MOTT COMMUNITY COLLEGE
CONNECTION
DECEMBER 2004
MCC
FACULTY
& STAFF
NEWSLETTER
WHAT’S
INSIDE
AROUND CAMPUS
MCC’S NEW
COLLEGE
INFORMATION
CENTER
MOTT LIBRARY TO
LAUNCH VIRTUAL
REFERENCE SERVICE
STUDENT SERVICES
HAS PRODUCTIVE
FALL TERM
NURSING POSITION
OPEN FALL 2005
ANNUAL TOY
COLLECTION
Q UOTE OF
THE M ONTH
“Pick battles big enough to matter,
small enough to win.”
--Jonathan Kozol
MCC and UM-Flint partner to offer
BBA Degree
Mott Community College and the
University of Michigan-Flint have
signed a collaborative transfer agreement to encourage more students to
complete their Bachelor of Business
Administration Degree. The agreement
was finalized when UM-Flint
Chancellor Juan Mestas and MCC
President M. Richard Shaink signed the
agreement at a Nov. 10 press conference near the Durant/Dort Carriage
Factory in Flint's historic Carriage
Town before a small crowd and TV
cameras from three local television stations.
A student who has earned an associate's degree from MCC, with a conStatues of industrial pioneers Billy Durant and Dallas Dort
centration in General Business or
watch as President Dick Shaink and Chancellor Juan Mestas
Business Management, and achieved
sign the new agreement.
the minimum grade requirements now
can easily move on to UM-Flint to complete a BBA degree. By signing the agreement, the two
schools have made the transfer of credits process almost seamless.
"Mott College is aware that the strongest job growth is in small business," stated Robert
Loth, Associate Dean of MCC's Business Division. "We need to work together to make certain
that students interested in business are on
the track to success. Working together with
UM-Flint will strengthen our community."
A student who has an associate's degree and
is transferring with a 2.50 or higher GPA
will be admitted to UM-Flint's School of
Management at the junior class level. Up to
62 credit hours may be transferred. Total
maximum credits for graduation will vary
based on major selection. MCC and UMFlint have entered into similar agreements
in the past year covering other areas of
study. All of them are designed to better
meet the needs of students. MCC's Business
Division and the UM-Flint's School of
Management will review this agreement
every three years.
Business student Tess Cull describes how she will
benefit from the new agreement between MCC and UMF.
Ca m pus
d
Arou
n
Congratulations are in order for the new
First Lady of Linden, Financial Aid
Scholarship Clerk Suzanne Lossing and her
husband David Lossing, elected Mayor of
Linden Nov. 2. Mayor Lossing, an MCC
alum, served as MCC Student Government
Treasurer in 1983.
ASL Coordinator Stevie Naeyaert is a
member of the Deaf Child Coalition. This
group meets once a month and is looking for
ways to improve services for deaf and hard of
hearing kids in Genesee County. Their first
event is the Family Literacy Night at
Michigan School for the Deaf, Dec. 1 from
6:30 pm - 8 pm. Families with deaf and hard
of hearing kids from age 3 to 10 are welcome. "We'll have ASL storytelling, workshops for parents, and literacy based activities
for kids," said Stevie.
Business Division Associate Dean Bob
Loth provides us with a report on the Gold
Plate Scholarship Dinner honoring John
Zehnder, Executive Chef Food and Beverage
Director of Zehnder's in Frankenmuth, held in
the MCC Prahl Center Ballroom, Nov. 8.
Coordinated by the American Culinary
Federation (ACF) Flint/Saginaw Valley
Chapter, the event's 250 attendees enjoyed an
evening of elegant dining and entertainment,
with WEYI-TV's Mark Torregrossa serving as
host and music provided by David Shaffer
(an MCC alum). The effort, spearheaded by
MCC Culinary Arts Professor & Executive
Chef William Crawford, was made possible
through volunteer efforts of members of the
Local ACF Chapter, several instructors and
students, that included Chefs David Miller
and Matt Cooper with MCC Culinary Arts
Department. The event raised $5,000, which
will go toward the Young Culinarians
Scholarship Fund.
Biology Instructor Lynne Wandrey, a
member of New Century Chorale, lets us
know that the Chorale is presenting its 11th
Annual Yuletide Festival at 7:30 pm Dec. 11
& 12 at St. Christopher's Episcopal Church in
Grand Blanc. Tickets are $10 and available
by calling Lynne at 762-0030 or online at
www.newcenturychorale.org.
Fine Arts News: "Mott Fine Arts: PartTime Faculty Exhibition" continuing through
Dec. 24 in the Visual Arts and Design Center.
