Coffeyville Community College Welcomes Public To Red Raven

Good News
KANSAS
ASSOCIATION
OF COMMUNITY
COLLEGE TRUSTEES
700 SW Jackson
Suite 1000
Topeka KS 66603
D E C E M B E R
IN THIS ISSUE:
Allen
12
Barton
10
Butler
3&5
Cloud
7&9
Coffeyville
1&6
Colby
5, 8 & 12
Cowley
9 &10
Dodge City
2, 6 & 8
Fort Scott
Garden City
4
1, 2, 5 & 6
Highland
2&7
Hutchinson
9 & 12
Independence
11
Johnson County 6, 9 & 11
Kansas City Kansas
3
Labette
7
Neosho
6&8
Pratt
Seward
11 & 12
4, 7 & 12
KACCT MEETINGS:
February 10/11
PTK-Topeka
June 10/11
Hutchinson CC
September 9/10
Seward CC
2 0 1 5
K AC C T .
O R G
Coffeyville Community College Welcomes
Public To Red Raven Holiday Event
Coffeyville Community College invited community members to the
annual Red Raven
Holiday on Friday,
November 20,
from 5-8pm. The
campus was aglow
with holiday decorations and activities for children of
all ages. Activities
that night included
decorating gingerbread cookies, marshmallow roasting, a visit from Santa Claus, pony
and carriage rides, and two performances of “Santa Claws is coming to
town.” The event was free to the
public.
All student activities participated in
the event by setting stations unique
to their particular group. Event attendance was
marked between
1200 to 1400 people. “It’s a great
event to give back
to the community,”
said Kris Adams,
Director of Marketing. “The support
and involvement of
our student activities really
ties the event
together and lets
the students give
back to the community.”
Company sent a new Ford F-150
truck to help with the toy drive. Students lined the hallways to help people who came to donate new, unwrapped toys, to be delivered to
children in need during the holidays.
At the end of the day, the bed of the
truck was completely filled. It was a
nd
On Wednesday, December 2 , the
great way to kick off the holiday seaGCCC Kansas Collegiate Farm Bureau son at Garden City Community Colchapter, and the GCCC Block and Bri- lege. A big thanks to all of the studle Club held a Fill a Ford with Toys dents who helped to
in the parking lot of the John Collins make Christmas speVocational Building. Burtis Motors cial for area kids.
PAGE
2
Highland
Students
Contribute
To Local
Food Pantry
Student groups SKILLS
USA, Business
Professionals of
America, and the
Student Senate at the
Highland Community
College Technical
Center raised over $330
selling chicken and
noodles and chili during
lunch on October 21.
The money raised was
used to purchase
almost 400 food items
for the Salvation Army
Food Pantry in Atchison.
Highland Helps
Provide Healthy
Thanksgiving Hampers
Employees on the
Highland campus
donated over 28
baskets of Thanksgiving
food, and Highland’s
other campuses
donated the equivalent
of four more, making it
possible for 30 area
families to enjoy a
traditional Thanksgiving
meal. All the donated
food was delivered to
local socialservices
agencies.
GOOD
NEWS
Governor Attends GCCC Ribbon Cutting Celebration
A celebration for Broncbuster Housing,
and the GCCC Welding Technology Center, Tuesday, November 10th, was highlighted by a visit from the Honorable
Sam Brownback, Governor of Kansas.
Over 100 people attended
the celebration complete
with a ribbon
cutting and
releasing of
balloons to
mark the occasion. Local officials,
along with members of the Garden City
Community College Board of Trustees, were on hand to greet the Governor and celebrate the dedication of the
welding facility and housing complex
located just north of the college on
Spruce Street.
Speaking in front of a podium that was
custom-made by the welding department, officials credited the teamwork
between the local government, community organizations,
and Garden
City Community College
as the reason
the new facilities at GCCC
were able to
come to fruition. In his
remarks, Governor Brownback, talked
about the partnerships and synergies
between local entities, “None of us do
anything alone, these things are partnerships. You guys have worked hard
here at Garden City Community College
to get these facilities.”
DCCC Honors Students: The DC3 Character Awards
Rekala Tuxhorn, Dodge City Community
College Counselor, wanted to honor
students who possess outstanding characteristics and who, through their actions, support the mission of the college.
