Innovations
April
2013
West Kentucky Community and Technical College (WKCTC) in Paducah, Kentucky, began and maintained an online speech class over a two year period beginning in the spring term of 2001. Constance Frank, the speech teacher at the college in those years, had some good experiences and some bad ones when we first tried to offer the techniques and processes of Basic Speech online. The technology was new and consistency was not the rule. VHS tapes, micro and mini cassettes were available, and every video maker had a different player and a different tape format. According to Professor Frank, "Students...
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April
2013
Snead State Community College has been educating students in the small town of Boaz, Alabama, since 1898. To celebrate its history and prepare for its future, the college recently completed a $7 million renovation project of the Administration Building. Originally designed by Magaziner, Eberhard & Harris of Philadelphia beginning in 1921, the neoclassical style building is the oldest, most architecturally significant, and most cherished building on campus.
After being forced to vacate due to safety concerns, services once offered in the building were relocated. Working from the campus...
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Innovative Approaches for Teaching Clinically-Relevant Anatomy Utilizing Virtual Dissection Software
Anyone who has ever been assigned to teach a course in human anatomy knows that doing so is a daunting task. The breadth of the topic is enormous and yet any discussion solely dedicated to anatomy and devoid of any mention of associated physiological and/or clinical information will be unimaginably tedious and virtually devoid of any value. As such, the instructor is forced to make many important decisions regarding the degree to which anatomical, physiological, and clinical topics can be blended to ultimately yield a course that is both manageable in the time allowed and worthwhile. In...
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February
2013
What does it mean to live a better life? There is some truth in that we all may define this somewhat differently, and as individuals these definitions may even change throughout the cycle of life, but what are the commonalities? Most would say happiness and a positive outlook are key ingredients to living a better life; however, having a means to support yourself and your family is essential. Recently, positivity has been mapped by Gallop Inc. and while the results are interesting, what are they telling us? It would seem, from this evidence, that economic prosperity has little to do with it,...
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February
2013
The ePortfolio: A Workforce Definition
On October 27, 2011, a group of faculty and students from Trenholm State Technical College attended the Oracle Academy Student Forum Day at Alabama State University in Montgomery, Alabama. The forum was presented by the regional director of the Oracle Academy. As part of the Student Forum Day, the director explained what was generally expected of students in the workplace and specifically what Oracle required for employment. In addition to these skills, the presenter informed the group about a recent event that strongly suggested ePortfolios were...
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January
2013
In 2013, the League marks its 45th year of promoting community college innovation, experimentation, and institutional transformation. Through conferences, projects, publications, and other resources, the League offers opportunities for community college educators to explore the innovations of others and to showcase their own. As you celebrate innovation at your college, we invite you to use League events, publications, and project resources to stimulate discussion and foster innovation not only on your campus, but also with colleagues around the world. The following paragraphs describe...
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2013
When Wharton County Junior College (WCJC) opened its fourth campus in the small town of Bay City, Texas, in August 2007, it did so through a strong industry partnership. Bay City, home to nearly 20,000 residents, lies just 30 minutes from the Texas Gulf Coast and serves as the county seat for Matagorda County. Major employers in the county include the South Texas Project (STP) nuclear power generation plant and the Celanese and Equistar petrochemical plants, all of which have representatives on WCJC program advisory committees. In all, there are 40 plants within a 50-mile radius of Bay City...
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2013
Today's community college students need to know what research resources are available through their college's library, to learn how to efficiently access the information they need, and to be able to critically evaluate information. The term for this set of skills is information literacy.
Instructors who return to academia or work as adjunct professors have a learning curve to understand how information is now accessed. Full-time faculty with constant demands on their time to keep up with the developments in their field, perform community service, and be available to a larger number of...
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December
2012
What is the role of higher education in our world today? Some say universities and colleges should prepare students to think and research critically. Others proclaim that institutions need to mold future citizens of the world. But there is one thing people agree on—schools of higher learning are supposed to ready individuals to fill the workforce needs of tomorrow. Columbia Gorge Community College (CGCC), in north-central Oregon, has been ahead of the curve in stabilizing the fragile economy for the last decade. As the only postsecondary institution in a service area of 10,000 miles, CGCC...
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December
2012
Over the past decade, numerous states have ramped up efforts to improve high school graduation rates and college going rates, particularly for students deemed more likely to fail in these pursuits. As economic opportunities have dwindled and recession has gripped the country, these efforts have taken on increased significance due to a reinvigorated belief that a high school diploma and at least some college credit, if not a college certificate or degree, are critical to an individual's ability to find gainful employment.
