Frederick Community College (FCC) will be honored with two awards during the Maryland State Department of Education 2017 Career and Technology Education (CTE) Awards of Excellence ceremony on April 25.

The awards ceremony will take place at the Holiday Inn Inner Harbor Hotel in Baltimore.

A partnership between FCC and Maryland State Police (MSP) will be awarded Outstanding Business Partnership (Postsecondary) and the FCC Marketing Department will be recognized with the award for the Outstanding CTE Marketing Campaign (Postsecondary).

The awards are two of only nine given this year at the state award ceremony.

The partnership between FCC and the MSP Academy led to the creation of an Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree in Police Science in 2001.

The program is offered to currently employed law enforcement officers or trooper candidates attending the MSP Academy. The MSP Academy track integrates general education coursework with the major components of the criminal justice process learned while attending the Police Academy.  It provides a bridge for law enforcement personnel wishing to continue their higher education for personal and/or professional advancement, prepares agency-based recruits for positions as troopers, and provides opportunities to transfer to a Bachelor’s Degree program.

Since its inception, the police science program has graduated more than 250 MSP troopers and has a 95% completion rate. Nearly 85% of program graduates have received honors or high honors for academic achievement. 

The marketing award will recognize a cybersecurity marketing campaign. The campaign communicated the regional workforce need for cybersecurity professionals and promoted the opportunity for FCC students to learn the knowledge and skills necessary for a successful cybersecurity career. 

The winning campaign included high profile advertisements on cable television, in military publications on Fort Detrick, on city busses, and through digital ads.

The FCC Cybersecurity program began in the fall of 2015. Fifty students have already completed the program and 300 students are currently enrolled.

The program offers on-campus, hybrid, and online classes, as well as classes on nights and weekends. It provides students the foundation for a lifelong career in this in-demand IT field.

The state CTE awards have recognized FCC programs and staff members numerous times in previous years. Those awards include:

2016 Outstanding CTE Program (Postsecondary): Cybersecurity Degree Program
2015 Outstanding Change Agent (Postsecondary): Robin Shusko, Program Manager, Police Science Program
2013 Outstanding CTE Program (Postsecondary): Nuclear Medicine Program
2012 Outstanding CTE Program (Postsecondary): Medical Assistant Program