alumnews fall 2009

The Nortons:CLC story toldthrough one family’sexperience

Inside:Going green forforty years

Caring professors

Learning then and now

Vietnam to Iraq:CLC welcomes veterans

College of Lake County

AlumNews

40th AnniversaryEdition

PUBLISHED FOR GRADUATES OF THE COLLEGE OF LAKE COUNTY FALL 2009

2 | COLLEGE OF LAKE COUNTY

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

AlumNews is published three timesa year by the College of Lake County's Office

of Alumni Relations and Special Events.

Director of Alumni Relationsand Special EventsJULIE SHROKA

Administrative SecretaryDORAE BLOCK

To submit story ideas, e-mail Dave Fink,AlumNews editor, at [email protected]

or call him at (847) 543-2243.

You can also share ideas and commentsat the CLC alumni Web site, atwww.clcroundtable.org.

To Our Readers:Welcome to the revamped AlumNews withits easier-to-read, four-color magazine format!This first edition of our new magazine ismaking its debut as the College of Lake Countycelebrates its 40th anniversary, and appropri-ately, with this issue we focus on what thecollege has meant to students, the communityand you, our alumni, over the years.

In future issues, we plan to continuetelling compelling stories about alumniachievements and to expand our coverageof the ways CLC is making an impact ontoday’s students and the community.

We hope you enjoy the stories in thisissue and those that follow, and that theyrenew your sense of connection with youralma mater.

Julie ShrokaDirector of Alumni Relationsand Special Events

ContentsFEATURES

3 One Family’s CLC StoryFor many residents of Lake County, CLC has become a family affair. Meet theNortons of Waukegan, one such family with six children who all earned CLC degrees.

4 Going Green for 40 YearsThe sustainability, or “Go Green” movement, is today’s red-hot trend, but a lookback into the College of Lake County’s past shows that CLC has been going greenfor almost its entire 40 years.

5 Caring Professors Made All the DifferenceOver four decades, caring instructors have made all the difference to students.Four successful alumni, each a graduate of a different decade, recall the caringinstructors who inspired them.

6 Learning, Then and NowA look at three CLC academic programs reveals how much has changed—and how much has remained the same—over the past 40 years.

9 Soldier to Student: Easing the WayFrom Vietnam to Iraq, the college has welcomed veterans, helping themmake the sometimes-difficult transition from military to civilian life.

DEPARTMENTS

10 CLC Foundation

11 News Roundup

12 Upcoming Events

Cover: Norton family, left to right: Ken (’79), Linda (’81), Dave (’88), Richard (father), Steve (’80),Sheila (mother), Tom (’77) and Darlene (’85)

Green and Accountable: The revamped AlumNews is printed on recycled paper at the same cost asthe previous newsletter format.

AlumNews

ALUMNEWS | 3

COVER STORY

For a good portion of the College ofLake County’s 40 years, the Nortons ofWaukegan have made CLC a family

affair. All six Norton children—Tom, Steve, Ken,Linda, Darlene and Dave—earned CLC degreesand each went on to earn at least a bachelor'sdegree. Mother, Sheila, began taking coursesat the college when she was 40 and hascontinued for 30 years. And if those connectionsweren’t enough, one Norton sibling—Tom—met his future spouse at the college, andDarlene began her professional career workingfor CLC.

Though it may be unusual for six siblingsto all have earned a degree at CLC, the other

One Family’s CLC Story

All six Norton children

—Tom, Steve, Ken, Linda,

Darlene and Dave—

earned CLC degrees.

elements of the Nortons’ story aren’t unique tothem. Indeed, their story represents so much ofwhat CLC has meant to thousands and thousandsof others in Lake County—a college whereyou can get a good start on life or return laterin adulthood for a second chance at learning;a place to form enduring relationships; perhapseven a place to work and build a career.

Tom Norton (’77) was the educationaltrailblazer among the siblings, enrolling at thecollege when it was still surrounded by cornfields.“Growing up, I had never known anyone whowent to college,” he recalled. “My parentsencouraged it, but with six children and oneworking parent, going away to a four-yearschool wasn’t possible.”

