Rio Salado College Online | RioNews

Graduate Achieves Great Heights

2010-04-26T09:57:00.000-07:00

By Mira Radovich, Communications Coordinator

When Tempe’s Rio Salado College holds its annual commencement ceremony in May, many graduates will be celebrating the “Achieving Great Heights” theme. Georgette Robinson is living it.

In the last year, Robinson turned 40, was laid off from her job, lost several very close family members, and was diagnosed with high blood pressure.

“I wanted to give up, and I kept telling myself to drop out of school and finish after I got myself together,” Robinson said. “But, my mom told me to finish school and do it for my loved ones. My sister always reminds me of the resilient spirit in which we were raised.”
Robinson had been taking community college classes on and off for the last few years, to help improve her job outlook.

“I knew I needed more education if I wanted a decent job,” Robinson said. “I stumbled upon Rio Salado and never looked back.”

Robinson credits Rio Salado’s flexibility and accessibility for her success.

“I attended three colleges previously, and always felt uncomfortable being the oldest person in the class,” Robinson said. “Obtaining my degree at Rio Salado is one of the best decisions I have ever made. Being able to study and submit assignments at home gave me the opportunity to be relaxed and grasp the information in my own comfort zone.”

Robinson is earning an Associate in Applied Science Degree in Quality Customer Service.

“I’ve always enjoyed helping people, and I wanted a degree that would give me the credentials needed in order to pursue promotional opportunities within the customer service realm,” Robinson said.

Pursuing this degree has led Robinson to many realizations about applying customer service to everyday life.

“I simply learned that you get what you give,” Robinson explained. “Ninety-eight percent of people who receive excellent service are in happier moods. This is contagious and spreads to the next person. So, just by giving that one person excellent service, you can actually make the world a better place.”

Robinson’s passion for helping people can also be found in her outreach ministry.

“My husband and I minister to individuals in high crime areas,” Robinson said. “This brings me so much joy because I can actually help put a smile on someone’s face. Giving hope to the lost is very important to me. I believe that everyone is important and needs a hug, no matter who they are.”

Robinson hopes to continue the momentum of graduation by pursuing a bachelor’s degree and finding a job where she can use her customer service skills.

“I have always wanted to be a life coach or customer service coach and give seminars on quality customer service,” said Robinson. “So this is really just the beginning of the rest of my life. I guess 40 is the new 20!”

Rio Salado Earth Day Event on Valley Dish Program

2010-04-23T11:31:00.001-07:00

On Earth Day, Channel 12 reporter Syleste Rodriguez visited the Garden@Rio to talk about Rio Salado’s Sustainable Food Systems program for her In Your Neighborhood segment, which airs during the Valley Dish program. Rodriguez interviewed Rio Salado’s new Director of Sustainable Food Systems Michael Hodgins and Project Coordinator of Instructional Design Services Elizabeth Cole-Fay.
Learn more about the program http://www.riosalado.edu/programs/sustainable.

Rio Salado, KEZ Honor Teacher

2010-04-20T15:11:00.000-07:00

KEZ's Marty Manning and Rio Salado College's David Staudacher recently surprised Desert Vista High School teacher Elaine Padilla with the Excellence in Education Award for April.

Padilla was nominated by student Kristina Mata who said “Ms. Elaine Padilla exemplifies daily ‘Excellence in Education.’ She provides input for program/departmental improvements and helps find creative solutions for problematic areas, and goes above and beyond her professional duties in assisting parents with community resources during and after high school. We have been truly blessed to have her in our lives because of her wealth of knowledge, experience, compassion, patience and passion. Ms. Padilla doesn't have ‘no’ in her vocabulary. Instead she will say ‘how can I help,' 'let me see what I can do,' or 'I’ll see what I find out.’ Ms. Elaine Padilla, thank you very much and God bless you! You are the best and you rock!"

