March 3, 2022
Congratulations to the winners of the 2022 Excellence in Online Course Design Award:
  • Nathan Silva
  • Vu Duong 
  • Heather Lang-Cassera

Thank you for your continued commitment to our students! To earn this recognition, these faculty designed and extensively edited content in accordance with best practices in online teaching, fulfilled criteria related to accessibility and compliance standards, and received extensive peer review (and feedback) on their online course design.
Vickie Shields
Sabbatical Leaves Awarded
Dr. Amanda Carter, Education, has been awarded a 6-month sabbatical for January 1, 2023 – June 30, 2023. During this period she will use sabbatical time to build on her successful service work with the New Educators Support and Training Program (NEST) that offers informal mentorship to NSC graduates who have entered the K-12 teaching field. For her sabbatical she plans to 1) train ten teacher mentors who are NSC graduates, 2) research and disseminate key findings on current trends in teacher retention and mentorship, 3) expand community partnerships by establishing working relationships with the Mentoring and Professional Department Teams in CCSD, and 4) submit a grant proposal to support future NEST work.

Dr. Kevin Graziano, Education, has been awarded a 6-month sabbatical for July 1, 2022 – January 1, 2023. During this period he will use sabbatical time to 1) write a manuscript for publication on the findings from the data collected during the study involving teachers who completed the Teachers Taking it Online (TTO) and Parents Taking it Online (PTO) programs, 2) write a conference proposal on the program development, facilitation, outcomes, and the shared experiences from the teachers and parents, and 3) seek additional funding sources to continue one or both programs. These activities may lead to successful extramural funding and the potential to better transition NSC graduates into teaching positions within CCSD.

The projects that Drs. Carter and Graziano have planned will not only provide them with the opportunity for professional development, but greatly benefit our faculty and students, NS’s School of Education, and our community.

Textbook Affordability Initiatives Exceed $1 Million in Student Savings
In another fantastic milestone for the Marydean Martin Library, the College’s textbook affordability initiatives have recently surpassed the $1 million mark in student savings! Led by the Library, the College provides instructors with consultations on textbook affordability issues; integration of library e-books into Canvas; and faculty development institutes. The No-Cost Textbook Summer Institute is Nevada State's flagship textbook affordability program. Library faculty lead a six-week institute to support instructors as they convert their courses from using paid textbooks to open educational resources (OER) or library-accessible ebooks. Since the program’s inception four years ago, more than 25% of full-time instructors have participated, and students have cumulatively saved over $1,000,000 on textbook costs. Textbook access is an important equity issue for Nevada State students. Assessment data from the program indicates that students have improved student course outcomes, with higher grades in classes where students were not required to purchase a textbook.

Dean Eastridge Joins Prestigious Council
Dr. June Eastridge has been invited to join the Nevada Governor’s Office's new State Healthcare Sector Council as one of seven voting members. The Council's quarterly meetings are designed to provide the space for Nevada employers to engage in facilitated conversations regarding industry opportunities and challenges that will guide state workforce development strategy and activity, strengthening the connection between Nevada’s employers and the many education and workforce development organizations and agencies that rely on their engagement.
Congratulations, June!
Tony Scinta
Apologies to my adoring fans (which, at last count, includes my parents, my children, my wife (usually), and the taxi driver I once accidentally tipped $100), but this will be a short update. We are working on some cool stuff (such as a scheduling “scrum” where our team tries to make significant progress on a major project in a short period of time), and there are things we want the campus to know (such as our expectations regarding the fall 2022 first-year class), but none of it is quite ready for prime time yet. However, I expect it to be well-suited for the next newsletter update.

