CAMPUS REPORTS

Montana Board of Regents Meeting
July 7-9, 2004
Salish Kootenai College
Pablo, Montana 59855

 

Flathead Valley Community College

President Jane Karas

Flathead Valley Community College graduated its largest class in history during its Spring 2004 Commencement May 14. A total of 296 students from both the Kalispell and Lincoln County campuses filed for graduation for spring and summer. These students were awarded 348 degrees or certificates. The college graduated its first classes in Medical Coding, Radiological Technology and Heavy Equipment Operators. The commencement speaker was Commissioner of Higher Education Sheila Stearns.

Flathead Valley Community College, in partnership with Bresnan Communications, welcomed the C-Span School Bus for its first ever stop in Kalispell. The bus, which will follow both the Democratic and Republican presidential campaigns and attend both conventions, was open to the public and FVCC students and employees for tours. Local officials, including Mary Ellen Nelson who represented Senator Max Baucus, Denise Smith who represented Senator Conrad Burns, Kalispell City Manager Chris Kukulski and Whitefish Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Sheila Bowen, helped the college welcome the bus.

Re-elected FVCC Board of Trustees members John Engebretson and Mark Holston took oath of office at FVCC s Board of Trustees meeting May 24. Clerk of the District Carolyn Shriver administered the oath of office. The Board also unanimously re-elected Robert Nystuen to serve as Board Chairperson, Engebretson to serve as Board Vice-Chairperson, Holston to serve as Secretary to the Board and Shriver to serve as Clerk of the District.

Flathead Valley Community College hosted representatives of five German universities May 19. The visit was part of a trip to the United States to learn about our country s higher education systems and to increase awareness of opportunities for U.S. students to study in Germany. The visitors were given a tour of the college and were presented information about FVCC and the history of community colleges.

Flathead Valley Community College inducted its newest members into Phi Theta Kappa of the Alpha Iota Pi Chapter May 7. A total of 51 students were inducted into the international honor society of two-year colleges. All students met the organization s entry requirements by obtaining at least 12 credit hours from FVCC while receiving a minimum grade point average of 3.5.

Flathead Valley Community College held its annual President s Donor Dinner May 6. The dinner recognized and thanked President s Club Members who play a vital role in our students lives by making investments in them and programs at FVCC.

Three Flathead Valley Community College students have been named recipients of the summer 2004 Community Pride Scholarship sponsored by the Whitefish Credit Union. Delcy Brisbo, Teresa Geelan and Linda Wilson, all of Kalispell, each will receive a $300 scholarship for the summer 2004 semester at FVCC. This is the ninth year Community Pride Scholarships have been awarded to permanent residents of Flathead, Lake and Lincoln Counties. Overall, Whitefish Credit Union has awarded $41,230 in scholarships to 135 FVCC students.

Flathead Valley Community Theatre held an additional production this spring. Members finished its spring season with The Elephant Man by well-known playwright Bernard Pomerance. Two FVCC students assumed major roles in the play s production. Freshman Cohen Ambrose made his debut as Artistic Director, and freshman Justin Tuck served as Technical Director and Scenic Designer. In addition, Flathead Valley Community Theatre will hold three outdoor summer productions July 8 through July 31.

two Vision Net labs were installed at FVCC s Lincoln County Campus in May. Funded by a Rural Utilities Service grant, the labs will enable the college to provide distance-learning classes to students in Libby, Eureka, St. Regis, Lustre and Kalispell. LCC faculty will undergo training on how to use the equipment over the summer, and the labs will open for classes this fall.

Springtime in the Rockies a fund-raiser for FVCC s culinary arts student scholarships took place June 6-9. The event included gourmet dinners paired with fine wines at several of the Flathead Valley s top restaurants, and concluded with an evening of wine-tasting and hors d oeuvres prepared by FVCC alumnae, faculty and students.

