SCC Instructor, Sandy Krell-Andre Receives 2015 IACCT Outstanding Faculty Member Award

08/03/2015

West Burlington, IA- Southeastern Community College (SCC) Coordinator of Chemical Dependency Counselor Training Program, Sandy Krell-Andre, received the Iowa Association of Community College Trustees (IACCT) Outstanding Faculty Member Award for 2015.

The award is based upon several factors, including the instructor’s service to the community, excellence in teaching, and contribution to developing innovative programs for students.

Krell-Andre began teaching at SCC in 1991 after over 15 years of studying and working in social services. Krell-Andre served as a sociology instructor and Coordinator of Chemical Dependency Counselor Training Program for 24 years. 

While at SCC, she organized the Students for Peace and Human Services clubs at SCC. Krell-Andre also developed two conflict resolution classes, one for Arts and Sciences students and one for Career and Technical Education students.  This led her to spearhead the Peace Studies in Costa Rica class, a course centered on nonviolent conflict resolution in Costa Rica. Students in the Peace Studies class were able to experience the Costa Rican culture of peace first-hand, as Krell-Andre organized an annual trip each year.

Krell-Andre says of all the classes she’s taught at SCC, her Peace Studies class has impacted herself and her students the most.

“I find myself looking at our culture through the eyes of a simpler, more peaceful people.  I also see how community colleges could be the vanguard in making our country more peaceful.  Our students go out into the community every day and, if they change how they interact with others, it has a more direct impact on the community.”

Krell-Andre offers her time and expertise in the community as well. She is the Co-founder of GRADE A PLUS, Des Moines County’s Healthy Community Coalition and is the Site Coordinator for the Alternatives to Violence Project at the Fort Madison Penitentiary.  Between 1998 and 2011, Krell-Andre also volunteered as an adult sponsor for the Seeds Amongst the Stones, a coalition of Des Moines County High Schools where she trained peer mediators to promote nonviolent conflict resolution, appreciation of diversity, and social justice.

Krell-Andre earned the Iowa Governor’s Volunteer Award two times for her work with Seeds Amongst the Stone and the Alternatives to Violence Project.  

SCC President, Dr. Michael Ash, who nominated Krell-Andre for the award, recognizes her influence as both an instructor and community leader.  “Sandy is enthusiastically and continually involved in improving her abilities as an instructor and improving learning opportunities and the college experience for the students. She does this with passion, fairness, and a great sense of humor,” says Dr. Ash.

Although she retired from teaching this summer, Krell-Andre will continue to share her knowledge and passion for helping others in the community and beyond.

“I have been blessed to be a part of so many students’ lives, I have been blessed to be part of an exceptional faculty, and I have been blessed to be part of a great team of employees.  However, I am looking forward to expanding Midland Mediation, my mediation business; to traveling and spending more time with my family; and to expanding my volunteer efforts in the prison and in my community.”

For more news or to learn about Southeastern Community College, visit: https://www.scciowa.edu/rss/news/index.html