CLC provided the opportunity Tomneeded, and while attending, he discovereda formula for earning a college degree thathas worked for all his other siblings: startcollege close-to-home, work part time andtransfer to earn a bachelor’s degree.

Tom Norton (inside left) methis wife, Lisa (far left), at CLC.Steve Norton (inside right) datedhis wife, Sandra (far right) whileattending CLC.

The Nortons of Waukegan have made CLC a family affair.

Tom worked at a blue-jeans retailer.(He even owned a sky-blue, brushed-velourLevi’s suit.) After CLC, he went on to WesternIllinois University, graduating in 1979 with abachelor’s degree in personnel administrationand industrial relations. He went on to builda career as a human resources manager atAllstate Insurance Co.

Each Norton sibling followed a similarpath to success, finding that CLC met their ownindividual needs.

Ken (’79), now a customer service managerat a printing company, said at CLC he found agood school where he could discover his talentsand build confidence in his ability to jugglework and school.

Dave (’88), who went on to become asystems engineer, met his goal of ensuring that“every credit counted” toward transfer.

Steve (’80), now a materials managerat a Chicago-area locomotive manufacturer,enjoyed the small classes. His sister, Linda(’81),now a physical education teacher, agrees.“You always knew your instructors, and theyknew you,” she said.

Darlene (‘85), who began her professionalcareer at CLC as a coordinator of the mathcenter, valued how her instructors challengedstudents’ thinking while respecting their pointsof view. “CLC provided us with more than justa solid foundation, it launched us,” she said.

And though she hasn’t yet earned adegree, mother Sheila credits the collegewith greatly enriching her life. Over the years,she has taken courses in creative writing,

watercolor and humanities. Her award-winning poem, “Edward Hopper Paints

a Woman,” was published in thecollege’s nationally distributed literarymagazine, Willow Review.


COLLEGE FOCUS

The sustainability, or “Go Green”movement, is today’s red-hot trend,but a look back into the College of Lake

County’s past shows that CLC has been goinggreen for almost its entire 40 years.

Beginning in 1970—only the college’ssecond year—instructor John Mathwig createdan Environmental Biology course that remainspopular to this day. Mathwig and colleagueCheena Wade, who taught the course for30 years, estimate that more than 14,000students have completed it.

Using the Grayslake Campus’ WillowLake as a living laboratory, the course hashelped create environmental awareness amongstudents who regularly monitor it for waterclarity, nitrogen and algae-inducing phosphorus,as well as fish species.

Another living laboratory—a prairierestoration project—was created in the 1970s.Located on the northeast side of Lancer Lane,the project was begun in 1974 at the suggestionof student members of CLC’s first studentenvironmental club, known as the Society forthe Protection of Endangered Wildlife (SPEW).

Going green for 40 yearsThough the restoration project was part

of the original campus plan, the students pushedto accelerate the work, according to Ron Riepe,a retired earth science instructor. The project,which began as a 20 by 20 foot plot, nowencompasses 12 acres.

Earth Day, a long-standing campusobservance, also began in the 1970s, startingwith a one-day event featuring one speaker.Today’s observance is celebrated over an entireweek and includes a dozen workshops, coveringeverything from climate change to an ever-popular “Snakes Alive” demonstration.

Recycling also began on campus in the 1970s.By the mid-1990s, CLC had earned the distinctionof being one of the first community colleges inthe nation to be named as a Model Communityby the Central States Educational Center, aChampaign-based non-profit advocacy groupnow known as the Prairie Rivers Network.

“The Model Community award was givento organizations that demonstrated a progressiveapproach to waste management and recycling,”said Glynnis Collins, executive director of thePrairie Rivers Network.

“Many people thought there was no wayfor a large organization, such as a communitycollege, to institute a recycling program. So it’ssignificant that the College of Lake County wasreally on the forefront of this issue and servedas a model for others,” she said.

