ctcLink Project Employees Hired

The clock is ticking on our ctcLink conversion, and work continues at a brisk pace! 

Within the Campus Solutions pillar, three project-based Program Assistants have been hired to support departments with considerable workload issues related to ctcLink. The employees are Karen Boyle and Hannah Taylor (Registration), and Sarah Nichols (Financial Aid). Karen, Hannah and Sarah will perform tasks routinely covered by others who are immersed in data conversion and related issues. 

It is anticipated that at least one more project employee will be added within the next month or two to provide additional support for areas heavily impacted by the conversion.

In other ctcLink news, there are no additional CONFIRMED data configuration meetings on the calendar for the moment. The ctcLink project team out of Olympia is heavily occupied with ongoing Finance issues at the FirstLink colleges (Spokane and Tacoma) right now, and we are awaiting further instructions from them about additional meetings. 

The next data conversion (Cycle 3) is currently scheduled for June 22 (subject to change). As a Wave 1 college, we will go through a total of five data conversion cycles before we Go Live later this year. In contrast, the FirstLink colleges (Spokane and Tacoma) only went through two conversions. By the end of July, we should be fully converted and will have had multiple opportunities to correct any issues that arise along the way.

Announcing ctcLink Reference Center

The ctcLink Reference Center is a handy, quick-reference tool you will want to be familiar with. There is something for everyone on this site!

The site contains instructions, for example, about how to use ctcLink's Self Service functions. From the main ctcLink Reference Center page, scroll down to see the Self Service options. Under "Employee Self Service," for example, you can manage your personal information and voluntary deductions, and request an absence or overtime (among other things).

Under "Faculty Self Service" you will find faculty-specific information including how to manage your advisees, look up your schedule, enter grades, use early alert, etc. Be sure to check out the "Faculty Center Video" for a quick but thorough overview of what you will be able to do in PeopleSoft.

There is also information about how to perform specific functions such as looking up student email addresses. In PeopleSoft, student information lives in Campus Solutions, or CS for short. To find out how to locate student biographical information, select "CS Fundamentals" from the main ctcLink Reference Center page. From there, select "Campus Solutions - Basic Navigation." You will find step-by-step instructions on how to access student email addresses along with other information such as phone numbers, addresses, etc.

If you are a content expert responsible for inputting data into PeopleSoft, you will also find specific instructions on this site.

Be sure to bookmark the ctcLink Reference Center page for future use. You can also find the link on our ctcLink page, located at lowercolumbia.edu/ctcLink under "ctcLink Reference Center."

Enroll in New PeopleSoft Fundamentals Course

Are you curious about ctcLink? Perhaps a bit nervous about what to expect? If you answered yes to either question, then we have an opportunity for you!

The ctcLink training team has published a new training course on PeopleSoft Fundamentals intended to help people become familiar with the ctcLink project, and more generally with PeopleSoft software.

In the course, you will get an introduction to the project, learn about the different pillars and modules inside PeopleSoft, get to know the terms and concepts used, and learn about navigation, favorites and main menu functions. You will also learn how to activate your ctcLink account. Please note that it is not yet time for us to activate accounts at LCC!

The course is available to all interested employees, but is geared toward staff who will be working within the three ctcLink pillars (Campus Solutions, Finance, Human Capital Management). The course can be accessed at https://sbctc.instructure.com/enroll/PGCB3B. Please note that the course is in Canvas, so use your lcc email address (jdoe@lcc.ctc.edu) and 900 number to log in.

Many thanks to the ctcLink training team at the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) for providing the course.

ctcLink Conversion in Full Swing at LCC

LCC is scheduled to "go live" with the state's new computer system in fall 2016. There are several different phases of preparation needed in order to prepare for the big day, and activity is well underway.

Data conversion is the focus of much of our current activity. Data conversion has several different components, including: analysis of existing data, creation of new data structures, and cross-walking of old to new data fields. Subject matter experts in each of the pillars are working earnestly to meet deadlines set by the project team.

LCC's pillars include Campus Solutions (basically everything in SMS, and then some, including Financial Aid), Human Resources, and Finance.

The conversion process includes face-to-face meetings at LCC as well as on other campuses, lots of web-ex meetings and phone conferences, and a considerable amount of "homework" doled out by the project team.

