CWI News—Nov. 19, 2021
In the Spotlight
Thanks to the collaboration of numerous departments on campus, 24 Presidential Finalist Forums were successfully completed over the past four days. Ten groups of internal and external stakeholders met virtually and in-person to hear from the top four candidates about their leadership backgrounds and vision for the future of CWI.
News Highlights
To Gain a Competitive Edge
DALEESA COLE
Hometown: Nampa, Idaho
Major: Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Certificate
Graduation: 2023
Scholarships: Laura Moore Cunningham
Oregon State University (OSU) student, Daleesa Cole, is attending College of Western Idaho (CWI) in pursuit of a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) certificate with the ultimate goal of becoming a Wildlife Biologist.
“I am currently working on a Bachelor of Science degree in Fisheries and Wildlife at OSU,” Daleesa said. “My decision to attend CWI was in pursuit of wanting a skill set in GIS and sUAS (small unmanned aircraft systems) to give myself a competitive edge in the wildlife field. It is my hope to further use my skills and abilities gained from CWI and OSU to help assist in changing the world for the better by assisting in ecological and conservation issues through research and development, public education, and awareness as a Wildlife Biologist.”
During her time at CWI, Daleesa landed a full-time internship with Owyhee Air Research in Nampa, Idaho, as a Drone Lead and IR GIS Mapping Technician.
“This opportunity has become a huge stepping stone in my professional career and has given me passion and opportunities beyond what I have ever dreamed. I am now able to combine my skills and abilities in GIS, sUAS, and Fisheries and Wildlife experiences into one for the greater good!”
A proud recipient of the Laura Moore Cunningham Scholarship for the 2021-2022 academic year, Daleesa values the availability of financial assistance which has made her return to college and pursuit of her goals a reality.
“CWI has empowered me in every way possible financially, academically, professionally, and personally to be what I hope to someday become. I have been a student for several years now, completing one course or a few at a time at both OSU and CWI. Although life circumstances have altered my journey from time to time, I hope to graduate from both by 2023. My education has opened up opportunities for me I never thought possible. Never give up on the amazing things you can pursue in life!”
Scholarships are now open for the Spring 2022 semester! Complete your application by Nov. 30, 2021.
Faculty Increase Course Accessibility for Students
College of Western Idaho (CWI) faculty participated in Accessibility Week Nov. 8 – 12, hosted by the College's Center for Teaching and Learning. Resources, training, and contests highlighted how small course changes help students learn by increasing course access and engaging in course content. Faculty were encouraged to raise the accessibility score on their course content provided by a technology called Ally. This tool provides faculty with just-in-time feedback on how to increase the accessibility of their content and provides students the ability to download alternative file formats from audio files to web-based formats and even braille.
Since CWI implemented this software in January 2020, more than 8,500 students have downloaded over 33,000 files, empowering each of these students to learn in a way that best meets their learning needs.
Congratulations to the the following individuals who demonstrated the highest percentage of improvement over the course of the week. Additionally, congratulations to Kevin Platts, Director of Public Safety Programs, and the entire Department of Public Safety whose courses had the highest overall accessibility scores!
Top 5 Individual Daily Greatest Daily % Change:
1. Holly Paquette, Biology – 10.67%
2. Luke Yeates, Communication – 7.50%
3. Julia Bennett, Communication – 7.03%
4. Susan Aydelotte, Math – 5.81%
5. Christina Moore, Biology – 5.77%
Top 5 Individual Weekly Greatest % Change:
1. Denise Heald, English – 14.03%
2. Susan Aydelotte, Math – 11.14%
3. Luke Yeates, Communication – 10.80%
4. Holly Paquette, Biology – 10.55%
Trivia Winners
1. Chloe Howard
2. Amy Vassar
3. Lynne Tucker
COVID-19 Test Kits Available for CWI Students and Employees
As part of College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) Be Safe, Be Mighty campaign and ongoing interest in the safety and security of our campus community, the College is providing convenient access to COVID-19 test kits.
Two types of test are available. Testing is voluntary and free of charge.
- Vault Health
- PCR (Saliva) Test
- Results in 24 – 48 hours
- Instruction card included in kit
- Indicaid®
- Rapid Antigen (Nasal Swab) Test
- Results in 15 minutes
- Instructions provided via QR code on kit
Test Kit Distribution
Students
Students may obtain a free, COVID-19 test kit at the following campus locations. Please be prepared to show your student ID.
