Campus
Communicator
JANUARY • 2015
A Welcome from Dr. Riley
The start of the spring semester at Northern is a most appropriate time
for me to welcome back all students and staff. We’ve enjoyed a restful break, and it shows: the return to classes was mostly strife-free and
faculty and staff deserve thanks for their assistance in meeting the challenges that occur in gearing up for the balance of an academic year.
As you know, this start-up was especially exciting for me as I began
2015 as the new president of West Virginia Northern Community College. I am honored to have been selected as the College’s new leader,
and pledge my solid support in our mutual efforts to keep WVNCC
operating as an institution that values excellence.
Dr. Vicki L. Riley
As January progressed, I have been very pleased with the initial meetings conducted, with College colleagues displaying a deep sense of
cooperation and involvement. It may be a cliché to some, but truly we
are all in this together and we must resolve to listen, draft plans, and
take action to help one another on our paths to success.
Already, some colleagues have taken on added duties and responsibilities, and all faculty and staff have been, or will be soon, asked to participate in making suggestions on how we can do better at recruiting
students and, more importantly, retaining students once they embark
on their educational careers at Northern. A reconstituted Enrollments
Management Council has been given that charge and members have
launched an intensive round of meetings to strategize and set goals,
both short-term and long-term.
Although we all are aware of the changes to higher education funding
at the state level, I am hopeful this is a short-term situation and that,
coupled with Northern’s aggressive response to recruitment and retention, we can meet the inherent challenges with thoughtful, meaningful,
and beneficial action.
I am eagerly looking forward to the future at West Virginia Northern.
Together we can do great things.
Retiring WVNCC President Martin J.
Olshinsky and his First Lady, Dianna
Olshinsky.
Photos courtesy of David Allinder, InWheeling Magazine.
Fond Farewell
Dianna Vargo, superintendent of Ohio
County Schools, and Nick Zervos, chief
of RESA 6, meet up at the gala gathering. He is president of the board of the
Wheeling campus Friends of the College.
From left, Rob Krall, president of the
WVNCC Foundation Board of
Trustees; Stephanie Kappel, assistant
to the president, and Peggy Carmichael, chief human resources officer,
were all smiles at the reception.
Each year in December, Northern fetes members of the various organizations that have long supported the college, such
as the Board of Governors, Foundation, Friends of the College and others from the wider external community, by inviting them to a festive holiday luncheon as prepared by students and staff of the Culinary Arts department. During last
month’s event, retiring President Martin J. Olshinsky was honored for his many years of service to WVNCC.
As part of the event, Wheeling Mayor Andy McKenzie presented Dr. Olshinsky with a framed resolution signed by City
Council citing Dr. Olshinsky’s many achievements. Northern’s Board of Governors and Foundation board members also
presented the retiring president with mementos of his time at WVNCC.
Northern Named to
National Honor Roll
WVNCC
again has
earned
a listing
on the
national
President’s
Higher
Education Community Service Honor Roll.
Northern is the only West Virginia
institution to be cited each year since
inception of the listing in 2006.
The Community Service Honor Roll
recognizes institutions of higher education that support exemplary community service programs and raise
the visibility of effective practices in
campus community partnerships.
The Corporation for National and
Community Service has administered
the award since 2006 in collabora-
tion with the U.S. Department of
Education and the U.S. Department
of Housing and Urban Development,
as well as the American Council on
Education, Campus Compact and the
Interfaith Youth Core.
For 2014, the CNCS selected four
presidential winners, 16 finalists for
that top honor and more than 700
other institutions for their exemplary
community service.
According to Shannon Payton, Northern’s student activities director, the
college participated in numerous
community service projects for 2014.
Heading the list in terms of numbers of participants and hours spent
volunteering were Northern’s pledge
to the Military Mail Call program,
which resulted in thousands of letters
being written to military personnel
stationed at home and abroad; an
internal Secret Santa program which
provided gifts to hundreds of children
of students in need; a collection of
bottled water that was driven to the
Charleston area for residents there
who were victims of a water crisis because of an industrial river spill; and
participation in a statewide canned
food drive challenge.
