Imprint Johnson County Community College
Late
Fall
2011
Lane leaves backstage for front and center
Contents
Imprint Imprint at JCCC is published five times a year by Johnson County Community College, 12345 College Blvd., Overland Park, KS 66210-1299; 913-469-8500, fax 913-469-2559. Imprint at JCCC is produced by College Information and Publications and the Office of Document Services. Imprint is located online at http://www.jccc.edu/Imprint.
Editor: Diane Carroll • Photographer: Bret Gustafson • Designer: Randy Breeden When planning your estate, remember Johnson County Community College. For more information, call the JCCC Foundation at 913-469-3835.
Cover Artist in residence Jim Lane, soon to be dean of arts, humanities and social sciences, has spent countless hours in the theatre’s scene shop preparing for productions. The motel sign behind him was built by students for a 2001 show.
12 Parisian sculptor shares time at JCCC Faculty-led trips to Paris fueled French artist’s stay at college
4 New man on board Greg Musil, in his first year on the board of trustees, wants to strengthen ties with businesses and promote alumni pride.
Candice Millard
Foundation
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Alumna in limelight
New challenge ahead for long-time theatre leader
Fundraiser marks 25th anniversary
Millard, a best-selling author, goes on tour with her second book, Destiny of the Republic.
Jim Lane shares his thoughts on leaving the life he loved and offers a glimpse into how he’ll handle the role of dean.
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This year’s Some Enchanted Evening event recognizes all previous Johnson Countians of the Year.
Notice of Nondiscrimination – Johnson County Community College does not discriminate on the basis of sex, race, color, national origin, disability, age, religion, marital status, veteran’s status, sexual orientation or other factors that cannot be lawfully considered in its programs and activities as required by all applicable laws and regulations. Inquiries concerning the college’s compliance with its nondiscrimination policies may be referred to the Dean of Student Services or Director of Human Resources, Johnson County Community College, 12345 College Blvd., Overland Park, KS 66210, 913-469-8500; or to Office for Civil Rights, 8930 Ward Parkway, Suite 2037, Kansas City, MO 64114, 816-268-0550.
14 Students set up food pantry Canned goods, other items available on campus for anyone in need
Fashion
9 Couture collection settles into new space Fashion and design students now will have better access to hundreds of pieces of clothing and accessories.
Jazz Winterlude
Back Cover
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Annual event offers three days of music
Nursing professors who visit Uganda see great need
The jazz festival, from Jan. 20 to 22, will feature top national and local bands.
Mary Smith and Kathy Carver hope to return with students and create a service-learning program in Africa similar to the one the college has in Las Pintas, Mexico.
JCCC again ranks among best in use of digital technology The annual Digital Community Colleges Survey places the college in the top 10.
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Meet JCCC trustee Greg Musil Johnson County Community College’s newest
trustee is a big fan of public service, public education and young people.
So running for a spot on the JCCC board of trustees was a natural step for Greg Musil, 54, of Overland Park. He was the top vote-getter in the spring 2011 election which also returned trustees Jon Stewart and Don Weiss to terms on the board. Musil’s love of public service was instilled by his family. His father served on the local school board in Frankfort, Kan., and his mother was active in a variety of civic and school activities in Marshall County. His brother, too, has served on the school board. “Growing up on a farm and in a small town, you learn that it doesn’t get done if you don’t all work together and pitch in,” Musil said. He said he values public service because it lets him be proactive in addressing problems and challenges and devising solutions. It’s a contrast to much of his work as an attorney with Polsinelli Shughart PC, where his practice areas are business litigation, banking and financial services litigation and zoning and land use. Government and education threads interweave Musil’s résumé. He was elected to four-year terms on the Overland Park City Council in 1993 and 1997 and served as council president in 1999 and 2000. He has been a member of the Blue Valley School District Business and Education Schools of Tomorrow (B.E.S.T) Advisory Committee since 1997, and served on the Blue Valley Educational Foundation board of directors from 2009 to 2011. He’s also been involved with JCCC, serving on the JCCC Foundation board of directors since 2002, and on the Foundation’s executive committee since 2009. He was a member of the Some Enchanted Evening gala committee from 1994 to 2002, serving as co-chair of the gala in 2001. That involvement, combined with a niece and nephew who were on the JCCC track team in the late 1990s and early 2000s, made Musil think he knew almost everything there was to know about JCCC. Since becoming a trustee, however, he said, “I’m surprised by how much I don’t know. I’m learning how vast it is.” For example, Musil said he doesn’t think the business community understands how many resources are available
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Greg Musil, who grew up on a farm outside Frankfort, Kan., poses next to a Ford tractor near one of JCCC’s farm fields.
