April 2016 CSN Chronicle

Posted on April 26, 2016 by CSN

Welcome to the April Chronicle. There is much to discuss, including information about a multi-campus district study, the Board of Regents’ legislative strategies and more.

CSN Multi-Campus District Model Study

At the end of March, CSN President Michael Richards and ASCSN President Brenda Romero held the Presidents’ Chats on each campus.

The Board of Regents held a special meeting on Friday and approved the initiation of a feasibility study to look at transitioning CSN from a multi-campus single college to a multi-campus district model. Our Institutional Advisory Council has also endorsed the study. We will work with the system to propose an outline of the committee and timetables, which we will report to the Board of Regents Committee on Community Colleges at the next meeting. I hope to engage faculty, staff, students, Institutional Advisory Council and community members on this study to create improved service at each of our three campuses.

CSN Budget Priorities
The Board also discussed and endorsed legislative priorities at the Friday meeting. These are separate from ‘roll up’ items that include caseload growth and continued funding for the UNLV medical school. They will finalize these operational and capital priorities in June and then vote on them at a special Board of Regents meeting in August.

Operational enhancements:

Faculty & Staff Compensation

The Governor directed state entities to build classified step increases into their budget requests and NSHE will request its equivalent for professional merit, which is approximately 2.5 percent. While the final merit calculation will not be completed until base budgets are constructed this summer, they estimate the request will be approximately $10 million to $10.5 million in FY 18 and $20m -$21m in FY 19.

Formula Enhancement for Community Colleges

This would be an increase in the weight for certain Career & Technical Education credits completed and would equate to an additional estimated $7 million each year for CSN.

A Technical Formula Adjustment for DRI
The Workforce Innovations for a New Nevada (WINN) Fund

While this rapid response workforce training fund, enacted in the 2015 special legislative session, will not likely be part of the NSHE budget, the Board will discuss a resolution to support continued funding of this priority in the Governor’s budget.

Silver State Opportunity Grant

NSHE is requesting that funding for the program be made permanent and that the Board request an additional $5 million in funding to expand the program to serve students enrolled in at least 12 credits, first serving students enrolled in 15 credits, with the remaining funds then serving students enrolled in at least 12 credits until all such funds are exhausted.

Increasing Capacity System Wide

This sums up projects proposed by each institution to expand our ability to meet community needs. As part of this, CSN has proposed three pilot projects and workforce training redesign, which are described in more detail here.

Capital Priorities

CSN’s proposed Health and Science building in collaboration with Nevada State College was third on the board’s capital priority list Friday. UNR’s engineering building was first and NSC’s educational facility was second. There will likely be more discussion on these at the June meeting.

Express Enrollment Days

The Henderson Campus Master Plan

In preparation for the fall 2016 enrollment term, CSN will have numerous Express Enrollment Days beginning in June and ending in early August. Similar to the former Enrollment Bootcamp events, Express Enrollment Days will offer first-time, new-to-college students the opportunity to complete the first matriculation steps in one day:

Placement testing for English, reading, and math
Academic advising
Orientation (in-person sessions available only during July and August dates; online orientation available 24/7)

While all first-time college students are encouraged to participate in Express Enrollment activities, all 2016 high school graduates from Nevada and out of state are required to complete placement, advising and orientation steps before registering for classes. To participate in Express Enrollment, students must register online in advance at either www.csn.edu/orientation or www.csn.edu/expressenrollment. Students will need to bring a valid photo ID and their NSHE ID number.

First Steps (formerly known as Mandatory Matriculation Policy)
I think we can all rally around the need for fewer acronyms and making higher education lexicon more student friendly. Therefore, I am happy to announce that we are changing the name of what was formerly called the Mandatory Matriculation Policy to First Steps. This is the Achieving the Dream expanded pilot requiring all recent high school graduates to complete placement testing, advising and orientation before enrolling. Aptly named, First Steps is the process we aspire to one day have all new students first complete prior to enrollment.

Collective Bargaining
As discussed in an email I sent last week, collective bargaining has passed and I look forward to working with our chapter of the Nevada Faculty Alliance on a contract over the coming months. By law, there is a 60-day period during which both the bargaining unit and CSN management will prepare to engage in the bargaining process.

A CSN graduate from the class of 2015 celebrates receiving his diploma.

Commencement – The Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

Commencement will take place Monday, May 16, at the Thomas & Mack. I hope you will join us as we help celebrate thousands of CSN graduates. There are also a number of very important multi-cultural celebrations that will take place. For more information, click here to RSVP.

New CSN School of Math and Science Dean

Dr. John Adlish

Please join me in welcoming Dr. John Adlish as CSN’s new dean of the School of Science and Mathematics. He starts July 1. Dr. Adlish comes to us via TMCC, where he serves as chair of the Faculty Senate. He previously served as a dean there as well. A biologist by training, he has had a distinguished career involving research and publications, and is a graduate of both the University of Nevada, Reno and the University of Nevada School of Medicine.

Outstanding Student Awards Announced

CSN 2013 Outstanding Student Awards Ceremony

Congratulations to this year’s Outstanding Student Awards recipients. What a wonderful bunch of students who have been chosen. That you to all the academic departments for the nominations!

Bethany Williams, Accounting, Finance & Computer Office Technology
Benjamin Sadberry, Applied Technologies
Jessica Veach, Biological Sciences
Curtis Chamblee, Business Administration
Caryn Puritz, Communication
Colin Izumo, Computing & Information Technology
Nikko Angelo Religioso, Education
Alejandra Muneton-Carrera, English
Aubrey Williams, Fine Arts
Jeanette Katzenmeyer, Health Related Professions
Elene Lev, Hospitality Management
Valentin Sanchez, Human Behavior
Steve Ibraham, International Languages
Ariel Blockovich, Mathematics
Gary Mors, Media Technologies
Jennifer Sou, Nursing
John Dye, Physical Sciences
Sabrina Matson, Public Safety & Human Services
Joseph Dotson, Social Sciences
Christel Marie San Diego, Regents’ Scholar
Sarah Rinehart, Kim Gregory Memorial Scholarship Recipient

CSN Nurses Standout at National Conference

Nursing faculty advisor, Karen Bearer, reports that she and four students — Mayra Rivera, David Alvarez, Dawn Gonzalez, and Regie Layog — were able to attend the National Student Nurses’ Association (NSNA) Convention in Orlando last month. The students took the opportunity to learn about disaster preparedness, writing skills and pharmacology, among other topics. A first in CSN nursing’s history was also accomplished during the convention. It was the first time the CSN Student Nurses’ Association presented a resolution to the NSNA’s House of Delegates. The resolution supported increasing awareness and education regarding injection safety for patients, and was unanimously passed and adopted by the NSNA. Congratulations to our students for their accomplishment!

PTK Advisor Bruno Rhodes Honored

CSN PTK Advisor and English Professor Bruno Rhodes

Congratulations are due to English Professor and PTK Advisor Bruno Rhodes, who was selected as one of Phi Theta Kappa’s 2016 Distinguished Advisors. PTK is the national honor society for students at two-year colleges. The Distinguished Advisor Award recognizes advisors who have served at least four years and have made significant contributions to the growth of the individual chapter members, served as the chapter’s advocate on campus, and encouraged the chapter to be involved on the local, regional, and/or international level of the organization.

