Report to the community 2014-15

Annual Report to the Community Johnson County Community College 2014-2015

Annual Report to the Community Johnson County Community College A message from the president . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 A message from the chair, board of trustees . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Mission, Vision, Values and Strategic Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Strategic Plan update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Serving the community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Faculty and staff awards and honors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Student awards and honors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Athletics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Center for Sustainability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Events and speakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Accountable to the community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Continuing Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Performing Arts Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Johnson County Community College Foundation . . . . . . . . . 34

A message from the president Welcome to Johnson County Community College! As you can see from the pages of this annual report, 2014-2015 was a busy year for JCCC. Thanks to a committed board of trustees and a remarkably energetic and professional faculty and staff, many wonderful accomplishments were recorded during the past year. Most importantly, the tremendous support that we receive from our community is what makes our college able to do great things. In the following pages, you will not see any ribbon cuttings for new buildings, but you will see examples of tremendous work by our students, faculty and staff.

Our students continue to be recognized for excellence. The culinary team, the debate team and the Model UN team each had an outstanding year, earning trophies and medals across the country and the world. Our women’s basketball team won the national championship with a spectacular shot at the buzzer. Most importantly, our students succeeded in the classroom and at life every single day. We celebrate everyone’s accomplishment regardless of how big or small it may be. The privilege of contributing to the success of our students is what brings the faculty and staff back to JCCC year after year (see pages 12-16).

As a college, our big news is the progress we’ve made with our key performance indicators (KPIs). JCCC uses data to measure students’ progress, which is a reflection of our efforts and success as faculty and staff. We thus hold ourselves accountable for achieving higher levels of student success every year and for understanding why if we don’t. I’m proud to report that we saw improvement across almost all of our KPIs, as full-time and part-time student graduation and transfer rates, fall-to-fall persistence, transfer performance and student satisfaction results increased. Be sure to see the charts on page 23.

Also over the past year, more than a hundred of us across campus worked diligently on projects that supported JCCC’s new strategic plan, ranging from program process improvement to online learning to creating greater efficiencies to budgeting. Many Johnson County citizens participated in the community conversations that helped us develop our plan; you can see on pages 4-5 what we’ve accomplished this year. We thank you for your contributions.

The support of the community also plays a major role in our students’ success. We’re grateful that many of you serve on our program advisory committees, attend our events or enroll in our classes. We do our best to serve you. The information on these pages shows you what we achieved during academic and fiscal year 2014-2015.

Sincerely,

Joe Sopcich President

The president’s leadership team Dr. Judy Korb, executive vice president, instruction and operations Dr. Barbara Larson, executive vice president, administrative services and finance Andy Anderson, vice president of academic affairs/chief academic officer Dr. Randy Weber, vice president of student success and engagement Tom Pagano, vice president of information services/CIO Tanya Wilson, general counsel Julie Haas, associate vice president of college and community relations Karen Martley, associate vice president of continuing education and organizational development Chris Gray, executive director of marketing communications Terri Schlicht, executive assistant to the president and the board 1

A message from the chair, board of trustees Four years ago this community gave me the opportunity to become a member of the Johnson County Community College trustees. I’m very thankful for that trust and opportunity. Along with all of our trustees, I take seriously our responsibility to steward this institution because we believe in our mission, which is to inspire learning, transform individuals and strengthen our community. Ultimately, pursuing this mission serves every member of our community. JCCC continues to be a catalyst for educational and economic success in Johnson County.

I’ve worked with the college for many years as a volunteer on its Foundation board and have admired the college’s numerous accomplishments and contributions to our community. But I never fully knew, or understood, the true size and scope of this organization until I sat behind the table as a trustee and now act as its chair. Johnson County Community College is a comprehensive community college, meaning that it takes pride in providing educational and cultural services for a broad, inclusive spectrum of people in our community.

We do a terrific job at this and daily earn national recognition for the quality of our offerings. In the process, we strive to meet our community’s needs, now and for the future.

For my message, I thought it important to share with you how the college affects the community from an economic perspective. In addition to providing an array of educational programs and cultural offerings, the college also contributes to the economic engine that is Johnson County. For example, during school year 2013-2014, according to Economic Modeling Specialists International (an organization that does economic studies around the world), the college, its students and alumni contributed $723.7 million to the Johnson County economy. This annual contribution is a very good return on the investment made annually by our taxpayers. Clearly, JCCC is a good value that it adds to the economic vitality of our region and to the quality of life. We will continue to discover how we can add to that value in the year ahead.

The board of trustees is proud of JCCC’s students, faculty, staff and programs, as well as the people of Johnson County who continue to support the vision started in 1967 when our county voted to create its community college. The board thanks each of you for your continued support of our college and its mission.

Sincerely,

Greg Musil

JCCC board of trustees Dr. Jerry Cook Lee Cross Dr. Robert Drummond Nancy Ingram David Lindstrom Greg Musil Stephanie Sharp

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Mission, Vision, Values and Strategic Goals Mission JCCC inspires learning to transform lives and strengthen communities.

Vision JCCC will be a national leader through educational excellence and innovation.

Values • Integrity We hold ourselves accountable for decisions and actions.

• Collaboration We respect diversity of thought in building a culture of collaboration.

• Responsiveness We respond to the needs of our students and communities through relevant offerings.

• Leadership We pursue leadership roles in our communities and higher education.

Strategic goals Goal 1: I ncrease student success by improving student satisfaction, retention, persistence, graduation and transfer rates.

Task 1: Create an academic master plan aligned with the strategic goals integrating student and employer needs through academic programming and student experience initiatives.

Task 2: Enhance student success by integrating academic offerings, advising and student resources.

Task 3: Using data, identify and implement high-impact practices that have demonstrated positive results in student satisfaction, retention, persistence, graduation and transfer rates.

Task 4: Increase enrollment by developing a long-range enrollment and recruiting plan.

Task 5: Foster a culture that inspires college employees to proactively support students.

Goal 2: Demonstrate increased agility in responding to stakeholder needs.

Task 1: Fully implement a program review and development process to ensure that curricular offerings maintain high quality and align with community needs by growing, restructuring, adding or discontinuing programs as appropriate.

Task 2: Improve satisfaction with internal business processes (quality and delivery time).

Task 3: Expand Web-based instructional options for students and the community.

Goal 3: Focus on communicating the college’s comprehensive offerings.

Task 1: Develop a comprehensive marketing plan that supports the priority of increasing enrollment at JCCC. Task 2: Enhance internal communication through increased cross-functional collaboration and intentional communication to the campus community.

Goal 4: C ommit to the efficient use of resources to strengthen quality offerings.

Task 1: Reduce administrative costs as a percentage of total expenditures through streamlining business processes, service area reviews and reallocation of resources from administrative functions toward direct student success activities.

Task 2: Improve facility utilization.

Task 3: Revamp the budget process to align with strategic goals.

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Strategic plan update JCCC’s new strategic plan was formulated and introduced in academic year 20132014. Over the course of the 2014-2015 academic year, 13 project teams worked to develop further the strategic goals and their concomitant tasks, conducting research and formulating initiatives that help implement the college’s strategic plan. Some teams were able to finish their projects within the year; other projects are long-term and will require additional months to complete.

More than 100 faculty and staff were involved with the projects this year. Through their hard work, this is where the projects stood at the end of the academic year.

Seven of the 13 tasks have been completed to the point that they will be “operationalized,” meaning they have or will become part of the college’s operating processes: 1. An academic master plan (Goal 1/Task 1) has been created with four components – program review, student success, online learning and facilities – that reflect the college’s academic goals and priorities. JCCC’s academic master plan is now online.

2. Recommendations regarding academic advising (Goal 1/Task 2), including a guided pathways initiative, are reflected in the academic master plan and are being implemented by the Student Success and Engagement branch.

3. A new enrollment plan for the college sets targets for certain segments and identifies appropriate service delivery approaches (Goal 1/Task 4).

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4. A new annual process (Goal 2/Task 1) is now included in the three-year cycle of comprehensive academic planning and development. Beginning in August 2015, members of individual departments were trained in the process, with first-year and second-year reviews continuing throughout 2015-2016. All programs should be participating in the process by 2017.

5. Eight high-impact processes, such as room scheduling and registration, have been recommended for process improvement (Goal 2/Task 2).

6. An internal assessment of marketing strategy, competitive research, demographic research and student focus groups were conducted, leading to the implementation of a new “Know/Love” advertising campaign and the creation of a new marketing plan (Goal 3/Task 1).

7. Planning and assessment have been aligned with the college’s budgeting process (Goal 4/Task 3).

Six of the tasks will continue into 2015-2016: 1. The college will undertake a guided pathways initiative, a high-impact practice, that seeks to provide clearer pathways for students to reach their educational goals (Goal 1/Task 3).

2. An employee engagement survey was conducted in spring 2015. Use of the results will guide improvements in communication and practices and lead toward a second survey to be conducted in 2017 (Goal 1/Task 5).

3. The college will undertake several projects to increase JCCC’s online presence (Goal 2/Task 3):

a. Expand the number of online courses, degrees and certificates.

b. Create and promote a new virtual, flexible online college with an identifiable brand.

c. Develop a “Winterim” session to be conducted during the holiday break beginning December 2015.

4. The college will look at improvements to its internal communications system, working with the new chief information officer and executive director of Marketing Communications (Goal 3/Task 2).

5. The college will develop a review process for administrative service areas to help each area better understand its costs and improve services (Goal 4/Task 1).

6. The college will explore available measures, benchmarks and best-practice information on facilities utilization (Goal 4/Task 2).

Kevin Robertson Four mornings a week, student Kevin Robertson leaves his home in Kansas City’s Northland at 6 a.m. and walks four blocks to a bus stop.

He boards the bus and then transfers to another. And then another. The third bus delivers him to the front door of the Carlsen Center at JCCC. The travel time? About two and a half hours. Robertson could be attending a community college closer to where he lives. But he says he is willing to spend more than two hours traveling one way because he believes JCCC is where he belongs. “When I first walked into the Student Center,” he said, “it felt like I had been there already. This is where I am supposed to be.

I didn’t get that at any other community college.”

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Serving the community Johnson County Community College’s culinary program has a world-class reputation, JCCC is using the grant to work closely with business to develop an industry-driven affirmed by the World Association of Chefs Societies, which in July 2014 awarded information technology curriculum, creating new modules, courses and degrees the program a Recognition of Quality Culinary Education designation, an honor in information technology. Business and industry representatives help map the shared by only 35 culinary schools around the world, including just two others in competencies needed for the workplace and provide industry-based professional the United States. development opportunities for students and faculty.

The award recognizes programs that meet or exceed the 12 culinary education standards established by the association’s education committee. The standards include such requirements as leadership by a qualified culinary director, faculty and instructors; formal lesson plans; a commitment to healthy eating; education support centers, such as the Maron J. Moore Hospitality Library in the Hospitality and Culinary Academy; and industry support.

Receiving the designation helps JCCC attract good students and assures their employers that the students have received a top-quality education. “This is a very prestigious industry credential that will set our students apart and open international doors for them,” said Ona Ashley, professor and director of hospitality management.

In July 2014, a new collaboration was introduced among the University of Kansas Edwards Campus, JCCC and the Blue Valley and Olathe school districts that will enable secondary students to obtain a bachelor’s degree in information technology three years after high school graduation.

