NEWSNEWS
Aug., Sept.,Oct., 2013Volume 13Issue 5
PACE Home Page2013-14 Theme: For monthlyLists
Next Edition Scheduled for Nov., Dec., 2013 (subject to change)
Administrative Corner
Dr. James Gentry, Acting Social Science Dept Chair
Rejoining the CSI Family
Although I have been writing a history of CSI while on campus a few hours a week since soon after retiring in 2010, I never anticipated that I would return to my former full-time position. Since mid-August I have been serving as Social Science Department Chair, as I had done from 1997 to 2010. Previously I had taught history since 1969 and continued teaching some classes until retirement. After Brett Reid accepted an assistant dean position at the College of Western Idaho, I was asked to return as chair through December. If you have been in the Hepworth Building you have noted that I am deficient in muscles and music! Brett has helped with the transition to my old- new duties just as I helped him transition into the chair position in 2010. Wow, you never know how roles may change!
The CSI family has treated me well in the last two months. I am impressed with the welcoming acceptance of my temporary position. Department members have been generous with my sixty-seven year old brain. I have spread my technical questions among Sandy Bosteder, Lori Garnand, Julie Nitzel and my next door neighbor Tracey Meyerhoeffer. Chris Bragg and John Hughes have been helpful with changed department chair policies. Online forms for new classes, book orders, etc are the most obvious changes from three years ago. Larrianne Ruiz has been patient with my Jenzabar on-line schedule change issues.
During in-service week other CSI employees welcomed me. As I walked across campus, one person thanked me for my willingness to serve as acting chair. I told Barb, my wife, how good it felt to have that kind of affirmation. CSI employees’ sense of family is alive and well. If the Social Science Department needs help, those outside the department want to see that need fulfilled. Campus needs of other departments are not theirs, they are ours.
With students and the community in mind, I have been considering “CSI: Meeting Needs and Developing Opportunities” as a title for my history of the school. Now I realize that the campus not only meets need and develops opportunities for students and the community, but also for each of us who are members of the CSI family. What a blessing it has been to be a part of this family!
Jim Gentry
PACE Training Days
The week of October 21 will have various events for staff to attend. Be on the lookout for more information coming through your e-mail.
Employee Holiday Luncheon
Christmas in Paradise ~ with Jud Harmon as MC
Place ~ Taylor Café
Time ~ TBA
Date ~ Generaly the last working day in December ~ this year it is the 20th
Menu ~ To be determined in November
Contests ~ TBA
Basket Raffles & Perks Books
Once again there will be a canned food drive. All collected canned food will be picked up by Community Action.
As always, be on the lookout for more information coming through your e-mail in the weeks to come.
Picks from the Shelf
Elizabeth I the Virgin Queen - DVD– From PBS’ Masterpiece Theatre comes the two DVD set that weaves the story of a young Elizabeth right before succeeding to the throne after her half-sister Queen Mary dies. This is a great piece of British historical drama full of intrigue, politics and passion. During Elizabeth’s 44 year reign she destined herself to be a true virgin queen unless her God spoke to her otherwise. She and Robert Dudley, her childhood friend remain close during their lives, but she is determined not to be ruled by any man and believes a woman can do just as good a job when it comes to the ruling of her country. Anne-Marie Duff does a great job portraying this queen and if you are a British Royal Family buff this will certainly appeal to your senses. – Ann Keane, ADC Office Spec.
Along the Way, The Journey of a Father and a Son - Book– Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez combine forces with Hope Edelman to share their story with the public. It is a remarkable story of their struggles in life’s journey. They share the good, the bad and the ugly. The end result is a beautiful story of discovery and respect for each other. I really enjoyed the part of the discussion that talked about how the majority of fathers today are not available to guide their sons because they are not side by side all day. This whole idea is to “something” for me to explain to you in a nutshell. Hence—you have to read the book. That is all there is to it. You really won’t regret it. You will also be able to share their experiences of filming the wonderful movie called The Way. – Ann Keane, ADC Office Spec.
Oranges and Sunshine - DVD – This is the true story of Margaret Humphreys, social worker. A woman’s plea to find out where she came from starts Margaret on a journey of rejoining hundreds of deported children with their families. She and her husband stand up against government agencies in the United Kingdom and Australia. The stories of the deported children are so traumatic that Margaret ends up suffering from PTSD. Children were told their parents had died while parents were told their children had been adopted into loving families. In through they were transported to Australia. They lived in terrible conditions and suffered abuses. This is a story of how children in care came to find out who they were and where they came from due to the unrelenting efforts of Margaret and her husband Merv. This story is an eye-opener into what can happen when the vast majority doesn’t question what they are told by agencies. Although these events happened decades ago, it is a miscarriage of justice that everyone needs to know about. Not to seek retribution but to make sure nothing like this happens again. Watching this is time well spent. – Ann Keane, ADC Office Spec.
