The Pensacola Civic Band, sponsored by Pensacola State College, opens the 25th and final season of Evenings in Olde Seville Square. The concert is 7 p.m. Thursday, May 17, in Seville Square, downtown Pensacola.

The concert will feature narrators and several different groups – including the horn section performing “The Four Hornsmen.” Musicians are Stephen Pearce, Marianne Carlton, Steve Maniscola and Julia Simmons.

Trumpet students Kevin Griffin, Michael Dobbs and Chris Snyder will perform “Buglers Holiday.” Snyder will also perform “Carnival of Venice.”

Celebrating the Pensacola Blue Wahoos baseball team and new stadium, the Pensacola Civic Band will perform a selection accompanying the famous poem “Casey at the Bat.” Popular Pensacola actor Joe Tomko will narrate the poem. A member of Actors Equity and the Screen Actors’ Guild, Tomko has performed in feature films including “Smokey and the Bandit 2” and television series including “Houston Knights” and “General Hospital.”

In honor of the 70th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, the band will perform “At Dawn They Slept.” Pearl Harbor survivor and musician Frank Emond will tell the story of his experience on the USS Pennsylvania that terrible day over 70 years ago.

For more information, contact Don Snowden at (850) 484-1800, dsnowden@pensacolastate.edu.

The Anna Lamar Switzer Center for Visual Arts at Pensacola State College features the art of Donna O’Neal May 21 – July 19 at the Visual Arts Gallery.

The reception is 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, June 7.

O’Neal was born in Chicago and now lives in Pensacola, where she keeps her studio. She has a bachelor’s degree in fine art from the University of West Florida, graduating magna cum laude.

Calling her art abstract or contemporary, O’Neal creates texturally rich and intensely layered paintings, balancing the complex orchestration of expressive color with symbolic narrative work. She draws her content from Christian rituals and religious folk charms called Milagros and uses original poetry as inspiration for vibrant, interpretive paintings.

O’Neal’s art is exhibited regionally, nationally and internationally including at the prestigious Hagiwara, Japan Arts Festival. Her work is a part of private collections nationwide and in several regional public collections including the Cinco Banderas collection at Pensacola’s Artel Gallery and Pensacola State’s Anna Lamar Switzer collection.

The Visual Arts Gallery is in Building 15 on the Pensacola campus. The gallery’s summer hours are 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Tours are available with prior arrangements.

Admission is free.

For more information, call (850) 484-2550.

Dorothy Daniels Lister teaches ballet at Summer Dance Workshop

Pensacola State College presents the 31st annual Summer Dance Workshop June 18-22 on the Pensacola campus.

Mail-in registration is available through June 7. An online form is available at pensacolastate.edu/danceworkshops. If you miss the mail-in deadline, register at the workshop in the Registration Office in Building 2.

Pensacola State’s Summer Dance Workshop is a prestigious program that draws hundreds of dancers nationwide. Top dance instructors teach classes for beginning, intermediate and advanced dancers in ballet, tap, jazz, hip hop, contemporary/lyrical, improvisation/choreography and theatre dance.

Dance instructors are Elizabeth Bradford, La Rita Carter, Keith Cross, Bethany Hooks, Larry Lavender, Dorothy Daniels Lister, Anthony LoCascio and Latasha Weinmann.

 “Returning this year is our seminar series for teachers, studio owners, dancers and parents, as well as adult classes in tap and jazz,” says workshop coordinator LaVonne French. “To wrap up our festival week, we have included a workshop showcase on Friday afternoon – an exciting finale to a great week of dance.”

Students may earn college credit and audition for scholarships.

Cost varies depending on class selection, number of classes selected and residency. Pay fees with Visa, MasterCard, money order or check. Make checks payable to Pensacola State College.

For more information, contact LaVonne French, lfrench@pensacolastate.edu, (850) 484-1809; or visit pensacolastate.edu/danceworkshops.

The Pensacola State College Lyceum Series presents the Oval Office farce “November,” a 2007 play written by American playwright David Mamet.

The college production runs two weekends, May 18-20, 25-27. Hours are 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2:30 p.m. Sundays.

Set just days before a major presidential election, the howlingly funny “November” involves civil marriages, gambling casinos, gays, American Indians, presidential libraries, questionable pardons and campaign contributions.

 “It’s about the President of the United States, who is about to get voted out of office,” Mamet told Playbill.com in 2008. “He’s got one week left in office. He’s going to lose the election, and his approval rating is in the single digits.”

Mamet won a Pulitzer Prize for his drama “Glengarry Glen Ross.” Other works include “Speed-the-Plow,” “The Cryptogram,” “American Buffalo,” “Sexual Perversity in Chicago” and “The Voysey Inheritance.” His screenplays include “The Verdict,” “Wag the Dog,” “State and Main,” “The Spanish Prisoner” and “The Untouchables.”

Ticket prices are general public, $11; seniors 60+, children and non-Pensacola State students, $9; Pensacola State staff/faculty/retirees and Senior Club members,  $7; Pensacola State students with current ID, one free admission ticket.

 Purchase tickets online at www.pensacolastate.edu/lyceum. Click on Performing Arts and select the “Buy Tickets Now” button below the event. You can also purchase tickets at the Lyceum Box Office at the Ashmore 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and one hour prior to performance.