Cardiorespiratory Sciences Achievement

Our Respiratory Care Program received some great news recently: It was among a select group of programs that will be recognized by the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care to receive the Distinguished RRT Credentialing Success Award. The award is considered to be a measure of a program’s success in inspiring its graduates to achieve their highest educational and professional aspirations. What it means for CSN’s students is that they can expect the very best from this top-notch program.

All College Committee Openings
It is also time to solicit interest in serving on all-college committees. If you would like to be considered for any of the following committees, please email K.C. Brekken your committee of choice by June 15, 2016. We will send the comprehensive list to the vice presidents and respective chairs, after which you may be contacted by the chair to fill any vacancies that arise during the next academic year. I’d like to note that this process is in its third year and is a recommendation from the Work Climate Committee based on survey recommendations from the college. Committee participation is critical to a healthy shared-governance system.

All-College Committees

CSN held its first Human Library event this month in which volunteers became human books.
Presented by the CSN Library and the Queer-Inclusive Campus Committee, the Human Library living “books” made their experiences open and available, and “readers,” or those visiting the library, had a one-on-one or group conversation. The Human Library event was developed to create dialogue and understanding between people who might otherwise never interact.

Academic Technology Advisory Committee
Achieving the Dream
Animal Care and Use Committee
Charleston Campus Steering Committee
Cheyenne Campus Steering Committee
Henderson Campus Steering Committee
Commencement Committee
Hispanic Serving Institution Task Force
Diversity Office Related Committees
Institutional Review Board
Intercollegiate Athletics Committees
Internal Recognition Committee
Safety & Security Committee
Work Climate Committee
Any Committee

Faculty & Staff Questions

Why do we have multi-cultural graduation celebrations?

These celebrations are done at many higher education institutions. They represent one of many strategic activities we have at CSN to help eliminate longstanding gaps in degree-attainment that have a direct impact and lead to disparate socioeconomic conditions. According to recent data from the Lumina Foundation, 37.4 percent of white residents in Nevada, age 25-64, have a college degree compared to 24 percent of African Americans and 13.8 percent of Hispanics in our state. Celebrations that highlight these under-represented graduates’ accomplishments among their family, friends, with their faculty and staff are important to help create the college-going culture we all want for our state. I hope you’ll join us at these events and of course, at the Commencement Ceremony on May 16.

What’s the difference between different proposals to remove Nevada’s community colleges from the Nevada System of Higher Education and the multi-campus district model that we will be studying?

I understand that there is a lot of confusion between these two. There are some public officials who advocate that Nevada’s four community colleges should be governed by a separate board, apart from the Nevada System of Higher Education Board of Regents.

However, Regents approved a study to transition CSN from a multi-campus single college, as it is now, to a multi-campus district model, still under the Board of Regents. This study will examine if CSN should create more autonomous campuses with a more horizontal structure, similar to many of our peer colleges throughout the nation.

Now that we are expanding athletics by adding soccer teams this year, do you think this will impact our competitive edge as an educational institution?

This will enhance our competitive edge for several reasons. CSN athletes are very successful academically and can only add to our culture of student success. I also believe having a competitive soccer team for men and women, in a community that embraces this sport, will not only spread more awareness about CSN as an academic institution but as an athletic opportunity throughout the region.

CSN’s administration has a history of promoting equity among employee groups. With the new collective bargaining agreement in place with academic faculty, how will the college ensure continued equity between different employee groups at CSN?

Over the next few months, we will have much discussion about how to incorporate the new collective bargaining system into our organizational culture. CSN has received accolades for our shared governance from our accrediting body and I prize the relationships we have among our employee groups. I have every intention of maintaining and protecting equity for all of our employees, including their ability to contribute to college decision making.

With CSN exploring new administrative structures, employees are concerned about how such changes might affect their roles on campus, especially those employees that provide services at multiple campus locations. Looking at the big picture is important, but how might these big picture changes affect those employees working with students on the “front lines”?
This is an excellent question and one that must be worked out through the course of the feasibility study. I hope that employees are not anxious about potential structural shifts. Change can be uncomfortable, but if studied well and implemented collaboratively, it can be done far more smoothly. Keep in mind that the impetus for this change is to further empower our employees working with students and to diminish the distance between leadership, employees and students.

The Northwest campus is often been referred to as the S.T.E.M. or S.T.E.A.M. Campus. studies show that the arts are crucial for the development of science, technology, engineering and math, will the Northwest campus have an “A”?

Adding the arts is highly likely. As the feasibility study on CSN manageability or decentralization proceeds, there is an important principle included in the plan for the study: campuses will have a comprehensive curriculum for general education. Should the student committee adopt that principle, the arts will be part of the curriculum that is offered.

Best,

Mike

Posted in Monthly Chronicles | Tagged Bruno Rhodes, budget, collective bargaining, commencement, CSN campus, CSN Nursing, Funding formula, Graduation, mandatory matriculation, Outstanding Student Awards, PTK | Comments Off

President’s Announcement on Collective Bargaining

Posted on April 22, 2016 by CSN

Colleagues,

As most of you know, the Nevada Faculty Alliance (NFA) was authorized by the Board of Regents to pursue an election regarding collective bargaining for academic faculty. Through that process, 524 eligible employees were invited to participate in the election. Results of the election—263 “yes” votes–show the required number of votes were received, and we look forward to moving ahead with the collective bargaining process. By law, there is a 60-day period during which both the bargaining unit and CSN management will prepare to engage in the bargaining process.

I have had a number of questions about collective bargaining and governance:

1. How does this change affect the Faculty Senate?

Board policy provides for both collective bargaining and a Faculty Senate. In the past, the Faculty Senate has been the recognized, elected body representing faculty. That will be modified now. At other institutions, both the Faculty Senate and the “bargaining unit” exist side by side, with the collective bargaining process governed by Board of Regents policy, Title 4, Chapter 4.

2. How are topics for bargaining determined?

By policy, topics for bargaining are listed on page 10 of the Regents’ policy, and the NFA can choose from that list the topics it wishes to pursue.

3. What does this mean for administrative faculty?

The Faculty Senate will continue to represent administrative faculty, and I will continue to meet with the Administrative Faculty Assembly leadership as I have in the past.

4. What does this mean for CSN generally?

Establishment of a collective bargaining unit adds an important dimension to CSN governance and to the organizational culture of the College. In early conversations with the president of the NFA chapter, I have committed to an amicable process that considers the mission of the College and our students.

I hope this information is helpful. As there are further developments over the summer, we will, of course, keep the college community informed.

Best,

Mike

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March 2016 Chronicle

Posted on March 25, 2016 by CSN

March Chronicle

The Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Committee hosted a Citrus Fruiting Event last month in celebration of the Monkey for Chinese New Year. More than 65 participants stopped by and received a tangerine, which is said to bring wealth and luck.

