Three graduates from Edison named among this year’s elite community college grads in Ohio

Front row of two (left to right):
2008 Edison graduates and All-Ohio Academic Team Members Sam Friedet and Dustin Hall, both from Sidney
Standing (left to right):
Becky Pepiot, Enrollment Management Records Specialist at Edison; Sandra Brubaker, Associate Vice President for Student Development and Enrollment Management; Dr. Kenneth A. Yowell, Edison President; Nanci Kay of Covington, 2008 Edison graduate and All-Ohio Academic Team winner; Sean Ford, Coordinator of Student and Community Activities; and Cindy Carbone, Dean of Arts and Sciences at Edison andCoordinator of both the Phi Theta Kappa Edison Chapter and the PTK Ohio Region

Of Ohio’s nearly 22,000 community college graduates in May, June and July, three students from Edison Community College have been named among the top 50 in the entire state. Sam Friedet and Dustin Hall, both from Sidney, and Nanci Kay from Covington are members of the All-Ohio Academic Team for their outstanding academic performance, demonstration of strong leadership skills, and unique contributions to community service.

All three were involved in the Phi Theta Kappa honors organization at Edison. A veteran of the United States Marines Corps, Friedet graduated in May from Edison with a paralegal studies degree and earned a place on the All-Ohio first team of ten individuals. Friedet’s career goal is to practice law after attaining a juris doctorate degree.

Dustin Hall, a spring graduate of Edison’s Post-Secondary Enrollment Options Program (PSEOP) and a 2008 Houston High School graduate, was named to the ten-member second team. At only age 17, Hall will be a college junior next month when he enrolls as a major in wildlife biology and conservation at Ohio University.

Nanci Kay, who received third team honors, completed an associate degree in human services after being away from school for more than 25 years. As a student worker on the Piqua main campus, she often assisted individuals who had special learning needs. In addition, she spent countless hours volunteering for community service projects to improve the lives of others.

Edison was one of only two of Ohio’s 23 community colleges to place graduates on both the first and second teams. Edison has placed as many as three on the first team in the recent past.

“The region’s community college shines brightly in this annual statewide competition,” said Edison President. Dr. Kenneth a Yowell. “I’m proud of our honorees. I’m also grateful to our Edison faculty and staff who have provided these students with a personal and rewarding learning experience.”

Friedet said that his positive experiences with Edison professors were “the stepping stones that will guide my future steps on the path to success.” In his work with Stephen Marlowe, an Edison instructor of English and an attorney, Friedet volunteered advice on legal matters, without any cost, for members of ARC, the Association of Retarded Citizens of the United States.

“This pro bono, or free, assistance comprised a superb service learning opportunity for Sam,” Marlowe said.“He showed an aptitude for writing, research, andadministration that is extraordinary among his cohort.” Friedet played a key role in Edison’s celebration of the Dayton Literary Peace Prize celebration last October. He gathered a group of veterans and facilitated public discussion of issues related to war and peace. The Shelby County resident joined the Marines in 2001 with the intention of earning a degree fairly soon while on active duty. But his college education was put on hold when, three weeks into his training, the tragedy of September 11 occurred.

“I had to focus service on my country first,” said Friedet, who later, with his wife’s support, designed a plan that allowed him to use the Montgomery GI Bill to attend Edison and hold down a job at the same time.

While at Houston High School, Hall juggled numerous activities and part-time employment around his studies. He participated on the school Academic team, represented Houston on WHIO TV’s High-Q quiz show, was secretary of the band, held the position of National Honor Society president, and was committed to various groups including Spanish Circle and Environmental Club. Additionally, Hall took high school courses at Houston and college courses at Edison for concurrent college and high school credit. As a result, the PSEOP program and associate degree gave him a big head start on his advanced degrees which will include a doctorate.

“I’m now very well prepared for college away from home at the big university,” said Hall, an Edison student since fall 2006, the start of his junior year in high school. “I strengthened my learning techniques at Edison. The education there was superior.” Cathryn Essinger, an English professor at Edison, said that Hall “knows exactly where he wants to be in ten years. His specific long range plan shows how serious he is about career goals.” Hall aims to serve as a biologist for the National Park Service.

For Kay, returning to college nearly three decades after her previous school work was intimidating, at first. But Edison’s “brand promise” to provide “a personal experience for its students” rubbed off quickly on Kay, who added, “The Edison staff helped me feel right at home.”

While enrolled in the college’s human services program, Kay served as a “non-medical, in-home aide” and learned to become a more sensitive and caring professional. “The Edison courses, the college internship, and my job enabled me to gain more confidence in my skills,” said Kay, who recently reached out to assist Hospice patients and their families during very emotional times in their lives. She has also actively promoted breast cancer awareness and served on committees for the Special Olympics.

