NCCCFA Community College
Awareness Campaign
Curriculum Demonstrations
INSTRUCTIONS FOR COMMUNITY COLLEGE
CURRICULUM DEMONSTRATIONS
AT THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Purpose
For most of its forty-year history, the community college system in North Carolina has quietly been doing a first-rate job of educating and training the state’s workforce. But the colleges have been so quiet that they have been virtually ignored by both the General Assembly and a string of governors. The well-known consequences have been decades of seriously inadequate funding for the important work we do.
The Community College Awareness Campaign sponsored by the North Carolina Community College Faculty Association (NCCCFA) is an attempt to raise awareness of the community colleges among legislators, other state leaders, and the public at large.
An important part of the Awareness Campaign is curriculum demonstrations at the legislature, which make the community colleges and the students they serve very visible to state leaders. The demonstrations also can give an individual college regional and statewide recognition. (Some of the demonstrations so far have generated stories in their local newspapers and have made the evening news on Raleigh TV stations. Bladen CC's Welding students were seen statewide as the opening segment on UNC-TV's "Legislative Week in Review.") Finally, the visits are an invaluable lesson in state government for the students who participate.
The NCCCFA wants to encourage all the community colleges in the system to send curriculum demonstrations to the General Assembly. And the NCCCFA Legislative Committee is ready to help any college make its demonstration a successful and enjoyable day in Raleigh.
Steps for a Successful Curriculum Demonstration
1. Think about which program(s) at your school would generate the most interest among legislators. In 2000 the NCCCFA organized its first two demonstrations. In May, Welding students from Bladen CC put on a welding display on the grassy mall behind the General Assembly. In June, Wake Tech Health Science students and faculty from five curricula set up in the North Lobby of the General Assembly display boards, instruments, and teaching tools, such as a microscope magnifying malignant cells, radiographs, and a “trauma head” used by the EMS department. Also, the EMS students demonstrated how to perform life support measures on a full-size mannequin on the patio just outside of the North Lobby. Since that initial effort, community colleges from across the state have put on over forty highly successful demonstrations at the legislature. Lists of past demonstrations are attached to the end of these instructions.
As you think about your demonstration, think action, something that will catch the interest of passing legislators and something that will look good on TV. Legislators tend to walk by poster‑type displays without stopping much. So try to think of ways to get them actively involved.
One very good method for getting them to stop is free food and drink. Even though it may have nothing whatever to do with your curriculum, free food is an excellent draw. NCCCFA Legislative Committee members have seen legislators walk right by many displays, but almost all of them stop at the food tables. The food doesn’t have to be fancy, but you will need plenty. In addition to the 170 legislators, legislative staffers and lobbyists will also be stopping by, and you can’t really discriminate. You could serve punch and cookies, coffee and donuts, slices of chilled fruit, bags of peanuts, ice cream cones, lemonade, canned sodas, whatever you can think of. The food will get legislators to stop, and while they’re standing there munching, you and your students have a chance to talk to them.
IMPORTANT: If you choose this means of grabbing their attention, you must have some sort of sign making clear that any food and drink was paid for by some means other than state money. (You can usually get local grocery stores or other businesses to donate most of the food and drinks that you need if you promise them you’ll put out a sign giving them credit for their donation.)
2. Make an appointment with your president to request permission to put on the demonstration. Be prepared with ideas about curriculums to feature, but be prepared to be flexible. Ask your president’s opinion about what curriculum or division he or she would like to feature.
Once you’ve settled on a curriculum or division, talk to the appropriate dean and department head. Ask your president and other administrators if they would like to participate in the demonstration.
3. If possible, visit the General Assembly to gain an appreciation of the size of the third-floor lobby of the Legislative Office Building (LOB) and the four courts of the Legislative Building (LB), the most likely locations for your demonstration. Directions are attached. NCCCFA officers Don Wildman or Cliff Mitchell will be available to visit with you if necessary.
4. Decide on two possible days for your demonstration: your first choice and an alternate. You should plan your demonstration for either a Tuesday or a Wednesday, the only two full days that legislators are in Raleigh. Once you have your tentative days picked, call Judy Tardiff in Senator Tony Rand’s office to make sure either third-floor lobby of the LOB or one of the four courts is available on those dates (phone: 919-733-9892).
5. Write (email) as soon as possible to Mr. George Hall, Legislative Affairs Officer, (in care of his assistant Beverly Adams) to request permission to use the third-floor lobby of the LOB or the 1100 or 1200 court of the LB for your demonstration. Explain what sort of demonstration you intend, and let him know that both faculty and students will be involved.
