CWI News—May 12, 2022
News Highlights
Congratulations, 2022 Graduates!
College of Western Idaho (CWI) will celebrate its 2022 graduating class in a commencement ceremony Friday, May 13, at 7 p.m. The ceremony, held at ExtraMile Arena in Boise, will recognize degree, certificate, GED, and Workforce Development apprenticeship graduates. In addition to in-person attendance, the ceremony will also be streamed on the College’s website.
Graduates are encouraged to check their student email account, the CWI newsroom, the College’s social media channels, and the Graduation page regularly for announcements and up-to-date information. Please email registrar@cwi.edu with any questions.
Congratulations to all our 2022 graduates! You made it!
Graduates Get the Party Started at Grad Fest
College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) Class of 2022 graduates kicked off the countdown to graduation with a good time and great food during Grad Fest, May 4, at the Nampa Campus Academic Building. With more than 200 people in attendance, this long-awaited in-person event provided a perfect opportunity for graduates to celebrate with their friends, family, and classmates.
The event featured food from BIG Daddy’s Barbeque, a photo op courtesy of Alpha-Lit, clothing consultations and coupons from Macy’s, giant yard games, music and a DJ provided by Rocky Mountain Roll, merchandise from the CWI Bookstore, giveaways, a grand prize drawing for an iPad, and more.
Final Mascot Survey Now Open
College of Western Idaho (CWI) is gearing up to introduce the College’s first mascot, the otter, and needs your help!
The mascot development phase began in January with a survey allowing students, faculty, and staff to share their input and opinions on the characteristics of the new mascot. This was followed by a second survey, launched this spring, seeking input on the mascot name. Thank you to all who have participated up to this point. Feedback gathered was helpful and insightful.
Finalizing development of the CWI Otter, the College is now opening up feedback on the name and design concepts to the entire CWI community. Tell us what you think about the Otter’s name and look by Friday, May 27!
Communication Showcase Inspires Conversations for Change
An eclectic evening centered around how communication can make the world a better place was created and hosted by students from Associate Professor of Communication, Johnny Rowing’s, Multimedia Storytelling (COMM 261) class Thursday, April 28, at College of Western Idaho's Canyon County Center. Presented with help from Rowing’s Mass Communication (COMM 271) and Audio Production (COMM 269) students, the evening was just the right mix of beauty, weirdness, sadness, and joy making a memorable impression on all in attendance.
Students were challenged to build a showcase applying the technical skills they learned throughout the semester to share their joys, passions, and unique perspectives. Difficult issues related to war, refugees, racism, domestic violence, and mental health were addressed through presentations encouraging the audience to create change by starting conversations.
“This showcase highlighted the best of everyone's creativity and skills,” said student, Allison Hoashi. “For such a large range of mediums, I'm thrilled the night still felt cohesive. I'm blown away by my peers' courage and vulnerability in tackling some heavy and nuanced topics. I think the showcase handled the evening with the gravity and professionalism these topics deserved while still leaving people feeling challenged and hopeful. The showcase left me feeling elated and moved.”
“It has been a joy to watch students work collaboratively to address important issues that can be positively impacted by communication,” said Rowing. “Students generated artifacts in a wide variety of ways. Among these were stop-motion animation, podcasts, public service announcements, readers' theater, photography, logo design, scriptwriting, songwriting, etc. Their courage in sharing their messages and art with others is inspiring.”
2022 President’s Writing Awards
Congratulations to winners of the 2022 President’s Writing Awards, an annual competition recognizing excellence in writing at College of Western Idaho. Instructors throughout the College judged student writing from all disciplines and perspectives sending top submissions to Provost Denise Aberle-Cannata who determined the winners. President Gordon Jones presented the winners during the annual Connections Project Awards Ceremony, Thursday, April 28.
2022 President’s Writing Award Winners
Creative Nonfiction
- First Place – Alexandra Murphy
- Second Place – David Maryanski II
- Third Place – Rebecca Young
Critical Analysis
- First Place – Jacob Montana Keating
- Second Place – Rachel Roberts
- Third Place – Kevin Chase
Fiction
- First Place – Jayden Bryant
- Second Place – Anya Williamson
- Third Place – Ambrosia Shomaker
First-Year Writing
- First Place – Kenton Piper-Ruth
- Second Place – Devinne McCombs
- Third Place – Eli James Stoops
Literature Based Research
- First Place – Sawyer Ellis, Craig Petersen, Damien Perez, Monica Zumpano, and Gordy Brown
- Second Place – Jamie Hudson
- Third Place – Amanda Moorhouse
Original Research
- First Place – Sawyer Ellis
- Second Place – Kennedy Cole
- Third Place – Savanna Gerlach
Poetry
- First Place – Melissa Goldsmith
- Second Place – Isabel Foxcroft
- Third Place – Jack Dalton Marmor
Technical Writing Category
- First Place – Jamie Hudson
- Second Place – Trazelle Grover-Cooper
- Third Place – Ambrosia Shomaker
New Narratives: CWI Capstone Collection
Celebrate the artistic and academic achievements of College of Western Idaho’s Studio Art graduates at the exhibit, New Narratives, on display beginning Saturday, April 23, Boise State University’s Student Union Building.
