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FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT THE OFFICE OF THE

CHANCELLOR: (313) 496-2510 www.wcccd.edu

DOWNRIVER CAMPUS NORTHWEST CAMPUS DOWNTOWN CAMPUS WESTERN CAMPUS EASTERN CAMPUS UNIVERSITY SQUARE

Where learning leads to a better life!

Today, the District hosted a Personal Safety Workshop to educate staff about the potential dangers that exist in everyday life. With violence and other dangers escalating in the streets, in the workplace, and in the home, the issue of family safety is one of great concern. Guest speakers included Former Assistant Chief Police of the City of Detroit George Hall, Jr., City of Detroit Police Officer James Booker, Sr., and City of Detroit Investigator, Brian Fountain. We were pleased to have Trustees Juanita C. Ford and Denise Wellons-Glover in attendance.

Dr. William Nagler, renowned diet doctor, conducted a workshop on how to loose weight for more than 200 stu-dents from the Detroit Public Schools at the Downtown Campus. The workshop, entitled “Youth Nutrition and Health Fair: Generation with Promise,” taught students how to create healthy eating habits and emphasized that proper nutrition and exercise creates a healthy mind. Joining me this week at the Spring MCCA Board of Directors meeting at Kellogg Community College in Battle Creek were Trustee Maryellen Stempfle and Dr. George Swan. Dr. Swan presented on the WayneDirect program; a collaboration between the District and Wayne State University (WSU). There was also an announcement made at the meeting that 23 WCCCD honor students will share $168,000.00 from the WSU Community College Scholarship Fund.

♦ Developmental education will continue to be a challenge for many community college students until options are avail-able that integrate basic work skills with career and technical or general education courses. This is especially true today when numerous student surveys and focus groups indicate that the primary motivation for college attendance is immediate employment. Because of the critical nature of this topic, the District has started to schedule a number of strategic conversations on this topic.

EXECUTIVE VICE CHANCELLOR

CHANCELLOR’S WEEKEND MEMO April 24, 2009 Number 679

ACHIEVE THE DREAM UPDATE ♦ Key staff from the Achieve the Dream initiative visited Hillsborough Community College this week. The team

met with Dr. Gwendolyn Stephenson, president of Hillsborough Community College, and toured four of the college’s campuses. The group brought back information on learning communities, student success centers, and specific programs that support students.

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INSTITUTIONAL EFFECTIVENESS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

HLC TOUR UPDATE

♦ This week, the HLC Spring Tour visited the Downriver Campus for “HLC Olympics.” Approximately, 30 staff and faculty members attended this fun event to watch their colleagues race through an obstacle course of HLC-related questions paired with coordination-challenging tasks. Congratulations to Lynn Shemwell and Dennis Andrew who took 1st and 2nd place!

Here are some comments received about the event:

⇒ “It was a fun program and I’m excited to learn about HLC and how it helps WCCCD and our students.” Gloria Kincade

⇒ “It was interesting to see that some people have been studying and learning about HLC.” Kerry Stevens

⇒ “These events are always fun and informative. The games are fun, and some-thing new is learned each time we play.” Bridgette June

DON’T MISS THE HLC SPRING TOUR GRAND FINALE EVENT

HLC Carnival Wednesday, April 29, 2009

2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Downtown Campus

CONGRATS HLC TUNE UP WINNERS!

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♦ The division conducted a Blackboard Basics training session for 18 instructors. Responses from the instructors indi-cated that they found the information to be well-presented and immediately applicable to their instructional efforts.

DISTANCE LEARNING

PHYSICAL PLANT AND FACILITIES MAINTENANCE HIENZ C. PRECHTER EDUCATIONAL AND PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

CONSTRUCTION UPDATE

WEBSITE HITS

♦ From March 24—April 23, 2009, the web-site had 112,601 hits from 64 countries and viewed in 26 languages. The top five content views were: Academic Programs, Distance Learning, Students, Financial Aid, and Northwest Campus. The Academic Schedule had 31,724 hits and the College Catalog had 16,072.

♦ Installation of the six showers in the auditorium dressing room.

♦ Installation of the granite counter top in the dressing room.

♦ Final installation of the clouds, sanding, and primer painting in the auditorium.

WESTERN CAMPUS ♦ The architect reviewed the punch list for the general renovation and outstanding items related to the window installa-

tion. The general contractor has completed three of the four outstanding items and has four window items in non-compliance.