If you plan to serve food or drinks, which we strongly recommend, you should request permission to do so with your initial request to put on a demonstration.
For those of you who have done demos in the past, you may remember our recommending that you ask for the North Lobby of the LB as the space to do your demo. Unfortunately, the North Lobby is no longer available because a few years ago, a group--not one from the NCCCS--damaged the mural in the North Lobby. So the third-floor lobby of the LOB or the 1100 and 1200 courts of the LB are the next-best choices.
First choice: Third-floor lobby of the LOB
Although this space is relatively small—it will accommodate only two 4- by-8-foot tables—it is the most high-traffic space available because the legislators must pass through it to go to meeting rooms in the LOB and to
go to session in the LB.
Important: If you request the third-floor lobby of the LOB, you must at the same time request that Housekeeping set up two tables in the lobby for you. (If your demo is in one of the courts in the LB, permanently placed tables will already be there.)
If you get assigned to the third-floor lobby of the LOB, a couple days before your demo you should call Housekeeping, Charles Weathersby (919) 733-0072 or Jeff Boyette (919) 733-3321, to confirm that the tables will be set up on the day of your demo.
Second choice: 1100 and 1200 courts of the LB
The 1100 and 1200 courts flank the North Lobby, which legislators must pass through going to or coming from the LOB.
Third choice: 1000 and 1300 courts of the LB
The 1000 and 1300 courts have the lowest traffic of the four courts. However, because of complaints about noise from lawmakers whose offices open onto the 1100 and 1200 courts, some demos are now being assigned to the 1000 and 1300 courts in an effort to equitably spread any disruption caused by demonstrations. (The noise complaints were primarily associated with high school demonstrations, not NCCCS demos.)
Requests for Demo Dates
Email requests for demo dates to
Mr. George R. Hall, Legislative Services Officer. Attention Beverly Adams.
(It is no longer necessary for you to email the Rules Chairs of the Senate and the House. Ms. Adams will notify them.)
If you want to do anything outside on either Halifax Mall (the grassy mall behind the legislature) or the Bicentennial Mall (between the History and Natural History Museums), contact Jennifer Norton at the Facility Management Division (919) 733-3514. She will fax you a facilities use form that you will need to request those spaces. You can also visit their website: www.ncfacilitymanagement.net.
6. Once you’ve got permission for a specific date, please call Zadia Brown in Speaker Hackney’s office (919-733-3415). Let her know about your visit so she can put the date on the Social Calendar.
As soon as a date is confirmed, contact Chancy Kapp at the NCCC System Office
(919-807-6962, <kappc@nccommunitycolleges.edu>) to ask her to help coordinate publicity in Raleigh. Ask Chancy if President Ralls is available to put in an appearance on the day you’ll be there. If not, see if one of the System vice presidents can come instead. If your college president is planning to attend, your president should coordinate his or her appearance time with President Rall’s office because the TV cameras will probably show up only once during the day.
Also send an email message to Don Wildman (dlwildman@waketech.edu) listing your college, your curriculum(s) or program(s) being featured, the courtyard location, the date, and the start and end times of your demo so that your demo can be added to the official list of demos. Having a centralized list helps all of us in Raleigh make sure each demo gets the publicity and recognition it deserves.
7. Inform your college’s public information officer about your visit, and ensure that he or she contacts your local press. Have your PIO coordinate the press coverage with Chancy Kapp at the System Office.
8. Prepare an informational handout about the program being represented. The handout should include the following:
· The number of programs in this field offered in the CC system across the state.
· The total number of graduates in the previous year.
· Salary information (starting, and with experience).
· A description of employment opportunities, job specializations, if any, and percent of graduates who are employed in NC.
· A list of companies in your area that hire the curriculum graduates.
Contact Don Wildman for model informational handouts.
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT:
This informational handout is the most important part of your demonstration. You must do a thorough and conscientious job of putting it together.
Of the many curriculum demonstrations that we have held at the legislature, all have created a positive impression on legislators except one, and that one provoked a widespread negative reaction. The person in charge of preparing the informational handout for their curriculum apparently decided that doing all that research was just too much trouble. So instead of making a handout that addressed the points above, the person just copied a handout for students that they already had that listed areas in industry where their curriculum's graduates could find work. That was it. And they passed that out to legislators. The college's demo was otherwise excellent, but because it was all show with no supporting substance, legislators reacted very negatively.
Don't let this happen to your college. Give this informational handout the serious effort that is required.
