Campus attendance maps reveal wide areas of service

MCC's office of institutional research and assessment recently conducted an analysis of the area from which students are drawn to each of MCC's five campuses, and the results might surprise you.

Using attendance data from the Spring 2011 semester, the research office created a map for each campus that uses a small dot to indicate the location of every student's residence in relation to the location of the campus. The maps, which can be accessed using the links below, illustrate that each campus serves students far beyond its specific geographic service area.

MCC-Blue River attendance map
MCC-Business & Technology attendance map
MCC-Longview attendance map
MCC-Maple Woods attendance map
MCC-Penn Valley attendance map

MCC Opens Free Public Computer Centers

MCC has opened four new public computer centers (PCCs) and will open two more at the end of August. The PCCs, which will be free and open to the public, will give under-resourced residents access to computers for training to help them in the job market and in their personal lives.

“The PCCs will function as one-stop technology centers for launching new opportunities, new careers and personal enrichment, with a specific focus on the unemployed and underemployed populations,” said Rich Prather, PCC director.

The PCCs will be located on each of MCC’s five campuses and at the Pioneer location, a satellite extension of the Penn Valley campus.

The establishment of the PCCs is part of a state-wide Pathways to Broadband Access and Technology Education at Missouri’s Community Colleges project facilitated by the Missouri Department of Higher Education. Funding is provided by

Interactive Technology Integrated into MCC Social Sciences Classes



The clicker that MCC-Penn Valley social sciences students will use to mark their answer choices.



A screen shot of a sample question that students can answer with their clickers.

  

When students come back in the fall for their social sciences classes this fall at MCC-Penn Valley, they will be greeted by clickers and interactive PowerPoint presentations. On Tuesday, July 26, Dr. Karen Curls, head of Penn Valley’s Social Sciences Division, along with the division instructors, were trained on using Turning Point, a program from Turning Technologies, a company that specilializes in audience response systems.  The training was facillitated by Ben Bestic of Turning Technologies and Jim Beachner, the Health Science Institute Network Coordinator.

How Does it Work?
Turning Point is a program designed to work with MS PowerPoint to display questions and multiple-choice answer choices on instructor' lecture slides.  After viewing the question, students are allowed to use a palm-sized LCD-powered clicker to anonymously select an answer in the alloted time.  Once that time is up, the instructor can prompt an animation to display the correct answer or display a bar graph that shows how many students chose each answer.

Video: MCC Student Ambassador Conference 2011

MCC-Penn Valley Says Goodbye to Murvell McMurry

Thursday, July 21 marked the last day of Mr. Murvell McMurry's career at the Penn Valley campus of Metropolitan Community College.  His poutluck-style retirement party was held on the 5th floor of Campus Center Thursday afternoon and was attended by his wife, co-workers, former students' he's helped throughout the years, and members of his high school graduting class.  The room was decorated with cutouts of his infamous sayings that have rung through Penn Valley halls for nearly the past three decades and guests signed a hand-crafted model parking lot to commemorate the occasion. 

Mr. McMurry worked in various facets of student services at Metropolitan Community College for nearly 30 years before his retirement and has undoubtedly touched many lives of those around him with his engaging personality.  Now that his days as an MCC employee are over, he plans to do some travelling with his wife.  Best of luck to Mr. McMurry in his retirement; his presence and wit will be greatly missed!

MCC-Penn Valley Music Faculty Member Featured as Guest Conductor at Performing Arts Institute

MCC faculty member Clarence Smith was a guest conductor at the Performing Arts Institute, a summer camp held at Wyoming Seminary, a college prep school in Northeastern Pennsylvania.  During the week of July 11-15, 2011, Mr. Smith conducted the Jazz Ensemble and Jazz Combo at the camp.  He also lectured each day on the history of Kansas City jazz for the music topics series.

Mr. Smith currently serves as the coordinator of music at the Penn Valley campus while also teaching jazz at the Lonview and Blue River campuses.  Congratulations on your magnificent accomlishment, Mr. Smith!

MCC-Penn Valley Longtime Employee Retires

Today brings a bittersweet farewell to Ms. Theola Cheatham who was a long-time administrative assistant to the former president of the Penn Valley campus.  Theola has given 13 years of service to the Penn Valley campus, and all will be sad to see her go but excited for her new coming ventures in retirement.  Thank you for all you have done to make the Penn Valley campus a more smoothly running institution, Thola,  and best of luck in your future endeavors.

MCC Employee on the Move!

Next week, Shana McGinnis-Dorsey will be transitioning from her position at the Penn Valley campus to the Maple Woods campus as a Student Services Specialist! Shana’s impact and energy at Penn Valley will certainly be missed and she will make a great addition to the staff at Maple Woods. Good luck, Shana, in your new position and congratulations!