In order to achieve this goal, she created
the DC3 Character award. This award is
presented twice a semester and recipients will be selected based solely on the
quality of their character. Students are
nominated by faculty, staff, and coaches.
A committee narrows the pool of possible recipients down to six final candidates and the SGA President determines
the final selection for both male and female recipients.The first DC3 character
awards were presented at the October
27th Board of Trustees meeting.
Amanda Allred and Samuel Castillo
were the first recipients of the
award. Amanda Allred is a sophomore
Criminal Justice major at DC3, an active
participant in the DC3 soccer program,
and member of Phi Theta Kappa. Samuel Castillo is a second-year student in
the Fire Science Program and is also a
member of Phi Theta Kappa. Dodge City
Community College is very proud of
both of these students and wish them
the best of luck in their future endeavors.
DECEMBER
2015
PAGE
KCKCC Innovation Center Launches “100 Local Garages”
3
The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well at
local Garages’ is a way to support local makers
Kansas City Kansas Community College as the who have skills and/or equipment that can be
college’s Innovation Center works to turn dreams used to assist those with ideas and inventions
into reality through the “100
and help the creation and
local Garages” program.
small level manufacturing
through their work areas
Alicia Hooks, director of enwhich in many cases is their
trepreneurship at KCKCC,
basement or garage,” Hooks
said the goal of the “100 local
said. “It assists makers in
Garages” program is to
finding each other as well as
“connect fabbers and makers
students, retirees, etc., who
with those having ideas and
can offer their skills and serdreams in order to create
vices utilizing the tools they
realities.” The “100 local Garalready have.”
ages” program is the second
initiative the KCKCC Innovation Center has announced in the last few weeks.
KCKCC will also be participating in the InventYES
program, which helps to get entrepreneurs excited about getting their ideas through the licensing
and patent process. Students participate in the
program by asking questions, completing short
assignments and working their way through the
10-step InventYES system.
“Shifting the emphasis to local production, ‘100
United States Sen. Jerry Moran of Kansas also recognized KCKCC during a
recent Congressional session for its efforts in
supporting entrepreneurship and innovation
through the launch of “100 local Garages.” Hooks,
along with KCKCC President Dr. Doris Givens, Maris Gray, director of Workforce Development at
KCKCC and Board of Trustee member Mary Ann
Flunder also met with Gov. Sam Brownback Oct.
30 to discuss the intitative.
R.D. & Joan Hubbard Foundation Donates to Butler
A gift that not only remembers Wichita entrepreneurship magnate Fran Jabara, but also benefits
Butler Community College was recently given
from the R.D. & Joan Dale Hubbard Foundation out
of Ruidoso, NM. R.D. Hubbard, a Butler alumnus,
was close friends with the late Jabara who, along
with Hubbard, was an inaugural inductee to the
Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame at Butler. The
event has been re-named the Fran Jabara Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame to honor his legacy. The
$20,000 gift matches a donation made by the
Lattner Family Foundation, Inc., also in memory of
Jabara.
Mr. and Mrs. Hubbard, Kansas natives, have the
distinct honor of being the highest philanthropic
contributors in Butler’s history, with gifts totaling more
than $3.5 million toward numerous beneficial projects
such as the Hubbard Award of
Excellence (Butler’s largest scholarship and highest award), the Hubbard Champions Training Center, and $1.5 million to the Hubbard Welcome Center in 2007, the largest gift in the school’s history.
“Generous donors like Mr. and Mrs. Hubbard are
what make Butler an incredibly special place,”
President Kim Krull said. “Those who have the vision to contribute to a campaign of this magnitude
understand the legacy they are leaving for our students in the future.”
