Highlights include a new campus, saving money and commencement visits

The Staff Association Advisory Council (SAAC) held its spring 2014 open meeting April 16, and it included highlights of the past few months and a Q&A session with Dr. Terry Smith, interim president; Dr. David Roebuck, interim dean for Academic Affairs; and Dr. Eric Cunningham, associate dean for Adult Higher Education.

Highlights

• In August, the 35th Nationwide Campus will open in the Dallas area through a 2 +2 arrangement with Eastfield College in Mesquite, Texas.
• Columbia College is one of 10 hosts of the opening round of the NAIA Softball Tournament, which will be held May 12-14.
• Regarding the master plan, the college has been aggressive in property acquisition for future expansion, purchasing properties across from the soccer field and by Jefferson Middle School. There is the possibility of building a Cougar Village 2, which is an apartment-style residence area.
• Beginning in fall, Day Campus students will be able to take an online or Evening class.
• Student enrollment in the sciences and forensic science is up since the Brouder Science Center was opened. With the ability to take any science course in either the day or evening, the college anticipates that the increase in enrollment will continue.

Saving money

Last year, Administrative Council was asked to implement economies by not having any expenditures on things that were nice to have, but not needed. Smith said that with that task in mind, college employees economized $1 million. Smith thanked everyone for having ideas on how to get by with less. “That $1 million is money that can go to good use in the future,” he said.

Commencement visits

Each year, the Customer Service Committee does a drawing to send two main campus staff members to Nationwide Campus commencements. But this year, the committee decided to do something a little different. Under the proposal of Robert Klick, academic advisor for the Online Campus, the committee reversed the drawing and chose two staff members from Nationwide Campuses to attend the main campus commencement. Melanie Reynolds from the Hunter Army Airfield campus and Darrin Bartunek from the Salt Lake City campus will be in Columbia, Mo., for commencement.

SAAC updates

• Approximately 84 percent of the SAAC budget was spent on training requests, such as conferences and webinars for staff.
• SAAC assisted in the creation of an Employee Education Grant (EEG)/Employee Graduate Education Grant (GEG) task force. It also assisted in the extension of the GEG to include online courses.
• Participants in the Biggest Loser competition lost more than 900 pounds total.
• There have been 142 PAWS awarded this year, up from 136 last year.

Outside of our students, our employees are some of Columbia College’s biggest and best assets. Welcome to these employees who joined the college or changed positions in June and July.

New employees

Erin Adams, admissions process coordinator, Admissions
Jacob Amelunke, financial aid coordinator, Financial Aid
Sheila Bagley, part-time help desk technician, Technology Services
Amy Brooks, document imaging coordinator, Mail, Imaging & Printing Services
Sylvia Brown, evening custodian, Maintenance
Angela Bruno, instructional technologist, Online Campus
Leah Buretta, international student advisor, International Center
Randy Burk, military services associate, Office of the Registrar
Chris Duncan, part-time assistant women’s basketball coach, Athletics
Alicia Emerson, academic advisor I, Salt Lake, Utah
Shaun Engelbrecht, evening custodian, Maintenance
Coy Grayson, human resource coordinator, Human Resources
Jamie Holmes, part-time softball graduate assistant, Athletics
Whitni Howell, part-time sports information graduate assistant, Athletics
Jessica Keller, head women’s basketball coach, Athletics
Drew Kerns, admissions counselor, Admissions
Dave Knieter, ESL tutoring specialist, Seabrook Writing Center and Tutoring Services
Faith Moore-Jefferson, administrative assistant, Fort Stewart, Georgia
Katherine Rothwell, academic advisor, Springfield, Missouri
Kathryn Trabue, international admissions manager, Admissions
Britnee Youman, administrative assistant, Orlando, Florida

Promotions & laterals

Michael Adams, part-time help desk technician, Technology Services to student relationship management coordinator, Admissions
Kathryn Gleich, compliance specialist, Human Resources to assistant director, Human Resources
Megan Kelley, documentation manager, Office of the Registrar to systems analyst, Technology Services
Stephanie Mallory, support analyst, Technology Services to HR generalist, Human Resources
Katie Wheeler, senior associate, Enrollment Management to analyst, Institutional Research

Newspapers from around the country posted stories recently about Columbia College students who were named to the dean’s list. A student from Hawaii who attends Columbia College-Salt Lake, a student from Arizona who attends Columbia College-Fort Worth, and several students from Columbia College-Lake of the Ozarks were all mentioned in newspaper articles.

Congratulations to Samuel Rivera, who was mentioned in the West Hawaii Today; Clifford Otts, who was mentioned in the Yuma Sun; and Jon Bentley, Jessica Harrison, Steven Turner, Ruby Dwyer, Stephanie Moskopp, Lori Curtman, Micah Rabine, Kelly Dever, Kaitlyn Steinbrenner and Kathryn Shannon, who were mentioned in The Lake Today.

Several $1,000 scholarships will be awarded

If you completed three or more online classes this year, don’t miss your opportunity to apply for the eScholarship!

Selected individuals will be awarded a $1,000 scholarship for the 2015-16 academic year. The eScholarship is designed to reward outstanding achievement in online study at Columbia College. Consideration will be given to those applicants who, in addition to meeting the minimum criteria, demonstrate a history of academic excellence and personal growth as a result of taking online courses with Columbia College.

This one-time award can be applied toward tuition, books and fees with Columbia College for the upcoming 2015-16 academic year. (Cash awards will not be made.)

Check out the eScholarship criteria to see if you’re eligible to apply. At the time of application, qualified applicants must:

• Be an undergraduate degree-seeking student attending one of the Nationwide, Evening or Online campuses.
• Have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5 with Columbia College.
• Have successfully completed at least three online courses during the 2014-15 academic year.
• Have at least 21 hours of online and in-seat coursework with Columbia College, with nine or more hours taken during the 2014-15 academic year.

Have completed and submitted the eScholarship application and short-answer form to your local campus no later than June 9.

Students can access and submit the application through the scholarship finder on the Columbia College website or at www.ccis.edu/onlinescholarships.

Submitted forms will be received at the local campus for review prior to final submission.

Salt Lake City Campus Director Jewly Harris (far left) welcomes Drs. Tina and Scott Dalrymple to campus.

By Colleen Cusumano and Sam Fleury

As promised in his January 2014 introduction speech, Columbia College President Scott Dalrymple and first lady Tina Dalrymple have successfully completed their presidential tour of each and every one of Columbia College’s 36 campuses.

They visited 13 states, and 18 military bases, including Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. They spent 82 nights on the road and co-hosted 29 events with the Columbia College Alumni Association, welcoming a total of 1,601 attendees. In all they traveled 23,295-miles, nearly the circumference of the earth!

Completing this national tour so early in his presidency demonstrates Dr. Dalrymple’s commitment to the College’s students, faculty, staff, and alumni– wherever they may be.

“I’m so glad to have visited all of our campuses,” Dalrymple says. “I learned things that I never could have known sitting in Columbia. It was inspiring to see how we are changing lives all across the country.”

A typical day on the road included a tour of each campus, followed by a targeted business meeting with the campus director.  The Dalrymples also met with all campus staff members before transitioning to an evening event, where they mixed and mingled with local community or military officials, faculty, staff, students, and alumni.

“It was such a pleasure to meet so many phenomenal people at all of our campuses around the country,” Dr. Tina Dalrymple says. “Everyone was so wonderful to us – the hospitality was heartfelt.”

Each campus director led efforts to prepare for the presidential visits, and they deserve a thank you for their contributions towards the success of this ambitious tour.  Thanks also to the Alumni Relations team for their work coordinating 29 events.   It was a collaborative effort, and by all accounts a very successful and beneficial one.

To see some of the highlights of the Presidential tour, click on the link below for a slideshow recap:

Congratulations to the following students who were recently awarded a $750 scholarship from Columbia College in honor of Frank S. Westling. Westling was a highly decorated infantry officer and former dean of the college’s Extended Studies Division, now Adult Higher Education.

Name                                      Home Campus                        Hometown

Jessica Morton                        Coast Guard Island                      Petaluma, California

Taiwo Pena-Hornung             Coast Guard Island                     Union City, California

Kialisha Beveridege                Crystal Lake                                  Lake in the Hills, Illinois

Deborah Ropinski                   Crystal Lake                                  McHenry, Illinois

Nathan Blinder                        Denver                                           Aurora, Colorado

Bruna Cardoso                         Elgin                                              Hanover Park, Illinois

Angelica Smith                        Fort Drum                                    Watertown, New York

Brook Krippendorf                 Freeport                                        Stockton, Illinois

Erik Sandstrom                       Freeport                                        Freeport, Illinois

Harrison Zamudio                  NAS Jacksonville                        Jacksonville, Florida

Lily Barham                              Online                                          Randelman, North Carolina

Matthew Albert                       Online                                           Tampa, Florida

Joshua Boze                             Lake of the Ozarks                     Abilene, Kansas

Suzanna Embry                       Rolla                                             Cuba, Missouri

Halston Heck                           Rolla                                             Rolla, Missouri

Grace Mosher                          Rolla                                             Rolla, Missouri

Rubi Bueno                              Salt Lake City                             Herriman, Utah

Laura Becker                           San Luis Obispo                         Nipomo, California

Thomas Lawlor                       San Luis Obispo                        Atascadero, California

To qualify for the Westling award, the recipients had to meet these requirements:

• Be an Online, Evening or Nationwide Campus student pursuing a degree with Columbia College
• Have attended Columbia College during the 2014-15 academic year (scholarship applies to the 2015-2016 academic year)
• Have a minimum GPA of 3.0
• Have at least 15 credit hours with Columbia College
• Provide evidence of leadership and service to their community, school or country
• Write a 400-500-word essay about their achievements and career goals

For the 2015-2016 academic year, Columbia College awarded Westling scholarships to 20 students from 12 campus locations. The scholarship is non-renewable and awarded to new students each year.

