Community College Week articles from July 2003

Community College Week archives from July 2003

Maricopa fires chancellor for 'lack of respect'. (around the nation).(Fred Gaskin)
July 7, 2003... PHOENIX -- Trustees voted to fire the chancellor of the Maricopa County Community College District, the nation's largest, because of employee complaints about his behavior. A recent performance review said Fred Gaskin showed "a lack of...

Former president sentenced to probation following marijuana bust. (around the nation).
July 7, 2003... DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- The former president of Des Moines Area Community College and his wife were sentenced last month to two years of probation and 100 hours of community service for felony marijuana-possession charges. Dr. David...

Adjunct lecturer fired for alleged ties to terrorism.
July 7, 2003... CHICAGO (AP) -- A college instructor who served time in an overseas prison after pleading guilty to helping support Middle Eastern terrorists has been fired for failing to disclose the conviction on his job application. Mohammed Salah, 50,...

President Bush recently told an audience at Northern Virginia Community College in sub-urban Washington, D.C., that his economic policies would help people find work.(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... President Bush recently told an audience at Northern Virginia Community College in sub-urban Washington, D.C., that his economic policies would help people find work. He called on Congress to act on his $3.6 billion proposal for re-employment...

Supreme Court ruling supports affirmative action. (Capitol briefs).
July 7, 2003... The U.S. Supreme Court decision to uphold affirmative action in higher education is gaining support from community college leaders. The court has sent "a powerful and positive signal" that states have a compelling interest in diversity on...

Congress rejects Bush's plans for Perkins cutbacks. (dateline washington).(Pres. George W. Bush)
July 7, 2003... White House plans to cutback on Carl D. Perkins Act spending are beginning to lose ground in the U.S. Congress, even among President Bush's staunchest supporters. The latest sign comes from the Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives,...

A class made of fine lines. (point of view).(sociology course)
July 7, 2003... As soon as our country found itself at war in Iraq, I decided it would be unseemly to conduct my classes as if the world hadn't changed. So I took time out, in each of' the three classes 1 was teaching this past spring, to acknowledge the...

Cut across the grain, not across the board. (point of view).(college administrators)
July 7, 2003... Are higher-education administrators shirking their responsibilities when they mandate across-the-board budget cuts or hiring freezes in response to fiscal shortfalls? Despite the full array of options available, why are these the strategies...

Free speech must be free. (What Others are Saying).
July 7, 2003... From the San Gabriel Valley Tribune (San Gabriel Valley, Calif.) Free speech is guaranteed in our Constitution, yet oh, it's such a can of worms. We sympathize with the leadership at Citrus College trying to balance the right of students to...

What are they doing right? Proprietary colleges are expensive--their tuition is sometimes twice as much as community colleges'. They're not always accredited, meaning their students can't rely on financial aid the way community-college students can. Yet they're more popular than ever. What gives?
July 7, 2003... Ask former community college Dean Robert Pedersen which habits non-profit colleges would be wise to pick up from proprietary schools, and his answer is quick and to the point. "They could meet less," he said. All those committees and...

Report: half of Calif. college districts illegally took state money.
July 7, 2003... SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Half of California's 72 community college districts acknowledged illegally claiming state funds for enrolling high-school students in their courses, according to a review provided to the state Legislature. A review...

Texas College official to lead health center.(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... Beverly Watts Davis, a trustee on the Austin Community College Board, has been appointed director of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). She will lead the center in forging partnerships with federal agencies,...

College administrators charged with bilking $1 million.
July 7, 2003... RIVERSIDE, Calif. (AP) -- Three administrators are facing charges of allegedly defrauding the state and Riverside Community College of more than $1 million by manipulating enrollment figures for public safety courses, including classes at the...

Federal jury awards former N.Y. college official $1.35 million.(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... NEW YORK (AP) -- A former employee of Rockland Community College has been awarded $1.35 million by a federal jury that found she was wrongly fired after warning the school that federal funds were being misused. Rockland County will appeal...

Voters approve $25 million bond issue for Iowa College.(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) -- Voters have approved a $25 million bond issue for improvements at Hawkeye Community College. The measure passed with 63 percent of the vote. There were 9,590 voters in favor of the plan, and 5,511 opposed. The...