The next phase of the project will be to test our converted data, following by user acceptance testing. The testing phase will continue into October.

During the summer, train-the-trainers will be identified for the different pillars. End user training will come last, with training likely to start toward the end of August and continue into October.

Training will be delivered both electronically and in-person. The project team has adopted a "flipped classroom" model, meaning that much of the content will be delivered online, with face-to-face time dedicated to hands-on activity and questions. At least a portion of the training will be delivered via Canvas.

A new set of web pages about ctcLink is under development and will be launched soon. The web pages will cover background information about the project, frequently asked questions, and will include links to a number of training resources already developed by the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges.

New University Center Breaks Down Barriers

The Problem

Transferring to a four-year university is a tricky process. There are hoops to jump through, papers to sign, emails to send and phone calls to make. There is also relocation to consider. Moving halfway across the state or country isn’t a simple task for most of us. Families, jobs, and mortgages are roots that run deep, and for many of us, a bachelor’s degree is a golden apple at the top of a tree.

The Numbers

In fact, Washington State statistics show that while the Lower Columbia region has a high number of people who have earned an associate’s degree, “Only 16% of Cowlitz and Wahkiakum County adults over age 25 have completed four or more years of college compared to a state average of 32%” (statistics taken from information printed in the 2013 LCC Spring Class Schedule).

Beginning Fall 2013, however, Lower Columbia College will provide a ladder that can help students reach the top of that tree.

The Solution

You may have noticed construction taking place as you’re entering the Alan Thompson Library. This will be the home of the new University Center, which will house representatives from Eastern Washington University, WSU-Vancouver, and City University. The new University Center will break down some of the barriers that many students face when they are ready to transfer to a four-year university.

For example, geographical limitations will no longer be an issue that keeps students from earning a bachelor’s degree. With bachelor’s programs offered from the LCC campus, students will no longer need to relocate in order to attend a university.

The Icing on the Cake

In addition to making it easier to earn a bachelor’s degree without relocating, the University Center will also help eliminate psychological barriers. Instead of waiting 24 hours for a return email, or speaking with someone over the phone hundreds of miles away, students will now be able to meet with advisors from EWU, WSU-Vancouver, and City U face to face without leaving town. Just a quick jaunt to the Center (maybe slightly less than quick, depending on parking) will save students time, money, and sanity.

Beginning Fall 2013, Eastern Washington University will offer bachelor degree programs in Applied Technology and Interdisciplinary Studies. City University already offers a BA in elementary education and WSU-Vancouver has expressed interest in offering a BS in nursing in the near future. If these changes are predictive of anything, it's that more and more opportunities will soon be available to students in the Lower Columbia region.

Learn More

If you’re a student interested in learning more about the new programs offered by the University Center, check with your advisor. If you’re a returning student interested in a bachelor’s degree, you can contact the LCC Entry Center at info@lowercolumbia.edu.

Moms Honored for Academic Excellence

Every year, the All-Washington Academic Team recognizes outstanding students from communities across the state of Washington.  The award has become highly prestigious to the state’s community and technical colleges because it praises academic excellence, sometimes despite personal odds the recipients face.  For a point of reference, David likely would have received the award after he planted the stone in Goliath’s forehead like an Indian bindi.  If he chose to attend a community college, that is.

This year, two mothers with wills of steel and hearts of gold were chosen for the All-Washington Academic Team from Lower Columbia College.  Maryanne Hirning and Michelle Saiz filled the shoes of their academically outstanding predecessors, being honored by Gov. Jay Inslee at a ceremony held in Olympia.  They will both receive $1,000 in scholarships–$500 from Keybank and $500 from the ever-benevolent LCC Foundation.

The following is an excerpt from "Moms Excel in New Roles as College Students" in the 2013 Summer Quarter Class Schedule:

Daughters Drive LCC Studies

LCC President, Chris Bailey, congratulates 2013 Academic
Team member Michelle Saiz while her daughters watch at
the awards ceremony in Olympia.