Tomorrow there will be Apricots - Book– Written by Jessica Soffer this novel is a story of lost souls finding each other. Through the eyes of an elderly grandmother character and a younger granddaughter character you find that love travels through generations and cultures. It is love that is the saving of us all. Sit out in your lawn chair on a nice summer day sipping on iced tea or lemonade and savor the full fruits of this book. You will come to love the characters and your time will be richly spent. – Ann Keane, ADC Office Spec.
SWEET land - DVD– What a sweet story of love and disapproval during post-WWI. Inge is a German born mail order bride. She comes to America to marry Olaf, a young Norwegian farmer. Inge doesn’t have the necessary papers, is not a citizen and the US has just been at war with Germany. This is when all the disapproval starts. Inge and Olaf persevere through it all and the people come to accept Inge. This story made me think of the disapproval some folks have for those who are different. This issue has been going on for decades and it still continues today. And I suppose if people don’t learn to be more accepting of others it will continue into the future. The whole United States of America is peopled with immigrants, so I would think we are all different if you want to get down to the nitty-gritty of things. But if we are a strong people with love we can rise above the differences and make a true difference for all. – Ann Keane, ADC Office Spec.
Windless Summer book– Written by Heather Sharfeddin this is a spellbinder of a book. Tom is a widower still haunted by the death of his wife and left to raise their daughter Sienna. Sienna is a child who cannot be left alone and does not do well with people. This is somewhat of a problem considering the fact that Tom runs a motel. You will be surprised at the outcome of this novel. – Ann Keane, ADC Office Spec.
If you have a favorite book, movie or CD from our very own CSI library you would like to recommend to your co-workers, let me know about it. You don’t need to be a professional critic. All you need is two to four sentences giving info on why you think it is something folks might want to spend their time on. – Ann Keane, PACE newsletter editor, ext. 6530,
New Faces on Campus
Whitney Cook
Replacing Brian Gergens
Scholarship & Financial Aid Specialist
Matrix, ext. 6283
My name is Whitney Cook and I am the new Scholarship and Financial Aid Specialist. I was born and raised in Twin Falls and moved back about 2 years ago. I received my Associate’s Degree from CSI and then completed a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science at Lewis-Clark State College. For the last 4 years I have worked in Crop Insurance at Northwest Farm Credit starting in Spokane, WA and then transferring back to Twin Falls. I am very excited to start this new opportunity at CSI.
Linda ‘Susan’ Narasimhan
Replacing Rebecca Brown
RN Instructor
HSHS 129, ext. 4743
Nikcole Zamarripa
Replacing Barbra Allen
Student Services Specialist
Taylor Matrix, ext. 6234
Hi everyone! I am the newest member of the Student Services Team. I grew up herein Twin Falls and I’m also a former graduate of CSI. I’m married and have two children, a son and a daughter. We are raising our family in Jerome. I look forward to seeing you all around campus!
Mollie Weighall
Replacing Corina Bigham
Custodian
McManaman, 6600
Cindy Lopez
Replacing Elena Butler
Student Services Specialist
Taylor Matrix, Ext. 6233
“Hello everyone! I am very excited to begin this new journey in my life at a place I have become very familiar with. I have met many great people at CSI as a student and look forward to meeting more. I graduated from CSI with an associate’s degree in Accounting/Bookkeeping in 2008. I am currently earning my bachelors in Accounting through BSU.”
Aaron Ursenbach
Replacing Darcy Thornborrow
Education & Collections Coordinator
Herrett Center 133, ext. 6664
It is a great honor to be counted as one of the family here at CSI. Though I feel humbled that I have the opportunity to be the Education/Collection Coordinator for The Herrett Center, I am eager to bring some new energy for the upcoming years.