PAGE
4
Thanksgiving At Seward~A Time To Give Thanks And Give Back
Thanks to the generosity of Great Western Dining, students, college employees, and community
members are able to enjoy a delicious Thanksgiving lunch. The luncheon, an annual event, is free
to those attending and is greatly appreciated by
all. According to Jerry Odle, Food Service Director, more than 600 people came through the line
to enjoy the food, fellowship, and live entertainment provided by SCCC/ATS students. Another
annual Thanksgiving tradition at Seward is the
Phi Theta Kappa food drive and basket distribution. Students in PTK both collect donations and
purchase
food items
for the
Thanksgiving baskets. This
year they
were able to provide 16 local families with complete Thanksgiving meals. According to PTK
sponsor, Debbie Stafford, the students “went
above and beyond what was expected of them,
working diligently to collect the food items, sorting, arranging, packing the foods, preparing for
the recipients, assisting recipients with the delivery to their vehicles, and personally delivering
baskets to
homes of some
of the recipients.” She added, “I was extremely proud
of the way they
conducted
themselves,
representing
SCCC/ATS in the most positive manner. We truly
do have some of the most outstanding students
here at SCCC/ATS.” In addition to garnering insight from their experience collecting the food
items, students discussed various issues they
were made aware of as a result of the delivery
and/or pick up of the baskets. Almost every recipient was “extremely grateful for the food they
were given. They were very kind and humble,
with some hugging us, some crying, and some
beaming with appreciation,” Stafford said. It was
a learning experience for the students which will
have a lasting impact on each of them.
FSCC Has Two First Places Finishes At The American Royal
Fort Scott Community College is pleased to
announce that its Meat Judging Team and its
Livestock Judging Team have both won first
place in their respective competitions at the American Royal.
the top three spots in seven divisions. Ty Wood
of Cherryvale, Kansas was named second high
individual and Paxton Boore of Pittsburg, Kansas
was named third high individual.
The American Royal Junior College and Intercollegiate Livestock
The American Royal IntercolleJudging competition was held Frigiate Meat Judging Contest was
day, October 30 in Kansas City,
held in Omaha, Nebraska. Fort
Kansas. Fort Scott Community
Scott Community College took
College took first in the Junior Colfirst overall after bringing home
lege Team Division, beating out
first in beef grading, second in lamb judging, secSouth
Plains
College
and Northeastern Oklahoond in pork judging, first in beef judging, first in
ma. On November 1, FSCC Meat Judging team
overall beef and first in total placings. Meat
was also named Reserve National Champion at
Judging member Kaylee Hill of Paola, Kansas,
was named first high individual after placing in the American Meat Science Association Cargill
High Plains competition.
GOOD
NEWS
DECEMBER
2015
Former Army Ranger Kris Paronto Visits GCCC
PAGE
5
In honor of the Marine Corps birthday, the Marine Corps of Western Kansas, hosted former Army
Ranger Kris “Tanto” Paronto to speak at Garden City Community College. Kris “Tanto” Paronto is
a former Army Ranger from the 2nd Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment, and a private security contractor who was deployed throughout South America, Central America, the Middle East and
North Africa. Mr. Paronto was part of the CIA annex security team that responded to the terrorist attack on
the US Special Mission in Benghazi, Libya, September 11th 2012, helping to save over 20 lives while fighting
off terrorists from the CIA Annex for over 13 hours. The story is told in the book “13 Hours” written by
Mitchell Zuckoff and his five surviving annex security team members. The book has been made into a movie that will be released this coming January. Kris spoke to a crowd of over 650 people. He talked about how
on September 11, 2012, that day in Benghazi, was a quiet, peaceful day. Kris recounted for the crowd how
he and his team went to help the U.S. Consulate which was under attack by militants. Paranto said the
speaking and book tour have helped him to deal with what happened during the attacks. “I really love my
country now. My patriotism has come back tenfold ……thank you guys for bringing me back,” said Paranto.
Butler Designated Military Friendly School By Victory Media
Butler Community College has again been designated a Military Friendly® School by Victory
Media, the leader in successfully
connecting the military and civilian
worlds, and publisher of G.I.
Jobs®, STEM JobsSM and Military
Spouse. Now in its seventh year,
the original, premier Military
Friendly® Schools designation provides service members and their
families with transparent, data-driven ratings about
post-military education and career opportunities.
Serving the military is not something new to Butler
having celebrated a 40-year partnership with
McConnell Air Force Base in Wichita last February. In addition to offering classes on base, Butler
launched a new organization, Veteran’s Across
Campus, in recent years. Last fall, this group com-
pleted the creation of a Veteran’s lounge at the
Butler of Andover 6000 Building. The project was
made possible by a grant awarded
from the Butler Foundation.
