February
14, 2006,
Tuesday,
February 14, 2006
Bill's Bulletin
Headlines:
• Mosaic contest challenges HCC
• Wistariahurst lecture series features
Isaza, Bartley
• Calling all entrepreneurs
• The truth about community college graduation
rates
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Bill’s Bulletin is
a feature of HCC Connection Online where President William F. Messner
shares news about all-college initiatives and the college’s
expanding involvement in the region.
Jourdain joins the HCC Board of
Trustees
Governor W. Mitt Romney last month appointed
Holyoke City Councilor Kevin A. Jourdain to a seat on the HCC Board
of Trustees. Jourdain assumes the seat vacated in 2003 by trustee
John Blascek. A tax examiner for the Massachusetts Department of
Revenue, Jourdain will attend his first board meeting on March 28.
Please join me in welcoming Jourdain to our community.
Kittredge Center moves ahead
Progress continues to be made on the Kittredge
Center. It is our hope that faculty and staff will be moving into
the new building over the spring break and that classes will be
offered there in late March.
Progress made on new access road
The local environmental commission has
approved the construction of a new access road connecting HCC with
Route 202. We are now awaiting final approval on the project from
the state’s Natural Heritage and Endangered Species program.
We hope to receive a final determination from state officials by
the end of the spring semester.
Adult and Family Education Center moves
forward
Funding has been secured for HCC’s
Adult and Family Education Center, which will be operated out of
the Intermodal Transportation Center on Maple Street in Holyoke.
City and transportation officials are now negotiating renovation
and other issues, so that work on the building can begin sometime
this spring.
Mosaic
contest challenges HCC
If we’re going to celebrate diversity, everyone’s got
to be invited to the party.
That’s the idea behind the Mosaic contest, a unique challenge
dreamed up by Student Activities Office Intern Krystal Crowe.
The Mosaic contest asks everyone in the HCC community to
come up with some personal expression of the campus’s diverse
composition. That could mean you focus on the myriad cultural, religious
and ethnic backgrounds of our staff and students. Or maybe you are
struck, as Crowe was, by the diverse economic and life circumstances
that find a home at HCC.
“Some of the students I see here are single moms or people
who are working a few jobs just to be able to come to school here,”
said Crowe, a graduate student at Springfield College. “That’s
not something I had to deal with and I am so amazed by what I see.”
The form your submission takes is almost entirely up to you. It
could be a poem. It could be an essay (200 words or less). Maybe
a photograph or a piece of artwork best expresses your take on the
HCC experience.
Still have brain freeze? Crowe suggests you respond to the words
of former President James E. Carter, who wrote:
“We have become not a melting pot, but a beautiful mosaic.
Different people, different beliefs, different hopes, different
dreams.”
The first place entry will receive a $50 gift certificate to Barnes
and Noble. The second and third place entries will receive $25 certificates.
All submissions will be publicly displayed on the HCC campus during
Diversity Week, March 6 to 13.
The deadline for submissions is Feb. 28, and the contest is open
to students, faculty and staff. For more information or to throw
some ideas around, contact Krystal Crowe in room 310 of the G Building.
Or send her an email at kcrowe@hcc.mass.edu.
Wistariahurst
lecture series features Isaza, Bartley
On March 1, Orlando Isaza, special assistant to the president for
community affairs, will help kick off Historical Perspectives,
a four-part lecture series at the Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot
St., Holyoke. This, and subsequent talks, will begin at 6 p.m. on
the first Wednesday of each month.
Isaza and Carlos Vega, executive director of Nueva Esperanza, will
speak about the migration of Puerto Ricans to Holyoke from 1950
to the present.
“The Puerto Rican people are now half the population of the
city and 80 percent of the Holyoke public school system. If we are
to move forward as a city, it’s crucial for people to appreciate
the history of this migration,” said Isaza. “Puerto
Rican people are central to the culture of this community and they
will play a role in our economic future.”