at JCCC. He’d like to see ties between JCCC and the business community grow. As a member of the board of trustees learning quality committee, he’s impressed by JCCC’s early alert program that asks faculty to alert counselors to students who are having problems and then links the students with the resources they need to succeed. Such programs reinforce his appreciation of young people. “I find working with young people invigorating,” he said. “Getting to know them dispels most of the myths about young people as slackers who don’t care.” Musil would like to see more alumni pride and presence on the part of JCCC graduates. “I want people, when they leave JCCC, to see it as the place where they got their start,” he said. “I’d like them to say ‘JCCC was an important part of my life,’ and witness to others about that.” Possibly the biggest challenge facing trustees is finances, Musil said. “We need to make smart budget decisions so that the resources are there to keep us at the top of the academic mountain and so that the taxpayers continue to understand they’re getting a good value,” he said. “Taxpayers will support us if they believe that what they’re getting out of JCCC is worthwhile.”
Best-selling author retains ties with JCCC professor Best-selling author Candice Millard, an alumna
of JCCC, recently began crisscrossing the country on her latest book tour. Her second book, Destiny of the Republic, follows up the popular and critical success of her debut, River of Doubt. Before she left, however, she invited Steve Gerson, a professor of English at JCCC, and his wife over to her house to catch up. Decades after Millard sat in his Composition I and II classes, Gerson sat as a guest in her home. The two have a friendship that has continued through the years. After 25 years and thousands of students, Gerson doesn’t have much memory of Millard’s performance in class, but he does remember looking for good students to babysit his young children – after those responsible students had finished his class, of course – and Millard fit that requirement. She babysat for Gerson’s two girls for years, and Gerson said he then discovered what a wonderful person Millard was. Millard is quick to return the compliment. Of Gerson, she said, “He is hilarious. He’s so smart, and he is such a good teacher. His teaching style is not only fun and interesting, it’s very thoughtful. I always looked forward to class.” Millard chose JCCC because she didn’t know where to go to school or what to study. She knew she liked writing – she had been on the newspaper staff at Shawnee Mission Northwest High School – but she didn’t know if it was her life’s work. Unsure of her next step, she picked JCCC for her freshman year. “I loved it. It was perfect for me. I took some basic classes, but the two classes that stand out for me were Composition I and II.”
JCCC alumna Candice Millard holds her latest effort, Destiny of the Republic, in her Lenexa office.
baby was on the way. Since then, “it’s been books and babies,” she said. Her children, ages 9, 6 and 4, are one reason she likes living in the area again. “My first priority is my children, and it’s a wonderful place to raise kids.” She took her two youngest children with her when doing research for Destiny of the Republic in Washington, D.C. The book, about the assassination attempt and subsequent death of U.S. President James Garfield, is an historic look at an often-forgotten man who served only six months as commander-in-chief. “He was one of the most extraordinary men ever to be elected president,” Millard said. Gerson said he couldn’t wait to get Millard’s latest book. He described her first book as “lightning in a bottle.” “I’m an English teacher. I’ve spent all my life reading, and her book is simply magical,” he said. “I can take no credit for her writing style – that is her own – but I could happily retire now, having been a part of her creation.” River of Doubt was named one of the best books of the year by The New York Times, The Washington Post, the San Francisco Chronicle and The Kansas City Star. The book also won a 2006 William Rockhill Nelson Award.
After completing graduate school and working for a number of different magazines, Millard spent six years at National Geographic. She moved back to the Kansas City area in 2002, when she signed her first book contract and her first Fall 2011 | Imprint
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Lane leaving theatre family to take over as dean Jim Lane and Betty Furtwengler, outgoing dean of the arts, humanities and social sciences division, meet weekly in her office.
During the last 20 years, a backstage office in
sociology. Lane has been working with her to learn the responsibilities of the job, she said, so she believes it will be a smooth transition.
From that hideaway, Lane has prepared for the theatre classes he teaches, designed sets as the technical director for theatre productions and run the music and theatre department at Johnson County Community College. When you add in the evenings that he’s stayed late for rehearsals, you might understand why he considers his faculty and staff as his “brothers and sisters.”