The program, called Degree in 3, represents an innovative way for students interested in a career in information technology to accelerate their education, gain access to internships, become acclimated to the business world and save money on higher education. Through the program, students in the Blue Valley and Olathe school districts develop an academic plan that includes courses eligible for college credits but completed while in high school. Upon high school graduation, students complete their remaining freshman-sophomore credits at JCCC with the goal of earning in one year an associate of science degree in information technology systems. Students then transfer to KU Edwards Campus and complete courses toward the bachelor of science degree in information technology in two years.

JCCC has long been committed to offering classes in the northern part of the county.

Beginning in August 2014, the college again offered evening classes four nights a week at Shawnee Mission North High School. Shawnee Mission North was the first northeast Johnson County location for JCCC, where the college offered evening classes from 2000 to 2002. JCCC’s northern site then moved to Mission Center Mall, Bishop Miege North and King’s Cove, returning to the high school this year.

In September 2014, JCCC received $2.5 million from the U.S. Department of Labor to provide innovative training programs in partnership with local employers. The department awarded $450 million in job-driven grants to nearly 270 community colleges across the country. The grant funding is part of the Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training (TAACCCT) competitive grant program, co-administered by the Department of Labor and the Department of Education. The grants provide community colleges with funds to partner with employers to expand and improve their ability to deliver education and career training programs in areas such as information technology and healthcare.

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The grant targets four programs: computer information systems/computer programming, information technology networking, web development and health information systems. Each program is using grant funds differently. For example, in web development, the TAACCCT component is a series of classes that students all take together. This “cohort” concept – where students are together from beginning to end – may prove that there’s a social tie to finishing a program. In computer information systems/programming, students with prior programming experience are able to accelerate in “bridge” programming courses. The grant provides the funding to create an accelerated system that allows students to show what they already know, which means they might not have to take a full class. In the information technology program, students have access to a NetLab, a virtual, off-campus learning resource that complements the on-campus lab experience and supplements faculty support.

The grant also funds salaries for career coaches, who guide students specifically in career pathways in technology.

In September 2014, JCCC learned that the college had retained its seat on the board of the League for Innovation in the Community College. Whenever there’s a change in the CEO of a college that serves on the League board, that college has to go through a year-long reaffirmation process to retain its seat. The first step was the preparation of a reaffirmation document that described the college’s leadership, its financial stability, its local and national recognition, and its innovative programming.

The second step took place in August 2014, when three representatives from the League came to campus for a reaffirmation visit and to view showcase presentations on subjects ranging from the Center for American Indian Studies to sustainability in the curriculum.

The retention of JCCC’s board membership was confirmed at the fall League board meeting in September. JCCC is one of 17 community colleges with a seat on the board.

Ashley Ladd

Also in September 2014, for the sixth year in a row, Victory Media named JCCC to its list of Military Friendly Schools®. The list honors the top 20 percent of colleges, universities and trade schools in the country that are doing the most to embrace America’s military service members, veterans and spouses as students and ensure their success on campus.

Just two months later, JCCC opened a new Veterans Center on the third floor of the Commons Building on campus. In addition to offices for the administrators who work with veterans, the center houses study and meeting spaces for veteran students. A veteran services counselor from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is located across the hall.

Try this real-life story problem: A student struggles in rudimentary math courses in junior high and high school. Her parents hire a tutor, who reports that the student has no hope for college and will forever clash with math.

But if the student enrolls in JCCC’s MATH 115 class, adds visits to the college’s Math Resource Center and multiplies her determination, what will be the sum of her effort and fortitude? Answer: Success plus a bachelor’s of science degree in mathematics and a future teaching career. Ashley Ladd, now a student at the University of Kansas, solved that problem, proving that JCCC + free tutors = 4-year university.

In October 2014, JCCC became one of four Kansas community colleges working with the Research and Training Center on Independent Living (RTC/IL) at the University of Kansas on a project funded by a three-year $600,000 grant from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research. The project helps community college students with disabilities request reasonable accommodations they need to succeed in their post-secondary experiences.

KU researchers lead the Access to Success project, which focuses on students with sensory, physical and learning disabilities who are first-time enrollees at four community colleges in Kansas. The other colleges are Allen County, Neosho, and Ft. Scott. The new study builds on an Accommodations Training Technology (ATT) project conducted at three universities, including the University of Kansas, Kansas State University and Haskell Indian Nations University. Pilot testing of the ATT, which includes an online course, showed that its components can be used to teach students with disabilities self-advocacy skills to request ADA accommodations, such as extended test times and the use of note-takers.

The project investigates whether acquisition of these skills results in more successful long-term outcomes, including higher academic scores and completion of coursework.

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In February 2015, JCCC became one of several partners in the Logistics Training Center, located at Logistics Park Kansas City (LPKC), working to meet the training needs of current companies and fulfill the employment needs of future companies located there.

Other partners are NorthPoint Development, the city of Edgerton, Workforce Partnership, BNSF Railway and the Southwest Johnson County Economic Development Corporation.

JCCC will provide direction, coordination and administrative support for the development and ongoing operations of the training center. The college is designing the program around the current and future workforce, training and talent needs of companies at LPKC and in the surrounding area.

In March 2015, the American Bar Association granted re-approval of JCCC’s paralegal program. The program, which began in 1978, was approved for the first time in 1980 and has been re-approved six times – in 1985, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2007 and 2015. This accreditation is the highest that a paralegal program can receive.

Mary Mwashighadi Mary Mwashighadi wants to open a fashion design school in Kenya.

She grew up in Nairobi and wants to go back and teach sewing to children, particularly those who need a hand. “In Kenya people like to wear tailor-made clothes. It’s a big business,” she said. “If I open a school to train kids to sew very well, I’ll be helping them to become self-reliant.”

Mwashighadi was a student in the fashion design and merchandising program at JCCC, graduating in May 2015 with an associate’s degree.

She intends to split her time, working six months each year at her school in Nairobi and living here the other six months.

After 11 years of service on the JCCC board of trustees, trustee Jon Stewart decided to step down. In the April 2015 elections, incumbents David Lindstrom and Greg Musil were re-elected to seats on the board. Nancy Ingram was elected as the newest trustee.

In March 2015, the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center ranked Kansas as the national leader in the percentage of community college students who continue on to get a degree from a four-year institution. The report listed only six states – Virginia, Iowa, North Dakota, Texas and Illinois, along with Kansas – where 20 percent or more of students who started at a two-year public school finished with a degree from a four-year institution. The national average was 16.2 percent; Kansas had the highest rate at 25.2 percent.

In spring 2015, Johnson County Adult Education became part of Accelerating Opportunity – Kansas (AO-K). This program allows concurrent enrollment in GED (General Educational Development) and a technology career, so that students attain a high school diploma and a credential at the same time. JCCC will pilot the program with a healthcare pathway that, in addition to a GED, leads the student to credentials as a certified nurse’s aide and a home health aide.

The National Kitchen and Bath Association bestowed an Excellence in Education Award to JCCC’s interior design kitchen and bath program, one of only 17 schools in the country to receive such recognition. It’s the third time JCCC, an NKBA-accredited program, has been honored. To win the excellence award, JCCC submitted student work, which was judged by professionals. Projects needed to include a floor plan, a construction plan, a mechanical plan and an elevation.

In June 2015, AT&T donated $15,000 to JCCC to support a technology-related pilot program for English as a Second Language (ESL) courses. JCCC’s pilot program studies the benefits of integrating tablets, e-textbooks and digital applications into English language courses, targeting students enrolled in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses. JCCC’s non-native-speaking students represent nearly

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100 countries, including China, Mexico, Kenya, Sudan, Taiwan, South Korea, Honduras and Jordan. For the 2015-2016 academic year, JCCC will place 30 of these EAP students each semester in the technology pilot.

Beginning in fall 2015, JCCC will have a new articulation and reverse transfer agreement with Kansas State University-Salina. The agreement lays out a plan for students to complete their associate of arts degree in liberal arts, their bachelor of science degree in professional pilot and pilot flight training hours. (Students must first have their private pilot’s license and have completed college algebra to be accepted into the K-State portion.) Students will complete their general education requirements with JCCC, their bachelor’s level classes with K-State-Salina and their flight training through Air Associates in Johnson County. All K-State classes, except for one summer term, are offered online through the Salina campus so the student can complete his or her education without leaving Johnson County except for that summer term. If a student transfers to K-State-Salina in this program without having completed an associate’s degree, K-State will monitor the student’s academic progress and automatically send back JCCC transcripts so that the college can retroactively award the associate of arts degree.

Computer support specialist is now an official associate of applied science degree program at JCCC, starting in the fall 2015 semester. It’s the result of a collaborative

effort between the Computer Science and Information Technology and the Industrial Technology divisions. The degree quickly prepares individuals for what the Kansas Department of Labor has identified as a “high-demand, high-wage career.”

Industry-recognized, stackable technical certificates are embedded in the degree so students with prior experience or academic credentials can quickly gain highly marketable skills in one or two semesters. If students complete the AAS degree, they will not only be up to speed on a wide range of computer technologies and applications, but they will also develop important soft skills in the areas of problem solving, verbal and written communication, and customer service.

Also new for fall 2015 is an associate of applied science degree program in neurodiagnostic technology. Technicians perform tests such as electroencephalograms (EEGs), evoked potentials (Eps), nerve conduction studies (NCS) and sleep studies. They analyze and monitor a patient’s nervous system, which includes the spinal cord and the brain, and are trained in polysomnography (sleep technology) and sleep disorders and treatments. In addition, students will explore long-term monitoring (LTM) and intra-operative monitoring (monitoring a patient’s nervous system during surgery). Because the program was created with the assistance of Children’s Mercy Hospital, it has a special pediatric concentration no other neurodiagnostic technology program in the country offers.

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Faculty and staff awards and honors At the Kansas Council for Workforce Education (KCWE) fall conference in Hesston, Kansas, Tom Grady, faculty development coordinator, was elected to serve on the board as the president-elect for the organization.

Dudes in Nursing A group of JCCC practical nursing students met this year at the Olathe Health Education Center, but not to study. Rather, they met because they were men. In practical nursing, that makes them a definite minority. Known as the “Dudes in Nursing,” the group gets its impetus from a growing national recognition that there are not enough men in nursing, which reflects a shortage of male students in nursing programs. National nursing organizations hope to change that. JCCC’s “dudes” meet to discuss what it’s like to be men in nursing and the challenges they might face as nursing students and practicing nurses. David Luoma, assistant professor of practical nursing, is the group’s faculty representative and role model.

In September 2014, John Addessi, staff consultant at JCCC’s Kansas Small Business Development Center (KSBDC) was chosen as the Kansas State Star for the KSBDC network. The State Star award recognizes individuals who demonstrate excellence in work performance, initiative and/or creativity that results in improved operating efficiency, exceptional assistance to clients and an effort to enhance the image of the KSBDC network. His colleagues at the eight regional centers from across the state chose Addessi from a group of nominated peers. Addessi is the fifth JCCC KSBDC staff member in 13 years to be recognized as the Kansas State Star.

In October 2014, the Kansas Art Education Association (KAEA) named Karen Gerety Folk as the Outstanding Museum Education Art Educator for 2014-2015. She is the curator of art education at the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art at JCCC. The KAEA is dedicated to the advancement of human and cultural understanding through the study of art by providing opportunities for professional growth and development, exchange of knowledge and ideas, and service and leadership for the advancement of quality art education. Gerety Folk develops curriculum, programs and resources for JCCC faculty, staff and students as well as school and community groups visiting both the museum and the permanent collection of art on campus.