“So many of our students are making the transition from carrying a
military weapon on the other side
of the globe to wearing a backpack
and sitting in a classroom here in
Kansas,” said Associate Professor
of Economics and Chair of the Butler Veterans Advisory Board Kristine Estes. “Embracing their challenges and recognizing their talents makes our student body more engaging and diverse. Our students
named our new break room Rally Point, a place to
meet up which symbolizes success and a place
from which to move forward. We can't think of a
more perfect name!
Future Vet Techs “Fly In” To Colby
The Colby Community College Veterinary Technology Program hosted a “fly-in” Nov. 6-8
for students from across the nation who are enrolled in the Distance Learning Veterinary
Technology Program. Nine students – two from New York, one from Pennsylvania, one
from Missouri, and five from Kansas – attended to complete hands-on skills involving large animals, exotic and laboratory animals, and do microbiology labs. CCC has one of only nine online vet tech programs in the nation and
has the only AVMA-accredited online veterinary technology program to originate from a Kansas college.
PAGE
6
CCC Community
Participates In
Operation
Christmas Child
Coffeyville
Community College
faculty and staff
partnered up with Phi
Theta Kappa members
to participate in
Operation Christmas
Child, part of the
Samaritan’s Purse
International Relief
initiative. The CCC
community ended the
drive with a total
count of 198 boxes.
Phi Theta Kappa
Members facilitated
the donations and
organized the drop off
to the Independence
collection site. “It was
an impressive
donation,” said Linda
McFate, Phi Theta
Kappa Advisor.
“Because of Coffeyville
Community College,
198 children will know
the joy of Christmas
this year.”
DC3 Nerd
Union
gaming
club hosted its first
Super Smash Brothers Tournament. 27
participants faced
off in a one-on-one
double elimination
tournament, and all
enjoyed the event.
GOOD
NEWS
Neosho Instructor Receives Award
Michelle Schulz is an Adjunct Clinical Instructor for Neosho
County Community College. She is also a graduate of the
Mary Grimes School of Nursing. She works full time at the University of Kansas Medical Center in the Mother-Baby Units.
Michelle is an integral part of the PROMPT team at KU Med
which deals with obstetrical emergencies. This past year she
went to Greece where she presented on the topic of high blood
pressure/preeclampsia in pregnancy. This November she had the extreme
honor of being awarded the March of Dimes Kansas City Women’s Health
Nurse of the Year.
JCCC Elected To Board Of ACCT
Dr. Jerry Cook, JCCC trustee, has been elected to a three-year term on
the board of directors of the Association of Community College Trustees, which represents community college trustees throughout the
United States and several outlying territories, including some Canadian provinces. Dr. Cook was elected chairman of the western region,
representing 10 states, three Canadian provinces and two Canadian territories.
“I am honored to represent Johnson County Community College and the Kansas Association of Community College Trustees at the national level as we advance the community college experience of inspiring learning to transform
lives,” Dr. Cook said.
A nonprofit educational organization located in Washington, D.C., ACCT is a
major voice of community college trustees to the presidential administration,
U.S. Congress, the Departments of Education and Labor and more. The organization educates community and technical college trustees through annual conferences focused on leadership development and advocacy, as well as through
publications and online and face-to-face institutes and seminars.
GCCC Meat Judging Team Wins National Championship
The Garden City Community College Meats
Judging Team won the 2015 National Championship in Friona, Texas, on November 1st. The
team had an impressive 82 point margin of
victory over Fort Scott Community College,
and outscored Clarendon College by 131 points to take the title. Both Fort
Scott and Clarendon had won the previous 2 competitions as well as the
previous two national championships. Garden City Community College
swept almost every category. They were first in Beef Grading, Beef Judging,
Total Beef, Pork Judging, Placings, and Questions. The only category the
team did not win was Lamb Judging, where they were 2nd by only two
points. The team put up the 2nd highest overall team score in the 30 year
history of the GCCC Meats Judging program.
DECEMBER
2015
Cloud Instructor Named CCCC’s First Endowed Chair
The first Lavon Brosseau Endowed Chair
was announced at the November Cloud
County Community College board of
trustees meeting. Cindy
Lamberty is a chemistry
instructor on the Geary
County campus and will facilitate an honors program
at Cloud as the endowed
chair.
The Endowed Chair was
established in May 2015 with a gift from
former CCCC instructor Lavon Brosseau.
