Community College Week articles from March 2003

Community College Week archives from March 2003

Federal court rejects part-time instructor's discrimination suit. (around the nation).
March 3, 2003... DETROIT -- A federal judge has tossed out a discrimination suit by an African-born part-time chemistry instructor who was not hired for a full-time opening at Wayne County Community College. U.S. District Judge Gerald Rosen also rejected...

Prepare for more budget pain, Oregon Gov. tells colleges. (around the nation).(Gov. Ted Kulongoski)
March 3, 2003... SALEM, Ore. -- Gov. Ted Kulongoski told an assembly of community college administrators last month that he saw no way to mitigate current budget cuts and no way to avoid further slashing their funds in the next two-year state budget. After...

Study: N.C. public-college costs outracing income, aid. (around the nation).
March 3, 2003... RALEIGH, N.C. -- The cost of attending a public college in North Carolina rose 19 percent during the past year, the fifth-highest increase in the nation, according to a new study by a higher education policy group. The average yearly cost...

Calif. college to pay IRS overdue $4.68 million.(Victor Valley Community College)(Brief Article)
March 3, 2003... VICTORVILLE, Calif. -- Victor Valley Community College officials have agreed to pay $4.68 million in back taxes, penalties and interest to the Internal Revenue Service. The taxes involve public bonds purchased in 1994, according to college...

Suspect Calif. college program to be audited.(Brief Article)
March 3, 2003... SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- The California Department of Finance is gearing up for an audit of a community college program that allows high school students to earn college credit. Gov. Gray Davis called for the audit after a newspaper reported...

2003 budget bill would give small increases to perkins, Pell. (Capitol briefs).(Brief Article)
March 3, 2003... Pell grants and state technical education grants--two high-priority programs for community colleges--are among the federal services that would get small increases under the long-delayed 2003 budget bill now being finalized by the U.S. Congress...

Colleges voice qualms over Bush budget. (dateline washington).(Pres. George W. Bush)
March 3, 2003... On the heels of the Bush administration's release of its 2004 budget, community college leaders meeting in Washington, D.C., expressed dismay over the plan's agenda for higher-education spending. At a forum during the Community College...

Mistakes were made. Let's fix them. (point of view).(community colleges and economic development)
March 3, 2003... A mid the mad dash of economic development, policy-makers trying to stay competitive in the global economy increasingly accept the necessity of "channeling" community college students into programs that serve the state's long-term economic...

Why Tiger Woods makes more than me. (point of view).(college teacher personal narrative)
March 3, 2003... It's the hoariest fallacy from the oldest sports-bar argument in town: Why should athletes be paid so much when they're not as valuable to society as teachers (and/or cops, firemen, daycare providers, nurses, or supply your own do-gooder...

No-fault liability: moving remedial education beyond finger pointing.
March 3, 2003... Almost every two-year college seems to have them. On a billboard or the side of a bus, or maybe just on the college's Web site, the faces of archetypal community college students beam out at you: The first-generation American who is the first...

Former Congressional candidate sues Ariz. College. (Capitol briefs).(Joe Duarte)(Brief Article)
March 3, 2003... TUCSON, Ariz. -- A former Libertarian candidate for the U.S. Congress has taken Pima Community College and the League of Women Voters of Arizona to court over his arrest last year at a political debate. Joe Duarte filed a civil rights suit...

Ala. College calls off merger with university, citing recession. (Capitol briefs).
March 3, 2003... HANCEVILLE, Ma. -- Wallace State Community College in Hanceville won't merge with any four-year university in the foreseeable future, the chancellor of the state's two-year college system said. "This is not the time nor the climate to...

Budget cuts Halt Calif. University-Center expansion plans. (Capitol briefs).(Brief Article)
March 3, 2003... REDDING, Calif. -- Looming budget cuts to California's community college system are forcing Shasta College to post-pone plans for a new center that would have offered four-year university courses. California State University-Chico; the...

Ark. board approves five college mergers. (Capitol briefs).(Brief Article)
March 3, 2003... LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- Five mergers of technical institutes with colleges or universities have been approved by the state Higher Education Coordinating Board. The mergers, all to take effect July 1, were approved at a board meeting last...