In Eugene, Oregon, a partnership between the Eugene School District 4J...
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December
2012
Kelly Ward and Samuel Scott work diligently as a team, creating their company's new flat screen televisions. Talking about the details as they assemble tiny parts, the two act as if they own the place.
Today, they do.
These fifth grade students from Charles City, Iowa, have become something for a day that many students don't even have on their spelling tests: an entrepreneur.
Fifth grade students from all districts in North Central Iowa are invited to participate in a unique program offered at North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC), which they call Entrepreneur for a Day®.
The...
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December
2012
Heartland Community College (Heartland) in Normal, Illinois, has taken a progressive approach to General Education Program assessment. Typically, colleges develop standard program outcomes, generate rubrics for measuring those outcomes, ask faculty to use the rubrics and share results, and then report results that demonstrate student performance. These methods are fairly well established, can be employed quickly (some standardized measures and cut and paste rubrics for common learning outcomes are available), and can produce documented results that please Boards and accrediting bodies. The...
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November
2012
When the doors opened to the Phoenix College Hannelly One-Stop Enrollment Center on January 3, 2012, a new era of student services at the flagship institution of the Maricopa Community Colleges was launched.
With 74 employees on hand to help staff the center, enrolling students were the first to experience the school's new strategies and processes for handling all aspects of enrollment services. Whether their issues involved Admissions & Records, Financial Aid, Advisement, the Cashier's Office, Recruitment & Retention, or Veterans Services, they were able to get their enrollment needs...
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November
2012
Many students can reflect back on college as a time of personal and educational growth, but through the Lifelong Learning Institute (LLI) of Central Ohio Technical College (COTC), this opportunity for growth goes beyond the traditional college years.
Launched in July 2004 and recently relocated to the COTC Pataskala campus, the LLI falls under the Workforce Development Innovation Center and provides noncredit educational opportunities for mature learners in Central Ohio. Members broaden and extend their knowledge, share their life experiences, become more attuned to community resources, and...
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October
2012
Exit 7 off Interstate 24 in Paducah is significant to West Kentucky Community and Technical College (WKCTC) for more than being the path taken from the highway to get to the campus; it's also the clever name of the college's new literary journal that launched its inaugural issue last spring.
Exit 7: A Journal of Literature and Art is an annual collection of poetry, short stories, creative nonfiction, and artwork that features established and emerging writers and artists from around the country. "It's important for our students to have access to quality, professional work to read and edit,"...
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October
2012
Cerner Corporation, a global health information company with headquarters in North Kansas City, has roughly 10,000 employees and licenses health information solutions to more than 9,000 facilities worldwide. Now in its fourth decade, the company has an annual revenue of $1.9 billion—and there is no slow-down in sight. To meet the workforce needs of current and future growth in the constantly transforming industry of digital medical records, Cerner needs a constant pipeline of sharp, skilled prospective employees. That's where the company's partnership with Metropolitan Community College-...
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October
2012
In southern California, no resource is more precious than water. After years of drought and water sources from northern California drying up, saving every possible drop of water has become increasingly important.
Cuyamaca College's water/wastewater technology program is addressing this vital issue and providing job training for what is sure to be a growing field as more residents and businesses look for ways to save water while irrigating their landscaping.
The college, located in eastern San Diego County and serving about 9,000 students, has received a $535,000 grant from the state...
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September
2012
Lone Star College (LSC)-University Park's investment in students and innovation recently paid big dividends as its students and advisor won the 2012 National Education Startup Challenge with their entry known as the Educational Positioning System (EPS). This breakthrough innovation provides students with the ability to develop a career pathway by placing their educational information in their hands, assisting them in assessing their skill capabilities and then guiding them through the educational requirements to obtain future employment. The National Education Startup Challenge is part of the...
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September
2012
The Walmart Brighter Futures Project features a cooperative effort between the Walmart Foundation and a select group of the nation's community colleges led by the League for Innovation in the Community College. The League received a $3.5 million grant from the Walmart Foundation in March 2009 to implement a project involving community colleges across the country for two purposes: to help dislocated workers acquire 21st century job skills and obtain jobs that require those skills; and to increase academic progression, retention, and completion rates for dislocated workers.
Eight community...
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