The following sources may prove useful as you prepare your handout:
a. The Program Director(s) or Department
Head(s) can provide much of the
information necessary.
b. Contact employers of graduates to obtain salary information.
c. The NCCCS web site, www.ncccs.cc.nc.us, has an Adobe document called A Matter of Facts, 2008 that contains information on the number of graduates (“completers”) in all disciplines in 2006-2007. You can find this document by clicking on News & Events at the NCCCS home page and then on Publications. (You can also access it from a link under Resources at the NCCCFA web site.) Keith Brown at the System Office (919) 807-6994 may also have helpful statistical info.
d. The NC Employment Security Commission
web site will help you determine the
percent of graduates who remained and worked in North Carolina following graduation. You have to
calculate it from the information provided, which is somewhat dated. Go to the NC ESC web site: <www.esc.state.nc.us>, and click on Individual Services, then Career/Info Planning, and finally
Educational Institutions. The number for the ESC Labor Market Information
Director is (919) 733‑2936. That office may have more updated info now
that has not been published.
e. Following are some reference books with career and job information found in WakeTech CC's library. These or similar reference books can probably be found in your college and/or county library.
Best Jobs for the 21st Century, 2nd ed., by J. Michael Farr and LaVerne Ludden.
Career Information Center, 7th ed., published by Macmillan.
The Carolina Job Bank, 3rd ed., edited by Carter Smith.
Enhanced Occupational Outlook Handbook, 4th ed., by J. Michael Farr and LaVerne Ludden.
The North Carolina Employment Guide, published by Career Resources, Chapel Hill, NC.
Occupational Outlook Handbook 2002-2003, compiled by the U. S. Department of Labor.
State Occupational Outlook Handbook, edited by David Bianco.
Statistical Handbook of Working America, 2nd ed., edited by Arsen Darnay and Helen S. Fisher.
9. Be sure to get your handout approved by the Department Head/Program Director, Dean, PIO, and President at your college, and by Chancy Kapp (kappc@nccommunitycolleges.edu) at the System Office before you use it. It is very important that all information presented to legislators be accurate and documented.
10. Three weeks prior to your visit, prepare a letter inviting all members of the House and Senate to your demonstration. Inform them of the date, time, and nature of the activity. Ideally, this letter should come from your college’s president. A mail merge file of the names and addresses of all senators and representatives is available. Contact Don Wildman for a copy of this mail merge file.
11. A week or two before your visit, contact a senator and a representative from your district and ask for them to arrange to have the students recognized on the floor of the House and the floor of the Senate. (Talking to the legislators’ secretaries is usually sufficient to arrange this, since the legislators themselves are sometimes hard to reach.) Contact information for legislators is available at the N. C. General Assembly website: www.ncleg.net.
The ideal time for the students to be recognized is at the beginning of each session. That way you have a specific time (the start time of the session) to have your students in place in the gallery, and the students won’t have to sit too long and get fidgety.
When the students are recognized, have them all stand up to acknowledge the recognition from the floor. Once the students have been recognized, they can stay and watch the proceedings for a while, if they like, or they can quietly leave the gallery.
(Session starting times are set only the day before a session, so you won’t know the exact hour until after session ends on the day before the day you arrive. Shortly after the end of each session, the starting time for the next day’s session will be posted on the General Assembly web site <www.ncleg.net>. (Note that sessions on Monday always start at 7:00 p.m. Normally Monday sessions are short, so the starting times for Tuesday's sessions will be posted on the General Assembly website by 8:30 or 9:00 p.m. on Monday.) On the day you arrive, you can pick up House and Senate session agenda sheets (with session starting times) from the Information Desk in the front lobby.
(Sessions usually start in the afternoon, but sometimes they start in the morning. Around 2:00 is a common starting time, but it may be 3:00 or 4:00. The Senate and House set their schedules independently. Usually, they start at different times, but sometimes they start at the same time.)
12. If you need to unload material in the parking area under the General Assembly, contact the General Assembly Police: (919) 733‑2159. On the day of the demo, drive any vehicle that must be unloaded into the General Assembly parking lot under the Legislative Building. Enter the parking lot on the west side, from Salisbury Street. Park your vehicle in front of the glass entrance to the cafeteria. Immediately go over to the General Assembly Police headquarters directly opposite the cafeteria entrance, and ask permission
to park there long enough to unload. (The police headquarters is a white cinder block and glass structure in the parking area itself.) Then you'll have to drive the unloaded vehicle to another parking lot for the day and bring it back to be loaded in the afternoon.
Take your equipment up the elevators to the first floor. You can borrow mail carts to move equipment from the House or Senate Sergeant at Arms offices.
House Sergeant at Arms, Room 1423 Legislative Building, phone (919) 733-5627.