Maine hopes name change will boost enrollments. (Capitol briefs).(Southern Maine Technical College)
March 3, 2003... PORTLAND, Maine -- If the bookstore at Southern Maine Technical College wants to sell T-shirts and caps next fall that carry the school logo, it must soon place an order with its supplier. But the South Portland school will have to first find...

Experts worry tuition hikes may put college out of reach.
March 3, 2003... WASHINGTON -- Cash-strapped states from coast to coast are weighing hefty tuition increases for public colleges and universities, prompting experts to wonder aloud if state schools are pricing themselves out of the market for most students. ...

Arizona gov., legislators consider cutting dual-enrollment funding. (Capitol briefs).(Gov. Janet Napolitano)(Brief Article)
March 3, 2003... MESA, Ariz. -- High school students wouldn't be able to get community college credit for classes taken in high school under proposals meant to trim the state's budget. As part of their plans to balance the state budget, Gov. Janet...

Arrangement in blue.
March 3, 2003... Among the pieces slated for display this spring at The Southeast Museum of Photography at Daytona Beach Community College in Florida is this print from Zeva Oelbaum's "Blue Prints" show. Oelbaum, a New York-based photographer, shoots images of...

Texas budget woes cut deeply at colleges.
March 3, 2003... AUSTIN, Texas -- An estimated 5,000 students would be denied free college tuition promised to them by the state because of cuts designed to ease a projected $10 billion budget shortfall, state lawmakers were told last month. Texas Higher...

New Jersey Colleges brace for another cash-strapped year.
March 3, 2003... TRENTON, N.J. -- Public colleges and universities fear their mission of providing a high-quality, affordable education to New Jersey students would be jeopardized by deep budget cuts proposed by the governor. Under the spending plan...

Backs to the wall, Iowa colleges prepare to hike tuition.
March 3, 2003... DES MOINES, Iowa -- State community college leaders say they worry that increasing tuition will push out the most economically disadvantaged students, but say they may have no choice because of lagging state aid. "We've priced some of our...

Abe was here. Honest.
March 3, 2003... As part of Its Black History Month celebration last month in Lake City, Fla., Lake City Community College hosted former Brevard Community College assistant professor Tad Allen, center who made a speech and answered questions in the guise of the...

Surf wars. (A Tech Perspective).(Internet advertising)
March 3, 2003... The metaphor comparing the business world to a battleground is often overused. But it's not trite to say that a fierce struggle is raging between Web advertisers trying to capture your attention and Web consumers who want to surf unfettered....

Wyo. instructor says state should buck old image. (faculty lounge).(Northern Wyoming Community College)
March 3, 2003... CHEYENNE, Wyo. -- A community college instructor's inspiration for a book came unbidden while he was in the mountains hunting. "My mind was not on elk," explained Sam Western, a faculty member at Northern Wyoming Community College, to a...

Honors & awards.
March 3, 2003... Debra Crank-Lewis, associate professor of history at St. Charles Community College in St. Peters, Mo., was recently selected by her peers as Faculty Member of the Year. She also was one of the outstanding faculty members in the state to receive...

A wandering eye--around Scotland. (around campus).(Lakeland Community College field trip)(Brief Article)
March 3, 2003... Last fall, photography students from Lakeland Community College in Kirtland, Ohio, trekked to Scotland to improve their travel photography skills. Coordinated by Napier University, the photographic course-work also gave students a chance to...

At Ga. College, laid-off workers work on their futures. (around campus).(Coastal Georgia Community College)
March 3, 2003... BRUNSWICK, Ga. -- Former St. Mary's paper mill workers, hoping to retrain for another career, are boosting the enrollment at Coastal Georgia Community College in Brunswick. The two-year college has seen a 13.4 percent increase in full- and...

San Jacinto College District in Pasadena. (Appointments).(Gwen Tilley )(Brief Article)
March 3, 2003... San Jacinto College District in Pasadena, Texas, has announced that longtime employee Dr. Gwen Tilley has been chosen to serve as interim vice chancellor of instructional programs and services for the district. Tilley has been at San Jacinto 32...

