The last year has presented no shortage of challenges. From those challenges, however, have come tremendous opportunities for the State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota, to revolutionize how it serves its students.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced us to turn on a dime last spring to provide virtual courses and support services to our students. We took advantage of the creativity and innovative spirit of our staff and faculty to launch a new online course format, a suite of virtual student services and multiple communication tools to engage with and support our students through an incredibly difficult time.

The pandemic was a catalyst that forced us to quickly make changes we had discussed but not yet implemented. It pushed our institution forward technologically, programmatically and drove us to be more connected with our students. Many of these initiatives were driven by necessity, but now shape the future of our institution.

We created Go Live with SCF Online to provide a scheduled, interactive online classroom experience for students who craved more structure and predictability. Go Live allows students to engage with their professor and fellow students in a Microsoft Teams virtual classroom. It has quickly become very popular and will remain a component of our schedule. This spring we created Teams-enabled classrooms on all our campuses and will add more classrooms in the future. This expansion creates greater access for students in both online and face-to-face courses, allowing us to offer the same course on multiple campuses and modalities at once.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic fast-tracked our virtual transformation last spring, SCF was already committed to providing concierge-style support services to our students. A big part of that commitment is communicating with our students in the way they prefer. The pandemic increased this need exponentially and our team quickly developed the tools to engage with students on an individual basis and provide them everything they needed from application to graduation. Our online support services include online tutoring, academic advising, financial aid advising, disability resource center services, Veterans services, mental health services, and student activities, and help us meet our long-term goal of creating a virtual campus alongside our three physical campuses.

One of the most impactful things our student services team does is a periodic wellness check-in with every student. The students, many who are still dealing with the isolation of the pandemic, appreciate knowing that our college is interested in how they are doing and there to offer any support they need.

We also seized the opportunity to broaden the student experience to focus on programs that could get residents forced out of the workforce by the pandemic back into a job that could lead to a career. Not every job needs a two- or four-year degree and at times like this, many do not have that kind of time to find employment. Our Get Credentialed. Get Noticed! initiative highlights SCF’s short-term workforce certification programs, provides students scholarships and laptops, and helps our community members get back into the workforce. At SCF, we pride ourselves on our ability to rapidly develop the programs and courses that meet immediate community needs.

It has not been an easy year, and we still do not know when we will return to normal. We take pride, however, in how we have turned challenges into opportunities to be an even better college for our students.

Dr. Carol Probstfeld is president of State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota. 

It’s been my privilege to serve as the Chief of Police for the city of Sarasota. I am proud of my 35 years of honorable service as a law enforcement officer, eight of those to the city of Sarasota. This message is to share with you effective 5 p.m. Friday, January 29, 2021, I will no longer be Chief of Police for the Sarasota Police Department. As your Chief of Police since December 31, 2012, we have worked together to accomplish incredible things. I am leaving feeling a sense of accomplishment and pride at what the Sarasota Police Department has been able to accomplish over the last eight years. 

Together in the eight years I have served as Chief, we have partnered to reduced crime in the city of Sarasota by 37.7%. Violent offenses are down 16.5% and property offenses are down 40.8%. We adopted a philosophy of community policing, implemented the Drug Market Initiative (DMI) to eliminate open-air drug markets, created a Homeless Outreach Team, and began the Turn Your Life Around (TYLA) diversion program. We have worked hard to build relationships and restore trust with our community.

I am proud to have hired more than 129 officers and increased diversity in our agency. I began a bi-annual community luncheon to meet with community leaders, business owners, and community service organizations to keep lines of communication open between us and our community. Since December 2012, we launched our Blue and You initiative, community movie nights, Shop with a Cop, Coffee with Cop, Pack the Patrol Car, and multiple boating and water safety events. We launched a bi-annual Citizens Police Academy and held several Use of Force community days. Before COVID-19, we partnered with the Boys and Girls Club to begin Club 5-0.

Our Body Worn Camera program is underway and expected to be launched this year along with a Restorative Justice Initiative for theft/shoplifting cases which has plans in the making to launch in 2021. We partnered with community leaders to create a Behavioral Health Response Team to have a program for high-need individuals and their families with behavioral health needs. A service that will focus on providing a system of care within our community for those who are in crisis with behavioral health needs. Our agency was honored with the IACP/Body Worn Leadership in Law Enforcement Volunteer Program Award, the IACP Leadership in Human and Civil Rights Award, the IACP Chief David Leadership in Environmental Crimes Award and we were chosen to be the Law Enforcement Agency of the Year from the Florida Bicycle Association in 2019.

Partnering with you all these last eight years, together we’ve kept the city of Sarasota a safe place to live, work, and play. We have accomplished so much. I am proud of the hard work and dedication of our civilian and sworn staff. Thank you to Tom Barwin for selecting me and having faith in me to serve as your Chief of Police. Being a fourth-generation law enforcement officer, I am looking forward to the opportunity to continue to serve the law enforcement field in another capacity. I have made many friends and appreciate the support of our community. I believe I am leaving the Sarasota Police Department in good standing for the next chief. While this was a bittersweet decision, it’s been an honor and privilege to serve as your Chief of Police.

As many of you know I end letters and speeches with two words so I will say goodbye with be safe.

Bernadette DiPino was the Sarasota Chief of Police. 

Add a dash of heat to your winter with these south-of-the-border bests. 

Click here to read the full article in SRQ's January 2021 edition.