As the first ever endowed chair at Cloud,
Lamberty will oversee the implementation of an honors program for students.
She will be responsible for recruiting students to the program, mentoring, plan-
ning events and activities, as well as planning an annual Honors Symposium.Lamberty said her goals are to identify and connect with current
and incoming students to
recruit for the program, as
well as to work with faculty
to develop and teach special
honors sections of their
courses.
CCCC President Danette
Toone said the goal of the honors program is to attract high academically qualified students to Cloud. In addition, the
honors program will be structured in
such a way so that students will be able to
continue in an honors program at a fouryear university.
PAGE
7
Labette
President
Appointed
To
Presidential
Advisory Board
Thirty-three college
presidents have been
appointed to a new
Presidential Advisory
Board for Phi Theta
Kappa Honor Society.
The Presidential
Advisory Board will
provide input into the
organization’s strategic
plan, priorities and
direction. Labette
Community College
President, Dr. George C.
Knox, was one of the
President’s named.
Seward Honors Veterans
Veterans young and
old, along with family
and friends, gathered
on Seward Community College campus on Veterans Day Tribute.
Lunch was served and SCCC/ATS music students
provided entertainment. Guest speaker, Ivanhoe
Love Jr., is a highly decorated veteran who served in
Vietnam and returned to his native community, Liberal, KS, where he has dedicated his life to community service. He currently runs Adolescent Support
Services and is committed to helping local youth.
Love Jr., presented a moving speech and shared his
story with those in attendance.
The Student Veterans Association also set up an unoccupied
table memorializing the plight of
Prisoners of War (POW) and
those Missing in Action (MIA).
Elements on the table include the yellow ribbon for
remembrance, salt for tears, lemon for the bitter
fate endured by POW/MIA servicemen, and the inverted glass, "because they cannot toast with us."
The candle, noted event emcee Luis Vela, SCCC/ATS
light line instructor, "is meant to illuminate their
way home."
Highland Reading Program Sees Tony Dungy
Reading instructors are always looking for innovative ways to get students excited about
reading. This semester, Highland Community College reading instructor Nancy Nelson
found a way to involve not only her students, but four coaches and two administrators, in a
reading project that connected personally with those involved. She had the students read
Quiet Strength by Tony Dungy, long-time professional football coach and current television
commentator. And she involved the coaches of those students and two College administrators who also felt a connection to Dungy. In November, 38 students and three chaperones
were able to attend an event in Kansas City where Dungy was the keynote speaker. Nelson noted that,
“Dungy is a long-time personal hero of mine, so for me, this was a dream come true. To share this with my
students was very special.”
PAGE
8
Neosho Mary Grimes
School Of Nursing
Excel At NCLEX Quiz
Bowl
Five students from
the Ottawa Campus
represented Neosho
County Community
College at the recent
Kansas Student
Nurses Association
State Convention.
The students won the
NCLEX Quiz Bowl
competition and
three of the five were
elected to the Kansas
Student Nurses
Association 20152016 board. Pictured
are Melanie Lester,
Kelsey Jamison,
Amanda Flaherty,
Erica Allan and Travis
Williams.
We salute
our NCCC
Support
Team members who
walked the Veteran's
Day Parade route in
Chanute, and showed
their support.
Neosho Club Makes
Annual Trip
NCC History Club
Makes Annual Trip to
Kansas City WWI
Museum.
GOOD
NEWS
DC3- First Female In Power Transmission Program
Dodge City Community College has
another first. The Electrical and Power Transmission program has its first
female student. Program Instructor,
Dan Hopkins, said. "I’ve been teaching
this program for five years and this is
the first time I've had a female student. This occupation is 98 percent
male. There are not very many women who even think about getting into
this. I've seen female linemen as far
back as the late '80s and early '90s, but they are few and far between."
In the program students learn the basics of electricity, climbing and building
power lines. In the first semester, they learn how to climb 40- and 80-foot
poles with a fall arrest belt and how to set those poles in the ground. Certificates are earned in one year and an associate's degree in two years.
"I've been teaching this program five years," instructor Dan Hopkins said.
"This is the first time I've had a female student because this occupation is 98
percent male. There are not very many women who even think about getting
into this. I've seen female linemen as far back as the late '80s and early '90s,
but they are few and far between."