In the meantime, in addition to those two items noted above, much of our recent work has involved:
  • A host of work involving prospective students, including outreach by faculty to admitted first-year students (email me if you want to know more)
  • A bit of chipping away at our mid-cycle report for the NWCCU (due in late October 2023); Gwen is hacking away, just doing monumental work, but I’m chipping . . . 
  • Some budget stuff (e.g., examining where we can trim back operating budgets)
  • Finally, an update – our BS in Chemistry has been approved by the Northwest Commission on Colleges & Universities and will launch in fall 2022.  
Gwen Sharp
Publications, Grants, & Accomplishments
  • Heather Lang-Cassera (College Success Lecturer) has been awarded a Nevada Arts Council Literary Arts Artist Fellowship. It recognizes "outstanding literary and performing artists" in Nevada.
  • Zach Woydziak (Chemistry) co-authored an article, "Synthesis of a Fluorinated Pyronin that Enables Blue Light to Rapidly Depolarize Mitochondria," that has been accepted for publication in RSC Medicinal Chemistry.
  • Bryan Sigel (Biology) and Aster Sigel (INBRE Undergraduate Research Director) headed up a team that submitted an NSF S-STEM grant proposal. If funded, it will provide $5 million to support scholarships and research for students through a collaboration among NSC, CSN, and UNLV.

Now Accepting Submissions for Seed Grants
Faculty and staff can apply for up to $2,000 for scholarly or creative works. Fill out the application and email it to me by Friday, April 15th. If approved, your funds will be available on July 1st.
Gregory Robinson
Core Curriculum Updates
Now that we’ve agreed on the new Essential Learning Outcomes, we’ve moved into the stage where we’ll need to get them embedded into classes. As I noted in a previous newsletter, students need to take about 12 classes to complete their Core requirements, but have 314 available options. We completed 15 ELO proposals this summer, which means we would only need to finish another 299 proposals if we wanted to update the entire Core. As an alternative, I’ve been looking into removing classes that are in the Core Curriculum but have never (or rarely) been used by students to satisfy a Core requirement. I’d love to get that 314 down to a more manageable 100 or so, which would still mean a lot of ELO proposals.
Nepantla's First-Gen Welcome Day
This Saturday, from 10am-noon in the KAB auditorium, Nepantla is hosting the First-Gen Welcome Day. Students can RSVP at tinyurl.com/NepantlaWelcome. This year, NASPA's Center for First Generation Student Success welcomed NSC as a 2022-2023 First-Gen Forward Institution.

To learn more about our Nepantla students, take a look at this terrific video.
Stefanie Coleman
Women's History Month!
It’s Women’s History Month and the committee has planned an outstanding series of events. If you had an opportunity to attend the party in the plaza Tuesday, it was a great way to kick off an exciting month of activities:
  • Thursday, March 10, 2:30-5:00 pm CEB 214- Movie and Discussions: Harriet
  • Monday, March 21, 12:30-1:30 pm CEB 211 & 212- Women Confronting Climate Change
  • Monday, March 28, 2-5pm VIRTUAL- Trivia
  • Thursday, March 31, 11:30-1:00pm RSC Ballrooms-Women’s History Month Luncheon
Health Insurance for Students
This month I will be hosting a few listen-and-learn sessions for students regarding health insurance options. Since the beginning of the year, we have been working with a company to create a virtual urgent care insurance plan that is AFFORDABLE for all Nevada State students. Please encourage your students to attend ONE of the following sessions:

  • March 21 10am – 11am
  • March 21 1pm – 2pm
  • March 22 1pm – 2pm
  • March 23 2pm – 3pm
  • March 25 11am -12pm

All meetings will be held in CEB 214.
Sandip Thanki
Relaxing and Socializing, and Providing Care for Dependents
How much time do Nevada State students spend socializing and relaxing? Alternatively, how much time do they spend providing care for dependents? The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) has an answer. The survey asks students:

How many hours do you spend in a typical 7-day week doing the following? Relaxing and socializing (time with friends, video games, TV or videos, keeping up with friends online, etc.) and providing care for dependents (children, parents, etc.).

The following data suggest that both our first-year (n = 168) and senior ( n = 368) groups spend less time relaxing/socializing and more time providing care for dependents in comparison to institutions in our Carnegie Class and the entire two years of NSSE.
Key Dates
3.7 - Deadline for students to submit to the Undergraduate Research & Creative Works Conference
3.7 - Deadline to apply to the Summer Scholarship Institute
4.15 - Deadline to apply for a Seed Grant
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