South Metropolitan
Higher Education Consortium
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South Metropolitan Higher Education Consortium Quarterly Newsletter, Issue 2, July 1, 2018
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Hosted by: Moraine Valley Community College in Partnership with SMHEC
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On Thursday, June 14, Moraine Valley Community College hosted the annual Ellucian IL Conference, where administrators and staff from across Illinois come to learn about Ellucian, a company that provides software solutions to the majority of SMHEC member institutions, their products and services, and additional technology solutions that integrate well with Ellucian.
More than 250 people attended the conference, including administrators and staff from the following departments, academic affairs, advising and student planning, enrollment services,
finance, financial aid, human resources, records and registration, student accounts, and as expected - information technology. Sessions covered topics such as Banner 9, Colleague, SharePoint, The Connected Campus, Ellucian Elevate, Document Management, Self-Service, Reporting and Analytics Ellucian Ethos, Student Planning and more.
In addition to these break out sessions, a CIO track covered Amazon Web Services,, Hyland, Ellucian's Strategy and Goals, the Unified Customer Experience, The Complete Approach to Campus Commerce, Ellucian Product Road-map and Ellucian Professional Services.
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Bluestem Earth Festival at USF
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On May 19, the University of St. Francis hosted the fifth annual Bluestem Earth Festival, a project of the Sisters of St. Francis and their associates.
The event is held every year on the grounds of the University of St. Francis. The festival highlights Sustainability topics and events, as well as social justice issues.
This year there were 90 vendors and exhibitors and approximately 1,800 people attended from a tri-county area.
The Will County Green Town Committee was featured as an exhibitor and they promoted the upcoming Green Town Conference scheduled for October 26 in Joliet and the formation of the Will County Regional Sustainability Network.
SAVE THE DATE for next year's Bluestem Earth Festival - Saturday May 18, 2019!
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SMHEC's Crisis Management Team: Who They Are
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SMHEC's Crisis Management team is responsible for the development and execution of the SMHEC Mutual Aid Agreement that enables SMHEC member institutions to provide a variety of resources to another member institution and ensure business continuity in the event of an emergency situation or natural disaster.
Members of the Crisis Management Team
- Corey Ochall, Campus Dean, DeVry University
- James McGee, Interim Director of Public Safety, Governors State University
- Art Martinez, Director, Public Safety, Illinois Institute of Technology
- Edward Vasil, Environment Health and Safety Management, Joliet Junior College
- Rich Soderquist, Director, Facilities and Campus Safety, Kankakee Community College
- Joseph Falese, VP, Student Services, Lewis University
- Patrick O'Connor, Chief of Police, Moraine Valley Community College
- George Pfotenhauer, Chief of Police, Prairie State College
- Darrell Parks, Police Commander, Saint Xavier University
- William Sheehy, Emergency Management Director, Saint Xavier University
- Jack Touhy, Director & Chief of Police, Saint Xavier University
- Leonard Chiaro, Chief of Police, South Suburban College
- Justin Papp, Manager, Student Programs, South Suburban College
- Jason Reid, Director, Safety, Security, and Transportation, University of St. Francis
- Jason Williams, Director of Public Safety and Security, University of St. Francis
Getting To Know The Team
In this issue of
SMHEC Today!, we interviewed Jason Williams, Director of Public Safety and Security for the University of St. Francis and Joe Falese, VP of Student Services at Lewis University to learn more about their individual roles as part of the consortium, the mutual aid plan as a cooperative agreement, and the issues specific to their campuses.
Interviews by: Nikelda Cave, Administrative Assistant, SMHEC
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SMHEC Interview with Jason Williams
SMHEC: Hi Jason! So you're the Director of Safety and Security at the University of St. Francis, correct?
JASON:
Yes.
SMHEC
: How long have you been working for the University of St. Francis in that capacity?
JASON:
A year and two months.
SMHEC:
In what ways does being a part of the Consortium help your institution and your position?
JASON:
It helps collaborate with best practices and to see what other communities are doing in terms of response. It also helps to see what resources are most helpful and nearest to you.
SMHEC:
What are some of the big things on your campus where safety and security play a strong role?
JASON: Being a smaller campus, there are no major issues, but currently theft has been occurring on the campus like clothes in the dryer and laptops or phones. Finding out how other campuses handle it helps.
SMHEC:
Let’s talk about the Mutual Aid Agreement…where do you find it most useful?
JASON:
Practicing the calls of response has helped. The drills have been great. Meeting other organizations has been great and does a lot for bridging gaps.
SMHEC:
You seem to enjoy being a part of the Crisis Management Task Force.
JASON:
Sure. I have appreciated being a part of the group and I look forward to working with everyone in the future.
SMHEC:
Well, SMHEC thanks you for your work in safeguarding others and thank you for the time you've put aside to share your story with SMHEC Today.