Being a son of a military man, no place ever seemed like home until I returned to the stomping grounds of my mother. I have brought a life time of volunteer community service with me. The summer of 1990 was spent rescuing and rehabilitating sea mammals. My passion for a more conventional search and rescue started in 1991 with the Long Beach Fire Community Response Team. This path led to the Twin
Falls Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Team, Where I had the pleasure of being the High Angle and Tower Rescue Instructor as well as a Certified Rescue Diver. Not that this wasn’t exciting but it could not hold up to a new found obsession of Anthropology. After obtaining my degree this obsession carried me to The Herrett Center and here I hope to reside for many years. I would like leave an invitation to come see what might be new. Please let me know how I might be able to help out for my door is always open
Anna Ritchey
P-T to F-T
PTE Assessment Specialist
Canyon 105B, Ext. 6328
Hi, my name is Anna Ritchey. After being CSI’s part-time PTE Assessment Specialist for 8 months, I am now taking on the combined role of PTE Admissions and Assessment Specialist. A Twin Falls native and former CSI student, I completed my Bachelors of Business Administration degree at Boise State University. From there my journey took me into the Market Research industry for 24 years working at firms in Portland OR, Vancouver BC, Boise ID, and coming full circle back home to Twin Falls in 2009.I have felt very welcome since I’ve been at CSI and am excited about my new role here!
Christie Solomon,
Replacing Tom Atkin
Math Instructor
Shields 207B, ext. 6807
Hello, my name is Christie Solomon, and I am the new math instructor at CSI.I grew up in Pocatello and received my bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mathematics from Idaho State University.After teaching at ISU as a graduate student, I went on to teach high school math, but always wanted to return to teaching at the college level.I am very excited to do that here at CSI!
I think math is a fascinating subject, and I enjoy helping my students to see how math can be applied in so many areas in their lives and encouraging them to develop the critical-thinking skills that are so desperately needed in our world today.
In my free time, I enjoy biking, reading, and playing board games with friends and family.I look forward to getting to know and working with the great staff of the College of Southern Idaho.
Robert “Shawn” Beer
Replacing Marc Santoro
Statewide Site Manager
Idaho STAR
Robert “Shawn” Beer is the Statewide Site Manager of Idaho STAR. He started teaching for STAR in 2006 and has filled the role of Instructor, Mentor Instructor and Instructor Trainer. He served as a voting member on the Idaho STAR Advisory Committee from 2009 to Aug 2013. As the Statewide Site Manager he manages a team of Site Managers and Regional Site Support personnel to keep STAR’s sites, equipment, and the fleet of over 170 motorcycles running smoothly for Instructors and students alike. He enjoys all forms of riding and currently rides a 2013 BMW R1200GSW.
Richard “Rich” Cone
Replacing Jeff Herrington
DTNA Mobile Instructor
On the Road
I am Rich Cone, the new DTNA Mobile Instructor and I will be covering the East Coast. I graduated from Washington State University with a degree in Agriculture economics. I have been in the Magic Valley for 27 years. I have owned my own ag business and have also worked in finance, sales, reclamation, and building feed mills. My interests are outdoor activities, to include hunting, fishing and cross country skiing. I look forward to spending time on the East Coast and seeing more of my daughter and her family, who are stationed at Fort Columbia in South Carolina.
John Paskett
Replacing Shari Hansen
Student Services Specialist
Mini-Cassia Center, 6940
John Paskett is a native of Southern Idaho, born and raised in rural Burley, ID, where he learned the value of hard work and integrity. He comes from a small family as he is the second of seven children.
John is happy to be part of the CSI family, and has recently joined the Mini-Cassia Off Campus Center as a Student Service Specialist.
He has many fond memories of attending CSI basketball games and events in the EXPO and Fine Art centers. Prior to joining CSI, he worked as a Preferred CSR at UPS Corporate, and for the last 11 years as a Sr. Workforce Consultant for Idaho Dept. of Labor.
John is very involved in community activities, and can often be found participating with local theatre and dance groups. He toured with “American Showcase Dance Team” as a ballroom and folk dancer for a while after college, traveling throughout the Orient and Europe. He is happiest when helping others, and will go out of his way to do so.
Brock Morris
Replacing Ryan Devlin
Assistant Men’s Basketball Coach,
Gym 223, ext. 6476
Brock Morris begins his first season at the College of Southern Idaho as an assistant men's basketball coach.
Morris came to CSI from The University of Louisiana-Lafayette where he served as the Director of Basketball Operations under head coach Bob Marlin. Prior to that, Morris was a Graduate Assistant at the University of Alabama under former head coach Mark Gottfried (now at North Carolina State) and current head coach Anthony Grant.
"We are very fortunate to have Brock here at CSI," said Head Coach Jeremy Cox. "He brings a great wealth of experience, knowledge and enthusiasm for the game of basketball and young student athletes. He also is a relentless worker, with contacts nationwide, which will help us continue and build upon those who have come before us."
Morris has junior college experience as a player, as he attended and played at Snead State College in Alabama as an undergraduate. He earned his bachelor's degree in history from the University of Alabama in 2008 and his master's degree in human environmental sciences with a concentration in sports management in 2010.
Sarah Taylor
Replacing Erin Devlin
Retention and Graduation Coordinator