Senate Sergeant at Arms, Room 1123 Legislative Building, phone (919) 733-5946.
The Senate Sergeant at Arms' office is the more convenient of the two. It's located just around the corner from the North Lobby in the 1100 courtyard.
If you need a large dolly to transport something big and/or heavy, call Housekeeping: Charles Weathersby (919) 733-0072 or Jeff Boyette (919) 733-3321.
13. Important: When you set up your demo, if you are in the 1100 or 1200 court, be sure to have the main table of your demo facing the double doors leading into the North Lobby (the area with the mural). The reason for this is that legislators will be passing through those doors all day going back and forth to the Legislative Office Building (which is behind the main Legislative Building) to attend meetings and sessions. So that corner will be your high-traffic area. You will find several large tables in the courtyards. It’s okay to move them around as you need to.
If you are in the 1000 or 1300 court, have your main table facing toward the center of the building (the northwest corner in the 1000 court and the northeast corner in the 1300 court).
14. Ensure that anyone visiting with you has written directions to the General Assembly and parking.
15. On the day of your demo, you must take a sample informational handout to both the Principal Clerk of the House (Room 2320 Legislative Building) and the Principal Clerk of the Senate (Room 2020 Legislative Building) to get their permission to distribute the handouts. (They’ve had a problem in the past with someone who wanted to pass out pornographic pictures to the legislators to emphasize free speech.) The Clerks’ offices are on the second floor of the legislature, at the far east and west ends of the building.
Important Change from Prior Years: No Souvenirs
If you’ve done demos in the past, you’ll recall that we encouraged you to create small souvenirs to give to all the legislators to help them to remember your demo and the curriculum or program it represented. Because of the new ethics law, we are recommending that you not give legislators any souvenirs this year.
So please do not give souvenirs to the legislators this year.
Not giving souvenirs makes the distribution of the informational handout much simpler than in years past. Previously, we had asked you to hand deliver the souvenir and the informational handout together to each of the 170 legislators’ offices, a time-consuming task. Now there’s an easier way.
Take 170 copies of your informational handout to the mail room in the basement of the Legislative Building. The mailroom is near the cafeteria. To get to the mailroom from the first floor of the Legislative Building, take the elevator, located in the center of the building, down to the basement. As you get off the elevator, the mailroom will be to your immediate right.
Because your college is part of the NCCCS, a state agency, the mailroom will distribute your informational handouts without postage. But you must make clear to the person you leave the handouts with that you are indeed part of a state agency. The person will probably not know your college is part of state government, and you must make clear that it is.
If no one is at the mail room when you arrive, you may leave your handouts on the counter, but leave a note with them making clear that your college is a state agency. To confirm that your handouts will be distributed, call Supervisor of the Mail Room Jack Daniels (919-733-9205).
One of the following NCCCFA officers will be able to assist you as you put your demonstration together:
Legislative Committee Chair Don Wildman
(919) 866-5270
<dlwildman@waketech.edu>
Past President Cliff Mitchell
(919) 209-2221
<mitchellcliff@johnstoncc.edu>
<mitchellcliff44@hotmail.com>
The General Assembly has an excellent cafeteria in the basement of the Legislative Building. The food is very good, and it’s inexpensive. Also, many of the legislators eat lunch there, so the lunch hour is another opportunity for legislators to see you and your students.
Good luck with your demonstration, and please don't hesitate to call Don Wildman or Cliff Mitchell if you have any questions.
Directions to the Legislature, the NCCC System Office, and Nearby Parking
Following are directions to the NCCC System Office, prepared by the System Office staff. The North Carolina Legislative Building is one block east of the System Office on Jones Street. The public parking lot near the corner of McDowell Street and Lane Street mentioned below is the lot you should use to walk to the Legislative Building and the Legislative Office Building behind it.
To get a map of downtown Raleigh, go to <www.mapquest.com>, and click on Maps. Then click on Map a New Location.
Type in:
Salisbury St & Morgan St, Raleigh, NC 27601.
Another useful aid, the Map of the Downtown State Government Complex, mentioned and linked to in the System Office directions below, is also good to have because it has the state government buildings noted on it.
North Carolina Community
College System
The Caswell Building
200 West Jones Street
Raleigh, North Carolina
919-733-7051
The Caswell Building
is a six-story red brick building on the northwest corner of West
Jones Street and North
McDowell Street in the state government complex in
downtown Raleigh. It is one
full block west of the Legislative Building,
adjacent to the Administration Building.
Please park in the Visitors' Area of the State Government Parking Lot on McDowell Street or in metered spaces on the street. Do NOT park in the parking lots directly across Jones Street from the Caswell Building. That is paid parking for employees, and there are no visitors' spaces. The parking deck at McDowell and Lane is open from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. There is a small hourly charge.