There is only one month left to nominate your favorite teacher. To nominate someone who is excellent at their profession and has gone above-and-beyond their call of duty to make a difference in their community visit www.kez999.com.

Graduate Addicted to Learning

2010-04-19T11:08:00.000-07:00

By Mira Radovich, Communications Coordinator, Rio Salado College

Ask Jennifer Reno what led her to pursue a college degree and she’ll give you the brutal and honest truth. Reno was sentenced to three years in prison on a drug conviction. And it was the best thing that could have happened to her.

“In 2004, I revoked my probation to go to prison for the first time,” Reno said. “After 17 years of using drugs and alcohol, I knew I had some work to do on myself. I knew I needed an education and rehabilitation. Prison seemed like the best alternative to find myself, get a life, and quit using drugs.”

Reno began her education through Rio Salado College’s Incarcerated Re-Entry program and has continued since her release from prison four years ago. She decided to study chemical dependency to not only help others, but reconcile her own demons as well.

“The biggest lesson I have learned is that being educated about chemical dependency will not keep you from active addiction unless you are working a recovery program,” Reno said. “If a person does not see the problem and does not want to change, they will not.”

Reno credits Rio Salado with helping her make the change to a better life.
“Rio has helped me learn the value of education,” Reno said. “Since my release, Rio has stood by me, even during hard times.”

Reno dealt with many obstacles pursuing her degree, but seemingly used those to propel her where at one time would have led to relapse.

“I had to learn how to discipline myself to take online classes while dealing with the ups and downs of life,” Reno said. “I ended a physically abusive relationship, moved 6 times, injured my back, struggled with the loss of employment, all while learning how to live in society, and the biggest challenge I faced was my active addiction.”

When Reno serves as one of the speakers at Rio Salado’s upcoming commencement ceremony, she will use her story to help inspire others to overcome adversity and reach their goals.

“Education has made a huge difference in my life,” Reno said. “At this point with earning my degree, the negative stigma I created in society is starting to change. But it is important to love yourself enough to want to change and make a difference, no matter the cost, and reach your goals.”

Reno plans to continue her education by pursuing a bachelor’s degree in professional addictions counseling, and ultimately hopes to earn master’s and doctorate degrees. Her career plans include working with other addicts and children.

“I have a goal to help other addicts recover, and change the negative stigma of addiction,” Reno said. “But my heart is with children. I think the children of the world need a person who loves and supports them at all costs.”

Go ‘Green in Weekend’

2010-04-15T15:06:00.000-07:00

By David Staudacher, Rio Salado College PR Manager

On April 22, millions of people around the world will celebrate Earth Day. Locally, the staff, students and faculty at Tempe-based Rio Salado College will be marking the day with a week of events geared toward promoting a healthy, sustainable environment.

“We do more than celebrate Earth Day one day a year,” said Shannon Corona, Physical Science faculty chair at Rio Salado College. “We promote environmental responsibility every day, and offer opportunities for other s to get involved, too.”

While the Tempe-based college offers several programs — Sustainable Food Systems, Sustainable and Ecological Literacy, and eLearning Design — to those who want to incorporate environmental responsibility into their professional lives, it also offers the Green in a Weekend class for the general homeowner who wants to make a green living impact at home.

“Green in a Weekend is an introductory-level course intended to demonstrate methods to reduce energy and water usage, reduce carbon footprint, reduce waste, reduce toxins in household products, identify sustainable products, and live a more sustainable life,” said Corona. “Students can complete the course in less than two days, and the action items presented all cost less than $250, which makes them easy to implement immediately.”

Caring about the environment is a lifestyle that is blended into daily routines at Rio Salado. The college has adopted several measures to “think green” and beyond, and aims to meet the needs of the present generation while taking care of the future. According to Corona, this philosophy can benefit members of the community, too.

“This online course is for anyone who is interested in learning how to make affordable improvements to their home that will lead to increased health, financial, and environmental benefits,” said Corona. “This is a course for someone that does not have a lot of time or money but wants to be a part of a sustainable future.”