Those interested in giving to the Westling Scholarship may make a gift securely online at http://www.choosecc.org/Categories/Scholarships/westling_scholarship.aspx

Robots take over the Salt Lake campus

This summer the Salt Lake campus hosted a fun robotics science camp for kids ages 7 to 17. Collaborating with Robots-4-U Day Campus S.T.E.A.M., an “edutainment” business that provides science-based summer camps in states across the country, children could sign up for the camp in June, July or August. With about 20 campers participating in each session, the camp was a big hit!

Each camper was provided with a kit and instructions, and with a little guidance from the camp instructor, was able to create animated robots, including a car, a helicopter or a robot that kicks. Some campers were able to complete their robots on the first day of camp, leaving the remaining four days to tinker and play. Those who built the kicking robot entertained themselves by making their bots plays soccer in the hallway.

“I was excited about the opportunity for our campus to host this camp because it’s associated with STEM (science, technology, engineering and math),” said Jewly Harris, director of Columbia College-Salt Lake. “The Utah schools are trying to get more involved in STEM, and I wanted to be a part of that when I heard about it.”

Elisa Asare, administrative assistant at the campus, agreed.

“Anything that gets us involved in the community is a good idea,” said Asare. “Not only do the parents come in, but the children get motivated to come to college later. They start building robots and maybe later they become doctors,” she said with a laugh.

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Welcome to CC 360!

Were you one of the many students who took an online survey during the summer of 2014 for the chance to win a Starbucks gift card or $100 MBS book voucher?

If so, thank you! Your voice for an online newsletter was heard, and Columbia College is proud to introduce the first edition of CC 360, the digital newsletter for students of the Evening, Online and Nationwide campuses!

Last summer, students had the opportunity to take a survey about how they receive information about Columbia College and their local campus. The first 500 survey takers received a Starbucks gift card, and 36 lucky respondents – one from each campus – won a $100 MBS book voucher.

Now for each academic session, you’ll find the latest edition of CC 360 in your inbox. You can also access the newsletter anytime from your campus CC Connected page. Check out what you get with each newsletter:

The perks

• News about your campus
• Articles about campus resources like career services, online library tools, financial aid and scholarship opportunities
• Important dates to remember
• Links to the CC homepage, alumni homepage, CC Connected, bookstore, in-seat and online course schedules and social media
• See what’s popular and stay connected with the “Trending on CC Connected” feature

Share your voice

• Leave feedback by liking articles or leaving comments
• Share the newsletter with friends and fellow students on social media
• Submit your own story ideas for CC 360
• Peruse related articles and social media to find out what’s going on with CC all over the world

CC 360 delivers relevant content to help you with your studies, take advantage of all the resources available to you and keep you connected with Columbia College. Thanks for reading, and be on the lookout for the October edition!
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Four things you have to do after a job interview

You got the interview. You nailed it. Now what?

Or maybe, you went to an interview and you just aren’t sure how it went. You’re ambivalent or downright upset about the way it went. It’s easy to forget the whole thing and move on, but here are four things to consider after the interview.

• Send a thank-you note. Whether hand-written or through email, send a note. These are best when they are specific to the conversation you had during the interview and can be an opportunity to reinforce or restate key skills you bring to the position.
• Follow up. In the interview, you probably asked about a timeline for a decision. If you haven’t heard from the employer by their deadline, reach out to them.
• Keep practicing. Interviewing is an acquired skill. Contact Career Services (careerservices@ccis.edu or 573-875-7425) and ask them for assistance. Our career specialists can do mock interviews, work with you on specific questions and give you honest feedback.
• Continue your search. While waiting to hear back from the employer, keep applying. Until you have officially accepted an offer, you want to keep pursuing positions. Even interviews you are sure went perfectly – you never know.

Didn’t get the job? Career Services recommends a Business 2 Community article, which has a couple of suggestions to add. Don’t be afraid to ask for feedback to see why another candidate was chosen over you. This can help you hone your interview skills and turn a “no” into a beneficial learning experience.

Also, regardless of how the interview went, connect with your interviewer on platforms like Twitter and LinkedIn. This will help you stay in the interviewer’s mind for future openings, and keep you informed of other job openings.

For more great career tips and resources, visit the Career Services Facebook page.
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Behind the scenes of Wikipedia

We’ve all done it at some point. A burning curiosity or desire to quickly know the answer to something leads us to firing up Wikipedia, where information is immediately at our fingertips. “Wiki” is Hawaiian for quick, after all. Now that the August Session has started, you likely have at least one class that will require you to do some research. Is Wikipedia a good source? Is it accurate and credible?

To test the accuracy of Wikipedia, Nature, a respected science research journal, conducted a study in 2006 to compare Wikipedia to the Encyclopedia Britannica. It looked at 50 Wikipedia topics and found an average of four errors per entry, while the Encyclopedia Britannica averaged three errors per entry. Not bad.

Still, there are many critics of Wikipedia. In fact, the founder of Wikipedia himself, Jimmy Wales, has discouraged the use of Wikipedia for serious research in a 2006 article. You may even have instructors who will not accept Wikipedia as a source for your assignments. With more than 75,000 active contributors to Wikipedia, the content is always changing and therefore cannot always be assumed to be accurate. Some entries will even indicate that the content is biased.

Wikipedia is overseen by administrators who monitor and edit content for bias and accuracy. Well-developed entries will not state opinions and will cite sources. Used properly, Wikipedia can provide a starting place to help you find credible sources as you dig deeper.

The Stafford Library at Columbia College offers this behind-the-scenes look at Wikipedia to help you understand the pros and cons of using this free encyclopedia.

And don’t forget, the Stafford Library is a great place to start your research on any topic. And if you need help, you can call, email or even chat online with a library staffer who will help you find what you’re looking for!

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It’s not too late to scholarship hunt

Does this sound familiar? The summer is over and you didn’t exactly apply for all the college scholarships you intended to. School has started and you’re unsure of where to start your scholarship search. Searching online is daunting and you’ve got homework, a job and family to juggle. What to do?

“I usually encourage students to look at local opportunities first,” says Rachel Smith, student success advisor at Columbia College. “The perk of local competition is there is a smaller pool of applicants.”

Smith recommends starting your search with organizations in your hometown, such as your employer, local businesses, religious organizations, and community and civic organizations. She also suggests checking with your local high school, which usually keeps lists of local scholarship opportunities.

“Most of these opportunities are not limited to entering college students, even though we might perceive them that way. Some of the larger high schools will publish the list on their guidance counselor’s website.”

She recommends checking out “7 Ways to Find Local College Scholarships” on MyCollegeGuide.org for more helpful tips to get rolling on your local search.

But what about searching for scholarships online?

“Online scholarship searches are one of the most under-utilized tools for paying for school,” says Smith. “There are all kinds of scholarships out there.”

She points to U.S. News and World Report, which compared five free scholarship search engines. Each search engine is a little different, and one of them even allows students to utilize social media to vote and determine a weekly scholarship winner based on the popularity of their discussions.

Plus, don’t forget Columbia College offers myriad scholarship opportunities. Your local campus awards at least one scholarship each year, so inquire at your campus office. Visit the Columbia College Scholarship Finder page for a complete listing, and keep an eye on the Student Success Money Stacks Facebook page for daily tips on private scholarship opportunities and how to live large on a budget.

Smith’s final tip on searching for scholarships is to not shy away from smaller scholarship amounts – a bunch of small ones add up to a large amount, after all.

“Searching and applying for online scholarships can take some work. But think about it in amount earned per hour: If you spend 20 hours filling out applications to win a $500 scholarship, that’s like getting paid $25 per hour. I would say that’s not too bad for your time.”

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SLC campus celebrates commencement, 40th birthday

This October marked two exciting events for Columbia College-Salt Lake City. The campus proudly celebrated its 40th year of serving the Salt Lake City area Oct. 16. In these years since its inception in 1975, many students have passed through our classrooms and graduated onto successful careers and fruitful lives.

“We have enjoyed a tremendous relationship with the Salt Lake City community,” says Campus Director Jewly Harris. “Our students and alumni have certainly benefited from the immediate access to quality higher education opportunities here. We appreciate the support we have received from the community and look forward to continuing that partnership.”

The campus continued the festivities with commencement Oct. 17. With friends and loved ones cheering them on, the graduates proudly crossed the stage to receive their diplomas. The Class of 2015 included one master’s degree candidate, 42 baccalaureate candidates and 24 associate degree candidates.

Wishing to share in the success and excitement of this proud day, several special guests came to celebrate this momentous occasion with the graduates. The campus was honored to have Columbia College President Dr. Scott Dalrymple as the inspiring and humorous keynote speaker, who also conferred the degrees. Vocalist and graduate Elisa Asare ’15 serenaded the crowd during the ceremony, accompanied by pianist and adjunct instructor Victoria Petro-Eschler. Brian Clegg ’14 welcomed the graduates into the Columbia College alumni family by leading the Alumni Charge.

The Salt Lake City campus staff would like to congratulate the graduates for their hard work and successful completion of their respective degree programs. We are honored to have been a part of this celebration and wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors!
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Are you streaming Films on Demand from Stafford Library?

Are you a secret TEDTalks junkie? Can’t wait to get home and turn on the History Channel or DVR your favorite PBS show? It’s okay – you’re not alone. A person can only watch so much reality TV, right?

The great news is that you can stream more than 20,000 full-length videos from the Stafford Library from its Films on Demand streaming video database. The easy-to-use database allows you to browse by category through one of 25 collections, which include from art, music, history, science, education, business and more. You can also search by featured producer, including Ken Burns, BBC, PBS, Frontline, History Channel, TEDTalks and NOVA.