Dr. Kathryn Byrne, associate professor, Writing Center, was one of 10 Bellwether Finalist Winners in the Instructional Programs and Services category for her program, “Supplemental Instruction, Response Modeling and Student Retention for Developmental Education.” The Bellwether Awards annually recognize outstanding and innovative programs and practices that are successfully leading community colleges into the future.

An article by Dr. Tai Edwards, associate professor of history, titled “Disruption and Disease: The Osage Struggle to Survive in the Nineteenth-Century Trans-Missouri West” (published in Kansas History: A Journal of the Central Plains in winter 2013-2014) was selected by the Kansas Historical Foundation for its annual Edgar Langsdorf Award of Excellence as the article from Kansas History “judged to be most superior considering construction, evidence of research and contribution to the advancement of knowledge.”

Ten faculty members received Distinguished Service Awards for 2014-2015: Luz Alvarez, professor of foreign language; Dr. Jay Antle, professor of history and executive director of the Center for Sustainability; Dr. Vincent Clark, professor of history; Dr. David Davis, professor of English; Terri Easley, associate professor of speech; Dawn Gale, professor of philosophy; Susan Johnson, professor/chair of engineering technology; Barbara Millard, associate professor of marketing management; Dr. Ellyn Mulcahey, associate professor/chair of biotechnology; Dr. Deborah Williams, associate professor of science; and Dr. Brian Wright, professor of political science.

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In May 2015, five JCCC faculty members were recognized for outstanding performance with the BNSF Railway Faculty Award. They were selected by an external judge, Dr. Anne Kress, president of Monroe Community College in Rochester, New York. Winners were Jim Donaghy, welding trainer, railroad industrial technology; Pamela Hulen, associate professor/chair of marketing management; Dr. Ellyn Mulcahy, associate professor/chair of biotechnology; Jean Ann Vickers, professor of science; and Steve Wilson, professor of mathematics.

In May, JCCC won a gold award from the National Association of College & University Food Services for catering the Beyond Bounds Electric! fundraiser for the Nerman Museum in October 2014. The college won in the category of catering for a special event among medium-sized schools.

In June, Anita Tebbe, retiring professor/chair of legal studies, received the Distinguished Government Service Award from the Kansas Bar Association. Tebbe was instrumental in the start of the legal interpreting program at JCCC and worked with U.S. District Court officials to host naturalization ceremonies at the college.

She also worked with the Kansas Court of Appeals and the Kansas Supreme Court to bring hearings to the college to help students learn how the court system works.

Anita Tebbe

Mike Souder, Debbie Rulo and Jeff Hoyer, all leaders within JCCC’s Continuing Education branch, were honored at the Chair Academy’s 24th Annual International Conference, “Leadership in the High-Definition Age,” in April 2015. The award recognizes their ability to advance academic and administrative leadership at JCCC. Also in April, Jason Gray, associate professor of hospitality management, and Dr. Allison Smith, associate professor/chair of art history, received the John & Suanne Roueche Excellence Award from the League for Innovation in the Community College. The award celebrates outstanding contributions and leadership by community college faculty and staff.

Six adjunct professors were selected to receive a Lieberman Teaching Excellence Award, which recognizes outstanding performance by adjunct professors.

Dr. Cynthia Feagan, adjunct professor of entrepreneurship, received $750. Receiving $250 were Ryan Darrow, adjunct associate professor of psychology; Dr. Anthony Funari, adjunct associate professor of English; Ryan Jones, adjunct associate professor of graphic design; Rebecca Layne, adjunct associate professor of science; and Irene Schmidt, adjunct professor of foreign language.

Three JCCC faculty members were selected by their peers as recipients of the 2015 National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD) Excellence Award: Holly Milkowart, associate professor of English as a Second Language/ English for Academic Purposes; Dr. Ellyn Mulcahy, associate professor/chair of biotechnology; and Anna Page, assistant professor of dietary management. Since its inception in 1978, NISOD has emphasized the importance of teaching and leadership excellence in institutions of higher education.

Trustee Dr. Jerry Cook was named to the board of directors of the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT). The national educational organization of governing boards appointed Cook to an interim position to complete an unexpired term. When the interim role ended in October, Cook ran for a three-year term on the board representing the Western Region, comprised of 10 states, three Canadian provinces and two Canadian territories.

JCCC’s College Scholars program presents members of the college’s own faculty showcasing their research and scholarly contributions to knowledge within their academic discipline. These were the College Scholars for 2014-2015: • In September, Terri Easley, associate professor of speech, presented “Today’s Suffragettes: Leadership, Women and Their Importance to Emerging Democracies” and “Moving on Up: How Women Break the Barrier and Enter into National Politics.”

• Dr. Deborah Williams, associate professor of science, presented “Above All Else, Do No Harm – Legal and Ethical Issues in Science and Medicine: Informed Consent and Advance Health Care Directives” and “For the Sake of Science: An Examination of Legal and Ethical Implications of Animal Experimentation” in October.

• Farrell Hoy Jenab, adjunct professor of English and the director of the Kansas Studies Institute, presented “Flint Hills Women” and “Prairie Women’s Writings” in November.

• Dr. Patrick Dobson, adjunct associate professor of history, presented “Changing the River’s Course: Water, Conservation and Reform in the Progressive Era” and “Finishing God’s Work: William E. Smythe and the Irrigation Empire” in February.

• Mark Cowardin, associate professor of fine arts, presented “There’s No Going Back: The Sculptures of Mark Cowardin” and “Changing the World One Sculpture at a Time – Maybe” in April.

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Student awards and honors JCCC’s Model United Nations JCCC’s Model United Nations team had another successful year in 2014-2015.

At the American Model United Nations Conference in November 2014, which brought together college and university students from North and South America, the team received two outstanding delegation awards for its portrayal of Nigeria.

Marie-Kristin Horvat represented the country on the topics of entrepreneurship for development and promotion of new and renewable sources of energy, and Elysia Chao portrayed the country on the topics of post-2015 millennium development and the state of governance in Africa.

In February 2015, at the Mid-West Model United Nations Conference, the team brought home an Outstanding Position Paper Award, Outstanding Delegates’ Choice Award, and three honorable mention awards for its portrayal of France.

Team members worked on the Security Council on the topic of international peace and security as well as on issues of disaster reduction plus globalization and interdependence.

Anne Brewer and Anna Geilman Anne Brewer and Anna Geilman were the inaugural winners of prize money from “Hare & Bell,” the online scholarly journal created for and by students at JCCC. Brewer was in first place with an essay examining how photography might be mastered through various teaching techniques. Second place was awarded to Geilman, who wrote an essay describing how Italy protects its cultural artifacts from thieves and seeks the return of Italian art lost to looters. “Hare & Bell” carries only student-produced research articles that cite sources. It’s named after the iconic statue in Fountain Square at the college.

Then in April, a combined delegation from JCCC and Northwestern Polytechnical University in Xian, China, received a Distinguished Delegation Award at the National Model United Nations Conference for their representation of the United Kingdom. In addition, the co-team brought home two Outstanding Position Paper Awards and an Outstanding Delegates’ Choice Award. JCCC was the only community college, and the only Kansas school, to receive an award at the conference.

Four JCCC team members were chosen by the conference for staff positions: • Marie-Kristin Horvat, chair of the second committee • Aaron Swift, co-chair of the General Assembly Committee • Donald Roth, co-chair of the General Assembly Committee • Elysia Chao, co-chair of the General Assembly Committee JCCC’s team also included Ryan Lefler, Rebekah Gillespie, Meghan Fuller, Suhaib Azzeh, Ani Mamisashvili, Cristina Acosta, Fabiola Sanchez, Elizabeth Andrews, Khusrav Sharifov, Joseph Schumaker, Berrick Lee, Sarah White and Megan Deitz.

In addition, JCCC’s Model United Nations team conducted the Metro Kansas City Model United Nations conference on campus, at which 18 high schools from Kansas and Missouri participated.

The faculty adviser for JCCC Model United Nations is Dr. Brian Wright, professor of political science.

JCCC debate team Members of the JCCC debate team started off the 2014-2015 season by winning six individual speaker awards at a tournament at the University of Missouri-Kansas City in September 2014. In addition, three teams made it to elimination rounds.

In October, the team won two divisions of a tournament hosted by Weber State University, Ogden, Utah; three teams advanced to elimination rounds, and five individual speakers won awards. The team of Mahbooba Babrakzai and Micah Moore won the tournament championship in the novice division, while 12

Evan Domme and Josh Moncure won in the junior varsity division. Later that month, debaters Brett Gillespie and Nathan Cunningham won the tournament championship hosted by the University of Nevada-Las Vegas.

In November, Domme and Moncure won the championship in the junior varsity division in a tournament at the University of Central Oklahoma, and Arriq Singleton and Moore won the championship in the novice division.

In all, the team won six championships across two divisions in five tournaments.

For the fall semester, the Cross-Examination Debate Association ranked JCCC’s team seventh in the nation. Rankings are determined based on a squad’s cumulative performance throughout the season. Points are earned based on preliminary round and elimination round wins at each tournament attended. JCCC was the highest ranked community college and the only community college in the country ranked in the top 15.

First-year debater Moore was named to the All-American debate team, which recognizes the top 30 debaters in the country who best represent the competitive values of the Cross-Examination Debate Association.

Justin Stanley, associate professor of speech, is the debate coach; Daniel Stout, associate professor of speech, is the assistant coach.

JCCC’s culinary team In July 2014, JCCC’s culinary team became the crème de la crème among college chefs, winning the 2014 American Culinary Federation Student Team National Championship. Team members were Jessica Seely, captain; Raquel Kramer; Kathryn Ratzlaff; Matt Phillips; and Katie O’Connor.

Team coaches were Felix Sturmer, professor of hospitality management, and Edward Adel, JCCC assistant professor of hospitality management.

In addition to coaching the national champions, Sturmer was inducted into the American Academy of Chefs, the honor society of the ACF. The academy represents the highest standards of professionalism in the organization.

The culinary team represented the Central Region and topped three other regional teams and a military team to win. JCCC is the only student team program to have won four national competititions (1997, 1999, 2002 and 2014).

Alix Osborn Alix Osborn completed a nine-week culinary apprenticeship at the Apicius International School of Hospitality, part of the Florence University of the Arts in Italy in spring 2014. Then in fall 2014, after only a few months back in the States, he returned to Apicius to prepare for Tutto Tuscana. The special four-week, six-credit program took him from Florence to New York’s famed James Beard House, cooking nearly around the clock. “I had always wanted to travel the world,” Osborn said, and here was this opportunity. But how, he wondered? Staff in JCCC’s international education office stepped in at just the right time. With their help, he applied for (and received) a Gilman International Scholarship. Osborn graduated from both the food and beverage management program and the chef apprenticeship program at JCCC. He currently works at a restaurant in Lawrence, Kansas. “What JCCC has to offer is phenomenal,” Osborn said.

In addition, the Hospitality and Culinary Academy hosted the annual John Joyce Competition in November 2014. The JCCC culinary team took top honors, earning medals in the student team category. The team of students, consisting of Brian Leeper, Erica Webster, Austin Merz, Kathryn Ratzlaff and Filipe Padilla, had to prepare a four-course dinner consisting of an appetizer, salad course, main dish and dessert.

Two of JCCC’s professors, Adel and Todd Walline, won gold in the professional two-man mystery box team category. They were given a box of ingredients and four hours to plan and make a four-course meal for eight.