At Edison, Kay took part in various assignments. She was a student ambassador at recruiting events, sung the national anthem before home basketball games, and assisted the student development office in preparing for an enrollment audit. “Nanci’s positive attitude, determination, personality and willingness to get involved on campus and in the community make her extremely worthy of a place on the All-Ohio Academic Team,” stated Sandra Brubaker, associate vice president for student development and enrollment management.

All-State academic teams are administered in 33 states. Phi Theta Kappa, the international two-year college honorary, started the program in 1994 building on the success of the All-USA Academic Team. State team selection is based on nominations for the All-USA Team, a competition sponsored by USA Today, the American Association of Community Colleges, and Phi Theta Kappa (PTK). PTK and the Ohio Association of Community Colleges co-sponsor the event in the Buckeye state with support from Honda of America Manufacturing.

Dean of Institutional Planning and Effectiveness at Edison CC is again chosen for a national panelto evaluate organizations for quality improvement.

For the fourth consecutive year, Dr. Jane Salisbury, the Dean of Institutional Planning and Effectiveness at Edison Community College, has been appointed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to the Board of Examiners for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.

The Award, created by public law in 1987, is the highest level of national recognition for performance excellence that a US organization can receive. As an examiner, Salisbury is responsible for reviewing and evaluating applications submitted for the Baldrige distinction.

When first picked in 2005, Salisbury was one of only a pair of individuals from Ohio community colleges and one of only a half dozen from such schools in the country to participate on this national board. The panel evaluates organizations for quality improvement. This year, according to NIST officials, only four individuals from the state’s community colleges were appointed to this national board of approximately 500 experts from industry, education, health care, and government. Those selected meet the highest standards of qualification and peer recognition, and must complete Baldrige preparation courses.

Each year, the Baldrige Award plays an important role in helping thousands of US companies improve their productsand the overall quality of their performance. Edison, which enrolls most of its students from Darke, Miami and Shelby counties, is also committed to providing quality education and services to its students and communities throughout the upper Miami Valley.

Under the leadership of President Dr. Kenneth A. Yowell, the college has adopted a continuous quality improvement (CQI) management system, which Salisbury has directed since 2000. She has coordinated more than 70 different “process management” teams on the Edison campus. Through participation in national initiatives such as the Academic Quality Improvement Program, known as AQIP, Edison assesses the performance of many facets of the organization including academic, administrative, and support services.

All quality tools and programs in which Edison is engaged support the Baldrige national criteria for excellence in quality. Such criteria include leadership, strategic planning, process management, business results, and customer and market focus.

According to Stephen Spanghel, Executive Director of AQIP, Edison was recently recognized as an AQIP Vanguard institution.

“Edison is one of several community colleges in the country which has been an AQIP member since the start of the decade,” Spanghel said. “Led Dr. Yowell and Dr. Salisbury, the college has displayed a highly successful, systematic and comprehensive approach to assessing the results of its performance.”

Salisbury said that such self-evaluation and CQI management are extremely helpful to the upper Miami Valley’s community college as it continues the process of continued accreditation and as it responds to various “measurements of success” set forth by the new University System of Ohio.

This higher level of accountability placed on Ohio’s colleges and universities will assess Edison’s performance regarding factors such as affordability, financial aid, campus safety, and student learning and satisfaction.

Salisbury’s service at state and national levels has also included work for AQIP. In addition, she has served for the Ohio Partnership for Excellence, which is the state award comparable to the Baldrige national distinction, and for CQIN, the Continuous Quality Improvement Network that evaluates businesses and higher education institutions.

Since 2000, Salisbury has been responsible for institutional effectiveness at Edison. She also served as a Professor of Anatomy and Physiology for 22 years.

Edison service learning students make major community impact assisting those who have suffered challenges resulting from stroke, injury, or trauma at

Students from numerous academic subjects perform key roles at the Nicholas School and the Rehabilitation Center for Neurological Development

Tremendous civic impact is made by Edison Community College, whose students complete service learning projects to enhance the lives of individuals in the upper Miami Valley almost every day.

At one specific organization, the Rehabilitation Center and Nicholas School on Garbry Road in Piqua, 75 to 100 such students from several different academic disciplines assist the professional staff each year in helping make miracles come to life.

Such miracles, for example, have included adult clients, who suffered through aneurysm and coma, but later following weeks of therapy at the Rehab Center were able to leave wheelchairs behind and walk under their own power.

The Hahn-Hufford Center of Hope is home to a Brain Wellness Center, a Rehabilitation Center, an Aquatic Therapy and Wellness Center, and the Nicholas School. This school integrates motor skills and neuro-developmental training into the academic setting. The Center of Hope is a nonprofit agency which has served people from 52 Ohio counties over the last three decades.