The Department of Environmental and Economic Resources maintains an excellent map of the state government area of downtown Raleigh. Buildings are listed alphabetically.
Directions from the east, driving Interstate 40:
Take I-40 West to the Person Street
exit.
Follow Person Street north
into downtown.
Turn left onto Edenton Street
and drive past the historic Capitol.
Turn right onto McDowell Street.
The Caswell Building
is on the left at the corner of McDowell Street
and West Jones Street.
To reach the visitors' parking deck, continue north on McDowell
Street through the intersection with Lane Street;
then turn right into the deck.
Directions from the east, driving US 64:
US 64 becomes Edenton Street
heading into downtown.
Past the historic Capitol, turn right onto McDowell
Street.
The Caswell Building
is on the left at the corner of McDowell Street
and West Jones Street.
To reach the visitors' parking deck, continue north on McDowell
Street through the intersection with Lane Street;
then turn right into the deck.
Directions from RDU and points west, driving Interstate 40:
Take I-40 East through the Research Triangle
Park.
Take Exit 289 onto Wade Avenue.
Stay on Wade Avenue six
miles.
Take the Civic Center/70 East/50 South exit to Capital
Boulevard.
Get in the far left lane on Capital Boulevard
as you head to downtown.
Turn left at the second light onto West Jones Street.
The Caswell Building
is the third building on the left, at the corner of West Jones and McDowell.
Park in metered spaces on the street or in the State Visitors lot one block
north, at the corner of Lane and McDowell. To reach the lot, turn left
onto McDowell Street from
Jones, get in the far right lane, cross Lane Street, and turn right into the
deck.
Directions from the west, driving
US 70 becomes Glenwood Avenue
coming into Raleigh.
Follow Glenwood into downtown Raleigh.
Turn left onto West Jones Street; there's
a flashing light at the intersection.
The Caswell Building
is several blocks down on the left, at the corner of Jones and McDowell.
Park in metered spaces on the street or in the State Visitors lot one block
north, at the corner of Lane and McDowell. To reach the lot, turn left
onto McDowell Street from
Jones, get in the far right lane, cross Lane Street and turn right into the
deck.
Directions from the south, driving US 1:
Take US 1 north past Cary to Raleigh.
Exit onto Wade Avenue going
into town.
Stay on Wade Avenue six
miles.
Take the Civic Center/70 East/50 South exit to Capital
Boulevard.
Get in the far left lane on Capital Boulevard
as you head to downtown.
Turn left at the light onto West Jones Street.
The Caswell Building
is the third building on the left, at the corner of West Jones and McDowell.
Park in metered spaces on the street or in the State Visitors lot one block
north, at the corner of Lane and McDowell. To reach the lot, turn left
onto McDowell Street from
Jones, get in the far right lane, cross Lane Street and turn right into the
deck.
Parking near the Legislature and the System Office
There are two public parking decks and one parking lot within walking distance of the legislature and the NCCC System Office.
Deck between McDowell and Salisbury Streets
The closest parking deck is between McDowell Street and Salisbury Street, just north of Lane Street. Drive north on McDowell Street. A hundred feet past the intersection of Lane Street, turn right into the State Government Parking Lot. The parking deck is white concrete with red railings. Park in the visitors area.
From McDowell Street, the normal way into the visitors parking area (once inside the deck) is to turn left to go past the ticket spitter. Sometimes, the ticket spitter won’t give you a ticket because it thinks the lot is full. Some other times, the attendant places a sign at that point saying the lot is full. Because people are constantly exiting and entering the deck, the lot is almost never, in actuality, full.
If you see the “lot full” sign, drive straight past it (instead of turning left), moving deeper into the building. Take the next left up a ramp to the second floor. At the top of the ramp, make a U-turn right onto the parallel down ramp back to the first floor. At the bottom of this down ramp you will be on the Salisbury-Street side of the parking deck. Turn left past the parking-attendant booth, and enter the visitors parking area, where you should find some open parking spaces.
Lot on the Corner of Jones and Wilmington
On the corner of Jones Street and Wilmington Street is a parking lot diagonally across from the southeast corner of the Legislative Building. Enter the lot from Jones Street, just past the Wilmington Street intersection.
