July 9, 2015
COD Physics Professor ‘Most Influential Teacher’
Physics Professor Dr. Jennifer Gimmell was recently named
“Most Influential Teacher” by U.S. Presidential Scholar
Joseph A. Popelka of Benet Academy in Lisle. “I’m both
excited and humbled to receive this recognition,” Gimmell
said. “Out of approximately 3,900 students invited, only 141
were awarded the Presidential Scholarship. It’s quite an
honor to be recognized by such a brilliant and accomplished
student.” Gimmell said the secrets to her teaching success
lie in her passion for the subject and through her
encouragement of a proactive approach in the classroom. “I
don’t like passive teaching and learning; it’s a waste of my
time and a waste of the students’ time,” she said. “I try to
make each lesson a story. I want to bring each lesson to life
and have my students associate emotions with the topics
they’re learning about.” Read More
MAC Summer Concert/Movie Series Starts July 16
The McAninch Arts Center presents its free Lakeside Pavilion
Summer Series starting with a “Frozen” screening and sing-along on Thursday, July 16. Last summer, more than 7,000
students, faculty, staff and community members enjoyed the free
outdoor events. The 2015 Pop Music Series begins Friday,
July 17, with a concert by the internationally acclaimed Chicagobased Beatles tribute band American English. In addition, new
this year is the WDCB LIVE Jazz Concert Series that runs on
Thursdays, Aug. 6, 13 and 20. Read More
New Enhanced 2+2
Nursing Agreement
COD and Purdue University
Calumet have announced a
new Enhanced 2+2
articulation articulation
agreement that results in the
completion of a Bachelor of
Science in Nursing Degree earned at Purdue University Calumet
(PUC). “This agreement provides our students with a seamless
transfer experience and the opportunity to earn a degree from a
prestigious university that prepares them for highly sought-after
nursing positions at the BSN level,” said Emmanuel Awuah,
Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs. Read More
Tenacious Teamwork
Students Participate in NASA Robotics Competition
College of DuPage was one of only two community colleges
invited to participate in the 2015 NASA Robotic Mining
Competition held at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Click here to view photos of the team preparing the robot for
the competition. Click here to view an early test video of the
team’s robot. Earlier this year, the team was awarded Best
Design at the Jerry Sanders Creative Design Competition.
“Competitions like this one are a fantastic opportunity for our
students to get unmatched hands-on experience that mimics
a real-life design-build project,” said Engineering Club advisor
and Engineering instructor Scott Banjavcic. Read More
Students (left to right) Miguel
Hernandez, Megan Thomas
and Jon Andersen worked
together during an Honors
Leadership Development
Program taught by Speech
Communications Professor
Lauren Morgan. During the
team-building exercise,
students moved “radioactive"
material (popcorn kernels)
from a can into a bucket
without any potentially "lethal"
spillage. Click here for more
photos.
New Employees
A big welcome to our new employees! Click here for a
complete list of our newest team members.
Citizen’s Public Safety Academy
Thirty-two residents from District 502 are currently
participating in the inaugural Citizen’s Public Safety
Academy hosted by COD’s Homeland Security Training
Institute. Held on Tuesdays from June 21 to July 21, the
free academy focuses on general public safety issues
such as crime prevention, fraud, disaster response, fire
safety and firearm safety. Funded through a grant
provided by Motorola Solutions Foundation, presenters
include the COD Police Department, FEMA, Milton
Township CERT program, Naperville Police and Fire
departments and the Suburban Law Enforcement
Academy (SLEA).
Kudos to…Architecture Associate Professor Mark
Pearson who was recently a guest on radio legend
Milt Rosenberg’s AM midday radio program to discuss
“Architecture in Chicago and Beyond.” Additional panel
members included Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and
architecture critic Blair Kamin and Art Institute of Chicago
Curator Karen Kice. Click here to enjoy the program.
More Kudos to…Associate Geography Professor Keith
Yearman who is co-author of the upcoming book “The
Curious Traveler’s Guide to Route 66 in Metro Chicago.”