Taking a criminal justice class? Check out forensic psychologist Scott Fraser’s “Why Eyewitnesses Get it Wrong,” one of more than 600 TEDTalks videos available. Researching childhood development? Watch “Fitting In or Standing Out? Conformity in Childhood,” produced by BBC. Interested in business and marketing? Take a look at the ABC News report, “Building a Strong Personal Brand.” Archival films and newsreels also are available. Don’t forget that you can use videos as sources for research papers. Need help with the citation? The Stafford Library can help with that too in its Citing Sources Guide.

Stream from the Stafford Library homepage, or set up a free account to create and share custom playlists of videos, and save your favorite videos for quick access. With direct Web links to whole videos and their segments, you can easily share entire videos or individual parts with other students. Just go to the Stafford Library homepage and select “Videos” in the Find It search box. Then click “Films on Demand: Master Academic Collection” and login for free using your pawprint and password.
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Financial Avenue: Planning for Life’s Big Questions

Most of our daily financial decisions are relatively small: what to have for lunch, or where to get gas. But those big money decisions like purchasing a car or home don’t come around very often, adding an extra degree of stress and difficulty to the decision making process.

Columbia College has teamed up with Inceptia, a private nonprofit organization, to offer Financial Avenue, which offers a variety of free online courses to help you gain important knowledge to become financially capable. From understanding budgets and student loans to managing credit and retirement, Financial Avenue provides you with the tools to master your money and look to the future with confidence.

In the Future of Your Money module, you’ll alleviate financial uncertainty by making choices for other peoples’ money. Take on the role of Ms. A and Mr. B as they navigate where to live, weigh leasing versus buying a car, choose insurance plans, and start investing for the future. During this course you will learn about the role of slow and steady savings in reaching financial goals, the importance of planning for unplanned emergencies, types of insurance, investing basics, and considerations for making big-ticket purchases. Consider this a test run to help you craft smart strategies for your future.

Whether you have five minutes or two hours, Financial Avenue allows you to learn at your own pace and to pick up where you left off each time you log on. Registration for Financial Avenue is free – just sign up using your CougarMail account at www.FinancialAvenue.org. Enter the Columbia College unique access code of s6sg7k to set up your account and begin your journey on the path to financial wellness.
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Download the free CC Online Campus app today!

If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you take a Columbia College class online. Are you taking advantage of the free Online Campus mobile app? Available for Android and iPhone platforms, this app is loaded with features to help you stay organized and connected to Columbia College.

The easy-to-use app puts all of your courses at your fingertips with quick and secure access to D2L. Stay on top of class discussions and news, keep track of when assignments and quizzes are due and view your grades week by week.

Plus, you can check your CougarMail in a flash, contact your campus, or visit the mobile-friendly Stafford Library homepage to search online databases and other resources to get a head start on that research paper.

Want to know what everyone is talking about? The Columbia College Facebook, Twitter, flickr and YouTube accounts are available at the touch of a button. Plus, it’s easy to stay current with Columbia College news and cheer on your favorite Cougar Athletics team no matter which campus you attend by visiting the CC News and Columbia Cougars pages.

Simply visit the iPhone App Store or Google Play Store on your mobile device, search for Columbia College Online Campus and download the free app today!
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Four ways to organize your resumé

As a Columbia College student, you’re probably juggling school with work. You might even be working on your degree so you can get a promotion, start down a career path – or, most daunting of all – change careers altogether. Good for you! When the time comes to pursue that dream job, you’re going to need a standout resumé.

Most resumés should include the requisite sections of summary statement, experience, skills and education. But how you organize these sections on your resumé depends on where you are in your career and what you’re trying to accomplish next.

The Columbia College Grossnickle Career Services Center recommends using one of three types of resumés – chronological, functional and combination – and points to a USA Today article, “4 ways to organize your resume based on where you’re at in your career,” for some helpful tips on how to order the sections of your resumé based on whether you’re a new grad, a senior-level candidate, a career changer, or just updating your current resumé.

The standard resumé

For most of us, a resumé will be organized in this order:

• Summary statement (optional)
• Experience
• Professional organizations/community involvement (optional)
• Education
• Skills and certifications

This layout helps a job recruiter skim your qualifications and gives you a better chance at being called for an interview. Have questions about how to write a summary statement? Check out the article for an example.

For recent grads

If you’re fresh out of school and new to full-time employment, consider ordering your resumé like this:

• Education
• Experience
• Leadership
• Awards and activities (optional)
• Skills

Highlight extracurricular activities, leadership positions in clubs and community service in a separate section to show you’re ready for the workforce. Check out the article for a step-by-step guide on crafting your post-college resumé.

For career changers

• Objective (optional)
• Relevant experience
• Additional experience
• Professional organizations/community involvement (optional)
• Education
• Skills and certifications (option to move up)

The trick to tackling the career-change resumé lies in showing how skills and experience in your current career are transferrable to the new career you’re after. Include an objective statement that explains your career change and the skills you bring to your new field. Check out the article for help on writing an objective.

For senior-level candidates

• Summary statement
• Experience
• Professional organizations/community involvement (optional)
• Education
• Skills and certifications

This resumé is similar to the standard resumé. This easy-to-skim format is important no matter where you are in career. When applying for senior-level positions, a two-page resumé is usually expected, as is a summary statement at the top. Check out the article for an example of a senior-level resumé.

Once you have created your resumé, send it to the professional career specialists at the Grossnickle Career Services Center. The Career Services staff can offer a fresh set of eyes to review your masterpiece and offer feedback from a job recruiter’s standpoint. Contact Career Services at (800) 231-2391, ext. 7425, or at careerservices@ccis.edu.
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Spring is time for trying something new

By Jewly Harris, director, Columbia College-Salt Lake

I realize this is winter, but personally, I am looking forward to springtime. Springtime is a beautiful time. Tulips are blooming, baby animals are born and the ground is renewed. Springtime also reminds of us of change. Our world is consistently changing, and so is Columbia College-Salt Lake.

Beginning this August, Columbia College will add a sixth academic term to its schedule. This means that you will have the opportunity to finish your degree faster if you choose by taking an additional set of eight-week courses during the academic year. If you’re taking classes for four of the five current sessions right now, you can increase to five sessions per academic year, continue to choose which session to take a break and you’ll still end up finishing your degree sooner – even without taking classes during the additional sixth session. Be sure to read the fun teaser article in this edition of CC 360 about six sessions; more information will be coming your way in the coming months, too.

This change is exciting. Columbia College will be offering an academic calendar that is on par with many other institutions. I urge you as students to embrace the future changes. As spring fades into summer, and summer into fall, another academic session will “bloom” into fruition and offer a wonderful opportunity for you to take advantage of all that Columbia College has to offer.

Remember this quote by Maria Robinson: “Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.” Good luck in 2016!

New Year, new career! Hottest jobs for 2016

If your plans for 2016 include a career makeover, you’re notalone. Taking the plunge to switch careers tops many New Year’s resolution lists, but the question is, which jobs are people flocking to? Business Insider outlines the 19 hottest jobs for 2016 – all of which require a college degree.

Good thing you’re a Columbia College student. CC has flexible online degree programs (read: you don’t have to give up your current job to make the switch possible). Plus, you’ve got full access to the Grossnickle Career Services Center, which can hook you up with every career-exploring and job-hunting tool you need.

CC 360 highlights five of these high-grossing gigs, which CC online degree programs can help you achieve your goal, and Career Center tips to help make your dream a reality, even after you graduate.

MARKETING MANAGER

Median hourly earnings: $61.12

Online CC degree programs:

Bachelor of Arts or Science in Business Administration with a marketing major

Marketing management certificate

Career Center tip: Gain experience in this field by taking a freelance marketing or media position. While in school, freelance jobs allow your work to be flexible and can add some extremely important technical skills to your resumé. Also, several part-time and volunteer jobs have landed CC students full-time positions.

COMPUTER SYSTEMS ANALYST

Median hourly earnings: $39.76

Online CC degree programs:

Associate in Science/Bachelor of Science in Computer Information Systems

Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems

Career Center tip: If you like this field, consider the other tech-related jobs on the Business Insider list, like web developer, software developer, network and computer systems administrator or information security analyst, all of which require one of these degrees. Jobs in this field of study are projected to grow more than 22% within the next five years.

REGISTERED NURSE

Median hourly earnings: $32.04

Online CC degree program:

RN to BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing) program

RN to BSN Disclaimer: The RN to BSN degree program is not available to residents in the States of Idaho, Minnesota, South Dakota, Tennessee, and Washington.

Career Center tip: If you’re already a registered nurse, the online RN to BSN degree can help take your career up a notch. The flexibility of the online courses means you can continue working as a nurse while gaining the skills necessary to enter nursing management positions. If moving up in your nursing career is on your mind for 2016, check out this degree option.

ACCOUNT AUDITOR

Median hourly earnings: $31.70

Online CC degree programs:

Bachelor of Art or Science in Business Administration with an accounting major

Master of Business Administration with an accounting emphasis

Career Center tip: To learn valuable information about the realities of accounting and to find current job listings in your area, check out your local and state professional accounting associations. Also consider an internship. During tax season, there are a plethora of internships, volunteer and part-time job opportunities for you. January through April is your best time to get those skills you need!

HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGER

Median hourly earnings: $49.41

Online CC degree programs:

Bachelor of Arts or Science in Business Administration with a human resource management major

Human resource management certificate

Master of Business Administration with a human resources emphasis

Career Center tip: Human resource management gives you several options to specialize in as a career. From benefits management and company policy implementation, to recruitment and training, human resource managers act as the front door to many working environments.

 

Remember, you can check out all of Columbia College’s degree options through the Program Finder, then contact the Career Center for help exploring jobs in each field!

