For the third year in a row, the students and staff of Seward County Community College/ Area Technical School have exceeded goals set to raise funds for the scholarship pool. This year’s goal was set at $35,000. Students and staff met and beat that goal by more than $1000 with pledges at $36,581. The Phonathon team with the highest amount raised was the baseball team, and they will receive $500 for their team to reward their efforts. The top amount raised by a staff member was more than $2,500 and it was raised by their coach, Galen McSpadden. The Phonathon is only one aspect of fundraising for the scholarship fund.

Each club and participating organization was given a list of alumni and names of alumni who had also participated in that club or organization. The alumni were told that the purpose of the Phonathon was to raise funds for the scholarship pool, which are awarded to assist students at SCCC/ATS so they can receive the education that the donor once received himself or herself.

Celeste Donovan, dean of student services, stated that the winners will be announced May 2. Once participants calling in the Phonathon reached certain amounts of donations, they were awarded with funny glasses, hats, candy, glow-in-the-dark cups and strands of beads. Along with the fun items that were awarded at the time of the phonathon, participants also had the opportunity to win items for the highest amounts raised.

Some of the items that were awarded were a 42-inch flat screen television, an iPad mini, an American Express Gift Card, a Nintendo Wii, Visa gift cards and Pizza Hut pizza. The awards for faculty and staff that participated were their choice of a day off from work, a night at the Hampton in Dodge City, VIP parking for the rest of the semester, a $50 gift card from the Chamber of Commerce or four passes to steak night.

The clubs and organizations that participated in this year’s Phonathon were baseball, softball, men’s and women’s basketball, Phi Theta Kappa, Kappa Beta Delta, Enactus, Hispanic American Leadership Organization, Student Government Association, presidential scholars, volleyball, sports medicine, cheer and dance, Students for Transportation, International Students Organization, Students for Manufacturing, nursing students, Sigma Chi Chi, fine arts department, Pathways, agriculture students, resident assistants, tennis and various instructors and staff.