INSTITUTIONAL EFFECTIVENESS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY CONTINUED

DID YOU KNOW? ♦ Microsoft has announced it will soon release its latest oper-

ating system, Windows 7. The new version claims to be faster and easier to use than the previous versions including XP and Vista. Interesting new features include touch screen operation, a simplified device management screen, and the ability for users to watch and record live television broad-casts. A recent survey of information technology profession-als by MSNBC reported that 84% will not immediately up-grade to Windows 7 upon release and 83% plan to skip Vista and upgrade directly to Windows 7.

BOOK OF THE WEEK Work and Integrity: The Crisis and Promise of Professionalism in America By William M. Sullivan

SELF-STUDY TIP OF THE WEEK ♦ WCCCD’s completed Self-Study Report will highlight the District’s strengths, challenges, and unique characteristics.

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Chancellor’s Weekend Memo

CAMPUS PRESIDENTS’ CORNER ♦ The Downriver Campus hosted the Southern Wayne County Regional Chamber’s (SWCRC) Leadership 21 Education

Module. Members toured the campus and the Michigan Institute for Public Safety Education (MIPSE) and also learned about the District’s various career program offerings and services. In addition to presentations by various faculty on distance learning, art courses, and computer information technology, attendees were provided demonstrations of fire simulators and the training tower. Guests included representatives from the University of Michigan—Dearborn, Wayne County Sheriff’s Office, Michigan Institute of Aviation and Technology, and the Downriver Career and Technical Consor-tium.

♦ Anthony Arminiak attended the Michigan Emergency Medical Service Expo in Grand Rapids. The conference covered new concepts in pre-hospital treatments and emergency medical service provider education.

♦ Dr. Debraha Watson attended the 114th annual meeting of the Higher Learning Commission in Chicago, Illinois. The meeting provided accountability, access, and assessment as it relates to the Self-Study process.

♦ GED Test Preparation seminars were held at the Northwest Campus. The seminars helped enhance GED students’ test— skills and provided a comprehensive overview over the key areas covered by the GED exam. Subjects covered included mathematics, English, science, and social studies.

♦ The Northwest Campus hosted a Spring 2009 Community Job Fair. Company representatives provided literature, as-sessed qualifications, and attempted to place participants in available positions.

♦ The Northwest Campus hosted a Diversity Film Festival. Students were invited to attend a showing of three movies which included Lean on Me, Milk, and Frida. A facilitator discussed the films, social implications, and answered ques-tions about the films. The students shared their experiences, discussed diversity, and exchanged personal stories.

♦ A “Majorette Skills Training” workshop was held at the Downtown Campus. Children between the ages 4—7 learned about the art of dance, marching, baton twirling, and formations. Bridgette Shepard, founder of the Detroit Twirling Steppers, was the facilitator.

♦ An exhibit of student art is on display at University Square. Pieces of artwork from students at the Eastern Campus, Grosse Pointe Public Schools, Harper Woods School District, and Detroit Public Schools now decorate the hallways of the facility. This ongoing exhibit will be in addition to Pewabic Pottery’ s exhibit of pottery and ceramics located in the Student Commons area.

♦ Thomas Dismukes, humorist and a motivational storyteller, conducted a storyteller symposium at the Downtown Cam-pus. Participants learned how to select and present stories and tell stories of true life adventures locally and across the globe. Storytelling is an interactive educational tool that has been used in most cultures to relate lessons and values for centuries, and still thrives in most cultures today, preserving important historical and cultural lessons while conveying cultural norms particular to each diverse society.

♦ Dr. Jacqueline Hodges, Patricia Hawkins, Cecilia Sarmiento, Michael Dotson, and Andrew McQueen welcomed Dr. Em-manuel Awuah, an American Council on Education (ACE) fellow at Northern Michigan University. The group shared information about the District’s structure and the policies and procedures of a multi-campus district. The ACE fellowship is a unique program that provides mentoring opportunities for faculty with leadership potential to learn about aspects of higher education including its vision, mission, culture, processes, successes, and challenges. Dr. Awuah is the Associ-ate Vice President for Diversity Services and International Programs and is also a professor of sociology at Onondaga Community College in Syracuse, New York.

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FINANCIAL AID ♦ To date, 40,664 Institutional Student Information Records have been loaded in the Banner system. WCCCD received

10,607 institutional student information records for the 2009-10 academic year during the first quarter of this year. This represents a 34% increase over first quarter in 2008 when 7,905 records were received.