To qualify for the award, CLC had toconduct an audit of its recycling and wastereduction efforts, including practices used bythe Facilities Department and in chemistry labsand a photography darkroom, said CheenaWade, now retired from teaching.

“When we were awarded the ModelCommunity designation, everyone on campusthought it was really cool,” she said.

Currently, excitement is building oncampus about the college’s involvement insustainability initiatives. CLC is a lead institutionin the Illinois Community College SustainabilityNetwork, a consortium of community collegesinvolved in providing green collar jobs trainingand encouraging implementation of energyconservation and renewable energy technologiesat the community level. The network is seekinga major grant to create sustainability centersat each of Illinois’ community colleges toserve as one-stop sources of information andtraining on energy saving and renewableenergy technologies.

For decades, Willow Lake, on the Grayslake Campus, has served as a living laboratoryfor students enrolled in environmental courses.

Since the early 1970s, the college hasmaintained a prairie restoration projecton the Grayslake Campus.

ALUMNEWS | 5

COLLEGE FOCUS

1970s: Kent Belasco, Nancy Cook

For Kent Belasco (’73),CLC provided thewelcoming environmentthat helped him finda new direction followinga devastating motorcycleaccident in the summerof 1969.

A recent graduate ofMundelein High School,Belasco planned to enlistin the military and attendcollege later on the GI bill,hoping eventually to play

college football. But when his motorcycle washit head-on by a car, he lost not only his left legbut also the friend who was riding on the seatbehind him.

At age 18, Belasco faced a long periodof physical and psychological recovery.

“It was a turbulent time for me,” he said.“I needed to find a way back to life.”

During his convalescence and still oncrutches, he enrolled at the newly openedCollege of Lake County, a campus thenconsisting of four corrugated mobile class-rooms. Despite the sparse facilities, the CLC of1970 was abuzz with young students, veteransreturning from the Vietnam War and facultywith the vision and enthusiasm of pioneerswho were literally creating the young collegefrom almost nothing.

“With the war in Vietnam, protests, lotsof politics and opinions, it was a unique time,”Belasco said.

Faculty like, Nancy Cook, made that timeso memorable, he said. Belasco, who had beendrawing since childhood, first met Cook as astudent in her art history class.

“She did what all teachers should do andthis is to help and guide students to realize theirgifts and potential and stimulate their desire toconstantly learn,” he said.

Over those years, Belasco earned bothbachelor’s and master’s degrees in businessadministration from Lake Forest College and aPh.D. from Northern Illinois University. And hebuilt a highly successful career in the bankingindustry, today serving as chief informationofficer for First Midwest Bank in Chicago. He’salso a freelance artist and a published authorof several books on bank management.

1980s: Mike Caplan and Jerry Pinkham

Mike Caplan (‘82),now weather anchor atChicago’s ABC 7 News,came to CLC in the early1980s after one semesterat Northwestern University.Finding that NU wasn’tright for him at that pointin his life, he turned towhat he describes as his“best alternative”: CLC.

“It was close toGurnee, my home, andit had small class sizes and

offered students individual attention,” he said.Caplan received an Associate in Applied

Science degree from CLC in 1982. As a student,he worked at the WCLC radio station and playedtrombone in the jazz and wind ensembles. Afterattending CLC, he transferred to Illinois StateUniversity and received a bachelor’s degree inmass communications. He joined ABC 7 in themorning weather spot in 1994, served as thestation’s weekend weather anchor from 1995to 2003 and is presently the station’s weatheranchor on weekdays at 4 p.m.

At CLC, Caplan learned the basics of jour-nalism from instructor Jerry Pinkham, whowas a senior writer at Better Homes and Gardensmagazine before turning to teaching. “Jerry,who was my instructor for news writing, taughtme diction that I use to this day,” Caplan said.

