Bert's Alerts - August 7, 2015
In the Spotlight
Members of the College of Western Idaho (CWI) Art Club had an opportunity to showcase their skills this week, collaborating to paint a backdrop for the Emmett Community Playhouse. Seen here, CWI students and faculty work on the backdrop outside the College’s Nampa Campus Academic Building. This beautiful display will be showcased in Emmett next week for the presentation of Anne of Green Gables.
News Highlights
President Glandon to Deliver College Address
College of Western Idaho (CWI) President Bert Glandon will deliver the 2015 Fall State of the College Address to CWI’s faculty, staff, students, and the public:
Wednesday, Aug. 19
Breakfast - 7:30 a.m.
Address - 8:45 a.m.
Nampa Civic Center
Dr. Glandon will share highlights and accomplishments of the College from 2014-15, while providing insight into the goals and initiatives CWI will be aspiring to for the upcoming academic year. Following the President’s Address, CWI will celebrate its employees with faculty and staff recognition.
For anyone who cannot attend, a recorded version will be available from the CWI YouTube channel for later viewing.
CWI to Host Welcome Week Event
College of Western Idaho (CWI) is happy to introduce Welcome Wednesday as the College’s new back-to-school celebration event. Welcome Wednesday will be geared towards helping students learn about CWI and get connected, while learning about campus resources and making friends. All CWI students and their families are invited to take part in the fun festivities on Aug. 19.
At Welcome Wednesday, students will have the opportunity to meet instructors, explore campus locations, and learn about resources available. There will also be free food, games, activities, and an appearance by CWI President Bert Glandon.
CWI will host Welcome Wednesday events at both the Nampa Campus Academic Building and Ada County Campus Pintail Center. The fun starts at 4 p.m. and goes to 7 p.m. For any questions, or to request special accommodations, please email StudentLife@cwi.edu.
Osprey Research Provides Opportunities for CWI Group
Osprey Research
A group with ties to College of Western Idaho (CWI) spent the summer at Lake Cascade, conducting research in conjunction with a pair of undergraduate programs. Recent CWI graduate, Tyrell Styhl, was 1-of-10 students nation-wide participating in the Boise State University Research Experiences for Undergraduates in Raptor Research. He was joined by another 2015 graduate, Annie Baxter, and current CWI student, Zach Sanchez, who were conducting research through the Idaho EPSCoR MILES Undergraduate Research and Internships program. CWI Biology Faculty Dusty Perkins served as research mentor for these students and directs this multi-year project that focuses on evaluating ecological and human-caused factors that affect osprey breeding success.
Campus Security Officers Celebrated
College of Western Idaho (CWI) is celebrating the quick thinking and compassionate actions of two security personnel this summer that ultimately saved the life of a distressed dog on CWI’s campus.
In July, Officer Steve Corman was doing his exterior patrols at CWI’s Nampa Campus Academic Building. During this patrol, he noticed a black car with the windows cracked with a young Siberian Husky inside. The temperature at the time was 95 degrees and rising. Corman noticed the dog was shaking and vomiting and appeared to be very ill.
As Corman was notifying his account manager to respond to the scene, Officer Dan Callsen arrived and was able to open the vehicle’s locked door to remove the dog and take it inside the building. Corman notified animal control of the situation and proceeded to take the dog into an air conditioned room and give it water. The owner of the dog was located by the local police and animal control.
Using a temperature gun, animal control determined the temperature in the car was 155 degrees in the sun and 135 degrees in the shade. The animal control officer concluded that the dog may have only lived another 10 to 15 minutes had it been left in that environment, and credited the officers with saving the dog’s life.
Corman and Callsen were praised for handling the situation with the utmost professionalism. They communicated as a team and worked with all parties involved to quickly and without hesitation deal with the situation. Thank you Steve and Dan for your exemplary response, job well done.
Alumni Help Shape the Future at CWI
A core group of former students is helping shape the future of College of Western Idaho (CWI) alumni. Four graduates recently returned to CWI to give their input on what will be become the Alumni Connection. Some of the group’s recommendations have already been put into action.
Tyler Murphy (class of 2013), Shane Turner (‘15), Aleana Hernandez (’15), and Lisa Webb (’15) volunteered their time to participate in a focus group. The CWI Marketing and Advancement team invited them to share ideas on the best ways to embrace and engage alumni—now and in the future.
“We are committed to making sure alumni feel connected to CWI and that they stay connected to CWI,” Tiffany Coleman, the project manager for alumni and donor relations, said. “We felt alumni input was essential in making sure they get what they want—not what we think they want.”