“Jim and I have similar philosophies,” Furtwengler said. “We seek to emulate Dr. Marilyn Rhinehart’s awesome example of servant leadership. We try to meet student and faculty needs while serving the college as a whole institution.”
the Carlsen Center has become a second home for Jim Lane.
“We’re all just a big family,” Lane said. On Jan. 1, Lane’s “family” will grow significantly. That’s when he will take over as dean of arts, humanities and social sciences, the biggest division at the college. He will be in charge not only of whoever replaces him as chairman of the music/theatre department but also of the heads of 10 other departments, which include humanities, sociology and philosophy and religion. “I’ll just be working for them now instead of with them,” Lane said. “I hope to be their biggest supporter and advocate.” Lane will succeed Dr. Betty Furtwengler, who is retiring. She has served the college for 19 years as dean, assistant dean of social sciences and social services and professor of
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Lane will report to Rhinehart, executive vice president of academic affairs and chief academic officer. Rhinehart said she has always marveled at Lane’s devotion to the theatre department and the college and his incredible technical or stagecraft talent. “Interestingly enough,” she said, “some of those skills will come in handy as he officially assumes his dean responsibilities in January. ‘Measure twice, cut once,’ as Norm Abram from This Old House says! There’s an analogy in that statement for someone taking on a dean’s job. “Jim also is good with people and is relationship-oriented as a leader. I think that is a fine quality for anyone in such a position to have.” Beate Pettigrew, an assistant professor of theatre, says Lane is perfect for the job.
Jim Lane introduces MIG welding to his Basic Stagecraft class in the Carlsen Center scene shop.
“He’s incredibly easy to get along with,” she said, and “he’s got patience a mile long.” Lane says he’s going to miss the theatre but is looking forward to the new challenges. Obviously, he said, one of them will be operating in a rocky economy with fewer dollars available to serve an increasing number of students. He also expects to be learning how to resolve conflicts, which could involve anything from a student’s grade to a disagreement among faculty. Lane said he hopes that no one expects him to institute any big changes. His goal, he said, will be to take care of the administrative chores so the faculty “can just teach and be the best teachers they can be.” Lane, who is 47, joined the college in 1990 after earning a master of fine arts at the University of Missouri in Kansas City.
His theatre career began inauspiciously at Hayden High School in Topeka when the theatre director begged him and other boys in choir to take part in Brigadoon. Theatre season took place during track season – virtually the only sport in which he did not participate – and so he joined the cast, believing it would be a good way to meet girls. Later, at Washburn University, a theatre professor lined him up to work during the summers with the Great Lakes Shakespeare festival in Cleveland, Ohio. By that time, he said, he had learned he was more suited to be a designer/technical director than an actor. A relationship he developed with a professor at the Cleveland festival led him to UMKC. Lane said he began entertaining the idea of changing jobs after he fell off a ladder and broke a rib in the summer of 2010. That’s when he started thinking he was getting too old to be carrying rope and cable hoses and working 70 hours a week.
As Lane leaves the theatre department, he also is leaving his 15-year association with the annual Heart of America Shakespeare Festival in Kansas City. He served as technical director for the festival for the last time this past summer. The job change will give Lane a chance to spend more time with his wife, Julie, their three children and their five foster children. Theatre Professor Sheilah Philip says Lane will be missed. But she has a feeling he’ll be back now and then. Lane thinks so too. In fact, Lane said, if anyone’s looking for the dean next semester, a good place to check might be the theatre’s scene shop.
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Some Enchanted Evening turns record-breaking 25 Pictured are JCCC Foundation President Steve Wilkinson, (front row, from left) Barbara Shull, Richard G. Shull, SuEllen Fried, JCCC President Terry Calaway and Marlene Calaway, co-chairs of the event, Ben Craig, Floriene Lieberman and George Lieberman. Back row (from left) are William H. Dunn Sr., Shirley Rose, Steve Rose, Mary Birch, Kent Sunderland (representing 1992 honoree James Sunderland), Dick Bond, David Wysong, Betty Keim, Robert H. Meneilly and Charles J. Carlsen.
