Martinez to speak
Alma Martinez will present “Spitfires, Latin Lovers and Bandidos: The Myth of the Hollywood Latin Stereotype” Wednesday, Sept. 20, at 7:30 p.m. in van Emmerik Studio. The event, sponsored by the intercultural life office, is free and open to the public.
Peace pole dedication
The peace pole dedication will be Thursday, Sept. 21, on the lawn southeast of Geisler Library at 5 p.m. Sept. 21 is the International Day of Peace as designated by the United Nations. A reception will follow in the lobby of Vermeer Science Center.
There are over 200,000 peace poles in 180 countries around the world carrying the message “May peace prevail on Earth.” Central’s pole messages that in 16 languages representing Central’s connection to many international communities, local community and Iowa community.
Eulenspiegel puppets
Saturday, Sept. 23, at 1 p.m. at the Joan Kuyper Farver Auditorium in the Pella Community Center, Eulenspiegel Puppets will perform “Great Rabbit.” A puppet-making workshop will follow the performance. There is a $2 material fee for each participant.
At 7 p.m., Monica Leo will perform “My Father’s Imaginary Friend” and “German Eggheads in Rural Texas” in Cox-Snow Recital Hall at Central. A reception will follow in Mills Gallery. Free-will donations will be accepted at all performances.
Lunch at Allied/Nationwide
A lunch for alumni and friends employed at Allied/Nationwide in Des Moines is Monday, Sept. 25, from 12-1 p.m. Faculty and staff are invited to attend to reconnect with our alumni www.central.edu/alumni/events.html.
Basu reads at Central
Rekah Basu, award-winning columnist for the Des Moines Register, will read and discuss her essays in the Library Writers Reading Series Thursday, Sept. 28, at 7:30 p.m. in Cox-Snow Recital Hall.
Homecoming/Family Weekend
The schedule for Homecoming/Family Weekend Friday-Sunday, Sept. 29-Oct. 1, is available at www.central.edu/alumni/homecoming.html.
Bronson at Central
Author Po Bronson is the first speaker in the Mark and Kay De Cook Distinguished Speaker Series Monday, Oct. 2, at 7 p.m. in Douwstra Auditorium. His talk is titled “What Should You Do With Your Life? Finding passion among real life opportunities.” The event is free and open to the public.
Newton event
The alumni office is hosting an event at STEIN’S in Newton, Iowa, Wednesday, Oct. 18, from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Owners Todd ’92 and Marnie Schweitzer Stein ’96 will provide snacks. RSVP to the alumni office by Thursday, Oct. 12.
Volunteer at the elementary schools
Are you interested in volunteering with Pella Community Elementary students? Individuals are needed to read weekly with students in grades K-5 for 30 minutes to an hour. Reading has to be done between 8:30 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. the same time and day of the week at Webster, Lincoln and Jefferson Elementaries. Central employees are allowed 16 hours per fiscal year for community volunteer time. Hours are prorated for less than full-time employees. Contact Mary Glendening at 641-628-1545 or glendeningm@central.edu for more information.
News from Catholic Campus Ministries
Catholic Mass is offered every Tuesday evening at 9 p.m. in the upper chapel. All students and employees are invited to attend.
Every Thursday evening there will be a Catholic small study group meeting in the lower chapel at 9 p.m. All students and employees are invited to come and discuss issues that affect and strengthen our faith. The beginning topic Sept. 7 was “Why am I Catholic?”
There will be a Catholic Bible study called “The Great Adventure: A journey though the Bible by Jeff Cavins.” It is a timeline study that helps people get the “Big Picture” of the people, places and events of the Bible. All students and employees are invited. Dates and time will be announced soon.
Central recycling
Central College is a recycling campus! We purchased the Big Red Recycling trailer two years ago to help do our part by collecting recyclable materials from our dorms and honor houses at Central.
In the first year, Central averaged 1,000 lbs. of recyclable material per week. Last year, Central entered a nationwide contest called Recyclemania competing against over 90 colleges. We finished in 21st place in the per capita category, 19th in cardboard recycled and 25th with bottles and cans. WE CAN DO BETTER!
