New staff at MCC - welcome!

First row:
Allen Cassity, MCC-Longview
Amber Wiggins, MCC-Blue River
Benton Dick, MCC Administrative Center
Brian Hurley, MCC Administrative Center
Christopher Parrett, MCC-Maple Woods
Second row:
Erwin Brown, MCC-Longview
Heather Boell, MCC Administrative Center
Jana Osborn, MCC Administrative Center
Julie Ingwerson, MCC-Maple Woods
LeAnn Bradberry, MCC-Business & Technology
Third row:
Liz Miller, MCC-Business & Technology
Melissa Giese, MCC Administrative Center
Paul Bradley, MCC Administrative Center
Ricky Rapp, MCC Administrative Center
Roger McDougle, MCC-Penn Valley (Don Bosco)
Fourth row:
Sharon Soares, MCC Administrative Center
Tami Knight, MCC Administrative Center
Tiffany Timmons, MCC Administrative Center

MCC welcomes new faculty and staff



Look at all these beautiful people!

The faculty and staff attended new employee orientation today at MCC-Penn Valley. The new employees and their campus is listed below in alphabetical order:

Carlos Bass, MCC-Maple Woods, Art
Heather Boell, MCC Administrative Center
LeAnn Bradberry, MCC-Business & Technology
Paul Bradley, MCC Administrative Center
Dawn Brady, MCC-Penn Valley, Counselor
Erwin Brown, MCC-Longview
Allen Cassity, MCC-Longview
David Collins, MCC-Blue River, English
Sarah Collins, MCC-Longview, Speech
Tracy Curry, MCC-Maple Woods, SCF Learning Center
Benton Dick, MCC Administrative Center
Ahmed El-Sherif, MCC-Penn Valley, Chemistry
Melissa Giese, MCC Administrative Center
Carol Gohdes, MCC-Penn Valley, Denistry
Carla Huffman, MCC-Maple Woods, Chemistry
Brian Hurley, MCC Administrative Center
Jody Hyman, MCC-Penn Valley, EMT/Paramedic
Julie Ingwerson, MCC-Maple Woods
Jennifer Johnson, MCC-Longview, Math
Tami Knight, MCC Administrative Center
Donald Lee, MCC-Penn Valley, Math
Kelly Mathews, MCC-Penn Valley, English
Roger McDougle, MCC-Penn Valley (Don Bosco)
Stacey McMillen, MCC-Penn Valley, Math
Liz Miller, MCC-Business & Technology
Mandy Moore, MCC-Blue River, Counselor
Anne Morgan, MCC-Longview, Philosophy
Alicia Norris, MCC-Penn Valley, Math
Mildred Nottingham, MCC-Penn Valley, Reading
Jana Osborn, MCC Administrative Center
Christopher Parrett, MCC-Maple Woods
Amy Prochaska, MCC-Business & Technology, English
Daniel Reneau, MCC-Longview, Art
Ricky Rapp, MCC Administrative Center
Sharon Soares, MCC Administrative Center
Jennifer Stephenson, MCC-Penn Valley, English
Zouhair Tamsamani, MCC-Blue River, Math
Tiffany Timmons, MCC Administrative Center
Lavon Tonga, MCC-Longview, Biology
Cynthia Tooley, MCC-Blue River, Sociology
Amber Wiggins, MCC-Blue River

Economic Development Expert Craig Joins MCC Staff

Jessica Craig has joined the staff of MCC as performance manager of economic development for the Institute for Workforce Innovation.

Craig came to MCC from the Missouri Department of Economic Development where she worked as a field project manager for seven years. In that role, she coordinated business recruitment and expansion activities which included crafting incentive packages for companies. She worked with businesses across the Greater Kansas City region and was responsible for business development in the life sciences industry, including the Animal Health Corridor.
At MCC, Craig will be responsible for economic development

MCC welcomes new employees



Rachel Lundy, Bookstore Technician at MCC-Maple Woods
Michael Barton, Lead Groundskeeper at MCC-Penn Valley



IWI welcomes BTOP public computer center director

Rich Prather, public computer center director, and Amanda Turner, administrative assistant

Last September, MCC was awarded $2.5 million through the Pathways to Broadband Access and Technological Education at Missouri’s Community Colleges project (BTOP) and the Missouri Department of Higher Education to support public computer centers. The project is a joint effort between the Administrative Center staff and the Institute for Workforce Innovation (IWI).

Now, the project can now truly begin as MCC welcomes Richard Prather, director for the BTOP public computer centers, who came on board last month.

Prather brings thirty years of experience in telecommunications. After graduating from Southwest Missouri State University with a degree in psychology and social work, he went to work for Southwestern Bell. As the company changed to SBC then to AT&T, Prather served in a variety of technical, managerial and marketing roles. Prior to Southwestern Bell, he worked with support groups in a Springfield psychiatric unit. He majored in psychology out of a desire to help others. Even when he joined the corporate ranks, he was always interested in starting up employee-assistance programs. When Prather retired from AT&T last year, he found he wasn’t really ready to retire. And when the opportunity to work with public computer centers came along, he jumped at the chance.