It’s scholarship season!

The FAFSA isn’t the only application you should submit in January. Columbia College offers a variety of scholarships. Application deadlines are coming fast, so don’t miss your chance!

Scholarships for Nationwide, Online and Evening Students

$750 Frank S. Westling Scholarships: Feb. 5 deadline

Named in honor of a highly decorated infantry officer and former dean of Adult Higher Education, the application for this scholarship is available online and should be submitted electronically. In 2015, the award was given to 19 students from 12 campuses, including the Online Education Program. Visit the Columbia College Scholarship Finder to view eligibility criteria and to submit an application.

Campus scholarships: Deadline varies, check with your campus

Each campus offers its own scholarship for a minimum of $800 – often more! These scholarships are funded in part by the Adult Higher Education Endowment, which is supported generously by contributions from your local faculty and staff. Be sure to check with your campus office about the availability of and eligibility requirements for the scholarship at your campus.

Scholarships for veterans

$1,000 Col. Charles E. McGee Scholarship: Feb. 28 deadline

Awarded to one Columbia College student each academic year, this scholarship honors a Columbia College alumnus and Tuskegee Airman who served in World War II, Korea and Vietnam, and was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 2007.

$1,000 Col. Mike Randerson Scholarship: Feb. 28 deadline

Established in 2014, the Col. Mike Randerson Scholarship is an annual endowed scholarship created to help qualified veteran students, including active duty military, Guard, Reserve and/or their dependents who wish to attend the college. The scholarship recognizes the efforts of outstanding military students who exemplify Randerson’s dedication to service and education.

$500 Ousley Family Veterans Service Center Scholarship: Feb. 28 deadline

The Ousley Family Veterans Service Center Scholarship was established to honor and support the academic endeavors of veterans who have exhausted veterans educational benefits. The scholarship aids veterans who are making progress toward a degree but may not qualify for academic merit scholarship awards.

Click here for information on how to apply for scholarships for veterans.
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Six Sessions: Coming to a campus near you…

Imagine a campus in a galaxy far, far away where students can graduate sooner and take academic breaks when they want to.

Now imagine that campus is your Columbia College campus.

Coming this fall, education as you know it is about to change. Get ready to encounter the ultimate academic experience: six academic sessions per year.

Watch as students kick their degree completion into warp drive, successfully soaring through up to six sessions per year, rocketing their way to graduation at an unthinkable pace. Educational dreams will be achieved. Friends and loved ones will be proud. Lives will be changed.

Six sessions. In campuses this August.

Stay tuned for more details.
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How to make the best (and worst) financial resolutions

It happens every New Year: Millions of well-intending Americans make resolutions to get their finances under control. Yet, by February, the unwavering dedication to newfound, life-changing habits falls by the wayside.

Why do we fail? Because those pesky resolutions were probably unrealistic to begin with. This is what U.S. News & World Report Money argues in its article, “The 5 Best and Worst Financial New Year’s Resolution.”

The first worst/best resolution pair goes like this:

Worst Resolution No. 1: Pay off debt.

Best Resolution No. 1: Pay off $150 of debt each month, or $1,800 over the year.

A vague resolution to pay off debt won’t get you anywhere. Instead, resolve to pay off a specific amount of debt per month, or a specific amount of debt over the course of the year. Just be sure that your goal includes a specific dollar amount and a specific end date.

See the difference between a hazy, doomed-to-fail goal and one with a clearly defined, feel-good strategy? Here’s another one. Along the same lines of paying off debt is the resolution to spend less money to begin with:

Worst Resolution No. 3: Spend less money.

Best Resolution No. 3: Cut $50 per month off the grocery bill.

Student Success Advisor Rachel Smith of Columbia College points out that while this is a laudable goal, for a lot of people, it’s a hard one to pull off at the beginning of the year.

“December can be one of the most expensive months of the year,” Smith says. “Gifts, travel expenses, property taxes, utility bills for heating your home – there are a lot of extras to account for. Following a month like that can definitely prove difficult to gain traction for changing your financial habits.”

So how do you make sure a resolution like this one is realistic and achievable?

In addition to investigating your 2015 spending habits to identify areas where you overspent and think about ways to cut spending in those areas, Smith adds that it can help to give yourself some buffer time to get over the post-December hump.

“Your goal might be to save $50 a month, but in January, maybe you start with a goal of saving $30 to give your budget a chance to recover,” Smith says. “As you gain momentum and confidence in your goal, you can increase that monthly amount, which reminds you that you’re making progress and successfully sticking to your resolution as the year passes.”

Be realistic and specific and your resolutions are sure to be fool-proof in 2016!
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Rising above the challenges 

All of our students at Columbia College-Salt Lake work hard to attain a degree, and very few of these journeys are easy. We have students juggling two jobs and school, single parents struggling to find daycare services, and retired military surviving on a fixed income and relying on tuition assistance. And they succeed at reaching their goals!

So what can you do to help yourself be successful?

• Be specific: Visualize your goal as if it is a reality. See yourself walking across the stage at commencement receiving your diploma with your family standing and cheering.
• Determine what is at stake: Why do you want to accomplish this goal? What is at risk if you don’t? Who will benefit if you are successful?
• Set a time limit: Determine when and how you plan to realize your goal. When do you want to finish your degree?
• Look ahead: Identify those obstacles that could trip you up and make plans for how to overcome them. When you are prepared for an obstacle, you can overcome it more easily.
• Focus on the positives: Remove the doubt, worry and uncertainty of being successful. Focus on the excellent test grade or the fact you made it to class in spite of a daycare snafu.
• Establish a support group: Surround yourself with individuals who support your efforts, celebrate your achievements with you and pick you up when you struggle. The camaraderie and accountability will help you more than you imagine.
• Review and adjust: Sometimes life gets in the way of your goals and slows your progress. It happens to all of us. Review your goal and make adjustments if necessary.
• Celebrate: We need more celebrations in our lives. With each small achievement along the way, celebrate!

And remember, the staff at the Salt Lake campus is here to support you too, so stop in or give us a call when you need help planning your goals.

Last-minute tax tips for adult college students

It’s tax season again and April 15 is just a couple of weeks away. You might be among the millions of Americans who haven’t filed yet. You might also be among the many adult students who have returned to school and discovered that filing taxes has changed a bit since the last time you were in college.

No worries. Keep calm and file on with these last-minute tips from Columbia College Student Success Services.

“First of all, take advantage of a couple of education tax credits,” says Rachel Smith, advisor with Student Success Services. “Education tax credits reduce the amount of tax you owe and are designed to make college easier to afford – not to be confused with a tax deduction, which reduces the amount of your income subject to tax.”

The first one is the American Opportunity Tax Credit, which helps pay for your first four years of college. This federal tax credit is set to expire in December 2017, though, so get cracking. Worth up to $2,500 per year, tuition and books count toward receiving the credit.

There is also the Lifetime Learning Tax Credit, which is worth up to $2,000 of undergraduate and graduate costs. This one is nice if you’re enrolled less than half time in undergrad classes or are taking classes for professional development. Tuition, enrollment fees and some books count toward receiving this credit.

Key tips: You can’t claim both credits for the same student in the same filing year. But if there is more than one student in your family, you can spread the tax credits around among family members. Also, there are income “phase-out” rules for these credits, meaning if hit the lotto this past year, you may not qualify for these credits.

So, how you do cash in on these credits? Well, you have to get moving on your tax return. The quickest way to do that is to e-file.

“According to the IRS, nearly 129 million Americans e-filed their taxes in 2015, which the agency website says is easy, secure, offers refund payment options and helps you get your refund faster,” says Smith. “You can purchase commercial tax software, have your accountant e-file for you or e-file for free through IRS Free File.”

That’s right, you can do it for free through the IRS website. Fear not – you can visit the IRS website and brag to your friends about how tax-savvy you are. In fact, you can even use the free IRS Interactive Tax Assistant, which will do a quick check to see which education credits you qualify for and provide you with a list of documents you’ll need to complete your return.

Already filed your taxes? Look at you, rock star! Know what you’ll love? Financial Literacy month in April! Check out the CC Money Stacks Facebook page for awesome financial tips all month long.

Be an EBSCOhost eBook master in 3 minutes

In this age of technology, you may think you need an e-reader and a fancy subscription to enjoy e-books. Columbia College Stafford Library to the rescue! With its EBSCOhost eBook Collection of more than 140,000 free titles, you can do your reading on any laptop or mobile device. This is really fantastic news if you’re working on a research paper or just want something leisurely to read between work, the gym, studying, laundry, sleeping and taking the kids to karate.

Getting started with the EBSCOhost eBook Collection is easy. Simply go the Stafford Library eBook Collection homepage, and sign in at the top (or create a free account).

From the homepage, you can search for books by keyword, browse by category such as Biographies & Memoirs, Fiction, Home & Garden, Political Science and Philosophy. You can also peruse “carousels” of featured and popular books like “Bowie on Bowie: Interviews and Encounters with David Bowie” by Jonathan Han and Sean Egan for your music appreciation class.

Once you select a book, you read a brief description, view the full table of contents, pull up the entire book in a PDF or even download it to read offline with easy-to-navigate pages! You can also add it to a folder to reference later.

Once you start reading, you can search the book for specific terms, highlight and look up words using the dictionary function, and create and save notes on specific pages as you read. Need a citation? It does that too. The citation generator gives you full citations for multiple styles, including MLA, APA, AMA and Chicago.

As if all of this weren’t enough, the EBSCOhost video tutorial will walk you through the eBook Collection and have you talking like a master librarian in less than three minutes. Want some one-on-one help? Call, text email or chat instantly with Stafford Library staff.

Job Interviews 101: “What’s your weakness?”

There comes a time in virtually every job interview when you will be asked the dreaded “What’s your weakness?” question.

