AUGUST 2013 VOLUME 30 NUMBER 1

The KnightlineOlney Central College Students & Employees Monthly Newsletter

Since its founding in 1963, OlneyCentral College has continued to pro-vide outstanding educational oppor-tunities to the residents ofSoutheastern Illinois. OCC will markits 50th anniversary with a variety ofactivities planned throughout the2013-2014 academic year and tied tothe theme, “Celebrating Our Past,Looking To Our Future.”

The celebration kicked off Aug. 15— the first day of the fall semester— with a free cookout for students.

The college will host a 50thAnniversary Celebration onWednesday, Oct. 23 in the OCCStudent Union.

The event will feature a historicaldisplay as well as tours of the facilityand presentations by the college’stechnical programs. The celebrationwill be held from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.,with the formal program to begin at2 p.m.

Follow OCC 50th Anniversary onFacebook at facebook.com/occ50 tokeep up with the latest activities, toreconnect with alumni and friendsand to share photos from the college’spast.

Olney Community College — as itwas known at the time — opened itsdoors to 154 students on Sept. 3,1963 and more than 1,000 peopleattended a dedication ceremony onOct. 6, 1963.

Efforts to form a Class II JuniorCollege in Olney first began in thelate 1950s when a citizens’ commit-tee for education was formed underthe direction of Frank Bower, presi-dent of the East RichlandCommunity Unit 1 Board ofEducation. Later a second commit-tee, chaired by F. Ross Anderson,was created to study the need for a

junior college in Olney. At the time,the state was considering plans fora system of junior colleges.

The group found residents recep-tive to the idea, but with little moneyor the facilities to house a college, theprospect of forming one was severalyears away. That changed on March10, 1961 when the Pure Oil Companydonated its former office building andadjacent property to the EastRichland school district to house thecollege.

Pure Oil officials made theannouncement during a luncheonwith 75 prominent citizens. Amongthose attending were East RichlandSuperintendent of Schools Leslie E.Purdy and Bower. The donationmade OCC the first two-year collegein Illinois founded with its owncampus.

On June 13, 1962, the superintend-ent of public instruction approved apublic referendum to determine if the

voters of the East Richland schooldistrict supported a Class II JuniorCollege. In a special election on Sept.15, 1962, they voted 2,578 to 585 toestablish the college. An educationaltax rate of 17 cents and a buildingmaintenance tax rate of 7 cents wereapproved.

Preparations for the college contin-ued throughout the fall of 1962. ThePure Oil Building underwent renova-tions and college officials enteredinto an agreement for the startupoperations with Eastern IllinoisUniversity.

OCC became the first junior collegein America founded on a workingarrangement with an establisheduniversity.

The college’s early board membersincluded Bower and Paul Buss Sr.Purdy and his staff oversaw theadministration of the college. Thededication ceremony included the

See Anniversary, Page 2

Olney Central College marks 50 yearsOCC unveils anniversary logo

Olney Central College isunveiling a special logo to markits 50th anniversary.

The modified version of theOCC logo, which features thetheme “Celebrating Our Past,Looking To Our Future,” will beused throughout the 2013-2014academic year as the collegecelebrates its founding in 1963.

OCC invites everyone to fol-low OCC 50th Anniversary onFacebook at facebook.com/occ50to keep up with the latestevents and to reconnect withalumni and friends.

Vicki Thompson is look-ing forward to helping stu-dents reach their goals asthe new retention coordina-tor at Olney CentralCollege.

“I will be working withstudents and faculty mem-bers, assisting in knockingdown barriers and issuesthat can interfere with astudent’s education,” shesaid. “We will work togeth-er to find alternativeresources to help themsucceed.”

In the newly createdposition, Thompson willassist students with itemsranging from academic andfinancial needs to problemswith transportation andeven paying for books anddaycare. The goal is to helpstudents work throughthese obstacles so they canremain in college and com-plete their degrees andcertificates.

Thompson will not onlybe able to direct studentsto services at the college

such as the Learning SkillsCenter and the SingleParent Program, but toother agencies as well.

“I will be pulling inresources from the commu-nity to assist students inovercoming these issues,”she added.

