MOTT COMMUNITY COLLEGE
CONNECTION
JANUARY 2011
Chevy Volt engineer visits MCC
MCC
FACULTY
& STAFF
NEWSLETTER
WHAT’S
INSIDE
AROUND CAMPUS
COOKIES FOR A
CAUSE EVENT
MCC OPENS NEW
FABLAB
MCC ASL
INSTRUCTOR TO
COMPETE IN
WINTER
DEAFLYMPICS IN
SLOVAKIA
AMAZING GRACE
QUOTE OF
THE M ONTH
"We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope."
--Martin Luther King, Jr.
Andrew Farah, vehicle
chief engineer for electric vehicles at General Motors, spoke
to a crowd of MCC students,
faculty and staff about the 2011
Chevrolet Volt at the Regional
Technology Center on Thursday, Dec. 16.
The Chevy Volt is a fourpassenger, electric car with an
extended range. Farah, who
hails from the Flint area, spent
several years working on the
electric vehicle. He said the car
can drive without starting the
gas engine for about 25 to 50
miles, making it one of the most Pictured from left of Chevy Volt: MCC Computer Aided Drafting &
Design Professor Dennis Hughes, MCC President Dick Shaink, MCC
efficient cars on the
Executive Dean of Regional Technology Iniatives Tom Crampton,
market.
MCC
Automotive Instructor Matt Roda, and Andrew Farah, vehicle
Powered by a battery that
chief engineer for electric vehicles at GM.
weighs almost 450 pounds, the
vehicle was designed with
"overcoming range anxiety” in mind, an effort to ease consumers' concerns about electric cars.
"You start to wonder, 'Will I be able to get to where I want to go and back,'" he said, noting that the
car will switch over to gas once the battery is drained. The car is getting 50 mpg once the range-extending gasoline engine kicks in, that's after the car has driven for 40 or so miles on pure electric power.
"I'm very proud of the car and the team that put it together," Farah added. "The Volt is a practical,
electric vehicle for most of your daily driving – no need to change your life. It can be your only car."
Farah also encouraged college students to consider careers in automotive engineering, adding "My
ambassador-type goal is to get students to understand there are high-tech careers here in the region, and
advanced technology vehicles is just one of those."
MCC Sponsors Exhibits at Sloan Museum
MCC has partnered with the Sloan Museum
in presenting unique, interactive exhibits designed
to get students and community members interested
in the sciences.
Grossology: The (Impolite) Science of the
Human Body, runs through Jan. 16, 2011.
Grossology is specifically designed to fascinate
children between the ages of six and 14. Topics
and subjects highlighted in Grossology are
interactive, larger-than-life biology lessons that
harness children's natural curiosity about how the
human organism functions.
CSI: Crime Scene Insects opens Jan. 29 at
Sloan Museum, explores one of the most fascinat-
ing areas of criminal investigation -- forensic entomology. This exhibit, suitable for 8 and older, uses
hands-on learning stations, examples of real field
and lab equipment and intriguing case
studies. Visitors of this exhibit will see real crime
scene insects and find out how they help
investigators solve real crimes.
Sloan Museum is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Mondays to Fridays and noon to 5 p.m. Saturdays
and Sunday. Admission is free for MCC students,
faculty, and staff with identification.
Admission includes Buick Automotive
Gallery. Call (810) 237-3450 for more
information.
Around Campus
Congratulations to Debra Reich, Staff Assistant III in
Automotive Technology who has earned her Bachelor of Business
Administration degree with a major in Management. She started at
MCC in February 2009 through Kelly Services, and was hired at MCC
July 2009. She works with Technology Division Dean Clark Harris
in the Technology Division office, the Automotive Lab office, and
serves as the Advisor for the Technology Club. Debra also lets us
know that the Technology Division hosted a Toy Drive for a local
charity in November. Together the faculty, staff, and students collectively contributed over $800 in toys, diapers, and gift wrap to Carriage
Town Ministries. "Many thanks to all those that supported this effort
and to the Technology Club for their assistance and support," adds
Debra.