Miles Community College

President Darrel L. Hammon

The Interdepartmental Coordinating Committee for Women (ICCW), an organization established by Executive Order of the Governor, selected Kathy Wankel, Miles Community College Nursing/Health Sciences Director, as one of two recipients of the 2004 Montana Excellence in Leadership Awards, based on her exemplary leadership, achievements, and outstanding efforts to help women excel in the workplace. The ICCW s mission is to create a positive change for all state employees by promoting the full participation of women in state government.

Montana s Campus Corps at the Ceremony for Civic Engagement held April 24 and 25, 2004 in Missoula, Montana, Jerica-Lee Bell, a nursing student, and Miles Community College s Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service project won the Outstanding Service project Award for success in bringing community partners together, generating volunteers, and bring substantial improvement to the community.

Miles Community College graduation was held on Saturday, May 8, 2004. The number earning degrees: 144 Certificates: 16; AA: 56; AS,53; and AAS: 19. Twenty-two of these students received more than one degree.

The Miles Community College Beta Theta Gamma Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society received special commendation and was named a 1 Star Chapter.

The Men s baseball teamwon its fourth consecutive MonDak Conference Championship and was the Region XIII runners up for the second consecutive year.

For the first time ever, The Miles Community College Pioneer golf team won the 2004 Region IX title and sent five golfers to the NJCAA Division II National Championship in Phoenix Arizona, May 25-28. Overall, the golf team finished 14th, with Jason Johnstone finishing third in the nation.

Men s Basketball player, Ben Frizzel, was named NJCAA Distinguished Academic All-American (3.8 GPA). Another basketball player, Kenny Herbst, was named Academic All-American (3.6 GPA). In baseball, Kyle Shepherd was named Distinguished Academic All-American (3.8 GPA).

Montana State University-Billings

Chancellor Ronald P. Sexton, Ph. D.

The Montana Space Grant Consortium awarded a full-year Space Grant Scholarship to Ms. Tammi Walker for the 2004-2005 academic year. Through the leadership of Dr. Stuart Snyder, Biological and Physical Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, Ms. Walker joins an elite group of approximately 1,900 Space Grant Scholars and Fellows nationwide.

Associated Students of MSU-Billings granted $7,000 to six College of Arts and Sciences students majoring in Environmental Studies for their extensive out-reach efforts in the community. The students attended an international conference in Fairbanks, AK, May 3-6, 2004. The conference topic was "Climate-Disturbance Interactions in Boreal Forest Ecosystems" and featured speakers from all over the world, including: Canada, Japan, Finland, Sweden, Germany, Austria, Russia, and the U.S.

The College of Business presented to Mr. Jeff Jorgenson, Class of 2004, the Montana Society of CPA s Medallion for Outstanding Accounting Senior and Robin Hill, Class of 2004, the Outstanding Graduate Award for her 4.0 GPA.

Ms. Jacquelyn Weitz, a junior music performance major in the College of Arts and Sciences, was chosen to attend the prestigious Van Cliburn Institute in Fort Worth, Texas. A student of Professor Dorothea Cromley, Jacquelyn received notification that she is one of 24 pianists chosen out of hundreds of applicants from around the world to participate in the Young Artists Program.

The College of Education presented Educational Theory and Practice awards to: Mr. Dan Jellison, ASMSU-Billings Faculty and Dr. Sharon Hobbs, Faculty Achievement.

On April 5-6, 2004, Linda Henry, Mike Peterson and Brigid Hagerty of the Montana Center on Disabilities presented a seminar to the Montana Independent Living Centers about their role in the Equity Project with emphasis on mentor recruitment, training and retention.

Ms. Reno Charette, Big Horn Teacher Projects, received the 2004 Indian Educator of the Year, awarded by the Montana Indian Education Association (MIEA).

Dr. Mary Susan Fishbaugh and Ms. Norma Wadsworth presented MSU-Billings Big Horn Teacher CSPD Project: A Model Distance Education Program That Leads to a MS Degree in Special Education, at the Montana Indian Education Association annual conference April 2-4, 2004, in Missoula.

The College of Allied Health Professions, Dr. Carl Hanson, Interim Dean, recently held the first Convocation for 81 graduating students. Advisory Board Chair, Kristianne Wilson, spoke to the graduates followed by a keynote address from Senator Conrad Burns.