“I think this can truly make a difference in people’s lives,” said Prather. The public computer centers will offer open labs to teach basic computer literacy, such as Microsoft Office, Internet usage, social networking, and a variety of other user-related topics with an eye towards employability. The centers will be open to any Missouri resident. People who come to the computer centers will be encouraged to take advantage of MCC opportunities like counseling, and certification and degree programs.

“I see the public computer centers as the first step in the stepladder to success,” said Prather.

Prather plans to measure the success of the computer centers not just by grant-mandated guidelines, but by making the program sustainable. In addition to equipment and software, the grant will fund a total of four full-time staff, and 13-14 thousand-hour positions, including a mobile lab operator. Amanda Turner, who worked previously in payroll at MCC, is Prather’s administrative assistant and an integral part of the team.

NUS staff is currently assisting the public computer center team to upgrade the equipment in campus computer labs, including software, as well as working out logistics for the mobile lab which will feature laptop computers. One of Prather’s aims is to have a standard, consistent feel to the MCC public computer centers while incorporating the unique personality of each campus and its community into its computer center. Plans are underway to launch the centers on all MCC campuses this summer.

Welcome to new MCC employees

MCC welcomes new employees

Trisha Barb, LV Student Employment Services Specialist

John Moyer, BR Senior Campus Police Officer

Laures Simmons, IWI Program Specialist

Scott Patterson, BR Public Information Specialist

Michele Simmons, MW Learning Specialist

MCC welcomes new employees

MCC welcomes new employees

Alex Lopez, PV; Charles McMullin, LV; Luann Heacock, BR; Ronald Morris, PV; Chris Page, BTC; Katherine Ranstrom, BTC; Joseph Kern, PV; Ralph Collier, PV; Jason Samayoa, AC

New research director brings experience, vision

Kristy Bishop, Ph.D., MCC’s new director of institutional assessment

and research, says that one of her goals in her new role is to raise the

visibility of the resources available through the research office.

When Kristy Bishop begins her new role as MCC’s director of institutional research and assessment in January, she’ll bring a breadth of higher education experience and a true understanding of how institutional research fits into the larger MCC picture.

Bishop, who has served as an adjunct instructor at MCC-Maple Woods since 2004, will officially begin her new role on January 3, but she has already begun thinking about how she can apply her expertise to the work of the department.

“I’m developing a new mission statement for the research office now,” said Bishop. “To be effective, our top priorities should be to provide accurate data in a timely fashion and to support decision makers in achieving goals and objectives.”

But Bishop is quick to point out that she doesn’t plan to make wholesale changes right away. First, she wants to assess the assessment, so to speak.

“In my conversations, I have found that much of the information produced by our department is very useful to our internal constituents, which is great,” she said. “So, before I start suggesting and implementing changes, I want to work with the team to get a good feel for how everything is currently done, to see what is working and where there are opportunities to improve our processes.”

Bishop appreciates the student-centric nature of MCC faculty and staff, and though she will be moving to a role that has less direct contact with students, she views the new position as similar to her former position in one important way.

“I still feel like I’m in an educating role,” she said. “I now have an opportunity to be a resource for staff, faculty and administrators about the importance of statistics and program evaluation in achieving MCC’s ultimate purpose. It’s just a different audience.”

Bishop holds a bachelor of arts in psychology from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, a master of science in psychology from Avila University and a doctor of philosophy in teaching and leadership from the University of Kansas. Before joining MCC as an adjunct psychology instructor in 2004, she was an instructor at Concorde Career Institute and taught community education classes across the metropolitan area. Prior to teaching, she held various higher education administrative positions, including assistant to the vice chancellor of student affairs and dean of educational services at the University of Kansas, assistant director of student financial aid at KU and was both the assistant registrar and a transfer consultant at Avila. She also worked as a counselor/advocate at Rose Brooks Shelter for Battered Women, a graduate teaching assistant at Avila and an independent educational consultant.

Employee Learning Gets a New Face

Rich Higgason, Ph.D., MCC’s new director of educational programs and employee development, says his favorite aspect of working for MCC is that the institution is committed to making people’s lives better. “As one of my students said, MCC means 'hope.'”

Professional and organizational development at MCC is getting a new face – literally and figuratively.

Rich Higgason, who assumed the role of district director of educational programs and employee development in October, has innovative ideas in mind for his newly minted position – a role that is steeped in history and rich with possibility.

Higgason takes over where two seasoned colleagues left off: When Jane Zeitner, former director of educational programs, and Gail Barham, former director of organizational development, both retired last summer, the two roles were combined into one. Higgason, who was named to the new position on October 18 and officially starts the role full-time on January 1, tips his hat to his predecessors and embraces the opportunities that accompany the reformulated position.