Rebecca Gale-Gonzalez, Marketing Assistant/Web Content
Manager, was among 17 people nominated to receive Resource
Genesee's Sybyl Award. The award honors the life of Sybyl M. Atwood, who served more than 40 years as the program director for
Volunteer and Information Services at Resource Genesee. She died in
2007. All the nominees received personalized plaques and were honored at Resource Genesee's annual Holiday Luncheon held on Dec. 9
at the Riverfront Banquet Center in downtown Flint. Local community
activist Kenyetta Dotson was the recipient of the Sybyl Award.
Athletic Director Tom Healey lets us know that Tim Weeks,
Assistant Coach of the MCC baseball team, headed up an effort to
help out Old Newsboys. Under Tim's direction, the team has been
collecting for Old Newboys and giving back to the Flint community
for several years. Eleven players volunteered to work with Tim at the
corner of Dort Highway and Court Street, and collected over $2,100
for Old Newsboys in December. Chris Hamilton, who heads up the
organization, told Tim that amount would provide Xmas boxes to over
100 kids in our community. The players who participated in this effort
included Jake Bourassa, Shane Brotherton, Brent Faber, Zak Eckblad,
Christian Graham, Bob Klein, Garret Lovik, Garret Matthews, Gideon
Ouellette, Josh Payzant, and Jake Richardson.
Madonna Carpenter, Special Populations Coordinator with the
Learning Center, tells us that Learning Center Administrative Assistant
Sherry Weeder has completed her Master's degree. She graduated
from Ferris State University on Dec. 18, 2010. Sherry now has the title
of Sherry Weeder, M.A. Ed., Postsecondary Administration.
Congratulations, Sherry!
Fine Arts & Social Sciences Dean Mary Cusack shares news
from her area. Sociology Instructor Isaac Addai had an article published in Social Indicators Research Volume 99, Number 3 entitled
Ethnicity and Economic Well-Being: The Case of Ghana. MCC Choir
Director Matt Packer served as musical director/accompanist for the
Swartz Creek Center Stage presentation of "Musical Radio Show,"
held Nov. 20-21 at Mary Crapo School in Swartz Creek.
Retired MCC English Prof. Frank Hamilton has published an
anthology of Christmas poetry. A Basket Full of Christmas Poetry contains poetry written while teaching in Kansas, Illinois and Michigan,
says Frank, who taught in the English Department at MCC for 30
years. During this time, he also published two poetry books and a critical study of Thoreau. He also served as faculty advisor for the student
literary magazine, The Blue Heron. The cover photo for his book was
provided by Political Science Prof. Paul Rozycki. The book is available at the MCC bookstore, Pages bookstore in downtown Flint and on
the web.
Associate Prof of Art/Painting John Dempsey tells us that several
current and former MCC students will be exhibiting at the Rowe
Building during the next Artwalk on Friday, Jan. 14 in downtown
Flint, 6-10 pm. The one night exhibition is titled "The Sound and the
Vision: Art Inspired by Rock 'n' Roll." The show is being organized by
the Creative Alliance and sponsored by the Uptown Reinvestment
Corporation.
Retired MCC English Prof. Kathleen Rollins has been writing a
series of adventure novels set in 12,000 BC. The first, Misfits and
Heroes: West from Africa, is now available on Amazon.com.
It follows a group of travelers from West Africa (currently Senegal and
The Gambia) to the Cape Verde Islands, across the Atlantic to the Antilles, then to southern Mexico.
After 13 years as Honors Program Coordinator, English Prof.
Heather Sisto will be passing the baton to Counselor Brian Ivory this
month. Vice President of Academic Affairs Amy Fugate announced
this appointment at the Honors Steering Committee meeting on Nov.
18. The Honors Program has really grown in recent years, and Heather
wishes to thank all the faculty and staff who helped her rebuild the
program. In addition to serving as coordinator, Brian will teach a new
style of Honors Colloquium whose sole focus is civic engagement.