Calif. College president's resignation accepted after no-confidence vote.(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... SAN RAFAEL, Calif. (AP) -- Embattled Marin Community College District Superintendent and President Jim Middleton's resignation has been accepted by district trustees. Dr. Frank Parnell, president of the board, said Middleton told the board...

Miami-Dade takes a new name.(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... MIAMI -- For the fourth time in its 43-year history, Miami-Dade Community College is adopting a new name: Miami-Dade College. The Florida Legislature approved the name change, following similar approval from the college's Board of Trustees. ...

Nev. Colleges to offer bachelor's degrees.(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... LAS VEGAS (AP) -- The Nevada State College at Henderson will likely be coming to a community college near you. State college officials are planning to offer bachelor's degrees at community colleges throughout the state as early as next...

Neb. college sports program under review after scholarship abuse.
July 7, 2003... SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb. (AP) -- Every sports program at Western Nebraska Community College will undergo review after the fired men's basketball coach claimed scholarship violations were widespread. College President John Harms made the...

Calif. College settles age-discrimination suit.
July 7, 2003... RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif. -- After an unsuccessful appeal, Chaffey Community College District has settled an age-discrimination and retaliation suit by an adjunct English instructor who was denied a full-time post. The settlement also covers a...

Court sends college back to the drawing board on hiring policy.
July 7, 2003... MISSION VIEJO, Calif. -- In a landmark case, a California Superior Court judge has ordered the South Orange County Community College District to go back and rewrite its hiring policies, this time in consultation with its academic senates. ...

Report opposes N.C. college mergers, supports funding-formula changes.
July 7, 2003... RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) -- A consultant's report says it isn't worth the effort to combine three small community colleges despite a possible $2 million savings. The report given to the state Board of Community Colleges said closing the colleges...

"Blue Heron".
July 7, 2003... "Blue Heron," a painting by local artist Jerry Schroeder, was recently on display in the first exhibition of the year held at the Fisher Gallery at the Northern Virginia Community College's Alexandria Campus.

Former Texas college veep pleads guilty to money laundering.(vice president)
July 7, 2003... MIAMI (AP) -- A former administrator at a Texas community college pleaded guilty recently in a money-laundering sting led by an agent posing as a Russian mobster in need of $2 million in clean cash and U.S. visas for his underlings. Rafael...

Wyo. college prof. helps expose Jesus ossuary.(translation of inscription on burial box)
July 7, 2003... LARAMIE, Wyo. (AP) -- Two Wyoming scholars--one of whom is a community college instructor--helped cast doubt on a burial box purported to have been that of Jesus' brother. Months ago, Laramie County Community College Professor Mark Elliot...

Professors' group ends censure of Va. community colleges.(American Association of University Professors)(job protection policies)
July 7, 2003... RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- For the first time in 28 years, the Virginia Community College System does not appear on the American Association of University Professors' list of censured academic administrations. Delegates to the association's...

Double vision--and then some. (faculty lounge).(photography teacher exhibits work)
July 7, 2003... WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) -- A community college photography instructor knows how to play tricks on your eyes. The visual effect of Jerry Grier's photographic images is like looking into a kaleidoscope and seeing shapes and colors dissolve into...

As the red faced man hurried through the city.
July 7, 2003... "As the red faced man hurried through the city, the yellow dog balanced the sky on his head, and all the while the little fish smiled at how complementary everything seemed," a painting by Christopher Berry, was recently on display at the Art...

Honors & awards.(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... Cathy Boos, a dental programs professor at Camden County College in Blackwood, N.J., recently received the 2003 Lindback Distinguished Teaching Award. In recognition of their contributions to visual arts at Finger Lakes Community College...

Idaho college's training program goes the distance. (technology today).(community college provides training programs for corporations)
July 7, 2003... BOISE, Idaho (AP) -- After several years of working for Micron Technology, Jackie Upshaw knew that if she wanted to move up in her job, more training was essential. Fortunately, she had to travel no farther than the Micron facility itself...

$900,000 grant kicks off Calif. anti-cybercrime program. (Bits & Bytes).(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... WALNUT, Calif. -- Mt. San Antonio College will share a three-year, $900,000 National Science Foundation grant to develop new courses and degree programs that will train information security professionals to guard against computer crime. ...