In March 2015, Matt Phillips, a fall 2014 graduate of the JCCC chef apprenticeship program, won the Confrérie de la Chaîne des Rôtisseurs Midwest regional cooking competition (the Confrérie de la Chaîne des Rôtisseurs is the oldest and largest food and wine society in the world). He advanced to the national competition in June to test his skills against nine other regional winners. Competitors worked for 3-1/2 13

Student Media In March 2015, the staff of The Campus Ledger, JCCC’s student newspaper, received six awards at the Society of Professional Journalists’ Region 7 conference. Every one of The Ledger’s six entries submitted to the Mark of Excellence (MOE) Awards contest placed, pitting JCCC’s student newspaper against both two-year colleges and four-year universities. Region 7 comprises Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska.

The Mark of Excellence Awards honor the best of collegiate journalism in an academic year.

For the third year in a row, judges named The Ledger a finalist in the Best All-Around Non-Daily Student Newspaper category, alongside Missouri State University. The Ledger’s coverage of the aftermath of a campus emergency received top honors in the small-school general news reporting category, with Valerie Velikaya, managing editor, named as a finalist and Christina Lieffring, former news editor, named as the category’s winner.

In addition to their news articles, Lieffring received a finalist ranking in the small-school feature writing category for a fall 2014 article on clickbait headlines, while Velikaya was named a finalist in the contest’s general column writing category for pieces she wrote on depression, the crisis in Ukraine and the Kansas City Royals’ 2014 season. The Campus Ledger’s editorial board also received a finalist ranking in the editorial writing category. hours to create a dish from a “mystery basket” – items unknown to the chef until the competition began. Phillips then went on to win the national competition in June and represented the United States at the international competition in Budapest, Hungary, in September.

At the end of May, culinary students from England, New Zealand, Australia and Hong Kong participated with JCCC students in the fifth annual International College Culinary Challenge, held at JCCC for the first time. During the week, the students participating in the cultural exchange visited a Kansas ranch, toured a packing plant, attended a Royals game and ate at a variety of restaurants. They also participated in educational workshops and a competition, preparing salmon for an appetizer, beef for the main course and chocolate for dessert. JCCC won the dessert portion of the competition.

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Then in April 2015, the Campus Ledger once again earned the All-Kansas Award from the Kansas Collegiate Media. In addition to being named the best two-year student newspaper in the state, Ledger Editor-in-Chief Mike Abell was named Journalist of the Year in the two-year newspaper division. Abell is the first Ledger employee to receive the honor in several years.

The contest recognizes the best in collegiate journalism at the two-year, four-year public and four-year private college levels. All entries submitted to the contest were published during the spring and fall 2014 semesters.

Both the Ledger and JCAV-TV, the college’s student video program, received multiple awards in the contest’s individual categories. Ledger staff were recognized for editorial writing, feature writing, front-page design, illustration, page design, review writing, special section, photography, feature photography, news photography, headline writing, sports news writing, sports feature writing and infographics. JCAV-TV won first-, second- and third-place honors for videos the students produced.

The spring 2014 Campus Ledger editor-in-chief was Stephen Cook. The fall 2014 and spring 2015 Campus Ledger editor-in-chief was Mike Abell. The Campus Ledger adviser is Corbin Crable. The fall 2014 JCAV executive producer was Andrew Tady.

The JCAV faculty advisers are Joe Petrie, Molly Baumgardner and Adam Stephenson.

In June, student Dylan Genis won the grand prize in the 2015 Biotech University reporting contest, a follow-up to the Biotech University seminar, designed to introduce the science of biotechnology to journalism students and working journalists from across the country. His winning entry was a broadcast report titled “GMOs in Our Grocery Stores.”

Art Two JCCC art students won awards in the League for Innovation Student Art Competition. Elizabeth Brown won Best of Show for a mixed media installation entitled “Looming Situation.” Shannon Bagby was given a Jurors Choice Award for a metals piece titled “Always Prepared.”

All-Kansas Academic Team Students from every community college in Kansas – including two from JCCC – were honored in February in Topeka for their academic accomplishments.

Representing JCCC were Derek Boyd and Megan Gladbach. The scholars were members of the 2015 All-Kansas Academic Team, sponsored by Phi Theta Kappa, the Kansas Association of Community College Trustees and the Kansas Council of Community College Presidents. Gladbach was also named a 2015 Coca-Cola Community College Academic Team Silver Scholar, based on her scores from the All-USA Community College Academic Team. In addition to the scholarships received as part of the All-Kansas team, she received a $1,250 scholarship from the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation.

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Athletics 2014-2015 was another memorable year for Johnson County Community College athletics, with the women’s basketball team winning a national title on its home floor to top the list. Freshman guard Alexis Brown knocked down a buzzer-beater jumper as time expired to give the Lady Cavaliers a 66-64 victory over top-ranked Parkland College, Champaign, Illinois, sending a wave of students onto the court for a frenzied celebration.

The year also saw a third-place national finish by the softball team and a seventh-place national finish by the women’s half-marathon team. The Cavaliers also won two Region VI titles and one Kansas Jayhawk Conference championship. JCCC finished 37th out of 208 qualifying athletic programs in the National Association of Two-Year College Athletic Administrators (NATYCAA) Cup standings. JCCC sports teams also were ranked in 61 of 108 polls released by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) in 2014-2015, and 34 times teams appeared in the top 10. The women’s basketball team had the most top-10 appearances with 13, including seven weeks at No. 1.

Baseball was a top-10 team 10 times, followed by volleyball with eight and softball with three.

Kendyl McDougald When Kendyl McDougald, JCCC student-athlete, wasn’t practicing her javelin throws, she was studying. When she wasn’t studying, she was volunteering. For her hard work, McDougald received the Lea Plarski Award from the National Junior College Athletic Association. The honor recognizes McDougald’s sportsmanship, leadership, community service and academic excellence as well as her athletic ability. McDougald concluded her studies at JCCC in spring 2015 with a 3.81 grade-point average (GPA). At the 2015 NJCAA Track and Field Championships, the sophomore claimed an individual title in the javelin throw, narrowly winning the event by four inches. She also earned indoor second-team All-East Jayhawk Conference in the shot put with a runner-up finish, and outdoors was the conference champion and region runner-up in the javelin. “I always want to be able to say three things about our student-athletes here at JCCC – they are great students, outstanding athletes and even better people,” said throwing coach Phil Groves. “I can’t think of any individual who better embodies those ideals.”

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Individually, JCCC student-athletes also garnered both athletic and academic honors, including four NJCAA All-Americans, one individual national championship, 14 Coaches Association All-Americans, one national tournament MVP, 30 All-Region VI players and 98 All-Jayhawk Conference players.

In the classroom, a school-record 22 athletes were honored with Academic StudentAthlete Awards by the NJCAA. In fall 2014, 67 percent of the students associated with the athletic department maintained a grade point average of 3.0 or better (140 of 210). Thirty-seven student-athletes recorded a perfect 4.0 grade point. Those are both record totals for the JCCC athletic department. Some of the top teams last fall were the volleyball team with 100 percent of its roster at 3.0 or better. Baseball was at 81 percent, women’s soccer at 78 percent, softball and women’s track at 75 percent, and men’s soccer at 71 percent. In the spring, 40 student-athletes earned a 4.0 grade point, and 43 percent of them posted a 3.0 or better.

Several JCCC coaches reached milestones in their careers. Baseball coach Kent Shelley topped 850 career wins and was inducted into the Ban Johnson Amateur Baseball League Hall of Fame in December. Women’s basketball coach Ben Conrad won his 200th victory at JCCC and his 300th as a head coach. Women’s soccer coach Jim Schwab recorded his 250th victory and men’s soccer coach Fatai Ayoade his 175th. In addition, Coach Conrad was honored with the 2015 Spalding® NJCAA Women’s Division II National Coach of the Year award.

Center for Sustainability

JCCC’s Power Switch program

Student and community engagement

Aggressive energy efficiency retrofits and conservation efforts led to more than $1.2 million in avoided energy costs from 2008 to 2014. This year, JCCC revamped energy conservation efforts through its Power Switch program, which included improved building scheduling, temperature setpoint changes and LED lighting retrofits. These efforts resulted in a 12-percent reduction in energy usage and $300,000 in additional avoided utility costs for the 2014-2015 fiscal year.

The staff of JCCC’s Center for Sustainability conducted 33 tours of the college’s sustainable features, as well as supported 34 presentations from students and student groups concerning increased knowledge of and support for sustainability on campus. In the classroom, the center supported sustainability enrichment in more than 120 unique course sections in 17 disciplines.

In August 2014, in conjunction with the JCCC Foundation, the center hosted the annual Harvest Dinner featuring Alex Pope from Local Pig and Lindsay Larricks from Little Freshie. With support in donations from a dozen local chefs, restauranteurs and business owners, the event served 120 donors, with proceeds going to sustainable agriculture scholarships.

In May 2015, JCCC student researchers, the “Eco-Reps,” were selected for travel to St. Petersburg, Russia, on a U.S. State Department grant administered by the University of Kansas. Kait Bridges, Megan Gladbach, Emily Reno and Kendyl McDougald were the only community college team chosen nationally. Their project, an evaluation of student understanding of and engagement with sustainable features of campus begun in November 2014, was directed by staff from the Center for Sustainability. In addition to the surveys and interviews to assess understanding of sustainability, the project also produced a map and guide for the community that will be distributed in new student and employee orientations. JCCC also hosted 12 students from St. Petersburg, Moscow and Omsk, Russia, as part of the Eco-Rep exchange program.

The Student Environmental Alliance club, leaders, events and adviser (Kristy Howell) were nominated for six JCCC Clubbie awards, winning “Event of the Year” for Earth Days.

JCCC’s Center for Sustainability and the Student Sustainability Committee also offered the fourth annual Epicenter Conference, a student sustainability workshop held on the JCCC campus in April 2015 focusing on greening the culinary industry, that was attended by 150 high school and college students.

JCCC’s Open Petal Farm The Open Petal Farm, the 2.5-acre farm run by JCCC’s Center for Sustainability, had a successful start to the 2015 growing season. The farm manager, Claire Zimmermann, worked closely with students and interns to develop a no-till vegetable producing system. No-till farming is an important practice that uses green cover crops and special equipment to maintain and improve healthy soil structure. The year 2015 is the International Year of Soils, and Open Petal Farm’s goals were to sustain a healthy ecology both above and below the ground. In the first year, the no-till management system showed great potential for weed control, increasing the organic matter and nutrient availability in the soils and providing habitat for beneficial insects and soil microbes.

Student involvement at the farm in 2015 continued to grow as interest in sustainable farming increases both in rural and metro regions; students receive training in agricultural practices that support healthy soils and communities. Most of the work on the farm is completed by students in the sustainable agriculture practicum course, which provides valuable lectures in farming know-how and gives students the opportunity to implement the sustainable and organic techniques they have learned. Students operated the farming equipment, handled and processed harvests and, in the spring, set up a market that ran alongside the hospitality management program’s pastry sale. In the summer and fall months, the farm produced an abundant harvest of tomatoes, peppers, sweet corn, onions, garlic, melons, potatoes, berries and other crops.