A reception for the artists/instructors will be
4:30-6:30 pm Tuesday, Dec. 14. The following faculty are participating in the exhibit:
Delia Antworth, Mary Birkmeier, Debra
Kay Dow Bonello, Paul Hauth, Daniel
Hernandez, Brian Liljeblad and Carol
Novak. MCC's Gallery hours are 9 am to
4:30 pm Mon.-Fri. For information, call the
Art Office at 762-0443. This event is made
possible in part by the Ballenger Trust.
From MCC Bookstore Manager Leslie
Slining: The bookstore will hold its "Buyback"
event Dec. 13-22 with a Hawaiian theme and
these highlights: prizes will be given away to
customers at random, lots of "free stuff" and holiday candy will also be available.
Congratulations go to English Professor
Greg Shafer. He is part of a three-person
team that received a $5,000 grant from the
Council on College Composition and
Communication to study community colleges
and present their findings at the annual conference next spring in San Francisco.
Accounts Receivables Bookkeeper
Karen Amore has landed another part in a
play. The Livingston Players will be doing
"Steel Magnolias" and Karen will play the
part of Truvy. In this popular Robert Harling
piece, six Southern "magnolias" with resolves
of steel gather each week at Truvy's Beauty
Salon, the unofficial center of Chinquapin,
Louisiana society to talk about love, life and
loss. Show dates are: evenings of Feb 4, 5
with Feb. 6 matinee; Feb. 11, Feb. 12
evenings, with Feb. 13 matinee. Ticket prices
range from $30 to $37.50 and include dinner
and show at Barnstormers Banquet Center on
Whitmore Lake Road, Brighton. For show
times and details, please visit www.livingstonplayers.org.
Michelle Montpas, nursing faculty, has
successfully defended her doctoral dissertation at Wayne State University and has completed the requirements for Ed.D.
Congratulations, Dr. Montpas!
Marketing's Rebecca Gale-Gonzalez,
President of Friends of the Mott Library, is
proud to report that their Annual Art Auction,
held Oct. 14, was "a resounding success" with
88 pieces of art sold yielding a net profit over
$3,500. Proceeds benefit students using the
Mott Library. "Guests enjoyed sipping wine,
noshing and viewing a wide array of art,"
Rebecca said. "The event was attended by
many of our regulars and bidding wars made
for a fun evening." Special thanks go to Sally
Shaink working with Creative Catering;
MCC's jazz combo under the direction of
Music Professor Tom Smith, featuring MCC
students William Pannell, Joe Schoendorff,
and Tom's son Matt, a 9th grader at Grand
Blanc High School; MCC student-athletes
from the Men and Women's Cross Country
and Wrestling teams who helped to set up and
break down the show; as well as staff from
the Events office, Facilities, Public Safety
departments and Mott Library; Friends of the
Mott Library organization supporters and its
board members. A photo gallery of the event
will be available on the Friends section of the
library website www.library.mcc.edu.
A retirement party for Registrar Bettye
Wilson is planned for 2-4 pm, Dec. 16 in the
Prahl Center Alumni Room. Everyone is
welcome.
MCC's New College Information Center
The College Information Center went live Oct. 4. The new service
was identified as one of the primary objectives in the Enrollment
Management Plan developed last year by Dean of Student Services
Delores Deen, with input from Management Information Systems and
staff from various departments across campus. The Center provides a
variety of services, via the web and telephones. Services include resetting passwords for Web Advisor, taking payments, resolving problems
with student accounts, lifting registration holds, directing students to online, self-help features on our web site, and most importantly, providing
consistent, accurate information to callers at all times.
The Financial Aid, Admissions and Registration and Cashiers
departments served as a test group. "These brave managers were rewarded with quiet phones and a little extra time for staff to serve students and
staff seeking face to face assistance," said Deen.
The Center fielded a total of 3,021 calls in its first week of operation. "The prospect of serving the main campus and branch sites equally
well is especially exciting," said Deen. "Many colleges, as well as businesses and agencies, have created these types of information centers to
provide better customer service. So far, the individuals who have used
the call-in and web-based service have been very pleased."
A new staff position - support specialist - for the Center is now
available and posted outside HR and on MCC's website under
jobs@mcc. Among other qualifications, applicants must possess an
"unshakable commitment to providing excellent customer service," Deen
added. The College Information Center may be reached by calling (810)
762-0200 or by using the "MCC Answer" button on MCC's home page.