Having thoroughly prepared for the interview, you chime in with an answer that shows you have no downsides, perhaps disguising a positive attribute as a weakness. Do answers like, “I’m too much of a perfectionist” or “I work too hard” sound familiar?

“These answers are the worst,” says Dan Gomez-Palacio, director of the Grossnickle Career Services Center at Columbia College. “They have been so overused that few employers are going to believe these answers, and they could show you as disingenuous and insincere.”

While employers are digging to see which skills or qualities you might lack, what they’re really up to is figuring out if you have a realistic and honest view of yourself – and if you can talk openly about it.

But there is such a thing as too much honesty. Common sense is your friend.

“A common mistake is to give a true weakness that will negatively impact the job you’re interviewing for,” says Gomez-Palacio. “You may not enjoy difficult people, but it’s not a weakness you would want to explain in an interview for a customer service position, for example.”

So what’s the best strategy to help you ace this question in your next interview? First, understand the expectations of the job thoroughly so you can identify which weaknesses could derail the interview. Then, choose an honest weakness you can use to answer the question and explain how it’s not going to slow your performance.

“Many people have a strong fear of public speaking, and that would make a perfectly good answer – but don’t stop there,” says Gomez-Palacio. “Follow up by saying what you are doing to mitigate this weakness. For example, ‘I often get very nervous speaking in front of groups. Knowing this weakness, I put myself in situations where I can safely practice public speaking. Giving myself that practice and gaining positive feedback is making me more confident in my communication skills.’”

This top-notch answer shows the employer that your weakness isn’t going to negatively impact your job, and that you have an impressive level of self-awareness and foresight needed to improve yourself. Go you!

For more master tips on interviewing, resumes, job hunting and more, contact the Grossnickle Career Services Center or visit their Facebook page.

Six Sessions: What you need to know

Big changes are happening in academic year 2016-2017 and we’re excited to get students involved. We’re adding an additional session!  But this is not just another session, this sixth session marks the transition to our new semester structure. There will be three semesters: fall, spring and summer. Each semester includes an early and late eight-week session.

The primary purpose of this transition is to better serve our students. We understand the time it takes to receive a degree is a top priority. A sixth eight-week session puts the control in your hands by increasing your opportunity to complete your degree faster. By adding the sixth session, we are now able to offer registration for the entire semester, or both early and late sessions. This means students will be able to plan more effectively and register in less time.

Lastly, this transition allows us to increase our ability to meet the Columbia College mission, which is to “improve the lives of diverse undergraduate and graduate learners through exemplary teaching.” We will now be able to reach a broader student base by adding greater course flexibility and the ability to complete their degree faster.

These are big changes. We understand that you’ll have questions. Please be sure to check out the Six Sessions Student Portal for more information.

We’d like to hear from you! Help us build the FAQs by submitting your questions.

From left to right: Jared Reichel ’16, Tonia Davis ’03, C. Byron Wilson ’07 and Heather Gieck ’15.

In 1999, Tonia Davis was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Two years later, while she was in the process of earning a bachelor’s degree in business from Columbia College-Salt Lake, doctors told her that she would never walk again.

Davis, who served in the U.S. Army, walked across the stage to receive her Columbia College diploma in 2003. She re-enacted that walk to cheers from the more than 100 people assembled for the Columbia College Alumni Association’s Alumni Awards Banquet and Presentation on the main campus on Friday, April 29. While accepting her Columbia College Service Award, Davis said the college’s staff was there for her even though she had to spend time away from school at the hospital treating her condition.

She used her degree to help start her own business, Tee’s & Lee’s T-Shirt and Sweatshirt Shop. At first all she had was a desk, pen and a paper and “a computer that my church gave me.” Now, it’s so much more.

“The staff at Columbia College in Salt Lake was at the hospital with my assignments in hand,” Davis said. “When you fall down, as my mother used to say, ‘put your Band-Aid on, get up and keep on moving.’”

Davis was one of four alumni award winners honored by the CCAA, along with Jared Reichel ’16, Heather Gieck ’15 and C. Byron Wilson ’07.

Reichel earned the Community Service Award for his efforts honoring veterans with the Home Runs for Heroes softball tournament he helped found, which benefits Central Missouri Honor Flight. Reichel, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in communication studies earlier this year, served in Iraq and earned numerous military awards — including the Purple Heart — but said he was searching for direction in his life after an injury sustained from an explosive device ended his military career in 2008.

Columbia College helped provide that direction.

“God had a plan for me, and that was to be a 6-foot-2, 250-pound bullhorn for veterans, supporting them and making sure people never forget why we have the freedoms that we do,” Reichel said. “I challenge you to every day make a difference in someone’s life. Enhance their life, and you will enhance your own.”

Gieck and Wilson both said they couldn’t see themselves even going to college before Columbia College came into the picture. Gieck, recipient of the Jane Froman Courage Award, battled drug and alcohol addiction, even going to prison for three years, and enrolled at Columbia College-Jefferson City after completing a recovery program. She opened the Healing House and New Beginnings, a recovery program for women who suffer from substance abuse, the same year that she earned her degree and strives to help women who are traveling the same road she did change their lives.

Wilson, a Columbia native, didn’t see college as an option before his mother-in-law (then, his girlfriend’s mother), a Columbia College alum, told him during high school that he was too smart not to continue his education. He earned his bachelor’s degree in criminal justice administration in 2007, and now the Distinguished Alumni Award recipient manages multimillion dollar accounts as a contract specialist for the U.S. Air Force.

Growing up without much financial security made it so that the necessities of survival were more important to him than earning a college degree. Columbia College told him it would take care of all of that, Wilson said. His only job was to learn.

“I really and truly learned how to be a respectful citizen in this county and, now, globally,” Wilson said. “I learned how to be an expert in my career field. I learned how to use my experiences as an educational tool. I learned how to map out my future. These people became an extension of my family.”

The CCAA also recognized its four CCAA Scholars Program recipients for the 2016-17 school year: Haley Skyles, Kayla Little, Michaela Horstman and Brian Smith. They each earned a $1,000 award and were chosen from an application pool of almost 300 applications based on grade-point average, credit hours and a 100-word essay.

“Tonight is a reminder of the great things we accomplish at this college,” Provost Dr. David Starrett said. “The spirit of achievement is reflected through its alumni and students. The prestige we enjoy as an institution is a direct result of your accomplishments.”

The awards dinner was part of the Christian College Reunion Weekend festivities on April 29 and 30, honoring the graduating classes of 1936, 1946, 1956 and 1966. The college welcomed back alumnae for events such as a walking tour around campus, an afternoon tea in the Archives and a trolley tour of Columbia hosted by Tiger Trolley Tours, which is co-owned by Jolene Marra Schulz ’61.

The weekend finished with an Ivy Chain and Remembrance Ceremony in Dorsey Gym, class photos and an alumni reception held at the home of Skip and Daisy Willis Grossnickle ’66.

Columbia College Region 4 Director MarJean Knokey recently announced the hiring of Kai Campbell as location director at Columbia College-Salt Lake. Campbell is responsible for managing the day-to-day activities of the location, including class scheduling and student and faculty recruitment. Campbell was previously the director at the college’s Naval Weapons Station Charleston location.

“We are pleased to have Kai oversee our Salt Lake location,” Knokey said. “She brings great energy and leadership to the position and we are fortunate to have her as part of our Columbia College team.”

Campbell’s experience in higher education is extremely diverse, but a main focus has been in student financial aid. She served as the director of student financial services at The Art Institute of Charlotte in North Carolina from 2004 to 2008 and then assumed a similar position at Alabama A&M from 2008 to 2010. Most recently, Campbell was the director of training, compliance and staff development for Strayer University where she was responsible for the professional development of more than 100 staff members. Campbell holds a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of South Carolina and master’s degrees in human resources development and business from Webster University.

By Barry Moffat

The answer is…pretty much everyone. The old cliché of the career student who switches majors five times and spends twelve years earning a single degree just doesn’t ring true anymore, and certainly not for most Columbia College students.

While our students enjoy their time here (nine out of ten say they are satisfied with their experience), they also have their eyes firmly on the prize: A life-changing degree that can open the door to new career opportunities and increased earning potential.

So how can we help?

Columbia College is expanding our academic calendar to offer six class sessions each year. So if you are a student taking classes online or at any of our nationwide locations, you will now be able to complete your degree faster.

How fast? 

The graphic below shows how quickly you could complete an associate, bachelor’s or master’s degree from start to finish.

Want to know more about completing your degree faster?

If you are a current student, please visit the six sessions webpage for detailed information.

If you are new to Columbia College and would like to know more, please complete the info request form or call the admissions office at (573) 875-7352.

Welcome, from your new director

By Kai Campbell, director, Columbia College-Salt Lake

Kai Campbell

I am truly honored and delighted to introduce myself to you as the new director of the Salt Lake City location. I am humbled to have the privilege to lead this location with such a wonderful team already in place. There is no doubt that this is an exciting time for our location as we begin a new chapter in the Columbia College story.

I have been serving as director here since June 2016. In my new role, it will be my pleasure to work with each of you, along with our dedicated faculty and staff, to increase the number of students we serve and to raise the awareness of the programs we offer.

Please also help me welcome the location’s new staff members: academic advisors Scott Standriff and Kaley Buck, campus admissions manager James Tarr and administrative assistant Becky Haws.

I look forward to meeting and interacting with all you in the near future. Please feel free to contact me with your suggestions or comments. Remember that our staff is always here for you if you need us.  We wish you continued success as you pursue your education at Columbia College.

Find the Right Career for You

So you’re going back to school, but you still don’t know what major you want to pursue? Or you’ve chosen a major but you don’t yet know what new career path it will take you down?