Dodge City native Vanessa Ybarra, 19, said she chose to enter the program
because she saw an opportunity to be challenged. "Not many girls do it,"
Ybarra said. "I was in pre-nursing and I decided to change my major. I like
my teachers and the other students. I like that it's hands-on, and I learn
something new every day.
"Vanessa is doing very well," Hopkins said. "In fact, she's doing better than I
thought she would because she's not a very big lady. She climbs fairly well
and she has a good attitude. They can spend two to three hours at a time up a
pole, so they have to be broke into that," Hopkins said, “I know some women
who got into line work and then as years went by went into other fields like
metering and substation work. That pays very well. It really is an occupation
females should look into because they can branch out." Ybarra said although
in the beginning she was afraid of climbing 40 feet, she's proud to have
climbed the 80-foot pole.
Colby SGA Feeds 20,000
The Colby Community College
Student Government Association
(SGA) hosted a Numana food
packaging event Nov. 3 to assemble dry box meals to feed the
world’s hungry. Approximately 90
students, staff, and community members assembled 20,000 meals
in about two hours. The event was part of CCC’s homecoming week
activities.
DECEMBER
2015
HCC & Sidney’s Hairdressing JCCC Interior
Design Program Wins Award
College Exploring Merger
PAGE
Hutchinson Community College is in the
process of exploring a merger with Sidney’s
Hairdressing College, also of Hutchinson. The
college has enjoyed a long-standing articulation
agreement with Sidney’s that enables Hutch CC
to recognize credit hours towards an Associates
in Applied Science (AAS) degree in Business
Management & Entrepreneurship for any Sidney’s graduate who earns a state license in cosmetology. Cosmetology classes will continue
under the direction of Sidney’s in January for
those students interested in this career path. In
addition, special incentives are available
through Sidney’s for those interested in resuming studies they may have started but not yet
finished. The plan calls for Hutch CC to assume
educational operations in mid-2016.
9
For the second time in two years and for the fourth
time overall, Johnson County Community College has
been given a prestigious award from a national
association for kitchen and bath designers. The
National Kitchen and Bath Association honored JCCC
as one of only nine schools nationwide to receive the
Excellence in Education Award. The award for 2014,
the most recent, was
bestowed in September
2015. To win the
excellence award, JCCC
submitted work from two
students, and those
projects were judged by
professionals. Only those schools whose projects
averaged at least 90 points on a 100-point scale
received an Excellence in Education Award.
Cowley Employees Receive Awards
Cowley College employees Joe Clasen and
Stephani Johns-Hines were the recipients of Leadership in the Field Awards at the Kansas Council
for Workforce Education. Clasen, Career and Technical Education Department Chair, developed the
first ever Non-Destructive Testing courses to be reviewed and approved by Quality Matters, an organization devoted to excellence in
online instruction. The program is the only Associates' in NDT program nationally certified for online delivery. According to Dr. Harold
Arnett, Cowley College vice president of academic affairs, Clasen has
been instrumental in helping to develop a new program for milling
students involved with the International Association of Millers.
Johns-Hines, associate vice president for Mulvane and online operations, worked to develop a Navy partnership with the school’s online
NDT program, providing highly qualified NDT graduates for Naval
bases in a significantly shorter time-frame than the internal Navy
training. She also promoted/supported the first ever NDT courses to
be reviewed and approved by Quality Matters and assisted in the
creation of partnership with IAOM and local mills, overseeing the
creation of online curriculum to meet national industry needs.
Johns-Hines helped garner Cowley College the status of first institution in Kansas to achieve state authorization in 50 states and three
territories, and represents Cowley College on three area Chambers
to promote career and technical training.
Cloud Team Places
At World Show
The CCCC
Horse Judging Team
placed 7th at
the AQHA
World Show in Oklahoma
City. The Merial AQHA
World Championship Collegiate Judging Contest took
place November 18 during
the Lucas Oil AQHA World
Championship Show at State
Fair Park in Oklahoma City.
Competitors came from
schools across the country
for the chance to earn the
title of the Merial AQHA
World Champion Collegiate
Horse Judging Team and
thousands of dollars in scholarships awarded to the top
three teams in
each division.
