How We’re Awesome This Month:

05I S S U E

F e b r u a r y2 0 1 6

Exciting things are happening at Hill College. Of course the most exciting is our enrollment numbers. Our December Mini-mester increased in headcount by 89 students, while the Spring headcount increased by 42 students from last Spring.

Congratulations to Tom Sale, who will be featured at Austin’s 2016 South by Southwest (SXSW) film and technology festival. He will have a display of his watercolors painted on book covers sponsored by the New York based company TheFader.com. His work will be on display and for sale at SXSW on March 14 and 15.

Nominations are being accepted for the Core Values Champion. This award will be given to an employee who consistently demonstrates our core values of integrity, educational excellence, student success, respect, enthusiasm and collaboration. Nominations will be reviewed until Feb. 29 and the recipient will be announced at All Staff Day in August.

Congratulations to Julie Britain, Program Director, and the entire Allied Health team on the accreditation of the Cardiovascular Technology - Adult Echocardiography Associate degree program by the Commission of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP). We are among only six colleges in Texas that have received accreditation.

There will be two upcoming StrengthsQuest (SQ) Brown Bag Lunch Sessions with Dr. Boehm: this Thursday at noon at the JCC Student Center, Room 400; and

this Friday, at noon at the HCC Welcome Center. This lunchtime StrengthsQuest event is for staff members who have taken the StrengthsQuest assessment. If you are new to the college and have never taken the assessment, please contact your supervisor or Jessie White to request an SQ Code. Since this is a brown bag lunch meeting, remember to pack and bring a lunch. Also, bring a printed copy of your SQ results.

The college’s Eleventh Annual Boots and Suits Gala is coming up. The gala will be held on Friday, April 15 at the Cleburne Conference Center and will begin at 6 p.m. For all who would like to attend, employee tickets are now on sale for the discounted price of $45. At the gala, guests are invited to eat, dance and celebrate our community honorees, while raising funds for district wide scholarships and selected college programs. This year’s highlighted programs are Hill College Baseball and Student Services.

If you have news the Hill Family could use, send it totrejcek@hillcollege.edu Subject: Red, Blue & You!

SPOTLIGHT

Preferred Name: previous nicknames “Orvy” and “Zorro” were my favorites (I’ve been called worse!), I actually dislike being called “Sherman”, Professionally, I prefer “S. Calaway Jones” Length of Service? Adjunct 2004, Full-Time since 2005 What Do You Like Best About Hill College? Most of our students couldn’t access higher education without starting with us. What You Would Like Everyone to Know About Your Job? I feel that my job here is incredibly important, but no more important than anyone else’s job at Hill College. Anything You’d Like to Share About Yourself? Life’s been a fabulous ride so far, I’m still hanging on tight! Hobbies or Interests Outside of Work: Horses, firearms, weaving, World War II military history Who is Your Hero and Why? Dr. Sammy Ray (Texas A&M), my graduate committee chair, ex-WWII Navy Corpsman, Senior Faculty member in the A&M System. He was truly a sage, a spectacular mentor, and he will be missed for so long by so many.

Red, Blue and YouEmployee Newsletter

This IssueSpotl ight , How We’re Awesome P.1

Athlet ics Update, Performing Arts Update, Tech Bytes, VP Corner P.2

VP Corner (cont.) P.3

Eye On, Professional Development, Strength of the Month,

The Welcome Wagon, Social Media P.4

NAME: Sherman Jones

POSITION:Instructor, Biology

Athletics UpdateThe Women’s Basketball Team kicked into high gear this spring, going 9-2 in conference play, where it is currently in second place with three regular season games left. The NTJCAC selected freshman Kaylee McConnell for Player of the Week for Jan. 18-24. The Men’s Basketball Team is in third place in conference play with a record of 5-5. The basketball teams will play their final home games of the season on Wednesday beginning at 5:30 p.m. It’s Sophomore Night, so come out and see the sophomore Rebels play their final home games!

