The Digest
What’s Happening at KVCC
What’s below in this edition
ü Spurring enrollment (Pages 1/2) ü Diversity on the job (Page 6)
ü Academy selectees (Pages 2-4) ü Meet the dinos (Pages 6/7)
ü ‘Innovative’ degree (Page 4) ü Summer at KVM (Page 8)
ü M-TEC leadership (Pages 4/5) ü Crafting comic books (Page 8)
ü Pay-phone info (Page 5) ü ‘Fit 2007’ (Pages 8/9)
ü Cougar Connection (Page 6) ü And Finally (Page 9)
☻☻☻☻☻☻
Call students, build enrollment
KVCC's annual calling campaign to contact enrolled students who have not yet paid for fall-semester classes is scheduled for the week of July 30-Aug. 3, and volunteers are needed.
It's a chance to help prospective students not lose their classes, and to help the college build a healthy, vital, ever-growing enrollment.
Those who have made the calls in past years report that students, their parents, and friends deeply appreciate the gentle reminder, and the college's caring environment.
And it works.
Prior to the 2006 effort, around 900 had complied to meet the college's payment deadline. The results -- nearly 5,000 calls were made and 4,092 paid prior to batch cancellation.
Organizer Pat Pojeta says that if 100 volunteers step forward, the load will be lightened on all those who make the calls. Contact her at extension 4018 or .
Volunteers may make their calls during the workday at their work stations. They will have the full week to complete their calls. Scripts will be provided with clear, easy-to-follow instructions on how to record information. These scripts will be delivered to each volunteer Monday (July 30) morning.
Here are the folks who have volunteered to make calls so far:
Amy Louallen, Candy Horton, Kathy Anderson, Patricia Wallace, Michael McCall, Michael Sweat, Ruth Baker, Mary Johnson, Lynne Morrison, Brenda Moncreif, Lisa Winch, Theresa Hollowell, Lauren Beresford, Pat Pojeta, Louise Wesseling, Tarona Guy, Karen Visser;
Rose Crawford, Kristina Bazali, Pamela Siegfried, Diane Vandenberg, Marylan Hightree, Bruce Kocher, Nancy Roberts, Tammy Saucedo, Jack Bley, Davy Mayfield;
Robyn Robinson, Karen Way, Gerri Jacobs, Jackie Cantrell, Bonnie McGee, Annette Arkush, Tom Thinnes, Colleen Olson;
Steve Doherty, Gloria Norris, Lisa Gruber, Jeff Donovan, Roger Miller,
Patricia Sulier, Ray Andres, Karen Steeno vanStaveron, Marie Arrieta, Laurie Dykstra, Judy Rose, Chris Robbins, Betty Van Voorst, Laura Cosby, Jenny Buysse, Cindy Tinney, Bonita Bates, and Margaret Lester.
Orientation Day for 1st Automotive Academy
The pioneer class in KVCC’s inaugural Automotive Academy will gather for orientation on Friday, Aug. 3, as the college’s gears up for a second round of applications to fill the next group.
The 18 members were chosen from a field of 34 prospects who met the May 31 application deadline.
“The selection process was a daunting task to say the least,” said David “Charlie” Fuller, who has moved to the position of director of advanced technology career academies at KVCC after several years as manager of the college’s auto-tech lab.
Three applications arrived too late while there were another dozen post-deadline inquiries about KVCC’s entrance into an accelerated training model to provide the next generation of automotive technicians.
All will be channeled into the next pool of applicants when the process of selecting the members of the second academy begins in January.
The 18 “pioneers” are:
Matthew McClung, Christopher Pepsis, Lucas LaPointe, Stephen Rome, Adam Cornelius, Adam Cagle, Jeffrey Hoyle, Richard Sackett, Jacob Mwania, and James Sootsman, all of Kalamazoo; Matt Church of Richland; Corina Owsiany of Mattawan; Travis Ridenour of Scotts; Israel Baldivia of Hartford; Phillip Harden of Battle Creek; Gerald Lentz of Paw Paw; Matthew Drake of Plainwell; and Daniel James of Portage.
Among the selection criteria in the competitive process were the quality of the written applications, a “documented work ethic,” interest in and knowledge of automotive technology, letters of recommendation, and driving records. Fuller and members of the KVCC automotive program’s advisory committee interviewed each applicant.
“Those who didn’t make the cut this time and those who missed the deadline,” Fuller said, “have been invited to apply again and, in the interim, enroll in our existing auto-tech courses to hone their skills.”