Faculty will play animportant role in helpingThompson to identify stu-dents who may need assis-tance because they aremissing classes or theirgrades are slipping. Shealso encourages individuals

to visit her in the StudentServices Office or e-mailher at thompsonv@iecc.eduif they are finding it diffi-cult to stay in school.

“I want them to knowmy door is open,” she said.“If they have any issues,they can come and see me.Even if they just need ashoulder to cry or someoneto listen.”

Thompson has alwaysenjoyed working with stu-dents. Before beginningher new job in July, shetaught evening GED class-es for six years at OCC andprior to that she served asa teaching assistant for 17years in the Flora SchoolDistrict.

Thompson said her previ-ous experience workingwith GED students helpedto prepare her for this newposition.

“We were always lookingfor ways to keep studentsin school and helping themto work through all theobstacles in their way,” she

said. “When I worked withthe GED students, I felt Imade a difference in theirlives and I hope to carrythat over into thisposition.”

She added, “I’m reallylooking forward to workingwith the students. Theyhave so much energy andenthusiasm when theycome in and I want to helpthem to keep that. Whenthey are worried aboutdropping classes, I want tobe able to help them over-come those issues and tokeep them fired up aboutschool.”

Thompson completed herassociate’s degree atFrontier CommunityCollege and earned a bach-elor’s degree in businessadministration throughMcKendree University’sAiM Program. She residesin Flora with her husbandRob, and is the mother ofthree grown children,Samantha, Ben andDalton.

Vicki Thompson new retention coordinator

Vicki Thompson

Continued from Page 1installation of Purdy as college presi-dent and G. Robert Darnes as collegedean.

During its early years, OCC experi-enced rapid growth and by the fall of1965 had 303 students. During thistime, efforts began to make OCC aClass I Area College. Committeeswere formed to promote the effortand more than 200 meetings wereconducted by the college board andadministration. Judge Larry Arnoldserved as the attorney for the schoolsystem throughout the process.

In February 1966, OlneyCommunity College officially filed apetition to be identified as one of the33 Class I colleges in Illinois. A yearlater, OCC won approval for an areacollege from the Junior College

Board, and in April 1967 receivedapproval from the state Board ofHigher Education.

A referendum for Class I statuswas held on Sept. 7, 1967 and wasapproved by a vote of 7,278 to 778.The first Class I Board of Trusteeswas selected on Nov. 30, 1967 andincluded Dr. Kent Wattleworth aschairman. Leslie E. Purdy wasnamed interim president and servedin that capacity until May 1968.

OCC officially became a Class ICollege on July 1, 1968, and wasrenamed Olney Central College. Thefollowing year, OCC joined withLincoln Trail and Wabash Valley toform what would become the IllinoisEastern Community CollegesDistrict. Today the district alsoincludes Frontier Community

College.With the new name also came

plans to replace the former Pure OilBuilding with a permanent adminis-trative and classroom facility. Thegroundbreaking ceremony forWattleworth Hall was held on Dec. 8,1971. Construction began early thenext year and classes were held inthe new building in 1974. Two yearslater the gymnasium and Dr. John D.Stull Performing Arts Center werecompleted.

OCC has enjoyed continued growthduring the past five decades. Todaystudents can complete Associate inArts, Associate in Science, Associatein Science and Arts or Associate inEngineering Science degrees. The col-lege also offers a number of technicaldegrees and certificates.

Anniversary

Students in OlneyCentral College’s Weldingand Cutting Programgained some additionalreal-world experience asthey constructed a table forthe program’s newTorchmate plasma cutter.

“We spent about a monthgetting it ready,” saidInstructor Curtis Marshall.“It gave the students expe-rience with welding andgeneral fabrication. Whilethey were building thetable, the students alsowere learning to deal withprecise measurements andmetal distortion.”

Marshall said the plas-ma cutter can be used forgeneral fabrication as wellas for artistic projects. Theequipment includes a com-puter-aided drafting pro-gram, which allows stu-dents to create designs andthen cut them out at theplasma table. Students caneven take a photograph,scan it into the CAD pro-gram and cut out theimage.

“You can use the plasmacutter for whatever you can

imagine and design,” headded.

Marshall said the stu-dents enjoyed building thetable and experimenting

with the plasma cutter.“This is a newer technol-

ogy that shops are usingand it will open up theeducational experience for

our students,” Marshallsaid. “It will give themmore of an edge over thoseindividuals who do nothave this experience.”

