Headlines

HCC Lady Cougars Soccer team marks victory

Surrounded by the Lady Cougars Soccer team, Tommy Stewart made good on his dare following the Oct. 31 victory over STCC.

The Lady Cougars Soccer team got an added treat when they earned the Division III New England Championship on October 31: Athletic Administrator Tommy Stewart made good on his promise to shave his head the day after the Cougars bested their archrivals, the STCC Lady Rams.

Surrounded by the student athletes on Nov. 1, Stewart cheerfully submitted to their good-natured jibes – and their fast-moving electric razors – as he made his own observations on the team’s victory.

“ They deserve it. They earned it,” he said as the electric razors revved up their engines. When the first few clumps of hair began to fall on his shoulders, he added: “I feel light. This is cool.”

This October 31 victory was particularly sweet for the Lady Cougars, who, last year, lost the New England National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) title to STCC. The Cougars are scheduled to go to Maryland on November 4 to play against Oxford College, the number one ranked team in the division. After that, the team hopes to triumph in the final four tournament, which will be played November 11 and 12 in New York.

“ And we’ll do it,” said team co-captain, Cori Marsh, a business major from Westfield. “We have a good roster and we all get along.

HCC marks Halloween with style

Nathan Stearley and Delanie Ela won the title of “Most Beautiful” in the October 31 Halloween Costume Contest.

Who's Elvis?

On October 31, the goblins, ghosts, and ghouls made way for the fairies, creepies, and slightly bizarre when HCC held its annual Halloween costume show. Thirteen students and five HCC staff members competed in the contest. There were appearances by Elvis Presley, Glenda the Good Witch of the South, the Wicked with of the West, a gunslinger, South Paw, Wonder Woman, a French maid, a penguin, and a fairy queen and her minion.

Winning the title of “Most Beautiful” were Nathan Stearley and Delanie Ela, as a fairy queen and her minion.

Samantha Mariani took home the “Most Scary” title while Jacinda Taft and Kali Dainville won for their French maid and penguin get-ups, respectively.

Finally the best custom went to faculty members Aaron Levon and James Morgan.

Elvis Contest: In the above picture, can you name the HCC personality behind the Elvis facade? Put your guess on a slip of paper and bring it to Donahue 101. We will pool all of the correct answers and choose one lucky person to receive a choice of either an HCC golf wind shirt or a an HCC golf umbrella. Drawing will be November 22.

Welcome to the work world

Employee representatives (from left) K. C. Jones, Oscar Ramos, Amanda Trudo and Karl Kamyk talk about the world of work during the October 18 conference in the Kittredge Center.

It takes more than a degree and a spell-checked resume to land a career-enhancing job. Understanding the workplace culture is key to workplace success.

That was one of the lessons that more than 100 HCC students took away from a special employer panel discussion, sponsored by the Cooperative Education and Career Services department on October 18.
Representatives from Ramos Accounting, the Sheraton Springfield, LePage Bakeries, and Wing Memorial Hospital were on hand to let students in on some interview and workplace behavior rules.

“ I look for three things: behavior, reliability, and quality work,” said Karl Kamyk, an HCC grad who is now the director of medical imaging for Wing Memorial Hospital. “The most important is behavior, because, even if you are on-time and the quality of your work is good, if your behavior is poor, if your fellow employees can’t stand working with you, I won’t get what I need.”

All of the panelists advised the students to do some research before applying for a job.
“ Make sure that the job I’m trying to fill is the right job for you,” said Amanda Trudo, a human resources representative from the Maine-based LePage Bakeries. “Don’t come to me just because you want any job.”

Job seekers should be prepared to work hard for their dream jobs. That means doing a little self-inventory before going to the job interview.

“ I’m going to ask you questions, so be prepared to answer questions about what you’ve done and what you want to do five years from now,” said Trudo. “Be prepared to ask some questions, too.”
Oscar Ramos, president of Ramos Accounting, capitalized on that point.

“ Have your questions ready when you come in for the interview. Be prepared to ask ‘what are my responsibilities?’ and ‘is there any training involved?’ Don’t just sit down and wait for the questions.”

Sheraton Hotel human resources director K. C. Jones advised job seekers to enthusiastically embrace even the menial tasks of an entry level position.

“ You’ve got to show that you are willing to do anything,” said Jones, who has hired several HCC grads to work in the Springfield Sheraton. “And internships are great. I wish I’d had the chance to do an internship before I went into the hospitality business. It would have speeded things up. I had to learn everything on the job.”

And what about when the interviewer asks about your strengths and weaknesses?
All of the employers warned students to be prepared for this question, a perennial favorite among human resource professionals. But don’t go overboard.