For more information, call (850) 484-1847. To see the full Lyceum Series schedule, go to www.pensacolastate.edu/Lyceum/.

The Pensacola State College District Board of Trustees and President Ed Meadows invite the community to the Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony of the new South Santa Rosa Center.

The event is 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 22. The South Santa Rosa Center is located at 5075 Gulf Breeze Parkway.

“There is a great deal of excitement in South Santa Rosa County with the opening of our Center on Gulf Breeze Parkway and Nantahala Road,” says Pensacola State President Ed Meadows. “The goal of enrolling a thousand students this fall semester is a realistic goal, especially with the partnership with the Santa Rosa School System for offering dual enrolled classes at the Center.

“Currently, we offer general education courses to dual enrolled students, which are the traditional courses required for an associate in arts and bachelor’s degrees. We are also planning to offer some technical programs in the near future.

“We are pleased with the interest we have received from the community, and I foresee continued growth in enrollment for day, evening and weekend credit and continuing education classes at our new South Santa Rosa Center,” Meadows says.

The South Santa Rosa Center has been open since January and rapidly growing with student enrollment, says SSRC Director Michelle Horton. “We had 385 students take courses in the spring term, and we are continuing to register students for summer and fall courses. Students have been so excited about the ability to continue their education at a location close to home.”

Horton says the brand new facility offers college courses, leading to associate and baccalaureate degrees; college credit dual enrollment courses for high school students; GED prep and adult education classes; and corporate and professional development training. Students can choose from a variety of class formats including traditional, online, day and evening classes.

Following the ceremony, enjoy light refreshments and a tour of the $9 million-center – a two-story, multi-use facility that includes state-of-the-art classrooms and science laboratories. The building features the latest in environmentally conscious construction technology. The architectural firm of Bullock Tice Associates Inc. and Greenhut Construction Co. Inc. adhered to Leadership in Energy and Environment Design standards, with a goal of LEED Gold Certification. Sustainable elements include high-efficiency mechanical systems, captured daylight, high-value insulation, construction materials from recycled products, and wetlands preservation to enhance the natural surroundings.

For more information, call (850) 471-4630.

Drury

Pensacola State College is pleased to announce Leah Drury as the new head women’s basketball coach, effective Monday April 30.

Drury returns to the Pensacola State women’s basketball program bringing an abundance of knowledge from the University of Alabama. An Alabama alum, Drury spent two years as an assistant coach for the Crimson Tide. Before returning to her alma mater, she spent a year as an assistant coach at Pensacola State – leading the Pirates to a 24-6 season. Prior to her one-year stint with the Pirates, Drury served as a graduate assistant for two seasons at Alabama where she earned her master’s degree in sports management.

“We are pleased to get someone of Leah’s caliber,” says Pensacola State Athletic Director Bill Hamilton. “Not only does she have the pedigree for the job, she has the drive and energy to keep the Lady Pirates among the nation’s elite.

“Her priorities and plan align perfectly with the mission of the college and goals of this department, and her personality and exuberance is refreshing. We know how lucky we got with the hiring of Coach Drury.”

Drury replaces Coach Chanda Rigby recently accepted the head coaching position at Troy University. Rigby spent seven years as the Lady Pirates head coach. In the last two years, she led the program to a 64-6 record – earning consecutive state titles and third-place finishes at the NJCAA National Tournament. Rigby helped the student athletes achieve success on and off the court. Most of her players moved on to graduate and have successful careers at the Division I level.

Pensacola State is pleased to announce the hiring of Drury and looks forward to her maintaining the level of excellence the program has achieved.

It’s time for parents to check out the offerings at Kids’ College, a Pensacola State College summer program that features fun classes and specialized camps on the Pensacola and Warrington campuses.

Kids’ College runs June 11 to Aug. 10 and is geared for children 6-12 years old. Courses are offered between 8 a.m. and 4:45 p.m. Monday through Friday in separate age groups. Cost varies, depending on selections.

Classes include Math Games, Spanish, Chinese Culture, Book Club, Digital Photography, Art Around the World, Drawing Studio, Fashion Design, Olympic Games, Harry Potter, Newspaper Reporter, Swimming, Lego World, Private I Sleuth and much more.

Kids’ College also offers specialized camps for a variety of age groups – including Chihuly Art Camp, Follow Me Robot, Environmental Camp, Junior Medical Explorer Camp and a selection of sports camps for girls and boys.

For more information and registration, go to www.pensacolastate.edu/continuingeducation or call (850) 484-1797.

Pensacola State College students Elizabeth Merritt, Anna Ledet, Savannah Mongeau, Carey Stabenau and Jeane Thomas have made the 2012 Phi Theta Kappa All-Florida Academic Team.

Each year, a Phi Theta Kappa All-Florida Academic Team is named to recognize outstanding students in the Florida College System. The distinction is given to honor academic achievement, leadership and service to the community.

Chancellor of the Florida College System, in partnership with the Phi Theta Kappa Florida region, hosts an annual event to recognize members of the All-Florida Academic Team. Students are honored at an awards ceremony where each student is presented a medallion.

This year, the awards ceremony is April 5 at Valencia College, west campus, Orlando.

Phi Theta Kappa is the international honor society for two-year colleges and is open to all students.