As a child, Michelle attended 12 different schools, falling behind as she struggled to learn with changing curriculums and an undiagnosed learning disability. She dropped out at age 16 and went to work. After becoming a parent, Michelle realized she didn't have the skills to help her daughter with school and in 2005 earned her GED. Four years later, she began college classes toward a nursing degree because she wanted a career caring for others. With hard work, Michelle has earned a 3.89 GPA, but missed being accepted into the nursing program on her first try. Determined to show her daughters they could do anything they wanted, Michelle dedicated her entire summer to studying to retake the application exams. Her efforts were rewarded with acceptance to the program this spring. Michelle has found time to also teach her daughters the value of community service. She volunteers in the classroom at Kessler elementary and enlisted her family’s’ help with volunteer efforts for rescued PAWS animal adoption organization. “All of the LCC faculty have been extremely helpful,” Michelle said. “Don’t hesitate to ask for help,” she advises. “Throw yourself out there!”

Faculty Support Aids Success

Maryanne Hirning celebrates with her husband, Ted, and
sons, Nicholas and Jacob, after receiving her medal.

Maryanne will tell you that [hers] is a “love story.” She supported her husband, Ted, through two tours in Iraq and while he earned his master’s degree. She also loves her role as mom to sons nick, 17, and Jacob, 12. So when Maryanne decided to pursue her own dreams, the men in her life gladly returned that love. “We've all made sacrifices.  I've missed some games and dinner often arrives via delivery,” she said. “Now they proofread my papers and are my biggest cheerleaders.” In addition to maintaining a 4.0 GPA, Maryanne is serving as an editor of The Salal Review, LCC’s award-winning literary and arts magazine and helping organize the campus Spring Arts Festival. The Kelso mom has continued to volunteer with parent-teacher organizations at Beacon Hill Elementary and Huntington Middle School and with Cowlitz Youth Baseball. Her success at LCC helped Maryanne gain the self-confidence to write a federal matching grant to help low-income youth play baseball. Maryanne chose LCC because it was close to her home, affordable and had a reputation for providing a quality education that would transfer to baccalaureate institutions. She has been admitted to WSU Vancouver to continue studies toward her bachelor’s degree and her dream to become a school librarian. To her delight, she found the campus provides a wealth of other resources including great lectures and art shows for her whole family to enjoy.

Steps to Success ~ Ad Astra Per Aspera

Welded sculpture serves as teaching tool and inspirational decor.

Many people go their whole lives without thinking about welding. It might surprise them to know that welding affects an estimated 50 percent of the US gross national product. Without welding, skyscrapers, bridges, cars, rockets and ships would not exist. (Cary, 1998)

Ad Astra Per Aspera means 'a rough road to the stars'

Welding, at its core, is a way of bonding two pieces of metal together. But for Sam Devere, it's much more than that. Having earning an associate degree in welding, as well an associate in arts transfer degree in economics, he's focused on tutoring students in the welding lab, while nurturing his artistic streak.

As president of the Lower Columbia College Welding Club (which he started in January 2011), he was tasked with creating a sculpture for an evolving space in the Student Center. He and the other club members strategized how to visualize the college's brand by incorporating symbols of learning, higher education, and the 'higher and hire', slogan.


The theme of 'steps' emerged, together with 'books'. Sam felt that books as physical objects were dying, and he wanted to memorialize them.

"Ten years from now, kids will wonder what books looked like", he explained.

From left: Tim Rose, Sam Devere, Stephanie Bradford

and Marjorie Ganos in front of 'Ad Astra Per Aspera'. 

Sam and the welding students practiced essential welding skills while creating the sculpture in LCC's welding lab, then painted it with repurposed colored paints left over from previous projects. They named it 'Ad Astra Per Aspera', a Latin phrase meaning 'a rough road leads to the stars'.

"That phrase is engraved on the memorial plaque commemorating the Apollo 1 spacecraft, and has been associated with many historical characters and events," Sam explained.

"It seemed to fit this project because we are all striving towards something bigger."

Sam plans to pursue his bachelor's degree by transferring to a four-year university at some point in the future. The skills he's learned at LCC in the classroom, by working with people, and by pursuing creative endeavors, will serve him well.

"I'm having fun," he says,"and people are cool with it [the sculpture]."

The Steps to Success ~ Ad Astra Per Aspera sculpture is located on the first floor of the Student Center, just inside the West entrance (doors closest to the Quad).

Sam is passionate about what he's doing, while pursuing his dreams. For that, we salute him!

Reference:
Cary, Howard B. (1998) Modern Welding Technology. 4th Edition. Ohio: Prentice-Hall.