Students construct table for plasma cutter

Students in Olney Central College’s Welding and Cutting Program gained someadditional real-world experience recently as they constructed a table for the pro-gram’s new Torchmate plasma cutter. The new equipment can be used for generalfabrication as well as for artistic projects. The plasma cutter includes a computer-aided drafting program, which allows students to create designs and then cut themout at the plasma table. Students can even take a photograph, scan it into the CADprogram and cut out the image.

Upcoming college visitsA representative from Franklin University will

be at OCC from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesday,Aug. 21 and Monday, Sept. 9. A table will be locat-ed outside the Student Services Office.

Tosha Baker from Southern Illinois Universityat Carbondale will have a table set up outside theStudent Services Office from 9 a.m. to noon onWednesday, Sept. 18 and Wednesday, Oct. 16.

LSC!offers free tutoring Need help with a class?

Olney Central College’sLearning Skills Centeroffers free tutoring in anysubject taught at OCC.

Biology study guides areavailable, as well as videosfor Basic Math, BeginningAlgebra and IntermediateAlgebra.

The LSC also can provide

tape recorders, large screenmonitors, readers and notetakers.

If you have any speciallearning needs, come andsee the LSC staff.

The LSC is located in theback of the AndersonLibrary in ConferenceRoom 4. Stop by to learnmore.

Find OCC!and others on FacebookFind us on Facebook and keep up with the latest

campus information and events. You can find OCCon Facebook at facebook.com/olneycentralcollege.

Under OCC’s likes, you’ll also find OCCAnderson Library, IECC, Olney Central College50th Anniversary, OCC Automotive ServiceTechnology, Olney Central College Bookstore andLearning Skills Center/GED.

Olney Central College!is now on TwitterBeginning this fall, you can

follow OCC on Twitter@OlneyCentral.

This is a great way to keep

up with the latest happen-ings at OCC and to connectwith other students. Take afew minutes to follow us.

Wain Davis has been namedDirector for TRiO Student SupportServices at Illinois EasternCommunity Colleges.

Before assuming his new post,Davis served three years as a coun-selor for the IECC’s Upward BoundProgram. He also has been anadjunct instructor at OCC.

“My major focus is to see how TRiOStudent Support Services can bestserve the students,” he said. “I wantthe program to be the best it can be.”

TRiO Student Support Services,previously known as StudentAdvantage Network, underwent aname change this summer to make itmore easily identifiable with otherprograms across the nation, whichare funded by the Department ofEducation. The program offices alsomoved from Lincoln Trail College inRobinson to OCC and are now locat-ed in Wattleworth Hall Rooms 113Aand 113B.

As director, Davis is responsible forgrant writing and overseeing the pro-gram’s budget as well as providingtraining for the SSS staff, whichincludes counselors at FrontierCommunity, Lincoln Trail andWabash Valley colleges. Davis alsowill provide academic counseling toprogram participants at OCC.

In addition, Davis will teach threeclasses — Success in College andBeyond, Career Exploration andLeadership Development — whichare offered exclusively to SSS partici-pants. The courses are designed tohelp students succeed in college andbeyond.

TRiO Student Support Servicesassists students who are at risk fornot completing college. The goal is tohelp participants stay in school,

graduate and successfully transfer toa four-year college or university.

“We want to help them achieve abachelor’s degree,” Davis said “Thosewith a bachelor’s degree are less like-ly to be unemployed and typicallyearn higher salaries.”

TRiO Student Support Servicesprovides advising, transfer assis-tance, free tutoring, study skillsdevelopment, career exploration, jobshadowing, financial aid counseling,workshops and seminars, communityservice opportunities and culturalexperiences and educational trips.Students also can participate in theSSS club and a peer-mentoringprogram.

“We have sophomore students whovolunteer to help freshmen acclimateto college life,” Davis added.

The program also has a laptop com-puter and graphing calculators,which it can loan to participatingstudents. Davis said Student SupportServices recently created a Facebook

page for participants. SSS studentscan access it by contacting theircounselors.

Student Support Services currentlyassists 190 students in the IECCDistrict. SSS looks for students inneed that are seeking a degree, espe-cially those that are planning totransfer to a university after com-pleting an associate’s degree.