Caring Professors Made All the DifferenceThroughout the College of Lake County’s 40 years, CLC has often heard from graduates who fondly recall

the college’s caring, supportive environment, and especially, the knowledge and encouragement they

received from their professors. Here are just four stories of graduates who have achieved career success

and the professors who inspired them.

continued on page 8

“The two and a half

years I spent at CLC were

the most exhilarating

time I had in my entire

academic career.”—Kent Belasco


COLLEGE FOCUS

In 1969, the College of Lake County consistedof four corrugated metal, “temporary”buildings serving 2,500 students amid the

cornfields of Grayslake. In 2009, CLC consistsof more than a dozen buildings on threecampuses serving 18,000 students from all overthe sprawling suburbs of Lake County.

Comparing the college of the late 1960sto the CLC of today is to appreciate not onlyhow much the college has grown, but also howsteadfast it has been in offering students a highquality learning experience, despite seismicchanges in technology, academic programsand student body.

A look at the history of three academicprograms illustrates how much has changedand how much has remained the same.

Nursing: Caring spirit endurestechnological changes

When CLC’s nursing program first began, itwas housed in a brown mobile classroom.“Classes were held in miniscule lab, and we hadno running water and no sinks,” said Dee Swan,director of nursing education from 1975 untilher retirement in 2003. “As a result, studentspracticed proper hygiene protocols by walkingto pictures of sinks taped on the walls,” she said.

But within a few years, these start-uplimitations were overcome. The program movedinto a larger facility (albeit still a “temporary”building), which had running water and morespace for equipment. By the late 1970s, theprogram was graduating 100 to 120 studentseach year, Swan said.

As the 1980s began, instructors wereadapting the curriculum to a shifting mindsetin the nursing profession, Swan said. “Wemoved from a model of nursing in which nursesworked closely under the doctor’s supervisionand didn’t make high-level decisions into onein which the nurse exercised more judgment,critical thinking and decision-making in thecare of patients,” she explained.

Changes in medical technology alsorequired an enhanced instructional facility, andthe program got it in 1997 when the D Wingwas completed, incorporating the latest intechnology, while also supporting hands-on,one-on-one learning.

The new facility and new digital technologyexpanded instructional options. “The technologyexcites students,” said Dr. Lucille Coleman,a nursing instructor who has taught at thecollege since 1993. “Instead of showing a35mm movie, I can show a PowerPoint slide,hyperlinked to an educational video showing,in real time, a surgery being performed at theMayo Clinic.”

Learning, Then and Now

Upper left: Nursing graduates in 1970, and below, a modern surgical technology lab.Upper right: 1970s computer technology and, below, 21st century flat-screen computers.

ALUMNEWS | 7

COLLEGE FOCUS

Computer Technology: Frompunch cards to Internet

Few academic disciplines have experiencedas many changes over the last 40 years as theComputer Information Technology program.Just ask Dan Petrosko, who began teachingcomputer science courses at CLC in 1976and retired in 2008.

“Computer instruction in the 1970s,”he said, “focused on preparing students forcareers in programming and operatingmainframes, which stood more than fivefeet high. The classroom would have rowsof them, with tape reels and disc drives.Students would write a program and sit downat a machine to run keypunch cards. It wasa really slow process.”

Today’s students may worry about crashingthe hard-drive in their laptops, but their counter-parts of the 1970s had to worry about keepingtheir key punch cards sorted. “If a studentdropped his or her deck of punch cards on thefloor, they’d have to re-assemble the deck, atime-consuming process.”

“A radical shift in technology occurred inthe early 1980s when personal computers cameon the market,” Petrosko said. “Technologyshifted away from the mainframe to computerservers. That change, combined with the growthof the Internet, required major changes in theinformation technology curriculum,” he said.

Theatre: From cracker box tothe Performing Arts Center

In the early ‘70s, CLC’s stage plays were heldin a 100-seat theatre in one of the “temporary”corrugated-metal buildings at the Grayslakecampus. Despite occasional leaky roofs, invadingchipmunks or blown fuses during performances,the era’s faculty and students built the foundationfor the thriving performance programs now

based in the James Lumber Center for thePerforming Arts.