♦ WCCCD students have received $68 million in financial aid disbursements from federal, state, and other funding sources. Last week, the District Financial Aid Center processed 716 files. The District Financial Aid Call Center re-ceived 512 calls.

♦ In celebration of Earth Day, instructor Joan Lucas’ biology class at the Eastern Cam-pus put together a display table that shows how staff, faculty, and students at the cam-pus are working together to make better choices and increase both earth awareness and sustainability.

CAMPUS PRESIDENTS’ CORNER CONTINUED

STUDENT SERVICES ♦ Liz Washington accompanied eight Phi Theta Kappa students to the 91st annual Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society Con-

vention in Dallas, Texas. Featured speakers included Robert Kennedy, Jr. and Dr. Fareed Zakaria of CNN and News-week. WCCCD students had the opportunity to network with honor students from all 50 states, Canada, Guam, and other U.S. territories.

♦ This week, the division partnered with community organi-zations to offer 20 community education seminars in the areas of youth leadership, health care, public safety, arts, and career exploration.

CONTINUING EDUCATION

CONTINUING EDUCATION ENROLLMENT ♦ During the week of April 12—18, 2009, the District served

490 students by partnering with 13 community organizations. The numbers served at each campus were: Downriver Campus—15, Downtown Campus—364, Eastern Campus—14, Northwest Campus—71, and Western Campus—26.

HLC Spirit!

Have you been spotted wearing your HLC shirt?

Be sure to see who will be

featured in next week’s edition of the Weekend

Memo.

Financial Aid Council

Here’s a selection of the New York Times bestseller list. These books are available at the campus bookstores and all the titles are always 10% off the list prices. Some older titles are on sale for more than 20% off!

Hardcover Nonfiction

1. Liberty and Tyranny by Mark Levin

2. Always Looking Up By Michael J. Fox

3. Outliers By Malcolm Gladwell

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QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not but

an act, but a habit.”

Aristotle

HUMAN RESOURCES

BULLETIN ♦ The Performance Appraisal Training for Supervisors is scheduled for Wednesday, April 29, 2009, from 9:30 a.m.—

11:30 a.m., at the Downtown Campus in the Multipurpose Room.

KUDOS ♦ Congratulations to Robin Marshall for

being awarded the Wayne Chamber of Commerce’s “Administrative Pro-fessional of the Year Award.” Each year, the Chamber honors one individ-ual with this award.

♦ Congratulations to Drs. Mark Shikhman and Debraha Watson for their new publication Essential Lectures for Surgical Technolo-gist and Surgical First Assistant Part I: General Surgery-Medical Ethics.

♦ The Veterinary Technology Program held an open house to introduce and welcome students, parents, and the commu-nity to the field and available job opportunities.

EDUCATIONAL AFFAIRS

ON THE MOVE . . . ♦ Cecilia Sarmiento and Andrea Juarez visited Delta College in Bay City to explore its Water Environment

Technology Program and the administrative component of its allied health programs.

♦ Dennis Andrew attended the Support Education Program Graduation. Congratulations to the following WCCCD students on receiving their certificates: Michael Chapman, Joan Claud, Rachel Fielhauer, Rebecca Goble, Jonathan Hudson, John Langevin, Richard Pasiwk, Deborah Rollins, Charlie Shemoit, Ginger Short, and Francine Smith.

♦ Pamela Jones attended the National Association of Purchasing Managers monthly training session. Participants learned how to use Microsoft PowerPoint 2007 and attended sessions on workplace eti-quette.

♦ Junell McCray presented at the Youth Ville College Fair. The non-profit organization supports a wide

variety of programs for youth and promotes a holistic and integrated approach to developing youth by enhancing emotional, social, physical, mental and academic well-being through direct programs and research in partnership with others.

♦ Instructor Joy Charles attended the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Exposition in Wash-ington D.C. Topics included algebraic thinking, data analysis and probabilities, communication, and equity and diversity issues.

♦ Darrick Muhammad, Stephen Major, Bahrija Livadic, Tyrone Carter, and Dwayne Page, Pamela Young, Rhonda Saad, and Aracely Garcia visited Oakland University (OU) to learn about best practices in po-lice operations, the emergency alert system, and the OU best practice police operations and to look at the emergency alert system and call boxes on the campus.