Click here for more information.
More Kudos to…Multimedia Services, which recently
received five prestigious Telly Awards: Paul Thompson
received the top Silver Telly for producing/directing the
“Collaborative Simulation 2014” video; Edward Kuhs received
a Bronze Telly for writing/producing/directing “Fashion Studies:
What Is Fashion?”; Jim Nocera received a Bronze Telly for
producing/ directing “HSTI Live: Rescue Task Force Response
to Active Shooter Incidents”; and Chris Gekas and Corey Kile
received a Bronze Telly for co-producing the “American
Culinary Federation Student Competition.” Thompson and
Kuhs also received a Bronze Telly for co-producing
“Admissions 2015.” Click here to view these and additional
Multimedia videos.
More Kudos to...English faculty member Mardelle Fortier
whose short story “Sherlock Homes in the Windy City” was
recently published in Calliope (Spring 2015, issue 147), online
and in hard copy. Calliope is sponsored by the Writers' Special
Interest Group within Mensa.
Arts Center ‘Hot Tix” for Employees this Weekend
Employees can receive half-price tickets for College Theatre’s
“Pride and Prejudice” Thursday through Sunday at 7 p.m.,
Playhouse Theatre. Tix ($7): www.atthemac.org or ext. 4000.
It’s Bean Fun!
College of DuPage student Frank
Ruchter (right) captured a moment
with Earl Dowling, Vice President of
Student Affairs, at a recent “Zombie
Photo Bomb” event at Chicago's
Millennium park. Ruchter recognized
Dowling and asked for a photo in front
of the city's famous “bean” sculpture
created by British artist Anish Kapoor
in 2004.
More Kudos to…the following employees who earned I AM COD
recognition letters for their contributions to the College in June:
Jeannine Belifuss, Physical Education; Karyin Boulom, Staff
Services; Laura Ebbole, Student Records; Thomas Gaita, Learning
Commons; and Darryl Tyndorf, Research and Analytics.
Reminder: Please set your Out-of Office Outlook and voice mail
messages each Friday during summer hours. Here is a suggested
message: During summer hours, College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn is
open Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., and is closed Fridays
through Aug. 7. For your convenience, the COD Centers in Addison,
Carol Stream, Naperville and Westmont are open Monday through
Saturday during this time period. In addition, online registration is
available at MyAccess.cod.edu. Please visit www.cod.edu/hours for
details on summer and regular hours for all College services. Thank you.
June/July ‘Images’ Program
The June/July “Images” program produced by Multimedia Services
focuses on Commencement, outstanding students and faculty and
academic programs offered at COD. Please click here to watch.
Weight Watchers at Work Meeting
If you are interested in joining Weight
Watchers (meetings held on COD’s
Glen Ellyn campus), please stop by a
free information session on
Wednesday, July 15, at 11:30 a.m. in BIC 3724. Info: Pat McNamara
or Micki Olawoye at (630) 280-9106.
COD Cares – A Very Merry Un-Birthday Party
Enjoy tea and cakes with other COD Action Heroes at
the Alice in Wonderland-themed Un-Birthday Party on
Tuesday, July 14 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in SRC 2000.
You’ll wrap birthday gifts collected and distributed by
Humanitarian Service Project for disadvantaged
children. Info: codcares@cod.edu.
Purchasing Dates
Please contact the College of DuPage Purchasing Department at
(630) 942-2217 for questions about dates required for purchasing
approval for upcoming Board of Trustees meetings.
Job Opportunities
To view and apply for any posted internal job opportunity, go to:
https://cod.hiretouch.com. Job opportunities will be posted to
the external web page after they have been posted on the COD
Portal for seven days. For questions, please call ext. 2639.
Employment Information Lines
(630) 942-2460 – for a listing of faculty, classified and
administrative positions. (630) 942-2639 – for detailed information
and to schedule skills testing for clerical positions. Apply at
www.cod.edu/hr.