While there is no charge for the talks, donations are requested
to defray the cost of honorariums and refreshments.
The series will continue on April 5 with a talk by Burton Resnic
that focuses on the incredible journey of his father, Samuel Resnic.
That talk, entitled “From Immigrant Newsboy to Lawyer, Businessman,
Holyoke’s largest Taxpayer and Mayor” will begin at
6 p.m.
On May 3, Robert Fowler, president of Hampden Papers, Inc., will
talk about how Holyoke earned the moniker of “Paper City of
America.”
The series will end June 7 with a talk from retired HCC President
David Bartley, who will speak about the educational institution
that has transformed thousands of lives over the last 60 years.
For more information call (413) 322-5660.
Calling
all entrepreneurs
The Harold Grinspoon Entrepreneurship Initiative has announced that
$7,500 will be available for cash grants to HCC students who show
a special spark of creativity in their business aspirations.
Don’t let the “business” part throw you off. True
entrepreneurs can be found in almost any major. Last year, HCC students
studying graphic arts, engineering and business administration split
a $7,500 grant to help further their goals.
One winner, Jessica Hill, was recognized for her hand-made jewelry
business, Milady’s Jewels. Another, Linda Devine, received
the prize to boost her company that produces wearable pieces of
art. Engineering student and Iraq veteran Andrew LaPre was recognized
for powdercoating vehicles, a service which he hopes to promote
to the show car and motorcycle market.
This year, it could be the English student who wants to market a
more literate brand of fortune cookies or an early childhood major
who’s developed an ice cream cone that truly doesn’t
drip all over your toddler’s hands…we can’t predict
where the best new ideas will come from. (But we have a hunch they’ll
come from HCC.)
The deadline for applications to the Grinspoon Foundation is March
5, but you must pitch your idea to an HCC faculty member
before it can be submitted. To pitch your idea, contact Anne Potter
at (413) 552-2347 or Kelly O’Connor at (413) 552-2315.
The
truth about community college graduation rates
The following is a re-print of an editorial
piece that ran in the February 5 edition of The Republican.
Written by HCC President William Messner and STCC President Ira
Rubenzahl, it responds to recently published news reports which
criticized community colleges for not attaining higher graduation
rates.
The recent headlines decrying the graduation rates of Massachusetts
community colleges do a disservice to the more than 117,000 students
who depend on our institutions as affordable, accessible entry points
to higher education. All 15 of Massachusetts’ community colleges
aspire to do the best by our students – and that includes
higher graduation rates – but our success should not be judged
using antiquated criteria.
The graduation rates cited in The Republican and other newspapers
describe the experience of first-time, full-time students pursuing
a degree or certificate – a profile that characterized four-year
college enrollments in the 1950s and 1960s. We are in the 21st century,
serving 21st century students. We need to apply 21st century standards
to our measure of student success.
Community colleges attract a wide-range of students with diverse
life circumstances and educational goals. Less than half the students
entering HCC and STCC do so with a particular degree or certificate
in mind. Following a lock-step path toward graduation is not realistic
– or appropriate – for many of them.
More than half of the students who enroll through our open admission
policy need to build their skills before taking on college-level
work. We welcome these students and aggressively champion their
educational goals.
But these students do not show up in the statistics as “graduates”
because they take longer than three years to complete their studies.
As educators, we know that their success cannot be reflected on
such narrow terms.
Many students come through our doors to get their first taste of
higher education by taking one or two college-level classes. More
than 60 percent of our students begin a journey of part-time education
that can take them four, five, or more years to complete. Some transfer
to four-year institutions well before their graduation date.
But all of these students are labeled “non-completers”
by the statistical model that is now making headlines. We don’t
buy it.
At HCC, 25 percent of the first-time, full-time students who began
their studies in 2001 graduated with their intended degree or certificate
in 2004. That statistic doesn’t tell the whole story, though.
