This week@NCC
July 22, 2015
Volume 30, Number 2
I N T HIS ISS U E
Page 2
Summer Bridge Math Intensive
Program
Library Exhibits Charleston Syllabus
Page 3
Campus Tours
Library to Host BBC Film Series
Page 4
Prudential Now Manages CT
State Retirement Plan
Register Now for TESOL
Methodology
myCommNet Gets a Makeover
NCC Farmers’ Market is Open
Page 5
Wellness Committee Earns Gold
Achievement Award
Faculty and Staff News
S U B M ISSI O N S
to Karen Hart
khart@norwalk.edu
Next issue published:
August 18, 2015
Deadline for submissions:
August 13, 2015
This Week @ NCC is published
by the Public Relations Office of
Norwalk Community College
Copy Editor and Writer
Karen Hart
khart@norwalk.edu
Copy Editor and Writer
Madeline Barillo
mbarillo@norwalk.edu
Graphic Designer
Cindy Zaref
czaref@norwalk.edu
Shown with a counselor (in background), a trio of second grade girls who attended the program last year
returned for another summer of fun.
NCC Hosts Horizons Summer
Enrichment Program
Children in NCC’s Horizons Summer Enrichment Program were welcomed to
campus on June 24 with hugs, applause and a sing-a-long. Some even got a handshake
from President David Levinson, who perched on the sidewalk ready to greet each
child alighting from a school bus.
The Horizons National™ Student Enrichment Program is a network of academic
enrichment programs that provide long-term deep engagement to low-income
public school students. The hands-on approach is designed to fuel a lifelong passion
for learning, using a blend of high-quality academics with arts, sports, cultural
enrichment and confidence-building challenges, particularly swimming.
NCC worked closely with the Horizons program at New Canaan Country
School to bring the summer enrichment experience to children in Norwalk. NCC
became a Horizons site in 2013.The college welcomed 15 kindergartners to
campus that summer.
Last year, NCC’s Horizons program expanded to 36 children in three classrooms:
Pre-Kindergarten, Kindergarten and First Grade. This year, program is hosting 48
children, including the cohort of children who started as kindergarteners.
R e c e nt
E v e nt s
Summer Bridge Math
Intensive Program
Forty-two recent high school graduates are taking part in
NCC’s Start2Finish Summer Bridge Math Intensive Program. Most will be entering NCC as freshmen this fall.
The program, funded by the NCC Foundation, is
designed to strengthen the students’ math skills before the
semester begins. The students are completing four days a
week of math tutoring and instruction, and participating
in hands-on activities to make the learning fun.
“At the end of this program they get to re-take the
math placement test and try to place into Intermediate
Algebra, which is college level and can be used to satisfy
graduation requirements,” said Eli Glatt, chair of the
NCC Mathematics Department.
On Friday, July 17, students took part in a “Fun
Fridays” Engineering Challenge to expose the students to
different programs at NCC. Under the direction of NCC
Engineering faculty Sue Burt, Sam Northrop and Mobin
Rastgar Agah, the students formed teams and built
catapults out of rubber bands, popsicle sticks, paperclips,
plastic spoons and electrical tape.
Prizes were awarded in several categories. Members of the winning
teams posed for a celebratory group photo.
The ironically self-named team “4 Idiots” won the prize for propelling
a marshmallow the longest distance with their catapult.
Items from the Charleston Syllabus are available to be checked out
of the NCC Library.
NCC Library Exhibits
Charleston Syllabus
In response to the Charleston Church shootings on
June 17 of this year, Dr. Chad Williams from Brandeis
University, with the help of other scholars and crowd
sourcing, worked to compile a syllabus which will “…
provide valuable information about the history of racial
violence in this country and contextualize the history of
race relations in South Carolina and the United States in
general. They also offer insights on race, racial identities,
global white supremacy and black resistance.” Dr. Williams drew inspiration for this syllabus from
Dr. Marcia Chatelein of Georgetown University who
created #FergusonSyllabus in 2014.
Titles from the #CharlestonSyllabus are now on
display at the Everett I.L. Baker Library in various formats
which are available to be checked out.
