News NICC Wins Grant for Outdoor Learning Lab Posted 20 November 2008 At the November Board of Trustees meeting for Northeast Iowa Community College, NICC chemistry instructor, Steve Bateman, presented plans for a 28- acre outdoor learning lab where students would have access to woodlands, a savannah, a prairie and a wetland all on one site. This outdoor learning lab will be located on the east side of the Peosta campus grounds and is being funded in part by an Iowa Living Roadway Grant for over $18,000. The college is working with the Department of Natural Resources and will also be seeking resources, support and in- kind donations from organizations like Trees Forever, Turkey Federation, Pheasants Forever, Whitetail Unlimited, Ducks Unlimited and Habitat Forever. The uses for college and K-12 curricula are endless in courses like biology, chemistry and environmental science. Similar to an arboretum, this outdoor lab will be equipped with walking trails for student and public use. In other news, trustees approved several board appointments including the re-appointment of Ronda Kirkegaard to the Iowa Association of Community College Trustees board with Linus Rothmeyer and Jim Anderson serving as alternates; Tobin Britt will serve as the NICC representative to the Northeast Iowa Community-Based Dairy Foundation Board; and Jim Anderson, Don Frazer and Dan Willenbring were appointed to serve on the board's Audit Committee. Kirkegaard and Anderson also agreed to continue serving on the college's Renovation and Construction Steering Committee. NICC Vice President for Academic Affairs Curt Oldfield presented the 2009-2010 academic calendar to the Board for their approval. Classes for the fall 2009 semester will commence on August 20 and end on December 17. The spring 2010 semester will begin on January 11 and end on May 12. Also approved with the 2009-2010 calendar were dates for the seven class days for the Winterim and May terms. Oldfield also announced the dates of the December graduation ceremonies noting that graduation for Peosta campus graduates will be held on Thursday, December 18, at 7:00 p.m. in the Eleanor Roosevelt Middle School Auditorium. Calmar graduates will receive their degrees on Friday, December 19, at a ceremony in the Wilder Auditorium that begins at 7:00 p.m. Vice President for Finance John Noel recommended that the board approve a bid for the purchase and installation of Servo-I ventilator for the college's Respiratory Care lab on the Peosta campus. The board approved the bid submitted by Maquet, Inc. of Bridgewater, New Jersey for a cost of $24,061.40.  Trustees also approved the purchase of an alignment machine for the automotive technology program on the Calmar campus for a total cost of $16,590 from North Iowa Automotive Equipment of Cresco. Both pieces of equipment are essential to providing technologically advanced education and training to the workforce of tomorrow and were approved and budgeted for through the college's strategic planning process. Cindy O'Bryon, chair of NICC's Quality Council, reviewed the college's strategic planning priorities which will assist in linking resources to projects and programs that will advance the mission and vision of the college.  The strategic planning priorities included the development of an institutional and instructional technology master plan; the expansion of the college's strategic enrollment plan; continued evaluation of the college's continuous improvement efforts; and the expansion and diversification of college resources. In her president's report, Dr. Penny Wills reported on her service to a nationwide community college workforce commission that is calling on community colleges to address the workforce crisis in this country. With over 80 percent of jobs available in the next decade requiring some post-secondary education or training, community colleges are best positioned to address these challenges. This includes looking at smaller bundling of courses intended to give students the specific education they need. Vice President Noel reported on the design work, asbestos removal and other planning being done in preparation for the renovation of the Calmar campus Industrial Technology building. He also reported that utility and site work is currently being completed for the new Industrial Technology building on the Peosta campus. Renovation of the top floor of the Town Clock Center in downtown Dubuque was completed on schedule and under budget. As part of that project, the trustees granted an easement to the City of Dubuque for the pedestrian walkway connecting the top floor of that facility with a city parking garage.   The trustees approved the hiring of Merle Neises, business and industry program manager at the Town Clock Center. They also approved the hiring of Tara Foster as a switchboard/bookkeeper and Mark Grinhaug as a custodian at the Calmar campus. Following the Board meeting, trustees attended the induction ceremony for the Peosta campus NICC Alumni Hall of Fame. This second annual event is intended to honor alumni who have not only succeeded in their chosen field but who also give back to their local community and embody NICC's values of service, respect, integrity, innovation and stewardship. Inducted were:  Tina Adams, Dubuque; Randy Decker, Dubuque; Jane Flynn, Bankston; and Thomas Henschel, Dubuque. The NICC Board of Trustees met on Monday, November 17, 2008, at 2:00 p.m. at the Peosta campus. The next scheduled meeting is Monday, December 15, 2008, at 3:00 p.m. at the Keystone Area Education Agency in Elkader.

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