Spectators sat on hand-built, wooden risers,said Eibhlin Glennon, who taught theatre andEnglish, and directed plays, from 1984-2004.“We tried to make it as flexible as it could be,”she said. “The building’s supporting posts hadto be a part of the set. Sometimes actors hadto exit through doors leading outside.”

When the C Wing was built, performancesshifted to the C005 auditorium. Glennonrecalled directing a performance there of“Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead,”in which the lights went out accidentallyduring the final sword fight.

“The actors started the fight in the dark,and because they rehearsed so well, neither theynor audience members got stabbed,” she said.

Glennon looks back fondly at those timesof limited budgets and technical glitchesand credits the late Frank Harnish, a theatreinstructor who began teaching in the college’sfirst year in 1969, for being a driving force inbuilding and growing CLC’s theatre program.

“As hard as they were, they were happytimes,” she said. “Faculty, staff and studentswere a real family. It tested your creativity, andwhen you pulled it off, it was magic.”

“The 1997 opening of the James LumberCenter for the Performing Arts, with its main-stage, studio and black-box theatres opened upmany new possibilities for the theatre program,including Broadway musicals and big-castshows,” Glennon said.

“It was like dying and going to heaven,”she added.

CLC Theatre: From Archibald MacLeish’s “J.B.” (1969) to Oscar Wilde’s “The Importanceof Being Earnest” (2009).


COLLEGE FOCUS

Pinkham remembers Caplan as a studentwho took journalism seriously. “He not only didwell in the course and published articles in theCLC Chronicle, he saw journalism as somethinghe was interested in doing as a career,”Pinkham said. “Mike’s story shows that if you’reserious about a field and are willing to workhard and be persistent, you can be successful,”he said.

1990s: Walter Leise and Tracey Hoy

When Walter Leise (’94& ’95) was growing up inhis native Long Island, N.Y.,he enjoyed science fictionmovies and dreamed ofbeing a scientist workingin a laboratory. However,he suffered from dyslexia,the reading disorder thatmakes letters appearscrambled, and learningwas difficult. As a result,he graduated from high

school near the bottom of his class, and hisself-esteem plummeted. Neither he nor othersthought he was college material.

Today, Leise, 38, is a research scientistat Abbott Laboratories, a major health carecompany, and he holds a Ph.D. in biochemistryand molecular biology from the Universityof Chicago.

His path to a doctorate from a prestigiousuniversity and a distinguished scientific careerbegan at CLC, where he earned two Associatein Applied Science degrees—one in chemicaltechnology in 1994 and the other in biochemicaltechnology in 1995.

“The first week of classes was the turningpoint of my academic life,” Leise said. “One ofthe courses I took was Basic Algebra. Tracey Hoy

was the instructor, and she inspired me byexplaining that she was there for us, and that wecould do anything if we set our minds to it.”

After years of difficulties with math, Leiseexperienced a breakthrough that first week ofclasses. Thanks to his own hard work, and Hoy’scalm, patient approach to teaching math, hegained confidence in his ability to succeed.

“It took only a couple of weeks for Walterto shake his anxiety,” Hoy said, adding thatfrom then on, “there was no stopping the guy.”

2000s: Soledad Escamilla andLucille Coleman

When Soledad Escamilla(’00) moved from Mexicoto Round Lake in 1990,she was 12 years old, theyoungest of 13 childrenand couldn’t speak a wordof English.

Six years later,she graduated with honorsfrom Round Lake HighSchool. She thencontinued her studies atCLC in the nursingprogram, graduating with

a 3.9 GPA. Since 2000, she has been a registerednurse at several Lake County hospitals, includinga stint in the emergency room at Lake ForestHospital. She’s just two courses away from earn-

ing a bachelor’s degree in nursing from OlivetNazarene University.

The only one of her siblings to completecollege, Escamilla credits CLC, and nursinginstructor Lucille Coleman in particular, forhelping her achieve success.

Coleman started a support group called“Caring & Learning,” which was designed toencourage minority and other students who might,for various reasons, feel isolated at the college.

