Louisiana Delta Community College

ARTICLE AND PHOTOS BY DARIAN ATKINS

FOR MOST STUDENTS, MAY SIGNALS THE END OF AN ERA and the beginning of another. Such is the case for the graduates of Louisiana Delta Community College. On May 15, 2023, LDCC will hold two graduation ceremonies.

The Center for Adult Education Commencement Exercises

10 a.m. at ULM’s Fant Ewing Coliseum

This ceremony is for students who have successfully completed their high school credentials. LDCC administers adult education services throughout northeast Louisiana. Services are offered onsite at an LDCC campus. Offsite locations are available for services where there is no LDCC campus. Course offerings include financial literacy, digital literacy, health literacy, job readiness, Accuplacer preparation, skills upgrade, HiSET preparation, remediation, and English as a Second Language. You can also be co-enrolled in various technical programs, including Nurse Assistant and Certification for Manufacturing.

Louisiana Delta Community College Students Commencement Exercises

6 p.m. at ULM’s Fant Ewing Coliseum

This ceremony is for students who have completed collegiate work to earn an associate’s degree, technical diploma, or certificate.

Salwa Saeed is one of those students. You may recall her sister, Mariam Saeed, who graced BayouLife’s June 2022 edition as LDCC’s student highlight. Like her sister, Salwa is blazing trails. Saeed is preparing to graduate from LDCC with an Associate of Science Louisiana Transfer Degree with a concentration in Biological Sciences. As she readies to walk on May 15th to receive affirmation of her dedicated work, she has her sights set on the University of Louisiana – Monroe for the continuation of her studies. She hasn’t firmly decided what she wants to study, though. “I planned to pursue medical laboratory sciences, but after taking chemistry classes, I became interested in pharmacy,” explains Saeed.

In the meantime, Saeed will attend the Summer Health Professions Education Program (SHPEP). SHPEP is a free summer enrichment program focused on improving access to information and resources for college students interested in the health professions. SHPEP seeks to strengthen the academic proficiency and career development of students who are underrepresented in health professions. The goal is to prepare them for a successful application and matriculation to health professions schools.

Saeed applied and was accepted, which is impressive because, looking at last year’s numbers, only 998 students were accepted from the

2022 pool of applicants. SHPEP is implemented at 12 universities across the nation. Each institution provides scholars with academic enrichment in the basic sciences and math, clinical experiences, career development activities, learning and study skills seminars, and a financial planning workshop. The summer-long experiences also provide housing, meals, a stipend, and guidance.

“I believe being in the SHPEP program will allow me to be exposed to a pharmacy environment, which would help me to decide what I want to do,” shares Saeed. Looking to her future, Saeed says, “I can see myself working in a major that relates to chemistry or biology.” Though Saeed thus far sounds like a very serious student, there’s more to her than her studies. When she has some downtime, Saeed enjoys empty boxing through sewing, cooking, photography, and drawing henna art on hands.

Salwa works as a Peer Tutor for biology and chemistry courses and as a student worker in the Library/Learning Resource Center. Says Amelia Brister, Director of Library and Learning Resources and supervisor of Saeed, “Salwa is dedicated to her studies and loves LDCC. She believes education is important and tells everyone that Delta is a great place to start your education because LDCC is welcoming to everyone.”

The Saeed sisters are not the only stars in their family; brother Saif is pulling up the rear. He’s the youngest of the siblings and is also a student at LDCC. Saif and his sisters have made attending LDCC and the Summer Health Professions Education Program (SHPEP) a family thing, as Saif has also applied for the Summer 2023 program and has been accepted. He will attend the dentistry division of the program.

LDCC prepares students for where they want to go. Whether the end goal is a career or self-fulfillment, we’re thrilled to help facilitate part of our students’ journey. We offer flexible scheduling, online classes, in-person classes, some hybrid formats, and distance learning. We offer classes and whole programs that are transferrable. You can attend LDCC as a high school student, a full or part-time student, or even as a visiting student (which means you’re primarily enrolled in another institution and may need to pick up a class or two). Students also choose LDCC because they want to secure marketable skills but don’t want to continue an education path beyond a certificate or associate’s degree. Therefore, we offer high wage-high demand, short-term training opportunities through the workforce arm of the college.

Registration is open now for Maymester, summer, and fall classes. Class offerings can be found at www.ladelta.edu.