You made it to Cowley! Welcome aboard! You arrived with every thing you might possibly need to

fill your dorm room and backpack for your first month of class. Some may be driving back and forth

from home to attend classes. Some came to Cowley to play sports and attend classes. Some may be

working and attending classes. Whichever category you find yourself, just know that somebody from

Cowley can answer your questions! Somebody may be a coach, an advisor, counselor, teacher, janitor,

cook, activity director, dorm parent, and especially IMPACT staff. We are here to give you support.

Manny DeLoera, a returning freshman who completed one semester last spring at Cowley, came from

Wichita, KS last spring. IMPACT made a remarkable difference in his first year at Cowley. Manny

did not know anyone other than his sister, who recommended Cowley. It was

through IMPACTivities and going to class that he met others and made new

friends. Once he got involved, Manny found the IMPACT office to be a place of

encouragement. IMPACT staff were able to answer all of the many questions

Manny asked. IMPACT was able to know and help with about anything on cam-

pus. He enjoyed the monthly meetings, which included motivational videos and

how he was doing with grades. Manny felt that math tutoring was the best help.

In English class, he was able to use his ability to create music with Garage

Band to learn grammar. It was motivating to him that an IMPACT instructor

would allow him to use and share his music to learn grammar and share with

other students. Manny appreciated IMPACT getting him involved with Cin-

derfella. He got to meet Miss Kansas and show off his artistic talent by airbrushing. Manny has yet to

go on a transfer visit, but he has been on a few trips with his art class to museums and galleries in Kan-

sas City, and the Ulrich Museum at Wichita State. His favorite class at Cowley has been painting. He

learned to work with oil paints instead of acrylics, how to build canvases, and how to see. His instruc-

tor, Mark Flickinger says, “Manny is one of those students that comes to us with a lot of drive and an

inquisitive nature. He developed his style quickly, he is a hard worker and an inspiration to the other

students.” Manny’s goal is to be a University level art instructor. Be sure to ask Manny about his trip

to San Francisco this summer, or his trip to Colorado Springs with IMPACT last spring.

Are You Looking for Someone to Answer Your Questions? Volume 13, Issue 1

IMPACT Info

August & September 2009

Interested in receiving extra money? IMPACT is a federally funded Student Support Services program designed to help Cowley students

succeed. Once you are accepted into IMPACT, you must meet the following criteria to be eligible for

Supplemental Grant Aid (SGA): You must be in the first two years of post-secondary education, re-

ceive a Federal Pell Grant, have a minimum unmet need of $488.00, maintain a 2.0 GPA, complete 12

hours during current semester, complete a Personal Success Plan on time, participate in one Cultural

IMPACT Event OR one Academic IMPACT Event per semester, complete a career preview OR trans-

fer visit to a four-year college, and finally, attend all monthly meetings.

Thirty-five students are eligible

each semester to receive

$488.00, but only 27 IMPACT

students met the criteria last

semester; therefore, the money

was divided among those who

met the criteria. Notice that

SGA has gone up from $445.00

to $488.00.

MAKING A DIFFERENCE . . .

Travel to Colorado Springs—Photos

2

Facebook IMPACT web site Contact IMPACT

3

Financial Literacy Resume Writing August Calendar Answers to your Questions

4

September Calendar of Events Orientation Responsibilities

5

Your Underground Connection

6

Inside this issue:

Special points of

interest:

• Sign up for math help

early!

• If you need a graph-

ing or scientific

calculator for a math

class, we have one

for you to check out

for the semester.

We even provide

batteries.

• All 30+ laptops with

wireless capability

are no longer avail-

able for semester

check out. You

snooze, you lose.

Cowley College 0024

IMPACT Date: Fall, 2009

Pay to the order of IMPACT Students $577.11

Five hundred seventy-seven and 11/100 ————————— Dollars

BANK

For Meeting Criteria IMPACT STAFF/COWLEY COLLEGE

Somebody at Cowley

answered all my

questions!