Baseball and softball have hit their respective fields this month, and their records are currently 4-3 for baseball and 2-9 for softball. The weather is nice, so come out and cheer on our Rebels!

TECH BYTESApps can represent much more than a fun game or distraction. There are quite a few productivity apps out there that can help us carry out daily tasks more efficiently.

Microsoft Office for Mobile Devices - create, alter and share the same documents and spreadsheets via tablets and phones.

Pocket Informant - pull your calendar, tasks, notes and contact information into one place and make them more useful.

Asana - pull your team together and get everyone on the same page without email overload.

Trello - for those whose eyes glaze over trying to read long blocks of text inside lengthy emails, this app helps you and your team visualize next steps via cards, comments, checklists, uploaded files and more.

Use your smartphone the way it was meant to be used.

Performing ArtsEstablished in 1988, Heavenly Voices Gospel Choir is a growing ministry. They travel around Texas singing and doing community service. Their goal is to minister through music, experience personal spiritual growth, and effectively touch the lives of others. Each year the group holds an annual Gospel Fest, which includes other college gospel choirs and a guest clinician.

Come see Heavenly Voices Gospel Choir in concert at the PAC on Feb. 29 at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free and a reception will follow.

The VP Corner• Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) is a very prestigious academic society. Hill College sponsors are Jenny Corder, Paula

Curbo and Jim Williamson. Faculty and staff please encourage your students who qualify for membership to join PTK. Deadline is Feb. 19 and this organization will enhance our students’ opportunities for scholarships.

• Congratulations to Lori Moseley, Diedra Blankenship and David Sanders for David’s fall class in EMT-Basic having 100% pass rate.

• Congratulations to Dr. Kayla Kelly for getting Hill College awarded Career Pathways Project Grant through the Texas Success Center. The $60,000 grant will allow Hill College the opportunity to be rewarded for our students’ successes in our community’s dual credit Pathways.

Rex Parcells, Vice President of Instruction

• Maintenance has begun on the installation of deadbolt locks in classrooms on the Hillsboro Campus. The installations at HCC should be completed by the end of February and then we will begin on the Cleburne Campus. We are also in the process of applying for a TASB grant for some additional security measures.

• Due to lack of vehicles within Hill College fleet, it is no longer necessary to request a Hill College car before you can use your personnel vehicle and be reimbursed for the mileage. However, you do have to have money in your travel budget to cover the expense. Check with your supervisor before using your personal vehicle.

Billy Don Curbo, Vice President of Administrative Services

The VP Corner, cont.

• Institutional Effectiveness and Instruction will be working together over the next month to kick off Instructional Program Reviews. The college is piloting a new process that draws from the concepts in Compression Planning to facilitate group discussion and produce measurable outcomes.

• Nancy Holland, Executive Director of Community Relations, has joined the Johnson County United Way Board.

• The University of Texas at Arlington’s Institute of Urban Studies has kicked off the first phase of their campus planning work with the college. Phase One includes site research, a meeting with representatives from Hill College in March, and an online public survey in April. The campus planning project will be complete in August along with the comprehensive Master Plan.

• The External Affairs Division met on Feb. 5th to explore their strengths with their Strengths-Colored Glasses!

Jessyca Brown, Vice President of External Affairs

Have you heard of StrengthsQuest (SQ)? Would you like to know more about StrengthsQuest? Have you taken the StrengthsQuest assessment but are unsure of how to put it into play? Well, you are in luck for we have a couple of exciting new Strengths related opportunities in the works!

First, beginning this month, we will resume the rather popular StrengthsQuest Brown Bag Lunch Sessions with Dr. Boehm. Just as in the past, some months a specific audience will be targeted. Other months, the luncheon will be open for a mix of audience attendees.