Recycling and composting In 2014-2015, revenue from the college’s single-stream recycling system on campus topped the cumulative $125,000 mark for student scholarships earned since the program’s origins in 1994. Much of the revenue comes from ever-increasing amounts and types of materials being recycled at JCCC, along with vendor changes that increased revenues. JCCC’s composting system has diverted close to 150 tons of organic waste from the landfill since June 2011. The recycling rate (recycling and compost) increased to 41 percent from 2011 to 2014, and overall trash weight decreased 37 percent during the same period. Overall waste diversion rates rose from 14 percent in 2010 to 45 percent in 2015, and the college’s waste minimization program has led to a $26,000 annual decrease in trash disposal costs from 2011 to 2014. Student interns assist the center’s recycling and composting efforts, gaining valuable experience about these processes.

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Events and speakers In August 2014, two prominent area jazz musicians – bandleader and bassist Gerald Spaits and alto saxophonist Charles Perkins – performed as part of a Kansas City celebration honoring Charlie “Yardbird” Parker.

Healthcare professionals from Florida State University, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and State University of New York in Syracuse were the featured presenters at the seventh annual Healthcare Simulation Conference hosted by JCCC in September 2014. The conference, “Raising Clinical Competence to Expert Performance with Cognitive and Behavioral Methods,” was intended for physicians, nurses, healthcare educators, practitioners and staff interested in using simulation for learning and evaluation. The conference focused on the topic of deliberate practice and expertise.

The college hosted a panel discussion in September on “Pakistan’s Fight Against Terrorism.”The discussion was led by a distinguished group of Pakistani educators from the Sukkur Institute of Business Administration in Sukkur, Pakistan, who shared their views on the role that education plays in fighting terrorism in their country.

The institute is the first community college in Pakistan, and JCCC, with the help of a U.S. Embassy grant, is working with its leaders to help build a developmental education program.

The challenges of enrolling, engaging and retaining Hispanic students in higher education were addressed in a one-day regional conference held at JCCC in September. “Diversidad – Engaging Our Hispanic Students from Prospect to Graduate” drew educators, administrators and support staff from a four-state area.

New to this year’s event was a student leadership track, in which Latino students

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from JCCC and local high schools attended sessions on motivation, writing, social media and basic leadership skills.

JCCC President Joe Sopcich delivered a State of the College presentation in early October 2014. The presentation, “Inspire Learning,” reviewed the past year and looked ahead to the year to come with a focus on student achievements.

The Young Women’s Conference, “STEM: It’s a Girl Thing!”, brought middle-schoolaged girls to campus to talk about science, technology, engineering and math in October.

Japanese culture came alive in October at the Greater Kansas City Japan Festival, presented on the college campus by the Heart of America Japan-America Society and the Japan Festival Committee. Events included a Japanese drum group, a traditional tea ceremony presentation, Kyogen (traditional Japanese comedy) and Min’yo (traditional Japanese folk songs) as well as Samurai armor and Japanese food and pop culture.

Also in October, nearly 150 runners participated in the college’s second Lace Up for Learning 5K Run-Walk. Race proceeds support scholarships for JCCC students. The run raised approximately $3,000 for scholarships.

JCCC and the University of Kansas Center for Autism Research and Training hosted in October the seventh annual regional autism conference, “Beyond the Diagnosis: Autism Across the Lifespan.”The keynote speaker was illusionist and occupational therapist Kevin Spencer, who presented “It’s Not Magic: Engaging Individuals on the Autism Spectrum.”

The college hosted a one-day conference in November, “Culture of Forgiveness: Peace-Building Lessons from Uganda,” that explored local peace-building initiatives in Northern Uganda. The conference was sponsored by JCCC, the JCCC Foundation, the Medical Missions Foundation, the United Nations Association of Greater Kansas City, Park University, the University of Kansas School of Nursing and the Research College of Nursing/Rockhurst University.

The competitive technology event hosted by JCCC and sponsored by Perkins funding drew more than 700 students from 22 high schools in Johnson, Douglas and Miami counties to compete in a wide variety of projects in January 2015. JCCC’s animation, game, web technologies, information technology and computer science programs each sponsored events; other events involved robotics, engineering and automotive and were led by the college’s industrial technology division.

Henry Fortunato, director of public affairs for the Kansas City, Missouri, Public Library, talked about the people he met, the route he chose, and significant sites he visited during his walk across the state of Kansas in his presentation, “Kansas on Foot: A Long and Winding Walk Across the Sunflower State,” in November 2014. The presentation was jointly sponsored by the Kansas City Public Library and the Kansas Studies Institute at JCCC.

Erica Forsythe, Kelsey Kimble and Katherine Bello In spring 2015, three interior design students from JCCC – Erica Forsythe, Kelsey Kimble and Katherine Bello – added a touch of multicultural beauty to the Symphony Designers Showhouse, a fundraiser for the Kansas City Symphony Alliance that allows interior designers to showcase their talents.

This was the 30th consecutive year that students in JCCC’s interior design program completed a space in the Symphony Showhouse. Their finished bedroom was a melding of world cultures. “We settled on the theme of ‘Global Urban Chic,’” Forsythe said. “We wanted to create an exotic feel . . . something that would bring about that world view.”

Henry Fortunato

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Yizhao Yang, associate professor at the University of Oregon, spoke about ongoing efforts to achieve sustainable transportation in China in two presentations, “Sustainable Urban Transportation in China: Problems, Challenges and Solutions” and “Green Urbanism – China’s Road to Energy and Environmental Sustainability,” delivered in March.

Also in March, JCCC hosted a naturalization ceremony, in which about 250 people from dozens of countries and cultures became U.S. citizens.

In April 2015, JCCC again hosted Free College Day, a way of showing off all that JCCC has to offer and to say thank you to the community for their support. The college offered more than 140 free classes on topics ranging from art to science, for which about 1,000 people registered.

Marti Hill

In February 2015, students presented readings that explored the effect of violence against women during benefit performances of “A Memory, A Monologue, A Rant and A Prayer: Writings to Stop Violence Against Women and Girls.”The performances were a benefit for SAFEHOME, a domestic violence shelter in Overland Park, and the Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault (MOCSA), a rape crisis center in Kansas City.

The Science Olympiad was held on the college campus in February. The Science Olympiad competitions are like academic track meets for students grades 6 through 12. During the day, about 1,000 participants from 50 middle schools and 30 high schools competed in two divisions – junior high/middle school and high school – in meteorology, chemistry, biology and more.

Marti Hill, a Prairie Village woman who survived a violent attack in 2010, spoke about her experience in February. Hill shares her ordeal in the hope of helping others who have gone through adversity; she also shares information about crime and offers tips on how to remain safe.

JCCC’s horticultural sciences program again hosted a Horticultural Science Field Day in February. Nationally known experts spoke at the day-long symposium on 21st-century horticulture, which provided overviews of the industry. Experts also discussed issues facing horticultural production and practice, such as a possible freshwater crisis, problems associated with the import and export of plant materials, and trends regarding invasive pests.

Also in March, Father Gregory Boyle, a Jesuit priest who founded Homeboy Industries in Los Angeles to help individuals who “live in the margins,” presented “The Other Way to More: The Power of Boundless Compassion.”The event was cosponsored by JCCC’s Scholar-in-Residence program in conjunction with the English division’s Common Read project.

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The JCCC English department hosted its first Cavalier Conference on writing and literature in April, inviting English faculty from area high schools, colleges and universities. Presentations and workshops focused on the theme of “Transitions.”

Dr. Ernest Morrell, Columbia University in New York, gave the keynote address, “New Directions in Teaching English: Socially, Culturally and Technologically Relevant Instruction.”

Country band Sawyer Brown performed as part of the Cohen Community Series in April. The series was inaugurated in 2008 through a gift from Jon Stewart, JCCC alumnus, former trustee and former president of Metcalf Bank, in honor of the late Barton P. Cohen, president of Metcalf Bancshares, vice chairman and general counsel of Metcalf Bank, and an attorney with Blackwell Sanders Peper Martin LLP. In March 2015, JCCC’s fashion merchandising and design students presented their spring fashion show, “Eclectic Statements,” featuring clothes designed by JCCC students as well as fashions from the college’s fashion collection, a special “restyle” of thrift-store offerings and dresses made for little girls in Uganda.

William Dissen, one of the country’s “most sustainable chefs,” joined regional champions of local food to share thoughts on making food more delicious and more responsible. His presentation was part of a one-day conference titled “Epicenter 2015: Sustainability, From Farm to Table,” which was part of JCCC’s Earth Days.

Eric Morgenstern, president and CEO of Morningstar Communications, received the Headline Award from JCCC’s journalism and media communications department.

The Headline Award recognizes persons who have made significant contributions to journalism and media communications in the area.

Doug Patterson and William Koch, JCCC professors, presented “Year of the Dwarf Planets” in April during the college’s Evening with the Stars. Afterward, attendees could visit the college’s Paul Tebbe Observatory to examine the night sky.

Also in April, Xingong Li, associate professor of geography at the University of Kansas, spoke about water issues in China as part of the college’s Scholar-inResidence program. The scholar studies interactions between humans and water, with a focus on the Himalayan snow melt runoff in western China.

In May 2015, the National Benchmarking Conference attracted institutional researchers, executives and national and regional educational policy decisionmakers. A variety of workshops and breakout sessions on benchmarking, analytics, accreditation, performance funding and institutional effectiveness were offered.

The annual American Indian Health Research and Educational Alliance Pow Wow was held at JCCC in May 2015, focusing on improving the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health of American Indians.

The Polsky Series is underwritten by the Norman and Elaine Polsky Family Supporting Foundation within the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation in partnership with JCCC and includes topics not currently offered elsewhere. Speakers this year were Kathy Wing, certified emergency preparedness trainer and a program coordinator in JCCC’s Continuing Education branch, who encouraged preparation for emergency situations in “Ready or Not? It’s Up to YOU: Smart, Simple Steps to Stay Safe;” Elizabeth Washburn, an artist who works with service members transitioning out of the war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan, who presented “Combat Arts: My Experience Making Art with Combat Veterans;” and Jeffrey Burns, associate director of the University of Kansas Alzheimer’s Disease Center and the Edward H. Hashinger associate professor of neurology, who presented “From Treatment to Prevention: 10 Years of the KU Alzheimer’s Disease Center.”

Again over the summer, JCCC offered sports camps and learning, arts and career options for youth on campus; “Light Up the Lawn” concerts on the lawn in front of the Nerman Museum, sponsored by the museum, the Performing Arts Series and Student Activities; and free vintage movies in Yardley Hall.

Throughout the year, JCCC hosted campus visit events for high school juniors and seniors as well as presentations for prospective adult students and homeschooled students and their parents. The college also offered college planning events for parents. In addition, the college’s new Welcome Center, located on the first floor of the Carlsen Center, offered daily admission sessions and campus tours and set up appointments with faculty in students’ areas of interest.

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Accountable to the community For 2014-2015, the college’s legal budget was $218,333,384, with a primary operating budget of $140,107,726. The budget was built on these assumptions: • The mill levy for 2014-2015 would decrease by .10 mill, from 9.551 to 9.451.

• The college would see a 6.1-percent increase in assessed valuation from the county and a 5-percent decrease in funding from the state. Motor vehicle revenue would increase 15 percent.

• Enrollment was projected to be flat.

• The cost-per-credit-hour would increase by $3 for in-state students and $8 for out-of-state students.

• Salaries would increase by 2.5 percent and benefits by 1 percent.

• Capital expenditures for computers and equipment would remain at the levels set during previous years. Remodeling and building improvements increased for safety purposes and to avoid unnecessary deferred maintenance.