“I’m proud of the students and staff
at the Wheeling, Weirton and New
Martinsville campuses because they
show how much they care every day,”
Director Payton said.
CNCS honorees are chosen based on
a series of selection factors, including
the scope and innovation of service
projects, the extent to which servicelearning is embedded in the curriculum, the school’s commitment to
long-term campus-community partnerships and measurable community
outcomes as a result of the service.
WVNCC Celebrates
Black History Month
Ilene Evans
Black History Month in February
will be celebrated by West Virginia
Northern Community College’s three
campuses with a return visit of talented actress, singer and dancer Ilene
Evans who will perform poetry, prose
and songs written by black artists, old
and new.
The Lunch and Learn presentation is
titled “Harvest of Dreams---Voices
to Remember” and features a collection of African-American poetry and
prose, stories and songs. The program
includes works by Waring Cuney,
Langston Hughes, Paul Laurence
Dunbar and Ancella Bickley.
ing 304-214-8917. Please remember to
specify attendance date and location
with the RSVP. Parking is available
in the Barnes & Noble lot and in lots
adjacent to the Weirton and New
Martinsville campuses.
Wheeling Ca mpus
cation Policy Commission and the
Community and Technical College
System in West Virginia.
Evans has been described as an
inspired storyteller, performer and
scholar who weaves music, poetry,
dance and drama to bring history
alive. She creates and presents theater
programs and workshops/seminars
that inform, educate and entertain audiences young and old. She has toured
extensively throughout the U.S. and
internationally with her historical and
original works.
Evans received her bachelor of arts degree from Trinity College, Deerfield,
Ill., and her master’s in storytelling at
East Tennessee State University.
The program has been made possible
by a grant through the Diversity for
Equity program of the Higher Edu-
All performances, which are free
and open to the public, will be held
at noon with a light lunch served at
11:30 a.m. Dates are Tuesday, Feb.
3, in the Student Union, located on
the second floor above the Barnes &
Noble bookstore on the Wheeling
campus, 1704 Market St.; Wednesday,
Feb. 4, in Room 242, Weirton campus,
150 Park Ave.; and Thursday, Feb. 5,
Room 110, New Martinsville campus,
141 Main St.
The public is invited to attend, along
with Northern students and staff.
However, all those wishing to attend
must RSVP to Program Coordinator
Ida Williams by Monday, Feb. 2, at either iwilliams@wvncc.edu or by call-
Ilene Evans performs as Bessie Coleman, the first black aviatrix, during a presentation in January at West Virginia Northern Community College in Wheeling. Evans will return the first
week of February to commemorate Black History Month at all three WVNCC campuses. She
will perform a collection of African-American poetry and prose, stories and songs.
WVNCC Friends Dinner to Honor Rev. Dr. Darrell W. Cummings
of 19. Rev. Dr. Cummings founded
Greater Love Pentecostal Church in
Ashtabula in 1980 and remained
there for more than a decade. He
received laying on of hands at his
ordination in Zanesville, Ohio, by the
late Bishop Morris E. Golder of Indianapolis. On June 15, 1992, Cummings
became the pastor of Bethlehem
Apostolic Temple, being installed by
the late Bishop F.L. Smith of Akron,
Ohio. In April of 2002 he was elevated
to District Elder in the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, Ohio District
Council, District 8.
Dr. Darrell W. Cummings, standing center, will be honored by West Virginia Northern
Community College at its annual fund-raising dinner March 14 at the college. Standing, from
left, are Rana Spurlock, institutional advancement coordinator at the college; Cummings; and
Nick Zervos, president of the board of the Wheeling campus Friends of the College. Seated is
Dr. Vicki L. Riley, WVNCC president.
