Photos: Race & Ethnicity Conference Speaker Gordon Olson

The Race and Ethnicity Conference put on by the Social Science Department as part of GRCC’s Black History Month activities continued last night with a lecture by Gordon Olson, Grand Rapids City Historian Emeritus and GRCC Instructor.  Olson spoke to a packed auditorium on the topic of  “Fellow Immigrants: Ethnicity, Race, and the Peopling of Grand Rapids.”

More lectures are scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday including topics like “A Glimpse of the Cold War on the Other Side: Reflections on Growing up in Communist Yugoslavia, China, and Vietnam,”  “The Economics of Anti-Discrimination Law,” and “Race, Race Relations, and Racism: Stories from the Jim Crow Museum.  ”For an updated slideshow of photos from the lectures, click here.

Regenerating the Spirit at Work – You Can Make a Difference

Tasks need attention, policies need fixing, morale needs boosting, and people need care.  Can one person make a difference in the ocean of work and the sea of faces?  The Learning Academy is hosting a webinar on Monday, March 8, 2010 from 2 -3 p.m.  Hear Barbara Glanz address the neglected human element in organizations that can often get lost in the midst of deadlines, timelines, and bottom lines. Join us to find a way to impact your mind and your heart, your work and your life.  Find out what a difference YOU can make!

This is a webinar hosted by the Learning Academy; register at www.grcc.edu/currentlearning

GRCC DLIT Staff Meet With NBC on Blackboard Partnership

GRCC faculty and the staff from Distance Learning and Instructional Technologies Department met with several NBC staff on Friday, February 19. GRCC is one of three colleges in the nation selected to participate in an exciting new pilot program evaluating the use of NBC video archive video in Blackboard. The meeting on Friday was an opportunity for GRCC faculty to interact directly with producers at NBC to provide feedback, suggestions, and to share how they are leveraging NBC video content into their courses this semester.

Screen shot of NBC Video in Blackboard

For more information, visit http://www.grc.edu/nbclearn

College Channel Special Programming: 2/22/10-3/7/10

The special programming listings for GRCC’s cable channel are now available (including streaming vide) at  www.grcc.edu/channel28.

Programming includes an all new Cooking with Angus, the first installments of the Calvin College January series, World Affairs Council speakers and the Diversity Lecture Series speaker Angela Davis which can only be seen on the College Channel! All this and the latest Board of Trustees Meeting.

Photos: Race and Ethinicity Conference Underway

GRCC’s “Race and Ethnicity Conference,” (created to support learning about cultural diversity during Black History Month) is now underway.  These photos come from this morning’s lecture “Not a Trace of Race…Biologically Speaking: How Science Refutes the Myth of Race” which featured a panel including Laurie Foster (GRCC); Sarah Krajewski (GRCC), Tim Hoving (GRCC); and Matt Douglas, Ph.D. (GRCC).

The conference is free and open to the public, all events are held in the Calkins Science Center Auditorium on the third floor (SCIE 248) and the conference is sponsored by the GRCC Social Sciences Department, the International Geographical Honor Society, and Pearson Education Publishing.

2010 Family Matters Event a Success

Over the weekend, GRCC held its annual “Family Matters” event inviting parents to bring their children for fun and games while also accessing local community resources for families.  WOOD TV 8’s Terri DeBoer and Laura Velasquez were on hand to help these nonprofit agencies reach out to the community.  Click here for a full slideshow…

GRCC iPhone App Now Available

As reported in the Grand Rapids Press late last week, GRCC published a free iPhone application for students. In addition to general information about the college, the new “GRCC Mobile” app offers a variety of features including:

• Door-to-door directions around campus (including driving, walking and mass transit).
• Parking Locations (soon to offer real-time updates on parking availability in GRCC lots).
• Course Catalog.
• Customized Phone Directory.
• Faculty absence updates.
• Access to Blackboard course management system.
• GRCC’s YouTube channel.

Additional features are in development (including versions for other phones like Blackberry). To download the app, visit the App Store.  To submit feedback or suggestions, email smachaje[at]grcc.edu.  [View screen shots of the GRCC Mobile iPhone App]

GRCC’s Chris Arnold Featured in Grand Rapids Magazine Story

GRCC’s Chris Arnold (Woodrick Diversity Learning Center) was recently profiled in an article titled “What Women Have Wrought” by Ann Byle.  The piece discusses the achievements made by women in remedying social inequities, as well as the steps still ahead.  Click Here to Read the Article (.pdf)

Internationalization Education Opportunities for GRCC Faculty

GRCC has the following opportunities for Internationalization of the Curriculum, offered by MIIIE, the Midwest Institute for International & Intercultural Education:

1. Title VI grant project for 1010-1013 from the U.S. Department of Education:

Develop a degree in International/Global Studies (one-year or two-year)

1. Title VI Grant Project for 2010-2013:

At least 3 faculty to participate in summer workshops of the 2010-1013 period for the purpose of developing at least one curriculum module, organize/participate in at least one overseas project of interest to your students and/or faculty.

Each faculty will receive $1000 for the participation & development of a module.

1. The 17^th Annual Conference is scheduled for Friday-Saturday, March 26-27, at Lincoln Land Community College in Springfield, Illinois.  The keynote presentation will be given by David Smith, U.D. Institute of Peace.  Workshops and Roundtables will cover the following topics: Assessment and Rubrics for Cross-Cultural Experiences, Conflict and Peace Studies programs at CCs, Fulbright GPAs: china, Czech, Japan-S. Korea, Malaysia, Vietnam, Collaborative Projects in Brazil, china, Mexico, and Vietnam
2. Invitations for faculty to participate in a Fulbright GPA Project in: Vietnam, Japan & S. Korea, China, Malasia, and the Czech Republic.

Please contact Aleta Anderson, ext. 4879 if interested and to receive more information.

Creative Composition: the Nature and Landscape photography of Steven Huyser-Honig

GRCC’s Visual Arts department will be featuring a presentation titled “Creative Composition: the Nature and Landscape photography of Steven Huyser-Honig” from 10-11 a.m., Monday, February 22, 2010 in the ATC Auditorium.  The event is open to all.

GRCC in the News: 2/22/10

Grand Rapids Community College debuts new iPhone app to for easy access to campus info
By Dave Murray | The Grand Rapids Press | February 19, 2010, 8:35PM

Grand Rapids Community College information is now available at the fingertips for students — and anyone else — with an iPhone.  The college this week debuted its iPhone app, and creators said it should be considered a starting point.   (More)