To be eligible for the program, par-ticipants must be first-generation col-lege students and meet income guide-lines or have a physical or learningdisability.

Davis said SSS has openings forthe fall semester and he encouragesthose who think they may qualify toapply.

“We would love to get everyone whois interested to come in and fill outan application to see how we canhelp them,” he said.

Students who think they may qual-ify, can contact Davis at 395-7777,ext. 2146, or stop by the office.

Davis named TRiO Student Support Services Director

Wain Davis has been named the Director of TRiO Student SupportServices. He recently participated in a mentoring workshop with SSSAcademic Counselors from the other IECC!colleges. Pictured, from left,are Davis, Erin Volk (LTC), Tayna Smith (WVC), Justin Wiles (FCC), andStudent Support Services Office Assistant Vicky Hayden.

Receive emergency and closure announcements through IECC!AlertsThe IECC Alerts system

notifies students andemployees of campusemergencies and closuresby e-mail and or cell phonetext message.

When you create anEntrata account, you willbe automatically regis-tered for an alerts account.

Account creation for alertswill take approximately 24hours.

IECC Alerts will auto-matically go to yourEntrata e-mail account,but you may add addition-al e-mail accounts and/ortext messaging.

To do so, login to Entrata

(entrata.iecc.edu) andselect Emergency Alerts.You can then utilize thelinks on the page to man-age your account.

While there is no directcost for signing up for thisservice, you may becharged a fee by your cellphone provider. Please

check your cell phone planto understand the costsyou may incur using thisservice.

Those who previouslysigned up with IECCAlerts should verify thattheir contact informationand preferences arecurrent.

Electronic versions of the Knightline maybe accessed at www.iecc.edu/occ or fromOlney Central College on Facebook atfacebook.com/olneycentralcollege.

ONLINE PAYMENTStep 1 : Log into your Entrataaccount with your username andpassword. Click on the Banner Webicon at the right-hand side of yourscreen.

Step 2: Click on Pay Tuition, Fees,and Other Charges Online — CreditCard to make your online Payment.

If you encounter problems with mak-ing your online payment, please con-tact the IECC HelpDesk at 618-395-5299 or toll-free 1-866-529-4322, ext.4357.

The Olney Central CollegeStudent Senate recently attendedthe American StudentGovernment Association trainingconference in Orlando, Fla.

Students attended many semi-nars during the July 11-14 event,including: Jump Starting YourStudent Government, How toRun Effective Meetings withRobert’s Rules of Order andDeveloping Signature Programswith Student Government.

New officers, includingPresident Beth Dunahee and VicePresident Hannah Hohlbauch,attended leadership training andnetworked with other studentgovernment officers from acrossthe country.

Advisor Mike Conn receivedtraining on how to teach Robert'sRules of Order and how to devel-op transitional plans for futurestudent government leaders.

The American StudentGovernment Association is thelargest student government asso-ciation in the country and holdsannual conferences across thenation.

This year’s Orlando conference,

titled, “Improve Your StudentGovernment,” hosted senatorsfrom more than 200 differentschools.

“The conference was great, andI have many ideas for the upcom-ing year,” said Hohlbauch.

One of the most important ses-sions students attended was Howto Develop a Signature Programat Your School.

One common signature pro-gram across the country is to givestudents discount cards that savemoney at local retailers. Thecards serve the dual purpose ofsaving students money and creat-ing awareness of the local stu-dent government program.

The OCC Student Senate plansto explore the possibility of devel-oping a free student discountcard, which could be available asearly as the spring semester.

Other topics addressed duringthe conference included theimportance of branding and iden-tification, moving from beyond aclub to a service organization,utilizing online voting, and howto survey students.

See Senate, Page 6

Student Senate attends training

The OCC!Student Senate recently attended an American StudentGovernment Association training conference in Orlando, Fla.Pictured are front row, from left, Christina Banning, Beth Dunahee,Hannah Hohlbauch and Annie Conn and back row, Derek Novak,Royce Phillips and Advisor Mike Conn.

OCC!Community Chorusto begin rehearsals Aug. 19

The Olney Central College MusicDepartment will be hosting the fourthseason of the OCC Community Chorus.