Mott Library to Launch
Virtual Reference Service
Individuals using the Mott Library will soon find a new online
resource available that will make the search for reference material possible from home. "Libraries have an amazing amount of information within
their collections," stated Denise Hooks, Director of Library Services at
MCC, "but the challenge for an individual is just how to find it. Our new
remote service is going to make learning how to find the right information
even easier."
MCC is one of 18 member colleges of the Michigan Community
College Association (MCCA) implementing a virtual reference program
using the Virtual Reference Toolkit.™ The Virtual Reference Toolkit
enables libraries to extend personalized services traditionally offered only
at the physical reference desk to the growing number of patrons using the
Web. Virtual Reference ToolKit provides a full suite of tools to help customers using the library's proprietary resources, Web resources and other
electronic and print materials.
This is the MCCA's first collaborative reference project where librarians will be available to assist students from any one of the participating
colleges around the state. The project is funded by the Department of
Education, Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education. Staff,
faculty and students at these institutions will be able to interact online
with a reference librarian from any Internet-enabled computer through a
standard Web browser without the need to download software. Reference
librarians serving online students and faculty will be able to co-browse
proprietary resources and share Web sites and print materials.
"This is an exciting new addition to the reference assistance we offer.
Our customers - students, faculty, staff, and the public - will be the obvious beneficiaries," Hooks said. MCC's librarians are currently undergoing
training on the Virtual Reference program. The go live date for MCC is
scheduled for February 2005.
MCC Student Services Has
Productive Fall Semester
Student Services has been bustling with activity this fall. "We
have been in overdrive," said Marc Payne, Executive Director of
Admissions, Recruitment & Student Life. "The number of students
frequenting the Student Life Center has actually tripled."
Student Life Coordinator Carol Brown reports that traffic in the center
has increased dramatically from last year's figures: 553 students counted in October 2003 compared to 2,345 for October 2004. Following is
a sampling of student-centered activities held this Fall:
• Student Government Open Forum with Dr. Shaink was held in
the Student Life Center Oct. 5. Student participation was good,
with nearly 100 students and many questions and concerns
addressed by the Executive Committee.
• The college came together to host the annual College Night,
Oct. 21. It was a huge success with over 66 colleges and
universities, 1,400 students and parents attending. The event
also hosted six historically black colleges this year, something
that has not been accomplished since the 1980's.
• Another Student Government Open Forum with President
Shaink was held at MCC Lapeer, Nov. 10. Attendance was
excellent with over 100 participants.
• The first annual "Perkins Informational Workshop" took place
Nov. 17. The following departments sponsored this event:
Learning Center, Student Employment Services, Counseling
and Student Development, and Student Life. More than 140
participants showed up (no more than 75 was expected).
Nursing Instructor Position
Open for Fall 2005
Annual Toy Collection
Mott Community College has an opportunity available for a full-time
nursing instructor in the Health Sciences Division scheduled to start
August 2005.
This position will provide instruction in nursing theory and clinical
practice within the Practical and Associate Degree Nursing programs.
Qualified candidates must have a Master's Degree in Nursing, three years
of relevant clinical experience and Michigan licensure as a registered
nurse. Complete posting and application instructions can be viewed at
www.mcc.edu.
The President's Office will be collecting toys and other items
again this holiday season for residents of the Whaley Children's
Center. Donations of new, unwrapped toys, pajamas, hats, mittens,
etc. will be accepted until Friday, Dec. 10. Items can be dropped off at
the President's Office, CM1017, Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (the
office is closed from 12:00 noon to 1:00 p.m.). If you have any questions, please call Lisa Poma at 762-0453.
DECEMBER 2004
Monday
Tuesday
1
Wednesday Thursday
2
1
Friday
Saturday
2
3
4
10
11
Automotive Consortium
3-5:30 p.m.
RTC 3113
8
7
6
9
Companion Dog Training
7-9 p.m.
Genesee Room
Flint River Watershed
Coalition Meeting
8:30-11 a.m.
Genesee Room
14
15
16
17
18
20
21
22
23
24
25
Winter Break
27
Winter Break
28
Winter Break
29
Winter Break
Winter Break
30
Winter Break
Winter Break
31
Winter Break
5
12
Jazz & Steel Drum
Ensembles Concert
Concert Begins at 3 p.m.
MMB Auditorium
13
Audubon Society
Meeting
6-9 p.m.
Genesee Room
Sunday
19
Jazz & Steel Drum
Ensembles Concert
Concert Begins at 3 p.m.
MMB Auditorium
26
Winter Break
1
Winter Break
2
Winter Break
PRESORTED
STANDARD
US POSTAGE PAID
Flint, MI
Permit NO 51
1401 East Court Street
Flint, Michigan 48503-2089