Schedule:
Monday, 8 a.m.-4 p.m., Graham
Monday-Tuesday, 4 p.m.-4 p.m., Scholte
Tuesday-Wednesday, 4 p.m.-4 p.m., Hoffman
Wednesday-Thursday, 4 p.m.-4 p.m., Weller Center
Thursday-Friday, 4 p.m.-4 p.m., West 4th parking lot
Friday-Monday, 4 p.m.-8 a.m., Peale
Employee Spotlight - Marty Feeney
Name: Marty Feeney
Department: communication studies
Title: associate professor of communication studies, adviser The Ray, CentralMania.com, D-MTV
About me: Nicknamed Mojo Repair Man; little known fact - city of Boston bronze medalist in 110 high hurdles in high school; brush with greatness - carried Gary Hart's luggage to a taxi at Denver airport; brush with not-so-greatness - got shelled as goalie 11-0 in the Montreal Forum
Hibbard at business meeting, national conference
Al Hibbard (mathematics and computer science), as a councilor for the mathematics and computer science division of the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR), attended the business meeting of the group June 22-24 at DePauw University in Greencastle, Ind. Following this, he attended the CUR 2006 National Conference June 24-27 and gave a workshop with two others titled “Using Software to Explore Upper-Division Mathematics Classes (with a Focus on Abstract Algebra).”
Wright at board meeting
Nancy Wright (Talent Search) represented Central College at the College Is Possible (CIP) Advisory Board meeting July 21 in Washington, D.C. The CIP project is sponsored by the American Council on Education with the mission to create opportunities for all students to attain a college education. The meeting in July focused on ways to encourage and create opportunities for low-income and/or minority students to enter STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) careers.
Reimer, Zaffiro attend summit
Treva Reimer (theatre) and Jim Zaffiro (political science/environmental studies) attended the National Summit on Garden Policy, “Gardens for All: People, Plants and Policy,” sponsored by the National Gardening Association and the Drake University Law School, at Drake University, Des Moines, Iowa, Sept. 7-8.
Breckenridge performs recital
Carol lei Breckenridge (music) played keyboard for a violin recital at Iowa State University Sept. 11.
Student Learning and Development Council
Summary Report of Meeting Activity (Aug. 24 – Sept. 14)
The Student Learning and Development Council collaborates with departments and programs to review and renew operational plans, organizational structures and task force reports. The council will consider, resolve and/or refer to appropriate faculty, administrators or governance body all recommendations and campus-wide concerns that arise related to student learning and development.
This fall, the Student Learning and Development Council has been meeting at 8 a.m. on Thursdays. Discussions and actions have included the following:
- Reviewed and recommended endorsement of a Student Senate proposal to make condoms available on campus; that proposal was approved by David Roe. Development and implementation of a condom availability plan has been assigned to the office of student life.
- Reviewed the full report of the Wellness Task Force. Task force members are now prioritizing recommendations from the report so appropriate administrators, faculty and campus-wide governance bodies can be asked to assume implementation responsibilities. In addition, the task force has been re-charged for the 2006-07 academic year to gather data and make recommendations on wellness issues/initiatives impacting faculty and staff.
- Reviewed the function, make-up and responsibilities/authority of campus-wide task forces; discussed the origin, evolution and dissolution of task forces within the institutional governance structure and clarified their role in decision-making processes.
- Reviewed the newly-adopted institutional strategic plan and began assigning coordination/implementation responsibilities to appropriate administrators, faculty and campus-wide governance bodies. The two councils will take leadership roles in monitoring and reporting to the entire campus community on progress made toward the fulfillment of our strategic plan goals.
In addition, council members and consultants regularly present updates from the departments and constituents they represent.
Strategic Planning Initiatives
No news.
Students Doing Interesting Things
Students take part in ROWEL poverty simulation
Monday-Tuesday, Sept. 25-26, a majority of students from Intersections will take part in the ROWEL poverty simulation. Through shared experiential learning opportunities like this one, students are enabled to connect course content to the world beyond the classroom.
Those who took part in the simulation last year gave it very positive reviews and recommended it be made available to Intersections students.
The ROWEL Poverty Simulation was created in 1980 by the Reform Organization of Welfare (ROWEL) Education Association of Missouri and is now identified as the Community Action Poverty Simulation (CAPS). The educational program is made available to Iowans through the Iowa State University Extension office.
Tyre Holfeltz and John Milligan joined athletics as assistant men’s soccer coaches.
John Jaeger joined athletics as athletic assistant and assistant baseball coach.
Paul Jones joined development as director of development.
Rebecca Manifold joined dining services as bakery assistant.
Kristina Mattly joined facilities planning and management as lead custodian.
David Kauper (economics) completed a doctoral degree June 16 from the University of California, Riverside, and he has been appointed assistant professor of economics.
Congratulations to Sarah and Jay Rhoten (athletics) on the birth of their daughter Sienna Kate Aug. 29. She weighed 7 lbs. 1 oz. and was 21 inches in length.
Congratulations to Curtis and Jodee Schaben (athletics) on the birth of their baby girl Sydnee Elise Sept. 4. She weighed 7 lbs. 12 oz. and was 19 inches in length.
Congratulations to Heather and Arthur Mask (Geisler Library) on the birth of their baby boy Asher Alan Sept. 7. He weighed 7 lbs. 7 oz.