View New Narratives: CWI Capstone Collection
New Narratives features artwork by 2022 Studio Art graduates:
- Robert Blihovde
- Emilee Brugger
- Khanh Dang
- Clara Geise
- Cassima Grimes
- Ashley Hansen
- Matias Haramoto-Pete
- Miyuki Henry
- Jadon Hensley
- Donnie Charles
- Lizzy Martinez
- Mykayla Panchenko
- Angelika Papasodora
- Maximus Skeen
- Mikayla Telfer
- Scott Walker
- Bella Wildt
The exhibit will run through May 8 and can be viewed between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. daily. In addition, students, faculty, staff, and community members are invited to an opening reception Tuesday, April 26, from 4:30 – 6:30 p.m. The event is free, and light refreshments will be served.
Contact Goran Fazil at 208.562.2117 or goranfazil@cwi.edu to learn more about the College’s Studio Art program or this year’s exhibit.
Annual Connections Project Honors Student Achievements
College of Western Idaho’s Nampa Campus Academic Building was full of excitement, Thursday, April 28, as the campus community came together for the seventh-annual Connections Project, an annual event showcasing the hard work and accomplishments of students. Kevin Chase, a Political Science major and member of ASCWI and the College’s Speech and Debate team, presented winners of this year’s Connections Excellence Awards during an awards ceremony. Finalists were determined by a panel of judges and each received $100 and $150 prizes.
Congratulations to this year’s Connections Excellence Award Winners:
Live Mini Talks
Connect Category
- 1st Place – Craig Peterson, Speak Up Ink Up Charity Event
Inspire Category
- 1st Place – Sawyer Ellis, Google Vision AIY
- Runner-up – Mercades Nelson, Is Social Media Compromising Our Self-Regulating Behaviors?
- Runner-up – Kennedy Cole, Growth and Fixed Mindset: A Survey About Mindsets and Their Relationship to Symptoms of Mental Illness, the Internalization of Problems, and Emotion Regulation Strategies
Recorded Mini Talks
Connect Category
- 1st Place – Bryce Thompson, Extroversion & Shyness During the COVID-19 Pandemic
- Runner-up – Zane Cooper, Redlining in America
- Runner-up – Hallee Barney, Group Dynamics
Inspire Category
- 1st Place – Logan Adams, The Struggles of Life at the Minidoka War Relocation Center; Zane Cooper, Plato’s Virtues & the Tripartite Soul
- Runner-up – Andison Fluckiger, The Republic of Plato Poetry and Imitation
Posters
Connect Category
- 1st Place – Mercades Nelson, Is Social Media Addiction Compromising Our Self-Regulating Behaviors?
- Runner-up – Kaw Paw, Karen People of Burma
- Runner-up – Angie Apreotes, MRSA: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureaus
- Runner-up – Anna Miles, Development of Early Detection Technology of Botulism
Inspire Category
- 1st Place – Lia Montes & Natalie D’Agostino, PTK Latinx Postcards
- Runner-up – Alana Stewart, Resistance of Mycoplasma pneumonia to Macrolide antibiotics
- Runner-up – Kennedy Cole, COBS Community Outreach Behavioral Services Raising Awareness About Human Trafficking and Providing Resources to Its Victims
- Runner-up – Brittany Jamison, Greater Than, Less Than and Equal to for 1st Grade
Thank you to the judges, instructors, and participants of this year’s Connection Project, and congratulations, again, to the winners!
Students Present Research at Annual Psychology Conference
Current and former College of Western Idaho (CWI) Psychology students represented the College at the Rocky Mountain Psychological Association (RMPA) Annual Convention in Salt Lake City, Utah, April 7 – 9. The theme for this year’s conference was Moving Forward Together in a Changing World.
During the conference, Mercades Nelson and Heather Schoenherr presented on the history of CWI’s Psychology department. Representing the youngest institution in attendance, their presentation emphasized the growth of the program in terms of faculty and students pointing out the increase in Psychology majors at CWI from 31 to 259 since the first year. Student success within in the department through programs such as the Psychology Club, Psi Beta, and various awards was also highlighted.
Pia Salathe presented her research on Attachment Theory exploring attachment stances and their relation to personality patterns. Research was based on analyzation of a data set provided by Salathe’s faculty advisor, Kevin Carlson.
Timothy Buckles, Kylee Malouf, and Mercedes Nelson presented about the impact of social media on mental health. Students are members of the Psychology Research Bridge, a program connecting CWI students to psychology research opportunities at Boise State University coordinated by Heather Schoenherr and Mary Pritchard of Boise State.
Congratulations to Timothy Buckles, a finalist for the RMPA undergraduate research award. Buckles was selected for the overall quality and impact of his research in the field.
“Going to RMPA and having the opportunity to present my research and discuss similar research with my peers was an incredible experience,” said Buckles. “If you have the chance to go yourself, take it!”
In addition to presentations on their research, students had the unique opportunity to have their work critiqued and praised by world-renowned social psychologist, Roy Baumeister. Dr. Baumeister is known for his work on belongingness, which was a focus of their research. Students were also able to join more than 100 volunteers to support the local community at various women and youth centers to garden, clean, and sort clothing, supplies, and food.