Don’t worry, you’re not alone. Up to half of incoming college students don’t know what they want to major in, and many more will change their minds during the course of their undergraduate studies. Even if you do have a handle on what subject you want to specialize in, it can be a tall task to figure out how that will translate into a career.

The Grossnickle Career Services Center at Columbia College has your back, along with a bevy of resources to help you along the way.

You can email the center at careerservices@ccis.edu or call (573) 875-7425 to make an appointment with a career specialist to discuss your options or get help connecting with Columbia College alumni in the fields in which you’re interested. Alumni can be invaluable sources for information and networking purposes. The Grossnickle Career Services Center website also contains links to pages for guidance on what jobs certain majors prepare you for and in-depth information on professions under its “Major/Career Exploration” section.

Being a Columbia College student also grants you access to a free online career assessment tool called “Focus 2.” The system puts you through nine phases of evaluation that are designed to assess your interests, skills, personality, values and recreational activities to help you map out a path for both your educational and career aspirations. Simply contact the Grossnickle Career Services Center for a user name and password to get started.

Not everyone has it all figured out. Not everyone even has a good idea of where to start. If you fall into one of those categories, let Columbia College be your partner in the process.

Free Money: The Scholarship Edition

From: Ready. Aim. Hire.

When most people think of free money for college, they think scholarships. Scholarships are financial awards that are based on academic merit or other criteria that must be met in order to be eligible for funding. These funds are similar to grants in that you will not be required to pay any of the money back. Billions of scholarship dollars are awarded annually to U.S. students attending college. What might surprise you is that due to a lack of applications, some funds are never awarded. Can you imagine? The money is just sitting in a lonely bank account somewhere, wishing for a worthy scholarship applicant. Let’s find that money a good home.

You can be considered for a scholarship for any of the following reasons (and more):

• Academic performance
• Athletic achievement
• Financial need (the FAFSA will be needed)
• Religious affiliation
• Minority status
• Major of study
• Heritage
• Community affiliations

Scholarship Tips
Be sure to read the directions and criteria for each scholarship carefully. Many scholarships require that the FAFSA be completed first, so do it early each year (as soon as you complete your tax filings). Also, pay attention to deadlines. Many scholarships have early deadlines, but there are plenty of scholarships that award funds later in the year. Scared of writing an essay? Don’t be. Have someone you trust look it over and provide feedback, or take it to your college writing center for further analysis. Tweak your letter so it’s good, but make sure you don’t edit out your own style and voice. After all, it’s YOU these scholarships want to read. Not someone else.

Institutional Aid
Scholarships funded by your college or university are known as institutional aid. Some are automatically awarded to you and do not require a scholarship application. Others require a submission of some sort in order to be reviewed (application, letter, essay, etc.). Take a look at your college’s financial aid page for more information about what types of scholarships are available.

National Scholarships
National scholarships (sometimes called outside or external scholarships) are scholarships awarded by organizations outside of the college or university and are typically open to anyone that meets their criteria. Most people ignore national scholarships because they assume the application pool is too large and they won’t qualify. In reality, the pool is much smaller than one would think. Go to reputable scholarship sites such as Fastweb.com and CollegeBoard.org to find some great scholarships. Be careful of unknown sites that look sketchy, otherwise the only thing you’ll be awarded are viruses and a stolen identity. Not cool. When in doubt, ask a financial aid representative at your school for help.

Local Scholarships
Local organizations have money to give away, too! Get the information you need on local scholarship funds by visiting your local library or visitor’s bureau if your area has one. The librarian or bureau employee may not know specifics but could provide you with information on organizations in your area that you can research on your own. Again, don’t ever hesitate to chat with your financial aid representative.

Scholarship Finder
Why do the hard work when your school can do it for you? Columbia College’s scholarship finder tool is a great way to access national and local scholarships without hunting all over the place. There are hundreds of potential scholarships listed there as well as a few reputable third-party sites like the ones mentioned earlier.

Be sure to check out the “Adult Education” section of Columbia College’s “Ready. Aim. Hire.” webpage for more career and workplace resources.

Be Smart in Selling Back Your Books

Most students don’t put a lot of thought into selling back their textbooks. Once the class is done, it’s usually out of sight, out of mind. But this is something you can think about even while you are shopping for your books.

If you approach the process of selling back your books shrewdly, you can maximize your returns. You’re never going to recoup the whole cost of the books. Their values degrade with the wear and tear of a semester. But you can take some steps to make sure you’re getting the most that you can.

Rachel Smith, Student Success Advisor at Columbia College, has three main things to keep in mind when you go to sell back your books.

• See if the college bookstore will buy them back and at what price: Sometimes you can get a guaranteed buyback price through the bookstore when you purchase it, but you have a limited amount of time to sell that book back.
• Don’t forget to check and see if you might need that book for a future course: For example, Accounting I and II might use the same book. No need to sell your book until you have finished Accounting II.
• Take time to think about if this book will provide value in the future: Will you continue to reference the book or purchase another reference down the road? Don’t sell your books just for the sake of selling your books if it will cost you more in the future.

The site MoneyCrashers.com also has a story titled “How & Where to Sell Used College Textbooks for Cash” that offers some helpful tips.

Among them:

• Clean up your book before selling it
• Call around and check online to see which outlets may be offering more for your books
• Wait until the start of the next semester to sell, rather than unloading them right after finals
• See if you can set up trades with fellow classmates who will be taking the course in the future and have taken one of your upcoming courses

And be sure to email the Department of Student Success at studentsuccess@ccis.edu, call (573) 875-7860 or visit web.ccis.edu/offices/student-success.aspx for more tips on time management, study habits, financial awareness and more.

Settling in to Six Sessions

By now, you’ve had your first experience registering for classes in Columbia College’s new six-session, three-semester academic structure. As a quick refresher, the college added an extra session to the school year make for “Early” and “Late” eight-week academic periods in each of the Fall, Spring and Summer semesters. This allows students more flexibility in navigating their way through a Columbia College education as well as giving them the option of completing their degrees in a more timely manner: associate degrees can be completed in 20 months, bachelor’s degrees in 3 ½ years and master’s degrees in as little as 12 months.

With the Early Fall session already underway, you can begin turning your attention to the Late Fall session and the rest of the academic year. Some of you may have already applied for your Late Fall classes over the summer, as registration opened in July and the new structure allows students to register for two sessions at a time. For those of you who didn’t, the Late Fall session starts October 24, and registration will continue until Wednesday of the first week of classes (October 26).

One of the biggest changes for Nationwide, Evening and Online and graduate students is your eligibility for federal direct loan programs. The amount of credit hours you need to be enrolled in each semester to be eligible for federal loans — at least six for undergraduate, at least three for graduate — is the same as before. The main change is that students must be enrolled in the credit hour threshold before any loan funds can be disbursed for that semester.

If you’re an undergraduate student who is already registered for, let’s say, three credit hours in both the Early and Late Fall sessions, then you’re in the clear. If you registered for less than six credit hours in the Early Fall session and have yet to register for any in the Late Fall, you’ll need to bring your total for the Fall semester up to at least six credit hours before you see any direct loan funds.

If you are receiving a Pell Grant, There will be no changes to the annual Pell Grant maximums available, and Pell funds will continue to be disbursed at the start of each class session for which you enroll, just like before.

Even though the Fall semester has just begun, it’s never too early to start planning ahead for the Spring. Registration for both the Early and Late Spring sessions will begin in late November, about five weeks before the Spring semester starts January 2. You don’t have to enroll for two sessions at a time but doing so helps you take advantage of the accelerated track to a degree that the Six Sessions initiative allows students.

The more you plan ahead, the easier it will be to get a head start on your future. For more information on Six Sessions or to send in a question to Columbia College staff, check out our Frequently Asked Questions page.

By Maria Haynie

New changes could make securing financial aid easier for all American college students. Each year, college students nationwide are required to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to be considered for federal grants, loans, work-study programs and other financial aid. Although that annual filing is still necessary, the Department of Education has made two big changes that could simplify that process. Here’s what you need to know:

More time

This year, you’ll be able to submit your FAFSA earlier than ever. Now, students are able to file their FAFSA paperwork as early as October 1, 2016 instead of January 1, 2017. This gives students much more time to get the paperwork completed and go through any additional verification processes that may be required.

This also puts students in a great position to submit early. Some awards disperse on a first-come, first-served basis. The final FAFSA deadline is June 30, 2017.

Less guesswork

No matter when you file your FAFSA between October 1, 2016 and June 30, 2017, you’ll be able to use your 2015 tax information. Previously, students filed based on tax information they might not have had in hand yet, causing confusion, guesswork and, for some, tedious readjustment after tax day.

How can I get help filing my FAFSA?

Columbia College is hosting a FAFSA Frenzy, sponsored by the Missouri Department of Education, on October 27 from 6-7:30 p.m. in the Atkins-Holman Student Commons. You can also schedule an appointment with the Financial Aid office to get assistance in person, over the phone or via Skype.

Uber and Columbia College of Missouri today announced a unique partnership that will give thousands of Uber driver-partners in Missouri and around the U.S. a 15 percent discount on tuition. The discount will also be available to any current Columbia College of Missouri student who signs up to drive with Uber.

“Uber has a great global brand, and we’re pleased to partner with them,” said Dr. Scott Dalrymple, president of Columbia College of Missouri. “This initiative has the potential to change many lives.”

Tuition costs at Columbia College of Missouri are less than half the national average. The college offers associate, bachelor’s and master’s degrees on its main campus in Columbia, Missouri, through a robust online program, and via a network of 34 additional locations across the country. Eight-week classes begin six times a year.

“Uber is a natural fit for students looking to earn money while pursuing a degree. With no set hours or shifts, students can choose when they want to drive in a way that works around their lives and class schedule, not the other way around,” said Andy Hung, Uber Missouri General Manager. “We are thrilled to team up with Columbia College of Missouri to offer this program to drivers seeking an affordable way to further their education.”