“A minority student sometimes feels self-conscious or nervous in class,” said Coleman,a Mississippi native who was one of the fewAfrican American nursing students at JonesCounty Community College in the 1970s.“Either your accent is different or, if Englishis your second language, you may not be asfluent in the language as your classmates.”

Each week, Coleman mentored the studentsin their course work and helped build theirself-confidence.

“She helped us believe in ourselves, andshe showed us how to study and take tests,”Escamilla said.

When the Caring & Learning groupgraduated in 2004, Escamilla and other groupmembers went to Coleman’s church one Sundaymorning to give her a thank-you plaque duringthe service.

“It was a big surprise,” Coleman recalled.“I had a big smile.”

One Constant Over 40 Yearscontinued from page 5

Nursing instructor Lucille

Coleman started a support

group to help minority

and other students feel more

connected to the college.

“Math instructor Tracey

Hoy was there for us, telling

us we could do anything if

we set our minds to it.”—Walter Leise

ALUMNEWS | 9

COLLEGE FOCUS

Soldier to Student: Easing the WayDespite their proven valor, coming home to civilian life and making the transition to being a college

student can be a daunting experience for veterans.

They have slogged

through mosquito-infested

rice paddies in Vietnam

or faced scorching heat

and deadly gunfire today

in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Coming home to civilian life andbecoming a college student can bea daunting experience for veterans,

despite their often proven valor.That’s why the College of Lake County has

long worked to make the transition to collegeeasier for veterans, welcoming them, valuingtheir wisdom and experience and offering themeducational, physical and emotional support.

Right from the beginning—during thecollege’s first year in 1969, CLC established aVeterans Club to help soldiers returning fromVietnam find a support network.

“For many returning veterans, studiesseemed unrelated to life as they had known it,”said Walt Petersen, a retired CLC counselor and30-year Army reservist who worked with veteransin those early years. “The college represented away for veterans to ease back into civilian life,"he said.

The Veterans Club provided a way for “vets”to connect with each other. “We all got together

and talked about our service experiences. Wehelped each other,” said John Mills, a former Armymedic who was the first president of the club.

Faculty members, particularly those whowere themselves veterans, helped the vets feelmore at home. “The teaching staff was aninspiration, and their doors were always open,”Mills recalled.

That support was important because otherstudents weren’t always sure about how to reactto the veterans, noted Dave Ross, who has beena counselor in the Counseling Center since1975. The war, he said, was unpopular andmany students were nervous when encounteringa Vietnam veteran.

Nevertheless, Ross said, the presence of theveterans on campus contributed much to thecampus climate, bringing a level of experienceand maturity to discussions that helped studentsunderstand the complexity of issues involvedwith the war.

Though counseling was a componentof the college’s services for veterans from thebeginning, today’s veterans receive even morecounseling support, Ross said.

There’s a significant difference betweenthe way colleges served veterans in the 1970scompared to today, Ross said. “Today, we domore from an emotional point of view. It’s partof changing societal attitudes about seekinghelp. In the past, many male veterans viewedit as a sign of weakness to seek mental healthcounseling. Today, more are willing toacknowledge their need for counseling andrealize that it’s not a sign of weakness.”

More than 300 veterans are currentlyattending CLC, and more are expected withthe planned 2010 troop withdrawal.

The College of Lake County has been welcoming veterans ever since it opened itsdoors in 1969.


CLC FOUNDATION

With those words as their rallying cry, agroup of 28 North Chicago eighthgraders enthusiastically completed

a CLC Foundation-sponsored program thissummer designed to sharpen their reading,writing and math skills.

The three-week program on the Collegeof Lake County’s Grayslake campus was partof a commitment undertaken by the CLCFoundation a decade ago, when it agreed tosponsor a class of then-kindergartners in NorthChicago in I Have A Dream® (IHAD). Thenational program is designed to encouragechildren from low-income communities tostay in school and go on to college, accordingto William Devore, executive director of theCLC Foundation.