Miami-Dade Community College. (Appointments).(Jesse Alvarez)(Brief Article)
March 3, 2003... Jesse Alvarez has joined Florida's Miami-Dade Community College as vice provost of employee development and quality enhancement. Prior to joining M-DCC, Alvarez was director of human resources at Tarrant County College in Fort Worth, Texas. He...

Pensacola Junior College. (Appointments).(Isaac Brigham)(Brief Article)
March 3, 2003... Dr. Isaac Brigham, formerly vice president of student affairs at Pensacola Junior College in Pensacola, Fla., has been promoted to senior vice president of planning and administration at the college. He earned his bachelor's degree, master's...

Pensacola Junior College's Gean Ann Emond has been named vice president of business affairs for the college. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
March 3, 2003... Pensacola Junior College's Gean Ann Emond has been named vice president of business affairs for the college. She was the associate vice president for finance/comptroller. Emond has a bachelor's degree and a master's degree in business...

Gael Frazer with Pensacola Junior College has been named associate vice president for the newly created office of institutional diversity. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
March 3, 2003... Gael Frazer with Pensacola Junior College has been named associate vice president for the newly created office of institutional diversity. Frazer was previously the college's director of human resources. She holds a bachelor's degree and a...

Deaths. (professional notes).(James R. Ware and Marion Oppelt)(Obituary)
March 3, 2003... James R. Ware, a former vice president of academic and student affairs and dean of business and public service at Boston's Bunker Hill Community College, passed away late last year at the age of 74. A graduate of Tuskegee University and a...

Coming events. (Career Connections).
March 3, 2003... March 19-22, Black Studies. 27th annual international conference, National Council for Black Studies, in Atlanta, GA. Contact: Patricia Dixon, NCBS National Office, Department of African-American Studies, Georgia State University, P.O. Box...

Bucking national trend, Louisiana Gov. plans $5 million budget boost for colleges. (around the nation).(Governor Mike Foster)
March 17, 2003... BATON ROUGE, La. -- At a time when most states are struggling to make ends meet in their community college budgets, Louisiana Gov. Mike Foster is finding ways to increase funding to his state's fledgling community college system. Foster, who...

Mass. Gov. wants to overhaul state's higher ed. system. (around the nation).(Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney)(merging of six colleges saves money and increases efficiency)
March 17, 2003... BOSTON -- Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney recently proposed a radical restructuring of the state's public higher education system, a move that would reorganize the state's 29 public campuses and merge several community colleges. The...

Report: California colleges can do more to bridge nursing gap. (around the nation).
March 17, 2003... SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Nursing programs at California community colleges could be doing more to help alleviate the national nursing shortage, according to a new report. Mandated by a state law passed last year and conducted by a group of...

Nevada colleges miss deadline for system tracking foreign students.
March 17, 2003... LAS VEGAS -- Nevada schools have failed to meet a deadline for setting up a computer system to track foreign students following the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, officials said. Colleges, universities and...

Senate leader seeks aid for tribal colleges. (dateline Washington).(Tom Daschle)(teacher recruitment and forgivness of student loans)(Brief Article)
March 17, 2003... U.S. Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., wants the federal government to do more to recruit and retain instructors at U.S. tribal colleges. Daschle is introducing a bill to help instructors at tribal colleges, most of which are...

Hispanic-serving institutions join call for help. (dateline Washington).(increases in student aid programs needed)(Brief Article)
March 17, 2003... Hispanic-serving colleges are joining black and tribal colleges to seek major increases in student aid programs this year. A doubling of the maximum Pell grant and more student loan forgiveness are on the agenda for Hispanic-serving...

Colleges say welfare-reform bill hampers education. (dateline Washington).(increased work requirements limit educational opportunities)
March 17, 2003... Community college leaders are looking to the U.S. Senate to change a welfare-reform proposal which, if it becomes law, would restrict education options for aid recipients. The Senate is now the battleground for a welfare-reform plan...

