MARCH 2018
In 2007, Bassett High School graduate Marcus Stone was completing his studies
“There has been a lot of opportunities here and I received a lot of support and
in biology at Bridgewater College and wondering what he would choose next
help from people in the community,” Marcus said.
for his career. After reading an online article in the Martinsville Bulletin about New College Institute’s summer internship program, Marcus decided to return home and was an NCI intern with Henry County Public Safety. Marcus has always been involved in the health and wellbeing of others. Before graduating from Bassett High School he served on a local EMS
crew for three years. After Marcus completed his internship he continued his education at Patrick Henry Community College (PHCC) and worked part-time at Memorial Hospital of Martinsville (now Sovah Health-Martinsville) as an emergency room technician.
Seniors in the Bachelor of Social Work program through Longwood at NCI are completing their second internships before they graduate in May. The students are placed primarily in Martinsville and Henry County, but a few are in Pittsylvania County and Roanoke. Longwood instructor Janie Brazier requires all students to read and understand all policies and procedures before beginning an internship. As part of this process, students also study one
Once Marcus earned an associate’s degree in nursing from PHCC, he worked full-time as a nurse in the emergency room and in 2013 was promoted to Director of the Emergency Room. In 2016 he was promoted to the Director of Cardiovascular Services at Sovah HealthMartinsville.
Without my internship opportunity at NCI, I may not be here now. It sounds cliché, but it really did bring me home. Marcus Stone, 2007 NCI Intern
Marcus Stone was an NCI intern in 2007 with Henry County Public Safety and is now the Director of Cardiovascular Services at Sovah Health-Martinsville.
In his current role, Marcus oversees an integrated approach to heart and vascular care from prevention and diagnostic care to the latest in surgical treatments and rehabilitation. In 2017 Marcus earned his MBA from Liberty University. He and his wife Brittany have two young children, Lucas and Lily.
policy in depth in order to develop a presentation to present to their class. “I think sometimes we don’t understand how important confidentiality is. I find confidentiality is very important at all levels when interacting with people and taking information,” said Longwood at NCI senior Melvin Johnson. In May, fourteen students will graduate from Longwood at NCI with a Bachelor’s degree in social work.
Schnika Martin’s (right) second internship is at the Department of Juvenile Justice in Henry County. Schnika reviewed the dress code policies and presented them to Longwood instructor Janie Brazier (right) and her entire class.
New College Institute is honored to an-
nounce a new initiative, LIFE — Learning Is ForEver, made possible by the generous donation of Martinsville resident Barbara Matthews. The goal of the LIFE program is to create engaging learning opportunities for adults of all ages, particularly those above fifty. More than 50 opportunities have been established for the inaugural year of LIFE in the areas of arts and culture,
and have opportunities to come together with others for social experiences that are centered around learning. Everyone at New College Institute is excited at how Barbara’s generosity has created so many additional opportunities to share educational programs for our community. We are honored that she chose NCI to carry out this
healthy living, local and human history, community engagement, senior living,
worthwhile effort. We will create
and science and technology. With classes ranging from Tai Chi, Glass Painting,
her proud.
Creative Writing, Estate Planning, Henry County Troops in the War, and Insects and Society; there truly is a learning experience for everyone over the course of the year. Read more about all of the 2018 LIFE opportunities at: https://goo.gl/fcKmUL.
All LIFE events and classes are free to attend thanks to the generous contribution of Matthews. NCI’s LIFE program provides non-credit opportunities for individuals to engage in intellectual and cultural experiences to enrich their lives
learning opportunities that make
Leanna Blevins, NCI Executive Director
“One of the best investments we can make in ourselves is to commit to learning something new each and
Approximately 150 people attended NCI’s LIFE-Learning Is ForEver program recognizing American Heart Month. NCI and Sovah Health-Martinsville partnered to offer a heart healthy lunch, presentation, and onsite demonstrations. Kerielea Byrd was the featured speaker.
Classes will be delivered in a variety of formats including: hands-on, behindthe-scenes tours, workshops, interactive lectures, networking, do-it-yourself
every day. LIFE is a unique, nontraditional opportunity to learn from
projects, panel discussions, information fairs, and Q & A opportunities. With the
regional experts, engage in discus-
exception of the behind-the-scenes tours at Hamlet Vineyards and the Vir-
sions with each other, and celebrate the abundance of learning opportunities available in Martinsville and Henry County,” said Melany Stowe, Assis-
ginia Museum of Natural History, all classes will be offered at New College Institute.
tant Director of Academics.
Lunch was excellent! Symptoms of a heart attack were well presented in a way to be easily remembered.
Some lives will be saved by this program.
Such a powerful testimonial today from Ms. Byrd. So happy to hear her endorsement of Sovah and New College. Thank you New College for offering these programs to help us live better lives. Gloria J. Foley
If it weren’t for NCI, I wouldn’t have been able to earn a degree from Longwood University. My social work degree will allow me to be a better advocate for any person with mental health issues. Longwood at NCI student Elaine Janney shares with NCI board member Bob Burger
Attendees at New College Institute’s
Longwood University, Redd received an
LIFE-Learning Is ForEver program cele-
art history degree from Yale University
brated Black History Month viewing
in 1994.
and discussing African-American art
participation by asking three questions
from 1893 to 2015.
for each work featured: 1) What do
"We’re going to a museum together, this is not a lecture,” said course presenter Sammy Redd. Redd is the Stu-
Redd encouraged audience
you see? 2) What was the artist trying to convey? 3) What is your response to
"Art doesn't have to be complicated.
the image?
It is something that everybody can
dent Services Coordinator at New Col-
The interactive format was well re-
lege Institute who also has a passion
ceived by attendees. Almost forty peo-
for art appreciation. In addition to his
ple, from as far away as Raleigh, NC,
master’s degree in counseling from
attended the event. Works by artists discussed the
in
presenta-
tion included: Kerry
James
Marshall,
Henry
Tanner, Mickalene
Thomas,
Kehinde Wiley, Hank
Willis
Thomas, Sonya Clark, and Hale
enjoy. The most important thing is to slow down and look at what is there,” said Redd.
This was a very thoughtful, very provocative lecture, but one of the things I really liked about it was that it was participatory. He used art to break down boundaries. He set the right tone to allow, encourage, and demand people to interact, and that’s what makes art history exciting, not just understanding title and artists but why it why it was created.
Woodruff. Mary Ruffin, LIFE attendee
NCI Academy for Engineering & Technology (AET) students had an opportunity to watch and practice CMM (coordinate measuring machine) demonstrations directed by Mitutoyo America Corporation Applications Engineer Chris Fitch.
We’ve had a great working relationship with NCI and partnering with NCI on the Heart Healthy Forum was the perfect opportunity to make it bigger and better than ever. Liz Harris, Sovah Health Director of Marketing
Future teachers enrolled in Longwood University at NCI work on group projects after a full day of student teaching at Albert Harris Elementary School.