Vol. 5, Issue No. 6
March 20, 2017
From the Hawk's Nest is distributed twice a month, and we need your input!  Have story ideas or photos for From the Hawk's Nest?  Send them to Elizabeth Belcher or Jenni Canterbury by March 29, 2017 for the next edition.

Inspiration for today

"In everything we do, our own thoughts can help us succeed, or they can help us fail. Maintain a positive attitude." - Catherine Pulsifer

New River CTC in our community

The New River CTC Hawk made an appearance in the Mt. Nebo St. Patrick's Day Parade.


Students in New River CTC's Critical Care Transport course learn about neonatal care check-offs from the HealthNet Aeromedical Services NICU team.

New employee welcome

Amanda Sears is a New River CTC graduate, receiving two associate degrees in 2007. After completing a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Mountain State University and a Master's of Education in Guidance and Counseling, she pursued her career goal of becoming a school counselor for the Raleigh County Board of Education. When the opportunity arose to work in higher education counseling adult learners, Amanda discovered her passion in helping others reach their goals. Amanda is working with Bluefield State College and New River CTC as an Instructional Specialist/Counselor. Welcome, Amanda!


    News & updates
  • BUDGET FORUMS: Dr. Washington will host Budget Forums for faculty and staff through the IVN system on March 23 at 8 am and 4 pm in the following rooms:
    Advanced Technology Center T302
    Greenbrier Valley Campus G307
    Mercer County Campus M101
    Nicholas County Campus N104
    Raleigh County Campus R144
     
  • Last week, WVCTC Chancellor Sarah Tucker addressed the U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies speaking about the importance of community colleges in STEM education. She provided examples including programs at Bridge Valley and New River CTC. Click here for the article from the Charleston Gazette-Mail.
     
  • The Institutional Governance Committee Structure has been updated. Click here to view the committee list online.
     
  • The WV Statewide Partnership to Advance Community College Education in STEM (WV SPACES) offers opportunities for both community and technical college students and faculty to assist them as they seek meaningful educational opportunities and future jobs in STEM fields. Specific opportunities through WV SPACES include internships and fellowships for students and course development for faculty. Click here for more information.
     
  • Do you know of an employee who is going above and beyond in supporting the College? We want to hear about them! Send information to communications@newriver.edu for inclusion in From the Hawk's Nest.
     
  • Need assistance with placing an ad, creating or editing a promotional document? The Office of Communications is here to help. Please fill out one of our online forms for all requests. These forms go to both Libby and Jenni and help us ensure that projects are completed in a timely manner.
     
  • Have a suggestion for the College? Submit it through the online suggestion box
     
  • Rely on multiple methods of communication regarding the College's Inclement Weather decisions. The Alert Messaging System is one method of transmitting information which includes New River CTC's portal, email, and text messaging. Other methods used include posting on the College's official social media channels (Facebook and Twitter) and on the College's homepage . When appropriate, alert messages are also communicated through external media - local television and radio stations. Each campus has a weather line that can be called for opening/closing information.


Lewisburg class puts paramedicine to practice and sees the real-world impact

Prashanti Wooten has lived with uncontrolled asthma her whole life.
 
"We were afraid for her to go anywhere without me because of her asthma," her mom, Debbie Wooten explained. "We have lived in fear all of her life; I don't think you realize what a life she didn't live.
 
Her inhalers rarely worked.  No one knew why.
 
She never went to her friend's homes because of the possibility of a bad attack. 
 
Kids at school made fun of her, calling her a baby, because she never goes anywhere without a family member.
 
Everyone was use to it; this has been our lives."
 
When Lewisburg Instructional Specialist Travis Copenhaver saw a desperate "vent/plea" on social media from Debbie, he wanted to help and thought that his students could learn from the experience. Copenhaver invited Debbie and Prashanti to his New River Community and Technical College paramedic class on February 19, 2017 to see what everyone could learn.
 
On the day of their visit, Prashanti rushed to get ready and didn't take her inhaler.
 
The class evaluated her lung sounds, end tidal carbon dioxide capnography and waveform, saturated pulse oxygenation and her baseline vitals. They also talked to her about her home and possible asthma triggers.
 
"Prashanti had an evaluation as if she were having shortness of breath, because she was" said Copenhaver. "I had her show me how that she used her regular inhaler, but even with a spacer, she had not been educated to make it whistle. Making it whistle gets the most amount of air into the lungs, thus delivering the medication where it needs to be, not in her mouth or in the spacer."
 
The capnography results showed that Prashanti had an obvious obstruction in her lungs, and after educating her and her mom about the proper use of the inhaler, her capnography improved.
 
"After talking to them about their home and triggers, we advised Debbie to get a HEPPA filtered vacuum cleaner." said Copenhaver. "While not part of the paramedic curriculum, this type of case study is a major part of the paramedicine curriculum."
 
Copenhaver is currently teaching the first public paramedicine course in West Virginia.

"This training gives EMS providers a new skill set that mirrors physician extender roles," explained Copenhaver. "Both physicians and patients benefit because they have an extra set of eyes, hands and ears on patient during times when medication compliance and other services are necessary or may have taken longer to get into the home with past services."   
 
Over the weekend of March 11, Prashanti went to the movies with only her friends for the first time in her life.
 
"Now we feel secure letting her do things on her own. I'm sure the ER thinks that we changed hospitals," jokes Debbie. "Since the visit to the class, we haven't even thought about a visit to the emergency department."
 
Even her primary care physician is asking what is being done differently.
 
"We told her about our visit to the class, and she said to keep up the good work," Debbie said. "They assumed that because we'd dealt with her asthma all of her life that we knew things that we didn't know. Now she is getting her medicine. We never knew the spacer could whistle, and the sweeper in itself is a miracle."
 
