The Digest
What’s Happening at KVCC
What’s below in this edition
Sustainability (Pages 1/2)Exploring race (Pages 6/7)
Wellness expo (Pages 2/3)Jazz time (Pages 7/8)
Blowin’ in the wind (Pages 3/4)KVM on TV (Page 9)
Underground Railroad (Pages 4/5)King Paper (Pages 9-11)
Financial-aid facts (Pages 5/6)Walk ‘The Hill’ (Pages 11/12)
‘Adults in Transition’ (Page 6) Salvage batteries (Page 12)
And Finally (Pages 12/13)
☻☻☻☻☻☻
College group plans sustainability initiatives
KVCC has climbed aboard the sustainability bandwagon that is sweeping across the nation and the college’s initiatives in the movement are being guided by a five-member group.
Co-chairing this task force are Lauren Beresford and Dan Maley. They have been joined by Charlie Fuller, Natalie Patchell and Barb Taraskiewicz.
The group’s immediate tasks are to develop a mission and priorities, as well as to expand the size of the group through the addition of additional faculty, staff and student representatives.
The college is also planning to establish the position of energy education specialist and has posted the position internally. That person’s mission will be to lead the way in reducing utility waste and to lower the institution’s carbon footprint. The specialist will be trained by a consultant group, Energy Educators.
“This is the same process that every K-12 school district in Kalamazoo County is using successfully to reduce energy waste,” Maley said. “As an example, the Kalamazoo Public Schools have saved $10 million in 10 years with the program.”
The group has forged a roster of sustainability practices that are currently in place at KVCC. They include:
Paper recycling
Bottle and can recycling
Double-side printing
A green roof
A functional wind turbine
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) construction projects
Green technology and facilities purchases
The planting of native vegetation and eradication of invasive species
A two-for-one tree policy as KVCC strives to be designated a “Tree Campus USA.”
Alternative-fuel vehicles
Several practices are in the pipeline, such as water-bottle filling stations, additional green roofs, a water garden to handle roof runoff, and additional plantings of native species. The task force and the expected increase in its membership will also undertake the study of future sustainable practices.
“I have been researching programs at other institutions to see what types of curricula are currently offered,” Beresford said. “We are also looking at various ‘sustainability report-card systems,’ which provide data on the organizational carbon footprint, sustainability efforts beyond the most obvious ones, and ways to incorporate sustainability messages throughout the college. Another aspect will be the prospects for employment in sustainability.”
KVCC has aligned itself with an umbrella organization dedicated to an improved quality of life in this part of the state through actions and collaborations that promote environmental, economic and social responsibility.
It is among the 17 pioneer signees of what is called the “Southwest Michigan Regional Sustainability Covenant” that has been in the works since a February 2009
gathering initiated by Western Michigan University President John Dunn.
Other covenant originators include the cities of Kalamazoo, Battle Creek and Portage, Kalamazoo College, Borgess and Bronson hospitals, the Kalamazoo Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Kalamazoo Community Foundation, the Kalamazoo and Portage school districts, the Kalamazoo Regional Educational Service Agency, the Kalamazoo Nature Center, and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.
1st wellness, health expo until 4 p.m. today
KVCC students, faculty and staff who want to climb aboard the health, wellness and fitness bandwagon that is sweeping the nation are invited today’s first Wellness and Health Expo
It is featuring a variety of activities and presentations designed to promote personal fitness, nutritional eating and a commitment to exercise through 4 p.m. in the Student Commons on the Texas Township Campus.
The expo is introducing participants to local options and opportunities for a fit lifestyle that can increase a person’s employability and enhance success in academics and workforce training for students.
In addition to vendor tables staffed by representatives of fitness centers, health-food stores, spiritual centers, sleep center, hearing centers, and the first-ever Kalamazoo Marathon that is on the horizon, the Wellness and Health Expo features demonstrations of zumba, yoga, belly dancing, weight training and other forms of exercise.
One of the booths is staffed by KVCC Student Success Center advocates and focus on whether people are stressed out. Visitors can take a survey to determine stress levels and take home tips on how to ease life’s tensions.
Nice ‘ink’ for wind academy
KVCC’s academy to train the next generation of wind-turbine technicians is the beneficiary of some global and national exposure.
“Green Careers in Energy,” which contains an essay by James DeHaven, KVCC’s vice president for economic and business development, has been published by Peterson’s, while 1800recycling.com has distributed an article by Eliza Leigh titled “Hitting the Books on Behalf of Mother Nature.”
Leigh wrote that “every one of us should be thrilled – no positively elated – that learning institutions across the country as well as the globe are responding with a new class of academic programs designed to cultivate the eco-hero within.”