FY 2014-2015 Budget General /PTE Funds Revenues Ad Valorem Taxes 53%

Lo ca lM oto rV eh icl e

Tuition 23%

Ta x6 %

Ad Valorem Taxes 53%

State Grant 16%

State Grant 16% Local Motor Vehicle Taxes 6% Other 2%

% r2 e h Ot

Tuition 23%

Cap ital 4%

Salaries & Benefits 78% g 18% Current Operatin

FY 2014-2015 Budget General /PTE Funds Expenses Salaries & Benefits 78% Current Operating 18% Capital 4%

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Key Performance Indicators As a college, JCCC uses facts and data to measure students’ progress, holding both itself and others accountable for achieving higher levels of student success. The college strategically aligns its activities toward student success, setting high expectations and developing a plan that includes key performance indicators (KPIs) showing how well students and programs are doing. As a college, its performance is compared to that of peer institutions, including Kirkwood Community College in Iowa, Monroe Community College in New York and Moraine Valley Community College in Illinois.

Note: The dotted line denotes the 75th percentile of community colleges’ performance nationwide.

JCCC’s key performance indicators also measure student success. These nationally accepted indicators can be used as benchmarks to assess JCCC’s performance against the performance of peer institutions and provide institutional focus and accountability.

Note: The dotted line denotes the 75th percentile of community colleges’ performance nationwide.

This year, JCCC saw increases in the fall-to-fall persistence rate. Of the fall 2013 first-time, full-time, degree-seeking cohort, 63 percent persisted to fall 2014, a 7-percent increase (IPEDS survey). For the fall 2013 first-time, part-time degree-seeking cohort, 45 percent persisted to fall 2014, a 4-percent increase (IPEDS survey). This is the highest fall-to-fall retention rate JCCC has had for that cohort in 10 years. For all JCCC students in fall 2013, 46 percent persisted to fall 2014, an increase of 1 percent (NCCBP survey).

Note: The dotted line denotes the 75th percentile of community colleges’ performance nationwide.

Note: The dotted line denotes the 75th percentile of community colleges’ performance nationwide.

Especially significant this year were the improvements in student satisfaction, which the college measures annually through the Ruffalo Noel-Levitz survey. The 2015 results exceeded benchmarks in every category within the student satisfaction indicator. (The green dotted line represents the benchmark for each category, and the gray bar demonstrates progress). The survey indicated that the actions taken by individuals in departments responsible for each of these indicators made a significant, positive difference in student satisfaction at JCCC.

Note: Student satisfaction items charted in order of importance reported by students.

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Technology at JCCC In March 2014, JCCC issued a request for proposal for qualified firms to provide an independent assessment of the college’s Information Services branch as part of the college’s ongoing improvement efforts. It also addressed a need to ensure Information Services continues to perform as effectively and efficiently as possible.

The assessment began in July 2014 and concluded in December of that year.

While the nature of the assessment was to focus on areas for improvement, the college was also recognized for many strengths within the branch itself and the technology environments. The analysis identified 14 recommendations that will help position the college to recognize additional benefits in cost savings, quality of service and user experience, IT organizational effectiveness and strategic alignment.

In 2014-2015, in partnership with various areas of the college, Information Services saw many technology improvements, innovations and advances in teaching and learning, business processes and the college’s technology support structure to deliver better educational experiences; improve student outcomes; increase services to students, faculty, staff and other college constituencies; reduce costs; accommodate the ever-changing needs of the campus community; and sustain progress.

Yearly Statistics JCCC remains one of the largest institutions of higher education in the state. A total of 8,630 students were enrolled in summer 2014 classes at JCCC (as of the 20th day of the session). For fall 2014, 19,429 students were enrolled as of the 20th day of the semester, while 17,228 students were enrolled for spring 2015 (20th day figures). Total unduplicated headcount for credit students for the 2014-2015 academic year was 29,813.

More than 40 percent of JCCC students enrolled in fall 2014 planned to transfer to another college or university.

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In fall 2014, more than 20 percent of local public high school graduates attended JCCC. Almost 38 percent of Johnson County first-time freshmen who choose to attend college in Kansas attend JCCC. The average GPA of first-time JCCC students at KU is 2.87. For other community colleges, it’s 2.52. The average GPA of continuing JCCC students at KU is 3.0. For other community colleges, it’s 2.89.

JCCC’s mill levy is the lowest in the state for a community college.

Approximately $31.5 million in federal, state and institutional student aid was distributed to students for college and living expenses in 2014-2015.

Eighty-three percent of JCCC’s career program completers find a job within six months. Seventy-six percent of respondents to a survey of students who had completed a career program at JCCC in 2013-2014 and were employed indicated that they were employed full time in a field related to their program of study. Ninety percent of their employers rated the overall job preparation their employees had received at the college as “good” or “very good.”

In 2014-2015, JCCC awarded more than 3,600 associate’s degrees or vocational certificates. Alumnus Jon Stewart, who stepped down from the college’s board of trustees in 2015, and Jeffery Redmond, student senate president, were the commencement speakers in May 2015.

In 2014-2015, 56,682 people attended 953 events in the college’s event spaces, making it the busiest year yet for use of the spaces.

In fall 2014, 53 percent of all JCCC students were female, 33 percent were full-time students, and 76 percent lived in Johnson County. The average age of JCCC students was 25.

Career Pathways By offering students the opportunity to take technical courses relevant to their career goals, Career Pathways encourages strong, comprehensive links between secondary and post-secondary institutions in Johnson, Douglas and Miami counties.

It provides a seamless course of study in which students can receive college credit for articulated courses taken in high school. Within each of the 16 state-defined career clusters, there are pathways that further define specific types of career opportunities students can pursue. A total of 440 students, enrolled in 10 school districts in those counties, enrolled in 727 articulated Career Pathways courses at JCCC.

College Close to Home Students may enroll in college general education classes at off-campus College Close to Home sites, both free-standing and in high schools throughout the county, including Shawnee Mission North High School, De Soto High School, Olathe Health Education Center, KU Edwards Campus and the Lawrence Centennial School in Douglas County. More than 1,780 students took classes at these locations in 2014-2015.

College Now JCCC’s College Now is a credit program for county high school sophomores, juniors and seniors or ninth-grade students identified as gifted with a current Individual Education Plan. College Now students enroll in selected college classes, such as Composition or U.S. History, offered at and in cooperation with the high school.

The courses reflect the college’s content, objectives and assignments and are taught on the high school campus by qualified high school teachers. During fall 2014, College Now enrollment totaled more than 3,620 students in 31 different locations.

In spring 2015, 2,046 high school students were enrolled in College Now classes.

The College Now program is the only nationally accredited concurrent enrollment program in Kansas and one of fewer than 100 programs in the nation with this distinction for upholding quality standards.

Jeffery Redmond Stuck in dead-end jobs, Jeffery Redmond empowered himself to change the world. “Ask yourself every day, ‘What would you do if you didn’t doubt yourself?’ and then do that,” he said. This philosophy led Redmond to JCCC, to membership in its student senate and then to the presidency of the group.

Redmond knows of what he speaks. After high school, he bounced from one unfulfilling job to the next, covering the low-wage land of retail, restaurant and customer service. He kept waiting for things to “get better.”They didn’t.

“I needed to change my life to the way I thought it should be,” Redmond said. When he spoke at graduation in spring 2015, Redmond reiterated his message of empowerment to a crowd of 2,000 people. Despite his fear of public speaking, he grasped the podium as his heart beat in his chest. “We will leave here today empowered by one of the best community colleges in the country, to go out and make our mark,” he said. “Historian Robert Greene wrote that if confidence isn’t natural, then neither is timidity, and those words changed my life. They forced me to realize that everything – everything – is a choice. And just like you, I decided I wanted more than what I was told I could be.”

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Alexa Summers During the summer of 2014, Alexa Summers took CPR and anatomy classes from JCCC. What made her different from the other students is that she was between her sophomore and junior years at Blue Valley Northwest High School. While her high school classmates were at the pool, Summers was memorizing the names of bones. She did it because she wants to go into forensic science one day and thought the classes would help her. To pay for the class, she took advantage of Kansas Senate Bill 155, passed in 2012. For classes that meet certain career and technical education criteria, tuition is free for high school students. Summers came back to JCCC for the spring 2015 semester, studying Fundamentals of Criminal Investigation in the evening, which was also free under SB 155.

Cooperative programs JCCC and the Metropolitan Community College district in Kansas City, Missouri, have developed cooperative agreements that allow Johnson County residents to enroll in selected career programs at MCC while paying the same cost per credit hour rates that Johnson County residents pay to attend JCCC. Conversely, Missouri residents may enroll in selected career programs offered at JCCC at resident Missouri tuition rates. Between JCCC and MCC there are 25 cooperative programs offered to more than 200 students from both Johnson County and Missouri.

Quick Step and Quick Step Plus Through the Quick Step program, high school students can enroll in five college courses at JCCC. Instruction is provided by JCCC faculty and is usually held on the college campus. More than 1,200 high school students enrolled in Quick Step courses during 2014-2015.

JCCC also offers a unique program in the high schools called Quick Step Plus, or QS+. Students can earn credit in high school math and college algebra simultaneously in a shared teaching partnership modeled after JCCC’s self-paced math offerings. A high school instructor teaches the course and gives the high school grade, while a JCCC professor oversees the JCCC credit by controlling all assessments for college credit and gives the JCCC grade. In 2014-2015, more than 1,140 students were enrolled in 87 sections of the course in 24 area high schools.

Ninety-one percent of enrolled students earn transferable credit for college algebra with a grade of C or higher.

Nontraditional careers Students in nontraditional careers are studying in a field in which more than 75 percent of the workforce is comprised of an underrepresented gender. Examples are men in nursing and women in information technology. JCCC systematically works to inform students, parents, counselors, teachers, employers and the community of the options, advantages and availability of nontraditional careers for male and female students. Each year more than 150 students participate in activities focusing on nontraditional careers.

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Continuing Education

The workforce programs included:

Johnson County Community College Continuing Education is committed to educational excellence and affordability. Currently one of the largest continuing education programs in the country, the branch offers noncredit courses, professional licensure and certifications as well as life skills training and personal interest classes.

• L icensing and CEUs for professionals in healthcare, mediation, early childhood education, banking, human resources and Lean Six Sigma continuous process improvement tools

Workforce development JCCC’s strategic workforce training program continued to be a student-focused provider of professional education, licensures, certifications and skill development courses, meeting the needs of individuals and organizations throughout the Kansas City metropolitan area. The branch is continually developing new classes and career programs while strengthening existing course offerings.

In 2014-2015, JCCC Continuing Education had 10,029 enrollments in its computer/ information technology, professional education, healthcare, small business, public safety and health information systems programs. In addition, 3,868 enrollments came through customized contract training programs with 85 area businesses.

• C ustomized projects that included competency development models, designing curriculum, instructional guides and assessment • C ustomized training and development for organizations, including solutions for leadership, management, finance, project management and coaching at various levels • P ublic classes and contract training in computer applications and information technology • A ssistance to local companies applying for Kansas Department of Commerce grants that will pay for workforce training for newly created jobs or jobs requiring new skills • P ublic classes and contract training in supply chain and logistics as well as transportation classes including commercial driver’s license training (CDL)

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Sheree Johnson

Sheree Johnson and Pamela Potts Of the 31 women who were named to KC Magazine’s list of “Most Influential Women in KC,” two happen to teach continuing education classes at JCCC. Sheree Johnson and Pamela Potts were honored for the work they did and the impact they have on the community. Johnson has her own marketing consultancy; she teaches three of the five classes offered as part of the Internet marketing certificate – web analytics, social media marketing and email marketing. Potts is with Mersoft Corp, which provides web development and app solutions for business clients; she also teaches microcomputing.