IMPACT Page 2

IMPACT travels to Colorado Springs in May, 2009

The mighty Arkansas River near Colorado

Springs was at peak winter run-off stage for

white water rafting! We were in 3 out of 6

rafts that went together. Raft 1 was required

to rescue a man overboard ; unfortunately,

they all fell overboard in their rescue and cre-

ated an eight women swim team! (See photo

to the right). This meant that raft #2 was

needed to rescue two of the eight swimmers.

The other six made it to shore on their own!

One person from raft #3 slipped off for a cool

swim as well. A memory not soon forgotten.

Raft #1 Raft #2 Raft #3

A group photo, taken above, shows the cliff

dwellings in Manitou Springs that we were able to explore.

The red tram below took the bravest of IMPACT students across the Royal

Gorge Canyon. The cables on this tram are tested every day before tourists ride

across. To the right are three photos of an aerial ride that several IMPACT

students and staff endured. Notice the 20-foot Sky Coaster circled in red. The

Sky Coaster "swings" a person out over the Royal Gorge at 1200 feet above

the Arkansas River. The right photo is Emily, Manny, and our secretary

Roxanna being strapped together. To the left is Jason taking his two young

boys on either side of

him. What a drop!

Finally, photos on the

right show a bit of the

country western music

entertainment and food

of the Old West.

The IMPACT office is located on the lower level of the Nelson Student Center.

You can take the elevator to the Underground from the Tiger Deli or take the outside

entrance to the Underground from the southwest side of the Nelson Student Center.

Our offices use to be located clear in the back in a smaller office area. This summer

we moved into the main Underground space. We now have a lounge area, computer

lab, and more tables for studying. Now when you arrive by elevator or staircase, the first person you will see

is our secretary, Roxanna. You will have to look harder for Jason (Director), Loretta (math specialist), and

Dianne (English specialist), who now have their own private office space. Come visit us if you haven’t

already. We love to see students in our office, but if you need to contact us, please do so at the following

numbers and e-mail addresses:

Jason O’Toole—Program Director Bev Manuszak– Counselor/coordinator

otoole@cowley.edu manuszakb@cowley.edu

441-5253 441-5272

Roxanna James—Administrative Secretary

441-5212

james@cowley.edu

1-800-593-2222 ext 5212

FAX: 620-441-5358

Loretta Waldroupe—Math Specialist Dianne Flickinger—English Specialist

waldroupe@cowley.edu flickingerd@cowley.edu

441-5213 441-5211

Contact IMPACT Underground

Page 3 IMPACT

Current IMPACT information can be seen on facebook. Just log in or sign up with facebook, find our group, Cowley

Impact, and join us. We want to be your friend. You can also go on the Cowley web site to Services/IMPACT or

Academics/IMPACT. You can check out who we are, what services we provide, who qualifies, an events calendar,

application form, and this current newsletter. You can also look back on past newsletters under newsletter ar-

chives. We will alert you in an e-mail and on facebook when the next newsletter is available online.

IMPACT on Facebook and Cowley Web Site

IMPACT

Answers to Your Questions

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8

9 10 11 12 13 14 15

16 17 18 19 20

First day of

class

21 22

23 24 25 26 27 28 29

30 31

August 2009

Student Debt Statistics

With loans being the primary source

of federal aid today, students of all

types need debt management and

financial literacy skills. Here are

some fast facts about students and debt

today.

In 2007 – 2008, lenders provided

about $17 billion in private loans, a

592% increase from a decade earlier.

Source: The College Board (Trends in

Student Aid – 2008).

In 2008, 84% of undergraduates had at

least 1 credit card, up from 76% in

2004, the last time the study was con-

ducted. The average number of cards

has grown to 4.6, and half of college

students had 4 or more cards.

Undergraduates are carrying record-

high credit card balances. The average

(mean) balance grew to $3,173, the

highest in the years the study has been

conducted. Median debt grew from

2004's $946 to $1,645. 21% of under-

graduates had balances of between

$3,000 and $7,000, also up from the

last study. Source: Sallie Mae.