Another 19 percent of that same group transferred to a four-year
institution and 9 percent remained enrolled in HCC courses. By fall
2005, the graduation rate for that same group went up to 30 percent
and 6 percent were enrolled in HCC courses.
At STCC, this success story repeats itself: by fall 2005, 29 percent
of the full-time degree-seeking students who began their studies
in 2001 had graduated, 16 percent had transferred to a four-year
institution, and 7 percent were still enrolled in STCC classes.
The big picture painted by these statistics should soothe the nerves
of those calling for higher graduation rates: more than 50 percent
of the students remained committed to their educational goals. As
educators who work with these students every day, we never doubted
it.
The statistics, accurately interpreted, tell us something else,
as well. Community college students pursue their education at a
pace dictated by life circumstances. Almost 90 percent of our students
work, half of them more than 20 hours a week. Some of our students,
enrolled in career programs, are recruited by industry to fill full-time
jobs before they graduate. Others will temporarily opt out of their
college studies to earn more money or to meet family obligations.
These students are still pursuing their educational goals, but they
will easily slide through the cracks of a narrow statistical analysis.
In today’s educational marketplace, working students are free
to construct their own educational experience, often enrolling in
multiple institutions before achieving their educational goals.
Technically, these students are considered “non-completers”
at any of the institutions in which they enroll. But is that really
a fair assessment? Many will go on to finish their degrees or certificates
or will attain the skills they needed to compete in the workplace.
Their only failure, it seems, is that they didn’t achieve
their goals the way previous generations did.
As open access entry points to higher education, community colleges
afford hope and opportunity to students from all walks of life.
Measuring the success of this lofty mission is something that concerns
us all. The public deserves an accurate assessment of our work and
we benefit from the scrutiny. The narrow focus on graduation rates
does not accomplish this goal. The Massachusetts community colleges
have developed a more accurate definition of success - one that
embraces all of the complexities faced by today’s community
college student. We suggest that those who are truly interested
in student achievement consult this definition. Then, let’s
work together to make it happen.
Campus
Briefs
Verizon Foundation
gives $6,000 to HCC's Adult Basic Education program
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HCC
President Bill Messner, left and president of the board for
The Community Education Project, Irma Medina, right, flank
Carol Baribeau, Verizon Regional Director of Public Affairs
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HCC’s efforts to make higher education
more accessible got a big boost this January when the Verizon Foundation
donated $6,000 for the ABE-to-College Transition Program.
The ABE-to-College program is part of a three-tiered effort to make
higher education more accessible. Also involved in this effort are
community based adult education providers like the Community Education
Project, the Care Center and other members of the Juntos ABE Collaborative.
Each year at HCC 40 to 50 students benefit from this program.
“Verizon is so very pleased to work with,
and provide support to, HCC's Adult Basic Education Program,”
said Carol L. Baribeau, Verizon’s regional director for public
affairs.
“Our goal through the Verizon Foundation is to help move America
to a more literate society. This program not only enhances literacy
but also enhances college access to an underrepresented population.
Verizon uses a combination of corporate philanthropy, employee participation,
celebrity volunteers, partnerships with literacy organizations and
contributions from our customers to improve the lives of
others. In 2004, Verizon awarded more than 900 literacy grants totaling
more than $18 million.”
The $6,000 will support increased counseling services for nontraditional
Latino students.
Culinary Arts department
luncheon series
Forget that bag lunch on Wednesdays. Each Wednesday this semester
the Culinary Arts Department will offer a three-course meal, featuring
specialties from around the globe. Created and served by our HCC
students, these are meals you won’t want to miss. You can
reserve a seat at one of these scrumptious sittings by signing a
reservation sheet, which is posted outside of Frost 255 at 10 a.m.,
one week prior to the luncheon.
The cost is $6, payable at the door by cash or check. Seatings are
at 11:15 a.m., noon, and 12:30 p.m. Please allow an hour for the
entire meal.
