March 9, 2015

All Employee Learning Day on March 18

All Employee Learning Day will be held on March 18 with an interactive agenda. All employees will be involved in the events of the day to help set the direction of the college.

The day kicks off with David Levin speaking about The QBQ. The QBQ is "The Question Behind the Question," a best-selling book about the QBQ method of practicing personal accountability, which is the result of many years of research by author John G. Miller in the organizational development field. Empower yourself to use your talent, skills, and time to solve problems, enhance relationships, and accomplish team and personal objectives.

Lunch is being sponsored by Rocky Boot Grill. After lunch, Interim President Dr. Betty Young will speak on the State of the College, then attendees will participate in Strategic Planning Roundtables. At its annual retreat in February, the Hocking College Board of Trustees endorsed a new vision and strategies for becoming a World Class institution. Your input in roundtable discussions will drive the initiatives that will help us achieve that vision.

See the complete agenda here.

Due to the All Employee Learning Day, no day classes will be held and all Student Services Concourse services will be closed. The Dining Hall will be open 11 a.m. - 4 p.m. Evening classes which start after 5 p.m. will continue as usual.

Black Tie Tea to Benefit Student Emergency Fund

The Hocking College Foundation will host a formal afternoon tea to benefit the Hocking College Student Emergency Fund. The tea will be held at Rhapsody Restaurant in Nelsonville on Sunday, March 22, 2015. Cost is $25 per person.

The Hocking College Foundation is working to create a Student Emergency Fund to help students with needs through small aid amounts or with emergency loans. Many Hocking College students work and have families to support while attending classes. An unexpected financial emergency - the loss of a job, a health crisis, rising rent or childcare cost - often forces a student to leave their dream of a college degree behind.

Reservations are available for 2 p.m., 3 p.m. or 4 p.m. tea times. Business attire is requested. Reservations are required by March 17, 2015. For further information or to reserve a tea time, contact Chef Katie McGushin at mcgushink@hocking.edu or 740.753.7608. You can also make a reservation and pay online.

Peace Officer Basic Training Program Offered

The Hocking College School of Public Safety Services will conduct a 14-week Peace Officer Basic Academy May 12, 2015 through August 19, 2015.

An informational meeting will be held March 18, 2015 at 7 p.m. in the Public Safety Services Building, room 203. Applications will be accepted through April 10, 2015.

Students will be provided classroom materials including a laptop computer and uniform clothing, and upon successful completion, students will qualify for Ohio Peace Officer status and receive 18 semester credit hours toward an Associate Degree in Police Science at Hocking College. Financial aid opportunities my exist for qualified students.

For additional information or to schedule an appointment for enrollment, contact Roger Deardorff, Commander at deardorffr@hocking.edu or 740.753.6300 or Betty Dalton, Office Coordinator at daltonb9@hocking.edu or 740.753.6451.

DAAP to Host Guest Speaker

The Drug and Alcohol Awareness Program (DAAP) will have a guest speaker on Wednesday, March 11, 2015, at 6 p.m. in Student Center Conference Room C. Carlie Crowell will share her story, "I Learned Through Addiction How to Trust My Struggles."

DAAP is an integrated education program for students, staff and faculty, with the goal of providing accurate information about the risks and effects of drugs, alcohol and tobacco. This information is aimed at helping students, staff and faculty become more aware of issues at the college, in the community and the nation.

Chef Alfonso and Culinary Program Featured in Two Recent Articles

Master Chef Alfonso Contrisciani and the Hocking College Culinary Arts program were recently featured in two high-profile publications.

Chef Contrisciani told ourohio.org that hospitality and food service is one of the fastest growing industries. Our Ohio, created by Ohio Farm Bureau Federation and supported by Nationwide Insurance, provides consumers with information and opportunities to experience Ohio agriculture through topics such as travel, animals, history, cooking, families and gardening.

"If I had 1,000 students graduating this program every year, I might be able to meet the demand of those wanting to employ our students," he told Callie Wells, of ourohio.org. "There is a huge demand for trained employees in the hospitality industry right now."

The article went on to discuss Hocking College's Culinary and Hospitality programs with insights from Culinary students.

Chef Contrisciani was also featured in David Meyers and Associates, an online publication by a respected leader in private club culinary placement. The article describes the chef as "a man equally at home on the farm and in the kitchen."

The article goes on to dive deeper into the beginning of Contrisciani's career, his past accomplishments, his perspectives on organic and sustainable food and his role at Hocking College.