Deck on the Corner of South McDowell and Morgan
The second parking deck is about three blocks from the System Office and four blocks from the legislature. It is in the 100 block of South McDowell Street. Drive north on South McDowell Street till you pass the intersection of Hargett Street. Turn right into the public parking lot before you get to the next intersection, Morgan Street. The parking lot is on the corner of South McDowell and Morgan Streets. To get to the System Office and the legislature from this parking lot, walk north on McDowell Street three blocks to Jones Street. The System Office is the Caswell Building, on the northwest corner of the intersection. To get to the Legislative Building, turn right (east), and walk one block.
If for some reason all the parking lots are full, you can find on-street parking by driving east on Jones Street three or four blocks into a residential area. If you go far enough east, there won't be any parking meters to worry about, and you can park all day for free.
Curriculum Demonstrations at the Legislature in 2001
During this year's legislative session, the NCCCFA Community College Awareness Campaign brought students, faculty, and administrators to the General Assembly to show lawmakers the wide range of curriculums being taught on our campuses. The curriculum demonstrations clearly proved that North Carolina's community colleges are meeting the needs of students and industry in a surprising variety of ways.
Cosmetology students and instructors from Bladen Community College led our effort with a display March 28 that demonstrated their skills and their earning power to legislators. Partnering with a Bladen County peanut processor, the students gave away bags of North Carolina peanuts, which proved very popular with the members of the legislature. NCCCS President Martin Lancaster stopped by to welcome the students to Raleigh.
Led by President Larry Norris, a delegation of Fayetteville Technical Community College Computer Information Systems students, faculty and staff used a large-display computer to illustrate community college needs to legislators in a sophisticated display complete with a floral centerpiece, which, at the end of the day, was given to Lieutenant Governor Beverly Perdue. The Fayetteville Observer ran a story on the demonstration the following day.
Johnston Community College parked an 18-wheeler across the street from the legislature to highlight its Truck Driver Training curriculum. Senator Allen Wellons of Johnston County climbed into the cab to get a driver’s view of the big rig. WRAL-TV covered the demonstration on the evening news. The big blue truck with "Johnston Community College" painted on its side showed up really well on the small screen.
Students, faculty and staff from Wake Technical Community College demonstrated two curriculums, Automation and Robotics Technology and Computer Engineering Technology, May 16. Robot arms reached and grasped from one table, while instructor Butch Grove explained computer repair at another. NCCCFA President Jim Davies assisted at the cookie and punch table during the day.
President Katherine Johnson brought the Nash Community College Engineering Technology and Electric Lineman Repair Technology curriculums to the legislature at the end of May. The North Carolina Electric Cooperative parked a line-repair bucket truck on the mall behind the legislature and gave rides to passersby. President Lancaster rode the bucket up to a bird’s-eye view of the legislature.
Catawba Valley Community College faculty and students brought an original idea along with their Furniture Production Technology curriculum. All day long they upholstered a chair in the North Lobby of the legislature, while at the same time, they collected people's names for chances to win the chair. At the end of the day, one of the lawmakers’ legislative assistants won the chair in a drawing supervised by Catawba Valley's president, Dr. Cuyler Dunbar.
Piedmont Community College featured its Film and Video Production Technology program at the legislature in June. Faculty and staff demonstrated video production equipment and distributed copies of the award-winning video "Kick the Door In," which had been produced by Piedmont students. A streaming video version of the tape can be viewed on the Internet at <www.corbetts.com>.
As summer temperatures rose, Martin Community College President Ann Britt brought a treat for legislators that everyone agreed was really cool. With the help of a refrigeration company that works closely with the college, instructors and students in Martin's Commercial Refrigeration Technology program set up a large glass-topped commercial freezer and transformed the North Lobby into an ice cream parlor. They served hundreds of ice cream cones to legislators eager to sample the benefits of modern refrigeration. At the same time, students in Martin's Electrical/Electronics Technology program demonstrated the impressive set of circuits in their programmable logic controller, an electric switching device used in industry.
President Mary Kirk of Montgomery Community College came to the capitol with a hard-working team of students and faculty from the college's Professional Crafts: Clay program, who threw an amazing six-foot-tall pot during a clay-spattered day at the legislature. Lawmakers and other passersby were agog at the height of the skillfully turned piece, clearly the tallest pot most of them had ever seen. In addition to the towering piece of green ware, a table full of fine glazed pottery made by faculty and students was admired by legislators, particularly a beautiful large vase made by pottery instructor Mike Ferree. At the end of the day, Ferree's vase went to a lucky legislative assistant in a drawing.
In July, Catawba Valley Community College President Cuyler Dunbar returned to cap off the season's demonstrations with his college's Bobby Isaac Motorsports Technology program. Students and faculty parked a NASCAR racecar across the street from the legislature and showed off their pit skills with superfast tire changes that got a lot of attention. WRAL-TV covered the demonstration, and articles about it appeared in the Hickory Daily Record and the Winston-Salem Journal.