To be eligible for the tuition discount, Uber driver-partners must complete at least one trip per month. For more information about how current students interested in driving with Uber and current driver-partners interested in applying to Columbia College of Missouri can take advantage of this offer, visit uber.ccis.edu.

About Uber Missouri

Uber’s mission is to make transportation as reliable as running water – everywhere, for everyone. We started in 2010 to solve a simple problem: how do you get a ride at the touch of a button? Six years and over a billion trips later, we’ve started tackling an even greater challenge: reducing congestion and pollution in our cities by getting more people into fewer cars. Follow us on Twitter @Uber and find us on Facebook: Uber.

The five practices of the exemplary student 

If you’ve ever read the book The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership, you might find it applies to you while pursuing your education. In fact, let’s retitle our thoughts to The Five Practices of the Exemplary Student and see if it applies to you. If not, perhaps you should set your sights on these practices.

In their studies and resulting book, The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership, Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner wanted to know the common practices of ordinary men and women when they were at their leadership best. Their analysis of cases and surveys revealed The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership:

Practice One:  Model the Way. Leaders create standards of excellence and then set an example for others to follow. For students this might mean striving for academic excellence and not settling for just passing.

Practice Two: Inspire a Shared Vision. They create an idea or image of what the future can be. They see exciting possibilities for the future. For students this might mean envisioning themselves as graduating and helping their family and friends envision the same.

Practice Three: Challenge the Process. Leaders look for ways to improve. They take risks. They don’t take foolish risks but are willing to step out toward something new. Pursuing a degree is seen, by some, as a risk, but it has huge rewards.

Practice Four: Enable Others to Act. They strive to create an atmosphere of trust and human dignity. They strengthen others so that they too can reach their potential. While treating people with civility, students encourage others to contribute in class and share ideas and opinions. They contribute to their own education.

Practice Five: Encourage the Heart. Leaders keep hope and determination alive. They celebrate accomplishments and make others feel like heroes. Students celebrate every academic task well done and, ultimately, graduation!

The field of Leadership Studies can teach us much and, in many cases, reinforces the “enduring wisdom” that our parents, grandparents and elders taught us. Lead yourself so you are better prepared to lead others as we begin this new year at Columbia College-Salt Lake!

Read the fine print on promotional interest rates

The holiday season has come and gone and, more likely than not, your credit card bills have swollen with the weight of the gifts you purchased for family and friends.

Some of you may have taken credit card companies up on seasonal low interest rate offers in order to lessen the burden as well. If a company is offering to let you pay off a four-figure debt over the next year with 0 percent interest, how can there be a downside?

Sometimes companies hide them in the fine print of the agreements, according to Rachel Smith, senior advisor at Columbia College’s Student Success office.

“Many people think that they are getting a great deal with a 0 percent interest program,” Smith says. “when in reality they haven’t read the fine print and don’t realize that if you don’t pay off the loan in the specified timeframe, even by one payment, they go back and charge you interest from the date of purchase. This can be costly mistake for consumers.”

In an article called “How Credit Card Promotional Rates Work,” TheBalance.com highlights the key tenets of these potentially useful, yet potentially damaging, deals.

Here are some things to consider with promotional rates:

• How long do they last?: Federal law mandates at least six months, but some of the best deals can last up to a year and a half. Some credit card companies measure the rates through billing cycles rather than months, so be on the lookout for that as well. Also, be sure to make your payments on time. Some rates expire before the end of the promotional period if you’re more than 60 days late on your credit card payment.
• Check the rate after the promotional period: Before you enter into a low interest rate agreement, find out what the post-promotional rate will be. Sometimes, an inflated rate after the promotional period makes it so that it’s not worth it to sign on for a low interest rate during the deal.
• It’s not the same as deferred interest: Even though companies may use similar phrasing to promote low-interest rate introductory offers and deferred interest plans, they are not the same thing. With a deferred interest plan, you have to pay the full credit card balance in order to pay no interest. If you have any balance left after the promotional period, you’re on the hook for the full interest backdated to the first day the balance was added to your account.

For more tips on financial awareness, you can check out the Student Success Money Stacks page, email moneystacks@ccis.edu or call (573) 875-7860.

Campus Quad’s Alumni Fountain celebrates Nationwide locations

Columbia College is far more than just its Day Campus. We would not be where we are today without the students and alumni from our 35 Nationwide locations, Evening Campus and the Online Education program as well.

That’s why, when it came to planning out the Quad — the new heart of our Columbia, Missouri, campus — we made sure that our national footprint played a prominent part.

To honor our more than 83,000 alumni living worldwide as well as all the locations that make up the whole of Columbia College, we positioned Alumni Fountain as the centerpiece of the Quad. The fountain has one center jet of water, representing main campus, with eight smaller jets arranged around it to represent the Nationwide locations’ contribution to Columbia College.

Not only that, but the fountain also serves as a sort of compass, with bricks bearing the name of each Nationwide location and arranged geographically around the center of the fountain in the direction they are from the main campus.

Alumni Fountain turned on for the first time August 29, the first day of classes, and it took students less than a minute to make a sprint through the jets! On October 7, President Scott Dalrymple officially dedicated the rest of the Quad at a ceremony in which more than 100 members from the community showed up to help celebrate.

We hope that those of you who have had the opportunity to visit our beautiful campus will make a return trip at some point to check out the Quad. And, if you’ve never made it to Columbia, we hope you’ll stop by and check out all we have to offer.

Be sure to visit ccis.edu/quad for more information.

Social networking can help net a job 

Have you ever thought about using your Facebook, Google Plus, LinkedIn or Twitter accounts to help further your professional life?

While their primary purpose is expanding and deepening someone’s network of personal connections, the many platforms that make up social media can also serve as invaluable resources when you’re looking to land a job or further your career. That is, if you know how to use them correctly.

A 2012 CareerBuilder.com survey found that 37 percent of the more than 2,300 hiring managers and human resources professionals the site polled use social networks to vet job candidates. Of those companies, 65 percent said they did it to see if the potential candidate presents him or herself professionally.

“Social media is a primary vehicle of communication today, and because much of that communication is public, it’s no surprise some recruiters and hiring managers are tuning in,” CareerBuilder vice president of human resources Rosemary Haefner told Forbes.com.

So how do you put your best foot forward? Forbes (“Ten Ways to Use LinkedIn in Your Job Search”) and TheMuse.com (“45 Things Successful Job Seekers Do on Social Media”) both have helpful articles on the topic.

Here are some of their top tips:

• Show Your Personality: Don’t start these accounts just to have them. Actually go on Facebook, Twitter, etc., read what others are posting about and develop some content of your own that shows off your individuality. Comment on others’ posts. Share articles that interest you, or that you find interesting about the field in which you work.
• But Keep it Clean: Make sure that the face you present to the public is one that you wouldn’t mind everybody in the world seeing. That goes beyond some obvious pointers such as don’t use profanity and keep party pictures off your feeds. The Muse also suggests “removing articles that are politically divisive or could be considered offensive, posts that are super random, long rants on a certain topic and the like.”
• Spread Your Wings: Don’t be afraid to expand your social circle beyond your immediate sphere of friends and family. Forbes suggests remaining vigilant on LinkedIn with inviting new networking contacts and old work colleagues to join your network. That not only expands your networking circle but also gives you access to more second- and third-degree connections through your new contacts.
• Read Up on Potential Employers: Identify companies for which you ultimately might like to work and follow their social media trails. That way, you can keep up to date on any jobs that might be coming open, as well as any initiatives or milestones so you can be knowledgeable at a possible interview. You can also find who you might be working for (or with) and see their social media presence. Familiarize yourself with their passions and views and get a gauge on their personalities.
• Promote Yourself…But Not Too Much: If you’re proud of a personal or professional achievement, don’t be afraid to flaunt it on your social media accounts. But, as the Muse points out, don’t come off as a braggart: “Nothing looks worse – or turns followers off more – than a Twitter stream just promoting your own thing.” Spread praise around to others in your social and work communities and show that you’re just as happy for the success of others as you are for yourself.

For more tips on pursuing and enhancing professional opportunities, you can visit Columbia College’s Grossnickle Career Services Center website, call (573) 875-7425 or email careerservices@ccis.edu.

Uber drivers can get discounted tuition at Columbia College

Are you looking for a way to pursue a quality college education while supplementing your income with a side job? Columbia College and Uber have you covered.

The two organizations have announced a unique partnership that will give thousands of Uber driver-partners around the U.S. a 15-percent discount on tuition. The discount will also be available to any current Columbia College student who signs up to drive with Uber.

“Uber has a great global brand, and we’re pleased to partner with them,” Columbia College President Scott Dalrymple said. “This initiative has the potential to change many lives.”

Tuition costs at Columbia College are less than half the national average. The Uber partnership provides an incentive for current students to realize another revenue stream, as well as an enticement for prospective students who just so happen to be Uber drivers.

“Uber is a natural fit for students looking to earn money while pursuing a degree. With no set hours or shifts, students can choose when they want to drive in a way that works around their lives and class schedule, not the other way around,” said Andy Hung, Uber Missouri general manager. “We are thrilled to team up with Columbia College to offer this program to drivers seeking an affordable way to further their education.”

To be eligible for the tuition discount, Uber driver-partners must complete at least one trip per month. For more information about how current students interested in driving with Uber and current driver-partners interested in applying to Columbia College can take advantage of this offer, visit uber.ccis.edu.

This feature was published in the latest edition of Affinity Magazine! Click here to check out the magazine in its entirety. 

Columbia College is committed to providing an environment that encourages inclusion and equity for every student and employee. That goes for all races, ages, religions, gender identities and sexual orientations, in all of our venues.