- One Stop Students Services
- Campus Security Desks
- Ada County Campus Pintail Center (APIN)
- Canyon County Center (CYNC)
- Nampa Campus Academic Building (NCAB)
- Nampa Campus Administration Building (NADM)
- Nampa Campus Micron Education Center (NMEC)
Contact Chad Trisler, Dean of Students, at chadtrisler@cwi.edu with questions or to learn more.
Employees
Test kits have been distributed to each member of the Executive Operations Team (EOT). Employees may obtain a test kit from their EOT representative or from one of the designated locations listed above. For further guidance on obtaining a test kit, speak with your immediate supervisor or EOT representative.
Please continue to report positive or probable COVID-19 cases by calling the 24-hour, self-reporting call center at 813.699.3551.
For questions about CWI’s response to COVID-19, contact COVID19_Questions@cwi.edu or visit Be Safe, Be Mighty.
CWI Food Pantries Receive Donation from Homes of Idaho
With arms full, representatives from Homes of Idaho showed up to the Nampa Campus Micron Education Center, Monday, Nov. 15, with a generous donation for the College’s food pantries.
Christy Babcock, Counselor and CWI Food Pantry Coordinator, has partnered with Wendy Rhodes, Director of Public Relations and Career Development at Homes of Idaho, to plan and implement a new food pantry program at the College called the Blessing Box. As creator of the original Blessing Box food pantry at the Nampa Police Station, Rhodes is excited to work with CWI to connect with local businesses to support the five food pantries across many of the College’s campus locations.
“To be a community partner with CWI and be able to support students who are working toward becoming contributors to our community is a true blessing,” said Rhodes. “The Blessing Box idea of ‘take what you need and leave what you can’ supports the concept of community, and that is who we are.”
“The CWI community has always been a generous one with students, faculty, and staff often donating to our food pantries,” said Babcock. “The Blessing Box partnership will allow us to keep the pantries full on a regular basis. A different local business will sponsor the pantry each month. This partnership was ready to roll in February 2020 when COVID-19 came along and stopped us in our tracks. We are so excited to get this program going now, and we are grateful for Wendy and the local businesses who will be helping us with this important endeavor.”
Learn more about CWI’s food pantries and food security by visiting cwi.edu/food-security.
Law Enforcement Students Help Rake Up Nampa
Students from College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) Law Enforcement program participated in Rake Up Nampa on Saturday, Nov. 13.
“Rake up Nampa is a local piece of a regional effort geared toward assisting seniors and disabled persons with fall clean-up projects,” said Law Enforcement Program Director, LeRoy Forsman. “This has become an annual project our students participate in and is just one step in a process of promoting the importance of giving back to the community and instilling a sense of selfless service.”
“We worked hard, worked fast, and had a lot of fun,” said Class 11 President, Hunter Chambers.
CWI Law Enforcement students take part in several community service events throughout the year. Their next project will take place during the Christmas season working with local law enforcement and children and families in need.
Fazil and Vrabac Film Accepted into International Festival
Congratulations to Assistant Professor of Art, Goran Fazil, and English Adjunct Faculty, Dževad Vrabac, whose short film was accepted into the 2021 Monologues & Poetry International Film Fest.
The film, World, what’s made of?, features a poem written and narrated by Vrabac with illustrations by Fazil.
“The process of making this short film started with various animation sequences that I sent to Dževad and asked him to write a poem in response to them,” explained Fazil. “Therefore, it is an unconventional approach because animation is usually created in response to writing but not the other way around.”
“Ekphrastic collaboration,” added Vrabac. “Turn taking in telling tales.”
The film premiers Sunday, Nov. 21, during the festival’s online screening event.
CWI Art Faculty’s Painting Featured at Boise City Hall
In 2020, the city of Boise put out a call to find an artist to create a project to be displayed at Boise City Hall. Congratulations to College of Western Idaho (CWI) Art faculty, April VanDeGrift, whose project proposal was chosen from three finalists!
Working closely with committee members, the mayor’s office, and Boise City Council members, VanDeGrift created an original painting communicating ideas about the city of Boise using natural history as a rhetorical strategy.