The Syllabus also contains websites and other primary
source materials which are free to use in the classroom via
open access and Creative Commons licensing (https://
creativecommons.org/licenses).
The exhibit will stay up through September for faculty
wishing to use it for their summer or fall classes.
More information is available at: http://aaihs.org/
resources/charlestonsyllabus or, go to Google and search
for #CharlestonSyllabus. For general library information,
please contact Library Director Linda Lerman at
(203) 857-7211 or llerman@norwalk.edu.
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U pcom i n g
E v e nt s
Campus Tours
All parents and prospective students may tour the college
throughout the summer. Visitors will be guided around
both the West and East campuses while learning about
numerous programs and services available at NCC. Tours
begin at the Admissions Office and will be held on the
following dates (no reservation necessary):
•
•
•
•
Monday, July 27, 12 p.m.
Friday, August 7, 10 a.m.
Wednesday, August 12, 12 p.m.
Monday, August 24, 2:30 p.m.
NCC Library to Host
BBC Film Series
Tuesday, August 25 through Thursday, August 27
2 to 3:30 p.m.
East Campus, Room E230
The NCC Baker Library has partnered with BBC America
Worldwide to show three films in late August to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II.
The Library will screen the films the week before
classes begin. While none of the films are actually “military
war films,” they involve a variety of fascinating issues
Copenhagen (2002)
Castles in the Sky (2014)
behind WWII. All films run about 90 minutes.
Copenhagen – This TV film is based on the award
winning play by Michael Frayn about the 1941 meeting
of Danish physicist Neils Bohr and his former protégé
Werner Heisenberg, the top physicist in Nazi Germany.
The film stars Daniel Craig, Stephen Rea and Francesca
Annis. Professor Steve Berizzi will provide introductory
comments. For more information on this film, go to
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0340057/?ref_=nv_sr_2.
Castles in the Sky – This film stars Eddie Izzard as
Robert Watson Watt, the pioneer of radar who fought the
scientific establishment to get radar working in time to
spot Nazi attacks. By 1940 their work will prove pivotal in
winning the Battle of Britain. Professor Robert Hall will
provide introductory comments about the film. For more
information on this film, go to http://www.imdb.com/
title/tt3311900/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1.
Wodehouse in Exile – Tim Piggot-Smith stars as author
P.G. Wodehouse who was initially interned by the Nazis
when they invaded France where he was living and later
used by the Nazis for propaganda. Whether he understood
what he was doing remains a controversy to this day.
Professor Laurel Peterson will provide comments about the
film. For more information on this film, go to http://www.
imdb.com/title/tt2735760/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1.
For additional information, please contact Library
Director Linda Lerman at (203) 857-7211 or llerman@
norwalk.edu.
Wodehouse in Exile (2013)
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Prudential Now Manages CT
State Retirement Plans
Prudential retirement counselor Davelva Perez will be on
hand to speak with NCC employees about changes made
since Prudential replaced VOYA to manage State
of Connecticut Defined Contribution Plans.
Make an appointment on one of the following dates
to find out how to save for retirement, take advantage
of your plan features, choose investments that meet your
needs and see if you are on track to meet your goals.
Tuesday, August 25, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.,
East Campus, Room E305
Tuesday, October 20, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
East Campus, Room E309
Monday, September 21, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
West Campus, Room W230
Monday, September 21, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
West Campus, Room W130
Tuesday, November 16, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
West Campus, Room W230
Tuesday, November 16, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
West Campus, Room W130
N e w s
an d
To make an appointment, please contact Ms. Perez at
(860) 837-4214 or davelva.perez@prudential.com.
To register on the Prudential website, go to www.
ctdcp.com then click on “Access Account” at the top of
the home page. Click “Register Now” and follow the
instructions. After you are registered, enter your User ID
and password and click “Log In”.
Register Now for TESOL
Methodology
For those who want to teach English
to Speakers of Other Languages
(TESOL), the ESL Division will offer
a TESOL Methodology course during
the Fall 2015 semester.
The course will instruct prospective teachers on how
to plan activities, understand the fundamentals of learning
a language, and how to develop effective strategies to teach
reading, writing, speaking and listening. Participants will
also learn how to construct a syllabus and a lesson plan.
