Bert's Alerts—Aug. 31, 2018
In the Spotlight
Incoming freshman kicked-off fall semester and their college experience by heading to McCall for CWI’s second-annual CollegeTREK, made possible through Wells Fargo Bank. CollegeTREK, Aug. 24-26, offered students the opportunity to better prepare for college through networking with peers and student mentors while engaging with faculty and student support staff.
News Highlights
Extended Instruction Launches myCommons
The Division of Extended Instruction is proud to announce the launch of myCommons, the new Blackboard home of online badges, tutorials, and other learning experiences that support and extend teaching and learning at College of Western Idaho. myCommons, a partnership with the Center for Teaching and Learning, the Library, and Tutoring Services, is an expansion of the Library's recent success in building an information-literacy badging program at CWI. The Library’s “Research Basics” program has awarded over 18,500 badges to date.
From the launch of myCommons on Aug. 10 through Aug. 27, 517 students had already completed over 850 badges in Library Research Basics, Blackboard Basics, and Biology-Chemistry. Additionally, myCommons is the home of the Campus Read program sponsored by the Liberal Arts degree program and will soon be the submittal point for participation and awards associated with the Connections Project.
Faculty and students should already see myCommons available in their Blackboard under the “Organizations” heading. Anyone lacking access may submit a HelpDesk ticket with the type: Blackboard. For more information, contact Courtney Bond at 208.562.3084 or courtneybond@cwi.edu or the Center for Teaching and Learning at ctl@cwi.edu.
Remembering Joyce Bair
College of Western Idaho (CWI) is sad to share the loss of a member of our team. Joyce Bair passed away Tuesday, Aug. 28, following a recent cancer diagnosis. This sudden loss has been felt by the entire CWI family. Joyce will be remembered for her many contributions to our science programs throughout her six and a half years at the College, as well as her sense of humor and wit.
Joyce, a Lab Materials Specialist for four years, prepared and purchased lab materials for all of the College’s Biology labs, she implemented numerous cost-saving and safety measures while working closely with the faculty. As CWI grew, Joyce served as the Biology Lab Materials Supervisor for two and a half years. In this capacity, she supervised two Lab Materials Specialists and numerous work-study students.
She was always thinking of the students first. For instance, Joyce arranged for a local meat producer to donate animal hearts for use in the anatomy labs. This not only reduced CWI student course fee expenses compared to preserved specimen costs, but most importantly, students were not exposed to the harsh chemicals used in preserved specimens. She also assisted in the planning and opening of the current CWI Biology lab at the Ada County Campus Mallard Building.
The labs Joyce supported included: Biology, Microbiology, Environmental Science, Ecology, Field Biology, Anatomy and Physiology. One semester, she successfully took on the challenge of supporting a Chemistry 101 lab with her typical can-do attitude. Most recently, Joyce provided biotechnology expertise and worked closely with instructors, Teresa Rich and Holly Paquette, in the planning and development of Cell Biology and Genetics labs. She loved biology and loved working at CWI. She always contributed much more than she gave herself credit for, and she will be greatly missed by the entire lab materials team.
A scholarship is being established in Joyce’s honor, details will be communicated in the near future.
For those of you who would like help processing this loss, please take advantage of our Employee Assistance Program. You can access more information about that service at https://ogi.idaho.gov/counseling/.
2018 Wishing Well Applications
The College of Western Idaho (CWI) Foundation began accepting Wishing Well applications Monday, Aug. 13! Thanks to the generosity of employees, supportive community partners, and approval from the CWI Foundation and Scholarship and Grants Committee, nearly $7,000 was awarded to four programs at the College through the Wishing Well Fund last year. The fund, established in 2015, was created to support small items and student learning opportunities not typically funded through department budgets.
Do not miss out on this exciting opportunity! Applications for this year’s Wishing Well funds will be accepted through Friday, Sept 28. Visit the Wishing Well Grants page on myCWI to learn more and to find the 2018 Wishing Well application. For questions, please contact Rena McKean at renamckean@cwi.edu or 208.562.3182.