Over the past 24 years,
Johnson County Community College has raised more than $5 million and honored 24 of the county’s most prominent citizens through a series of enchanted evenings, all in the name of student scholarships. This year marks the 25th anniversary of Some Enchanted Evening, the JCCC Foundation’s glittering black-tie gala. Each year, patrons have enjoyed a gourmet dinner and a night of dancing, knowing that the proceeds from the event help students in need to continue their education. This year, Some Enchanted Evening is scheduled for Nov. 12. As of the time of this writing, this year’s event had raised $600,000, more than in any previous year. “We are grateful for the community support that’s reflected in the Some Enchanted Evening fundraising,” said Terry Calaway, JCCC president, who with his wife, Marlene, is co-chair of the 2011 Some Enchanted Evening anniversary gala. “Private support of education is essential now, and the community has never let us down. Despite the relatively low cost of attending college at JCCC, many county residents could not come here without this help.” Each year, the event has also recognized a Johnson Countian of the Year – a man,
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woman or couple who worked to benefit the county through civic leadership or philanthropic support. The roster is a who’s-who of county leadership. “For the 25th anniversary of Some Enchanted Evening, we wanted to once again thank all our past Johnson Countians of the Year for their service to the community and the college,” Calaway said. “This anniversary celebration also provides us with a base from which we can launch even greater efforts for the future.” This year’s anniversary event recognizes these past honorees: 1987 The Rev. Robert H. Meneilly, founding pastor of the Village Presbyterian Church 1988 Ben Craig, former president of Metcalf State Bank and one of the college’s founders 1989 Paul H. Henson, former president, United Telecom/U.S. Sprint 1990 John H. (Jack) Robinson, former president and managing partner, Black & Veatch 1991 Stan and Shirley Rose, former publishers, Sun Publications 1992 James P. Sunderland, former president and chairman, Ash Grove Cement Co. 1993 SuEllen Fried, community volunteer 1994 Adele Hall, community volunteer 1995 William H. Dunn, Sr., chairman, J.E. Dunn Construction Co.
1996 Richard L. Bond, former Kansas state senator 1997 George and Floriene Lieberman, community volunteers 1998 Charles J. Carlsen, former president, Johnson County Community College 1999 Steve Rose, former editor and chairman, Sun Publications 2000 Betty Keim, community volunteer and former mayor of Mission Hills 2001 Drue Jennings, former chairman and CEO of Kansas City Power & Light 2002 Mary Birch, former president, Overland Park Chamber of Commerce 2003 Walter Hiersteiner, former vice chairman of the board, Tension Envelopes 2004 Robert Regnier, president and CEO, Bank of Blue Valley 2005 Ed Eilert, former mayor of Overland Park and current chair of the Johnson County commission 2006 Norman and Elaine Polsky, former president and CEO, Fixtures Furniture, and community volunteer 2007 Richard G. and Barbara Shull, president, Shawnee Mission Ford, and community volunteer 2008 Fred Logan, attorney, Logan, Logan and Watson 2009 Terry and Peggy Dunn, president and CEO, J.E. Dunn Construction Co., and mayor of Leawood 2010 David Wysong, former Kansas state senator
Couture collection that dates to 1860s finds home on campus Hundreds of garments surround Joan McCrillis, chair of fashion merchandising and design, in the Carlsen Center.
Community College now has a closet full of clothes on campus, and the apparel is expected to get quite a bit of use.
Johnson County
This is no ordinary closet, however, and no one will be donning the garments for a night on the town or a day at the mall. Rather, the clothing will get a workout from students in the fashion merchandising and design program as they study fashion history, clothing construction and visual merchandising, among other subjects. The collection was established by Fashion Group International of Kansas City. It includes more than 3,000 pieces of apparel and accessories dating as far back as the 1860s.The collection had been housed at Bishop Miege High School, but when the college closed its Bishop Miege site this spring, the collection had to find a new home. The solution was a former media closet between rooms 232 and 234 in the Carlsen Center. Renovations to the 875square-foot space added a divider wall with double-decked hanging space on both sides as well as double-decked hanging space around the perimeter of the room. It took a small army of movers a full day in June to load scores of hanging clothing boxes onto three moving trucks and then unload the collection in the refurbished room.