For more information or to read the full articles, visit http://ourohio.org/food/tips-and-trends/1194/cooking-up-a-career and http://meyersassociates.com/chefs-at-work/alfonse-contrisciani-cmc-wgmc-ace-aac/.

Great job, Chef Alfonso, for your representation of Hocking College and the Culinary Arts program!

Looking for Great Graduation Speakers

Do you know of a graduating student with a fantastic story? Giles Lee is looking for student speakers for the upcoming graduation ceremonies.

One speaker is needed for each of the three ceremonies. If you know a student with a interesting or compelling story to share, please contact Giles Lee at 740.753.6539.

Escape the Cold at this Lunch and Learn Workshop

Sponsored by the Hocking College Health and Wellness Committee, the Campus Greens Department/ Greenhouse Operations are offering a chance to escape the cold at their "Lunch and Learn" workshop in Davidson 108 on March 11, 2015, from 12 - 1 p.m.

Andy Freeman will be discussing home gardening, detailing what to plant, the space needed, expected time commitment and prep for your summer garden.

Chesterhill Produce Auction will also be in attendance to discuss their buying club. This program gives faculty the opportunity to enjoy fresh, local produce while supporting local farmers. Participants commit to purchasing a box of produce on a weekly basis. Weekly commitments range in price from $10 - $30. Pick-up is every Friday from 4 - 6 p.m. Payment is due one week prior to pick-up. If the minimum number of Hocking College participants is reached, they will deliver on campus.

Anyone interested in the buying club can register by emailing carrie@ruralaction.org or tom@ruralaction.org or by calling 740.677.4047.

The first planting event will be March 25, 2015, from 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. at the Tri-County Career Center Greenhouse. Seeds and soil will be provided - so come play in the dirt and prepare your summer garden!

Financial Aid March Madness Events Continue

During the month of March, Financial Aid will be hosting a variety of events celebrating Financial Literacy Month and showing appreciation for our students. The month will end with the second annual FAFSA Fiesta on Monday, March 30.

Week of March 9 - Spring Break Tipoff Drawing & Student Appreciation: Any student who sends a good financial literacy tip for students to the Financial Aid Office will be entered into the Week 1 Drawing for a $25 gift card. Financial literacy tips must be emailed to financialaid@hocking.edu and received by 12 p.m. on Tuesday, March 10 and students must include their student ID number in the email. The financial literacy tips received will be posted on our Facebook page.

Each day during the week of March 9, students can stop by the Financial Aid Department for snacks and goodies. All students who stop by will have the opportunity to enter into a drawing for prizes.

Week of March 16 - Financial Literacy Week: Each day of this week, the Financial Aid Department will have a variety of activities for student. Participating students will have the opportunity to enter drawings for prizes. Activities will include 'Ask Your Coordinator,' encouraging students to stop by and ask their financial aid coordinator a question about financial aid or their own financial aid status to be entered in the drawing, Financial Literacy Word Search, a crossword puzzle and a Scavenger Hunt.

Week of March 23 - Financial Aid Open Forums: Students will have an opportunity to ask any question they have about financial aid and discuss some important topics that impact their eligibility. The forums will be held in JL 195. Five one-hour sessions will be held during this week:

Monday, March 23, 1 - 2 p.m.
Tuesday, March 24, 12 - 1 p.m.
Wednesday, March 25, 12 - 1 p.m.
Thursday, March 26, 3 - 4 p.m.
Friday, March 27, 12 - 1 p.m.

Monday, March 30: FAFSA Fiesta: Students are invited to join the Financial Aid staff for food, fun and door prizes while at the same time getting assistance in completing their 2015-2016 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

Please encourage students to participate in these events!

2014 President's List Recipients

President's List Applications Due March 16

Students with a 3.5 or higher accumulative grade point average and a minimum of 24 Hocking College credit hours will receive an invitation to apply for consideration for the President's List. Students are asked to apply online this year via this survey. Those selected for the President's List demonstrate outstanding leadership and service, and maintain the highest academic standards.

Faculty and staff endorsements are critical in the selection process. Endorsements with specific information, completed by staff that work closely with a student and have first-hand knowledge of leadership skills and service activities, are a powerful point of consideration in the process. If you cannot provide specific information on leadership and service, please refer the student to another staff member for endorsement.

Students are ineligible for consideration if endorsement forms are not part of their portfolios at the time of review. This year's endorsements are due March 16, 2015. This year, endorsements are to be submitted online. The selection committee will meet after the deadline to select those fitting the criteria.