Welcome back! I hope you took a few days during spring break to unwind and prepare for the whirlwind that lies ahead. April and May are tsunami months, full of activities and the winding down of the academic year. This Chronicle is full of updates to help you stay informed and abreast of many important happenings at CSN.

New Website

I trust by now you have seen our new web site. This dynamic and engaging site is designed for students and prospective students and their families. The content has been streamlined and refreshed to help them easily access the latest and most useful information. It is a work in progress and if you have questions, please email webservices@csn.edu for further assistance.

If you’re familiar with the old site and know what you’re looking for, you can still find it at http://archive.csn.edu/ for now. Or you can access the old site by going to the ‘Login’ link on the top right corner of the new site. This will take you to a dashboard with links to the old site, Canvas, and other frequently used pages.

Please know that we are migrating important employee information to an intranet portal that will go live after the spring semester. The portal will include single sign on capabilities to all frequently used programs, internal forms, policies, and procedures.

Our website is our electronic gateway and one of the most important recruitment and retention tools we have. It’s important that it be geared to students. We are all looking forward the activation of the portal, which in addition to allowing us to clean up our website will help us improve internal communications.

CSN Governance and Structure

At the April 22 special Board of Regents meeting, the Board will discuss different management structures for CSN. This is a topic I brought up at the January town hall with faculty and staff as to whether CSN’s size might be better suited to a different model. I will propose the formation of a study committee to the Board of Regents, comprised of representatives from CSN’s faculty and staff and its Institutional Advisory Council, to examine the capacity and structure of the college and identify opportunities to more effectively serve our diverse community and broad service area.

This is different from initiatives underway to place the state’s four community colleges under the control of a community college governing body, outside of the Nevada System of Higher Education. On the latter, I authored to following column, which was published March 13 in the Las Vegas Sun.

Legislative Budget Priorities

The Governor indicated earlier this month that he will ask for plans for a 5 percent budget reduction from state entities. We’re not sure yet of the specifics of this for Nevada’s colleges.

Earlier this month, the Board of Regents met and discussed potential legislative priorities for the 2017 session. The Chancellor and his staff put forth priorities from each of the college and university presidents for their consideration. CSN is represented in these discussions and supports, particularly, the compensation, formula, WINN, and SSOG adjustments.

Caseload growth funds existing programs and services for additional students and completions at existing levels. It is based on actual fall 2015 and projected spring 2016 data. ($26.9 to $27.9 million FY 16);
UNLV School of Medicine ($2,271,987 FY 18 and $10,742,046 FY 19);
Faculty & Staff Compensation ($5.25M for every 1% increase);
Formula enhancement for the community colleges, including an increased weight for certain Career & Technical Education credits;
DRI Formula Correction ($198,150 estimated FY 18 and $198,150 estimated FY 19);
WINN Fund: The Workforce Innovations for a New Nevada (WINN) Fund is a rapid response workforce training fund enacted in the 29th Special Session (2015) of the Nevada Legislature for recruitment, assessment and training of workers necessary to develop the workforce necessary to support statewide economic priorities;
Silver State Opportunity Grant: The Chancellor recommended increasing this need-based scholarship from $5 million for the biennium to $10 million and to expand the program to serve students enrolled in 15 credits first with the remaining funds then serving students enrolled in at least 12 credits;
Increase capacity system wide: This initiative seeks to create additional capacity through new programs and initiatives.

CSN’s projects related to capacity, the bullet above, include three pilot projects that can be supported with one-time money: College Readiness, a joint CCSD and CSN effort of intense programming for up to 300 students; Adult Learning, a financial aid grant for up to 100 adult students returning to college; and Prison Education, a pilot education program for up to 100 clients with a goal of reducing recidivism. Finally, CSN is proposing a redesign of Workforce education that, over a six-year period, will dramatically increase capacity for workforce training.

Collective Bargaining Election for Academic Faculty

The Board of Regents Handbook provides for employee bargaining units within NSHE. The American Association of University Professors/Nevada Faculty Alliance (NFA) applied recently to the Board for an election to determine if CSN’s academic faculty (instructing, library and counseling faculty) want the NFA as their collective bargaining agent. At its March meeting, the Board approved the holding of the election. The election is being conducted by the American Arbitration Association, and balloting is currently underway. Information about the process is delineated in the Board’s Hanbook Title 4, Chapter 4. I urge the thoughtful participation of those impacted in this process.

Southeast Career & Technical Academy (SECTA) & WINN Proposal

We continue to work with SECTA to create an advanced manufacturing program at their campus for joint use. These students will receive advanced training in robotics maintenance and troubleshooting. This facility is part of our recently submitted proposal for the Workforce Innovations for the New Nevada (WINN) Fund. We know robotics are a critical component of manufacturing and the nation’s economy and we aspire to franchise this program in the southwest and northeast quadrants of the valley.

Partnerships with the Clark County School District

The Clark County School District Board and CSN are working to expand the CSN High School program by 25 percent and to explore the joint use of resources to create a shared facility for a STEM-focused CSN High School program at our anticipated Northwest Campus.

CCSD and CSN are also partnering to initiate a joint venture called the Catalyst Program, which will serve at first approximately 50 under-prepared high school students heading into their senior year to help them with college readiness. This will include assistance with navigating the college enrollment process, bridge programming and mentorships.

As many of you know, we are pursuing National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Programs (NACEP) accreditation to ensure we maintain the highest standards in our concurrent enrollment programs on high school campuses. Once we receive this accreditation (and it is a rigorous process that we expect to wrap up in spring 2017), we hope to expand concurrent enrollment programs. These programs help schools improve their ratings and can have a significant impact on college readiness and college-going rates.

Green Fest

CSN is a proud ally in this year’s Seventh Annual Green Fest event, to be held on April 23 in honor of Earth Day. The event, which will be held in Downtown Summerlin, is the largest Earth Day festival in Nevada. Its aim is to promote recycling and a sustainable environmental lifestyle to the community. CSN will have a booth at the festival to promote the green education and environmental programs we offer. Anyone interested in participating can contact Environmental Strategies Committee Chair Steve Soltz.

Articulation and Transfer

CSN and UNLV as well as CSN and NSC have finalized an MOU to create a Guaranteed Transfer Program for students who applied and were denied admission to UNLV. Upon acceptance to CSN, these students would be co-admitted to UNLV or NSC and CSN. Once students comply with the following requirements, they will be able to seamlessly continue their education at UNLV without needing to reapply.

Guaranteed Transfer Program Requirements:

1.) Continuously enroll at CSN in at least 12 credits per fall and spring semester

2.) Complete an Associate of Arts Degree, Associate of Business degree,

Associate of Science degree or an Associate of Applied Science degree

3.) Complete the CSN associate degree with an overall GPA of 2.5 or higher

4.) The student must not be ineligible for matriculation at UNLV by virtue of any disciplinary holds at either CSN or UNLV

Also, CSN and NSC have entered into an agreement this month to develop joint academic and student support programs.