PAGE
10
Barton Nursing Student Gets A Head Start With
Senate Bill 155 Classes
Barton Nursing student, 19-year-old Breanna Towers of St. John, started making
strides toward her career during her sophomore year of high school by taking college classes online and her forward thinking made it possible to complete all her
pre-requisites before she even set foot in a Barton Nursing classroom.
She acquired her Certified Nursing Assistant credential at age 16, and she was able
to do so at no cost due to Senate Bill 155 (SB155). In between getting her CNA and
eventually her Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) credential, which she acquired at
18, she was told by her counselor that there was a whole list of classes she could take from Barton
through its online component BARTonline via SB155.
“After getting my CNA I was able to work at the facilities in my hometown, and I knew I wanted to go
farther with nursing,” she said. “I just like knowing that I’m caring for people in need.”
Towers said all the SB155 classes not only saved her money in tuition, but also helped her earn
$11,000 in scholarships. “People that are awarding scholarships see that you’re doing all of these college classes and I think it really helped me earn scholarships,” she said. “They want to give the money
to someone who has a good chance at passing and they know you can handle a lot if you have taken
college credits.”
Towers is now in the Licensed Practical Nurse portion of the Barton program, which she said is going
well and Barton’s program is second to none.
Community Members Turn Out For Presidential Installation
With current and past college
and university Presidents on
hand, as well as past and present Cowley College Board
members and many local and
state dignitaries, Dr. Dennis Rittle was sworn in as Cowley College’s fifth President during a
presidential installation ceremony held Sunday, November
15 inside the Robert Brown
Theatre on the school’s main
campus in Arkansas City.
first Board of Trustees and the
first president of the Cowley
College Endowment Association
(now Cowley College Foundation) provided the invocation.
While, Dr. Nick Rogers, president of the Cowley College
Foundation Board, led the benediction. Ms. Amy McWhirt, the
College Education Association
President, presented Dr. Rittle
with the Presidential mace,
which symbolizes the Office of
President of the Institution. The
With close to 300 people in at- Mr. Bill
tendance, the formal swearing Docking, a member of the Kan- mace was cast by Ricky Squires,
in was conducted by Cowley
sas Board of Regents from 1995 Machine Tool Instructor, and
Cowley student Daniel Brooks.
College Board Chair Dennis K.
-2005 and a current Board
Shurtz. The event featured
member of the Cowley College The walnut used in the mace
guest speakers Ray Frederick,
Foundation, provided the wel- came out of Maple Grove, a
Jr., Chairman of the Kansas
come address. Mr. Edward Gilli- schoolhouse north of Winfield,
Postsecondary Technical Educa- land, a member of the College’s KS.
GOOD
NEWS
tion Authority, and Linda Fund,
Executive Director of the Kansas Association of Community
College
Trustees
(KACCT).
The Reverend
Christopher Clem
also spoke
at the
event.
DECEMBER
2015
ICC First Kansas Community College
Awarded TEDx Event
Independence Community College has been
approved to host TEDxICC, an official TEDx
event in the spring of 2016.
Konye Ori, associate professor of communication
studies at ICC, first applied to host the TEDx
event in June.
“We want to present ideas and solutions that
could change or influence our expectations of
the future,” said Ori. “We will feature new ideas
on how to incorporate mobile phones in the
classroom. We have new ideas about technological advances for improving the quality of life of
differently abled people. We will present on race
relations and how to improve social unity in
American communities.”
The event will draw on the success of last year’s
Kansas Innovation Summit, and will feature
ground-breaking ideas and concepts from across
the country, as well as members of the commu-
PAGE
11
nity and ICC students; with many of the local initiatives being developed in the college’s Fab Lab.
The ICC Fab Lab (fabrication laboratory) is home
to numerous 3D printers, laser cutters, and other production technologies that are available to
the public through an annual membership.
Just recently, the ICC Innovation Club used the
Fab Lab to design and produce an attachment
that fit a prosthetic arm which enabled the wearer to properly hold a bow to play her violin.
“The Fab Lab is a tremendous resource and inspiration for innovation,” said Ori. “It is so exciting; the things coming out of ICC.”
TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas
Worth Spreading. It started in California as a
four-day conference 30 years ago and has grown
to support its mission with multiple initiatives.
The popularity of TED event has grown exponentially with social media.