High-tech vs. high-touch: don't throw out your libraries. (point of view).(the beauty of books)
March 17, 2003... At a time when colleges and universities are congratulating themselves on having the latest in computer technology, including online databases, portals, wireless classrooms, online courses and technologically advanced campuses, something seems...

Chop wood, carry water and leave room for the rocks. (point of view).(a personal narrative of incorporating technology into teaching at community colleges)(Column)
March 17, 2003... Back in early 1990, I began teaching computer-integrated statistics to community college students. At the time, I was very unpopular. My students dubbed me "Ruthless Ruby." Most of them didn't have a very high tolerance level for integrating...

Boom to bust: for colleges now drowning in red ink, the high-tech spending spree of the 1990s seems like ancient history. With state deficits soaring and education budgets shrinking, most schools are just trying to hold onto what computer assets they have left.
March 17, 2003... Dr. Kenneth C. Green, the director of the nation's largest continuing study of technology on college campuses, has one word to describe the ebb and flow of funding for information technology: "Biblical." "Seven years of feast, followed by...

Students to march 312 miles protesting tuition.(Brief Article)
March 17, 2003... BUFFALO, N.Y. -- A group of college students recently set out on the first leg of a cross-state relay march to oppose tuition increases and reduced aid to public colleges sought by Gov. George Pataki. With temperatures in the mid-teens,...

Battered by budget blows, Oregon colleges cut down to the bone.
March 17, 2003... PORTLAND, Ore. -- When Gov. Ted Kulongoski announced his proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year, there was more money set aside for education in every area save one: community colleges. The unglamorous workhorses of Oregon's...

Oregon officials worry dilapidated buildings may cost colleges their accreditation.
March 17, 2003... ASTORIA, Ore. -- The view from Clatsop Community College--the sweeping expanse of the Columbia River as it rushes into the Pacific Ocean--is picture perfect, worth more than a thousand words. Too bad the college can't turn the words into...

Suit could block Mont. college's bond money.(violation of election law could result in loss of school bonds in Montana)(Brief Article)
March 17, 2003... KALISPELL, Mont. -- A lawsuit has been filed asking District Judge Stewart Stadler to void Flathead Valley Community College's recent mail-in election in which voters approved $15.8 million in bonds to expand the college. Jamie McKittrick,...

Ore. ethics panel too poor to investigate former college official.(Brief Article)
March 17, 2003... PORTLAND, Ore. -- Citing insufficient funds, an ethics panel charged with policing government officials has tossed out a complaint against a former community college official. The Government Standards and Practices Commission said it...

Former college security guard sentenced to prison for bomb scare.(Brief Article)
March 17, 2003... CLOVIS, N.M. -- A former security guard at Clovis Community College was sentenced recently to 18 months in prison for staging a bomb explosion at the school. David Roybal, 31, pleaded guilty to a fourth degree felony of staging a bomb...

State board says planned Conn. tuition hikes too high.(tuition limits and state law)(Brief Article)
March 17, 2003... HARTFORD, Conn. -- The Board of Governors for Higher Education says planned tuition increases at the state's community colleges exceed limits under state law and should be rolled back. The increase, approved two months ago, violates state...

Former Pa. coach charged with stealing from students.(Brief Article)
March 17, 2003... PITTSBURGH -- Rod Brookin, a community college men's basketball coach who played for the University of Pittsburgh in the late 1980s, has been charged with stealing more than $1,100 from players in a phony fund-raiser. Brookin, 36, of...

Great expectations.(A Profile of the Community College Professorate: 1975-2000)(Book Review)
March 17, 2003... A Profile of the Community College Professorate, 1975-2000 By Charles L. Outcalt RoutledgeFalmer 2002, Hardcover, $75 As of 1998, America's 1,200 community colleges employed approximately 252,000 full- and part-time faculty. This is a large...

Instructors paint new picture of old Florida artists. (faculty lounge).
March 17, 2003... FORT PIERCE, Fla. -- When a group of artists put brush to canvas in the 1950s and 1960s, the paint flew, miraculously spawning windswept palm trees, fiery poincianas and lagoons the color of an orange sunrise. About 40 years later, in 1994,...