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SMHEC Interview with Joe Falese
SMHEC
: Hi Joe! How long have you been the Senior VP for Student Services at Lewis University?
JOE
: I've been working at Lewis University for over 39 years, and I've been the Senior VP of Student Services for 29 years.
SMHEC
: Can you talk about your role within the Crisis Management Task Force?
JOE
: I was asked to be a co-chair on the Crisis Management Task Force in 2008 or 2009, where I've enjoyed working alongside Pat O'Connor (Chief of Police, Moraine Valley Community College) and Rich Soderquist (Chief of Police and Facilities Director, Kankakee Community College). In 2010, the Mutual Aid Agreement was created, and it was the first of its kind. I'm very proud of it because it helps fellow Consortium members get back on their feet in the event of a crisis. So say for example, there's an active shooter or a tornado, an institution can then look to the other member institutions in the Consortium for their immediate needs
in addition to the assistance of law enforcement.
Also, at least annually (sometimes twice a year), drills are done, which includes dispatcher centers being set up at a member institution. At that time, we practice what to do in the case of such an event. Each institution can review their own plans and receive additional input.
SMHEC
: It's easy to see the need of the Mutual Aid Agreement and how your efforts help all of the Consortium. Thank you for taking time to share with SMHEC Today.
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ON TO 2050 Comprehensive Regional Plan -
Now Open for Public Comment.
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ON TO 2050 - CMAP
CMAP and partners are developing a new comprehensive regional plan for the seven counties and 284 municipalities of metropolitan Chicago.
Read more
www.cmap.illinois.gov
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What Our Committees Are Doing
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SMHEC Joint Solar Project
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In April, SMHEC released a joint request for proposals (RFP) on behalf of Governors State University, Illinois Tech, Joliet Junior College, Kankakee Community College, Moraine Valley Community College, Prairie State College and South Suburban College to identify the feasibility of installing solar systems that would enable participating campuses to: offset electricity usage thus lower utility bill costs and generate savings, educate the campus community on renewable energy, promote the campuses commitment to sustainability.
Nine developers responded to the RFP. The solar subcommittee, along with our external consultants, reviewed all of the proposals creating a short list of five developers. Three developers were brought in for an extensive interview by the entire committee, while two additional developers were interviewed by those institutions with specific needs.
Moraine Valley Community College, Prairie State College and Illinois Tech selected Forefront Power as their preferred vendor and have begun contract negotiations.
Joliet Junior College and Kankakee Community College are working with Microgrid and a donor to install ground mount solar systems, which would be donated to the College at the end of the PPA term.
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Alsip Goes Green!
Community Recycling & Resource Drive
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Submitted by: Stephenie Presseller, Sustainability Manager, Moraine Valley Community College
As a result of the lessons learned and the impacts made through the SMHEC sustainability task force, SMHEC began efforts to bring communities of the Consortium’s region together through our Link & Leverage initiative to share information, link community connections and leverage resources. This initiative
serves to make Southern Chicagoland the greenest and most resilient region.
In 2016, the region's stakeholders decided there was a need to focus more intentionally within specific communities and three sub-regions were formed: Homewood-Flossmor/Prairie State College; Will County/Joliet Junior College; and the Village of Alsip/Moraine Valley Community College.
Stephenie Presseller, sustainability manager at Moraine Valley Community College, has taken the lead for the Consortium to work with Alsip. With a steering committee of the superintendent of public works, director of parks and recreation, director of the library, and the assistant to the Mayor, their work has really taken off. They held several events, inviting all stakeholders of Alsip, to create an asset map of the Village. This asset map highlights all the wonderful and useful resources of the community so that others may be able to find something they need that otherwise they could not get or would be an expense they actually do not need to expend.
This winter, the steering committee and several other members of the group decided they now wanted to “do something” to showcase Alsip’s assets and thus "Alsip Goes Green!" was born.
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On April 28, 2018 the group held the first "Alsip Goes Green! Community Recycling & Resource Drive" at the Alsip Boat Launch. The Boat Launch itself is a huge asset to Alsip, but many people do not know about it, so it was a perfect location. The Drive consisted of 20 different businesses, organizations and municipal services providing information about what they offer to the Village and its residents.
- the Village had information on stormwater management and gave out Yard Waste stickers for cans;
- the Alsip-Worth Library had Earth Day books on display and raffled a “Little Free Library;
- NuFarm Americas, Inc. had information about composting and agriculture and raffled 10 home composters;
- the Park District had games and information about Earth Day;
- MetroSouth and Physicians Immediate Care had information about their healthcare services as well as raffled a Bluetooth speaker;
- Respond Now had information about their work to end hunger and homelessness and collected toiletries for their shelters; and,
- Walgreens shared information about opiate abuse and prevention.
