KNIGHTLINEOlney Central College

November 2017

Upcoming Events OCC!selected Aspen Prize Top 150 U.S. Community College

8 Spring RegistrationBegins for New Students

10 OCC Closed — VeteransDay Observed

13 Steven Vanhauwaert —Southeastern IllinoisConcert Association, OCCTheatre, 7:30 p.m.

14 JFK AssassinationPresentation, OCC Theatre,6:30 p.m.

15 OCC Job Fair, OCCGymnasium, 9 a.m.-1 p.m.

22 Last Day to Withdrawfrom 16-week Fall SemesterClasses

23-24 OCC Closed —Thanksgiving Break

Olney Central College has once again been named one of the nation’stop 150 community colleges by the Aspen Institute College ExcellenceProgram.

OCC is now eligible to compete for the 2019 Aspen Prize for CommunityCollege Excellence, the nation’s signature recognition of high achieve-ment and performance in America’s community colleges. OCC was se-lected from nearly 1,000 public two-year colleges nationwide for thehonor.

“We are pleased outside agencies are seeing the value we provide to thestudents in our district,” said OCC President Rodney Ranes. “Our focuson student retention and degree completion is paying off based on thedata reviewed for this possible award.”

Awarded every two years since 2011, the Aspen Prize recognizes institutions with outstandingachievement in learning; certificate and degree completion; employment and earnings and highlevels of access and success for minority and low-income students. OCC has been selected to com-pete for this prestigious honor each time it has been awarded.

OCC will advance to the next round of competition for the Aspen Prize for Community CollegeExcellence by submitting an application to be reviewed through a rigorous evaluation for a spoton the top 10 Aspen Prize finalists list. Top 10 finalists will be named in May 2018. The Aspen In-stitute will then conduct site visits to each of the finalists and collect additional quantitative data.A distinguished prize jury will select a grand prize winner, a finalists with distinction and a ris-ing star in Spring 2019.

Two other Illinois Eastern Community Colleges made the Top 150, Frontier Community Collegein Fairfield and Lincoln Trail College in Robinson. A full list of the selected colleges and details onthe selection process are available at www.aspenprize.org.

7 OCC Music DepartmentFall Recital, OCC Theatre,7:30 p.m.

8 Last Day of Fall SemesterClasses

9 OCC Christmas ChoralConcert, OCC Theatre, 7p.m.

11-14 Fall Final Exams

11 Spring Textbook SalesBegin

November

December

A table will be locatedoutside Student Services.9 Southern IllinoisUniversity — Edwardsville,10 a.m.- 1 p.m.14 Eastern IllinoisUniversity Rep. CeciliaYoakum, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

College Visits

OCC!to host annual Job and Career Fair Nov. 15OCC will host its annual

Job and Career Fair from9 a.m. to 1 p.m. onWednesday, Nov. 15 in theOCC Gymnasium.

Those attending will in-clude: Walmart Distribu-tion Center, CEFSEconomic Opportunity, Fram/Champion Labo-ratories, Community Support Systems,TrustBank, Terre Haute Electric, Staff Quick,Job Works, Illinois State Police, Illinois De-partment of Corrections, Aerotek, Seiaoa, ATS-Toyota Boshuku, Rides Mass Transit, HSHSSt. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital, Illinois De-

partment of Employment Secu-rity, United Methodist Village,Carle Richland Memorial Hos-pital, United States Air Force,Escalade Sports, Scribe Amer-ica, Indiana Wesleyan Univer-sity and McKendreeUniversity. Access to contact

information for more than 400 other nation-wide businesses will be available at the PurpleBriefcase table.

The event is for the public as well as stu-dents. Both are encouraged to take advantageof this opportunity to network and to learnmore about area businesses.

OCC is currently registeringstudents for spring semesterclasses.

Spring schedules may bedownloaded from the IECCwebsite at www.iecc.edu/occ.

To schedule a registration ap-pointment, call 395-7777 or re-quest an appointment online atwww.iecc/edu/occ/appointment.

Spring classes start Jan. 8.

David Denton to discuss new revelationsin JFK!assassination during presentation

Olney Central CollegeInstructor David Dentonwill discuss his most re-cent article on PresidentJohn F. Kennedy’s assas-sination and explore newrevelations associatedwith the case during apresentation at 6:30 p.m.on Tuesday, Nov. 14 atOCC’s Dr. John D. StullPerforming Arts Center.

Denton’s in-depth work, “Nexus Redux,” features information gathered from recentlydeclassified documents and follows up his article, “Nexus: The JFK Assassination’sPlace in History and a New Witness,” which he released late last year. Both articles canbe accessed at http://changehistjfk.blogspot.com.

Denton said the documents released by the National Archives expose two major reve-lations — the mayor of Dallas had direct connections to the CIA and Lee Harvey Oswaldwas sent on an anti-Castro mission to Mexico City.

During the presentation, Denton will explore both discoveries as well as potentialforces behind Kennedy’s assassination on Nov. 22, 1963.