Taming technology fears. (technology today).(psychological aspects of computer education)
July 7, 2003... You may be a word-processing wizard, spreadsheet jockey, database guru or communications genius. But what about the sorry sap two cubicles down who starts to sweat every time he boots up his computer? Many people struggle with computer...

N.J. College offers church-based classes. (around campus).
July 7, 2003... CAMDEN, N.J. (AP) -- City residents can work toward high school diplomas or learn English without leaving their neighborhoods now that a community college has begun offering classes at churches in an attempt to break down barriers to adult...

Iowa students weed out nuisances. (around campus).(landscape gardening and weed control)(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) -- Some Iowa students turned weed police are gearing up for another busy season. Students from Western Iowa Technical Community College's police science program are working again this summer as nuisance abatement...

This painting, by Santa Monica College student Cindy Short, is being displayed in the school's current exhibit featuring the work of gifted art students. (around campus).(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... This painting, by Santa Monica College student Cindy Short, is being displayed in the school's current exhibit featuring the work of gifted art students. Short, along with student Laura Forman, received the 2003 Women Painters West Scholarship...

Grants & gifts.
July 7, 2003... Collin County Community College District in Plano, Texas, has received a $759,663 workforce development grant from The Texas Workforce Commission to be shared with a 15-member consortium of businesses. The grant will fund training by the...

Dr. Don Astrab has been appointed executive vice president/chief learning officer at Brevard Community College District in Cocoa, Fla. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... Dr. Don Astrab has been appointed executive vice president/chief learning officer at Brevard Community College District in Cocoa, Fla. Since 1992, Astrab has worked for Brevard as a science and technology professor of chemistry and chemical...

A former dean of the Page campus of Coconino Community College in Flagstaff, Ariz. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... A former dean of the Page campus of Coconino Community College in Flagstaff, Ariz., has been named dean at the Bullhead campus of Mohave Community College in Arizona. Terry Kelly said he wasn't very serious when he applied for the Mohave job,...

Dr. Robert S. Shackleford Jr. is the new vice president for student development at Rockingham Community College in Wentworth, N.C. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... Dr. Robert S. Shackleford Jr. is the new vice president for student development at Rockingham Community College in Wentworth, N.C. Rockingham conducted a nationwide search and interviewed eight candidates before hiring Shackle ford, who found...

Deaths. (professional notes).(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... The man who served as the first president of Flathead Valley Community College in Kalispell, Mont., when classes were held in abandoned buildings downtown, is dead. He was 73. Dr. Larry J. Blake Sr., president of the college from 1967 to...

Morgan names new-president. (Presidents).(Morgan Community College)(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... Dr. Michele Haney, vice president of the Boulder County campuses for Front Range Community College in Colorado, has been named president of Morgan Community College in Fort Morgan, Colo. She will assume her new position July 14. Haney is...

Miesner tapped to head Fort Scott. (Presidents).(Fort Scott Community College)(James R. Miesner )(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... Fort Scott Community College in Fort Scott, Kan., recently announced that James R. Miesner will replace President Dick Hedges, who is retiring. Miesner's official start date was set for July 1. He has been with Fort Scott for four years, most...

Vincennes president to lead Berkshire. (Presidents).(Vincennes University)(Berkshire Community College)(Brief Article)
July 7, 2003... The president of Indiana's Vincennes University, Dr. Bryan Blanchard, is leaving that post to assume the presidency at Berkshire Community College in Pittsfield, Mass. Blanchard is expected to take office at Berkshire by Aug. 15. He has a...

Calif. budget impasse heightens colleges' desperation. (around the nation).
July 21, 2003... SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- The check is definitely not in the mail in California, where the state's hard-pressed community colleges now have one more thing to worry about--whether they'll be getting any payments from the state for the months of July...

Former college official pleads guilty to money laundering. (around the nation).
July 21, 2003... MIAMI (AP) -- A former Texas college administrator pleaded guilty :in a money-laundering sting led by an agent posing as a Russian mobster in need of $2 million in clean cash and U.S. visas for his underlings. Dr. Rafael Diaz Cabral, a...

Wisconsin college official indicted with fraud.
July 21, 2003... MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- An administrator for a pair of Indian community colleges has been charged with mail fraud and misapplication of public funds in a scheme that inflated the number of students at one school to get more grant money, according...