“Unsung heroes are the Edison students who assist our staff each year in producing these unbelievable results,” said Carla Bertke, Executive Director of the Rehab Center and Nicholas School.

“The fantastic contributions of Edison students are largely unnoticed by the general public.”

Bertke said the Hahn-Hufford Center employs a full-time staff of 22 including teachers, a registered nurse, and others with professional backgrounds in psychology and additional fields. She said the Center credits this talented and committed group for leading the way in providing highly developed, neurological-based therapies and learning strategies that help all clients reach their maximum potential.

“The college’s service learning students then step in to offer an important supporting role, which is a hands-on approach to mastering course material while fostering civic responsibility,” Bertke added.

In the past several months, students from Edison programs in human services and early childhood development have worked directly with the Rehab Center and Nicholas School benefiting from classroom knowledge and through direction from Hahn-Hufford staff. A business management student, who graduated on May 9, has even served in a supervisory capacity.

In addition, close to 50 Edison nursing students have volunteered their services at the Rehab Center since the fall.

“The warm and caring nature of staff at the Nicholas School and Rehab Center combines with the efforts of the nursing students and other volunteers to create a truly therapeutic environment,” explained Julia Galbreath, Associate Professor of Nursing at Edison.

“Participating in this kind of healing atmosphere is a particularly valuable lesson for the students in nursing. It’s a lesson they can take with them to the future.”

Dr. Mindy S. McNutt, Vice President of Education at Edison, added that service learning students take an active role in determining how projects are identified and accomplished, thus “creating a special interest and excitement for learning.”

A team of Edison engineering technology students displayed this kind of enthusiasm for learning when they redesigned and reconstructed two critical pieces of equipment at the Rehab Center. This equipment, which aids clients who have suffered a loss of motor skill function, promotes stimulation of the vestibular part of the brain and provides better control of balance.

Led by Covington resident Lucas Delcamp, who is completing his third associate degree at Edison and is concluding a bachelor’s degree at the University of Dayton, the students spent 16 weeks modernizing the balance box and the 12-foot by 8-foot brachiation apparatus. As many as ten Rehab Center clients a day from 5 to 80 years of age rely on this equipment for therapy.

“We students see ourselves as active contributors to our own communities and to our own learning experiences,” Delcamp said. “This kind of learning represents a tangible reward for our efforts to help others.”

The work was a family affair for Delcamp, who was called “the chief project engineer” by professors and fellow students. Delcamp’s mother and grandmother trimmed vinyl which covered parts of both units. His father and grandfather drilled, sanded, and varnished key components.

A cadre of engineering technology students performed the research, developed a budget, and tested progress of their work.

“Edison service learning students can be very proud they play essential roles assisting individuals with challenges that may have resulted from injury, stroke, or trauma at birth,” Bertke said.

“They have made a strong connection between classroom and community and, at the same time, have made a huge difference in the lives of many.”

An Edison early childhood student added, “Volunteering at the Hahn-Hufford Center of Hope has been a life-changing event for me, too.”

The number of service learning students at Edison tops 250
More than 250 Edison Community College students took part in service learning projects during the last ten months. They assisted more than 100 employers in six counties in west central Ohio and two counties in extreme eastern Indiana.

These students and the organizations they served were recognized recently on the Edison campus.

Students from accounting, biology, and communications to marketing, mathematics, and mechanical engineering technology participated in service learning. Nursing students volunteered time during more than 75 different stints at health care organizations.

Many Edison students reached out to those who were physically challenged, bed-ridden with illness, or wanted emotional and spiritual support.

Students also assisted in the raising of funds to help those in need. Marketing management students Carly Haneke of Sidney and Susan North of Tipp City helped generate nearly $4000 at an auction in the Miami Valley Center Mall to benefit the Northern Miami Valley Red Cross based in Piqua.

“Carly and I are very pleased to say we were involved in the planning and execution of this worthwhile event,” said North. “We enjoyed giving back to the community some of what we learned in college at Edison.”

A small sample of the organizations assisted by Edison service learning students included Brukner Nature Center in Troy, Darke County Center for the Arts in Greenville, and Dorothy Love Retirement Community in Sidney.

Youngsters travel “around in the world” in June 16 to 19 summer classes at Edison Community College

This fall’s third through seventh graders will experience an “around the world” theme in classes offered June 16 through 19 on the Edison Community College main campus in Piqua.

Students will take part in five classes each day for four days from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

“This summer’s Kids College gives youngsters a chance to learn a little about the cultures of other countries,” said Sean Ford, Edison’s director of student and community activities. “And they will have fun doing it.”