Soprano Amanda Frazier, a junior Music Education major, was the winner of the National Association of Teachers of Singing women s upper division vocal competition held in Bozeman. A student of Professor Lesley Jorden, Amanda is a member of the MSU-Billings Concert Choir and Chamber Singers.

Faculty and staff of the College of Allied Health Professions have been working closely with the College of Technology on: (1) a federal appropriation related to health professions education, (2) program articulation, and (3) health occupations summer camp for middle school and high school students.

 Mr. Russell Rice, Class of 2004, College of Business, will be attending the Global Village, sponsored by the Lee Iacocca Institute at Lehigh University.  One of only five students from the United States to attend this international institute, Russell will attend for six weeks to share cultural and educational experiences with students from over 40 different nations.

Entrepreneurs of the MSU-Billings College of Business, Ms. Kelly Gatzemeier, a senior in Marketing, and Ms. Adrienne Mayer, a senior in Accounting, won the 15th Annual John Ruffatto Montana Business Plan Competition at the University of Montana, May 13, 2004. The Business Plan was part of a team project for MSU-Billings Management Professor Dr. Tom Hinthorne s Small Business & Entrepreneurship course.

Montana State University Great Falls College of Technology

Dean Mary Sheehy Moe

Cooper Presents at Governor s Third Annual Health Care Summit: Susan Cooper shared information on the HOSA State Conference (Health Occupation Student Association); the COT Emergency Medical Technician course that included high school students fall semester; and the grant funds that she acquired to provide funds for equipment for seven high school Med Prep programs across Montana. The COT students that entered competitions at the HOSA conference participated in medically related events including nutrition, medical terminology, pharmacology, pathophysiology, and the HOSA Bowl.

2004 Commencement: Cari Yturri, President of Bennett Motors gave the Commencement Address. Dr. Mary Sheehy Moe, MSU-GF dean, presented students with their degrees and certificates. Will Rawn, of MSU Northern, recognized graduates from the MSU Northern Great Falls Campus. To commemorate the graduation of the first class of 14 Dental Hygiene students, a pinning ceremony was held that evening at the Heritage Inn, sponsored by the Montana Dental Association.

Surgical Technology Program receives National Merit Award: MSU Great Falls College of Technology received a national merit award for the second year in a row from the Liaison Council on Certification for Surgical Technologist (LCC-ST) for achieving a pass rate in the top ten percent of the country for surgical technology programs. The Merit Awards are presented to schools at which more than 90 percent of their program graduates who attempt the National Certification Exam in surgical technology were successful, passed the examination, and achieved the status of Certified Surgical Technologist. All of the MSU Great Falls College of Technology graduates who attempted the exam in 2003 passed. All of the graduates, from the one-year certificate program, are working as surgical technicians and are making between $14.91 and $17.30 per hour. These figures are based on a graduate employment survey conducted by the College s career services office. These wages are comparative with the national median wage. According to U.S. Department of Labor, the median annual earnings of surgical technologists were $31,210 in 2002

Online Faculty Development: 35 faculty took advantage of the graduate level EDCI 588 course Facilitating Online Learning. "That makes 40 out of 50 of our online faculty from last year who have taken part in advanced training to teach online," Director of Distance Learning, Ryan Schrenk says.

Service Learning: Dr. Cherie McKeever reports that 92 students from three different courses were involved in various service learning projects Spring Semester. The projects included working at a retirement home with seniors, putting on a health fair for elementary students and mentoring advanced placement high school biology students in A & P. There were 110 students involved in service learning during the entire academic year. Fall service-learning projects included trail repair on the Rocky Mountain Front for the National Forest Service, and collection and processing of biological specimens for the Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center .

Educational Issues for Legislators and Candidates: The College hosted a forum for candidates for Montana legislative seats and current legislators on May 18. Informal presentations about current educational issues were given by MSU President Geoff Gamble, MSU-GF COT Dean Mary Moe, GFPS Superintendent Bryan Dunn and MSDB Superintendent Steve Gettel with discussion following.