Penn Valley English instructor shares social media reflections

Teaching on a college campus is not only fulfilling. It also keeps you in touch with youth and pop culture. Just ask MCC-Penn Vally English Instructor Anita Leverich, who recently wrote about social media popularity with the young and young at heart. Click here to read her amusing observations about texting in today's society.

Leverich is a "Midwest Voices" columnist with The Kansas City Star.

MCC Student Ambassadors live, learn and lead at MSU

The 2^nd Annual Student Ambassador Leadership Conference was held at Missouri State University June 23-25.  Fifty-one students from nine different community college campuses attended this unique learning experience where the students lead the workshops along with area Student Ambassador Sponsors from Maple Woods, Longview, Penn Valley and Blue River. 

Rodger La Beth was asked to attend as the event’s keynote speaker where his presentation titled “Carpe Diem” kicked off the week’s theme of finding your passion and working with passion. The students participated in teambuilding, diversity, communication, and community service workshops all while spending quality time on a 4-year college campus. All participants stayed in the community-style residence hall and ate in the student cafeteria. MSU was a generous host and even gave every student a $20 giftcard to their campus store.  (So don’t be surprised to see a lot of MSU gear next semester wandering around your campuses!)

This leadership opportunity not only allows our Student Leaders to network and gain motivation for moving on to their 4-year institutions, it helps all of our colleges have better, more professional tour guides to lead our next generation of students through our front doors.

Penn Valley Health Science Institute hosts Skills USA competitions

The health care industry should be gaining some top-notch allied health professionals if the recent Skills USA competition is any indication. Students in the following medical programs competed in the national competition at MCC-Penn Valley Health Science Institute:

Dental Assisting students competed in chair-side assisting; preparation of dental materials; infection control; and emergency, laboratory and office procedures.

Medical Assisting contestants were tested on their skills in the clinical and administrative setting. They are judged on speed, the use of correct safety measures and their ability to interact personally with a patient. Skills were inclusive of general office skills, communication skills, patient education, knowledge of anatomy and physiology, terminology, instrument identification, and equipment, as well as on a variety of clinical procedures and techniques.

Nurse Assisting contestants demonstrated knowledge and abilities in CPR, and the measurement of vital signs. Contestants were also familiar with basic anatomy, communications skills, legal/ethical issues and employment skills

Practical Nursing competitors were judged on their knowledge of medical terminology, body structure and function, nutrition, medications and nursing care. They also performed job skills such as: administration of oral, subcutaneous and nasogastric medications; physical assessment; insertion of a nasogastric tube; sterile dressing change and cardiopulmonary resuscitation. At each workstation they are judged on accuracy of their skill, organization, communication and safety.

Retired Missouri Senator Visits HSI

Sandy McIlnay, director of health science at HSI, explains the value of the health resource center during a tour of HSI Wednesday with healthcare leader and former Mo. senator, Charlie Shields. 

Charlie Shields, chief operating officer at Truman Medical Center-Lakewood and former Missouri state senator, visited the MCC-Penn Valley Health Science Institute on Wednesday to tour the facility and learn about the innovative teaching and training techniques being used there.

Shields, who worked as an executive at Heartland Health System in St. Joseph for nearly two decades during his time in the Senate, is a longtime champion of public education and healthcare causes in the State of Missouri.

In a meeting before the tour of HSI, MCC officials spoke with Shields about the potential for collaboration opportunities with TMC-Lakewood.

U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver applauds MCC

U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver  praised Metropolitan Community College this week in his regualr emailed newsletter to supporters and constituients in the Kansas City metropolitan area.

The letter followed statements made by President Barak Obama and Vice President Joe Biden about the need to increase high-quality job training and encouraged Americans to support their local community colleges.

Here is what Cleaver wrote:

This week, the (Obama) Administration outlined the importance of manufacturing to our economy’s future, and the role community colleges, like Metropolitan Community College, play in creating a well-prepared workforce, ready to take on well-paying jobs. I strongly agree on the importance of manufacturing, which supports millions of middle-class families, drives innovation and productivity across our economy, and is crucial to America’s international competitiveness. That’s why I’m such a strong supporter of the Make It In America agenda, which focuses on rebuilding our manufacturing strength.

The initiatives the Administration announced today incorporate core elements of three Make It In America workforce training proposals: the JOBS Act, a bill I support, which builds job-training partnerships between advanced manufacturers and community colleges like Metropolitan Community College; The America WORKS Act, which focuses on the importance of portable credentials; and The SECTORS Act, which strengthens business-labor-education partnerships across many sectors, in addition to manufacturing. I hope Congress will take action on these bills soon so we can put more people back to work.

Proofing pays off for Penn Valley psychology instructor

Penn Valley Psychology Instructor Susan Higgins shows off the upcoming edition of a test bank she co-authored thanks to her sharp proofing skills.