CSN Career Fair
Thank you to all who helped foster the successful March 2 Career Fair, held on the Cheyenne campus, which saw more than 400 job seekers on hand to meet with 51 employers, including 15 companies participating for the first time. Several employers commented on the high turnout and the quality of the students attending the event. Many of the employers were interviewing on the spot and there were even some job offers made. The next Career Fair will be held April 6 on the Charleston campus.

New CT Scanner for Vet Tech Students

Exciting news from our Veterinary Technology program. Using Perkins funding, they were able to acquire a Computed Tomography device, also known as a CT scanner. It is one of only two in Nevada, and the only one in Southern Nevada. The special X-ray machine can be used to diagnose complicated problems in animals referred to the program’s fully functional veterinary clinic for treatment.

Excellence and Distinguished Employee Awards

It is time to submit your nominations for this year’s Excellence and Distinguished Awards, which honor CSN faculty and staff for outstanding work over the previous academic year. For more information, visit www.csn.edu/recognition or contact Internal Recognition Committee Chair Michele Fogg at michele.fogg@csn.edu. The deadline for submission is 5 p.m. Friday, April 15.

Reverse Transfer

CSN instituted a new “Reverse Transfer” degree process this month, and the response has been wonderful. Approximately 200 former students have contacted us to inquire about whether they qualify. Under the arrangement, students who have earned 15 or more credits at an NSHE community college and transferred to a four-year NSHE institution where they earned 60 or more credits may be eligible to obtain an associate degree for already completed coursework. It is a valuable program that allows students to obtain a degree they have already earned, which can help them gain employment and give them a boost as they work toward bachelor’s degrees.

Women’s History Month

Barbara Buckley, executive director of Legal Aid of Nevada, was the keynote at the NSHE Status of Women Conference held at the Horn Theatre.

As you know, March is Women’s History Month. I would like to thank the CSN Women’s Alliance for the many terrific and inspiring events this committee put on, including the NSHE Status of Women Conference on March 8 and empowerment fairs to promote student success and completion. These dynamic events are a lot of work and highlight the challenges many women face daily. Thank you for all you do.

Tenure Announcement

In case you missed our email announcement, congratulations are due to the following hardworking CSN faculty for whom the Board of Regents approved tenure this month. This is a major milestone and achievement!

Alda A. Anderson, Business, Hospitality and Public Service
Craig N. Anderson, International Languages
Barbara Bird, International Languages
Sonja Burd, Biological Sciences
Natalie Chio, Health Related Professions
Marcela Cortes Ramirez, Biological Sciences
Shane W. Dick, International Languages
Arthur G. Eggers, Advanced and Applied Technologies
Jennifer A. Gorman, Mathematics
David L. Hardy, Media Technologies
Valerie A. Hecht, International Languages
Michael W. Huff, English
Dana L. Jones, Accounting, Finance, Computer Office Technology
Christopher D. King, Mathematics
Aminul I. Km, Mathematics
James Y. Lee, Mathematics
Eileen M. Mahoney Bauer, Nursing
Eileen M. Metcalfe, Hospitality Management
Maria Consuelo Capiral Pickle, Mathematics
Michele R. Rahmig, Dental, Diagnostic and Rehabilitation Services
Brett Riley, English
Arthur Edgar Salmon III, Computing and Information Technology
Michael B. Simpson, Dental, Diagnostic and Rehabilitation Services
Efatsadat Taghva, Computing and Information Technology
Richard W. Theis, English
Christopher T. Tsouras, Fine Arts
Kathi Kalene Westmoreland, English

Faculty & Staff Questions

“Why didn’t our spring break line up with Clark County School District and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas?”

Whenever we can, we ensure the CSN and CCSD spring breaks align. But we also follow guidance from the Faculty Senate to have spring break before a specific number of weeks elapse in spring semester. This year the alignment could not happen to meet the Senate’s criteria. By the way, that criteria is important or we end up with spring break very late in the semester.

“When can returning and new students register for summer and fall semesters?”

For Women’s History Month, the CSN Women’s Alliance facilitated Empowerment Fairs to highlight student success services at CSN.

Returning students can register for summer, starting April 4 and new students on April 21. For fall 2016 registration, returning students can begin to enroll on May 2 and new students on May 20.

Best,

Mike

Posted in Monthly Chronicles | Tagged awards, budget, career fair, CCSD, chronicle, collective bargaining, governance, green fest, Legislature, reverse transfer, secta, tenure, website, winn | Comments Off

Congratulations!

Posted on March 4, 2016 by CSN

Congratulations to the following individuals for whom the Board of Regents approved tenure this week. This is a major milestone and achievement for our faculty!

Alda A. Anderson, Business, Hospitality and Public Service
Craig N. Anderson, International Languages
Dr. Barbara Bird, International Languages
Dr. Sonja Burd, Biological Sciences
Natalie Chio, Health Related Professions
Dr. Marcela Cortes Ramirez, Biological Sciences
Shane W. Dick, International Languages
Arthur G. Eggers, Advanced and Applied Technologies
Dr. Jennifer A. Gorman, Mathematics
David L. Hardy, Media Technologies
Dr. Valerie A. Hecht, International Languages
Dr. Michael W. Huff, English
Dr. Dana L. Jones, Accounting, Finance, Computer Office Technology
Christopher D. King, Mathematics
Aminul I. Km, Mathematics
James Y. Lee, Mathematics
Eileen M. Mahoney Bauer, Nursing
Eileen M. Metcalfe, Hospitality Management
Dr. Maria Consuelo Capiral Pickle, Mathematics
Michele R. Rahmig, Dental, Diagnostic and Rehabilitation Services
Dr. Brett Riley, English
Arthur Edgar Salmon III, Computing and Information Technology
Michael B. Simpson, Dental, Diagnostic and Rehabilitation Services
Efatsadat Taghva, Computing and Information Technology
Dr. Richard W. Theis, English
Christopher T. Tsouras, Fine Arts
Dr. Kathi Kalene Westmoreland, English

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Board of Regents, tenure | Comments Off

CSN February 2016 Chronicle

Posted on February 19, 2016 by CSN

Welcome to the February Chronicle! First, my kudos to the African American Heritage Committee on an excellent series of events for Black History Month! You can learn more here.

This month’s Chronicle is a special Q & A communication, since I have received a number of questions lately that require your attention.

There appears to be no optimal way to communicate with CSN students. How can we improve email communication with them?

Thanks to all the CSN faculty and staff that helped make this January’s Connections events a success!

In this transitory community in which snail mail is too expensive and ineffective, we have had no primary method of reliably contacting students. Emails sent to students’ preferred personal addresses, which they enter into MyCSN, often bounce back. Few students use their CSN student email accounts. Some students don’t use Canvas, and most students only check their MyCSN Communication Center a couple of times a year.

The current set up has also led to certain providers, including Yahoo, Microsoft and Google, temporarily blocking CSN email addresses because they received so many of them and thought they were Spam. Not only is this situation aggravating cyber security, some aspects are illegal.

From a technical perspective the matter can be quickly solved, but there are also policy considerations.

