Bert's Alerts—Jan. 25, 2019
In the Spotlight
The #10YearChallenge has hit CWI! Here’s a look at Reggie on his first day teaching in spring 2009 and today. Join in CWI’s #10YearChallenge as we celebrate this important milestone. Email us at communications@cwi.edu.
News Highlights
Connections Project 2019 Logo Reveal
Congratulations to Malary Snow, a Media Arts student and winner of College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) 2019 Connections Project logo contest! Her logo submission was chosen out of nearly 50 entries and earned her the $100 prize. Snow’s design was chosen for its simplicity, creativity, and clear representation of interconnectedness. The new logo will be featured in all upcoming Connections Project marketing for 2019.
Snow learned about the logo contest through her Digital Design and Publishing instructor, Lindsey Wallgren, who offered extra credit to his students for participating. Taking inspiration from the Connections Project slogan “Connect, Educate, Inspire”, she developed a logo with a modern feeling, while remaining cohesive with previous Connections Project logos and marketing.
“I enter a lot of contests and am never really hopeful, so it means a lot that they picked my simple design and saw potential in it.”, Snow commented.
Once her design was chosen, Snow was given the opportunity to work with CWI’s Communications and Marketing team to further develop the logo. This included adding color, changing the placement of text, and exploring different orientations for the image. Upon reflection of this collaborative experience, Snow stated, “It’s really important for anyone who is interested in design and marketing to be open to suggestion and other people’s ideas.” Snow is grateful for how this experience will contribute to her goals as a visual artist.
Karen Brown, Assistant Professor of Art History and Humanities, helped to develop the Connections Project logo design into a student competition two years ago. Brown shared that this method of choosing a logo “provides a way for students to gain experience and understanding of how marketing works at the College, in addition to some of the complexities of designing a logo and presenting it to the public”.
The logo selection process begins when student submissions are sent through an anonymous jurying process. The jurors consist of members of the Connections Project team including staff, faculty, and students. Once members have chosen their top three or four entries, these votes are pooled together to determine the finalists. The Connections Project team then collaborates with Communications and Marketing to choose the most viable image.
The Connections Project logo contest provides the opportunity for students, like Snow, to shepherd their design from the initial stages, to a product that will appear on ephemeral objects such as the webpage, as well more permanent ones like posters, programs, and t-shirts. Keep an eye out for future updates regarding this year’s Connections Project which will be held at the Nampa Campus Academic Building on April 25, 2019. This event is free and open to the public.
Scholarships Open for 2019-20 Academic Year
The College of Western Idaho (CWI) Foundation scholarships application period is now open for the 2019-20 academic year. One application makes applying for scholarships at CWI easy and provides students with a number of scholarship opportunities in the College’s academic and career-technical programs. More than 200 students received scholarships through the Foundation last year.
Nichelle Boyce, a Biology-Healthcare student and 2018-19 scholarship recipient, has worked multiple jobs in order to make her dream of an education possible. As the recipient of the LTH Don’t Give Up Scholarship, Nichelle says because of scholarships like this she will be able to graduate debt free even as a single mom.
“I have been able to become a positive example to my children. Even at such a young age they understand that to obtain your dreams, you have to challenge yourself—sometimes that means you have to be temporarily inconvenienced,” she said. “Because of CWI, our lives are changing.”
New scholarship opportunities are available for the 2019-20 academic year including the new Nagel Foundation Scholarship for second-year Career Technical Education students.
Students interested in applying for scholarships must have the CWI admission application completed, be accepted, and have myCWI login information. The application closes March 31, 2019.
Visit the Grants and Scholarships page to learn more or apply.
CWI Library Receives National Award
Congratulations to College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) Library, recipient of a 2019 Excellence in Academic Libraries Award – the most prestigious national award for academic libraries. Chosen by the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) for its creative innovation, the CWI Library was top among community colleges.
“The College of Western Idaho is a college and library that did not exist ten years ago. Now, this library provides a model of best practice for what can be accomplished with creativity, will power, and goodwill,” noted Herold, chair of the 2019 Excellence in Academic Libraries Committee. “In a decentralized campus, the library was innovative in looking at how to function and provide communal space to support student and campus needs as a library, maker hub, and mobile classroom. Of their many noteworthy activities, the inclusion of student employees in implicit bias training, the development of a chatbot named ‘Patronus’, and micro-credentialing initiative stood out. They provide service with respect and dignity. As noted by a student response from the Library’s 2018 annual survey, ‘The library, to be honest, is freaking amazing.’”