Reminder: Nursing Students at Ohio Valley Discovery Museum

Hocking College Nursing students will teach children about nutrition and healthy food at the Ohio Valley Discovery Museum at the Market on State (the old University Mall) in Athens on Saturday, March 14 and Saturday, March 28.

Each clinical group is responsible for preparing and creating one activity to promote nutrition. One will be bringing homemade Play-Doh to create meals that follow the 'My Plate' food guide.

Some students will be helping the kids make fruit and vegetable stamp art, by dipping broccoli in green paint and oranges in orange paint. Students will also have a plastic food toss where the goal is to toss the food into the correct category hole.

Reminder: Graduation Award Nominations Due March 16

Nominations are now being accepted for this year's Graduation Awards. Awards include:

"We Are One-Hocking" Graduation Award
Presented to one graduating American and one graduating International student who through their actions and involvement have made a significant impact on the cross-cultural understanding and campus unity at Hocking College.

Richard Elston Award
In memory of Richard Elston, a former Hocking College Student Senate
president, this award recognizes a graduating student whose outstanding leadership has positively impacted the Hocking College community.

Student Life Award
Presented to any graduating student who has exemplified dedication and commitment to improving the quality of student life for all members of the Hocking College campus community.

Student Employment Award
Presented to a student who has gone above and beyond the call of duty in a position of student employment, to show extraordinary commitment to the job and provide outstanding service.

Read more about the awards here, and find the nomination form here. Nominations are due to Giles Lee at leeg@hocking.edu by 5 p.m. March 16, 2015.

Daughter of Former Hocking College Employee Writes Book

Daughter of former employee Kim Forbes Powell, who retired at the end of last year, has published a book. Her name is CoeDee Shaner Burba and she wrote "The Life You Leave Behind."

The book description from amazon.com: All Faye Donehoe wanted was someone to love. At 18, she married her high school sweetheart and fulfilled the only goal she ever bothered to set: leaving her claustrophobic hometown in the sunset for the excitement of Washington, D.C. Five years later, she's a war widow in love with her employer, Jimmy Quinn. Older and wealthy, he's also very married to an aloof goddess with secrets of her own. Though Faye succeeds in capturing Jimmy's attention, she finds happiness comes at a staggering price.

Throw in a nosy grandmother, an eccentric cousin, along with Jimmy's skeletons and it's no wonder Faye's life is spinning out of control. After a lifetime of poor choices she faces her most difficult one yet: living the "American Dream" or walking away from the life she always wanted.

Burba's synopsis of the book is, "Everyone has a sob story. Does yours define you?" The book can be purchased online at amazon.com.

Alumni Spotlight

Alumni Loves Teaching Others

Tim Kelly attended Hocking College from 1977-1978 and graduated with an AAS in Environmental Health. Shortly after graduation, he moved back to Long Island and worked in the defense industry until 1993 and was hired by Dowling College, a local college in Oakdale, New York.

He then earned a BS, MS, Professional Diploma and then a doctorate.

Today, Kelly is still working at Dowling as a professor in the School of Business and the School of Education. He is also the System Administrator and trainer for the Blackboard System.

He loves teaching online and showing others how to do so successfully.

Hocking College was his first attempt at a higher education. Attending Hocking right out of the Army is was a big step for him and he hasn't slowed down yet.

Logan Campus Paying For College Night This Week

Reminder that the college will hold Paying for College information sessions to help prospective students and families learn about how to pay for college using financial aid and other resources.

Paying for College Night at the Hocking College Logan Campus will be Tuesday, March 10, 2015, from 6-8 p.m.

Paying for College Night at the Hocking College Perry Campus will be Tuesday, March 17, 2015 5-8 p.m. This event coincides with the Perry Campus Open House. In addition to information about financial aid, attendees can learn about the programs available at the Perry Campus in New Lexington.

Paying for College Night at the main campus will be Tuesday, March 24, 2015, from 6-8 p.m.

Paying for College Night is free and open to everyone, you do not have to be a Hocking College applicant to attend.

At Paying for College Night attendees can get hands-on help completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), learn about different types of aid including loans, grants, scholarships and student employment, and get assistance filing their 2014 tax return from The Ohio Benefit Bank.

Students graduating in 2015 from a high school in Athens, Fairfield, Hocking, Perry, Pickaway or Ross County may be eligible for the Hocking College District Scholar Tuition Assistance program. More information about that program and program applications will be available at the events.

Area Code + Number Required for All Calls Starting March 21, 2015

Everyone in the 740 area code, which includes more than 30 counties in central and southeastern Ohio, will be required to dial the area code plus phone number for all calls starting March 21, 2015. Callers have been able to use 10 digit or seven digit telephone numbers since September 2014.

