Bert's Alerts—Jan. 18, 2019
News Highlights
PTK First to Achieve Five-Star Status
Beta Sigma Pi, College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) chapter of the national Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, is happy to announce the chapter’s recent completion of all requirements to achieve five-star status – the highest rank for Phi Theta Kappa chapters. Of the 25 chapters in the Rocky Mountain Cascade Region, CWI was the first to achieve this goal. On a national level, Beta Sigma Pi is one of 22 schools to reach five-star status out of more than 1,300 chapters.
Beta Sigma Pi President, Elizabeth Carter, along with Vice President, John Nahlen, and Faculty Advisor, Yolonda Barnes, presented during the Board of Trustee meeting Tuesday, January 15.
Carter and Nahlen shared awards, achievements, and future goals with members of the Board, including their project dedicated to suicide awareness.
“We created and placed 1,100 paper flags around two of CWI’s campuses to symbolize the average number of college students who commit suicide each year,” said Carter.
They additionally thanked the CWI Foundation for their generosity in providing $50 scholarships to eight deserving scholar students to help pay for the cost of joining PTK.
“Not every student can afford the $85 fee,” commented Carter, “but every scholarly student should have the opportunity of being a part of Phi Theta Kappa.”
“These students have excelled,” commented President Bert Glandon during the meeting. “Deciding they wanted to achieve five-star status, these students have done some phenomenal things.”
This spring, Beta Sigma Pi hopes to reach 1,000 members.
“We greatly appreciate all the support we have received and the opportunity to serve our CWI community and offer opportunities for leadership, fellowship, scholarship, and service,” said Carter. “We are excited for the future of Phi Theta Kappa!”
Accounting Students Prepare for 2018 Tax Season
Students in Assistant Professor, Joe Welker’s, ACCT 251 class welcomed guest lecturer, Randy Tilley, to campus on Monday, Jan. 14. Tilley, the division administrator of the Audit Division for the Idaho State Tax Commission, has lectured Welker’s students prior to tax filing season for the past six years highlighting important changes and updates to the Idaho tax code.
Tilley’s visit was especially valuable as students from the class will also participate in the College’s annual Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program this semester. Beginning Jan. 28, students will be filing individual income taxes at no charge for fellow students and the community.
“A big thanks to Randy,” said Welker. “This was his final update for CWI students, as he is retiring after 36 years of service to the State Tax Commission.”
Services are available on the following dates and times through the 2018 tax season:
Mondays: 1-3 p.m. / Nampa Campus Academic Building, Room 201
Thursdays: 2-4 p.m. / Ada County Campus Pintail Building, Room 1203
Over the past seven years, CWI students have helped individuals save hundreds of thousands of dollars in preparation fees! Those with an annual income of $54,000 or less qualify for this free service. All are encouraged to stop by for tax assistance from one of our highly-skilled preparers!
Faculty of Distinction—December 2018
Jim Gatfield has been named College of Western Idaho’s Faculty of Distinction for December 2018.
Beginning his teaching career as a graduate teaching assistant at Boise State University, Gatfield was quickly hooked on being in the classroom and working with students. He started teaching at College of Western Idaho (CWI) as an Adjunct in 2011 and became a full-time faculty member in 2013.
During his time at CWI, Gatfield has served in a variety of roles including being a member of Faculty Senate, presenting at faculty in-service, serving on the Retention and Curriculum Committee, developing one of the original Connecting With Ideas (CWID) 101 courses, and serving as an Dual Credit mentor. His largest role at the College has been that of a coach for the six-time national champion Speech and Debate team. Gatfield started as the team’s Assistant Director in 2013, working with Johnny Rowing, before taking over as Director of Forensics in 2016. Today, he coaches alongside Assistant Director, Mark Galavis. Together they helped coach the team to a national championship last year in Nashville, Tennessee.
Gatfield grew up in rural Idaho on a family dairy raising Holstein calves and moving irrigation pipes. Outside of teaching he enjoys spending time with his wife, hanging out with their menagerie of animals (three dogs, two cats, and two rabbits), and volunteering in the Emmett Community. He and his wife enjoy spending Friday evenings at the Emmett Pet Adoption League caring for the shelter dogs. As a member of the Emmett Community Playhouse since 2003, he enjoys acting on stage, directing children’s productions, and serving as a board member. Gatfield and his wife are currently in the process of adopting their first child and are looking forward to being parents in 2019.
Please join us in congratulating Jim!
Staff of the Month—December 2018
Samantha Grapes has been recognized as College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) Staff of the Month for December 2018. Recently celebrating her nine-year anniversary at the College, she has worked continuously as the Curriculum Management Coordinator in the Registrar’s Office. Grapes came to CWI with a Bachelor of Science in English from Brigham Young University-Idaho and is currently researching graduate schools and fields of study. Her peers praise her amazing attention to detail and quality. One coworker stating, “Sam is always taking on work, communicates professionally, and shows empathy. I look to her as an example when I deal with other people.” Staff and faculty recognize her as an expert in her job and one others rely on for keeping them on track.
Grapes is a proud cat mom to two, adorable calico kitties and has many fun facts about herself. These facts range from her love of the movie, “Scream”, which culminated with a memorative tattoo, being a huge WWF fan in high school, and traveling to England three times in her life. Her creation of a holiday in her younger years called “Appreciation Day” to express gratitude and celebrate her friends and family with thank you cards, shows her thoughtfulness and sincerity.
Please join us in congratulating Samantha on her accomplishment!
Extended Instruction Reporting Assignments
Under the direction of Interim Provost, John King, the following changes have been made to reporting assignments within Extended Instruction. Changes are effective immediately.
| Extended Instruction Area(s) | Reporting Assignment |
|---|---|
| Assessment, Tutoring | Patrick Tanner |
| Basic Skills Education | Christi Rood |
| Center for Teaching and Learning | Laura Stavoe |
| Dual Credit | Kelly Steely |
| Library | Courtney Santillan |
Cybersecurity Awareness: Skimmers and Shimmers
Beware of skimmers and shimmers when using a debit or credit card. Card skimmers are readers attached to payment terminals. When your credit or debit card is swiped through a skimmer, the device captures and stores all the details stored in the card’s magnetic stripe. Thieves use the stolen data to either gain access to your account and make fraudulent charges or create a counterfeit credit card.
Shimmers are very, very thin devices and cannot be seen from the outside. When you slide your card in, the shimmer reads the data from the chip on your card, much the same way a skimmer reads the data on your card's magnetic stripe.
Below are a few tips to help protect your personal information from skimmers and shimmers:
- Before you get cash out of an ATM or pay for your fuel at the pump, make sure you choose wisely. Choose ATM’s inside banks, in high-traffic areas, and grocery stores. These are generally the safest and are monitored by a camera system.
- Try and cover the keyboard when entering your pin, this will prevent hidden cameras from capturing your pin.
- Look for the tamper seal when using fuel pumps and try to select a pump that is closest to the physical building (being close to the cameras can deter skimmer installation).
- Use a credit card instead of a debit card when you pay. Credit cards usually have zero liability and can reverse charges very quickly. If you use your debit card and it’s compromised, they now have access to the funds in your bank account.
- If you have the ability to utilize Apple Pay, Samsung Pay or Android Pay, you can safely use your phone to pay. This will eliminate your personal information being exposed and you are generating a virtual credit card number that is useless to criminals.
Contact Mike Wilson at mikewilson@cwi.edu or 208.562.3193 with questions or for more information, and stay tuned for more tips and information on cybersecurity awareness in future issues of Bert’s Alerts.
