Student 1098T tax forms are now available online. If you were a student at FSCC during the 2010-2011 tax year, you may qualify for a HOPE tax credit. Go to www.1098T.com and click on "access my record" to obtain your form. These forms will also be mailed to your home in most cases. Questions about who qualifies or when you might need to include your 1098T on your tax filing should be directed to your tax preparer. More information is also available at: http://www.irs.gov/publications/p970/ch02.html

The FSCC meats judging team was named the Grand Champion High Team Overall at the 2012 National Western Stock Show Intercollegiate Meat Judging Contest in Denver, Colorado. The team consisted of Jesse Birney, Zach DeBusk, Cinnamon Feezell, and Rayma Ridge; Levi Rapp and Maggie Stowell were alternates.

The team won beef grading, lamb judging, overall beef, and the total contest. They placed third in pork judging, second in total placings, and third in total questions.

Individual results are as follows: Jesse Birney placed first in beef grading, overall beef, total placings, and total contest. Birney also placed fourth in lamb judging. Rayma Ridge placed fifth in lamb judging and seventh in total contest. Cinnamon Feezell placed third in pork judging, fifth in total questions and fourth in total contest. In alternates, Levi Rapp received second and Maggie Stowell received ninth.

Just three short years ago two Fort Scott Community College (FSCC) teammates were enjoying an incredible run playing Saturdays at Frary Field in Fort Scott, Kansas, helping to qualify the Greyhounds for their third straight bowl game. Now Pro-Bowler Jason Pierre-Paul and NFL Rookie Jacquian Williams find themselves headed to Super Bowl XLVI.

While at FSCC Pierre-Paul and Williams made a huge impact on the up and coming football program. Starting in 2006 FSCC’s football program began a turn around from a team that had not won a single game two years, to a record of 38-10 over the next four seasons. Williams was apart of that success in 2007 and 2008 and Pierre-Paul joined him for the 2008 season. From humble beginnings at FSCC, a place where the football team sometimes shares facilities with the rodeo team, to now preparing to play on the largest sports stage in the world, these two players rise has been tremendous.

It is no surprise to Greyhound fans or coaches that Pierre-Paul and Williams have reached this kind of success.

"To be able to come to Fort Scott away from your family and the environment that you are used to living in and be able to become All-American Football players as well as college graduates was the beginning for Jacquian and Jason,” said former FSCC head coach Jeff Sims. “They know the sky is the limit for them both athletically and academically. I wouldn't put limitations on those two men once they set their sites on something. They are battle tested and will come out on top in whatever they choose to pursue."

During Williams’ time at FSCC he received First Team All-American, First Team All-Conference, and KJCCC Player of the Week honors in 2008. Pierre-Paul in just one season earned Second Team All-American, First Team All-Conference, and KJCCC Player of the Week honors.

Both players graduated from FSCC in the spring of 2009 and signed to play at the University of South Florida. The two would once again find themselves teammates when the New York Giants drafted Jacquian Williams in the sixth round in 2011. Pierre-Paul had been drafted just one-year prior with the Giants first-round pick, going 15^th overall in the 2010 NFL draft.

In just his first year, Williams had to step up and play when the Giants were plagued with injuries. He took advantage of the opportunity and worked relentlessly to better himself as a player. Williams certainly surprised a few people in his rookie year and continued to thrill audiences during the NFC Championship game. In overtime, Williams stripped the ball on a punt return, which helped the Giants get great field position that lead to the game winning field goal.

Pierre-Paul has also been outstanding in this, his second year in the NFL. He made his first Pro Bowl team and finished the regular season fourth in sacks with 16.5.

Super Bowl XLVI will be about more than parties, commercials, and football for Greyhound fans. This year’s game will be about two former FSCC players, being proud of what they have accomplished and remembering where they started.

The Greyhound Baseball Team had another impressive semester in the classroom marking the 7^th academic semester in a row that the Greyhound Baseball Team has earned a grade point average surpassing a 3.0. This fall, Greyhound baseball players earned a team GPA of 3.33. Of the 36 players on the team, 30 earned a GPA above 3.0 including 3 who had a perfect 4.0, while 11 had a GPA above 3.5, and 16 more who had between a 3.0-3.49 GPA. Success in the classroom is the highest priority for the program and both the players and coaching staff take great pride in the team’s academic achievement. “We have an overriding goal of winning a national championship in Team GPA every year. The last 3 years we have finished 6^th, 3^rd, and 4^th in the nation out of 391 NJCAA Baseball programs. We do have a lot of competition, but the GPA our team earned this fall is a great start toward our goal,” comments head baseball coach, John Hill III. The Greyhounds head into the spring looking to build off of a 2011 season that saw a record 11 players on the all-conference team along with 4 Academic All-Americans and a record of 42-18. The Greyhounds open their season at home with a 4-game weekend series versus Southeast Nebraska Community College on February 11^th & 12^th.

The Department of Continuing Education at FSCC is offering another session of the Great Books class. This is a non-credit class that is designed to be informative and fun. The class will continue their weekly conversazione this spring on Tuesday evenings at 6:30 p.m., beginning January 24. They will continue the study of the poet William Butler Yeats and read the novel Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh. They will also study selections from the Great Books Short Story Omnibus. To enroll in the class please contact De Ann Welch or Harold Hicks at 620-223-2000. The cost of the class is $40.00.