Please think before taking out a loan

or charging to your credit cards. If

you have questions or would like

more information, please stop by my

office in the Underground to discuss

financial matters. Jason O’Toole.

Financial Literacy

Page 4

IMPACT

Info

• Returning students are not required to reapply for IMPACT. You are still

considered an IMPACT student and will have access to our resources. You

will be required to attend your first monthly meeting in September.

• Don’t forget! You must attend monthly meetings with your IMPACT advi-

sor beginning in September.

• Be sure to check your student e-mail on ANGEL. IMPACT news will be

sent through ANGEL e-mail.

Do you need help with résumé writing?

Contact IMPACT Director, Jason O’Toole. He

will help anyone that would like his help with

résumés this year.

Volume 13, Issue 1 Page 5

New IMPACT students need to set up an appointment for a one-on-one orientation. In this orientation you will learn more

about your responsibilities as an IMPACT student. We give a tremendous amount of support and offer many activities and

services which will help you to become a successful college student.

You will receive credit for attending cultural and/or academic events, by signing up in Roxanna’s notebook. Her notebook will

explain these events in further detail and you can see who else will be attending. Just signing up for the event will not give you

credit; you will need to bring back evidence such as a ticket or program of your attendance. Sometimes, we give away free

tickets. These events are a great way to meet new people and experience an activity that may be new to you or one that interests

you. Will Rogers had a saying that “even if you are on the right track you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” In other words,

get involved! Take advantage of the activities that have been planned to give you an advantage for your future. You also have

to sign up when you are wanting to go on a campus visit to a four-year college or you want to meet with Bev to set up a career

preview.

Plan ahead by making appointments ahead of time for tutoring, advising, career previews, and monthly meetings.

September 2009 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1

C & T 4 pm

2

C & T 6 pm

3

Game Room 8-10

4 5

6 7 No Class

Labor Day

8

C & T 4 pm

9 10 C & T 3 pm

POH 7 pm

11 12

13 14

C & T 7 pm

15 16 17 Farm Night

C & T 3 pm

18 19

20 21 22 C & T 4 pm

Women Awareness

Concert 7 pm

23

C & T 6 pm

24 25 26

27 28

C & T 7 pm

29

TNM 7 pm

30

September 1,2,8,10,14,17,22,23,28—Career & Transfer Services Workshop, C&T in WB104 or WB105 at various times.

September 3—Free popcorn and pool night in game room at 8-10 pm.

September 7—No class—Labor Day

September 10—Puttin’ on the Hits, POH in Brown Theatre at 7 pm.

September 17—Our first academic/cultural event of the semester. Farm Night at the Flickingers. Meet outside the Jungle at 6 PM.

IMPACT will provide transportation. There will be a hot dog roast, smores, hayrack ride, stargazing with Todd

Sheperd (Cowley Astronomy Instructor), and guitar music around the campfire. Return by midnight.

September 22—Woman Awareness Concert with Cozy Sheridan at 7 pm in the Brown Theatre.

September 29—Tuesday Night Madness, TNM in W.S. Scott auditorium at 7 pm.

YOUR UNDERGROUND CONNECTIONYOUR UNDERGROUND CONNECTIONYOUR UNDERGROUND CONNECTIONYOUR UNDERGROUND CONNECTION

Self-improvement doesn’t happen

automatically. It requires constant, systematic,

and disciplined personal development. There are

books to be read, people to meet, and new places

to discover. Your personal growth is a privilege,

not a burden. This is where IMPACT loves to get

involved in the details of your college life. Let us

offer support in the small stuff of your college

life to help you grow and improve.

IMPACT

MAKING CONNECTIONS

THAT MAKE A DIFFERENCE

Cowley County Community College

IMPACT

125 S. 2nd St.

Arkansas City, KS 67005

We’re on the web

www.cowley.edu/academics/impact/

MAKING A DIFFERENCE . . .