JCCC Military Friendly
PCC To Launch eSports-Fall 2016
Johnson County Community College once
again has been recognized as a militaryfriendly school. Victory Media, the originator
of Military Friendly® education and career
resources for veterans and their families, released its 2016 lists of schools and employers
that they say lead the way in providing civilian opportunities for veterans.
Pratt Community College is adding a new varsity program to their roster and it’s not your typical jock
sport. It’s called eSports and PCC will be rolling out the
virtual carpet to new and current students who are interested in the fall 2016 term. eSports, unlike the traditional athletic sport, is a new venture colleges all over
the country, and the world, are adopting and implementing into their athletic and academic programs and
organizations. It’s the sport of competitive video gaming
and Pratt CC is on board. “I knew this would be a viable
opportunity to not only increase enrollment but to also
engage students in a way that they aren’t traditionally,”
said Dr. Michael Fitzpatrick, VP of Instruction. Fitzpatrick also said that his goal for eSports and Information
Networking Technology program is to bring in 35 new
students and a new faculty member that will also be the
eSports coach. The PCC eSports team will be a Varsity
coed academic sport that will be in association with the
revitalized INT program that is slated to launch in the
fall of 2016 as well. Current and prospective students
from all programs are welcome to try-out for the team.
Most recently, JCCC opened a Veteran & Military Resource Center in COM 305, said Kena
Zumalt, coordinator of veteran services at
the college. The center is committed to
providing an environment for veterans to
pursue their academic and personal goals,
explore learning experiences and be involved
on campus.
All students with military experience - past
or present - and military dependents are welcome to visit the center to ask questions, find
resources or to just unwind between classes.
HCC Dragons
Place 9th At NJCAA Tourney
PAGE
12
The Hutchinson Community College volleyball team completed a memorable
weekend at the 2015 NJCAA Division I Volleyball
Tournament with
three
straight
wins and
the program's first
national placing since 2009. Hutchinson
defeated North Idaho College in five sets
to finish ninth in the 2015 National Tournament at the Casper Events Center. This
was Hutchinson's sixth overall national
placing. The Blue Dragons complete the
season with a 34-9 record.
Allen CC Team Shines!
The Allen Community College Red Devil
men’s cross country team won their 1st
ever Region 6 title and 4th straight
Jayhawk East title and the women’s team
won their
1st ever
Jayhawk
East title
and finished 3rd in
the Region.
“Each program had
different
goals and
were able to develop and grow throughout
the season. We just tried to always focus
on the process, that was the only thing we
could at least control. Take care of the little things, and the big stuff will work itself
out” said Head Coach Vince
DeGrado. Congrats Allen Red
Devil Cross Country teams!
This Is Not A Drill!
November is not typically tornado season students at
SCCC/ATS found out that “typical” doesn’t always
apply to tornadoes. As weather alerts sounded from
cell phones and tornado sirens blared, Seward security
officer Everett Ponder, with help from President
Trzaska and Dean Celeste Donovan, calmly and confidently guided people on campus to basements designated as storm shelters. As a reward for performing his
job with excellence, Ponder received an honorary visit
from Hamlet the Pig. Hamlet, a cast-iron pig in an “SC”
sweater, travels campus in search of team members
who have gone above and beyond to help others and
create a positive campus environment.
Colby Big Man Signs Letter Of Intent
Colby Community College sophomore Hassan Attia will
continue his basketball career in 2016-17 at the University of
Hartford, located in West Hartford, Conn. As a freshman last
season, the 6-foot-10, 270-pound center
from Alexandria, Egypt started in 24 of the
30 games he played. He averaged 6.5 points,
6.5 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per contest.
UH competes at the NCAA Division I level as
a member of the America East Conference.
PCC Soccer Coach Named Coach Of
The Year
Pratt Community
College Head Soccer Coach Kevin
Kewley was named
Coach of the Year by
the Kansas Jayhawk
Community College Conference. Kewely lead the PCC
men’s soccer team to a 14-3-1 season. In October the
men’s soccer team won the KJCCC Champion title for
the first time in the programs history which lead
them to compete in District playoffs where they advanced to the NJCAA Plains District playoff semifinals to play Region V nationally ranked Hill College
from Texas. Kewely said it was an amazing year for the Beaver soccer teams and
he is very proud of their hard work and
determination.
DECEMBER
2015