Here is a look at what’s coming up:
• February 15: Cajun
• March 1: spa
• March 8: American Diner
• March 22: Asian
• April 5: Indian
• April 19: Caribbean
• April 26: Italian
• May 3: Mexican.
HCC welcomes 10 new people
to new positions
Join us in welcoming the following people who
have been either recently hired or recently appointed to new positions:
• Jack Liu, staff assistant, World Institute for Social
and Economic Research (WISER);
• Malay Chhon, clerk, the Welcome Center;
• Deborah Levenson, special programs coordinator for Retention
& Adult Support;
• Gardy Guiteau, staff associate for the Center for Academic
and Program Support (CAPS);
• Diane Pacitti, assistant professor of pharmacy & pre-pharmacy
programs;
• Steven Pinkney, maintainer;
• Isolda Ortega-Bustamante, acting grants development specialist;
• Wilfredo Rios, maintainer;
• Ralph Gould, director of public safety;
• Zandrina Atherley, acting Upward Bound program
manager.
Notices
Deadline for Marieb
Chair nominations is Feb. 17
It’s time for you to nominate an outstanding faculty member
for the Elaine Marieb Faculty Chair for Teaching Excellence. Applications,
available in Donahue 101, are due February 17. Announcement of the
recipient will be made during the HCC Professional Association meeting,
May 10.
This award celebrates a faculty member who has inspired students
and colleagues to do their best. Any full-time faculty member who
has worked for the college for at least five years is eligible for
consideration.The HCC Foundation will reward that person with a
$4,200 grant, which they can use to enhance classroom learning.
More than $100,000 in scholarships available
If you, or someone you know, could use some help paying for your
education, stop by Donahue 101 and check out the scholarships now
available through the Institutional Development Office. There are
more than 90 scholarships available. The deadline for submitting
an application is March 29.
Project Management course still has openings
Registrations are still being accepted for a 14-week Project Management
Evening Certificate program offered through Holyoke Community College’s
Center for Business & Professional Development.
Classes will meet Tuesday nights, Feb. 21 to May 23 from 6 to 9
p.m. A variety of tuition assistance programs are available to cover
the course fee of $3,695. All course materials are covered. For
registration and scheduling information, call Maria Vargas at (413)
552-2122. Technical questions can be addressed to Mike Simard, computer
training representative, at (413) 977-6943.
Upcoming
Campus Events:
Student Activities and Events:
Contact Vivian Ostrowski (413) 552-2418; vostrowski@hcc.mass.edu
for more information.
Wednesday, February
15, WCCH, 11 a.m.
Battle of the DJs / Hip hop performance
DJ Theory and a guest will battle it out to see who can play the
hottest tunes on WCCH. Then, at 11:30 a.m., Boston hip hop artist
(and Springfield native) Krumbsnatcha will put on a live performance.
Friday, February 17, 11:30 a.m., Mt. Wachusett
Community College
“Beyond Diversity: Fighting Racism in the Age of Backlash”
Timothy Wise, a noted author and activist, will give a talk about
race relations on Friday, February 17 at 11:30 a.m. at Mt. Wachussett
Community College in Gardner. Anyone who would like to arrange
transportation to this free event may call Vivian Ostrowski student
activities coordinator, at (413) 552-2418.
Wise has spoken to over 80,000 people in 47 states, and on over
350 college campuses, including Harvard, Stanford, and the law
schools at Yale and Columbia. He has trained corporate, government,
and law enforcement officials on methods for dismantling racism
in their institutions, and has served as a consultant for plaintiff’s
attorneys in federal discrimination cases in New York and Washington
State.
Sunday, February 19, 5 p.m., Chez Josef,
Agawam
Upward Bound celebrates 10th birthday
The HCC Upward Bound program will mark its 10th anniversary
by honoring three of its biggest supporters. Congressman John
Olver, Dr.Elaine Ironfield and Dr. Laura Coelen will be the guests
of honor at this banquet, which will also feature a visit by Dr.