The Rev. Dr. Darrell W. Cummings,
community leader and pastor of
the Bethlehem Apostolic Temple in
Wheeling and Shiloh Apostolic Faith
Assembly in Weirton, will be cited
for his years of volunteer service by
WVNCC during its annual fund-raising dinner.
“Darrell Cummings is one of the
longest-serving members of Northern’s Board of Governors. His love
for the college is well known, and his
voluntarism in the wider community
is legendary,” Nick Zervos, president
of the Friends board, said. Robert J.
Krall, president of the Foundation
Rev. Dr. Cummings, current chairman Board of Trustees, added, “As a volunof Northern’s Board of Governors, will teer leader in our community, Darrell
has few peers. He is positive, passionbe honored at the event, sponsored
ate, wise and highly deserving of the
by the Wheeling campus Friends of
the College and the Foundation, to be honor. All of us who know him, and
held Saturday, March 14, at the Educa- all those he has helped through his
ministry and efforts, will applaud his
tion Center building at 17th and Eoff
recognition.”
streets downtown.
Friends of the College committee
members have been planning the
dinner for several months, and have
chosen as its theme “An Evening at the
Rodeo.” It is expected those in attendance will be served a gourmet dinner
with a Tex-Mex flair, prepared by
the college’s Culinary Arts chefs and
students, and will be surrounded by
a Western motif. Live entertainment
and silent and live auctions also will
be featured.
Rev. Dr. Cummings was born in San
Antonio, Texas. He is a graduate
of Cuyahoga Community College,
Cleveland State College, Internal Auditor Federal Reserve School, Moody
Bible School and the Ashtabula, Ohio,
Bible School, where he received his
doctorate in theology. He also has received degrees in accounting, business
law and real estate law.
Licensed as a minister at the age of
16, he had his first pastorate at the age
Rev. Dr. Cummings has served as
a leader and officer in the religious
community for more than two decades. He is the former vice president
of the Wheeling Clergy Council, the
former chairman of the evangelism
committee for the Greater Wheeling Council of Churches, the former
chairman for the Martin Luther King
Community Celebration for the Ohio
Valley and presently serves as president of the Ohio Valley Pastor’s Association. In 1997 he was awarded one
of the “Man of the Year” awards by the
Wheeling NAACP. In February 2003
he received an award as the “Civil
Rights Leader of the Year” by the West
Virginia Education Association. He
also was given the honor of serving as
chaplain for the West Virginia Legislature, in both the Senate and the
House.
He is on several boards including the
Wheeling Area Habitat for Humanity,
Wheeling Police Commission, Youth
Services Board where he served as
chairman and currently is president of
the Rotary Club of Wheeling.
He has three children: Melanie Faith,
Claude Vaughn and Richard William
Cummings.
Wheeling Holidays
& Happenings
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Once again, West Virginia Northern participates in
Higher Education Day at the Legislature, which was
held Jan. 27 in the State Capitol, Charleston. Standing in front of the WVNCC display table are, first
row, from left, Ida Williams, program coordinator;
President Vicki L. Riley, and students Ina Jo Masteller,
Wheeling campus; Tiffany Palmer, New Martinsville
campus, and Rick Kozlowski, Wheeling campus.
In back, from left, are staffers Janet Fike and Dawn
Barcus.
➍
WVNCC Has the Holiday Spirit
➌
1. From left, Don Chamberlain and Louie Nickolas joined us for
the annual Student Christmas party to host their now infamous
Mega Game Show, where the students get the chance to win money in the Cash Cube. 2. From left, Ida Williams, John Mehaffey
and Shannon Payton pose while taking a break from the annual
Christmas luncheon. 3. From left, Tami Becker and work studies
Ina Jo Masteller and Tyger Eltringham give tickets to students for
a chance to be a contestant in the Mega Game Show. 4. WVNCC
Staff show off the ugly Christmas Sweaters they wore for the
employee Christmas Luncheon. From left, Katrina Hyde, Hilary
Curto, Margaret DeCola, Anna Brandi, Linda Mason, Debbie Wayt
and Peggy Carmichael.
