IT adds customer support phone hours

Announcement : IT Customer Support will extend hours for phone support beginning August 4, 2013.

IT Customer Support is pleased to announce new extended hours of our phone support.
As a result of customer feedback and the Higher Learning Counsel recommendation, the IT Customer Support Department will be extending phone support.

Our new hours will be:

Summer
Monday through Friday:  7:00 a.m. – 11:00 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday:  2:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.

Fall & Winter
Monday through Friday:  24 Hours a day
Saturday and Sunday:  2:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.

If you need help with computer related issues, please call the IT Customer Support Help Desk at 616-234-HELP(4357). For urgent off-hours support, please listen and follow instructions on our phone system.

GRCC In the News, 7-24-13

GRCC named Great College to Work For

July 23, 2013; The Holland Sentinel

Grand Rapids — The Chronicle of Higher Education has named Grand Rapids Community College (GRCC) one of its “Great Colleges to Work For.”

Elite Judges Panel Secured for THE Project 2014 College Project Management Competition

July 23, 2013; watchlistnews.com

The Western Michigan Chapter of the Project Management Institute (http://www.wmpmi.org) has finalized the panel of Executive Judges for THE Project 2014, an Inter-Collegiate Competition in Project Management.

… Lieutenant Colonel (retired) Dennis Gillem, MSE, MBE Syndicated radio talk show host for the program “Frontlines of Freedom” heard each week on WOOD 1300 in Grand Rapids Michigan (new Judge).

Col. Gillem has been a tireless advocate for Veterans rights and Veterans affairs across the state of Michigan. Denny, as he prefers to be addressed, also serves as an adjunct professor at Grand Rapids Community College and the University of Phoenix.

Local businesses work to become bicycle friendly

July 23, 2013; therapidian.org

Grand Rapids’ corporate community is known for taking the concept of “corporate social responsibility” (CSR) seriously. Evidence for this includes the relatively high number of LEED-designated green buildings in Metro Grand Rapids and high participation in the West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum.

… More evidence of increasing local awareness about the bicycle friendly workplace is the fact that over 30 employers participated in GGRBC’s Active Commute Week this past May. Those employers participated in either the commuter challenge or the Bike to Work Day Pit Stops or both. In addition, a number of major employers were sponsors for Active Commute Week or were on the planning committee, such as Calvin College, Cascade Engineering, Grand Rapids Community College, Grand Valley State University, Meijer, Priority Health, Steelcase and TerraTrike.

Congratulations to Cheryl Kautz

Cheryl Kautz with Jay Bhatt, president and CEO of Blackboard Inc.

Congratulations to Cheryl Kautz, Adjunct Instructor in Computer Information Systems, who is the winner of two Blackboard Catalyst Awards for Exemplary Courses. One of the awards she earned was for her CO152 Photoshop course. This course also won “Director’s Choice” for Courses with Distinction (going above and beyond rubric requirements). The program honors members of the community who design and develop exciting and innovative courses that represent the very best in technology and learning. Cheryl’s courses are a model for best practices in providing course content within Blackboard. She is especially gifted at providing high levels of accessibility for students with disabilities, providing them a “barrier-free” environment so that they can fully participate in her courses. We in the CIS Department are fortunate to have Cheryl on our team! On behalf of us all, thanks for the excellent work, Cheryl!

Ransom repaving scheduled for August 3

The city now plans to repave Ransom NE, between Lyon and Fulton, on August 3 if the weather cooperates. The paving will last one day, during which the road will be closed. If the weather is bad, the road will be repaved some time between August 8 and 10.

Prior to the paving, smaller localized partial lane closures etc. will occur as they prepare for the paving. This will include some tasks around drains, manholes, etc. as well as rotomilling (crushing into small pieces) the existing roadway surface. These preparatory tasks should NOT lead to a road closure.