In short, this cannot continue. Therefore, I’ve asked staff to create a mandatory student email policy that we will take to Faculty Senate for input. You’ll hear more about this in the near future. Please start encouraging students to use their student email addresses for all official communications.

What is collective bargaining and why is it on the Board of Regents’ agenda?

The Board of Regents Handbook provides for employee bargaining units within NSHE. As employee groups wish to pursue the collective bargaining process, that process is delineated in the Handbook, Title 4, Chapter 4.

The Nevada Faculty Alliance (NFA) filed an application to represent academic faculty (instructing, counseling and library faculty) as a bargaining unit at CSN, and that application is on the March 3-4, 2016 Board agenda for consideration. If the Board approves the application, an election will be held by the academic faculty to determine whether they desire NFA representation. I will refer you to the Board of Regents Handbook for complete details on the bargaining process.

How was a search consultant selected for the VPAA position and why is it needed?

Filling any executive position at a college or university is a challenge as more incumbents retire and candidate pools are often limited. To cast as wide a net as possible, it is common for institutions and systems to retain search consultants to tap national networks to fill a position.

During fall semester, CSN engaged an RFP process through the purchasing office to solicit proposals from interested executive search firms. A committee of faculty and staff reviewed the proposals and Executive Search of Washington DC was selected to work with CSN’s HR office on the search. An updated job description, position profile, and other documents were prepared for the search, seeking, again, the widest pool of candidates possible.

A search committee has been established and will meet with the search consultant. A timetable has also been developed.

At the request of the faculty, the minimum degree qualification was increased to a doctorate degree, and the institution will conduct a series of forums and interviews, pursuant to CSN policy and practice for vice presidential positions. I anticipate that college-wide interviews with finalists will take place the week of May 2. More information on the dates, times and locations will be announced for participation as they are available.

Will budget cuts continue?

Budget challenges will always be with us at CSN as a result of either institutional or statewide resources.

Public pressure for efficiency and accountability and proving institutions can do more with less, are common in every state. Community college enrollment is also down nationwide and this is hurting many of our peer institutions.

We will know more after the mid-spring semester census, whereas our enrollments are still changing. I would like to compliment Vice President of Finance Mary Kaye Bailey for her strong budget projections, which may have protected us from sizeable cuts this semester, even though our enrollment is still down this spring over last by about 3 percent. I’ll end this section with the ominous advisement that it is never a bad idea to be prepared.

What are CSN’s prospects for the next Legislature?

Legislators at the Black & Brown Democratic Caucus Education Forum this month discussed K-12 and higher education policies at the Cheyenne campus.

Perhaps like you, I’m hearing that 2017 will be higher education’s year at the Legislature. But we have no reason to anticipate additional money. A large tax increase for Nevada’s higher education system is not going to happen and the nation is poised for another recession.

CSN has taken an aggressive position for the legislative session, and budget priorities of the Board of Regents will be determined over the next few months. We know there are many competing priorities, including funding for the medical school and residencies, public financing for a stadium, changes and increases to the funding formula and increased funding for the Silver State Opportunity Grant. CSN’s initiatives outlined in previous chronicles will receive consideration by the Board of Regents in the March and June meetings for possible inclusion in the system’s legislative priorities.

What’s been done with recommendations from the Work Climate Committee and its surveys?

As many of you know, I take these surveys and recommendations very seriously. In January, I received the report and recommendations of the fall 2015 Snapshot Survey and I met shortly thereafter with Work Climate Committee Chair Cameron Basquiat. The report and recommendations are significant and extremely helpful. Each supervising vice president, manager, or committee chair, as appropriate, received a copy of the report. Here’s what’s been done:

Recommendations for continued communication, such as the “Week Ahead” service will continue
A May 2015 group photo of CSN’s Work Climate Committee
I was joined by Vice President Hyla Winters in a meeting with the Internal Recognitions Committee where each of the recommendations for that committee and program were discussed one-by-one. The Committee has adopted many of the recommendations and will be implementing them in the next recognitions cycle. Should you wish more information on the committee’s actions, please contact Michelle Fogg or Diana Woodhouse.
I met with Maria Marinch, Executive Director of Community Relations, Diversity and Multicultural Affairs on each of the diversity recommendations to affirm their implementation.
I met with Senior Vice President Patty Charlton on the safety recommendations for their implementation.
On February 19, the report and recommendations will be discussed at the Extended Team meeting for all CSN directors and above.
As a follow up to action steps and implementation, I and other members of the executive staff will be meeting later this spring with the Work Climate Committee.

I would like to emphasize that I appreciate those of you who participated in the fall 2016 PACE survey. As those results are considered by the Work Climate Committee and recommendations are developed, I’ll report on them to the entire college community.

Does CSN have funding for merit pay?

CSN has no further funding for merit pay or COLA, nor is it authorized to make allocations on the money it does not have. At the beginning of the fiscal year, as contracts were renewed, CSN implemented the full compensation package authorized by the Legislature, which includes a second salary increase of 2 percent that you will see take effect this summer in the 2017 fiscal year.

What’s being done to turn around enrollment declines?

This month, CSN President Michael Richards and Sr. Vice President Patty Charlton visited with Rancho High School officials and Sandy Miller to discuss increased partnerships.

CSN’s enrollment management has the institution’s undivided attention. All of us have a responsibility to invite students to enroll, help connect interested potential students to the institution and ensure they feel welcome at CSN. In addition, the Strategic Enrollment Planning Committee has expanded and redoubled its efforts. We are implementing a new student relationship management system, described below, which will help us better connect with students from recruitment through graduation. Members of the executive team and I are also visiting high schools, career and technical academies and working with school district officials to expand partnerships and strengthen the pipeline from our school districts to CSN.

I saw an article in the Review-Journal about Silver State Opportunity Grant recipients. What do you think about the grant program and its 15-credit-per-semester requirement?

There was an article in the RJ on Monday that indicated about half of CSN’s Silver State Opportunity Grant (SSOG) recipients failed to meet eligibility requirements after the first semester. This is a larger percentage than any other institution. The majority of our students lost eligibility because they finished with 12 to 14.99 credits and shy of the 15-credit requirement. The Silver State Opportunity Grant is a transformational scholarship in Nevada. This need-based grant is dedicated to community college and Nevada State College students in Nevada and we are advocating that increasing this fund and expanding this program be a Board of Regents’ legislative priority going forward. That said, with any public policy, an evaluation of the data is needed to see how we can improve this program, either on our end and/or at the state level.

I’ve asked a working group to survey and conduct focus groups with our SSOG students to determine how we might improve our students’ chances of success. I should add that it is our students at CSN, who seem to be struggling the most with maintaining eligibility. Although we clearly serve students with unique needs in the system, I think the onus is on us to ensure they are prepared for the rigor of 15 credits and have the help they need to succeed.

What is the transition plan for the people retiring?

Each year as CSN employees retire or make other career choices, there are vacancies to fill and new folks to welcome to CSN. We will continue that process as smoothly as possible. We have a number of management positions to fill this year, including the Vice President of Academic Affairs. For most of these positions, we’re on schedule for interim or permanent appointments. In academic areas, I keep the leadership of the Faculty Senate informed of the status of searches and include faculty on as many committees as appropriate.