There were also opportunities to recycle things that you normally would not want to put in the landfill:
- Roughly 5,000 of pounds of e-waste was collected by EverLights;
- A dumpster full of paper was collected by Midwest Paper Retriever;
- ½ a truck of miscellaneous textiles to AmVets;
- Hearing aids for Sertoma Center;
- A very large moving box full of pharmaceuticals collected by the Village of Alsip Police Department; and,
- Glasses for the Lions Club
The event was a huge success. It really was a true community event- even middle school students from Hamlin Upper Grade, District 125 and District 126 Junior High Eco Club volunteered to help. Everyone was very happy with the results and all the visitors asked that this be done again every year.
Next on the Alsip Link & Leverage goals is to reinvigorate a beautification committee. Because of the great list of stakeholders this effort has garnered thus far, the committee is sure to be a success.
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SMHEC Regional
Transitional Math Summit
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The Postsecondary and Workforce Readiness (PWR) Act includes provisions for evaluating students’ math proficiency during junior year. Students who demonstrate readiness can decide whether they want to take a math course during senior year. Students who aren’t ready can take a transitional math courses in their senior year aligned with the student’s career pathway of interest.
This summit will support the co-development of transitional math courses within each community college district of SMHEC. Each high school team will have time to work on their transitional math implementation plan and next steps.
Agenda includes:
- PWR Act Transitional Math overview and state-level updates
- Facilitated planning with your high school team
- Facilitated discussion between high school teams and their partner community college
- Overview/discussion of Items included in a Memorandum of Understanding
- Debrief and discuss next steps
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Writing Across the Curriculum Professional Development
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The Writing Across the Institutions (WAI) sub-committee has spent the last year focusing on professional development opportunities that would benefit not only writing faculty, but faculty of all disciplines. After a successful professional development workshop last February, the group used their April meeting to plan future workshops.
The next workshop, “
Mental Health in The Classroom: Writing as Therapy,”
will be hosted at Governors State University on September 21.
This session will focus on some of the following topics: reading essays of abuse/depression, grading a personal essay, spotting first signs/methods for addressing mental health issues in the classroom, and counselors as co-instructors. A panel of guest speakers including counselors, faculty and staff from outside organizations that work with in the mental health field will address these topics and more with a group discussion following.
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Shared Faculty Development Conference: October 2018
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On October 12, South Suburban College will be hosting a shared faculty development conference entitled “
Collaborating For Student Success - Now And Into The Future.
”
A small committee, led by
Joan Rosen, from South Suburban College, is facilitating the planning of this conference, including identifying breakout sessions and faculty presenters, securing speakers and overseeing all other event logistics.
Dr. Stephanie Whalen, Professor of English at Harper College will be the Key Note speaker and will address the following: the design think process, implementing ideas from professional development sessions, creating a supportive culture among faculty, and culturally competency in the classroom.
In addition to a number of breakout sessions, the closing session will be a discipline-specific round-table discussion where faculty will have the opportunity to speak with their peers about best practices, trends and challenges they face in their field.
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July
10 Cyber Security/Networking Staff Mini Session
18 Marketing Committee Meeting
August
13 CIO/Ellucian Committee Meeting
24 Sustainability Task Force
September
6 Marketing Committee Meeting
7 Regional Transitional Math Summit
10 Grant Committee Meeting
10 CIO/Ellucian Committee Meeting
12 Crisis Management Committee Meeting
13 GreenTown Promotional Meeting
20 Council of Chief Academic Officers
21 Writing Across the Institutions Professional Development
28 Sustainability Task Force
October
3 Presidents' Council
8 CIO/Ellucian Committee Meeting
9 Cyber Security/Networking Staff Mini Session
11 Council of Chief Academic Officers
12 Shared Faculty Development Conference
26 GreenTown Will County
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PSC's CNA Program Coordinator Honored With ICCTA...
PSC Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Marie Hansel (center) congratulated ICCTA Outstanding Full-Time Faculty Member Award nominee, Associate Professor Dr. Megan Hughes (left),and ICCTA Outstanding Part-Time Faculty Member Award winner,...
Read more
prairiestate.edu
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Conversation with George Kuh
In a preview of next year's 2019 Summer Institute, educators from across the country recently gathered at Governors State University (GSU) to study our Dual Degree Program, a nationally recognized model. George D. Kuh, Founding Director, Senior...
Read more
gsunews.govst.edu
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New Friendly Residents Arrive on Moraine Valley's...
Moraine Valley Community College has partnered with local beekeeper, Frank Saballus, to install an apiary in its Nature Study Area on campus. The bees will benefit the environment and hopefully produce honey within the next few years. Having an...
Read more
www.morainevalley.edu
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South Suburban College Student Selected to Visit NASA in ...
SOUTH HOLLAND, IL - Julia Dixon of South Suburban College in South Holland, IL has been selected to travel to NASA's Stennis Space Center this summer to participate in the NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars (NCAS) onsite experience. Dixon...
Read more
www.ssc.edu
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What Do You Want To See More Of
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SMHEC Professional Development Opportunities
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Feature Stories and Interviews
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