No. 1 among the 10 she listed was KVCC and its academy. Other that merited mentioned are Montana State University, the London College of Fashion in Great Britain, the University of Illinois, the University of Pennsylvania, and two other community colleges. Neither of the latter two is dealing with the training of wind turbine technicians.
DeHaven’s essay was titled “Establishing a World-Class Wind Turbine Technician Academy.” The Peterson’s publication contained commentaries about outstanding green programs in 25 two-year schools across the nation.
DeHaven wrote:
“When Kalamazoo Valley Community College decided it wanted to become involved in the training of utility-grade technicians for wind-energy jobs, early on the choice was made to avoid another ‘me too; training course.
“This one had to meet industry needs and industry standards.
“It was also obvious from the start that the utility-grade or large wind industry had not yet adopted any uniform training standards in the United States.
“Of course, these would come, but why should the college wait when European standards were solidly established and working well in Germany, France, Denmark and Great Britain.
“As a result KVCC launched its Wind Technician Training Academy, the first of its kind in the United States. The non-credit academy runs eight hours a day, five days a week, for 26 weeks of intense training in electricity, mechanics, wind dynamics, safety, and climbing. The college developed this program rather quickly -- eight months -- to fast-track individuals into this emerging field.
“KVCC based its program on the training standards forged by Bildungszentrum fur Erneuerebare Energien (BZEE), or the Renewable Energy Education Center in English. Located in Husum, Germany, and founded in 2000, the BZEE was created and supported by major wind-turbine manufacturers, component makers, and enterprises that provide operation and maintenance services.
“As wind-energy production increased throughout Europe, the need for high-quality, industry-driven, international standards emerged. The BZEE has become the leading trainer for wind-turbine technicians across Europe and now in Asia.
“With the exception of one college in Canada, the standards are not yet available in North America. When Kalamazoo Valley realized it could be the first college or university in the United States to offer this training program, that was enough motivation to move forward.
“For the college to become certified by the BZEE, it needed to hire and send an electrical instructor and a mechanical instructor to Germany for six weeks of ‘train the trainer.’ The instructors not only had to excel in their respective fields but be able to climb the skyscraper towers supporting megawatt-class turbines – an interesting combination of skills to possess. People who fit that job description just don’t walk through the door.
“Promoting the innovative program to qualified potential students across the country was the next step. News releases were published around the state and were picked up on the Internet. Rather quickly, the college found itself with more than 500 requests for applications for a program built for 16 students.
“Acceptance into the academy includes a medical release, a climbing test, reading and math tests, relevant work experience and finally an interview. Students in the first program came from across the country. They brought with them degrees in marketing, law, business, science, and architecture, as well as entrepreneurial experiences in several businesses, knowledge of other languages, military service, extensive travel, and electrical, computer, artistic, and technical/mechanical skills.
“The college’s academy has also attracted a federal grant for $550,000 to expand its program through additional equipment purchases. The plan is to erect its own climbing tower as well.
“The college believes other community colleges need to offer fast-track training programs of this caliber if the nation is to reach the U. S. Department of Energy’s goal of 20-percent renewable energy by 2030. This would require more than 1,500 new technicians each year.
“With that in mind, in November of 2010, Kalamazoo Valley Community College will host a BZEE orientation program for other community colleges to consider adopting the European training standards and start their own programs”
Based in Lawrence, N. J., Peterson’s produces publications and other materials regarding education content targeted for parents, graduate students, instructors, and people seeking new careers.
Travel the Underground Railroad
A few slots remain for faculty members in an upcoming tour of Southwest Michigan’s role in the Underground Railroad that helped slaves flee bondage in the pre-Civil War South and make their way to freedom.
Being organized by Marie Rogers, it is set for Saturday, Nov. 6, and will run from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
The free experience, part of the Faculty Success Center programming, will include a 19th-century-style lunch, and six stops, including the Western Michigan University Depart of Archaeology, along with sites in Schoolcraft, Cassopolis, Vandalia, Battle Creek and Marshall.
The tour will culminate with a performance of poetry, music and readings from “So This Is Fire.” The bus will leave from instructor Denise Miller’s Fire location at 1249 Portage Road at 8:30 a.m.
For more information, e-mail Rogers at .
Financial-aid workshop today at Douglass
What a community college has to offer and how this form of higher education can enhance a person’s life are the themes of a series of workshops scheduled for the 2010-11 academic year and beyond.
Free, targeted for prospective students of all ages and parents, and hosted by the Douglass Community Association at 1000 W. Paterson St., each 90-minute session will be presented by Kalamazoo Valley Community College personnel. Each Wednesday presentation begins at 4 p.m.
The various forms of financial aid at the federal, state and local levels, the availability of grants, loans and scholarships, and who is eligible are addressed at today’s Oct. 20) workshop..
