Philip D. Brown

Richmond County Daily Journal

An upbeat Early Childhood Education Professor and a veteran groundskeeper recently earned the honors of being named the Richmond Community College Faculty and Staff of the Year for 2009.

April Chavis-Johnson has risen from part-time instructor to department head during the course of her 11 year career at RCC, while Head Groundskeeper Danny Thames is a 20-year veteran of the college who is credited with transforming the campus into what it is today.

The awards are handed out each year by the RCC Foundation at its annual banquet.

“The foundation exists to support the programs and services of the college,” Executive Director Bill Council said. “This is a tool by which the college can recognize exceptional people who give so much back to the college.”

Chavis-Johnson received a cash amount from the Rockingham Rotary Club as part of the award, while Thames received a cash amount from the RCC Foundation.

He explained the Faculty of the Year Award is given on the basis of excellence in instruction.

“April was in a position where two of the three people in her department left and she picked up the extra teaching load throughout last year’s budget crisis to make sure students’ needs were met.” Council said. “She did this all with a great attitude. She also received wonderful evaluations from her students.”

Much of Chavis-Johnson’s success can be attributed to her animated, enthusiastic approach to her job, according to RCC Public Information Officer Anne Morris.

She, however, attributes her ability to maintain these qualities in her professional demeanor to the people she works with in the classroom.

“It’s the students a lot of times,” she said. “The students bring it out in me. I have a great bunch of students and a lot of times they are my enthusiasm.”

She spent six years in an adjunct position before being promoted to a full-time position five years ago. She was promoted to department chair at the beginning of this year.

In past student evaluations, her classes have commended Chavis-Johnson’s ability to make learning fun, according to Morris.

“One of the things I try to remember is I do teach Early Childhood, which is the fun curriculum,” Chavis-Johnson said. “I also try to remember that everyone learns the same way, no matter what age they are, they learn by seeing it, touching it and hearing it.”

In her curriculum, students are taught that children are “kinesthetic learners,” which means they learn by doing things, or “seeing it, touching it and hearing it.”

She said the same is true of her students, as well.

“I try to remember that they are also kinesthetic learners, and I try to use examples, diagrams and things they can actually see to go along with the readings from the book,” Chavis-Johnson said.

Another observation college officials have about her is that she stays upbeat, according to RCC Public Information Officer Anne Morris.

Chavis-Johnson said the source of her often cheery attitude can be contributed to the people in her workplace.

“It’s the students a lot of times,” she said. “The students bring it out in me. I

have a great bunch of students and a lot of times they are my enthusiasm.”

Council noted that recognizing staff personnel for their roles at the college is a little bit different.

“This recognition is for exceptional contributions that are made on a routine day-by-day basis,” Council said. “These people often go unnoticed through the course of events, but the results of their handiwork are noticed.”

RCC Head Groundskeeper Danny Thames is credited with transforming the RCC campus into something most visitors call one of the prettiest community college grounds in the state, according to college officials.

“Danny Thames does all of the plantings on campus,” Council said. “He selects all of the varieties and locations based upon his 20 years of experience here. He did an exceptional job with the White Garden and the perennial bed.”

Council said the appearance of the RCC campus “is one thing that sets us apart.”

“It dispels that shopping mall image some community colleges have and makes this a true college campus,” he said.

Thames’ workdays begin at 6 a.m. each morning, as they have for years, he said.

Tuesday he was planting flowers all day until he got off at 3 p.m. He remembers a vast transformation in the appearance of the campus.

“Twenty years ago, the campus was being maintained primarily by custodians and maintenance people, in addition to their primary duties,” he said.

He said the Pensacola-Bahalia grass that once covered the campus grounds is the same type that is planted on the side of the road by the North Carolina Department of Transportation, which grows very quickly.

“They were basically cutting it with tractors and bush hogs,” he said. “Now, we’ve replaced with more of a lawn-type of grass, which cuts down on maintenance.”

The college has also added an irrigation system from the on-campus lake during his stint there, which has cut down on the cost of water to maintain the lawn.

“It was pretty hard when I first got here, but I saw some potential in the campus,” Thames said.

Throughout the changes on campus and the addition of several structures, Thames manages to maintain the campus with only one full-time and one part-time assistant on his staff.

“I’m really honored to get the award, because there are a lot of talented and dedicated staff out here,” Thames said. “I’m just honored I got picked this year.”

Staff Writer Philip D. Brown can be reached at (910) 997-3111 ext. 32, or by e-mail at pbrown@yourdailyjournal.com.