IHAD helps participating students gain theskills, knowledge and habits needed to succeedin college and it gives them an incentive topersist in their education by guaranteeingcollege tuition assistance, according to JanaeDenton, IHAD project coordinator, one of25 “Dream” programs nationwide.

“I want to go to college!”Dreamers’ program continues Foundation’s decades of support

1974:The Foundation is formedas an Illinois not-for-profit

corporation to provide financial supportfor student scholarships and collegeprograms that fall outside the college’sbudgetary constraints.

1981: Provided funding for theopening of Community

Gallery of Art.

1988:Keith Ryan ScholarshipFund and Sports Banquet

launched. Held each fall, the banquethas provided $1,000 scholarships to27 CLC students over the last 21 years.

1999: Joan Legat MemorialGolf Outing launched.

Held each spring, the outing has raisedover $500,000 since its inception.

2000: CLC community andFoundation members

mourn the passing of Robert T. Wright,longtime Foundation board memberand former trustee of the college. NameCommunity Gallery of Art in his memory.

2001: The Foundation boardpledges financial support

to a group of North Chicago kindergartnersin the national I Have a Dream® program.The year-round program is part of anationwide effort that encouragesat-risk students to stay in school andcomplete college.

2007: The Foundation donates$5,000 for the creationof a new Veterans Memorial on theGrayslake campus.

2008: The Foundation provides$25,000 for students

studying abroad in China.

2009: The Foundationcelebrates 35 years ofproviding scholarships to an average of500 students per year totaling anywherefrom $400,000 – $500,000 per year.

CLC Foundation: 35 yearsof making a difference

The IHAD program involves a wide rangeof activities, including after-school tutoring, skillbuilding-sessions, community service projects,educational field trips and summer programs.

In July, the Dreamers spent three weeks atCLC preparing for high-school work and gettinga sneak peek at college life.

“Just being on campus spoke volumes,”said Sonjia Allen, a North Chicago elementaryschool teacher who taught the students thissummer. “They loved the stadium-style seatingin the classroom, because they had not experi-enced a classroom like that before. They saw olderand younger students around campus, and real-ized that you can go to college from 18 to 88.”

“I especially enjoyed the writing classes,”said Charles Jones, age 14. “We learned that goodwriting isn’t just sharing information. It’s aboutexplaining an experience in a descriptive way.”

Likewise, Kashmir McElrath, age 14 andan aspiring pediatrician, thanks the Foundationfor its support. “Most of the kids in the programwould not be where they are today without it,”she said.

Dreamers Charles Jones (left) and Kashmir McElrath, during a visit to CLC’sSouthlake Campus.

ALUMNEWS | 11

NEWS ROUNDUP

Magazine names CLC grad one of top nurses in AmericaJay Maningo-Salinas, (’92), RN, clinical nurse manager of the Outpatient Infusion Department, Apheresis and Dialysis at MayoClinic Arizona, was recently named as one of the top nurses in America by NurseWeek Magazine. According to her nominator,Maningo-Salinas’ accomplishments include helping to develop an accredited program of outpatient infusion services for the clinic’sblood and marrow transplant patients.

Maningo-Salinas earned her B.S. in nursing in 1994 from Alverno College and an M.S. in human service administration from SpertusCollege. She has completed graduate coursework toward a Ph.D. in health and human service administration from Capella University.

Alumni, student discounts available at more than 50 retailers

CLC alumni and students now can enjoy discounts at more than 50 area restaurants, bookstores, movie theatres and other retailers,thanks to a new discount program approved by the Alumni Association board of directors.

To qualify for these discounts, simply show your CLC Alumni Association membership card. (Some of the businesses also requireprinted coupons, which can be downloaded and printed from their Web sites.) For details on participating businesses, visithttp://www.alumnipreferredpartners.org/. To find out about joining the CLC Alumni Association and obtaining a membership card,go to http://www.clcroundtable.org/membership.