Pamela Potts

Small business development Small business owners received management consulting, technical assistance and training from the Kansas Small Business Development Center (KSBDC). The U.S. Small Business Administration, the Kansas Department of Commerce and JCCC fund the KSBDC. The Kansas Small Business Development Center consulted with 459 existing or aspiring small business clients in 2014. Some of these clients created 375 new jobs, obtained $10.4 million in financing and increased sales by $12.3 million.

Two JCCC KSBDC clients – Velo + Maps Coffee and Enhanced Home Care, LLC – were selected as Emerging and Existing Businesses of the Year, respectively. Each was recognized at the annual ceremony at the state capitol in Topeka.

The JCCC KSBDC also trained 950 individuals on small business-related topics.

The KSBDC partners with the Kansas Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) at Wichita State University to offer PTAC services at JCCC. PTACs assist small businesses with potential market expansion through procurement opportunities with the government. The JCCC Kansas PTAC covers 18 counties. Last year, the JCCC Kansas PTAC met with 165 new clients, resulting in more than $13.8 million in contract dollars awarded.

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Life and leisure In 2014-2015, JCCC’s Continuing Education branch served more than 8,730 community members through personal enrichment classes, summer youth programs, foreign language classes, motorcycle training and driver education.

Adult basic education More than 1,910 adults prepared for the General Educational Development (GED) exam, learned English or improved their academic skills through the six Johnson County Adult Education Program centers. JCAE is sponsored jointly by the college and the Johnson County Library. Last spring, 171 JCAE GED graduates enrolled in classes at JCCC. In addition, the Migrant Family Literacy Program provided preschool and literacy services for 44 families (including 68 children under age 8) in the Olathe school district. The program provides basic life skills, employment counseling, parenting and after-school tutoring and enrichment materials to children and adults in Olathe and literacy services for 44 families (including 68 children under age 8) in the Olathe school district. The program provides basic life skills, employment counseling, parenting and after-school tutoring and enrichment materials to children and adults in Olathe.

Health and Human Services JCCC’s Health and Human Services Continuing Education division offered workshops and seminars targeting the educational needs of healthcare providers from nearly every area of the field. Community partnerships included the University of Kansas Memory and Alzheimer’s Care Program, Saint Luke’s Health Systems, Aberdeen Village, the Alzheimer’s Association Heart of America Chapter, Kansas City Southwest Clinical Society, WomenHeart, The Parkinson’s Foundation, Senior Helpers, The Institute for Forensic Examiners, Wellness On a Shoestring, ReNew Counseling, Comfort Keepers Home Care, Kansas African Affairs Commission and many others.

Certificates in medical coding, Kansas adult care home administrator and the Kansas assisted living operator course have grown in popularity with the need for welltrained staff in aging services.

The ECG technician course was combined with the phlebotomy technician course and surged to new popularity in spring 2015 and will continue to be offered twice a year as a combined course to provide students with additional credentials upon graduation. The pharmacy technician certificate program graduated its fourth class from the didactic and simulation portion of the course and completed externship experiences in fall 2014. The fifth class will begin in fall 2015, and the sixth will be admitted in spring 2016 when biannual admission will begin.

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Performing Arts Series Since 1990, Johnson County Community College has offered one of the largest multidiscipline performing arts series in mid-America. From Broadway blockbusters to classical and chamber music ensembles, the variety of events programmed as part of the series attracts a wide demographic, mirroring the changes in Johnson County itself. Celebrities such as Buddy Guy, Clint Black, Chris Botti and Michael Feldman of NPR’s Whad’Ya Know were favorites in 2014-2015.

Support for the Performing Arts Series (PAS) is provided by several sources. In addition to the grants discussed below, members of the community join the Friends of the Series organization. For a donation, Friends receive early access to events as they go on sale, additional discounts on season tickets and free hospitality receptions at selected events. Local businesses also purchase advertising in the program book.

The college maintains the performance halls, which means that donations go straight to artist fees, helping bring stars to Johnson County each year.

More than 20,000 tickets were sold to performances by the 25 artists appearing as part of the 2014-2015 Performing Arts Series, while another 50,000 people attended events by local presenters, community groups and college departments. Approximately 175 events are held annually in the Carlsen Center, which houses four venues: Yardley Hall (capacity 1,349), Polsky Theatre (424), Recital Hall (55) and Bodker Black Box Theatre (100). Since it opened in August 1990, more than two million people have attended an event in the Carlsen Center.

Performing arts education An important part of the Performing Arts Series program is arts education. The program provides area students and teachers with low-cost or free services designed to help them explore their own creativity, glimpse the world of professional artists and develop talents and critical thinking skills.

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In 2014-2015, PAS arts education served 12,000 students and community members with programs such as master classes, workshops, residencies, professional development for teachers, lecture/demonstrations and eight school shows. On the JCCC campus, arts education connected with numerous campus organizations and departments, including student leadership, continuing education, the Center for Sustainability, the Hiersteiner Child Development Center, Promotores, the English department, the Kansas Studies Institute, the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art and admissions. The campus partnership with admissions and the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, called CavStARTS, encourages longer stays and more in-depth engagement for those students visiting the campus for arts education activities.

Partnerships continued with educational and community organizations, such as the Johnson County Library, Heartland Music Academy, the Kansas Alliance for Arts Education, the Kansas Department of Education and the University of Kansas.

Support for professional development came from the Kennedy Center Partners in Education Program. The JCCC PAS arts education program, in partnership with the Shawnee Mission school district, is the only Kennedy Center Partner team in the state. The campus and community partnerships create opportunities for educators to choose from 13 professional development classes offered.

In 2014-2015, 59 master classes or workshops were offered, as well as three music festivals. In summer 2014, the nine-day Heartland Chamber Music Festival and six-day Junior Music Festival with community partner Heartland Chamber Music Academy became one of the premier chamber music festivals in the region, with 100 students, 30 instructors and six performances. Of those participating, 68 percent came from Johnson County. A four-day Adult Music Camp was also offered in 2014.

Grants In 2014-2015, the Performing Arts Series received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts – Art Works, Arts Engagement in American Communities and the Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission’s Creative Economy Project Support.

The Performing Arts Series was awarded a $36,649 grant to support New Dance Partners, an event that featured area dance groups performing works created by nationally known choreographers. The Creative Economy Project Support grant came from the Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission. The commission’s grants promote creative industries to help grow the state’s economy. Additional funding by the National Endowment for the Arts also awarded $10,000 toward the project.

In the New Dance Partners performances, the audience saw original works from choreographers Robert Moses, Penny Saunders and Amy Siewert performed by members of the Kansas City Ballet, Wylliams/Henry Contemporary Dance and the Owen/Cox Dance Group. Working with the college on the dance event were partners InterUrban ArtHouse and Downtown Overland Park Partnership, Inc. The PAS arts education program received $10,000 from the Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission for professional development in arts integration. Both the Kansas Alliance for Arts Education and the Missouri Alliance for Arts in Education contributed funds. Funding from the Francis Family Foundation provided another $10,000 for PAS artists and education outreach.

Academic performances JCCC’s music department offers students the opportunity to compose, study and perform music as part of a choral group or concert or jazz band. JCCC’s student musical ensembles – Chamber Choir, MadRegalia, Concert Band, the Midnight Express Jazz Ensemble and the JCCC Jazz Nights – perform concerts throughout the year.

JCCC’s academic theatre department offered these productions in 2014-2015: [title of show], a play that follows two struggling writers through the gauntlet of self-expression; An Experiment with an Air Pump, which explored the evolving role of women and the aims of science at the dawning of eras 200 years apart; Marcus Is Walking: Scenes from the Road, a play written on the occasion of the hundredth anniversary of the car that examines the emotional landscape people roam when they travel by auto; El Tiburon: A Made Up Cuban Folk Story, a children’s play that teaches people shouldn’t judge someone based on what others have said; and Midsummer Night’s Dream, Shakespeare’s comedy on the difficulties of love.

Each semester the college presents the Ruel Joyce Recital Series (named for the longtime jazz bassist who headed the local musicians federation from 1977 until his death in 1989) and a Jazz Series. The concerts, featuring local classical and jazz artists, are co-sponsored by the JCCC humanities and music departments, continuing education and the Richard J. Stern Foundation for the Arts.

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The Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art

• REVEAL • Works from the Collection was on view from Nov. 24, 2014, through Aug. 23, 2015, in the museum’s Oppenheimer and Dean E. Thompson Galleries on the first floor. It included a selection of works from the museum’s permanent collection.

In 2014-2015, 110,495 individuals visited the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art. The museum at JCCC is the largest contemporary art museum in the four-state region and the only contemporary art museum in Kansas.

• Gina Adams • Its Honor is Here Pledged featured new works using vintage quilts, overlaid with text drawn from historic treaties between the U.S. government and American Indian peoples. The exhibition was on view in the Cohen Gallery from Feb. 5 through May 10, 2015.

Since 1980, JCCC has been collecting contemporary art from around the world, each year adding new pieces to the collection. Today, the works of more than 1,300 regional, national and international artists are represented in JCCC’s renowned collection, which features a diverse range of painting, photography, clay, sculpture and works on paper.

Some of the college’s collection is installed in “collection focus” areas in the corridors, dining halls and other highly visible and accessible locations around campus, sparking a spontaneous engagement with art for students, faculty, staff and visitors.

• Gina Adams • To Honor the Unidentified featured ceramic basketballs with encaustic designs, basketball banners and portraits of American Indian leaders on Baltic birch with encaustic. This exhibition was presented in the McCaffree Gallery Feb. 5 through May 10, 2015.

• Natalie Ball • Mapping Coyote Black, Feb. 5 through May 10, 2015, was an immersive installation that used dramatically altered quilts as an essential element of the work.

• Mark Cowardin • The Space Between was presented in the Oppenheimer New Media Gallery from May 28 through Sept. 27, 2015. Cowardin, a professor of fine arts at JCCC, addressed the impact of consumption on the natural environment, sounding a note of optimism in a representation of the tree of life using hardware and fluorescent lights with the cords (power sources) exposed.

• Amir Fallah • The Caretaker was on view in the Cohen Gallery from May 28 through Sept. 27, 2015. Fallah created an immersive three-dimensional portrait of his subject, JCCC journalism professor Mark Raduziner, through paintings and constructions inspired by Raduziner’s possessions, including his collection of more than 300 cactus plants.

Installation view, Contemporary American Indian Art • The Nerman Museum Collection, February 7 - September 21, 2014, Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, Johnson County Community College

• Rodolfo Marron III • A Poke Ghost and the Garden of Tearz was installed in the museum’s McCaffree Gallery from May 28 through Sept. 27, 2015. Marron’s interest in the mythology of the Huichol people of Mexico was incorporated in the installation of three altars and a narrative cycle of drawings devoted to Ella, a beloved deer who lived in a cemetery in a Kansas City neighborhood.