Volunteers from the fashion merchandising and design department then unpacked the boxes. On one side of the divider wall, garments are sorted by decade. On the other, they’re sorted by designer. “We’re thrilled to have the collection on campus so we’re able to use it,” said Joan McCrillis, professor and chair, fashion merchandising and design. “This collection can support anything we teach.” The history of costume class, for example, will be able to see firsthand decades’ worth of garments from the 1860s to the 1990s. Clothing construction and pattern-making students will be able to examine designer garments close-up to see the construction details. And visual merchandising classes will use the garments in display cases on the second floor of the General Education Building and on the third floor bridge between the Office and Classroom Building and the Billington Library. “Every class has a way they can incorporate it,” said Joy Rhodes, associate professor, fashion merchandising and design. Though faculty used the collection for teaching before the move, they’re likely to use it even more now that it’s conveniently located in the Carlsen Center, she said. Fall 2011 | Imprint
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Jazz Winterlude: Kansas City Style Top jazz bands show off their styles at Winterlude festival
in a row, Johnson County Community College is offering three days of jazz in January for the public to enjoy.
For the third year
Two of the nation’s top jazz bands, plus many of Kansas City’s best jazz musicians, will perform during Jazz Winterlude, which will run from Friday, Jan. 20, through Sunday, Jan. 22, at the Carlsen Center. For details, visit www.jccc.edu/music/jazz-winterlude.html. Various forms of jazz will be presented, including contemporary, Kansas City swing and New Orleans style. The Brubeck Brothers Quartet, which will perform Friday at 8:30 p.m., likes to integrate straight-ahead jazz with influences of funk, blues and world music. And Poncho Sanchez and his Latin Jazz Band, which performs at 8 p.m. Saturday, adds some soul and salsa. Doreen Maronde, a member of the festival committee, said she hopes the festival draws people from all over. “We are really trying to push jazz – to get people to listen to it and to like jazz,” Maronde said. “That’s part of the effort here.” More than a half dozen Kansas City area groups will perform. They include the Bill Crain Quartet, whose leader has been called “a Renaissance Music Man” by JAM magazine and Lynn Zimmer and the Jazz Band, which regularly plays at the Gaslight Grill. Zimmer’s band features
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some of Kansas City’s most recognized names in jazz. The festival will open on Friday with daylong master classes and clinics that connect local jazz professionals with area students. The Brubeck Brothers will be this year’s special guest clinicians. The public is invited to observe. On Saturday, six area jazz groups will play beginning at 12:30 p.m. The Sunday event is an 11 a.m. brunch with the Dan DeLuca Trio in the Regnier Center Cube, which is on the second floor. DeLuca is noted for his impressive interpretation of jazz standards and the American Songbook. He will be joined by Monte Muza on guitar and James Albright on bass. Tickets cost $20 for Friday and $25 for Saturday. A pass for both days is $30. The Sunday brunch costs $25. The price for students with a student ID will be $5 on Friday and $5 on Saturday. Tickets for the Brubeck concert are $20, $5 for students with an ID. (But anyone with a Friday day pass gets in for no additional cost.) Tickets for Poncho Sanchez and his Latin Jazz band are $45 and $35. (If you have a day pass, ask the box office about a discount for Poncho Sanchez. And if you are a student with an ID, you can get in for $5.) Call the college box office at 913-469-4445 or visit jccc.edu/TheSeries.
Info on the bands Bill Crain Quartet: Longtime jazz reed player, band leader and educator Bill Crain leads a group of Kansas City musicians capable of playing multiple styles. Called by JAM “a Renaissance Music Man,” Crain also runs a recording studio. Crosscurrent: This group of young musicians plays music of or inspired by the great pianist/composer Lennie Tristano, who left his mark on American jazz during the mid-20th century. JCCC Faculty Jazz Combo: Made up of musicians who play a role in JCCC’s educational program, this new combo features composers, arrangers, leaders of their own bands and red-hot soloists.
Poncho Sanchez and his band will play at 8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 21.
Jazz Disciples: Led by Gerald Dunn, Blue Room general manager, the Jazz Disciples feature some of the area’s most in-demand musicians. You can find them at the Blue Room and at festivals around the area. Brandon Draper Group: Percussionist Brandon Draper is noted for innovation and creativity. A member of the musical group performing with Quixotic Fusion, his beat provides the momentum for any group he joins. Lynn Zimmer and the Jazz Band: Longtime clarinetist and band leader, Zimmer plays regularly at the Gaslight Grill. His band features some of Kansas City’s most recognized names in jazz. Matt Otto Quintet: A relatively recent arrival in Kansas City, saxophonist Matt Otto is already making his presence known. He is a versatile musician who can play a number of styles (and reed instruments) and who is a popular recruit in a number of bands. Matt leads his own powerful jazz group as well. Will Matthews Quartet: This long-time guitarist for the Count Basie band brings the famous swing to his contemporary quartet. Kansas City Bass Quartet: Yes, that’s right! It’s four double basses tossing around a melody and providing a bass line and harmony for each other.
