| An online magazine dedicated to sharing best practices and providing in-depth coverage of issues and trends affecting the Washington State community and technical college system. |
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| December 2006 Edition 10 |
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College News |
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| Main Story About Creating Opportunities All in the Family College News Calendar of Events Contact Us Archives |
Skagit Valley College automotive technology program receives $15,000 software donationSkagit Valley College automotive technology students will have an opportunity to gain new and emerging service advisor skills, thanks to a $15,000 software donation by Progressive Automotive Systems of Itasca, IL. The R.O.Writer™ shop management software will be used in SVC’s live automotive training facility and in the new service advisor training course where students will learn customer and computer skills as well as service writing techniques. The SVC automotive technology program was nationally recognized by the Automotive Industry Planning Council. The program was the winner of the first place Award for Excellence and was recognized as the best college independent automotive program in the USA for 2003. Bellevue Community College named Microsoft IT showcase schoolMicrosoft Corp. designated Bellevue Community College (BCC) the second Microsoft® IT Showcase School in the nation, recognizing the college’s leadership in preparing students for the digital age. The IT Showcase School program seeks to recognize those institutions of higher learning that have demonstrated leadership in information technology, education and teaching and help them share that knowledge and experience broadly. Schools in the IT Showcase School program will benefit from a deep relationship with Microsoft and access to a broad array of customized learning resources tailored to the schools’ specific needs. Further, Microsoft will support schools in the program so that they may accomplish the following goals:
BCC has a strong history of collaboration with Microsoft, including premier membership status in the Microsoft IT Academy Program, offering up-to-date training, education and certification preparation using Microsoft technologies and Microsoft-certified instructors. BCC is also the largest provider of Microsoft training and education among Washington state’s 34 community and technical colleges and one of the largest in the country. BCC delivers hundreds of courses annually for thousands of students and industry professionals pursuing advanced training and certification using Microsoft products. BCC was also the first college in the nation to deliver Microsoft.NET programming training for incumbent workers and operates one of the highest-volume testing centers for Microsoft certifications in the U.S. BCC joins the University of Massachusetts Amherst, selected in October 2005 as the first national Microsoft IT Showcase School for its strong Information Technology Program, IT Curriculum Case Studies, Learning Commons, Women in Technology Initiatives, Center for Teaching and other leadership IT programs. Bates Technical College television station, KBTC, launches next-generation digital master controlBates Technical College’s television station, KBTC Public Television, announced the successful launch of a fully automated digital master control located in the broadcast center of the William P. Mohler campus of the college. When fully operational, the system will multicast four standard digital program streams, one high-definition digital program stream and multiple Internet streams simultaneously. One of the first of its kind in the country, the new digital facility is managed by station traffic specialists who program the content streams, play-lists and automation commands well in advance of the broadcast schedule. Initial plans call for broadcasting a primary channel similar to the one available now; a select channel with blocks of the most popular PBS, adult learning and local programs; a home and family life channel called “Create,” offering a continual stream of the most popular home-improvement, how-to, self-help, arts, sewing cooking, gardening and crafts programs; and an exclusive international channel called “KBTC Worldview” featuring world news and sports, foreign affairs, international mysteries, foreign films and world music. KBTC’s digital master control is the second of a three-phase digital conversion mandated by the Federal Communications Commission that has been ongoing since 2002. In 2009, all broadcast stations must operate in the digital mode and turn back their analog channel assignments. The third phase of the project will be to convert all analog remote and studio production capabilities to digital. Skagit Valley College concert choir to perform in historic Carnegie HallUnder the direction of their instructor Dr. Diane Johnson, students in the Skagit Valley College concert choir will participate in a performance of Haydn’s Mass in Time of War in historic Carnegie Hall next April. The invitation to perform was made by MidAmerica Productions of New York City. The Concert Choir will join three or four outstanding choruses selected from throughout North America to form a festival chorus of approximately 175 singers, accompanied by the New England Symphonic Ensemble, conducted by Dr. Geoffrey Boers. During their five-day stay, the choir will spend nine to ten hours in rehearsals, culminating in the performance. In addition, the students will have an opportunity to tour some of the historical and cultural sights of the city. Cascadia Community College literary magazine, Wetlands Review, wins regional awardCascadia Community College’s annual college literary magazine, Wetlands Review, has won the Small College Award in the Pacific-Western region of the Community College Humanities Association Literary Magazine Competition. The award was presented at the Community College Humanities Association conference in Los Angeles in November. Wetlands Review is published annually and distributed on campus free of charge. The 2006 Wetlands Review, published in the spring, features 65 poems, stories and photographs and other visual arts created by members of the Cascadia Community College community. Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation awards $1 million to SSCC college for industrial excellenceThe Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation awarded a $1 million grant to South Seattle Community College to construct facilities for their Puget Sound Industrial Excellence Center. The award is part of a $5 million challenge grant from the foundation to the Seattle Community Colleges. The new center will consist of two buildings, housing offices, classrooms and training space. One 13,400 square-foot building will include office space and general classrooms. A second, 19,570-square-foot vocational building will enable apprentices in the "trowel" trades to receive their hands-on instruction in up-to-date facilities. Some of the existing facilities for those trades, which include cement masons, bricklayers, caulkers and tile setters, are in external areas. Construction is expected to begin in December and the first building will be ready for occupancy in winter 2007.
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