How to win funds and influence philanthropy. (point of view).
July 21, 2003... Private charitable donations have become an important source of revenue for the nation's public colleges and universities, and community colleges are no exception. At Borough of Manhattan Community College, we have spent the past six years...

The need to read. (point of view).(an English teacher on books and reading)
July 21, 2003... On wintry Michigan days, I used to share with the brave students who showed up for class my favorite "Blizzard Fantasy": That if I had to be snowed in anywhere, I'd prefer the library. This rich, quiet storehouse of readings has always...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
July 21, 2003... On page 1 and on page 24 of its June 23 issue, Community College Week published a misprint. The table listing the 50 most prolific producers of associate's degrees in "Service Technologies" on page 24 should have been labeled "Science...

When the buck stops: with only fair-weather friends in the state legislatures and nothing but black clouds on the economic horizon, community colleges have been urgently learning the art of fund raising. (Special report: funding community colleges).
July 21, 2003... At the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains, more than 75,000 people gathered this spring to listen to the sounds of MerleFest, a four-day festival of American roots music on the campus of Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, N.C. Farther...

From nearly nothing to $50 million, one donor at a time.(educational fundraising methods)
July 21, 2003... VANCOUVER, Wash. -- The fundraising success of Elson Strahan offers hope for community colleges and other educational institutions now mired in financial hell. During 19 years as president of the Clark College Foundation, Strahan...

When a tree falls in this forest, a college is making money from it.(educational fund raising)
July 21, 2003... FOUR OAKS, N.C.--When a local businessman told Johnston Community College in 1994 he wanted to donate 2,800 acres of land to the school--land 15 miles away from the campus--some college officials scratched their heads. Rudolph Howell, the...

N.Y. college locks out its interim president.
July 21, 2003... SUFFERN, N.Y. (AP) -- There's a new man in the president's office at Rockland Community College--and a new lock on the door to keep the old president out. A long-simmering political battle climaxed with unseemly awkwardness recently when...

Students, staff decry ouster of N.H. college president.
July 21, 2003... BERLIN, N.H. (AP) -- Angry staff, faculty and students have voiced their support for the fired president of the New Hampshire Community Technical Colleges in Berlin and Laconia. They made clear their displeasure over the recent firing of...

Pa. state system tries to ease transfers with 'Academic Passport'.
July 21, 2003... HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) -- Caryn Lange thought she would get a huge break on private college tuition when she decided to take a year's worth of community-college courses while she was still in high school. To her dismay; shortly after she had...

HSIs lobby Congress for more federal aid. (dateline Washington).(Hispanic-serving institutions)
July 21, 2003... With core higher-education programs up for renewal in Congress, Hispanic leaders are mapping out plans to boost federal support for colleges and universities with a large proportion of Latino students--a list that includes an increasing number...

Senate joins House in protecting Perkins. (Capitol briefs).(student financial aid)
July 21, 2003... The U.S. Senate is joining the House of Representatives in rejecting the Bush administration's call for cuts to the Carl D. Perkins Act in 2004. A Senate panel would continue to provide $1.3 billion for the career- and technology-education...

Mass. colleges' high-school-exit-exam classes unfilled.
July 21, 2003... BOSTON (AP) -- Summer classes at the state's community colleges for the thousands of students in the high-school class of 2003 who haven't passed the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment Systems (MCAS) exam only about half full, because many...

Some question new president's marriage to subordinate.(Brief Article)
July 21, 2003... BETHLEHEM, Pa. (AP) -- The new president who recently took control at Northampton Community College is married to one of the college's four vice presidents. There is no policy barring such an arrangement, but a spokesman for the American...

Wis. officials to rewrite EMT exam that disappeared.(emergency medical technicians)
July 21, 2003... PEWAUKEE, Wis. (AP) -- A state examination for emergency medical technicians is being rewritten after a copy disappeared for several hours after the written test was given here recently, officials said. "It's something that we have to do,"...

Former Pa. college employee charged with child pornography possession.(Brief Article)
July 21, 2003... GREENSBURG, Pa. (AP) -- A former administrator at a community college in western Pennsylvania has been charged with possessing child pornography, state police said. Thomas Tobin, 31, of Munhall, who worked in instructional technology and...

Former N.Y. college security guard sentenced for arson.(Brief Article)
July 21, 2003... ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) -- A former part-time security guard at a community college has received a 2 1/2-year federal prison term for torching a laboratory at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute campus where he also worked. Stephen C. Lee, 53,...