The Brubeck Brothers Quartet will play at 8:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 20.
Winterlude Schedule Friday, Jan. 20 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. 6 to 7 p.m. 7:15 to 8:15 p.m. 8:30 p.m.
School band clinics and classes Bill Crain Quartet Crosscurrent Brubeck Brothers Quartet (Opening act: JCCC Faculty Jazz Combo)
Saturday, Jan. 21 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. 1:45 to 2:45 p.m. 3 to 4 p.m. 4:15 to 5:15 p.m. 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. 6:45 to 7:45 p.m. 8 to 10 p.m.
Jazz Disciples Brandon Draper Group Lynn Zimmer and the Jazz Band Matt Otto Quintet Will Matthews Quartet Kansas City Bass Quartet Poncho Sanchez and his Latin Jazz Band
Sunday, Jan. 22 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Brunch with the Dan DeLuca Trio in the Regnier Center Cube
All events take place in the Carlsen Center except for the Sunday brunch.
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Artist in residence
Parisian sculptor shares time at JCCC Sculptor Jean-Paul Reti is spending much of the fall semester with students at JCCC.
Jean-Paul Reti is all about perspective. As a
sculptor, he creates pieces where everyday objects are given new meaning. A tree with its root system spreads into and under a large wall panel. A city sidewalk is cut away to reveal the machination of pipes and cables. Reti also likes new perspectives in his own life. He left his studio in a renovated warehouse in Paris and in September ventured into the vistas of Kansas. He will spend three months at JCCC as part of the Scholar-in-Residence Program, working with both art students and French-language students. “I have been invited to share time with students and faculty as it will be possible,” Reti said. “This is an experiment for everybody.” The road to Reti’s residence began in 2008. Janette Funaro, professor, French, was planning the JCCC “Art in Paris” trip with Allison Smith, department chair, art history. As part of the trip, the group would partake of a cheese tasting in a restaurant in the same neighborhood as Les Frigos, an artists’ community in an old warehouse once refrigerated to house meat for the city.
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Familiar with Les Frigos from previous visits to Paris, Funaro wondered if some of the artists might be open to a visit from the JCCC group. Reti was one of the artists who replied to her email request, offering to organize a visit to see several of the studios. In spring 2009 and again in spring 2010, Reti led JCCC groups through Les Frigos. “Jean-Paul was so generous with his time and so genuinely interested in teaching us about the building and about the artists,” said Funaro, “and his own work was so fascinating, that asking him to come to our campus seemed like a natural progression to me.” Smith agreed that inviting Reti to JCCC would be a tremendous opportunity. Fast-forward through the Scholarin-Residence application process, emails, funding requests and mounds of government paperwork, and Reti ended up as artist in residence at JCCC. Reti doesn’t like the term “artist.” It’s too elitist for his liking. He prefers “craftsman,” and he’s not big on formal introductions, either. During a recent visit to the sculpture studio in the Arts and Technology Building on campus, he met students of Sydney Pener’s Metals and Silversmithing
Jean-Paul Reti talks with student Wendie Collins about a sculpture that she is creating.