“There will be some new things I will be bringing out,” Denton added.WTWO in Terre Haute, Ind., recently interviewed Denton for a news segment focusing

on the October release of more than 3,000 documents related to the JFK assassination.Denton has studied the Kennedy assassination for more than two decades and has

taught the course, Political Assassinations of the 1960s, since 2001. Over the years, hehas interviewed several people associated with the case and has researched hundreds ofdocuments related to both Kennedy and Oswald.

Students in OCC’s Zoology class (LSC1104) and members of the Science Clubtook a field trip Oct. 24 to the Mesker ParkZoo in Evansville, Ind.

In addition to enjoying the diversity ofanimal phyla, students experienced abehind-the-scenes tour of the veterinarybuilding and an interview with the zooveterinary technician. Students learnedabout interesting cases and saw theequipment the vet team utilizes. Severalstudents also had the opportunity to hand-feed the giraffes.

Those attending included MeganGoodwin, Kasheena Callahan, DakotaBunting, Jenna Rice, Shelby Gragert,Nicole McKim and Danielle Littlejohn.

For more information on OCC’s Zoologycourse or the Science Club, contact SarahBergbower, Life Science Instructor andScience Club adviser, at extension 2228 orbergbowers@iecc.edu.

OCC!Zoology class, Science Club visit zoo

Spring registrationnow underway

Holiday Meal ticketsgo on sale Nov. 8

OCC Food Service will hostits annual Holiday Meal onFriday, Dec. 1.

The menu includes turkey,mashed potatoes with gravy,dressing, noodles, corn, rolland a choice of dessert. Serv-ing will be from 11 a.m. to 1p.m.

Tickets will be available inadvance and may be pur-chased in OCC Food Servicebeginning Wednesday, Nov. 8.

Lost and FoundIf you have lost an item,

please check with the switch-board desk in StudentServices.

OCC!Food ServiceTreasure Hunt

Join in the fun with the OCCFood Service Treasure Hunt.

Three OCC employees havebeen given gift certificates youcan redeem for prizes. See ifyou can be the first to findthem by following the cluesprovided by Food Service.

Prizes include a $25 giftcard, a holiday basket and aholiday stocking.

Stop by Food Service begin-ning Dec. 4 for a list of rulesand the important clues. Thecontest runs Dec. 4-14.

Life Science Department benefits from Foundation fundsOlney Central

College’s LifeScience Depart-ment had somemuch-neededmaintenanceperformed on itsmicroscopes andpurchased newsafety and ster-ilization equip-ment withfunding provided by the OCC Foundation.

“The monies enabled the program to fill inholes and missing personal protection and toupdate some existing equipment,” said In-structor Sarah Bergbower. “Working in thelab is essential to the classes and the newequipment and updates will enhance that ex-perience for our students.”

Items purchased include new lab coats andgoggles, which students use while performingdissections or working with cultures in thelab. The department also acquired a Bacti-Cinerator Loop Sterilizer that uses infraredheat to remove contaminants from culturingdevices.

“The Bacti-Cinerator completely sterilizesour devices and drastically reduces unwantedcontamination,” Bergbower said. “We had alot of issues with contamination before thenew equipment was in place.”

As a final project in her Microbiology class,Bergbower assigns students two bacteria, un-known to them. Using biochemical testingmethods and culture media, the students arerequired to identify the specimen down to the

species. “It’s the same

thing they will bedoing with test re-sults in the realworld,” she added.“It’s important toeliminate possiblecontamination forthese tests. If youdon’t have a pureculture, you won’t

get the results expected.”Maintenance to the department’s micro-

scopes also is enhancing students’ labexperiences.

As she was assisting students with the mi-croscopes, Bergbower noticed several weren’tworking properly.

With the Foundation’s assistance, Berg-bower was able to have a firm, whichprovides maintenance for Carle RichlandMemorial Hospital and Sarah Bush LincolnHealth Center, perform preventative mainte-nance and make the repairs necessary to getthe equipment back in the hands of OCCstudents.

“Many just needed a deep cleaning or smallrepairs to get them back in working order,”she said. “Only six needed heavy repairs.After receiving the TLC they needed, the mi-croscopes are like brand new.”

Bergbower added, “I want to thank the OCCFoundation. Grants like this supply the re-sources and safety measures for students tosucceed and acquire the hands-on learningexperiences that will enhance their careers.”

Sports SchedulesMen’s Basketball

Nov. 10 — OCC vs. Danvilleat Wabash Valley Classic, 5p.m.Nov. 11— OCC vs. WestKentucky at Wabash ValleyClassic, 1 p.m.Nov. 15 — OCC atKaskaskia, 7:30 p.m.Nov. 21— OCC vs. WabashValley, 7:30 p.m. at homeNov. 29 — OCC vs.Shawnee, 7:30 p.m. at homeDec. 2 — OCC vs. LincolnTrail, 3 p.m. at home

Women’s BasketballNov. 10 — OCC vs.Lindenwood-Belleville JV,5:30 p.m. at homeNov. 15 — OCC atKaskaskia, 5:30 p.m.Nov. 21— OCC vs. WabashValley, 5:30 p.m. at homeNov. 25 — OCC at Danville,2 p.m.Nov. 29 — OCC vs.Shawnee, 5:30 p.m. at homeDec. 2 — OCC vs. LincolnTrail, 1 p.m. at home

The OCC Learning SkillsCenter offers free tutoringfor all subjects. Professionaltutors are available for mathand English courses.

