PRESS RELEASE: 2024 NISOD Student Essay Contest Winners Announced

For Immediate Release

NISOD Announces 2024 NISOD Student Essay Contest Winners

Austin, Texas – April 26, 2024 – The National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD) is proud to announce the winners of its 2024 Student Essay Contest. The winning students, as well as the featured employees, each receive $1,000. The winning student essays will be published on NISOD’s website, and each winning student’s college receives a complimentary 2024-2025 NISOD membership.

To participate in the contest, students at NISOD member colleges describe a faculty member, staff member, or administrator who encouraged him or her to complete a course, finish a semester, or graduate from college, and describe how that encouragement helped him or her reach that goal.

The 2024 winners include:

  • Mickyzhha Moore, Student; and Lynda Altman, Instructor, Early Childhood Education, Aiken Technical College
  • Shalae Morgan, Student; and Marquita Pruitt, Instructor, Cosmetology, Drake State Community & Technical College
  • Kathryn Shofstahl, Student; and Michael Bryant, Program Head/Assistant Professor, Welding, Mountain Gateway Community College

“Each year NISOD looks forward to awarding students who take the time to thank someone who helped them reach their goal,” said Edward J. Leach, NISOD’s executive director. “Each student who entered the contest is to be congratulated, as are the individuals at our member colleges who continually make a positive difference in the lives of their students.”

More information about NISOD’s Student Essay Contest is available at www.nisod.org/sec. For questions about the contest or NISOD’s 2024 International Conference on Teaching and Leadership Excellence, contact learning@nisod.org or (512) 471-7545.

About NISOD

NISOD provides budget-friendly, high-quality, and faculty-focused programs and resources for community and technical colleges that want to make the most of their professional development dollars. For over 40 years, NISOD has aligned a wide array of benefits with the needs of our members, which explains why the American Association of Community Colleges named NISOD, “The country’s leading provider of professional development for community college faculty, staff, and administrators.”

# # #