The Green in Weekend class cost $48. To learn more about the class, visit www.riosalado.edu.

Interim President Chris Bustamante on MCTV

2010-04-06T10:42:00.000-07:00

MCTV recently interviewed Rio Salado College's Interim President Chris Bustamante. To see other MCTV stories, visit http://www.maricopa.edu/mctv/

Teacher Career Fair Scheduled

2010-04-05T12:07:00.000-07:00

Rio Salado College is hosting its 8th Annual Teacher Career Fair on April 15 from 2-6 p.m. at the Conference Center @ Rio, 2323 W. 14th St., Tempe. For more information about the fair, call 480.517.8113. For more information about Rio Salado College's programs, visit www.riosalado.edu/programs/education

Retirees Heading Back to School for Encore Careers

2010-03-29T10:52:00.000-07:00

By David Staudacher, Rio Salado PR Manager

The Chinese thinker and social philosopher Confucius famously said “Find a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.

All too often these words of wisdom are lost as people grow from dreaming children to working adults. People lose sight of what they love to do and pursue careers for the wrong reasons. When they add a car, a house and family to their lives, the thought of starting a new career may seem irresponsible and becomes more difficult to pursue.

Valley resident Leonard Quimby is someone who falls into the category of people who pursued a career for the wrong reasons. Unlike those who stay in their jobs, Quimby decided to join a large group of retired individuals who are taking advantage of online learning to change careers and pursue a job that they love.

Leonard Quimby is not your usual retiree. He is only 42 years old, and his strong work ethics lead him to a series of promotions and eventually a CEO position. Regardless of his success, he was not happy with his career path and decided to make a change.

“I was extremely bored with where I was in life,” said Quimby, of Gilbert. “I was semi-retired, and I was looking for a way to re-engage, but I wanted to make sure it was something that I had a real passion to do. If I had a real passion to do what I was doing before I retired, I would still be doing it.”

Not wanting to make the same mistake twice, Quimby reflected back on everything he has done in life and realized that working with kids brought him a lot of satisfaction.

“I knew I wanted to be in some sort of classroom teaching setting,” said Quimby. “I’ve been a coach, a court appointed special advocate to oversee foster children, and being involved with kids and kid’s causes is what I want to do.”

After deciding to pursue a new career path, his research led him to the Teacher Certification Program at Tempe-based Rio Salado College.

“I chose online classes so I can get it done as quickly as I want,” said Quimby, who is slated to complete his certification in May. “I’m under my time schedule, not the teacher’s [schedule].”

Having a flexible schedule was just one of the deciding factors that led him to taking classes at a community college.

“You have a public education cost, which is a great value, and it’s all under your own terms,” he said.

As Quimby takes classes, he continues to reflex back on his previous work to find ways to bring real-world examples to the classroom.

“Some advantages that people have in life, set them up to do something exactly like this,” said Quimby.

He believes anybody willing to take a chance can successfully pursue a new career in the same way he has gone about it.

“You can go after anything you want. With the way [Rio Salado College] programs are structured, anyone can go after what they want,” he said. “It’s their own fear that’s holding them back. The flexibility the program has eliminates the excuses of people getting educated to do the things they want to do.”

“All too often people don’t live life, life lives them,” he added.

Lights Out for Earth Hour

2010-03-26T09:33:00.000-07:00

Rio Salado College is taking part in Earth Hour by turning off the lighted marquee, which faces the I-10 freeway, on Saturday from 8:30-9:30 p.m.

Earth Hour is a global event in which millions of people will turn out their lights to make a statement of concern about our planet and climate change. Rio Salado is encouraging Valley residents to take part by turning out their lights during this event.

For Rio Salado, caring about the environment represents a lifestyle change that blends into daily routines. The college has adopted several measures to “think green” and beyond. It is in this forward-thinking nature that we have become committed to the principles of sustainability.