Wetzel County
Chamber Dinner
Meeting at the Wetzel Council Chamber of Commerce Annual Celebration
Dinner, from left, are Jennifer Lantz,
Cork Bowen, Friends board member,
Darcey Ferrell, Debbie Bennett, Mark
Goldstein, Keith Burdette, (speaker
and secretary of commerce for the
state of West Virginia, and Don
Riggenbach Wetzel County Chamber
of Commerce board president.
The Wetzel County Chamber of
Commerce held its annual Celebration Dinner on Jan. 22. This event is
an opportunity for the chamber to
share its successes with its membership. This year’s dinner brought out
six local caterers to compete in the
contest, “A Taste of …. Top Chef.”
This contest was designed so that
each caterer could showcase his or
her menu while providing the food
for the event. This meant, of course,
that those New Martinsville campus
colleagues who attended, Jennifer
Lantz, Cork Bowen, Friends board
member, Darcey Ferrell, Debbie and
Greg Bennett and Mark Goldstein got
to try foods from six different caterers. Some of the goodies included
ham and cheese quiche, chocolate
covered strawberries and orange rolls
from The Orchard Bed and Breakfast,
Sardis, Ohio; lasagna, bruschetta and
cheesecake from LaPasta Bella, New
Martinsville, and pork cutlets with
mashed potatoes and gravy, creamy
New Martinsville Ca mpus
broccoli soup and baked apples from
Shooters Saloon, Reader, which was
the winner for the night.
Keith Burdette, West Virginia’s secretary of commerce, was the evening’s
keynote speaker. Secretary Burdette
spoke about development of jobs
created by the Marcellus and Utica
Shale deposits throughout West Virginia. He also indicated that there are
ongoing talks with businesses which
anticipate bringing their business to
our state or beginning a business as a
result of the by-products of the oil and
gas industry.
new and returning students with these
events. If you don’t already have an
Activities Calendar, you need to get
one; it contains information on a variety of events and programs sponsored
by Student Activities. For students
who are interested in joining CAB,
contact Ina or one of the other CAB
members on campus.
New Martinsville Recycles!
Northern was one of the sponsors of
the celebration dinner and continues
to work closely with the chamber
board.
January CAB Meeting
Attending the Campus Activities
Board meeting in January are Ina
Robinson, Tiffany Palmer, Jamie
Melott, Ashley Yoho, Tyren Rhinehart, Shawni Winland and JR Powell.
Ina Robinson, counselor, is getting the
semester started as she meets with the
students involved with the Campus
Activities Board. Student Activities
sponsored two events during the first
week students were back for classes,
Pizza Lunch and Hot Chocolate Day.
Both events were appreciated by the
students as they got back into the
routine of attending classes and studying. Thank you to Ina and the CAB
members who helped welcome the
The New Martinsville campus has
been partnering with the Wetzel
County Solid Waste Authority since
last year to recycle the campus paper
and cardboard.
Terri Tyler, executive director of the
authority, indicated that the recycling
is provided as a free service to the
community. The Legislature created
the Solid Waste Management Board in
1989; one of the duties of this board is
to provide remote recycling to reduce
and reuse in the counties. Terri stated
that the curbside pickup was discontinued in 2011 as it was not economically feasible. However, in 2013, the
authority began a Saturday, four-hour
drop-off program at Bruce Park in
New Martinsville for paper, cardboard, plastics, glass and aluminum,
which has become very popular with
the community.
Those on campus have seen the large
green trash cans in the student lounge
and on the second floor and the recycle box in the copy room since last
continued next page...
summer but did you really know how
much of an impact this has made?
