Yavapai College scholarships are awarded based on academic achievement and financial need.

This fall’s YCF/YC scholarship recipients are:

Jose Acosta, Ashfork HS, College Honors Program Scholarship; Justin Jimenez, Ashfork HS, Miller Family Scholarship; Jarett Cain, Bradshaw Mountain HS, Education Now Scholarship; Amber Farlee, Bradshaw Mountain HS, Student Leadership Council Scholarship; Janeth Lopez, Bradshaw Mountain HS, Douglas McClouth Scholarship; Alejandro Vasquez, Bradshaw Mountain HS, Russell Scholarship; Briana Geter, Camp Verde HS, Verde Valley Scholarship; Bodie Holowell, Camp Verde HS, Verde Valley Scholarship; Amberly Jarrard, Camp Verde HS, College Honors Program; Tayler Rezzonico, Camp Verde HS, Verde Valley Scholarship; Hannah Sanders, Chino Valley HS, Eugene Scott Scholarship; Dalen Warburton, Mayer HS, Arthur Nagel Scholarship; Makenna Newnum, Prescott HS, Susie Webb Scholarship; Kyli Skinner, Prescott HS, Casey & Del Decil Scholarship; and Jonathan Sahagun, Tri City Prep, Wells Fargo Scholarship and Yavapai County Chiropractic Scholarship.

Two winners from Verde Campus; two from the Prescott Campus

Four Yavapai Community College students were chosen for this year’s All-Arizona Academic Team.  This qualifies them for a full-tuition scholarships to continue their studies at any state university.

Honorees are Aubrial Harrington and Ashley Knister from the Verde Valley Campus, and Raymond Rosas and Brittany Sheldahl from the Prescott Campus. Rosas was selected to the first team, Harrington and Sheldahl to the second team and Knister to the third team.

Because he was a first team selection, Raymond Rosas qualifies for the College Team, which puts him in the running for an additional $2,500 cash award, trophy and national recognition through coverage in USA TODAY and usatoday.com.

A Yavapai Community College committee makes the awards of  All-Arizona scholarships based on a combination of academic achievement, leadership and community service.