Three years ago, Susan Higgins was going through the normal routine of preparing for her classes. As she reviewed the test bank that accompanied the seventh edition of Developing Person Through the Lifespan by Berger, she noticed some errors and reported them to the publisher.

"After a few e-mails, I received an e-mail that said since I was so good at finding their errors, they would pay me to go through the test bank and text book and find everything that needed to be updated," says the MCC-Penn Valley psychology instructor.

A year later the same publishing company contacted her again to co-author the test bank for a textbook on child/adolescent psychology and lifespan psychology.  "For any old test bank questions from the two books that were combining, take out any questions that were not relevant and add in new questions to cover the new material.  I wrote multiple choice/true-false/short answer and essay questions for that new test bank.

The company was so impressed with her keen proofing skills, they contacted her again last year to serve as co-author on another test bank. 

"This time, for the new (eighth) edition of the Berger Developing Person Through the Lifespan which was published this spring," Higgins explains.  "Once again, going through the text book page by page and taking out any questions that were no longer relevant and writing new questions to cover the new material.  So when Penn Valley receives their eighth edition Berger Lifespan materials this summer, my name will be a co-author on the test bank."

KCMSD students in CNA program featured on local newscast

MCC-Penn Valley, PREP-KC, and the Kansas City, Missouri School District recently launched the Health Sciences Accelerated Academy (HSAA). The program supports high school sophomores to not only complete high school, but also (during those three years) to complete college classes which prepare them for entry-level careers in health care, including Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA) training. 

Students were recently featured in a healthcare segment on Fox 4 News.

Students, faculty and staff join forces to spruce up Penn Valley grounds!

Linda Lechowicz (right) enlisted the support of Sereptia Evans, student, (left) and many others to help her plant flowers and plants across the main entryway.

Linda Lechowicz thought long and hard about her MCC Leadership Academy Project. She decided to use her passion for gardening to plant flowers and plants around the main campus entrance area. When she shared her idea with the rest of campus, several students, faculty and staff members stepped up to help.

In addition to Lechowicz, the rest of Penn Valley's Better Homes and Gardens Team consisted of: Vicki Raine, Zola Gordy, Muna Dempsey, Judi Sprintz, Michele Allen, Carroll O'Neal, Gurbhushan Singh and Sereptia Evans.

Looking good everyone!

Penn Valley staff association hosts cookout

Irvin Brooks (left), Terry McDaniel (center) and Scott Phillips (right) grill up burgers and hot dogs for the Penn Valley Staff Association Cookout!

The end of the school year is a great time to celebrate hard work and accomplishments. The Penn Vally Staff Association recently hosted a cookout with all the trimmings for employees to enjoy. Good food and good friends are the perfect combination!

Penn Valley alumnus heads to KU with $23,000 scholarship

When Cassie Absher completed her associate's degree at MCC-Penn Valley in May, she was already optimistic about her future. She was preparing to attend the University of Kansas in the fall and planning to teach middle school science afterwards.

Like so many students, the only concern she had was financing her education. Then she received the answer to her dreams. She was notified she had been awarded the James L. and Nellie M. Westlake Scholarship. And this is not just any ordinary scholarship. The Westlake Scholarship is worth $23,500!

The purpose of the scholarship is to assist Missouri residents in receiving a college education. It covers the cost of tuition at the student's school, and gives the student approximately $2,000 more to cover the cost of fees, books, and supplies.
Congrats to Absher and best wishes as she prepares for KU with zero financial worries!

Plaza de ninos weathers storm with ease

Preschoolers at Plaza de Ninos took cover in the Education Center at MCC-Penn Valley during Wednesday's tornado watch.
Teachers kept the youngsters busy with songs and a few of the favorite television friends, like Disney's "Little Einsteins."

In spite of the weather and missing their regularly scheduled lunch and nap times, the boys and girls handled the time with ease.

Plaza de Ninos, a Head Start program run by Guadalupe Centers, is operated out of the Francis Institute on the Penn Valley campus.

Penn Valley celebrates commencement 2011

Congressman Cleaver served as keynote speaker at Penn Valley's 2011 commencement ceremony.

More than 400 students at MCC-Penn Valley completed coursework requirements for associate's degree and certificate programs. Congressman Emanuel Cleaver delivered an inspiring message at this year's commencement ceremony reminding graduates of the importance of thanking those who helped them in their academic journey.

The hard work has paid off for Jajuan Turner and Rosie Garcia-Muzquiz who were among this year's graduating class.

MCC Board Chairman David Disney and Congressman Cleaver congratulate Penn Valley graduates.

Congressman Cleaver joins MCC Board members and Penn Valley leaders for an inspirational commencement celebration.