“While the Kalamazoo Promise is a marvelous incentive for college in that it pays the tuition and/or mandatory fees of Kalamazoo Public Schools graduates to any one of Michigan’s 43 state universities and community colleges,” said Bruce Kocher, KVCC’s vice president for academic services, “there are other costs – such as books -- that are incurred in pursuit of higher education.
“Today’s educational seminar addresses that aspect for KPS graduates,” Kocher said, “and is an opportunity for other prospective students outside of the Kalamazoo district to gain a sense and some perspectives on how they can finance their dreams for higher education and job training.”
Here is the schedule for the rest of the workshop topics:
- Nov. 17 – KVCC’s Student Success Center, what it is and how it works with students to insure that they reach their educational or work-training goals. Complementing this 4 p.m. presentation will be overviews of the special services provided students and how the center, which will move into space in the Texas Township Campus’s new wing in mid-November, links students to the community resources they might need to reach their goals.
- Dec. 15 --- Writing resumes and cover letters.
- Jan. 19, 2011 – Making decisions on what career path to take.
- Feb. 16 – KVCC’s Transfer Resource Center and Focus Program that eases the transition of students into programs at four-year universities and colleges.
- March 16 – The college’s new ExpressWays program that was launched with the fall semester and its job-prepping venture in operation at the Northside Association for Community Development.
- April 20 – A repeat of the workshop on financial aid.
- May 20 – The impact of good nutrition and healthy lifestyles on learning.
- June 15 – Setting goals and what it takes to be successful.
- July 20 – The Kalamazoo Valley Museum, which is governed by KVCC, and its value as a learning resource.
- Aug. 17 – An overview of the college’s Arcadia Commons Campus in downtown Kalamazoo.
- Sept. 21 – An overview of the college’s Texas Township Campus.
“All of these workshops are open to the public,” Kocher said. “These amount to an outreach to the Southwest Michigan community as a way to let people know what a community college has to offer and what is available.”
Whitten hosts next ‘Adults in Transition’ session
Adults who are facing career changes, downsizing by their employers, and other situations resulting in job layoffs are invited to a comprehensive, evening seminar at Kalamazoo Valley Community College’s Arcadia Commons Campus.
“Adults in Transition – Moving Forward " is slated to begin at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 27, in Anna Whitten Hall in downtown Kalamazoo and run to 8:30. It is free and open to the public.
Because the number of participants is limited, pre-registration is required at or by calling (269) 373-7864.
Among the seminar sessions will be strategies for re-entering the job market, how to budget personal finances during tough economic times, and the college’s “Strengths” program that helps students identify their top themes of talent and assists them in developing those traits to enhance educational and employment success.
The speakers will include: Julie Vance, staffing manager for Accountemps and Robert Half International; Sandy Derby of Derby Financial and Associations; and Ken Barr Jr., director of student strengths development at KVCC.
Jointly sponsoring “Adults in Transition – Moving Forward ” are KVCC’s Office of Prior Learning Assessment and the Office of Career Student Employment Services. Both are under the umbrella of the college’s Student Success Center.
Participants will be able to sit in on all three presentations that are planned to begin at 6:20, 7 and 7:40 p.m. In additional to handouts of community resource materials, there will be a 10-minute wrap-up session.
For more information, contact Diane Finch, career and employment adviser at Anna Whitten Hall, at extension 7864 or at .
Documentaries complement race exhibit
Documentaries that focus on the sociological and behavioral aspects of the human phenomenon known as race are being shown at the Kalamazoo Valley Museum in conjunction with the local stay of a nationally touring exhibit.
Visitors can enhance their experience of sampling “Race: Are We So Different” in the third-floor gallery through Jan. 2 with free screenings of acclaimed PBS documentaries in the Mary Jane Stryker Theater.
Slated to start on Saturday (Oct. 23) are showings of “Matters of Race,” the four-part, four-hour PBS documentary that discusses the "architecture" of race relations in the United States, and their relationship to political power and social standing.
The miniseries consists of six separate short films about racial issues, with subject matter ranging from the influx of Hispanics in the American minority pool and the ongoing tribulations of Native Americans and Hawaiians.
Titles of these films include “The Divide,”“Race Is/Race Ain't,”“We're Still Here,” and “Tomorrow's America.”
Here’s the schedule of double-header showings, each to begin at 2 p.m. in the Stryker Theater:
- Saturday, Oct. 23: “The Divide” and “Race Is/Race Ain’t.”
- Saturday, Nov. 20: “We’re Still Here” and “Tomorrow’s America.”
- Sunday, Nov. 21: “The Divide” and “Race Is/Race Ain’t.”
“Race: The Power of an Illusion,” a three-part series that probed race in society, science and history, is set for a Dec. 11 booking at 2 p.m.
Questioning the idea of race as biology, the series suggests that such a belief in race is no more sound than believing that the sun revolves around the earth.