Honors & Awards. (faculty lounge).
July 21, 2003... Sandra Linsin, an English instructor at Edmonds Community College in Lynnwood, Wash., is the first recipient of the college's part-time faculty award. Six faculty members from Metropolitan Community College in Omaha, Neb., were honored for...

College teaches 71-year-old to read. (around campus).(Brief Article)
July 21, 2003... RENO, Nev. (AP)--A 71-year-old man who grew up the son of sharecroppers in Louisiana is getting some special recognition after learning how to read at Truckee Meadows Community College. Thanks to TMCC's literacy program, Bill Barnes has...

At Va. college, young and old click--and shoot. (around campus).(photography and intergenerational relations)(Brief Article)
July 21, 2003... NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (AP) -- For the past five years, students from the Thomas Nelson Community College have visited Morningside Assisted Living in Newport News to practice advanced photo techniques lot portraits. But the partnership has lent...

Grants & Gifts. (around campus).
July 21, 2003... The Colorado Department of Education has awarded $328,500 to Arapahoe Community College in Littleton, Colo., as the lead agency in a consortium of institutions selected for federal funding of the Colorado Teacher Preparation Enhancement...

A group of new immigrants and their families recently took part in a naturalization ceremony at Queensborough Community College in Bayside, N.Y. (around campus).(Brief Article)
July 21, 2003... A group of new immigrants and their families recently took part in a naturalization ceremony at Queensborough Community College in Bayside, N.Y. More than 300 people of all ages became naturalized American citizens at the college, which houses,...

From the world-famous vineyards of Iowa ... (around campus).(classes on grape growing and wine production)(Brief Article)
July 21, 2003... DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) -- Increased interest in developing a home-grown wine industry in the state has prompted Northeast Iowa Community College to begin offering classes on grape growing and wine production. "It is the goal of Northeast Iowa...

Experts suggest a year off before college--if you can afford it.
July 21, 2003... HONOLULU (AP) -- Around the time her former high-school classmates start cracking college textbooks, Perrin Ireland will be heading here to assist in a research project with dolphins. While they're brushing up for fall semester finals,...

Search the Web like a pro. (A Tech Perspective).
July 21, 2003... When searching for information on the Web, do u just fire up Google (www.google.com) and type in a word or two? You're not alone. Despite Google's effectiveness as an Internet search tool, you probably could be a lot more productive in...

Wake Technical Community College. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
July 21, 2003... Wake Technical Community College in Raleigh, N.C., recently announced several appointments. Dr. Neill McLeod has been named senior vice president for student services. She replaces Carl Peay, who retired in June. McLeod most recently...

Sinclair Community College. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
July 21, 2003... Dr. Sally Struthers has been appointed dean of rule and performing arts at Sinclair Community College in Dayton, Ohio. The appointment was effective June 1. Struthers has been with Sinclair since 1987, when she joined as a part-time...

Hudson Valley Community College. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
July 21, 2003... Vivian Tortorici, an educator with 20 years of service at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, N.Y., is the new dean of the college's School of Liberal Arts and Sciences and the School of Health Sciences. Before becoming a department...

Lakeland Community College. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
July 21, 2003... Francisco Porras is the new vice president for information technology at Lakeland Community College in Kirtland, Ohio. Most recently the chief information officer at Walden University, Porras has also worked at Gannon University, the Fielding...

Allegheny Campus of Pittsburgh's Community College of Allegheny County. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
July 21, 2003... Daniel Lowe has been appointed dean of occupational technologies at the Allegheny Campus of Pittsburgh's Community College of Allegheny County. Lowe has served in various roles at the Allegheny Campus for the past 11 years, including associate...

The State University of New York's Onondaga Community College. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
July 21, 2003... The State University of New York's Onondaga Community College in Syracuse, N.Y., has announced two new appointments. Jim Ruddock has been selected associate vice president for technologies, health professions and community education, following...

Coming events.(Calendar)
July 21, 2003... August 4-6, Medieval and Renaissance Studies. Medieval and Renaissance studies conference, Southern Utah University, in Cedar City, Utah. Contact: Utah Shakespearean Festival, c/o Southern Utah University, 351 West Center Street, Cedar City,...