NECC Trustees Meeting Notes

Programs

Two new, one revised, and one reinstated programs will soon be added to the Northern Essex Community College academic offerings.

The NECC Board of Trustees voted unanimously Wednesday, April 11, to accept the additions and changes.

A new early childhood director certificate has been designed to prepare individuals, who may already work in the field or are career changers, to enroll in courses to meet the state’s requirements to be director certified.

The engineering science advanced manufacturing program has added an electronics option. This offering places Northern Essex ahead of the statewide mandate and has been offered to the Governor’s office as a template.

The hospitality program which was reopened in the fall of 2016 has been revised to better prepare students who will graduate with an associate degree and those who would like to transfer to a four-year college or university.

The sign language interpreter certificate has been reinstated as the need for American Sign Language interpreters in New England is not being met and in fact continues to grow. NECC currently has the only two-year interpreter-training program offered in the Commonwealth. The hope is that by reinstating the certificate the college will serve a new population of students, grow the program and meet the needs of the deaf community.

Educational Report

NECC English Professor Dr. Paul Saint-Amand presented the results of his research on peace poetry as a genre. He described how it is an antithesis to “war poetry”. He identified the literary elements that define peace poetry and how the themes enhance students’ sensibilities as a readers and writers.

Website

Nathan Gilbert, NECC’s director of online communications, presented a brief overview of the new NECC website. Research indicated that student didn’t feel the old website adequately portrayed the school and its offerings, Gilbert said. The revamped website has a marketing focus while accommodating current students, he explained. He encouraged the trustees to explore the website.

ValleyWorks

Linda Rohrer, the director of ValleyWorks, which is now under the direction of explained that the agency continues to work with more than 900 employers and 10,000 employees annually.

The agency has reevaluated how best to serve employees and employers. The staff, she explained have become “industry experts” on the industries they cover to better serve the clients.

ValleyWorks has also opened an office on South Union Street in Lawrence.

Capital Campaign

President Glenn announced that the college is now in the first phase of a capital campaign to raise $7 million. He introduced the logo that has been designed to promote the capital campaign .

Sabbaticals

Two sabbatical leaves were recommended by President Glenn. Philosophy Professor Meredith Gunning and Writing Professor Clare Thompson were approved for a fall sabbatical.

Gunning hopes to research and develop texts for philosophy courses that feature authors that more closely reflect the diverse student body while employing open educational resources to keep costs to students low.

Thompson hopes to improve the teaching and learning of English grammar and editing skills by studying the experiences of both English Composition students and faculty at NECC and reviewing wider literature on the subject. She hopes to improve the understanding of the factors that influence student grammar and editing, create an online teaching and learning unit on grammar and editing skills available to all writing instructors, and write an article on her research.

Emeritus

Four NECC retires were nominated for emeritus status. They include Terry Cargan, professor emerita of English; Ann Grandmaison, coordinator emerita of library research services; Lynne Nadeau, director emerita of tutoring services; and Bernard “Bill” Zannini, professor emeritus of business.

New Hires

Trustees approved the hiring of three new employees. Richard Egan was hired as assistant director of ValleyWorks Career Center; Christina Knight was named coordinator of student activities; and Kristen Sparrow, an adjunct computer information science instructor, was named full-time assistant professor.