New career mentoring program looking for volunteersThe CLC Alumni Association is launching a mentoring program and is looking for volunteers to help coach students through theireducational and career decisions.

This program is designed to pair a current CLC student with an experienced CLC grad. “Not only is it satisfying to help a youngperson find a career direction, you may end up gaining a new appreciation of your own career choice, and build your own networkin difficult economic times," said Ed Oilschlager, director of mentoring on the Alumni Association board of directors.

After applying, alumni will meet with the program director and determine how his or her skills and experience can apply.As students request mentors, a meeting (face-to-face, or by phone) will be set up with the student. If you are interested involunteering as a mentor or would like to receive more information about the program, contact the CLC Alumni Associationat (847) 543-2400 or [email protected].

More than 200 alumni attend Sept. 12 picnicat Grayslake campusBrilliant sunshine and 80-degree temperatures greeted more than 200 alumni,their families and guests at a CLC alumni picnic, held Sept. 12 at the Grayslake campus.The picnickers enjoyed catered picnic food, Bingo and childrens’ games. Laura Cooper(’88) served as the emcee and on-site disc jockey for the event.

Rita Gabrielsen (Beshel) ('77) wasthe winner of the Hula Hoop contestat the recent Alumni picnic.

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UPCOMING EVENTS

Shop ‘til youdrop on Dec. 5

Join your fellow CLC grads

for holiday shopping and cheer,

with the CLC Alumni Association’s

fourth annual “Shop ‘til you

Drop” holiday shopping

excursion on Saturday, Dec. 5.

This year’s destination is Old

Orchard Shopping Center in

Skokie.Reconnect with old

friends, and meet new ones, in

this fun and relaxing shopping

trip. Santa’s sleigh (a coach bus)

will safely transport you to

Old Orchard, so there’s no worry

about driving in inclement

weather. In addition, Santa’s

helpers will provide shopping

guides and coupons. A little

caroling, cookies and holiday

surprises will help put you in

the spirit of the season.

At 9:30 a.m., the coach bus

will leave the C-Wing entrance

of the Grayslake campus,

returning in late afternoon.

Reserve your seat for $20.

For more information, visit

www.clcroundtable.org/shop.

Prairie SpiritsDance Troupe:Winter Dance ConcertDec. 4 and 5 at 7:30 p.m.Dec. 6 at 2 p.m.

Mainstage Theatre

Celebrate the season with

an evening of dance as CLC’s

Prairie Spirits Dance Troupe

presents beautiful, intriguing

and powerful works from

international choreographers

and CLC faculty.

CLC Concert BandConcertDec. 17 at 7:30 p.m.

Mainstage Theatre

The CLC Concert Band,

directed by John Mose, will

perform music from both

the classical and modern

wind band repertoire plus

holiday favorites.

Civic Ballet of Chicago:The NutcrackerDec. 19 at 1 p.m.Dec. 19 at 5 p.m.Dec. 20 at 3 p.m.

Mainstage Theatre

Ruth Page’s beloved original

full-length staging promises

holiday delight for children

of all ages with superb dancing,

amazing costumes and magical

settings. Co-sponsored with the

Office of Student Activities.

James Lumber Center for the Performing ArtsThe following is a partial list. Learn about more events, and buy tickets online,at www.jlcenter.clcillinois.edu.

Return and learn! Spring semester begins Jan. 19Improve your professional skills and expand your career prospects by coming back to CLC! Many classes are

offered online, and at our convenient locations in Grayslake, Waukegan and Vernon Hills.

Returning adults and professionals can learn more about coming back to CLC by attending an Advisement

Information Meeting (AIM). The AIM is designed for students who are planning to attend part-time, are

returning adults, or want to take a few college courses and need to develop educational goals.

Attendance at the AIM is recommended before seeing an Academic Advisor. Learn how to get started and

sign up for the AIM online at www.clcillinois.edu/aim.

To learn more, visit www.clcillinois.edu/depts/cou or call the Grayslake Campus Counseling,Advising and Transfer Center at (847) 543-2060.

alumnews fall 2009

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