The 18 will come together on Aug. 3 in Room 5620 on the Texas Township Campus. They will meet each other, tour the campus and the auto-tech facilities, and be introduced to the academy’s expectations for them.
The first KVCC Automotive Academy will begin on Sept. 4 as a three-phase, 42-week approach to fast-track training that Southwest Michigan auto dealerships and shops have requested.
The first-time-only fee is $7,000 for more than 1,500 hours of intensive, targeted professional instruction. This introductory offer includes uniforms valued at $300, $700 worth of textbooks, and $7,000 in high-tech tools that automotive technicians need to function. Uniforms will be fitted and tools ordered at the orientation.
“This will be like a job,” Fuller said. “We looked for students who could make a full-time commitment, not somebody who will skip a class here and there.”
The 18 enrollees will be in class or in the lab from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Mondays through Thursdays, and 8 to 2:30 on Fridays.
“For example,” Fuller said, “our regular introductory course in shop fundamentals spans 15 weeks and meets twice a week. In the academy, it will be done in eight consecutive class days. In other words, don’t miss a class.”
In future auto academies, the fee could be $12,000 or higher, including the $7,000 rebate for the professional set of tools.
Even that is still a bargain, Fuller said, because similar programs across the country carry a price tag of $25,000 to $30,000, and many of those don’t include the tools offer.
The thrust to create an automotive academy came from the advisory committee, Fuller said. “They wanted a fast-track training program and to offer another avenue for students interested in targeted instructions in this field. They told us what we needed to teach students and they recommended lots of hands-on learning.”
Fuller followed their urging by scanning programs across the country that focused on intensive, accelerated high-tech training. It was a best-practices assessment.
“We adopted what we liked and modified what we didn’t,” Fuller said. “In effect, the KVCC academy will be one of a kind in that effect.”
With that, he crafted a proposal for the college’s program of innovative-thinking grants and received a three-year approval.
In addition to the accelerated-training modules, Fuller will employ a “live-shop atmosphere” and will operate as a noncredit entity.
However, those who successfully complete the academy, which will be 100 percent directed toward automotive courses, can be eligible for 33 credits. Those can be applied toward a two-year degree (66 credit hours) by completing additional technical courses and passing classes in college and technical writing, technical math, political science, social science, and wellness/physical education.
In the regular auto-tech curriculum, the cost for a two-year degree is about $6,000, including books. Students generally provide the basic tools, while more sophisticated equipment is available in the KVCC lab.
After two busy phases of five-days-a-week training, the academy’s third stage comes into play, and even more reality enters the picture.
“Over the summer when the auto lab is generally not used,” Fuller said, “we’ll turn it into an authentic repair shop. Students will learn about and practice customer relations, business skills, the process of ordering parts, communication skills, and preparing accurate estimates.”
In addition to working on the vehicles owned and operated by KVCC, “Cougar Automotive” – if that’s what it’s called – will be open to the public.
The only caveat is that the prospective customer is driving “a decent vehicle that has educational value,” Fuller said.
Whatever the name, Fuller said, “the shop will be run like a business. At the end of each day, the students will gather to learn whether they were productive and assess their efficiency. If some kind of problem crops up, it’s back to the classroom to review procedures, the diagnoses, and what went wrong in the repairs.”
One of the offshoot objectives, Fuller said, is to create a sense of friendship and camaraderie among the 18 “pioneers.”
He has maintained a close connection with a colleague he trained with in Colorado. “When out in the field,” he said, “I hope they feel free to call each other when facing some kind of a repair problem or need some additional information.”
In addition to stressing the eight automotive-knowledge areas that are certified by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence and preparing students to reach those standards, the KVCC academy will explore advanced-technology and hybrid vehicles and alternative fuels because, in many instances, a different branch of knowledge is required. Auto-body repairs may also some day come into play.
The initial auto academy will be completed by July 2008.
Financial aid is available, and scholarship funds awardable through the Kalamazoo Promise also qualify for the KVCC Automotive Academy.
New degree is ‘Innovation’ finalist
KVCC’s new degree in occupational/technical studies was among the 35 finalists vying for Business Review West Michigan magazine’s Innovation Michigan awards for 2007.
Fourteen of the finalists were Kalamazoo County endeavors and enterprises. They were chosen from among more than 150 nominees.