"We will never be able to thank you and your class enough for what you have done for us," said Prashanti. "I now have freedom I have never had before."  

Move from Lee Street is complete


The GVC and RCC maintenance teams (Scott Winfrey, Aubrey Houck, David Thompson, Julius Brown, Darvis Cox, Josh Trail and Bob Runion) completed the final move of surplus items from the Lee Street Complex. The team worked from Monday, February 27 through Thursday, March 2 on this project moving many boxes of books, furniture and other items back to the Arts/Science building storage area.

Blue and Green Days

Monday, March 27
Thursday, April 13
Monday, April 24
Thursday, May 4

Send your photos to Jenni Canterbury for inclusion in future editions of From the Hawk's Nest. 
New River CTC goes to WV Higher Education Day


Students, faculty and staff attended WV Higher Education Day at the Legislature on Wednesday, March 15. Click here to view the West Virginia Legislature photos from the event.
Resources to share
   
Advisement Day  
Current students can now register for fall and summer classes. Encourage them to meet with their advisor or plan to attend Advisement Day on March 29.  
 
Scholarships

The New River CTC Foundation will begin accepting scholarship applications for the 2017-18 academic year through April 3, 2017. Visit www.nrctcf.org
, email foundation@newriver.edu or call 304-929-6734 for information.

Scholarships are awarded for Fall 2017 and Spring 2018 semesters. Scholarships vary based on campus, program of study, financial need, academic merit and community involvement. The application process requires letters of recommendation. Some scholarships also include an essay requirement. Current New River CTC students and graduating high school seniors are encouraged to apply.
 
Student Success Center Tutoring  
Raleigh County Campus:
Math Lab, Wednesday & Thursday 9:30 am to 2:30 pm
Basic Computers and Business, Monday & Wednesday 1 to 2 pm

Greenbrier Valley Campus:
Math, chemistry and physics, Monday noon to 3 pm & Tuesday 11 am to 5 pm

SUMMER GRADUATION APPLICATION DEADLINE IS MARCH 20, 2017
 
New River CTC has three graduation dates for our students - fall, spring and summer.  However, there is only one opportunity each year for students to participate in the Commencement Ceremony.
 
The deadline to apply for spring graduation has past.  The deadline to apply for summer graduation is TODAY. Students who missed the deadline for spring graduation, can still apply for summer graduation and be eligible to walk in the May 13 Commencement Ceremony, which will be held at the Chuck Mathena Center in Princeton.
 
Contact Tonya Webb in the Registrar's Office at 304-929-6722 for more information. 
Defensive driving: watch out for card skimmers and pin hole cameras

In January, we had shared information from Fleet Management on card skimmers and pin hole cameras at gas pumps. We wanted to share this information again because there have been incidents where this has occurred locally. Click here for information on what to look for at the pumps.
From Human Resources

Please check out the link to videos offered by the Pathways to Wellness program on stretches you can easily do in your office. These stretches can improve flexibility, circulation and prevent issues that occur from being seated for extended periods of time. There is also a short video on meditation for stress management.
 
PEIA Policyholders: Be sure to turn in your Healthy Tomorrows Reporting Form to PEIA by May 15, 2017 to avoid an additional $500 deductible. The form must be signed by your physician and mailed directly to PEIA at the address on the bottom of the form.  Policyholders must have their blood pressure, blood glucose and cholesterol within an acceptable range or have a physician's certification that those numbers cannot be met.

Healthy Tomorrows acceptable ranges
Healthy Tomorrows Reporting Form (Plan Year 2018)
Moten to author New River CTC "Spotlight"

Director of the Erma Byrd Higher Education Center Lisa Moten currently authors a "Spotlight" on students, faculty, staff and administrators at the center from Bluefield State College, Concord and Marshall Universities. The features go out to all three colleges approximately every two weeks. She has graciously offered to begin highlighting New River CTC students and employees. Look for the first features on New River CTC groups to be highlighted during the last week in March. Click here for a sample of a recent student spotlight. 
2017 Coal Heritage Lecture Series begins tonight

The Coal Heritage Public Lecture Series is co-sponsored by the Concord University Beckley Center and the National Coal Heritage Area Authority. Performances are free and open to the public. Events will be held in room E10 of the Erma Byrd Higher Education Center at 7 pm.
 
March 20, The West Virginia Mine Wars, Catherine Moore 
The West Virginia Mine Wars are a dramatic and often overlooked chapter of American history. A new museum exploring this important chapter in American history has recently opened in Matewan. Board members of this museum will discuss the historical events as well as the efforts to preserve and present the facts to the public.
 
April 3, Music of the Labor Movement, Elaine Purkey
After 20 years, community activist and songwriter Elaine Purkey is still fighting the good fight. As she puts it, "If you don't bother, it's going to get worse." One of her weapons is her powerful voice and soul-stirring songs. Audiences across the nation have been moved by her mountain singing, which she delivers full throttle, and her heartfelt original songs.
 
April 17, After Coal Panel with Joe Brouse, Christy Bailey and Jessica Lilly
New technology and alternative energy sources have significantly reduced coal-mining jobs. What's a coal miner to do after coal? This lecture will consist of a panel that will address this issue. Each panelist will examine the topic and an audience discussion will further explore this issue.
 
The Coal Heritage Public Lecture Series is presented by the Concord University Appalachian Studies Institute. For more information contact Concord University Beckley Center at 304-256-0270 or email Instructor Karen Vuranch at kvuranch@concord.edu.

Happy St. Patrick's Day


St. Patrick's Day was Friday, March 17. When Bob Runion realized that he wasn't wearing green, he improvised by wearing his door decoration.
New River Community and Technical College | 866.349.3739 | www.newriver.edu
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