The CWI Library has made micro-credentialing a major initiative since launching its Information Literacy Badging Program in Blackboard in January 2017. The badges, online modules with multimodal instructional content, simple webpages, and librarian-produced videos, are available to all faculty and credit students. Upon completion of the program, participants receive a “Research Basics Meta-Badge.” The badging program has extended the library’s reach across campus, and inspired other departments and institutions, including neighboring Boise State University, to develop similar initiatives.
“We are humbled and thrilled by this recognition from our academic library colleagues,” said Kim Reed, director of library services at CWI. “This award shows it’s not things, such as a big endowment or a state-of-the-art facility, but rather people who make a library great. As a young community college library, our most valuable asset is our talented, collaborative, innovative team of staff who consistently rise above everyday demands to guide our students towards greater academic and career success. The CWI Library’s greatness derives directly from our amazing staff.”
Learn more about the 2019 Excellence in Academic Libraries Award winners and ACRL on their website.
A Decade of Service
The school of Social Sciences and Public Affairs wishes to thank and recognize Martha Timberlake for a decade of service to College of Western Idaho (CWI) and her continual dedication to the College’s mission and values.
Timberlake began teaching at CWI in 2009 as adjunct faculty. Shortly after starting, she was hired to teach full-time and spent several years serving as a Department Chair.
In addition to her excellence as an instructor in the classroom teaching Psychology, Timberlake has worked consistently to provide students with meaningful learning experiences outside of the classroom to enrich their lives and employability. Networking with many community partners, she helped to develop and maintain a robust service learning program within numerous courses in the Social Sciences department. Service learning provides students the opportunity to volunteer in settings out of the classroom in order to see the ideas they are learning in class play out in the real world and to give back to the local community.
Timberlake was also a key and founding member of the College’s annual Connections Project event which brings the CWI community together and celebrates student work and accomplishments.
We wish her the best of luck as she explores a creative, new adventure outside of CWI. The College is fortunate to have Martha remaining as adjunct faculty. Her contributions to this institution have been transformative and invaluable.
“I am thankful to have had the opportunity to work with wonderful colleagues at CWI for the past 10 years as we offered opportunities for growth to our students,” said Timberlake. “I trust this wonderful work will continue, and I will be cheering for all from the sidelines.”
Long Named Co-Advisor for Honor Society
On Jan. 17, 2019, Dr. Yolonda Barnes, lead advisor for College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) Beta Sigma Pi Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) National Honor Society, inducted Dr. Liza Long into the organization as a co-advisor. Long is a full-time English instructor. She earned her doctorate in Organizational Leadership and holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Classics.
“I’m thrilled to be joining an organization dedicated to academic excellence,” Long said. “Working with these talented student leaders is a true honor.”
As advisors, the two are eager to work together to support members and engage with the CWI community. Each has submitted applications to present workshops at Catalyst, PTK’s annual international conference in Orlando, Florida.
PTK provides scholarship, research, service, and leadership opportunities for community college students who have earned a 3.25 or better GPA. For more information about membership, contact Dr. Barnes at yolondabarnes@cwi.edu or Dr. Long at lizalong@cwi.edu.
Visiting Artist Series Welcomes Nancy Rourke
College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) Visiting Artist Series is proud to welcome Nancy Rourke to the Nampa Campus Academic Building (NCAB) Tuesday, Feb. 19, from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. The lecture, suitable for all ages, will be interpreted (ASL).
Rourke (name sign, N3) is an internationally-known Deaf artist and activist as well as a full-time professional artist. She frequently does artist-in-residencies at Deaf schools and promotes De’VIA and Surdism through art workshops in community settings. A book about her work, “Nancy Rourke: Deaf Artist Series” is available from Empyreal Press. Originally from San Diego, California, she now makes her home in Loveland, Colorado.
In addition to her lecture, Rourke will host a paint workshop Wednesday, Feb. 20. The workshop, held at NCAB in room 206 from 1 – 4 p.m., is limited to 24 participants. Supplies will be provided. Please email Kayla Adams at kaylaadams@cwi.edu to register.
CWI’s Visiting Artist Series is made possible through a grant from Idaho Commission on the Arts, which is supported by National Endowment for the Arts. Visiting Artist Series workshops, featuring visual and performing artists, are free and open to the public. Thank you to the CWI Foundation and the Wishing Well for helping to fund this event.
Cybersecurity Awareness: Tax Identity Theft
Tax Identity Theft Awareness Week is Jan. 28 to Feb. 1. This annual campaign aims to help consumers be more informed about protecting themselves from tax-related identity theft and scams. Tax-related identity theft occurs when someone steals a Social Security number and uses it to claim a tax refund or get a job.
All are encouraged to review the following publications and security tips:
Taxes. Security. Together
Preventing and Responding to Identity Theft
IRS and NCCIC Caution Users: Prepare for Heightened Phishing Risk This Tax Season
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.