Several new honors courses will also feature a service learning component.
Adjunct English Prof. Wendy Byard lets us know that three
student compositions have been chosen to represent MCC in the Liberal Arts Network for Development (LAND) writing contest, an annual event for Michigan community college students. The
representative entry in the short story category is "The Toast" written
by John Hartranft. Hartranft was mentored by Heather Sisto. In the
essay writing category, two representative essays were chosen: "The
City Beneath the Desk" by Josh DeSimpelare and "The Closet Was
Forced Out of Me" by Kayla Messinger. DeSimpelare was mentored
by Wendy Byard, and Messinger was mentored by Josh Sauvie.
Congratulations to all three students and their mentors!
New Employee: MCC welcomes Michael Becker, Lieutenant,
Public Safety- Health & Medical Services and Emergency Operations
- Public Safety Department, start date: Nov. 30, 2010.
Cookies for a Cause Event
The MCC Administrative Complex's first annual Cookies for a
Cause was a huge success. Academic Affairs Executive Assistant Jennifer Kroninger's Peanut Butter Cup Cookie earned the Top Cookie
Award and, thanks to generous contributions, she will be donating
$160 to her charity of choice, the Ronald McDonald House.
Administrative Complex staff members were invited to cast votes
for their favorite cookie for $1.00, with the cookie baker governing the
most "votes" receiving all the money collected to contribute to his or
her favorite charity. Cookies were also available for purchase -- with
all proceeds going to the top baker's charity of choice.
Brenda Phillips, HR Systems & Research Supervisor and coordinator of Cookies for a Cause, added: "Thanks to everyone who participated and donated; and a BIG thank-you to our cookie bakers," which
included:
Kim Brown
Chulindra Cooks
Kristi Dawley
Rebecca Gale-Gonzalez
Mark Kennedy
Jenny Kroninger
Derek Lancaster
Rebecca Martz
Trisha Miller
Lisa Poma
Susan Praski
Sherry Rosenberger
Laura Tripp
Jennifer Kroninger
MCC Opens New FABLAB
Bring your ideas. Use your imagination. Build your invention.
Mott Community College now has a place where anyone can make
practically, anything.
A longtime pioneer dedicated to bridging the digital divide in the
community, MCC is opening the area's first Digital Fabrication Laboratory, or FABLAB, in the college's Regional Technology Center (RTC).
An open house for the community to visit the FabLAB is
scheduled for 10 am to 6 pm, Friday, Jan. 21, 2011. MCC's 800-squarefoot FABLAB is located in Room 1112-A on the first floor of the RTC
near the High Bay area. This event is free and open to the public.
MCC's FABLAB, a dream-come true for inventors of all ages, is a
hands-on laboratory that provides the technology and modern fabrication
tools to let people build their own creations and products for personal or
commercial use. A FABLAB allows people to essentially take an idea and
discover how to turn it into a physical object. FABLABs are also uniquely
designed to allow local communities to foster and support innovation that
can lead to sustainable solutions for small businesses.
Mott Community College is part of an official FABLAB network.
MCC's facility is the second FABLAB to be built in Michigan. The other
one is located at Lake Michigan College in Benton Harbor.
With a strong national interest in improving the passion for Science,
Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) skills in students, the
FABLAB offers an ideal teaching and learning platform by utilizing some
of the latest digital fabrication technology available.
"MCC seeks to better prepare students and our community for the
knowledge-based economy that is driving the 21th century," said Thomas
Crampton, Executive Dean of Regional Technology Initiatives at MCC.
"The FABLAB offers opportunities across the full range for
students, faculty, staff, individuals in workforce development programs,
displaced/dislocated workers, inventors/entrepreneurs and small business
owners – the entire community."
The idea for the FABLAB originated from research conducted by the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Center for Bits and Atoms (CBA).