Community
by April VanDeGrift
“This work uses natural history as a device to communicate contemporary issues about our Boise community. Three types of birds are perched amongst the branches of the mock orange, or syringa, a flowering bush that is Idaho’s state flower. Migratory, resident, and introduced birds are represented in the western tanager, the house finch and the European starling respectively. These birds coexist amongst the branches along with bumble bees, apple ermine moths, sawflies, and caterpillars, bringing a balance and beauty to the picture plane that is both active and serene.
Painted in oils, this work was created to be a focal piece in the Boise City Council Chambers. As new growth moves into the valley, the community of Boise has had to adapt to welcoming new neighbors. Boise’s trails, greenbelt, clean downtown, and proximity to recreation has attracted many people. This population growth has led some to ask who belongs, which has resulted in some tension.
Migration is an American tradition, one that is often celebrated in the retelling of our origin stories. Many generations have enjoyed the freedom to relocate and to be welcomed by new neighbors. In this moment of time, we must be mindful of that freedom and welcome with open arms the new contributions of our community members whether they be migrating through, a resident for many generations, or newly introduced and wanting to stay. Each of us contributes something beautiful.”
2021 Fall Break Hours
College of Western Idaho campus buildings and One Stop Student Services locations will be open reduced hours the week of Fall Break, Nov. 22 – 27.
Campus buildings and One Stop Student Services locations will be open Monday, Nov. 22, through Wednesday, Nov. 24, during the hours listed below. Campus will be closed Thursday, Nov. 25 through Saturday, Nov. 27.
Ada County Campus Pintail Center
Monday – Wednesday
7 a.m. – 9:15 p.m.
Ada County Campus Mallard Building
Monday – Wednesday
7:00 a.m. – 9:15 p.m.
Ada County Campus Quail Building
Monday – Saturday
Closed
Ada County Campus Lynx Building
Monday, Tuesday
8:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday, Nov. 24
8 a.m. – 2 p.m.
- One Stop Student Services
- Monday, Tuesday
8 a.m. – 5 p.m. - Wednesday
8 a.m. – 2 p.m.
- Monday, Tuesday
Canyon County Center
Monday – Wednesday
7 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Nampa Campus Academic Building
Monday – Wednesday
8:30 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Nampa Campus Aspen Classroom Building
Monday – Wednesday
10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Nampa Campus Micron Education Center
Monday – Wednesday
7 a.m. – 9 p.m.
- One Stop Student Services
- Monday, Tuesday
8 a.m. – 5 p.m. - Wednesday
8 a.m. – 2 p.m.
- Monday, Tuesday
Nampa Campus Multipurpose Building
Monday – Wednesday
10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Regular business hours will resume on Monday, Nov. 29.
myCWI Upgrade
College of Western Idaho (CWI) will be upgrading and rebranding myCWI on Dec. 3, 4, and 5. The updated platform will make accessing myCWI easier, more secure, and more mobile friendly.
During the upgrade, the Employee Toolkit will be unavailable through myCWI. General use of applications like Blackboard, Colleague, Email, and the Employee Toolkit can be accessed directly using the links below.
- Blackboard – blackboard.cwi.edu
- Email – mail.cwi.edu
- Employee Toolkit – selfservice.cwi.edu
- Colleague Production – uiprod.cwi.edu
- Business Objects – busobj01/BOE/BI
What can you expect to see once the upgrade takes place?
- An updated look and feel based on CWI’s new branding guidelines.
- Changes to the location of the main navigation from across the top to down the left side.
- The current My Toolkit menu structure will be replaced with a single button that takes you to your Employee Toolkit. From there, you can navigate to items like your Time Entry, Earning Statements, and Projects Accounting.
- For those who assist students, please be aware changes have been made to the Student Home page. The links below have been moved to the following locations:
- Student Account information and Workforce Development Registration has moved to ‘Registration & Payment Info’, just below the new My Toolkit button.
- Enrollment Verification and Order Official Transcripts has moved to ‘Important Links’, just below the new My Toolkit button.
- Employees and Students will now be able to access Blackboard, My Toolkit, and Email from the header of any page within myCWI.
Shop Amazon, Help Students!