Why is this change necessary? The North American Numbering Plan Administrator, which distributes area codes across the United States, informed PUCO that the 740 area code would run out by mid-2015.

The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio worked out an overlay area code of 220 to address the problem. Everyone must dial 10 digits for local calls but only new customers would be assigned the new area code, 220.

In addition to dialing the area code plus phone number for all calls, you should also complete the following items:

Update any pre-programmed seven-digit phone numbers in your mobile device to include the area code, as well as any text or email alert services.
Reprogram all services and devices that utilize a seven-digit phone number to include the area code, including automatic dialing equipment. Other examples include:
- Life safety systems
- Fire or burglar alarm and security system
- Security gates
- Speed dialers
- Call forwarding settings
- Fax machines
- Internet dial-up numbers
- Voice mail services and similar functions

The following items won't change:

Your phone number, including current area code.
The price of a call, coverage area or other rates and services.
Calls that are considered local now will remain a local call, regardless of the number of digits dialed.
9-1-1 calls are not affected. Only three digits are required.
If 211, 311, 411, 511, 611, 711 or 811 are currently available in your community, you'll still be able to call them by dialing just three digits.

Thirteen Nursing Students Awarded Med-Sense Scholarship

Kristen Fetty, Katie Fleming, Gloria Gilliam, Chelsie Johnson, Julia Klaiber, Nichole Leonard, Isaiah McCombs, Ca Meriwether, Theresa Perine, Julie Richards, Linda Schall, Kaitlin Tippie and Christina Trimmer have all been awarded the Med-Sense Guaranteed Association Nursing Scholarship for the 2014-2015 academic year.

The Med-Sense Guaranteed Association Nursing Scholarship was established by the Green Bay, Wisconsin, organization to provide needed funding for trained medical personnel in the underserved areas of Appalachian Ohio. Scholarships at Hocking College are available to nursing students who are in their final year of education and who have exhausted all or nearly all of their federal financial aid.

Fetty currently works as a volunteer firefighter/ EMT at the Rushcreek Fire Department. She hopes to obtain her RN degree and work at The Ohio State University Medical Center or Nationwide Children's Hospital in the emergency room or pediatrics department. Fleming plans to work as a RN to gain experience and then obtain her bachelor's degree and work in obstetrics as a nurse midwife or practitioner.

Gillam plans to earn her bachelor's degree in nursing and eventually work at a large hospital. Johnson is currently pursuing her RN degree and hopes to receive a bachelor's degree as well. Kaliber works at Kimes Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Her plans after graduation are to work as a lactation consultant or OB/GYN floor nurse.

McCombs plans to attend Ohio University's RN to BSN program and then work in a hospital ICU and eventually become a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist. Richards is a single mother of three pursuing her RN degree. She explained the scholarship helped her to spend more time with her kids and not work while she attends school.

Schall has worked as a State Tested Nursing Assistant for 20 years and hopes to obtain her RN degree and possibly work in nursing administration. Tippie plans to obtain her BSN degree online and eventually work as a surgery technician.

All of the students who are receiving this scholarship plan to further their education and put their scholarship to good use.

Mission

Hocking College provides a unique, innovative, and quality education in a supportive experience- based learning environment, preparing students for employment and transfer education opportunities, while teaching the value of lifelong learning, promoting diversity and developing citizens who are engaged in their local and global communities.

Return to Top

Kudos to the Office of Financial Aid on the Decreased Loan Default Rate!

Hocking College's draft three year cohort default rate was released in February and Director of Financial Aid Deneene Merchant reported that our rate has significantly dropped from 34.1 to the current rate of 23.8.

According to Merchant, the continued efforts with financial literacy, loan counseling and our partnership with USA Funds contributes to the loan default rate reduction.

Great job!

___________________

Smile-A-Thon Raises Money for Student Emergency Fund

Kudos to the Hocking College Foundation and their student workers for a successful Smile-A-Thon!

The event raised just under $250 in cash for the Student Emergency Fund.

More than 150 breakfast bowls and 150 tacos in a bag were served, plus more than 200 cupcakes were eaten for dessert.

Winners of the raffle were: Sarah Parker-Clever, Sharon Disbennet (student), and Andre Gilles (student). They will each receive a gift from the bookstore.

Kudos on this great event and thanks to everyone in the campus community for their support!

3301 Hocking Parkway
Nelsonville, OH 45764
admissions@hocking.edu / www.hocking.edu