Honors & Awards.
March 17, 2003... The Phi Theta Kappa International Honors Society has awarded history and literature professor Joanne de Falla of Florida's Miami-Dade Community College its coveted Parnell Scholarship to attend the 2003 Phi Theta Kappa International Convention...

Exterminating computer bugs. (technology today: A Tech Perspective).
March 17, 2003... In the time it took me to write this article, Microsoft issued three more updates for Microsoft Windows XP and Microsoft Internet Explorer 6--one "critical" update, one security update and one patch. Recently a security vulnerability in...

After dogged attempts, college finally nabs vagrant poodle. (around campus).
March 17, 2003... BEND, Ore. -- No dogs allowed. Everyone knows this is one of the oldest rules in the school. But no one told a 54-pound poodle, who spent more than two years roaming the Central Oregon Community College campus before being captured recently....

Back to the future? (around campus).
March 17, 2003... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Caption: BACK TO THE FUTURE? The Museum at New York's Fashion Institute of Technology recently displayed student work from an advanced packaging-design course. The course requires students to create packaging...

Grants & Gifts.
March 17, 2003... Edmonds Community College in Lynwood, Wash., received a $10,000 grant from Verizon Communications Inc. to support two projects funded by the National Science Foundation: computer science, math and engineering scholarships and Math Across the...

Miami-Dade names six new campus presidents. (Presidents).
March 17, 2003... Dr. Eduardo J. Padron, president of Florida's Miami-Dade Community College, recently announced a slew of administrative changes, including new presidents for every campus. The presidents assigned to all six campuses, effective May 5, 2003, are:...

Asnuntuck selects new president. (Presidents).(Asnuntuck Community College)(Brief Article)
March 17, 2003... Dr. Martha McLeod recently assumed the presidency of Asnuntuck Community College in Enfield, Conn. McLeod is the founding president of Bay Mills Community College, a tribal college in Brimley, Mich. She had served as that college's CEO...

Delhi College of Technology. (Appointments).(vice president of administration selected)(Brief Article)
March 17, 2003... Barbara A. Larson has been named vice president of administration at the State University of New York's Delhi College of Technology in Delhi, N.Y. Larson has more than 14 years of experience in higher education administration. For the last six...

Tulsa Community College. (Appointments).(provost for student affairs named)(Brief Article)
March 17, 2003... Dr. Brett Campbell has been named provost for student affairs at Tulsa Community College in Tulsa, Okla. Campbell was dean of students and assistant director of student support at Rogers State University, and assistant dean of students at...

Coming events.(Calendar)
March 17, 2003... March 27-28, Literature. "Eighth Annual Tennessee Williams Scholars' Conference," Middle Tennessee State University, in New Orleans, LA. Contact: Robert Bray, Middle Tennessee State University, Box 70, Murfreesboro, TN 37132-0001; (615)...

From cell phones to collaboration.(social aspects of information technology)
March 17, 2003... During a recent conversation with a group of NISOD Excellence Award recipients, we asked for their perspectives on the major issues--positive and negative--currently affecting the ways in which they use, or plan to use, information technology...

Help from placement to financial aid.
March 17, 2003... Community colleges are finding that student enrollments continue to rise. However, due to the continuing economic slump, funds to support those incoming students are not quickly forthcoming. Faced with the prospect of having to reverse...

Ensuring that technology investments support college missions.
March 17, 2003... The success or failure of information technology [IT] investments ultimately rests with the president. Most community college presidents accept this responsibility. Yet some presidents feel uncomfortable in this arena and even see it as a...

Tailoring technology to student needs.
March 17, 2003... Technology has become embedded in the fabric of life at the Johnson County Community College, according to Dr. Charles J. Carlsen, president of the college, which is based in Overland Park, Kan. "In 1963, when I started working in community...

Handheld computers: the greatest invention since sliced bread?(handheld computers in nursing education)
March 17, 2003... Professional literature predicts that the use of the handheld computers will change the way nursing education is practiced. Accurate and complete documentation has been emphasized since the Florence Nightingale era in the mid 1800s. While...