“I’ve been amazed at the breadth and depth of programs Jane and Gail and their teams put on,” said Higgason. “There are already so many opportunities for employee learning, so we’ll continue to build on those, dovetailing the programs for faculty and staff and promoting all opportunities to the full employee audience.”

Higgason, who has been with MCC for 16 years and most recently was division chair for humanities at MCC-Blue River, believes employee learning is as fundamental to MCC as student learning.

“MCC’s vision statement stresses the importance of learning, including employee learning, and professional development is key to carrying out our mission to educate students,” said Higgason. “We need to be sure staff, faculty and administrators have the skills they need not only for their current roles but also for future growth. Continued learning equips us to best serve students and at the same time provides for employees’ own personal and professional growth.”

Higgason holds a bachelor of science in business administration from the University of Missouri-Columbia, a master of arts in English from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and a doctor of philosophy in English literature and criticism from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He served as a graduate teaching assistant and an adjunct lecturer at UMKC before joining MCC in 1994 as an adjunct lecturer at Longview. He became a full-time instructor at MCC-Blue River in 1998 and became division chair for humanities in 2006. He has served on more than 15 task forces and committees at MCC, including leading the Strategic Planning Council’s 2010 strategy 8 efforts to improve communication across the district and serving as a member of the MCC faculty senate and of MCC-Blue River’s president’s cabinet.

In addition to developing, promoting and delivering professional development programs, Higgason is also responsible for student service learning, district-wide student orientation and other student- and employee-focused initiatives. Though most of his experience as an instructor is in front of students, Higgason says he is looking forward to the challenge of providing learning opportunities to a new audience.

“The difference between teaching students and training employees is that you have to be a better teacher,” he said. “Employees are there voluntarily, so if your training is not effective, they stop coming. You’ve got to keep their attention and engage them in a different way.”

Watch for more information soon from the office of educational programs and employee development, including improvements to the training tracking system and streamlined promotion of educational and training programs.

MCC welcomes new employees

Elizabeth Prindle, Academic Graduation Advisor, MCC-BTC

David Ford, Custodian, MCC-Longview

David Thomasson, Custodian, MCC-Longview

Bonita Werner, Techline Specialist II, Administrative Center

MCC welcomes new employees!

New employees from across the district gathered at the Administrative Center today for New Employee Orientation.

MCC welcomes new employees

Christopher Martin - Maintenance Mechanic – MCC-Penn Valley
Annette Farrell – Early Childhood Resource Specialist – MCC Penn Valley
Larry McCrea – Sr. Campus Police Officer
Timothy Brewer - Sr. Campus Police Officer

MCC welcomes new employee!

Jeff Vincent – Learning Specialist – MCC-Business & Technology

MCC welcomes new employees

Julia McDonald – Paralegal Analyst – AC










Matthew Campbell – Graphic Design Coordinator – AC

MCC-Blue River's new associate dean - Karen Goos

Off and running in her new position, this Nebraska native is burning professional “rubber” in student development at MCC-Blue River. Karen Goos, the new associate dean of student development is no stranger to Blue River students, faculty and staff. In fact, Goos had been Blue River’s registrar for some time before stepping into her new duties as associate dean.

One of Karen’s favorite components of her new job is helping students circulate efficiently through MCC’s system. According to Goos, she and her team are working vehemently to “create seamless ways for students to easily navigate the enrollment, financial and advising processes.”

Goos's approach to student development is comprehensive as well as team-oriented. “Working together allows us to serve students holistically rather than just solving an individual problem” she says.

Her natural ability to listen to and empathize with students are among the many strengths she brings to her new role.

You may reach her at Karen.Goos@mcckc.edu or in the Dean’s Suite at Blue River.

MCC welcomes new employee

Camry Ivory, Academic Advisor, Educational Opportunity Center

MCC welcomes new employee

Karly Schmidt, Admissions Coordinator, MCC-Maple Woods

New employee orientation held today

Front row: Eric Sligar, campus police investigator (AC); Joanne Thies, administrative support specialist (AC); Bill Anker, director of technology services (AC); Letonia Torrence, administrative assistant (HSI); Barb Rice, administrative assistant (BTC); Lorrie Blake, student services assistant (LV)
Back row: Elaine Mondschein, performance manager (IWI); Kimberly Darbonne, student services assistant (LV); Mike Ekey, public information coordinator (LV); Scorpio Horn, student financial aid advisor (BR); Karly Schmidt, admissions coordinator (MW); Jael Dawson, student financial aid assistant (LV); Kasey Mayer, bookstore assistant (PV); Temeca White, academic advisor (BR)

MCC welcomed new employees today at the New Employee Orientation (NEO). Every quarter, new employees spend the day together learning about MCC's culture, benefits and opportunities.

NEO is orchestrated by MCC's organizational development & training department and hosted by Rodger La Beth.

La Beth can be reached at 816.604.1342 or rodger.labeth@mcckc.edu