HAN Project Underway: Six sites across the state have been selected to host the Health Alert Network training facilitated by the College this summer. Joe Schaffer is the coordinator of this project which trains public health employees to utilize technology in their workplaces.

Central MT Institute on Educational Technology: Tech Prep teamed up with the College to co-host an opportunity for teachers to develop their technology skill-sets in a week-long institute on June 7 through 11. The institute helped teachers learn educational technologies and incorporate them into their classrooms.

Montana Tech of The University of Montana

Chancellor W. Franklin Gilmore

Companion research papers on warning signs were presented in Houston at the annual conference of the International Society for Occupational Ergonomics and Safety during May. The papers were presented by Associate Professor Roger Jensen based on Industrial Hygiene Masters Thesis projects by Andrew McCammack and Scott Thomas.

Assistant Professor Lance Edwards, Business & Information Technology, has been invited to present his paper Does a Lack of Harmony Between the Firm and the Middle Manager Affect Intent to Leave?: A Qualitative Study at the 2004 International Conference of Business, Economic and Management Disciplines in Fredericton, New Brunswick in August.

          Montana Tech, and its Rocky Mountain Agile Virtual Enterprise Technical Development Center (RAVE TDC), conducted the grand opening of RAVE's new Creativity Forge on June 9 at Butte s Industrial Park. The RAVE facility will be home to a new Haas Technical Education Center, one of only 51 in the nation. The new center, which will be used to provide hands-on technical education and manufacturing prototyping, is a partnership between Montana Tech, RAVE, Haas and King Machine Inc.

Montana Tech engineering undergraduates continue their success in national engineering competitions. To support these student groups, the Research Office is dedicating a 3,200 square foot facility at Montana Tech s Mineral Research Center to a consortium of student clubs. Engineering modifications are currently underway and the facility will be ready for student use in the fall of 2004.

International Exchange agreements were finalized with Curtin University in Perth, Western Australia. This is the latest in a series of agreements that allow graduate students to spend a semester abroad working toward a Montana Tech Masters of Science degree. Nine graduate students will be traveling to five Australian universities this year under sponsorship from the U.S. Department of State.

The Montana Tech Human-Powered Vehicle (HPV) team took second place in the single-rider competition in the 2004 ASME HPV West Coast Challenge, sponsored by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. The competition was hosted by Oregon State University.

Professor Pat Munday, Professional & Technical Communication, wrote a grant application for the George Grant Chapter of Trout Unlimited. The request to Montana's Natural Resource Damage Program for $25,000 will help fund development of an environmental restoration plan for German Gulch Creek, a major tributary of Silver Bow Creek near Butte. German Gulch is home to one of the last native Westslope Cutthroat Trout populations in the upper Clark Fork River watershed. The population is threatened by lingering damages from placer mining a century ago, and by selenium pollution from the bankrupt Beal Mountain cyanide heap-leach gold mine.

The University of Montana-Missoula

President G. M. Dennison

 Garon Smith, a University of Montana Chemistry Professor, received an Award for Innovative Excellence in Teaching, Learning and Technology during The International Conference on College Teaching and Learning.

The School of Business Administration at The University of Montana has selected its 2004 outstanding alumni award winners. The three winners, Sharon Leonard Vega, Jon Marchi, and Eric Sprunk were chosen by the school s Business Advisory Council.

 A graduate of The University of Montana-Missoula, Tara Keller, was one of three recipients of The Montana Campus Compact 2004 MTCC Community Service Scholarship. As a valued volunteer for Habitat for Humanity, Keller has conducted assessments to help connect UM students and faculty members to Habitat projects. She also helped two University classes engage in a service-learning project to promote Habitat for Humanity throughout the community.

The Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library at The University of Montana, the State s largest library, recently made the Collection Management Honor Roll of the Montana State Library Commission by having a current, approved, collection management policy on file with the Montana State Library.