The Math Lab is availablefrom 9 to 11 a.m. Mondaythrough Friday.

English tutoring and tutor-ing in other subjects is avail-able, typically in theafternoon but also by ap-pointment.

Tutoring is also availableto those students taking on-line courses and is assignedon a case by case basis.

For more information, visitthe LSC in the back of theAnderson Library.

Free tutoring available at LSC

As of this year, TRIO Student SupportServices has been serving students atIllinois Eastern Community Colleges for25 years. At a rate of 200 studentsserved each year, the program hasserved more than 5,000 students.

“Through a grant competition, fundsare awarded to institutions of higher ed-ucation to provide opportunities for aca-demic development, assist students withbasic college requirements, and to moti-vate students toward the successful com-pletion of their postsecondaryeducation.” (www2.ed.gov/programs/triostudsupp/index.html)

The TRIO SSS program at the four col-leges, Frontier Community College, Lin-coln Trail College, Olney Central Collegeand Wabash Valley College, have servedtheir communities by providing theirstudents with academic advisement,career counseling, financial aid counsel-ing, free tutoring and transfer counsel-ing while giving those studentsopportunities to give back throughvolunteer activities.

All services are free of charge to allparticipants. Visits to four-year universi-ties and cultural trips are some of themost popular benefits offered to the stu-dents. The opportunity for students totravel outside their own geographic re-gions has opened the eyes of the stu-

dents that there are many opportunitiesavailable outside their hometowns andthe goals they have set for themselvesare achievable.

According to the 2015 Grant applica-tion, the number and percentage of eligi-ble students enrolled or accepted atIllinois Eastern Community Colleges ishigh, resulting in 2,347 (77 percent) stu-dents meeting the eligibility require-ments for TRIO Student SupportServices.

Applicants must be a first-generationcollege student (neither parent received

a four-year degree), income eligible orhave a documented disability which af-fects learning and have academic needfor the program.

The TRIO SSS staff is very proud of alltheir students have accomplished overthe past 25 years. Many have gone on toget professional degrees, become estab-lished public speakers, leaders of indus-try and entrepreneurs.

The students attribute much of theirsuccess to the tools and guidance theTRIO SSS program brought to theirlives.

TRIO!Student Support Services celebrates 25th anniversary

Students in the TRIO Student Support Services Program visit the University ofEvansville.

SUBJECT TO CHANGEThe OCC!Theatre presented “Subject to Change” Oct. 20-21. Atleft, Erwin Leeds (Derek Mason) assists his mother (RachelPampe). Above, Madeline Basset (Bea Gardner).

Olney Walmart Awards TRIO Upward Bound $2,000The Walmart Foundation recently

selected the Illinois Eastern Commu-nity Colleges TRIO Upward Boundprogram to receive a grant throughits Local Community ContributionProgram. Upward Bound, located atOlney Central College, received a$2,000 grant from the Olney Wal-mart. The grant money will be usedto provide essential items necessaryfor college-bound seniors to be suc-cessful in post-secondary education.

TRIO Upward Bound is 100 per-cent federally funded collegepreparatory program through theDepartment of Education, designedto provide academic support, coun-seling and cultural enrichment tohigh school students who desire academic success in both sec-ondary and post-secondary education.

The program assists low-income, first-generation (neitherparent having earned a bachelor’s degree) and/or high schoolstudents demonstrating academic need.

Application for admission to the IECC TRIO UpwardBound program is open to students in a specific target areawhich includes Crawford, Edwards, Jasper, Lawrence, Rich-land, Wabash, Wayne and White counties. The Upward

Bound program currently serves209 students at 11 local highschools. Upward Bound servesstudents in Carmi-WhiteCounty, Edwards County, Fair-field Community, Grayville,Lawrenceville, Newton Commu-nity, Oblong, Red Hill, RichlandCounty, Robinson and WabashCounty high schools.

“Illinois Eastern CommunityColleges’ TRIO Upward Boundprogram is passionate abouthelping our students be betterprepared for college. The grantfrom Walmart will provide re-sources to our students as theytransition into college,” said Ad-

ministrative Assistant Jennifer Jennings. “We are gratefulfor the Walmart Foundation’s belief in what we do at UpwardBound and appreciate them being so generous in awarding usthis grant.”

For more information, contact the TRIO Upward Bound of-fice located at Olney Central College, 305 N. West St., Olney,Ill., or by calling 395-7777, ext. 2282. You can also find moreinformation by visiting the TRIO Upward Bound webpage atwww.iecc.edu/upwardbound.

FALL CONCERTThe OCC!Music Department presented its Fall Concert on Oct.27 featuring the Concert Band, Concert Choir and the JazzEnsemble, with special guest the Richland County High SchoolChoir. Upcoming Music Department events include the FallRecital at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 7 and the Christmas Choral Concert at7 p.m. Dec. 9.