Secondly, stay tuned for the release of Hill College’s new StrengthsQuest Resource Webpage coming soon to a location near you. The page will list the upcoming event dates along with a brief description. It will serve as the “central hub” for Strengths (SQ) related events, videos, sites, resources, etc. Be sure to visit the “Survival Kit” page at http://www.hillcollege.edu/faculty_staff/index.html to keep watch for activation of the new “StrengthsQuest icon”. See snapshot of icon below.

StrengthsQuest (Coming Soon)

As always, if you have questions or concerns of the StrengthsQuest initiative, feel free to reach out to me at any time. Happy Strength Questing.

Jessie White, Vice President of Information Technology

The Incident Command Team received the George G. and Alva Hudson Smith Foundation Grant in the amount of $6,152 on Oct. 6, 2015. These funds are being used to purchase Incident Command Team supplies, Library Collection Emergency Protection Kits, Secure-In-Place Emergency Shelter-in-Place Kits for the Residence Halls and Building Emergency Preparedness Supplies for the Hillsboro Campus. Training for the project started with an Active Shooter session by Sgt. Roseann Cox with the Hillsboro Police Department being provided to all full-time faculty/staff in attendance at All Staff on Jan. 7. Training was delivered to all residence hall students on Jan. 21, including Domestic Violence, Stalking, Harassment and General Campus Safety provided by Sgt. Roseann Cox and Ms. Jennifer Gardner, Rural Legal Advocate with the Family Abuse Center, Waco. An additional Active Shooter and Campus Safety training was provided to Cosmetology students of the Hillsboro Campus on Jan. 27 by Sgt. Roseann Cox. Once supplies are received and kits are assembled, training will start with identified Building Captains and Co-captains all Hill College campus/centers. Last, training will be provided to occupants identified Hill College buildings at each location.

Lizza Trenkle, Vice President of Student Services

Professional DevelopmentThe North Texas Community College Consortium will have an Interdisciplinary Curriculum Development Workshop on Feb. 19, from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. at the Colonial Country Club, 3735 Country Club Circle, in Fort Worth. This year’s theme is “The Golf Course as a Classroom.” Registration is $150. https://ntccc.unt.edu/portal/icdw

EYE ON: HRRachael Esparza has put her prior experience in HR to work when she so graciously volunteered to help out after a departmental vacancy. Rachael goes to HR twice weekly (T/Th) and assists for two hours each day. Dr. Heather Kissack said, “She hit the ground running and has assisted us in all areas of payroll, benefits, hiring, compliance, and data management.” WTG Rachael!

Don’t forget to follow Hill College on all of our social media outlets!Hill College Facebook - www.facebook.com/hillcollegeHill College Athletics Facebook - www.facebook.com/HillCollegeAthleticsTexas Heritage Museum Facebook - www.facebook.com/texasheritagemuseumHill College Alumni and Friends Facebook - www.facebook.com/Hill-College-Alumni-Friends-194148857282385/timeline/Hill College Hillsboro Bookstore Facebook - www.facebook.com/HillCollegeHillsboroCampusBookstoreHill College Twitter - www.twitter.com/HillCollegeHill College Instagram - www.instagram.com/hillcollege/Hill College LinkedIn - www.linkedin.com/edu/hill-college-32314Hill College YouTube - www.youtube.com/user/HillCollegeRebels

The Welcome WagonLori Pettinger Enrollment Specialist II, Admissions & Registration

Brenda Bostick Administrative Assistant III, Instruction

Keira Charles Enrollment Specialist II, Dual Credit

Strength of the Month: BeliefPeople especially talented in the Belief theme have certain core values that are unchanging. Out of these values emerges a defined purpose for their life.

Alden Smith Speaker SeriesOn Feb. 15, Hill College welcomed two-time gold medalist Bob Richards to the Performing Arts Center. Richards, the first athlete on the Wheaties cereal box, has been an American icon for more than eight decades in the area of track and field. He’s not only known as a great Olympic Champion but also one of the great motivational speakers of the 20th Century. Richards was generous with his time and stayed for a reception, where he met guests who came to hear his speech.