What’s the role of the regents and the new institutional advisory council?

The Nevada Board of Regents is the overall governing body for the Nevada System of Higher Education. Institutional Advisory Councils, whose members are appointed by the Chair of the Board of Regents, operate only for each of the four community colleges in the state as advisors to the institutional presidents and the regents’ Committee on Community Colleges. Here is the charge as approved by the Board of Regents in December.

What’s the latest with NSHE’s interest in distance education?

Many of you will recall the controversial Katz report, completed in 2013. As a result of that study, 26 distance education recommendations have been developed and submitted to the Chancellor. I anticipate that the Chancellor will discuss these further with the institutions later this year.

How can we provide input into strategic planning?

Because of CSN’s size and mission, large groups of internal and external constituents are rightly interested in participating in the strategic planning process. The Strategic Futures Task Force includes a core team of people, co-chaired by Professor Dr. Joshua Levin and Senior Vice President of Strategic Initiatives and Administrative Services Patty Charlton. This group is working diligently to gather data and collect insight from each of our valued employees and stakeholders to create the strategic plan, which will set the direction for this institution from 2017 to 2024.

Ms. Charlton sent out an email earlier this week with more details about the process. We will have multiple listening sessions, an online and social media presence, and opportunities for all of our stakeholders to connect with the task force to ensure that the plan produced is thoughtful and representative. The Strategic Plan is a required part of our accreditation and a fundamental force shaping the decision-making process at this institution.

At the same time, other functions of the college are developing plans that will be integrated into the strategic plan, areas such as diversity and IT. Should you wish to provide input to the planning process at any point in its progress, you may contact Dr. Levin or Ms. Charlton.

What is the Foundation doing?

The CSN Foundation and its exceptional trustees have labored the past year on a restructuring of the Foundation for comprehensive fundraising for CSN’s future. Additional staff will be added later this year. Concurrently, the Foundation has been providing funding to CSN’s Financial Aid staff for distribution of general and designated scholarships to students, while enhancing the infrastructure to support donations and the stewardship required for donors. We appreciate the work of the trustees and staff to position the CSN Foundation for comprehensive operations, for the cultivation and support of donors, and for the margin of difference private funds provide to CSN.

What is a CRM and why is it needed?

A Customer Resource Management (CRM) system is a tool for student recruitment, enrollment, admission and progress as students enter CSN and proceed to completion. CSN has acquired a CRM and will be implementing it over the next 18-24 months.

The vendor selected was Hobson’s Radius system. You’ll be hearing more about it as the implementation proceeds. More and more higher education institutions are adopting this kind of a system to help with enrollment management, communication, and holistic support to students throughout their experience with the CSN.

I fully expect that the features of this system will provide us with new data to create better decisions regarding student success. I also expect it will help improve communication with students and student case management. The end result is that it is expected to improve the overall student experience and I hope you will embrace this new technology whole heartedly.

Is the new communication structure and strategy working?

You may recall that I created an Executive Team of about 18 people and an Extended Team of about 90 folks to assist with institutional communication. These teams were created to supplement my monthly Chronicles of news and information as well as other avenues of college-wide communication. My commitment was to try this for a year and then assess its effectiveness as gauged through faculty and staff feedback. I have held monthly meetings of the Executive Team and two meetings, so far, with the Extended Team. The next meeting of the Extended Team is February 19. Early feedback is that this structure/strategy may not be as effective as initially conceived. Some revision, such as frequency of meetings with senior and middle management—meaningful meetings, I should add—may be in order.

I’m also re-introducing campus roundtables for faculty and staff. As I walk the campuses and visit with faculty and staff, several have asked for more face time. These will take place at the following dates and campuses. A flier will be circulating shortly. Please R.S.V.P. to CSN Public Affairs Executive Director K.C. Brekken at kc.brekken@csn.edu.

President’s Faculty & Staff Roundtables:

Henderson Campus
Thursday, March 24
12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
C-230

Charleston Campus
Monday, March 28
2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
K-101

Cheyenne Campus
Tuesday, March 29
12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Conference Room A

Posted in Monthly Chronicles | Tagged budget cuts, chronicle, collective bargaining, CSN Foundation, CSN President Michael Richards, distance education, enrollment, IAC, merit pay, michael richards, nevada faculty alliance, Nevada Legislature, SSOG, strategic planning, work climate committee | Comments Off

CSN Career Fair Connects Job Seekers and Employers

Posted on February 17, 2016 by CSN

For Immediate Release:

Contact: Richard Lake, CSN Public Relations Specialist, 702-651-7715, Richard.Lake@csn.edu

CSN Career Fair Connects Job Seekers and Employers

The public is invited to showcase job skills to dozens of recruiters at the March 2 event

LAS VEGAS, Feb. 17, 2016 – The College of Southern Nevada will soon host its Spring 2016 Career Fair, where more than three dozen employers will tap the local talent pool to fill hundreds of job opportunities and internships available locally and nationwide. The event is open to the public and held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday, March 2, on CSN’s Cheyenne campus in the June Whitley Student Center.

The open forum allows job applicants the opportunity to meet recruiters, learn about job openings and gather employment information. Applicants should dress in interview attire, bring resumes and be prepared for interviews.

“The Spring Career Fair offers CSN students and other job seekers a chance to meet potential employers face to face,” said Bradford Glover, director of Career Services & Reentry at CSN. “It’s not only a great networking opportunity, but also a forum for job seekers to learn more about potential employers. Recruiters will be on hand to provide detailed information about their organizations and the jobs available.”

The wide array of organizations planning to attend include Ameriprise Financial, CBS Radio, the City of Las Vegas, the Clark County School District, CSN, the Girl Scouts of Southern Nevada, the Nevada Gaming Control Board, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, Southwest Gas Corporation, Wells Fargo and many others.

For more information or to host an employer booth, contact CSN Career Services, 702-651-4700.

About CSN:

Founded in 1971 and educating thousands of students a semester, the College of Southern Nevada (csn.edu) is the state’s largest and most ethnically diverse higher education institution. CSN students can choose from over 150 degree and certificate options in more than 90 areas of study, including 25 degree and certificate programs available entirely online. Students create flexible, personalized schedules, including day, evening, and weekend classes taught on three main campuses and multiple locations throughout Southern Nevada. CSN — your future starts here. CSN is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action institution. For more information, visit http://www.csn.edu/nondiscrimination

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Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Ameriprise Financial, Bradford Glover, Career services, CBS Radio, CSN, CSN Career Fair, Southwest Gas Corporation, the City of Las Vegas, the Clark County School District, the Girl Scouts of Southern Nevada, the Nevada Gaming Control Board, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, Wells Fargo | Comments Off

Educator, Author Dr. Robert L. Green to speak at CSN

Posted on February 11, 2016 by CSN

Media Advisory:

Contact: Richard Lake, CSN Public Relations Specialist, 702-651-7715, Richard.Lake@csn.edu

Educator, Author Dr. Robert L. Green to speak at CSN

The civil rights pioneer and urban policy expert will lecture and sign books

LAS VEGAS, Feb. 11, 2016 – Renowned educator and author Dr. Robert L. Green, an associate of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., urban policy advisor and higher education expert, will speak at the College of Southern Nevada at 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 27.