class. It was without the fanfare the phrase “visiting sculptor from Paris” would imply. “I prefer to make it very normal,” Reti said. “I just said hello, and I looked around, and I tried to get an idea of the job (students are doing).” Reti’s father was a doctor, and his home was filled with books on anatomy. The young Reti was enthralled with the unseen world of the human body. Initially, he thought he would become a doctor as well, but art became his career path. “I did not leave surgery completely. I like to think that in my work I take a scalpel and cut into the earth,” Reti said, showing the unseen world of – well, the world. His father also left to him another legacy – that of dividing his time between personal growth and societal responsibility. When the mayor of Paris wanted to tear down Les Frigos, the building holding his studio and the workspace of another 120 artists, writers, designers and other entrepreneurs, he spearheaded the effort to retain it. “I worked four or five hours a day, at the expense of my sculpture,” Reti said. In Paris, he explained, there are many museums, but few places for artists to work. “It is as if they
make windows where people can see things, but they don’t give room for people whose job it is to fill the window.” Costs to create studio space from scratch – especially in an expensive metropolis like Paris – can be prohibitive. So he fought, and he won. He also likes to think his art reflects a societal responsibility as well. His work may dissect the earth, but borders disappear. “When you show the earth as a homogenous thing, you forget the things that make tensions – murders even. You are showing the earth as it is, as unity. I hope to tell the viewer to accept the whole of the earth.” Reti’s schedule in the coming months won’t include any formal teaching, but he’ll work with associate professor Mark Cowardin’s advanced sculpture students, speak to classes, give formal presentations and try to work on a sculpture that reflects his time in Kansas. Pener said she’s delighted to have him work with her students. “Even having him come through the studio provoked interest. It’s exciting to have a visiting artist here on campus, working and talking to students, especially an international artist.” Fall 2011 | Imprint
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Students notice a need, establish food pantry Students talk with their adviser about collecting food for those in need.
to concentrate when you’re hungry. But for some Johnson County Community College students, it’s a fact of life. Buying books or filling the car with gas to get to class may come at the cost of three square meals a day.
It’s hard
That’s one of the factors that led the college’s Students in Free Enterprise chapter to establish a food pantry in the business division’s main office in the Office and Classroom Building. The food pantry got its start in November 2010 when SIFE students participated in the Campbell’s Soup Company’s “Let’s Can Hunger” challenge. The corporation challenged SIFE groups across the nation and in Canada and Mexico to raise awareness of hunger, translate that awareness to action in the form of hunger relief and empower those in need to defeat the cycle of hunger. “We were going to collect the food and give it to other food pantries,” said Stacey Allison, project manager for SIFE who was part of last year’s effort and continues to be involved this year. “But then staff asked us about keeping the food on campus. We learned there was a real need.” That’s not surprising. United Community Services, a Johnson County agency that monitors human services needs, reported in September that U.S. Census Bureau figures for 2010 showed that 6.6 percent of the Johnson County population had incomes at or below the poverty level. Though Johnson County’s poverty rate was steady from a year earlier, the agency said the rate rose to 12.7 percent for the six-county Kansas City metropolitan area. With an area-wide growth in poverty, the SIFE students
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found that the JCCC pantry could serve a niche of need. In all, SIFE collected 6,000 pounds of nonperishable food items and earned a Silver Spoon Award for their efforts in 2010-2011. This year, the group plans to continue the effort. Barbara Millard, SIFE adviser and associate professor, entrepreneurship, said she expects that SIFE students will work with other student groups both to gather food for the pantry and to raise awareness of its existence. Millard said protein items – tuna, peanut butter and chunky soups, for example – are in short supply. Personal care and baby items, like diapers, also are welcome. Anyone is welcome to drop off food in the marked barrels around campus. Those in need can stop by the food pantry in OCB 272 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday to pick up the food they need. Typically, around 10 people stop by each week, but Allison and Millard would like to see that number grow. Allison noted that local food pantries are running low on food as the economy continues to falter, and she said she wants to get the word out about the food available on-site at JCCC. Her involvement with the food pantry has left her feeling fulfilled. “We’re helping them survive so they can finish school,” she said. “When you face the choice of eating or buying books, that’s really difficult.”
Professors help hospital in Uganda and Kathy Carver went to Uganda the first time, they knew immediately that they’d have to go back again. Soon. So they did. And if things work out, they’ll visit a third time. And a fourth …
When Mary Smith
The two women, both professors in the nursing department at JCCC, were extended an invitation to visit the war-torn African country by Dr. David Zamierowski, the Healthcare Simulation Center medical adviser at JCCC. The retired doctor invited them to go with him on a 12-day trip in 2009. Those days were just enough for them to realize they needed to help more than their short trip would allow. Uganda was without leaders. Generations of Ugandans had been wiped out, all casualties of war. Missing was a firm organization run by the voice of experience, and health care was no exception. Ugandans were trying their best to educate a new cadre of nurses, but it proved difficult given recovery from chaos. They wanted to learn so much, explained Smith. They just needed someone to help support them. “That trip really was about making introductions,” said Carver. “In that part of Africa, they really appreciate the effort you are making to teach and to share.” So Smith and Carver applied to the sabbatical committee at JCCC, and last spring, they returned to Uganda. They stayed for five weeks at St. Mary’s Hospital Lacor, a private hospital founded by missionaries 50 years ago in the northern city of Gulu. They lived in a dormitory near the hospital, thankful for flush toilets, electric fans and mosquito netting. The days hovered at 100 degrees, but the nights were sweltering. The two would lay for hours waiting for it to cool off enough to sleep. During the day, they would offer their services however the hospital and its affiliated nursing program wanted to use them. They had laptops and Internet access, so they emailed colleagues for files, Powerpoint presentations, photos – anything they needed to teach the nursing concept the students wanted to learn. Although the hospital was equipped with some basic medical equipment, it lacked supplies American hospitals take for granted. In her journal, Smith wrote of a baby who stopped breathing shortly after his birth. There was no oxygen to administer, as there would be at a U.S. hospital, so Smith
Professors Mary Smith (from left) and Kathy Carver pose outside a hospital in Uganda with Robin, their driver.