When MIT professor Neil Gershenfeld and his colleagues dreamed up the
Fab Lab concept in the 1990's, (fueled by a wildly popular course at MIT
called "How to Make (Almost ) Anything"), they saw it as a way to bring
digital fabrication to the masses. In 2001, the National Science Foundation
(NSF) funded the CBA to champion an ambitious initiative that focused
on capturing the creative capacity of individuals to design and create solutions to a multitude of issues and/or problems.
MCC ASL instructor to
compete in Winter
Deaflympics in Slovakia
Jennifer Berrigan, an American Sign Language (ASL) instructor
at MCC, is pursuing the deaf community's equivalent of an Olympic
medal in snow boarding. Berrigan, who is third-generation deaf, was
selected to represent the U.S. team in February at the Winter
Deaflympics in Slovakia. A graduate of Gallaudet University, the
world-renowned university for the deaf in Washington D.C., Berrigan
has held fundraisers to cover the costs of training and the trip. She
writes about her experiences preparing for the Deaflympics Winter
Games in her blog "The Journey of a Deaf Snowboarder."
The CBA then combined laboratory research on technologies for
personal fabrication, establishing field-based FABLABS that eventually
brought the prototyping capabilities to underserved communities. The ultimate goal was to simplify and streamline the process of turning an idea
into a product, by giving the public access to design and manufacturing
tools, previously only available to engineers at large companies.
FabLABS are located in various countries around the globe, from
Afghanistan to India, from Boston, Mass. to Lorain, Ohio, giving their
users the ability to conceptualize, design, develop, fabricate and test
practically anything. Currently, there are about 45 FABLABS in 16
countries around the world, all containing the following features:
• A common set of platforms and tools permitting easy and rapid
exchange of designs and ideas.
• Capacity to allow both technical and non-technical people to
rapidly translate their ideas and creativity into reality.
• Stimulation of significant innovation and highly-motivated
learning.
"We want to be a key resource to help people configure their ideas
and begin the process of creating their products," added Joseph M.
Pakkala, Senior Program Manager with Regional Technology Initiatives at
MCC, who has coordinated efforts toward setting up MCC's FABLAB.
"Once you think of something, we can help with the process. We can help
the everyday person, and we can also help the entrepreneur with a sophisticated business plan."
Amazing
Grace
Recent MCC retiree Grace
Alexander Washington was
honored at a surprise reception
entitled "Amazing Grace: Wind
Beneath Our Wings Tea" on
Oct. 28, 2010 in the
Applewood Café.
The Foundation for Mott Community College and MCC's
Women in Education (WIE) initiative hosted the noon tea, which
served as a special tribute to individuals who provide strength and
inspiration during times of struggle, as well as a tribute to Washington,
who retired from MCC in December after being at the helm of MCC's
Culinary Arts/Food Service Management programs for 25 years.
PRESORTED
STANDARD
US POSTAGE PAID
Flint, MI
Permit NO 51
1401 East Court Street
Flint, Michigan 48503-2089
JANUARY 2011
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
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For more calendar items visit www.events.mcc.edu
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MCC Basketball
Game 1:00-5:00 p.m.
Ballenger Field House
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11
Bruin Club
Board Meeting
12:00-1:30 p.m.
Genesee Room
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MLK Holiday
Campus Closed
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College & Cultural Ctr.
Neighborhood Assoc.
7-9 p.m. • RTC 1120
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Women in Education
Workshop
1:00-2:00 p.m.
PCC 1120
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Alumni Association Meet- College Cultural Neighing
borhood Association
12:00-1:30 p.m.
7-9 pm • RTC 1005
PCC 1120
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Cedar Point Recruiting
10:30 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
CM Fishbowl
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Fridays at Applewood
9:00-10:00 a..m.
RTC 1301
PRIDE Training
9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
RTC 1109
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21
GSA Club Meeting
2:30-4:00 p.m.
Genesee Room
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MCC Basketball
Game 1:00-5:00 p.m.
Ballenger Field House
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MCC Basketball
Game 1:00-5:00 p.m.
Ballenger Field House
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