Green, professor emeritus at Michigan State University, joined the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1965, where he worked with King until Green left the organization two years later. He is the author of several books that focus primarily on the impact of poverty and discrimination on urban populations. He has also explored the relationship between expectations and student achievement.

Who: Dr. Robert Green

When: 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 27

Where: Morse Arberry Jr. Telecommunications Building, College of Southern Nevada Cheyenne campus

About CSN:

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Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged black history month, civil rights, event, Robert L. Green | Comments Off

CSN Receives Governor’s STEM Grant to Train the Future of Southern Nevada’s Cyber Security Defense

Posted on February 9, 2016 by CSN

For Immediate Release:

Contact: Richard Lake, CSN Public Relations Specialist, 702-651-7715, Richard.Lake@csn.edu

CSN Receives Governor’s STEM Grant to Train the Future of Southern Nevada’s Cyber Security Defense

LAS VEGAS, Feb. 5, 2016 – The Governor’s Office of Science, Innovation and Technology (OSIT) announced it has awarded Round 2 STEM Workforce Challenge Grants to Nevada training providers throughout the state, including the College of Southern Nevada.

CSN will receive $149,882 to partner with Switch SUPERNAP and the member companies of the Las Vegas Chapter of the Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA) to create a new Cyber Security Associate of Applied Science Degree and an advanced Certificate of Achievement.

“This grant is critical to get us the kind of modern security tools needed to train the future front line of Southern Nevada’s cyber security defense,” said CSN School of Advanced & Applied Technologies Dean Michael Spangler.

The STEM Workforce Challenge Grant will fund the development of five new CSN courses that better meet the industry’s needs, including Ethical Hacking, Physical Security, Incident Handling, Advanced Network Security, and Penetration Testing. As a result of the training, students will be prepared for the following six industry certifications: CompTIA A+, CompTIA Network+, CompTIA Security+, Cisco CCENT, EC-Council CEH, and ECIH. The grant will also fund the creation of a state-of-the-art classroom, which will allow CSN to expand the program from about 200 students to 250 students.

More information about CSN’s grant and others awarded in this round can be found at http://osit.nv.gov/grants/grants.

About CSN:

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Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged challenge grant, cyber security, STEM | Comments Off

CSN January 2016 Chronicle

Posted on January 28, 2016 by CSN

The January 15 2016 town hall included information on enrollment, CSN’s budget, management models and strategic planning.

Greetings faculty and staff,

Hope your spring semester is off to a great start! This January Chronicle includes information on recent events including positive recent work force developments impacting CSN and topics discussed at the recent town hall.

Faraday Special Session

In December, state legislators passed a large tax package for Faraday Futures to attract the electric vehicle company to Southern Nevada. The legislation included a workforce development fund. CSN intends to apply and compete for these dollars to be the major workforce training provider for Faraday. I would like to thank Dan Gouker, senior associate vice president of CSN’s Division of Workforce & Economic Development, and his team for heading up conversations with the Governor’s Office of Economic Development early on to ensure Faraday’s training needs are met by the largest and most diverse higher education institution in Nevada – CSN!

Town Hall

The January 15 2016 town hall included information on enrollment, CSN’s budget, management models and strategic planning.

Approximately 200 faculty and staff attended the town hall at the Horn Theatre on Jan. 15 and received updates on budget, manageability models and the strategic planning process. The presentation slides are available here on my web site. I covered four key topics, including various community college management models to explore, budget and enrollment and strategic planning. 2

CSN Connections events took place on all three campuses this week to connect our students to the many student support services offered at CSN, including free tutoring, child care, advising and counseling and more. Thanks to all who participated to make these events a success!

CSN’s Budget

CSN’s spring enrollment will be down, compared to spring 2015, according to preliminary data, and will likely result in further budget cuts this fiscal year. You will receive more information about this as the semester progresses. This academic year, unfortunately, sets the bar for our state funding for the next two-year cycle, which likely means fewer dollars for the college in the coming years.

I think this represents an opportunity to assess some of the biggest challenges our students face in applying, enrolling and persisting at CSN. First, we know our students are price sensitive. We are advocating for several legislative priorities, including increased funding for career and technical education and developmental courses, which are more costly than other courses. We have also advocated that the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) advance a Promise program or free community college for responsible recent high school graduates, which will bring in more federal financial aid dollars for the state and likely increase enrollments. We are also seeking funds for workforce development and increased efforts to assist K-12 with college readiness. We believe these initiatives play a critical role in the state’s economic development agenda and will increase funding and support for our broad mission.

Enrollment

CSN Connections events took place on all three campuses this week to connect our students to the many student support services offered at CSN, including free tutoring, child care, advising and counseling and more. Thanks to all who participated to make these events a success!

Further, our Strategic Enrollment Planning efforts continue to help us better manage our recruitment, retention and completion efforts. This spring, we will implement a new customer relations management tool or CRM, including software that will allow for further inter-departmental collaborations and data collection. CSN recently contracted with Hobsons to provide strategic solutions to improve the student experience. Two modules, Radius and Starfish will begin kick-off and implementation in early February. Radius offers admissions and enrollment management CRM capabilities with communications 3

tools that allow CSN to build dynamic, multi-step outreach campaigns to reach prospective students with the right message at the right time.

The CRM will help us better manage each stage of the admissions process, from the student’s initial inquiry through application completion and then continue to connect with students through their academic career at CSN. It can also help us identify at-risk students in real time and connect them with valuable student services, such as tutoring. Once fully implemented, CSN will extend the reach of services to students and retention efforts through an integrated suite of student success and degree planning solutions including predictive and reporting analytics.

Management Models

In terms of CSN’s management model, the Board of Regents has asked me to consider different approaches to our current centralized structure to better oversee this institution and ensure local connectivity. Although enrollment is down, CSN continues to be among a handful of massive community colleges in the nation and we still retain the title of the largest higher education institution in the state. We are exploring other models, such as that of Portland Community College or the Lone Star College System in Texas that may decentralize our management structure and incite more autonomy for campuses to respond to local community economic and workforce development needs. The costs associated with such a change are part of this discussion.

Strategic Planning

Finally, our strategic planning process to create the direction for the college’s next seven years has begun with Patty Charlton, CSN Senior Vice President of Strategic Initiatives and Administrative Services and Professor Dr. Joshua Levin co-chairing this effort. This will be an inclusive project involving a number of stakeholder groups. We look forward to informing you on opportunities to contribute in the near future.