“ You might want to mention something you had a problem with and then tell the interviewer how you took action to improve it,” said Jones.

“ Or you could tell the interviewer that your biggest weakness is that you work too hard,” said HCC Dean of Career Services Terri Howard. “That’s always a good way to balance it off.”

Students who want to learn more about landing the right job are invited to a series of 30-minute workshops, to be held in the Kittredge Center, room 322, Wednesdays at 11 a.m. and Thursdays at 12:30 p.m.

Still work to do

Some of the students, faculty and staff who will be going to New Orleans in January.

Three hots and a cot.

That’s what’s in store for the 40 HCC folks who are going to New Orleans in January to help rebuild the hurricane-devastated city. By day, they will be banging nails, sanding floors, and painting walls, under the coordination of Habitat For Humanity. At night, they will return to an abandoned elementary school, where they will dine on canned ravioli and sleep on cots.

That doesn’t sound too bad to Lisa Batchelor, an HCC deaf studies major who is one of 20 students making the trip. Nine months ago, the 41-year-old mother found herself homeless, the victim of a suspicious fire in her Chicopee apartment. For months, she and her family were forced to live in a hotel where the assurance of three hots (meals) and a cot was always cause for celebration. During that time, the HCC Waiting to Excel club raised hundreds of dollars to help make ends meet, clothes were donated, and a HCC professor helped arrange public housing, where her husband and children now live. But Batchelor cannot shake the feeling of hopelessness—and the defiant hope—that overtook her as she watched her home go up in flames last February.
It’s like unfinished business.

“ I remember thinking when the Red Cross came (to the apartment fire), I thought: ‘I’ve got to do this. I want to work for the Red Cross because it feels good to know that someone cares about me.’ The lady from the Red Cross really helped me. I was crying because my son lived downstairs (in the first floor apartment). She hugged me and stayed with me until I knew he was okay.”
Batchelor wants to bring that same feeling to someone else, and she knows that now’s the time to do it.

“ I’m like anyone else who read about (Hurricane) Katrina, and you know, I read about it and then put it out of my mind,” she said. “The headlines fade, and you find that you just don’t think about it.”

Batchelor pauses and wipes a tear away. Being forgotten is the hardest part.
“ I figure there were a lot of people helping out when it (Katrina) first happened, but, now, people are on to other things,” she said. “People didn’t forget me. Now it’s time for me to give something back.”

Batchelor and her fellow HCC volunteers will get some practice on November 4, when they help Habitat for Humanity build a home here in Holyoke. Once finished, that home will be sold, at cost, to a low-income family, using a zero-interest loan. According to trip organizer Vivian Ostrowski, volunteers at the Holyoke construction site will gain the kind of practical knowledge that they’ll need when they get to New Orleans in January. Preparing themselves for the emotional impact of the New Orleans trip is another challenge altogether, however.

“ When I went [to New Orleans] in June there were no lawnmowers, no music, no children running around,” she said. “It got into my bones. It felt like a natural disaster that had turned into a human disaster.”

Students participating in the New Orleans project have been asked to pay $125 of the $400 cost of the trip. So far, students, staff, and friends of HCC have raised $3,100 toward the $5,500 needed to make their participation possible. Any individual or corporation that donates more than $50 will appear on a special edition NOLA / HCC T-shirt that will be designed by HCC art students and printed up prior to the trip. If you wish to contribute to the NOLA efforts, please contact Ostrowski at (413) 552-2418.

HCC welcomes Bronner

Kathleen Bronner has accepted the position of Development Officer in the HCC Office of Institutional Development.

A 1977 HCC graduate, Bronner earned her BA in American Studies from Mount Holyoke College, where she held several development positions over the last 25 years. Bronner and her husband Lenard live in Granby.

Barowsky honored by fund raisers

Ned Barowsky

Congratulations go out to Ned Barowsky who was chosen to receive the 2006 National Philanthropy Outstanding Volunteer Fundraiser award by the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Western Massachusetts Chapter, Inc. The vice chair of the HCC Board of Trustees, Barowsky will be honored for his work as the chair of HCC’s Gift of Opportunity Campaign during a luncheon banquet at the Log Cabin on November 15.

When it officially closed on June 30, The Gift of Opportunity Campaign had raised $5.2 million dollars in gifts and commitments. Also being honored will be the Picknelly Family, Brenda Manarchik, and St. Germain Investment Management.

ESL celebrates 20 years

2006 marks the 20th year of HCC’s English as a Second Language (ESL) program. This is a five-level, academic program that has served thousands of students from our local community and around the world.

To mark this anniversary, the ESL program will sponsor a party on Wednesday, November 15 at 11 a.m. in the HCC cafeteria, featuring international food, music, and a proclamation from Holyoke Mayor Michael Sullivan. The HCC community is invited to this celebration.