The ten curriculum demonstrations this session brought a great deal of positive attention and comment from legislators. The students, faculty and staff presented their colleges and the work they do in graphic ways that kept our system firmly in legislators' minds throughout the long, trying budget process this year. Several lawmakers asked when the community colleges in their districts were going to bring demonstrations to Raleigh. With the steadfast assistance of the System Office staff, the NCCCFA will continue to support curriculum demonstrations next year, and we hope that many more colleges will choose to show our elected officials the important work we all do in North Carolina's community colleges.
Curriculum Demonstrations at the Legislature
2002 Session
June 11, Martin CC.
Equine program. They had students riding horses on Halifax Mall, and they had a horse for legislators to ride. They also served ice cream in the 3rd floor lobby of the Legislative Office Building.
June 25, Carteret CC.
Photography, Paralegal, and Aquaculture programs in the North Lobby of the Legislative Building.
June 26, Fayetteville Technical CC.
Six Early Education and Teacher Education programs in the North Lobby of the Legislative Building.
July 9, Bladen CC.
Industrial Technology and Electrical/Electronic programs in the North Lobby of the Legislative Building.
Curriculum Demonstrations during the 2003 Session
Montgomery CC, Troy, NC Forestry April
Nash CC, Rocky Mount, NC Physical Therapy May
Pamlico CC, Grantsboro, NC Electroneurodiagnostics May
(Measuring brain waves)
Mayland CC, Spruce Pine, NC Horticulture May 14
Fayetteville Tech CC, Fayetteville NC Dental Assistant May 20
Fayetteville Tech CC, Assoc. Degree Nursing and Practical Nursing May 21
Bladen CC, Dublin, NC, and Brunswick CC, Supply, NC, together,
Criminal Justice and the Information Highway May 28
(Bladen delivers CJ classes to Brunswick via the Info Hwy.)
Guilford Tech CC, Jamestown, NC
Dental Assisting, Surgical Technology, Culinary Technology,
Cosmetology, Industrial Electronics June 3
Piedmont CC, Roxboro, NC
Film and Video, and Criminal Justice June 11
Curriculum Demonstrations at the Legislature 2005
Bladen CC
Nursing
April 20
Carteret CC
Respiratory Therapy, Marine Propulsion and Boat Building
Possibly partnership with ECU
May 18, 9:00- 4:00, North Lobby
Catawba Valley CC
Partnership of Catawba Valley CC, Western Piedmont CC, and the Appalachian Learning Alliance to educate teachers who will likely remain in their home areas, where they are most needed.
May 11. No times listed. 1100 Court
Fayetteville Tech CC
Learning Communities
May 4, 10:00 to 2:00, 1100 Court
Fayetteville Tech CC, Coastal CC, Craven CC, Wayne CC
CC Services to the Military
June 15, 11:00 to 3:00, North Lobby and 1100 Court
Johnston CC
Partnership East Teacher Training with Johnston CC, Wayne CC, and ECU
April 19
Johnston CC
Early Childhood
June 29
Mayland CC
Horticulture: Native ornamental flora and advanced propagation techniques for native and hybrid plant propagation. Also, award-winning Energy Xchange and Project Branch Out, a combined project that uses methane captured from two local closed landfills to support two greenhouses.
June 14, 9:00 to 4:00, North Lobby
Piedmont CC
Film & Video Production Technology
June 7. No times listed. North Lobby
Sampson CC
Biotech. High-tech swine semen analyzer
May 3. No times listed. North Lobby
Stanly CC
Partnership with UNC-Charlotte, teacher training.
May 4. No times listed. North Lobby
Surry CC
Early Childhood, Viticulture, Enology
June 29. No times listed. North Lobby
Wake Tech CC
Sammie Thornton
Automotive, Electrical, Machining
April 27, 8:30 to 3:00, North Lobby
Wake Tech CC
Emergency Medical Services
May 17, 8:00 to 3:00, North Lobby
Curriculum Demonstations at the Legislature 2006
Central Piedmont CC, May 24
We have an 8'x10' modular house, which was used for "If I Had a Hammer," a collaboration with Charlotte Mecklenburg High Schools. We plan to set it up using our construction program, wire it using our electrical program, cool it using our HVAC program, put a hand forged weather vane on top using our welding program, and our graphic arts/flexo program is going to do our handouts. Each program will also have a small hands-on demo.
Roanoke-Chowan CC, May 24
Continuing Education. Fire and Rescue: Rapid Deployment
Bladen CC, June 6
NC Community Colleges teaching literacy for lifelong learning.