The group offered insight on what alumni want to know, how they wish to be involved in campus events and activities, and the best ways to keep them in the communication loop. The first recommendation they made is to connect through social media. As a result, CWI has created a Facebook page dedicated to alumni news. Click the following link to join https://www.facebook.com/collegeofwesternidahoalumni.
In an effort to help alumni share their successes, which is another one of the group’s recommendations, the Marketing and Advancement team is working to further develop the alumni page on the CWI website. The page will ultimately link to a gallery of alumni photos and their success stories. The new feature will complement the existing alumni relations section; which already gives alumni the ability to check-in and submit information about new jobs, promotions, honors/awards received, additional college degrees, and any other professional achievements.
To further keep alumni in the communication loop, an online newsletter is being created that will be distributed four times a year.
“This is just the beginning of CWI’s efforts to embrace its 3,787 alumni,” Coleman said. “We recognize that alumni are an invaluable resource. They are the ones who complete the circle of knowledge. They can truly speak to the value CWI provides. They can also show it. We want all alumni to know we value their contributions to our community, and we want to share their successes. We want them to come back and we want to embrace them.”
Website Updates and Contributor Trainings
Exciting additions are happening this year with College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) website, cwi.edu. New sections for Dual Credit, CWI Online, and Giving are now published as well as some student pages for myCareerNetwork, Student Workshops, CWID 101, and College Prep Math.
Existing Pages Need Upgraded Too
This is a great time of year to make sure your webpages are updated with the latest and greatest from your department. New students are starting classes and will use the website to explore CWI services. Keep an eye out for areas where you can improve your user’s experience.
As an example, Dual Credit identified an influx of recurring inquires during the Dual Credit registration periods from both students and teachers. Their new section addresses each of the audiences and improved on the resources available for self service.
The cwi.edu site receives over 5 million pageviews a year with an average of 5,000 visitors a day, so you can be sure your hard work will not go unnoticed.
CWI’s website is the initial point of contact in most cases, thus it is very important that you take a website-first approach when communicating a change in your offerings or services. Your department’s web contributor has immediate access to make updates to the site as needed.
Unsure who on your team can make updates? Review the cwi.edu - Page Owners tool.
Website Contributor Trainings Available
The Marketing and Advancement web team would like to welcome new and existing contributors to a new round of trainings. The training will cover cwi.edu basic content editing, building new pages focused on the flexible page model, FAQs, and files.
Feel free to drop in to one of the sessions outlined below. Sessions will be held in computer labs if you want to join in the experience. It is a perfect time to ask questions and achieve more.
Upcoming Training Sessions:
Thursday, Aug. 20, 2:00-3:30 p.m., Ada County Campus Pintail Center RM1207
Friday, Aug. 21, 1:00-2:30 p.m., Nampa Campus Academic Building RM201
Friday, Aug. 28, 1:00-2:30 p.m., Nampa Campus Aspen Classroom Building RM126
Gatfield Gets Faculty of Distinction
Jim Gatfield has been selected for College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) Faculty of Distinction for the month of August.
During his two-year tenure with CWI, Gatfield has proven an advocate for faculty and students and has provided exceptional work across the college. Gatfield consistently maintains a high level of attention to each aspect of his role at CWI and is an outstanding co-worker.
Gatfield’s contributions to CWI include developing a course for the College’s new CWID 101 courses designed around using comic books as a tool for exploring diversity in a collegiate setting. He also contributes regularly to the retention committee, has served on hiring committees, presented at in-service and has worked diligently on building GEN ED curriculum and professional development. Along with Johnny Rowing, he brought another Speech and Debate national championship to the College.
He designed and coordinated the first Social Science and Public Affairs (SSPA) Showcase. His goal was to place the faculty in front of any student who was interested in learning more about the discipline and to showcase the work of faculty. Gatfield coordinated all participants, reserved facilities, and worked with Student Services and Marketing to spread to the word to students and help make the event a success.
Gatfield was a very good teacher when he joined the CWI team; however, over the past two years his deliberate pursuit of excellence has been impossible not to notice. He consistently works with peers to enhance his courses, employs new pedagogy, and seeks professional development direct toward teaching the process.
Gatfield was involved in coordinating judging opportunities for students at high schools, local optimist groups, and the SkillsUSA competition. He also served as a judge for SkillsUSA, which allowed Speech and Debate students to connect with the community, representing the team and CWI, while potentially making professional connections.
Congratulations Jim and thank you for all your incredible work.