Ford added, “Kids College gives children the opportunity to explore new areas of interest, to stretch their imaginations, and to expand their knowledge.”

In one class, students track Carmen Sandiego’s villains around the globe, arrest them, and ultimately arrest Carmen herself just before time runs out. The course is titled “Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?”

During the session “Countries 101,” students gain knowledge about the dances and languages of those residing in other nations.

Kids learn the basics of ruby and cricket in the class “Sports from Around the World.”

During the course “Around the World in 14 Days,” students go on a scavenger hunt and an interactive computer trip to foreign lands.

Finally, youngsters will treasure precious memories for years to come after taking the class “Cultural Scrapbooking.” In this session, students create fun and exciting pages of text and images about travel outside the United States.

The goal of Kids College is to allow students to take advantage of their natural ability to absorb and learn new information, Ford said.

At the same time, the program helps parents realize the objective of providing their children with a rich educational experience in the summertime.

Enrollment is limited to the first 70 children. Students should bring their lunch or plan to use campus vending machines. Cost for each student is $80.

Parents can complete the online application and drop it off at Student Services in Suite 160 in West Hall.

The application can be mailed to Student Services, 1973 Edison Drive, Piqua, Ohio 45356.
For information, phone Ford at 1-800-922-3722, ext. 7969.

Edison Community College Sets 2009 Study Abroad Trip for in Italy; Departure in early March

Edison Community has scheduled a “Study Abroad Tour of Italy” for March 2009.

The trip is conducted by the worldwide tour company Education First Tours, commonly known as EF Tours, and will depart from the Dayton International Airport on either March 5, 6 or 7 of next year.

Humanities course credit of one to three semester hours will be available for Edison students. Funds received through student loans and grants may be used to help pay for this study abroad experience.

Five overnight stays in hotels in Italy and roundtrip air fare between Dayton and Rome are included in the total price, which is around $2100 for adults 23 years of age and older. The cost is a little less for students 22 and younger.

Complete breakfasts and dinners are also a part of the tour package.

Those who traveled on the Edison trip to Italy in 2004 are entitled to a $95 discount.

According to Professor Eileen Thompson of Edison, who is the college’s study abroad coordinator, “tour participants will experience the history, culture and natural treasures of Italy firsthand.” She added, “The study abroad opportunity will have new meaning and significance for those students who elect to pursue course credit.”

Special sightseeing activities include Rome and the Vatican City. Visits are also planned to numerous attractions such as the Coliseum and St. Peter’s Basilica. Several single-day side tours of Florence and Catacombs, for example, are optional and can be arranged.

Those on the trip under 18 years of age must travel with a legal guardian.

A full-time, bilingual EF tour director will guide the Edison group throughout the trip.
The company has been in the business of providing educational and cultural tours for schools and colleges for more than 40 years.

Customer service at EF’s College Study Division is available at 1-800-665-5364. Edison’s Trip ID is #545486.

For details on payment dates and the tentative trip itinerary, phone Thompson at 1-800-922-3722, ext. 7914, or email her at thompsone@edisonohio.edu.

New Summer Hours for Student Services at Piqua's Main Campus

To generate energy and financial savings, the Edison Community College main campus in Piqua will be open Monday through Thursday and be closed Friday through Sunday from May 19 to August 3.

Edison’s Office of Student Services in West Hall will remain open until 6:30 p.m. on Monday through Thursday evenings to accommodate students registering for summer and fall classes after their 8-to-5 workday.

Student Services will open at 8 a.m.

Main Campus Student Services Hours - May 19 to August 3

• Monday 8 a.m.--6:30 p.m.
• Tuesday 8 a.m.--6:30 p.m.
• Wednesday 8 a.m.--6:30 p.m.
• Thursday 8 a.m.--6:30 p.m.
• Closed on Friday, Saturday, Sunday

On the Darke County Campus at 601 Wagner Avenue in Greenville, summer hours are virtually unchanged.

• This location is open Monday to Thursday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• Beginning with the week of June 16 when summer classes kick off, evening hours will extend to 9 p.m. Friday summer hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturday hours are 9 a.m. to 12 noon.
  
  Edison has planned a day-long fall registration event for Saturday, August 9, at the main campus.

Three Edison PSEOP Students Graduate with 4.0 Grade-point Averages

Three Edison May graduates-- Kelsey Fultz from Sidney High School, Dustin Hall from Houston HS, and Kara Turner from Fort Loramie HS-- were PSEOP students who finished associate degrees from Edison in May after recording straight A's and perfect 4.0 grade-point averages. Each accumulated more than 60 credit hours of college study at Edison while concluding high school. More than 20 PSEOP students, who were spring high school seniors, had the opportunity to complete associate degrees at Edison in May or August.