Did you know when you shop on Amazon, you can also help College of Western Idaho (CWI) students? Through AmazonSmile, 0.5% of your eligible Amazon purchases will be donated to student scholarships at CWI at no cost to you!
Contact the CWI Foundation at foundation@cwi.edu to learn more or with questions.
Scholarships Open for Spring 2022 Semester
The College of Western Idaho (CWI) Foundation scholarship application period for the Spring 2022 semester opens Nov. 1. One application makes applying for scholarships at CWI easy providing students automatically-generated scholarship matches, in addition to allowing students to self-select scholarships of interest. More than 200 scholarships have already been awarded to students in both academic and career-technical programs at the College for the 2021-2022 academic year!
Students interested in applying for scholarships must have the CWI admission application completed, be accepted, and have myCWI login information. The application closes Nov. 30, 2021.
Visit the Grants and Scholarships page to learn more or apply.
Hydration Wellness Challenge
Sign up to participate in December’s Employee Wellness Challenge, the Hydration Challenge, by Tuesday, Dec. 1! As a participant of the Hydration challenge, your goal will be to drink eight 8-ounce glasses of water (64 ounces) each day Dec. 1 – 21.
Visit the Culture and Employee Engagement Committee site on myCWI for all the details including:
- how to sign up
- participation requirements
- tracking resources
- submission information
- valuable tips, information, and resources to get you started
Submit your participation data by Thursday, Dec. 30, for your chance to win some awesome prizes!
Visiting Artist Series Welcomes Jessica Harned
Ever wonder how marginalized people in America have contributed to mainstream classical music? Join College of Western Idaho’s (CWI) Visiting Artist Series in welcoming musician, Jessica Harned, to campus to discuss the role of Black composers in American classical music, learn to recognize the sounds that shaped our country, and enjoy a string quartet performance by Florence Price and William Grant Still.
Harned began her musical career in Boise, Idaho, as a member of the Boise Philharmonic in 2016. Since that time she has performed with ensembles including Boise Baroque, Opera Idaho, McCall Summer Symphony, Ballet Idaho, Idaho Shakespeare Festival, with Mariachi Sol De Acapulco, and was the recipient of the Governor’s Award for Musical Excellence in 2018.
To Harned, education is of the upmost importance. In 2020, she received her master’s degree from Boise State University, after having won the Boise Philharmonic Graduate Quartet Fellowship. This experience emboldened her to speak up about the life and experiences of the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) community within classical music. In 2019, she won an Alexa Rose Foundation grant, which offered her support to further her reach in this area. While enjoying her time fostering conversation about representation in classical music, on the radio, in the classroom, and within her own work, Harned also delights in cultivating a space for growth and empowerment in her established violin and piano studio.
Outside of her performance life, Harned enjoys being creative and experiencing music in diverse musical spaces. She regularly collaborates with composers, creates music videos, and has recorded and performed with various bands and jazz ensembles. One of her favorite experiences was collaborating with the local band Regular Sounds and bringing life to the music of the Electric Light Orchestra.
Understanding that her career is multi-faceted and being very proud of that, Harned believes this diverse path has helped her become the musician and person she is today, and she is looking forward to seeing what the future holds. In the meantime, you will find Harned traveling, cooking, reading Afro-futurist SiFi, and enjoying great conversation.
Thursday, Dec. 2
7 – 8 p.m.
Nampa Campus Academic Building, Room 206
Can’t make it in person? Join us on Zoom!
Meeting ID: 968 2971 9990
Passcode: 943042
CWI’s Visiting Artist Series is made possible through a grant from the Idaho Commission on the Arts, which is supported by the National Endowment for the Arts.
Contact Goran Fazil at goranfazil@cwi.edu with questions or to learn more!
An Educational Quest
What does it take for someone to come to the United States as a refugee and succeed in the educational and professional experiences? Find out on Friday, Dec. 3, from 2:00 – 3:30 p.m., in an engaging YouTube Live event, An Educational Quest.
The event, sponsored by College of Western Idaho’s Inclusive Excellence Committee and International Club and Boise State University English Language Support Programs and featuring members of the Refugee Speakers Bureau, will inspire empathy and understanding for refugee and former refugee educational experiences leading the way to a brighter future.