A book by University of Montana Professor Stewart Justman has been awarded one of the writing world s highest honors: the 2004 PEN Award for the Art of the Essay. Justman is a liberal studies faculty member who has taught introductory English composition at UM for three decades. He was rewarded for his Seeds of Mortality: The Public and Private Worlds of Cancer, which was published in 2003.

Helena s Rick Graetz, a prolific writer and photographer whose favorite subject is Montana, will receive one of The University of Montana s highest honors, an Honorary Doctor of Letters degree in geography during 2004 Commencement ceremonies.

For the sixth consecutive year, The University of Montana School of Journalism has placed in the top 10 of the Hearst Journalism Awards Program, a yearlong competition made up of 12 separate contests. The Journalism School placed 10th overall among journalism schools nationwide and eighth in broadcast news.

A high school senior from Lynwood, Wash., Lily Gladstone, is the first American Indian student to earn a prestigious Presidential Leadership Scholarship to attend The University of Montana-Missoula.

University Dining Services at The University of Montana has received the 2004 Loyal E. Horton Gold Award in the Catering-Special Event category for medium-sized schools.

Harvesting Community, a partnership between Garden City Harvest and The University of Montana Program in Ecological Agriculture and Society, is the recipient of the 2004 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Partnership Award for Campus-Community Collaboration.

Conrad-based Kaptain Inc. has sold one mechanical roping steer a week to Australia and New Zealand since participating in a spring trade mission to those countries. The trip was organized by the Montana World Trade Center at The University of Montana and has proved there is a demand overseas for many Montana-made products.

Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Hamilton and The University of Montana-Missoula have started a new doctoral program partnership designed to train the next generation of outstanding biomedical researchers. The Graduate Partnerships Program in Biomedical Sciences and Related Disciplines will allow select UM students to earn graduate degrees from the University while conducting research projects using RML facilities under the direction of RML scientists.

Construction of Lewis and Clark Village is progressing well and will open for limited student occupancy in mid June. The project will be completed in late July or early August.

The University of Montana Western

Interim Chancellor Karl Ulrich

New Chancellor

Dr. Richard Storey, currently the Dean of Faculty and the Dean of the College of Colorado College will assume the position of Chancellor of The University of Montana Western on July 15, 2004. Dr. Storey has spent most of his highly successful career as a faculty member and administrator at Colorado College, the institution that was used as a model for Western s Experience One scheduling system. Dr. Storey brings a wealth of experience and enthusiasm to the position.

2003-4 PROGRESS

The campus changes necessary for the implementation of Experience One have been accomplished or are on schedule to be accomplished for the phased implementation of Experience One scheduling. This will begin with Experience One scheduling being offered to all first-time, full-time freshman students in the fall of 2004 and extend to all regular on-campus students during fall of 2005. This has required restructuring of all of Western s curriculum over the past year as well as major changes to student services.

The pilot project has continued successfully during 2003-4 with additional students and faculty gaining experience under the Experience One scheduling format. Student and faculty satisfaction with the format have remained high. Fall to fall retention of students in the pilot program was 28 percent higher than for freshman students not enrolled in Experience One. Sixty-nine percent of the Experience One students were retained compared with 54% of the other freshmen.

A Teaching Development Committee has been formed to oversee the training of faculty in the methods of experiential learning. These efforts will focus first on the faculty who will be teaching in Experience One next year but will also extend to all faculty members at Western during AY 2004-5.

As the year progressed, continued communication with those individuals and groups, both on and off campus, with concerns about the Experience One implementation has led to its gradual acceptance by most individuals on the campus and in the community. This communication, as well as the resolution of issues that needed to be resolved, was a concerted, coordinated effort on the part of many individuals in the administration, the faculty, students and staff.

During the past year, the entire curriculum has been reexamined and restructured to fit the new scheduling model. A special advising system, designed to meet the needs of those students transitioning to Experience One scheduling from traditional scheduling, has been established and will be in place in the fall of 2004.