According to the college’s nomination, the new degree was created as a mechanism to support work-related learning based on workplace skills. The heart of the concept is the evaluation of workplace-training programs provided by business and industry that can be converted to college credits, which can be applied toward a KVCC degree or certificate program.
One of the initial results stemmed from chemical operators at Pfizer Global Manufacturing Inc. who had been required to complete two to three years of specialized instruction.
A KVCC faculty member evaluated the Pfizer-based training, awarding 30 credits in various disciplines. Five Pfizer workers received associate degrees last May as a result of the new initiative. Another 20 either began college studies or returned to school to complete a degree because of the incentive.
The nomination stated “the program allows KVCC a tangible, no-cost mechanism to support the educational and development goals of companies of all sizes and sectors.
New officers, members for M-TEC board
Dan Blackledge has succeeded David Hatfield as the chairman of the advisory board for the Kalamazoo Valley Community College Michigan Technical Education Center (M-TEC).
Hatfield, president and chief executive officer of Main Street Savings Bank in Hastings, has held the chairmanship since the KVCC M-TEC opened its doors in March of 2001 in The Groves, the college’s business-education-technology park on 9th Street along I-94.
The board’s bylaws limits membership to a pair of three-year terms.
Also affected by this stipulation is Tom Breznau, executive director of the Stryker Center, and, like Hatfield, a founding member.
Blackledge, who recently retired from Blue Granite that he established, has launched another enterprise – Marion Bio-Energy.
Moving up to the board’s vice chairmanship is Randall Eberts, executive director of the W. E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.
M-TEC board membership also terminates when retirement is involved, which means that Portage Public Schools Superintendent Peter McFarlane is also being replaced.
With the maximum number of members set at 15, coming on to the M-TEC Advisory Board are:
● John Hayden, vice president and chief human resources officer for Bronson Healthcare Group
● Pat Morand, managing director of the Southwest Michigan First Life Science Fund
● Jeff O’Brien, chief executive officer and president of Workforce Strategies Inc.
● Phil Weaver, chief executive officer and president of HOPE Network
● Mike VandeMaele, chief executive officer and president of Pro Services Inc.
They join these current members:
Bill Adams, vice president for marketing and education services at Flowserve Corp.; Ron Kitchens, chief executive officer and executive director of Southwest Michigan First; Evan Harter, managing partner of Asia Group Sourcing; Kevin Munson of Learning and Development at Pfizer Global Manufacturing; Chris Schauer, chief executive officer of PharmOptima who had been serving as the board’s vice chairman; and Tim Greene, dean of the Western Michigan University College of Engineering.
“The prime function of the advisory board,” said Jim DeHaven, KVCC’s vice president for economic and business development and executive director of the M-TEC, “is to provide external direction for our administration and staff. The breadth and experience of its members help to assure the relevancy of the M-TEC’s activities.”
How to . . .use a pay telephone
KVCC staff and faculty members are frequently asked by students about the use of the pay telephones located on campuses, and here’s the accurate scoop, according to Terry Hutchins, vice president for information technology.
Local calls cost 25 cents.
Long-distance calls can be made by using the 800 or 888-free codes. Collect long-distance calls are also free.
A calling card can also be used, while each two minutes costs $1 when using coins.
Want to take part in Cougar Connection?
KVCC programs and services to students that would like to gain exposure during the 2007 Cougar Connection on Sept. 4 should contact Mary Johnson, student activities and programs coordinator in The Student Commons.
To arrange for a table and any other preparations, contact her at extension 4182 or e-mail her at .
She also reports that her 9-year-old granddaughter, Tasia Hayes, won a silver medal for sparring in the Tae Kwon Do Junior Olympics staged in San Jose, Calif., July 11-15. Now a brown belt in the sport, she has participated in the last three Junior Olympics.
Workplace diversity is seminar topic
Tolerance, diversity in the workplace, and understanding the components of sexual harassment will be addressed in a one-day workshop at KVCC’s M-TEC on Friday, Sept. 7.
These topics will be covered in “Diversity in the Workplace” that opens at 8:30 a.m. and ends at 5 p.m. The fee is $295, which includes instructional materials and meals.
Jacob Arndt, a communications instructor at KVCC who specializes in culture and gender issues in society, will explore the influence that diversity has on professional relationships in the workplace for males and females.
In “Teaching Tolerance: Understanding the Components of Sexual Harassment and Diversity in Workplace Dynamics,” Arndt will also outline communication behaviors that can produce an uncomfortable environment.