Providing efficient business solutions.(information management)
March 17, 2003... Chippewa Valley Technical College (CVTC) turned to technology to help transform the way the college would do business. The Wisconsin college purchased an administrative system, SCT Banner, which had the potential to improve data analysis,...

Automated online math tutors.
March 17, 2003... In today's extremely difficult job market, the use of information technology permeates virtually every field. Those who have the skills and knowledge to use these new technologies are better able to succeed. Schools should not lag too far...

Multi-use classroom a growing trend.
March 17, 2003... Due to a combination of tightening budgets and a limited number of classrooms, multi-purpose rooms seem to be increasing on college campuses around the country. Dedicated rooms, for a particular class offering, seem to be a thing of the past....

Middlesex Community College finds many online students in its own backyard.
March 17, 2003... You don't need to live in the Australian Outback to want to learn online. In fact, most Middlesex Community College online students live within driving distance of the college's campuses in Bedford and Lowell, Mass. According to Matthew...

Pharos' Uniprint system delivers sound results.
March 17, 2003... A little more than two years ago, students and administrators at Seattle Central Community College were printing 2.7 million sheets of paper a year on the campus' 75 printers. Associate dean and director of information technology (IT) services,...

Optimizing IT resources: PC-based call center software does it all.(Northern Virginia Community College provides students with quality service through its PC-based call center software)
March 17, 2003... Since its founding in 1965, Northern Virginia Community College (www.nvcc.edu.) has become the largest institution of higher education in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the second-largest multi-campus community college in the nation. In...

Hand scanners hit Johnson & Wales University.
March 17, 2003... All you need is your hand to gain access to your dormitory room at Johnson & Wales, Denver (JWU). Students no longer need to worry about lost keys or the fines associated with that housekeeping item. Students entering the Pulliam dorm need to...

MiraCosta Community College sees improvements with PeopleSoft.
March 17, 2003... MiraCosta Community College's recent implementation of PeopleSoft software has revolutionized access to information for administrators and students of the college alike. MiraCosta's successful implementation proves that a community college of...

Designing for accessibility on the Web: tips to enhance online education for all user levels.
March 17, 2003... Let's face it: there is a lot of inconsistency on the Web. One Web page may be full of graphics and sound, while the next one you visit is bare bones with very few graphics. There really haven't been any official guidelines on what type of...

Wi-Fi sweeps Oakton Community College.(wireless fidelity routers)
March 17, 2003... On any given day at Oakton Community College, serving 10,000 full-time (and 15,000 part-time) students in Chicago's northern suburbs, people may be observed in lounges, the library stairways or the cafeteria surfing the Web on their laptop...

Community colleges: critical technology partners in a changing economy.(North Carolina's community colleges use the Rural Internet Access Authority)
March 17, 2003... In early 2001, the Rural Internet Access Authority embarked on a three-year journey to connect North Carolina to the Internet and a better future. In a state pummeled by job losses in the manufacturing, textiles and agriculture sectors, the...

Acquiring student feedback online.(San Joaquin Delta College used surveys to gauge employee and student satisfaction)
March 17, 2003... San Joaquin Delta College (SJDC) needed to gauge employee/student satisfaction as SJDC prepared for the accreditation study through survey research, which would include feedback from include online students, faculty and staff. The various...

Iowa college president, family charged in marijuana raid. (around the nation).
March 31, 2003... JOHNSTON, Iowa -- Local, state and federal drug-enforcement agents descended on the half-million-dollar home of a community college president here, arresting him and later his wife and two children this month after finding "dope in everybody's...

Oregon college suit could alter state funding structure. (around the nation).
March 31, 2003... BEND, Ore. -- A lawsuit filed by Central Oregon Community College could force a re-examination of how dollars are distributed to all 17 of Oregon's community colleges. The state's current formula for funding Central Oregon Community...

Colo. lawmakers consider vouchers for college students.(Brief Article)
March 31, 2003... DENVER -- Colorado could become the first state to adopt a voucher-like system that gives tax money directly to students instead of to colleges. Under a bill state legislators unveiled this month, the state would award each high school...