The three-credit course is accepted by the state of
Connecticut as meeting one of the requirements for the
Adult Education Certification for teachers of ESL.
For more information, contact the ESL Division at
(203) 857-7176.
A nnounc e m e nt s
myCommNet Gets a
Makeover
The myCommNet system now has a new look and feel,
and expanded features.
Tobi Krutt, an Instructional Technologist in the Board
of Regents office, has put together a short video tour that
highlights the main changes. Students, faculty and staff
are encouraged to view it.
To go to the playlist leading to the “myCommNet
Video Tour,” go to: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list
=PLmAFsK4a4rSYc6Y086e9IYEJiG4nIGk3g.
The video tour is also posted on the current
myCommNet log-in page and inside Blackboard Learn.
NCC Farmers’ Market is Open
The NCC Farmers’ Market is open on Tuesdays from
11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and is located on the college’s West
Campus, near the Richards Ave. crosswalk.
Produce from Gazy Brothers Farm of Oxford, CT is
available to both the college community and the public.
Payment may be made by cash or check only. WIC and
Senior Vouchers are accepted. Tote bags are encouraged.
For more information,
contact NCC Assistant
Director of Wellness Ty
Griese at (203) 857-7195
or tgriese@norwalk.edu.
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Wellness Committee Earns
Gold Achievement Award
The NCC Wellness Committee earned a 2015 Gold
Level Fit-Friendly Workplace Award from the American
Heart Association. The Award was presented on
Thursday, June 18 at NCC.
The Association’s Fit-Friendly program recognizes
employers who champion the health of their employees
and work to create a culture of health in the workplace.
F acult y
an d
s taff
Shown left to right: Kimberly Bryant-Smith, Louisa Jones, Nicole Hafner,
Paul Gallo, Michael Cichowicz, Lia Barone, Tim Callahan, President David
Levinson, Ty Griese, Lisa Binsley and Kevin Byrne of the American Heart
Association, Steve Mendes and Paula Santos.
n e w s
Dr. Kristina Testa-Buzzee
Named Interim Associate Dean
of Extended Studies
Kristina Testa-Buzzee, Ed.D. has
agreed to serve as Interim Associate
Dean of Extended Studies while
the search for the permanent position is in process. She is currently
Director of Adult Learning and an
Adjunct Professor at NCC.
Professor Arthur Pfister
Publishes Short Story Collection
NCC Professor Arthur Pfister, (aka Professor Arturo), a
member of the NCC English Department, has published
a collection of his micro fiction JAZZ STORIES: From
Katrina to Connecticut (Margaret
Media, Inc.). Go to http://
jazzstories.us/#portfolio for
additional information about the
author and his work.
He has also presented his poetry
at the Ridgefield Library and
Greenwich Village’s Howl! Arts.
Professor Joan Fitzsimmons
to Participate in Panel
NCC Photography Professor Joan Fitzsimmons will
participate in the Griffin Museum of Photography and
Arts & Business Council 21st Annual Juried Show, Peter
Urban Legacy Exhibition Seminar Series.
Her panel will discuss “Applying to Grants and
Residencies: Tips from the Inside” on August 25 from
6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Griffin Museum at 67 Shore Rd.,
in Winchester, MA.
The Panel is free and open to the public.
NCC Continuing Notice of
Non-Discrimination
Norwalk Community College does not discriminate on
the basis of race, color, religious creed, age, sex, national
origin, marital status, ancestry, present or past history of
mental disorder, learning disability or physical disability,
sexual orientation, gender identity and expression or genetic
information in its programs and activities. In addition, the
College does not discriminate in employment on the basis
of veteran status or criminal record. The following persons
have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policies: Chief Diversity Officer and Special
Advisor, Cheryl DeVonish, Title IX Coordinator at (203)
857-7016 or cdevonish@norwalk.edu; or Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) Coordinator Fran Apfel at (203)
857-7192 or fapfel@norwalk.edu.
T his W eek @ N C C / V ol u me 30, N u mber 2 / J u l y 22, 2015 / P A G E 5