Terri reported that the WCSWA collected 115,000 pounds of recyclable
material from the community in
2014. The New Martinsville campus
was able to contribute 700 pounds of
recyclable paper to that total. This was
helped by the LRC as Lee Ann Blair,
NM librarian, sorted through the
magazines and other publications just
before Christmas break and identified
those that were outdated. All of that
material would have been put in the
campus dumpster and hauled to the
landfill but now it will be part of products such as recycled paper towels
and toilet paper. This partnership also
helps the campus by reducing the cost
to dispose of trash. Watch for notices
for the spring electronic recycling and
fall tire recycling dates. If you have a
group looking for a service project,
Terri has information that will help
with keeping our roads and parks
clean.
So, if you are cleaning out any magazines, books, newspapers, boxes or
any paper you would normally toss in
the trash can, put it in the designated
green trash cans or contact Debbie
Bennett to schedule a pick up or to get
more information on how your group
can help.
associate professor, business administration, to her West Virginia and
Appalachian Subculture class to give
the students a chance to experience
the music and instruments that were
part of this culture. Bill and Charleen
gave an informative and entertaining
presentation on the History of Music
in Appalachia. The students enjoyed
an informal game of “name-that-tune”
while learning about the origins of
many musical instruments of mountain culture. Also, students were given
the opportunity to experience those
instruments hands-on.
Listening intently to Stokes’ presentation,
from left, Jacob Rabel, Stokes, Mike Tallman
and Greg Keith.
WVNCC Friends Enjoy
Yuletide and Retirement
Luncheon
Long-time New Martinsville campus staffers
Ina and Debbie meeting with Bonnie Ellis,
retired Wheeling campus counselor, at the
festive luncheon.
The New Martinsville Friends of the
Campus board members attended
the combined retirement party for
Dr. Olshinsky and annual Yuletide
lunch in December. This event was an
opportunity to celebrate the tenure of
Dr. Olshinsky and for the members
of the college boards to recognize his
achievements as he retires from his
presidency. The Friends Board members were treated to a splendid luncheon that started with wine and hors
d’oeuvres, continued with salad and
prime rib with potatoes and vegetables and ended with a dessert that was
as delicious as it was beautiful. Thanks
again to the faculty and students of
the Culinary Arts department for another amazing display of your talents.
WV and Appalachian
Subculture class
Bill and Charlene Stokes
Darcey Ferrell, assistant professor,
psychology/sociology/human services, invited Bill and Charleen Stokes,
Members of the board of the New
Martinsville campus Friends of the
College attend the annual Yuletide
appreciation lunch and retirement
reception for Dr. Martin J. Olshinsky.
Standing, from left, are Ina Robinson,
Linda Glover, board president, and
Debbie Bennett. Seated, from left, are
Cork Bowen, Dianna Lawrence, secretary, and Genie Clements.
The Culinary Arts department’s festive and
delicious dessert.
Weirton Ca mpus
Leadership Weirton
The Leadership Weirton program
kicked off Jan. 23. Dawn Cable, at left,
a developmental education faculty
member, is representing WVNCC
in the weeks-long program this year.
Joining her at the kickoff are Weirton
campus staffers Tina Edwards, middle, and Lisa Soly. Lisa is a graduate of
a previous Leadership Weirton session.
CAB Pizza Pass Out
CAB members on the Weirton campus officiate over Pizza Pass Out Day
on Jan. 13. Kneeling is Scott Montgomery; Sarah Blankenship is in the
middle and at top is Brandon Jasiel.
Students Donate
Weirton campus students last month
help load the donated food items that
were collected from the Thanksgiving dinner on campus. The trucks are
delivering to the Community Bread
Basket in Weirton.
Weirton Christmas Celebrations
Northern’s Weirton campus students and staff once again
participated in the Weirton Christmas Parade, riding and
walking along a gaily decorated float. WVNCC also continued
its major sponsorship of the community’s holiday parade put on
annually by the Chamber of Commerce.
Below, children of students and staff at the Weirton campus
had the exciting opportunity to meet with Santa Claus, played
by our own John Mehaffey, during the campus Christmas party
on Dec. 2.