Overall applications for freshman students were up by 47 percent or 105 applicants as of May 15, 2004 compared with May 15, 2003 (Table 1). Contingency plans are being considered for providing additional sections of courses, should this increase in applications lead to larger numbers of students during fall 2004. While this increase in applications is probably due to a number of factors, inquiring applicants frequently cite the availability of Experience One scheduling.

Funds for this initiative were received from The University of Montana through its Strategic Growth Initiative Grants and assisted in paying for a communications consultant, faculty training, extra faculty needed for the transition, and to help pay for the extra advising needed for transitioning students.

Implementation of B.S. Degree in Early Childhood Education

As of fall 2003, The University of Montana Western (UM-W) is offering a Bachelor of Science Degree in Early Childhood Education that takes advantage of Western s expertise in this discipline, as well as its current base of place-bound students around Montana who have indicated an interest in pursuing a four-year degree after successfully completing Western s Associate of Applied Science Degree in Early Childhood Education (ECE).

This program is offered through a combination of on-line and weekend and/or summer intensive coursework to meet the needs of place-bound students who are currently working in the early childhood field. The B.S. Degree in Early Childhood Education seamlessly articulates with the UM-W A.A.S. Degree in Early Childhood Education that is currently offered by Western in Butte, Bozeman, Billings, Great Falls, Havre, Dillon, Helena, Missoula, and Hamilton.

Start-up funds, allowing Western to hire a new faculty member for two years, were received from The University of Montana as part of its Strategic Growth Initiative Grant program. Currently 24 students are taking coursework leading to a Bachelor s degree in Early Childhood Education and there is strong interest in starting a new cohort of students in the fall of 2004.

The UM-W ECE program has been working on articulation agreements with tribal and community colleges offering Associate degrees in Early Childhood Education. An articulation agreement with Salish-Kootenai College was signed in the fall. Professor Julie Bullard met with staff from Flathead Valley Community College, course syllabi have been exchanged and initial discussions have taken place.

The UM-W ECE program received a $55,000 (renewable four year) grant from Montana DPHHS to develop a mentoring system for students pursuing degrees in early childhood. Research indicates that mentoring is an important retention and quality issue in on-line degrees.

Dawson Community College

President Terry Hetrick

On Monday through Friday, June 7 11, 2004, DCC hosted seventeen high school students from across the State for its summer Gear-Up program. This year marked a significant change in the Gear-Up program. In previous years, all such programming was focused on middle school students. This summer, students experienced five days of college coursework by attending sessions covering such subjects as Business, Computing, Global Positioning Systems, Law, Lifetime Fitness, Math, Music, Paleontology/Geology, and Sign Language. On the afternoon of the fifth day, students were transported to the Theodore Roosevelt National Park in Medora, North Dakota as a capstone experience. In addition, students experienced a full week of college life by residing in the residence halls, participating in intramural and dorm activities throughout their stay on campus. As in past years, Ms. Marilyn Dutton served as program coordinator.

Paul Kingsbury, Agricultural Power and Machinery Instructor, will be attending the Hobart Institute of Welding Technology in Troy, Ohio in July. Mr. Kingsbury s attendance at this institute will qualify him for the American Welding Society s Certified Welding Inspector/Certified Welding Educator Examination.

Bid opening for the construction of the DCC Performing Arts and Physical Education Centers is scheduled for Tuesday, June 15, 2004. The original bid opening in November necessitated changes to the construction methodology and this second bid. It is estimated that approximately 6-10 companies will submit bids.

On Thursday, June 18, 2004, President Hetrick and Dr. Majel Dominguez will attend the June meeting of the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities in Stateline, Nevada. As a part of the comprehensive evaluation process, attendance at this meeting is mandatory. Approximately two weeks after the conclusion of the meeting, the College will be informed in writing of its accreditation status with the Commission.

Gail Ring, Business and Computing Instructor, will attend the 2004 Shelly Cashman Series Summer Institute in July conducted by the School of Technology at Purdue University. Since DCC is upgrading its instructional software to Office 2003, this training will provide students with instruction on the latest version of this software. In addition, this training will prepare Ms. Ring to take the Microsoft Office Specialist exams by the end of the summer.