The Columbia College Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee
(Photo by Kaci Smart)

To that end, and to ensure that the college is doing everything it can to maintain a welcoming community for all, President Scott Dalrymple created the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee in the spring of 2016.

This group of 12 representatives from three different locations was chosen by a panel of the president’s Administrative Council to enact and oversee diversity initiatives for the college.

Keith McIver, director of Development and chair of the committee, says that the group has already identified and assigned four sub-committees to tackle different parts of the diversity, equity and inclusion picture.

There’s the assessment sub-committee, chaired by James Smith, director of Adult Higher Education Campus Admissions; training, chaired by Dr. Teresa VanDover, associate professor of Education; programs, chaired by Kandace Anthony, assistant director at Columbia College- St. Louis; and policy, chaired by Alisa Buck, director of project management for Technology Services.

“We want to ensure that throughout the institution, we are committed to these values and principles,” McIver says. “I’m happy that this committee was formed not as a reaction. I think it’s good we are proactively engaging our community and volunteers.”

The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee works to maintain a place for open discourse at Columbia College, support activities that promote diversity and inclusion, coordinate efforts with campus departments and conceive of ways the school can fulfill its vision as an accommodating learning, teaching and working environment.

“I’d like to see, and we’ll work with other stakeholders for, diversity in our faculty representation,” McIver says. “It’s my hope that we are able to increase diversity as it is recognized throughout the college, in all areas.

“It is a hot topic across the nation, but it’s good work. We’re all committed. Let’s go. It will take more learning, talking and engaging across the spectrum.”

Dear Students, Faculty and Staff,

I’m reaching out to offer support to our campus community. As you are likely aware, a  Presidential executive order was signed and put into effect over the weekend that made changes to the rules governing visas and entry to the United States for certain countries. This is a fluid situation, but I want to be clear that Columbia College welcomes all of our international students regardless of their nationality or religious background. We are a diverse and inclusive college community spanning the entire country with students from around the globe, and it is important that all members of our community know they are valued. Our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee is carefully monitoring this situation, with our students and the larger college community in mind. 

If you have questions, please know that you can contact our International Student Services office (573-875-2756 or internationalcenter@ccis.edu), our Student Affairs office (Dave Roberts, interim dean, dwroberts@ccis.edu, 573-875,7690), our Diversity, Equity  & Inclusion Committee chair (Keith McIver, kwmciver@ccis.edu, 573-875- 7550) or, of course, you are welcome to contact me directly as well.    

I want to be clear that our international students, faculty and staff are valued and supported by leadership at Columbia College.   

Sincerely,

Dr. Scott Dalrymple

President, Columbia College

president@ccis.edu

(573) 875-7200

Columbia College-Salt Lake welcomes a new director

By David Stoddard, director, Columbia College-Salt Lake

My name is David Stoddard, and I am the new director at Columbia College-Salt Lake. I feel extremely fortunate to be given this opportunity to be working as a director for Columbia College. Our institution integrates the highest standards in education while ensuring that each and every student has the opportunity to excel personally and educationally.

I believe that my credentials, which include more than 12 years of experience in recruiting, educating, training and strategic planning along with a Master of Professional Communication degree from Westminster College, reflect my qualifications. As your director, it is my goal to use these experiences to provide you with the best educational experience while you pursue your goals.

My staff and I appreciate all of our students as they spread the word about the educational opportunities provided by the Columbia College-Salt Lake location. We have several undergraduate majors to choose from and offer four online master’s programs in business administration, criminal justice, military studies and teaching. The MBA program has a concentration in human-resource management and accounting. In addition to in-seat degree programs, we also offer online degrees — 28 accredited online associate, bachelor’s and master’s degrees through more than 800 online courses.

My personal motto that I strive to live by is to “teach, love and celebrate students.” Each of you matters in what Columbia College and I stand for. Without you, we could not exist. I look forward to meeting each and every one of you, and I hope that you will feel welcome to come visit with me. I want to know you, your goals and your achievements.

Not too young, not too old

By Maria Haynie, Ready.Aim.Hire.

The magic age for getting a degree doesn’t actually exist. However, students who consider themselves “nontraditional” are concerned about how their age will affect their experience in the classroom. Let’s break down this make-believe age barrier:

Imagine the fictional college freshman, a fresh-faced 18- or 19-year-old, walking through a historic, bricked campus while the changing red leaves softly fall from the stately trees overhead. The image is beautiful and certainly will be found at the main Columbia College campus and elsewhere across the nation each fall, but it only represents 3.4 percent of the whole student body at Columbia College.

While many evening and online students may consider themselves nontraditional students, the numbers show that the actual Columbia College tradition is about them. The majority of students, 56 percent, were between 30 and 65 years old in 2015. Our students are more likely to find a classmate to have much more life experience than a student who may still daydream about last spring’s prom. In fact, the student learning alongside you is 2.5 times more likely to be in their early 30s than around 20. It’s also likely you’ll have more than one classmate whose children are in high school, or perhaps has a grandchild or two.

The mix of ages in a learning community enriches the whole class with both mature and fresh perspectives. Many adult students share the common concerns about using technology or about getting the hang of school after being out of classrooms for a long time. The resources and technology used in our classes are designed to be user-friendly for all students: no higher education experience required to start.

At any age, going to college is no fairy tale. Earning a degree is hard work. But as an adult, older students have experience and responsibilities that can be resources and excellent motivation. You may have to use your imagination and get creative to fit school around your full and busy life, but the happy ending of graduation is attainable for any age of student.

The pros and cons of summer courses

By Department of Student Success and Money Stacks

Taking classes over the summer can be a big help when you’re pursuing a degree. At Columbia College, you can take up to 12 additional hours over the summer, which could knock off an entire semester of coursework! That lets you complete your schooling faster and lessens the financial load.

But how do you know if taking summer courses is right for you? Columbia College’s Department of Student Success and Money Stacks has some pros and cons you might want to consider when deciding whether to trade in your swim trunks for syllabi:

• Keep up your momentum: If you had a good spring term and want to ride that wave into the summer, it might be a good idea to sign up for more classes so you can stay in an educational rhythm. If you’re a student that strives on structure and routine, you could benefit from forging ahead with your classes rather than taking the summer off.
• Be mindful of burnout: If, on the other hand, you’re starting to experience some education fatigue, sitting the summer sessions out might be the best option. Summer can provide a great opportunity to recharge with family time, vacation or just straight-up relaxation away from a school setting.
• Saving time can mean saving money: Getting done with school earlier could mean less interest on student loans to pay back. It also allows students an earlier gateway to the workforce or to looking for a promotion in their current jobs. But, along with these financial benefits, taking summer classes also necessitates some financial planning when it comes to allocating some of your funds and looking for additional scholarships of different ways to pay for the summer sessions.
• Make time for fun: A Monster.com article on the subject cautions that taking year-round school could prohibit you from taking part in some of the extracurricular activities you enjoy. You have to find a good balance between enjoying the college experience and getting through it in a timely manner.

For more guidance on how to make the most of your Columbia College experience, you can contact the Department of Student Success at (573) 875-7860 or studentsuccess@ccis.edu.

‘Handshake’ helps connect students with job opportunities

By Grossnickle Career Services Center

Starting in July, Columbia College students will have a new way to connect with companies around the country who are offering enticing employment and internship opportunities.

The college is transitioning from CCNet, its previous career services software, to Handshake, a relatively new software that has been adopted by more than 160 colleges and boasts over 120,000 nationwide employers that have posted jobs through the service.

Students can upload their resumes, research companies, apply for opportunities and find out about career events through Handshake. The service allows students to connect with employers without the companies having to go through Columbia College in order for a student to access them. This makes for a powerful service that can help our students no matter what location they attend or what part of the country they’re searching.

An October article in The Chronicle of Higher Education explains it this way: “The company produces software that’s designed to replace the systems that colleges have long used to keep track of job postings and pass them along to students. For employers, it’s a way to easily mine talent and broaden the set of colleges where they send job and internship listings.”

Handshake is also very mobile-friendly and features an intuitive interface that will be easy to use. So students can utilize Handshake as frequently and simply as they do their social media applications on their phones!

For more advice on preparing for a career after college — or advancing in the field you’re in now — visit the Grossnickle Career Services Center webpage, call (573) 875-7425 or email careerservices@ccis.edu.

Green Zone training provides support for student veterans

By Ousley Family Veterans Service Center

Student veterans across all branches of service understand that a “green zone” is a safe place in a combat zone. Did you know Columbia College also has a Green Zone?

What is Green Zone training, and what does it mean for you as a student veteran? The overall training objective is for faculty and staff to gain a basic knowledge and understanding of challenges faced by student veterans during their transition from the military to the college classroom. It also has the objective of providing resources available on campus and in the community to assist them. Faculty and staff members volunteer to attend training sessions providing information such as:

• Identifying student veterans
• Service components (active, guard, reserve)
• Deployment cycles and impact on families
• Traditional issues that student veterans face
• Other information veterans want staff and faculty to know

The training concludes with faculty and staff interactively participating in scenarios to apply what they learned to typical situations with student veterans. New Green Zone team members receive a window cling or a decal to display on their office door or on their syllabi. This helps student veterans to identify trained faculty and staff members. When a student veteran has questions, or just wants to talk, they have a resource in any Green Zone team member who can understand their issues and concerns. Team members are available to listen and assist, and they can help with a referral to the appropriate services as needed.

Veterans Service is excited to announce that 234 staff and faculty members across the college have received Green Zone training, with additional training opportunities planned for the future. Columbia College Veterans Service and Green Zone team members are here to empower student veterans to make wise decisions about their educational goals.

To learn more, contact Veterans Service at (573) 875-7504 or ovc@ccis.edu.