Our Developmental, ABE, GED, and other literacy groups are pulling together
to highlight community college efforts to improve literacy.
Gaston CC and Catawba Valley CC, June 21
Textile Day
Wake Technical CC, June 21
(Parked the Biotech Bus near the Legislature.)
The BioNetwork Capstone Learning Center (BCLC)--which includes Central
Carolina CC, Durham Technical CC, Johnston CC, Piedmont CC,
Vance-Granville CC, Sandhills CC, and Wake Tech--focuses on offering to
incumbent workers, new hires, and community college students hands-on
short courses in biopharmaceutical and pharmaceutical operations.
Forsyth Tech CC, June 28
Computer Security
Curriculum Demonstrations 2007
Note that some venues have changed as the Rules Chairs reassign sites to keep from having all the demos take place in the 1100 and 1200 Courtyards.
Demos with Tentative Dates Scheduled
Gaston College Textile Technology Center and Catawba Valley CC
Textiles
Joe Keith
March 21 7:30-1:00 1200 Courtyard
James Sprunt CC
Electrical/Electronics and Viticulture and Enology
Tom Fife
April 3 10:00-4:00 3rd-Floor Lobby of the LOB
Piedmont CC
Film and Video Production
Michael Corbett
(They’ve decided not to bring the Video Truck.)
May 1 8:00-4:00. 1000 Courtyard.
Southeastern CC
Agricultural Biotechnology—Micropropagation, Environmental Science Technology—Invasive Species, From Chemistry to Biodiesel
Rebecca Westbrooks
May 2 8:00-4:00. 1300 Courtyard
Pamlico CC
Medical Assisting and Electroneurodiagnostic Technology
Mary Ellen Weatherington
May 9 8:00-3:00 1200 Courtyard
Pitt CC
General display on our Health Sciences with emphasis on Nuclear Medicine and the Positron Emission Tomography program which is, to our knowledge, the only one in the country
Respiratory Therapy (faculty and students will demonstrate small equipment)
Nursing (students will take blood pressures)
Bioprocessing Center (Center Director will show small equipment and provide brochures; Pitt CC hosts one of six NC centers originally funded by Golden Leaf grants)
University Transfer with emphasis on advising students for successful transfer to universities (the Department Chair of University Transfer and one of our counselors will provide information)
Basic Law Enforcement Training (faculty and students will answer questions)
Pam Hilbert
May 16 9:00-2:00 (Or later, depending on session) 1000 Courtyard
Bladen CC
Seamless education, high school to CC, Industrial Systems Technology, Biotech,
perhaps Programmable Logic Controller.
The theme will be seamless education. We will use ninth- through twelfth-grade high school students, first- and second-year college students and a seamless education avenue that shows and allows students to travel down several paths, to include four-year colleges, maintenance employment, bio-tech employment, and PLC employment. Our desire is to show the options that a student starting in the ninth grade would have when all educational entities work together for the student’s benefit and also to allow for many student options.
Edward Dent
May 23 No times yet. 1100 Courtyard
Lenoir CC
Machining and Computer Engineering
Paul Hill
May 29 8:00-3:30 1200 Courtyard
Joint UNC-NCCCS Demos
North Carolina Public Higher Education
Don Wildman, NCCCS, and Judith Wegner, UNC
Health-Related Issues
May 30 9:00-3:00 1000 Courtyard
Environment and Natural Resources
June 6 9:00-3:00 1100 Courtyard
Forsyth Tech CC
Nanotechnology. Students will be operating an atomic-force microscope.
Conley Winebarger
June 5 9:00-3:00 1000 Courtyard
Forsyth Tech CC
Mechanical Engineering Technology
The instructor and two students will showcase the latest manufacturing design hardware and software using a computer workstation and a three-dimensional rapid prototyping printer. They will demonstrate how a designer can take a design idea from concept through the actual production of a prototyped part. They will also use an LCD portable projector to display the work as it is being created.
Conley Winebarger
June 12 9:00-3:00 1200 Courtyard
Surry CC
Viticulture and Enology, and Community Spanish Interpreter
Jami Woods
June 13 9:00-1:00 1000 Courtyard
Catawba Valley CC
Polysomnography Technology (sleep studies)
Mary Miller
June 19 8:00-3:00 1300 Courtyard
Central Piedmont CC
Transport Systems Division, including Auto Body, Automotive and Heavy Equipment.
Clarine Moore
June 26 9:00-3:00 1200 Courtyard
Wake Tech CC
Simulation and Game Development
Butch Grove
June 27 8:00-3:00 1300 Courtyard