tried CPR. The baby did not recover. In her journal, Smith described what it was like to see the parents pick up the body of their child. “Later [the father] returned with some of their family, and the baby was given to them to take home to bury. I conveyed my sorrow, and he replied that this is accepted, and their faith in God will give them strength and acceptance. I prayed with him,” she wrote. “I am indeed disturbed by what we saw but I also feel that witnessing the death of a baby is part of their reality here, and we should not be immune to it as we are here to gain understanding and to convey genuine caring.” Due in part to this experience, Smith has applied to become a trainer in the Helping Babies Breathe program, a joint curriculum from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the World Health Organization, to so she can teach the Ugandans neonatal resuscitation on her next visit. Both Carver and Smith would like to return to Uganda with students. They said they’d like to create a college program similar to the Las Pintas service learning program, which is already in place. Las Pintas is an impoverished community on the edge of Guadalajara, Mexico. Students and faculty from JCCC have been helping in a clinic there for 13 years, and Smith was involved in that project from the start. “I have a passion for international service, since the 1980s when I worked in Haiti, then when I went to work here in the ‘90s, for Las Pintas,” Smith said. “There is just so much more to do in this world.” Along with the University of Kansas, and the Rockhurst School of Nursing, JCCC could team with medicalmissions.org to send students and faculty to Uganda as early as June 2012.
Fall 2011 | Imprint
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Johnson County Community College
JCCC again ranks among top digital community colleges Johnson County Community College again this year is listed among the top-rated community colleges for digital technology by the Center for Digital Education and Converge magazine. JCCC was also top-ranked in 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010. The annual Digital Community Colleges Survey documents advances made by community colleges in utilizing information technology and recognizes which colleges, as a result, provide a high level of service to their faculty, students and communities. The survey looked at technology integration into college curriculum and campus life, documenting the use of online admissions processes, distance education, technology training for students and faculty, campus security alerts and use of Web 2.0 social and collaborative capabilities as well as online tutoring and advisory services. Use of mobile devices was also a key indicator of success. “It’s a great honor to be recognized by experts as one of the best in the country,” said Terry Calaway, president, JCCC. “Our faculty, staff and administrators find innovative ways to use technology in and out of the classroom to improve teaching, learning and student support.” JCCC was listed among the top colleges in the large college category (10,000 students or more). 1st: Kingsborough Community College, Brooklyn, N.Y.
2nd: Lone Star College, The Woodlands, Texas 3rd: Montgomery County Community College, Tacoma Park, Md. 3rd: Northern Virginia Community College, Alexandria, Va. 4th: Catawba Valley Community College, Hickory, N.C. 5th: Scottsdale Community College, Scottsdale, Ariz. 6th: Howard Community College, Columbia, Md. 7th: Johnson County Community College 7th: Tidewater Community College, Norfolk, Va. 8th: Jefferson State Community College, Birmingham, Ala. 9th: Moraine Valley Community College, Palos Hills, Ill. 9th: Salt Lake Community College, Salt Lake City, Utah 10th: Delaware Technical and Community College, Wilmington, Del. 10th: LaGuardia Community College, Long Island City, N.Y. “As community college enrollments continue to increase, school leaders are incorporating new technologies to enhance student services and improve course curriculum,” said Cathilea Robinett, executive vice president of the Center for Digital Education. “Expanded distance learning offerings, use of mobile devices and greater collaboration – among other efforts – demonstrate these winners’ drive to provide students with a highquality education at a lower cost.”