We extend our sympathy to Guy Mosher (athletics) in the passing of his mother Viola Mosher Sept. 10.
Upcoming holidays
The campus will be closed the following days for the holidays:
Thursday-Friday, Nov. 23-24;
Friday, Dec. 22 (close at noon);
Monday-Tuesday, Dec. 25-26 and Jan. 1-2.
Reminder to Support Staff
September is the month you will receive two paychecks: Friday, Sept. 1 and Sept. 29. Except in special circumstances, no insurance premiums will be deducted from the Friday, Sept. 29, paycheck. If you have questions, please call ext. 5161.
Staff Christmas Banquet is scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 14. Please reserve this date on your calendars.
Professional Activities
Professional Development Grant
Grant funds are available to staff to encourage professional development and/or provide support for individuals to increase their professional skills relating to their current functions/department. These funds will support activities which are not fundable through department budgets. The signature of an individual’s supervisor indicating support of the proposed activity is required on this grant application.
Grant funds will support:
- conference expenses (including meetings, workshops, training programs, seminars, etc.);
- membership fees to professional organizations;
- resource materials (books, videos, etc., that are “how-to” books designed to assist in learning more about a subject, rather than reference materials);
- tuition assistance. (Funding in this category may be taxable and recipients must meet certain requirements.)
Annually, approximately $25,000 will be available for individual grants. The maximum grant amount is $750 for employees who are half-time or more and $200 for employees who are less than half-time. No individual may receive more than one grant in an academic year. When considering proposals of equal merit, preference will be given to requests from individuals who did not receive fully-funded grants in the previous year. Applications from temporary appointments or individuals whose contracts have not been renewed will not be considered. The committee may choose to fully fund, partially fund or reject proposals.
Completed grant application must be submitted to the human resources office prior to the Professional Development Committee meeting on the second Wednesday of each month. The grant application can be found on the HR module. Awards will be announced after the committee meeting.
Tuition exchange
Central College has been a member of the tuition exchange (TE) program since 1991-92. The TE program provides the opportunity for eligible dependents of faculty and staff to receive undergraduate scholarships at one of the participating member institutions. A list of over 570 colleges and universities that participate in the TE program can be found on the TE Web page www.tuitionexchange.org. Applications for new and returning dependents for the TE program must be submitted to human resources by Wednesday, Nov. 1, for the 2007-08 academic year. The form to submit for Tuition Exchange can be found on the HR module under “forms.” In addition to the application form, you will also need to submit a copy of your 2005 tax return showing verification of dependent status. TE eligibility is limited to full-time employees and may be limited based on point criteria established by the college in 2005.
Tuition reduction
Tuition reduction benefits are available for spouses and dependent children commencing in the academic period following two years of continuous employment for a full-time employee, or 3,328 accumulated hours for other than full-time employment. As an employee of the college, you receive this benefit immediately upon employment. Minority-time employees (less than 1,000 hours or less than .50 FTE) are eligible only for tuition reduction benefits for child dependents as stated in the most recent policy (April 2005). Temporary employees are not eligible for this benefit. The form to submit for tuition reduction can be found on the HR module. Please submit this form for new and returning students to the human resources by Wednesday, Nov. 1, for the 2007-08 academic year. In addition to the application form, you also will need to submit a copy of your 2005 tax return showing verification of dependent status.
Reminder
The phone list and departmental directory can be found on the HR module. These resources are updated on a monthly basis (usually by the end of the first week every month). You can access these resources by following these steps:
- Click on Internet Explorer;
- Go to http://my.central.edu;
- Enter your username and password;
- Click on the infocentral tab at the top of the page;
- Locate the human resources section of the Web site and where it says newsletters, documents and helpful Web sites, click on resources.
Open Positions
Central College invites applications for the following positions:
assistant professor of anthropology;
assistant professor education – generalist;
assistant professor of psychology;
assistant professor of Spanish – language specialist;
assistant professor of Spanish – generalist;
collection development librarian/assistant professor of library science.
All positions will begin August 2007 except for the library position, which will begin July 1, 2007. Please access the college Web site at http://www.central.edu/jobseekers/jobs.html to view full faculty position descriptions.
Administrative Staff Openings
Support Staff Openings
Please click on the position that interests you to see a detailed description. If you would like to download an application, click here or visit the college Web site at www.central.edu for more information.
Central College is strongly committed to creating a diverse community. In furtherance of that commitment, the college encourages candidates from diverse backgrounds, under represented groups and/or those who have had experience working with and/or interacting with individuals from diverse populations to apply. Central College is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer and actively seeks a diverse pool of candidates.
News items should be submitted to Abby Gonzales by noon Friday, Sept. 29.