The Community Chorus will beginrehearsals at 6 p.m. on Aug. 19.Anyone who has an interest in singing,from novice to advanced level singersis welcome.

This season the OCC CommunityChorus will present a Holiday Concertin December. Rehearsals will be week-ly on Monday nights from August untilthe concert.

The OCC Community Chorus will beconducted by Director of ChoralActivities Andrew Pittman. For moreinformation, please contact Pittman atpittmana@iecc.edu, or by phone at 395-7777, ext. 2252.

Electronic versions of the Knightline

Senate

Illinois Eastern Community Colleges reserves theright to change, without notice, any of the material,information, requirements, or regulations published inthis publication. Illinois Eastern Community Collegesdoes not discriminate on the basis of race, color, reli-gion, gender, age, disability, national origin, or veter-an status. Illinois Eastern Community Collegesadheres to the Federal Regulations of the Americanswith Disabilities Act of 1990 and offers appropriateservices or activities with reasonable accommodationsto any qualified disabled individual upon request.Illinois Eastern Community Colleges’ Board ofTrustees has adopted the Substance Abuse Policy.Students and employees involved in substance abuse,within the college environment, are subject to disci-plinary action.

! ! !

Please submit informationfor the September Knightline toDeanna Ratts by 5 p.m. onWednesday, Aug. 28.

Happy Birthday To:August

3 Rob Mason3 Sharen Wolke15 Reba Stanfield16 Vet Pritchard (WVC)17 Angelia Williams (LTC)17 Terrilynne Majors18 Carole Fusco19 Amie Mayhall27 Mike Burris28 Rodney Ranes

Knightline Information

If you have lost an item, pleasecheck with the switchboard inthe Student Services Office.

Lost and found items

Students utilizing the OCCparking lots are advised to keeptheir vehicles locked whenunattended.

Keep vehicles locked

College!closed OCC will be closed on Monday,

Sept. 2 for the Labor Day holiday.The college will reopen onTuesday, Sept. 3.

Our mission is to deliver exceptional educationand services to improve the lives of our studentsand to strengthen our communities.

Continued from Page 5The OCC Student Senate is the local

student government of Olney CentralCollege and is seeking senators for theupcoming year.

The OCC Student Senate works asthe advocacy group for student inputregarding college operations and

administration. Student Senators also serve as vol-

unteers for blood drives and proctormany of the campus student activitiesthroughout the year.

Students interested in StudentSenate may contact Conn in Room201A or call 395-7777, ext. 2220.

‘Shrek the Musical’ auditions Sept. 7-8The Olney Central College Theatre

will host auditions for “Shrek theMusical” at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Sept.7 and Sunday, Sept. 8 in the Dr. JohnD. Stull Performing Arts Center.

OCC Theatre Director Ruth Henrysaid auditions are being held earlierthan normal to accommodate thelarge number of costumes, which mustbe created for the production.

Individuals auditioning will berequired to give a cold reading from

the script and to sing from memory 16measures from any Broadway musicalsong.

Several male and female leads areavailable and there will be a singingand dancing chorus. Adults as well ascollege and high school students areinvited to audition.

Performances are scheduled for 7:30p.m. on March 21, 22, 27, 28 and 29.Afternoon shows will begin at 2 p.m.on March 23 and 30.

‘Steel Magnolias’ auditions Aug. 25-26The Olney Central College Theatre

will host auditions for its fall produc-tion of “Steel Magnolias” at 2 p.m. onSunday, Aug. 25 and 7 p.m. onMonday, Aug. 26 in the Dr. John D.Stull Performing Arts Center.

Auditions will consist of a cold read-

ing from the script. Parts are avail-able for five women and one youngwoman.

Performances are scheduled for 7:30p.m. on Friday, Oct. 18 and Saturday,Oct. 19. An afternoon show will beginat 2 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 20.

Hunting for New OCC Apparel?The OCC Bookstore has received its new fall clothing including items featur-ing camouflage designs. Stop by and check out these new looks before theydisappear.

Library, student ID cardStudents needing a library/stu-

dent ID card can obtain one in theAnderson Library. Students willneed their generated student IDnumber to receive their cards.Students can find the number onthe top of their course schedulesor by going to Entrata.