Exhibitions Exhibitions at the museum in 2014-2015 focused on a variety of content and media: • Jason Lazarus • Don’t close these doors unless you know what you’re doing surveyed a selection of works from the past decade for what was a Kansas City homecoming for the conceptual artist. This exhibition was presented in the museum’s Cohen Gallery June 27 through Aug. 31, 2014.

• Robert Bingaman • Night Pools, June 27 through Oct. 22, 2014, showcased Bingaman’s current body of work that depicts iridescent pools glowing in a black void in the Oppenheimer New Media Gallery.

• The Charlotte Street Visual Artist Awards Exhibition, Charlotte Street Foundation Fellows 2014, was on view from Sept. 11, 2014, through Jan. 14, 2015, in the museum’s Cohen and McCaffree Galleries. The exhibit featured the works of three artists who won the 2014 Charlotte Street Foundation Awards: Amy Kligman, Garry Noland and Sean Starowitz.

Installation view, Its Honor is Here Pledged • Gina Adams, February 5 - May 10, 2015, Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, Johnson County Community College

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The collection In 2014-2015, the Nerman Museum added 147 artworks to the permanent collection.

Recent acquisitions include ceramics, paintings, works on paper, new media, textiles, sculpture and photography. During the year, seven donors gave 92 works to the museum and college, with a combined value of more than $114,600. The donors were The Academy of Arts and Letters, Barton P. and Mary D. Cohen, Garnett City Art Collection, David Hoberman, Sharon and John Hoffman, The Lawrence Art Center, and H. Tony and Marti Oppenheimer. The remaining 55 works were acquired through the JCCC Foundation and college auxiliary funds.

In addition, several works from the permanent collection were loaned to major museums in the United States: • The Nelson Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, featured Wendy Red Star’s four photographs titled Four Season Series, Spring; Indian Summer; Winter; Fall (2006) in the exhibition The Plains Indians: Artists of Earth and Sky from Sept. 19, 2014, through Jan. 11, 2015. The exhibition later traveled to The Metropolitan Museum of New York, where it was on view March 3 through May 10, 2015.

Elizabeth Murray, Landing, 1999, Collection Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, Gift of JCCC Gallery Associates; Do Ho Suh, Some/One, 2004, Collection Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, Gift of Marti and Tony Oppenheimer and the Oppenheimer Brothers Foundation in honor of their children; Kerry James Marshall, Untitled (Altgeld Gardens), 1995, Collection Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art

• Jeffrey Gibson’s American Girl (2013) was included in the exhibition Beautiful Games: American Indian Sport and Art at the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Arizona, from Nov. 15, 2014, through Dec. 30, 2015.

• Arlene Shechet’s ceramic sculpture titled What I Heard (2007) was featured at the Boston Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, Massachusetts, from June 10 through Sept. 7, 2015.

Allison Schulnik, Skipping Skeletons, 2008, Collection Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, Gift of Marti and Tony Oppenheimer and the Oppenheimer Brothers Foundation; Stephan Balkenhol, Man Lying on Platform, 1998, Gift of Marti and Tony Oppenheimer and the Oppenheimer Brothers Foundation, Collection Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art

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Art education In 2014-2015, the museum offered a variety of educational programs for students, children, educators and visitors of all ages.

• Museum public programs (lectures, presentations, workshops, and films, among other offerings) reached more than 5,120 individuals in the community.

• The museum’s group tour program served more than 980 school children, 890 college students and 1,525 adults from the community in guided and self-guided visits in 2014-2015. Docents and staff led 182 free art appreciation tours for these groups.

• In 2014-2015, 78 individuals from the community volunteered 4,261 hours assisting with visitor services, events and educational programs. Most of the guided tours were led by dedicated volunteer docents.

• The museum continues to offer a popular series of studio classes for children in the summer and on Saturdays throughout the academic year. The Early Explorations program welcomed children ages 5 to 7, while Contemporary Creations classes provided more advanced lessons for children ages 8 to 11. Each day, students explored and discussed selected works of art, developing their critical thinking skills and expanding their cultural awareness; they then created original works of art in the museum’s studio classroom. A total of 424 students participated in 61 class sessions through both programs in 2014-2015.

• A series of Friday gallery talks called Noon at the Nerman provided students, faculty and staff an open opportunity to examine works of art on view in the museum and the college campus. Each week a member of JCCC’s faculty or staff spoke briefly about a different work of art, with 26 presentations and a total of 467 individuals in attendance. Dr. Allison Smith, associate professor/chair of art history, coordinated the speakers.

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Third Thursday • Visiting Artists’ Presentations In collaboration with the JCCC academic departments, the museum again offered a series of Third Thursday Visiting Artists presentations in 2014-2015; more than 620 people attended the events. Each of the free programs featured artists paired with JCCC faculty moderators. The programs were made possible in part by an Ovation Grant from the Arts Council of Metropolitan Kansas City.

• In September 2014, the visiting artists were Michael Krueger, a professor from the University of Kansas who teaches drawing and printmaking, and Gina Adams, who teaches at Haskell Indian Nations University and creates ceramics, encaustic and textile works. The moderators were Larry Thomas, professor/chair of fine arts, and Dr. Sean Daley, associate professor of anthropology and director of the Center for American Indian Studies at JCCC. • The guest artists in October were Bernadette Esperanza Torres, who teaches ceramics, sculpture and drawing at Metropolitan Community College-Penn Valley, and Larry Thomas, professor/chair of fine arts at JCCC, who works with paint, printmaking, collage and digitally generated images. The moderators were Mark Cowardin, professor of fine arts, and Dr. Allison Smith, associate professor/chair of art history.

• In November, the guest artist was ceramicist Diego Valles from Mata Ortiz, Mexico. The moderator was Laura-Harris Gascogne, professor of fine arts. Valles also led a workshop for JCCC ceramics students and community visitors, hosted by Gascogne. The program and workshop were sponsored by Doug and Karen Washburn, Lenexa, Kansas.

• In February 2015, guest artists were Tanya Hartman, associate professor at the University of Kansas, who creates portraits and mixed media artworks, and Mike Erickson, a painter. The moderators were Misha Kligman and Andrew Schell, adjunct associate professors of fine arts.

• In March, the guest artist was Matthew Hufft, architect, founder and creative director of Hufft Projects. Moderating was Jonathan Miller, associate professor/chair of architecture.

• The presentation in April featured guest artists Hong Chun Zhang, who creates larger-than-life-size drawings, and Jill Downen, an interdisciplinary artist. Moderators were Marie Dolembo, adjunct associate professor of art history, and Cowardin.

Beyond Bounds Marking its 10th anniversary, Beyond Bounds, the biennial art auction that benefits the Nerman Museum, took place in October 2014 in the museum’s first-floor galleries.

Offering the public a chance to buy art created by prominent regional, national and international artists, Beyond Bounds raised nearly $175,000 to support the museum.

For this year’s event, the museum chose to send artists blue mediums (oil paints, pastels, watercolor, acrylic, colored pencil, gouache and oil stick), thus completing the homage to primary colors (previous events celebrated red and yellow). The word ELECTRIC! not only signified electric blue but also the excitement generated by museum and gallery openings or auctions.

The event featured works of art by 153 artists, including paintings, photographs, ceramics, sculpture, jewelry, works on paper and videos that were sold during live and silent auctions. The evening also included a gourmet buffet and musical entertainment.

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Johnson County Community College Foundation Through its fundraising efforts, the JCCC Foundation supports student scholarships, academic programs and the visual and performing arts at the college. As of June 30, 2015, the Foundation’s endowment was $20,114,534, and its total assets were $29,294,905. Stewart Stein, partner with Stinson Leonard Street LLP, served as the 2014-2015 Foundation president.

These Foundation activities were significant milestones for 2014-2015.

Scholarships For the 2014-2015 academic year, the JCCC Foundation, working with the college’s financial aid office, awarded $1,077,082.38 to 1,085 JCCC students with tuition, books and program needs. This was both the highest amount ever awarded and the most students ever to receive scholarships in the history of the JCCC Foundation.

Program support Jean Cantero Jean Cantero, a 2015 graduate from JCCC, used his time at the college to decide between three different career paths. After two years, and some great experiences, he knows where to go next. He graduated as the first person in his family to attend college, all because he developed a plan. “Students with parents who went to college, they know what it’s like, and the parents help them out,” Cantero said. “If you’re the first one (in your family) to go to college, you need to have a goal, and not let anything distract you from that goal.” He’s moving on to a 4-year school because he now knows that he wants to teach social studies, especially U.S. government. “I find it fascinating,” he said.

Major gifts to enhance JCCC programs in 2014-2015 included support for International Service learning trips to Las Pintas, Mexico, and Gulu, Northern Uganda. Since 1998, students from JCCC have traveled to Las Pintas, Mexico, helping with medical and dental care and most recently a solar-power project. In the past three years, service-learning at JCCC has expanded to include a nursing program collaboration in the struggling region of northern Uganda, strengthening JCCC’s commitment to service-learning on an international level.

Some Enchanted Evening In November 2014, Some Enchanted Evening, the Foundation’s black-tie gala, generated more than $510,000 for its scholarship program. Gary Morsch, founder of Heart to Heart International, was honored as Johnson Countian of the Year. The chair of the event was Mary Birch, Lathrop & Gage.

Gary Morsch

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Nerman Museum

Major gift

In 2014-2015, members of the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art contributed nearly $20,000 in support of the museum exhibitions and educational offerings.

Additional gifts, grant funding and event sponsorships resulted in a total of more than $108,000 in private support for the museum. Highlights of the Beyond Bounds biennial fundraising event can be found in the section of this report that focuses on the Nerman Museum.

A local couple made an anonymous contribution of $145,000 to a previously established fund that supports multiple initiatives at JCCC. A generous portion of the contribution will fund the JCCC Business Scholarship, which awards deserving students $5,000 a year. Additional initiatives will be funded in the form of grants to support sustainability concepts and programs at JCCC.

Performing Arts Series The Friends of the Performing Arts Series at JCCC, business partnerships and grants and gifts from corporations and foundations contributed more than $316,000 to support performing arts programming and operations in 2014-2015. In anticipation of the 25th anniversary of the Performing Arts Series, Silver Celebration Sponsors contributed more than $113,000 to support programming. An additional special gift was made to underwrite Polsky Theatre space renovations.

Friends with Taste Friends with Taste, a gift society to support the college’s hospitality management program, generated $24,500. Funding provided scholarships and support for JCCC’s culinary competition team. Members of Friends with Taste were able to participate in culinary events throughout the year.

Employee giving More than 265 faculty and staff members contributed nearly $51,500 to support a wide variety of programs and scholarships as part of the Foundation’s employee giving program. Employees contribute monthly through payroll deduction or by annual gifts in support of various initiatives.

Legacy gifts Each year donors remember friends or loved ones with memorial contributions to the JCCC Foundation. Others choose to remember the college by planning an estate gift.

This past year, family and friends contributed more than $40,000 to establish the Tyler Charles Standridge Scholarship Endowment as a memorial tribute. The new scholarship will provide financial assistance to automotive technology students at JCCC. Thanks to a planned gift from the Mary A. Beatty Family Trust, $100,000 will be used to provide financial support for the Johnson County Adult Education programs at JCCC. JCAE provides programs to build skills in basic reading, writing and math and prepare for GED testing. The program also offers English as a second language and life skills programs. Many young people and families will benefit from this generous gift.

The JCCC Foundation appreciates the generosity of these donors who support scholarships and programs at JCCC as a lasting legacy in support of education.

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Overland Park, KS 66210-1299 www.jccc.edu