Sonia Correa Pope, Upward Bound’s first director.
Tuesday, February 21, 11 a.m., cafeteria
Kick-off HCC’s Wellness Campaign with a Hoola Hoop Hodown
HCC President William Messner and Martin Luther King Jr. Community
Center Youth Director Orlander Worthy will kick off a two-month
series of health-promotion activities by demonstrating how to
shake it with the Hoola Hoop. If you want to join them, there
will be hoops available.
Tuesday February 28, noon and 1p.m.
Every Friday at 7:30 a.m.
Campus Walks.
Beginning the week of February 28, you can sneak some physical
activity into your day by joining the campus walking brigade every
Tuesday or Friday. Meet at the fountain. Different leaders, including
everyone’s favorite, Ace the Vet-Tech Dog, or one of his
canine friends, will join us.
Wednesday, February 22, 11 a.m., cafeteria
Black History Month celebrated with performance from MLKCC
Students from Springfield’s Martin Luther King Community
Jr. Community Center will celebrate the life of Rosa Parks in
a performance that includes music, song, and theatre.
Wednesday, February 22, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.,
cafeteria
Black History Month celebrated with a special exhibit
The Institute of Black Invention & Technology will bring its
“Black Inventors Showcase” to HCC for one day only.
Institute founders Carroll and Sandra Lamb will be on hand to
answer questions about the exhibit, which traces the history of
Black inventors from the days of slavery to the present.
Tuesday, February 28, 7 p.m., Leslie Phillips
Forum
Wednesday, March 1, 2:30 p.m., cafeteria
The Vagina Monologues
Fifteen women, all members of the HCC community, will present
this thought-provoking play to celebrate “V Day: Until the
Violence Stops” a global effort to end violence against
women. Based on interviews conducted by playwright Eve Ensler,
the play honors the breadth of women’s lives, taking on
oft-silenced topics like childbirth, orgasm, misogyny and rape.
Tickets to the February 28 performance are $1 for students, $3
for others, and all of the proceeds will benefit Necessities,
the Northampton-based battered women’s shelter.
March 1, 11 a.m., cafeteria
Stepping Show
HCC alum Adrian Conde (now at the University of Massachusetts)
is sponsoring a Stepping show. Come learn about the role of Stepping
in Black fraternities and historically Black colleges—plus
see a great performance.
March 1, 11a.m. Frost 309
Peace Corps presentation
Celebrate the Peace Corps’ 45th birthday and hear about
our colleagues’ experiences in North Africa, India, and
other locales around the globe. Speakers will include HCC staffers
Larry Leavitt, Michelle Sedor, Margaret Sweeney, and Pam Kennedy.
HCC Music Events
All concerts and events are free and open to the public
unless otherwise indicated. For information, call (413) 552-2485.
Sunday,
March 5, 3 p.m., The Leslie Phillips Forum.
Annual HCC Classical Faculty Showcase Concert
Sunday, March 12, 3 p.m., The Leslie Phillips
Forum
Holyoke Civic Symphony: French and Russian masterpieces.
HCC's Taber Gallery
Contact Amy Johnquest (413) 552-2614; ajohnquest@hcc.mass.edu
for more information.
The campus is invited to view ”Storyboard”
an exhibit of 150 paintings and drawings by Dean Nimmer, on display
at the Taber Art Gallery until February 16.
Monday, February 27 to Thursday, March 30
The campus and public are invited to view Burnt Unit,
an exhibition of mixed media digital photography and welded steel
sculpture by artists Jeff Derose and Michael Martindell.
March 8, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. gallery opening
There will be an opening reception with a talk by the artists.
The Taber Gallery is located in the Donahue building of HCC, 303
Homestead Avenue, Holyoke. The gallery hours have not yet been
posted for this semester. Please call Amy Johnquest at (413) 552-2614
for a schedule.
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.
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