There are currently 163 students enrolled in HCC’s ESL program, which has four full-term and eight adjunct faculty members. Many former ESL students are now in other college classes at HCC or have transferred to other institutions such as the University of Massachusetts, Mount Holyoke College, and Westfield State College. The program supports its students with a variety of programs, including professional tutors, supplemental instructors, and learning coaches.

Shared Governance Committee updates the community

On October 24, Louise K. Hurwitz updated more than 100 faculty and staff on the status of the Shared Governance Committee’s work. At this time, the committee has proposed a draft of committee structure to include all standing, ad-hoc, and task force committees. The Shared Governance Committee hopes that by incorporating all committees into a governance framework, better decisions will be reached regarding policy and that communication about policy and decisions will be more effective.

The Shared Governance Committee also plans to distribute a questionnaire to all AFSCME members asking for feedback about what would help members to feel more included in campus meetings, decision-making, and communication. Those results will be shared with the college.

In addition, the Shared Governance Committee has started creating a model for shared governance that is in its very early stages. The committee meets in Donahue 370 every other Friday at 8 a.m and on Mondays at 2:30 p.m. Feel free to contact Louise Hurwitz with questions or comments.

HCC tapped for Treehouse Grant

Holyoke Community College has been named the recipient of a Learn and Serve America grant from Easthampton’s Treehouse Foundation. The grant will fund a community partnership that focuses on the needs of disadvantaged youth in the region.

The Treehouse partnership promotes programs that focus on academic success, youth development, access to higher education, preparation for civic leadership, and/or connections between civic and workforce skill development. Two full-time HCC faculty work with the Treehouse Foundation, designing service-learning courses that engage their students with members of the Treehouse community.

For more information, contact Jen Dolan at (413) 552-2741 or Lisa Mahon at (413) 552-2369.

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Notices

HCC Board of trustees eliminates some fees

At its October 24 meeting, the HCC Board of Trustees voted to eliminate four student fees, beginning with the spring 2007 semester. The fees are:

1. The $50 non-refundable deposit
2. The $10 late registration fee
3. The $3 add/drop fee
4. The $10 application fee

The Finance Subcommittee had recommended that the full board eliminate the fees to streamline the payment process and to make registration easier. Noting that these fees had generated more than $70,000 in revenue for the college in fiscal year 2006, the subcommittee said it may recommend a $1 per credit fee increase for fiscal year 2008.

Pandemic training at HCC

On Saturday, November 18, the Holyoke Board of Health and Holyoke Hospital will send staff to HCC to conduct a pandemic training drill, designed to test the city’s response to a public health emergency.

The drill will be held in the main court at the Bartley Center, and will run from about 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. The weight room, locker rooms, and multi-purpose rooms at the Bartley Center will be on a normal Saturday schedule.

Emergency personnel will dispense flu vaccine to Holyoke residents during this drill, so there will be increased traffic to and from the college. Reminders will be sent the week leading up to the drill.

HCC to host Workforce training Fund Workshops

Employers are invited to learn about accessing the state’s Workforce Training Fund during two workshops, to be held at HCC, November 14, 8-10:30 a.m., and November 28, 8-11:30 a.m.

The two workshops will help employers access the $21 million Massachusetts Workforce Training Fund, which provides eligible private and non-profit businesses with funding to train their workers. Continental breakfast will be served at both workshops.

Attendees should register on or before November 3 by calling (413) 552-2122 or by emailing cbpd@hcc.mass.edu.

HCC Connection is published every other Tuesday (or thereabouts) and is distributed to the campus community, and friends of the college, and local media.

To be added to our email distribution list, please email: Kimberly Wilson, kwilson@hcc.mass.edu
To submit campus event information for inclusion in HCC Connection, email Natalia Munoz, nmunoz@hcc.mass.eduwith details including date, time, location, cost if any, open to public or not, web links (if appropriate) and contact information (name, phone number, and email). Deadline: end of day Friday before publication.

Natalia Munoz
Assistant Director of Marketing and Public Relations
Holyoke Community College
Phone: (413) 552-2183 Fax: (413) 552-2479
cell: (413) 348-8515 (emergency)
nmunoz@hcc.mass.edunmunoz@hcc.mass.edu
Holyoke Community College is the Commonwealth’s oldest community college, serving almost 9,000 students annually in 82 associate degree options and 42 certificate programs, and over 4,000 in noncredit and workforce development courses. The college has the highest transfer rate of any community college statewide, holding articulation agreements with 27 colleges and universities. Recognized for its Honors Program, distance learning curriculum, learning communities, and service to students, HCC anticipates opening its state of-the-art Kittredge Business Center in Spring 2006.