HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY! AND HAPPY NEW YEAR! (Fiscal new year, that is.)
It hardly seems possible that half of 2006 is over, but here we are in July.
DELO ended its third ever fiscal year on plan ...and very successfully. CONGRATULATIONS to the entire DELO team. We will try to have a list of highlights as to programs, enrollments, partnerships, and more in the August newsletter. (This might be thought of as a subtle, or not so subtle, reminder to unit leaders.)
Congratulations to Ron Stephens, Marilyn Brookman and Juanita Bayless who have been promoted to Associate Deans of the Division of Extended Learning and Outreach and Director of WKU-(the respective campus town). This became effective on July 1. This promotion reflects the growing importance of the regional campuses in the WKU organization, and the tremendous job these team leaders are doing.
We have been completing work on several additional personnel additions, expansions, and reclassifications that we will also list in the next letter.
This month Chris and I will attend "The Campus of the Future" a combined meeting of the Association of Higher Education Facilities Officers (AAPA), National association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO), and the Society for College and University Planning (SCUP), in Honolulu. We will be out from the 7th - 13th.
Ginny and I will then travel to see the Grandkids in Iowa the week of 17-21. So far we have two swimming meets and a baseball game scheduled. Ginny will spend much time playing all forms of "girl-stuff" games with Molly while I will work on many types of "projects" with our inventor Jake in the garage. Our newest grandson Adam will visit us in Bowling Green the last weekend of the month, so we will have some fantastic things to write in our first school essay ...fun things I did last summer.
I hope all of you take some time for your own family and personal rest and relaxation this summer. You’ve not only earned it, you deserve it.
Enjoy the letter.
Don
• WKU Staff Council Meeting
The WKU Staff Council held its annual retreat at the Glasgow Regional Campus on Wednesday, June 7. James McCaslin, 2005-2006 Staff Council Chair, welcomed the newly elected members and recognized those members who rotated off. The group spent the morning reviewing the purpose of the Staff Council and the accomplishments during the 2005-2006 year. The new Council spent the afternoon making committee assignments and setting goals for the upcoming year.
Julie Gee, Education Specialist for the Regional Science Resource Center (RSRC) of Western Kentucky University held two Summer Ecology Camps at the Glasgow Campus. The Regional Science Resource Center at WKU offers middle school students science experiences which are not possible in most classrooms. Ecology Camps present students with unique learning opportunities in an outdoor setting. Programs include a focus on the natural world and human interactions with the environment. Topics of study include trees/forest ecosystem, insects, birds, stream quality, geology and the karst landscape.
This was the second year we have had the privilege of hosting this great event for 5th and 6th graders. Eleven students attended.
Students participating in the Regional Science Resource Center's Advanced Ecology Camp had the opportunity to engage in hands-on learning relating to local and global ecological issues. Participants in this program attended the regular Ecology Camp program one or more summers prior to participating in the Advanced program. One of the goals of the Advanced program was to provide students with more in-depth, unique and physically challenging experiences than the regular Ecology Camp. Because of this goal, students participating in the Advanced Camp were required to have completed the 6th grade.
Listed below are the topics of study and learning experiences for the Advanced Ecology Camp:
A long term goal of both Ecology Camp programs is to develop more environmentally literate citizens who will understand ecological concepts. Having fun remains a constant goal for both programs! Fifteen students attended the Advanced Ecology Camp.
Mark Powell, Coordinator of Administrative Services for The Glasgow Technology Campus, a division of KCTCS, saw his gift come to fruition. On June 15th, Mark donated more than 10" of his prematurely gray hair to Senior Locks of Love. Mark had not cut his hair since Christmas 2004. He donated his hair in honor of a great aunt who has suffered from cancer and in memory of his late mother.
Way to go, Mark!
Alicia Pirtle joins the DELO staff as Office Associate. Alicia recently graduated from WKU with a degree in Business Management and Finance. In addition to assisting with Summer Sessions and Winter Term, Alicia will support DELO Assistant to the Dean, Beth Laves. Alicia can be reached at 745-2478 or by email at alicia.pirtle@wku.edu. Please join in welcoming Alicia to the DELO team.
On Tuesday, June 13, over 400 Summer Session students, Western faculty, staff and their families enjoyed an outdoor theater showing of Hoodwinked on the WKU South Lawn. The weather was perfect, the popcorn was hot and fresh and the soft drinks were ice cold. The movie was sponsored by the Summer Sessions and the WKU Campus Activities Board.
Summer Sessions and CAB will be sponsoring another movie night on July 25. Be watching for more details.
Students entering the 5th, 6th and 7th grade spent five days in June exploring the magic of chemistry in a real college laboratory during Big Red’s Chemistry Camp at Western Kentucky University. The camp was sponsored by the Department of Continuing Education, a unit of the Division of Extended Learning and Outreach (DELO).
Led by Dr. Les Pesterfield, a professor in WKU’s Department of Chemistry, students performed dozens of experiments that are fun, safe, amazing and guaranteed to generate enthusiasm for science.
Campers made their own tie-died safety goggles, learned how the alchemist "turned" copper into silver and gold, made and tested their own aspirin, made slime and explored other polymers, experienced the magic of chemical reactions and investigated a "crime scene."
The Carroll Knicely Conference Center hosted the second annual Kentucky/Indiana All-Stars banquet on June 16. Over 400 people attended the luncheon including the boys and girls teams representing the best high school senior basketball players in the two states. Other special guests included WKU basketball coaches Darren Horn and Mary Taylor-Cowles and past high school basketball legends.