Website Redesign

We are looking forward to unveiling a new website at the end of March. Our current site is difficult to navigate, contains archaic information, and students and prospective students must often meander through a lot of internal sites to find information pertinent to their needs. The new website will be geared toward prospective students and their families. You will find that many of our current policies, forms, and information will not be available on this site. We plan to launch an internal portal for employees that will include these items as well as 4

The CSN African American Heritage Committee, Black Student Association and Office of Community Relations, Diversity and Multicultural Affairs and other CSN students, staff and alumni, participated in the 34th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Parade held in downtown Las Vegas on January 18, 2016. Thanks to all who came out to represent the college in this important community event!

opportunities for more virtual engagement at the end of May. In the interim, you will be able to access the old web site and all of its forms, etc. from the new website. We will begin training for web page owners next month so that they can learn how to use the new content management system.

Southwest Airlines Discount

We are encouraging all employee airfare to be booked through SWABIZ.com to take advantage of a 3 percent NSHE discount. Simply book the travel through SWABIZ.com rather than Southwest.com and enter the following information:

• Corporate ID: 99881810

• Account No.: Your individual Rapid Rewards #

• Password: Your individual Rapid Rewards password

Prestige Travel cannot book through SWABIZ and therefore will be able to access this discount.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

The CSN African American Heritage Committee, Black Student Association and Office of Community Relations, Diversity and Multicultural Affairs and other CSN students, staff and alumni, participated in the 34th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Parade held in downtown Las Vegas on January 18, 2016. Thanks to all who came out to represent the college in this important community event!

CSN had great representation in the 34th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Parade held in downtown Las Vegas on Jan. 18. The parade included a mix of organizations, businesses, marching bands, schools, drill teams and community leaders in this celebration of the largest parade in the state of Nevada. Thank you to all who organized the CSN contingency, including the CSN African American Heritage Committee, Black Student Association and Office of Community Relations, Diversity and Multicultural Affairs. 5

The new leased space for CSN’s HVAC program is located off of Cheyenne Avenue not far from the Cheyenne campus.

Exciting New Partnership with Switch

CSN has formed an exciting partnership with Switch to build an HVAC program that will train the next generation of Switch technicians to manage the temperature-control needs of the company’s hundreds of servers and expanding local operations.

The company will hire eight CSN students as intern technicians every year. Once those students graduate with an Associate of Applied Science in HVAC, the company will hire them. Switch will also send existing HVAC technicians through the degree-program to build their next level of supervisors. The program will include general education courses at the company’s Innovation Center in Las Vegas that will be open to Switch and CSN students.

HVAC

In addition to the exciting partnership with Switch, our HVAC program has expanded to a new leased site in addition to its presence at the Cheyenne and Henderson campuses.

The new leased space for CSN’s HVAC program is located off of Cheyenne Avenue not far from the Cheyenne campus.

The new facilities, located not far from the Cheyenne campus, feature working

hot water and steam boiler systems, a 160-ton York Chiller, a BAC Cooling Tower, a complete sheet metal fabrication area, and more. It’s all designed to make sure CSN’s students are working with the latest technology so they enter the workforce highly skilled and ready to hit the ground running.

Poster Fair

Our Third Annual Poster Fair, held earlier this month, was a great success. Dozens of presenters from faculty and staff displayed their student success efforts and focused on what was working well. The effort, led by Associate Vice President for Academic 6

The third annual poster fair at this year’s spring convocation allowed faculty and staff to share ideas and research on student success.

Success James McCoy, is designed to help our faculty and staff discover some of the great ideas that others are already using in their classrooms and beyond. Thank you to all who participated and I hope these interactions proved fruitful to all involved.

CSN Institutional Advisory Council Meetings

The CSN IAC has created two subcommittees, including one on performance metrics by which to gauge their own performance in meeting the charges of the Council. A second subcommittee is on Career & Curricula Alignment, and is looking at economic data and information to ensure CSN has the programs in place to meet employment needs. The Council next meeting is Feb. 9 at 11 a.m. at Cheyenne. These are open meetings and all are welcome. Please email K.C. Brekken if you would like to be on the email list to receive agendas or you can refer to their webpage for any materials or dates.

Faculty & Staff Questions & Answers

“I do not understand the discussion on Models for Management of CSN at the town hall. What is this about and what direction is CSN going with compared to peer colleges?”

CSN has a very centralized structure of management compared to most community colleges our size. In fact, we are one of the largest higher education institutions in the nation with this structure. The Board of Regents has asked CSN to consider different structures that might help us better manage our large foot print and encourage more local interactions with our many diverse stakeholders as this community grows. This is a long-term planning exercise about what we want to look like in the future. 7

“Is the 15% budget cut that was experienced by all departments in November going to be the starting budget amount for 2016-2017? Will it go back to the original amount given in July 2015, or will there be another cut come July 2016?”

At this point it is too early to tell with a number of enrollment factors still in play, including short-term course registration. We want to see what spring semester enrollment is on the census date around mid-March. We also want to see what the mix of resident and non-resident students is at that time.

“Will CSN hire more student affairs employees? For example, in Registrar’s Office, Financial Aid, Recruitment, & Advising? Some of the departments do not have enough employees to meet students’ needs.”

You may recall that students agreed to a 4 percent increase in registration fees in each year, starting in FY 2015 to FY 2019. Revenues from these fees will support incremental increases to Student Affairs and Academic Affairs staff in coordination with students and as approved by the Board of Regents. At the March 2016 meeting, CSN and other institutions will submit plans for use of fee revenues to the Regents. Over time these staffing additions will add more employees in the areas you mention and in faculty ranks.

Please let me know if you have any additional questions.

Best,

Mike

Posted in Monthly Chronicles | Tagged chronicle, CSN budget, enrollment, faraday futures, Town hall, website | Comments Off

CSN to Honor Civil Rights Veterans

Posted on December 1, 2015 by CSN

For Immediate Release:

Contact: Richard Lake, CSN Public Relations Specialist, 702-651-7715, Richard.Lake@csn.edu

CSN to Honor Civil Rights Veterans

The 5th annual CSN Frederick Douglass Lecture Series will feature the importance of equality in America

LAS VEGAS, Dec. 1, 2015 – The College of Southern Nevada will honor local civil rights pioneers at 11 a.m., Thursday, Dec. 3, as part of the annual CSN Frederick Douglass Lecture Series.

The event, titled “Eracism: An Event to Eliminate Racism and Inequality in America,” will feature keynote speaker and civil rights activist Hannah Brown, who will address the importance of equality in America.

College President Michael Richards will present Brown with the CSN Frederick Douglass Humanitarian Award at the event. In addition, former Nevada System of Higher Education Regent June Whitley will receive the Frederick Douglass Lifetime Achievement Award.

“Each award is designed to symbolize Frederick Douglass’ three components of success, including a belief in oneself, taking advantage of every opportunity, and using the power of spoken and written language to affect positive change,” said CSN Communication Professor Arnold Bell, who has organized the lecture series each year. “With the events that have happened at the University of Missouri, Yale and UNLV, there is no better time to address this issue and let people come together to honor those who have helped pave the way as we continue to strive for equality.”

The media are invited to attend.

What: Eracism: An Event to Eliminate Racism and Inequality in America

When: 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 3, 2015

Who: Activist Hannah Brown and former NSHE Regent June Whitley

Where: CSN Cheyenne campus, June Whitley Student Lounge

About CSN:

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Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off

College of Southern Nevada