We take a broad view of sustainability, including socio-cultural, environmental and economic dynamics to make sustainability bearable, equitable, and viable. To put it simply, we aren’t blindly “going green.” We’re carefully weighing the benefits and costs in the big picture and taking an approach that makes sense.

Sponsored by World Wildlife Fund, Earth Hour was started in 2007 and is the largest event of its kind in the world. In 2009, more than 4,000 cities in 87 countries went dark. Here in the United States, and estimated 80 million Americans participated, along with 318 cities and eight states.

Participating in Earth Hour is easy, fun and free. Rio Salado hopes you will join us for this amazing event. To sign up, visit www.myearthhour.org where you'll learn more, including ways you can spread the word about Earth Hour, plus creative things to do when the lights go out in case you need inspiration!

Please pass this note along to anyone you think might want to take part. Let's all turn out and take action. To get a better sense of the event, check out this Video.

Rio Hosting Free Gardening Workshop

2010-03-23T13:12:00.000-07:00

Rio Salado College is hosting a free workshop about drip irrigation and planting summer vegetables on Saturday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Rio’s Community Garden, 1480 S. Hohokam Drive, Tempe (behind Rio Salado’s administrative building). The workshop will be lead by Gardening Practices and Techniques instructor Peter Conden, and it is open to anyone who volunteers. Peter also is available to answer all gardening questions during the workshop.

This is a hands-on workshop so please be prepared to get dirty. Wear sturdy shoes, sunscreen, and a hat, and bring a water bottle and lunch. Tasks to be accomplished include: installing a drip system, planting summer vegetable seeds, and general clean up of the garden area (weeds, small rocks).

Gardening Practices and Techniques is part of the Sustainable Food Systems program. More information can be found HERE.

College goes great lengths for charities

2010-03-22T17:36:00.000-07:00

By David Staudacher, Rio Salado PR Manager

This year, Rio Salado College launched Pay 30 Forward, a campaign that asked employees to volunteer at least 30 hours in their community. The campaign has been very successful as the employees have volunteered thousands of hours at hundreds of charities. Recently, a group who called themselves The Rio Way Heart Walk Team took part in the Phoenix Heart Walk and raised nearly $5,000 for the American Heart Association. In early March, 12 employees ran a combined 200 miles in the Ragnar Relay, which raised money for local charities.

Next weekend, Matt Freed, a graphic designer and adjunct faculty member at the Tempe-based college, is taking part in the Bike MS event in Florence, Arizona. During the event, Freed and a friend will trek 150 miles on their bikes to raise funds for the Arizona Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

“I had a friend ride last year and he asked if I wanted to ride it with him this year,” said Freed, an avid bike rider, who often rides Phoenix’s South Mountain. “The thought of riding 150 miles was daunting; I have only done rides that were about 35 miles.”

According to Freed, this is not the type of event a person can take part in without preparation. Besides raising money before the event, he started training rigorously in January.

“The training consists of a core workout on Tuesday, an hour ride on Wednesday, which I do at 4:30 a.m., strength training on Thursdays, two to three hour rides on Saturday and three to four rides on Sunday,” said Freed. “It has been difficult to follow the training regiment. I missed two weeks with illness and a couple of work outs here and there, but I think I will be OK for the ride.”

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, often disabling disease that attacks the central nervous system. Symptoms may be mild, such as numbness in the limbs, or severe, such as paralysis or loss of vision. The progress, severity, and specific symptoms of MS are unpredictable and vary from one person to another. Today, new treatments and advances in research are giving new hope to people affected by the disease.
If a riding partner and the training are not enough motivation for Freed, he has some another good reason to take on this challenge.

“A colleague at my last job had MS and I saw firsthand what the disease does to someone on a daily basis,” he said. “She was at work every day no matter what – she was an inspiration to me and was an excellent example of overcoming obstacles in life. I will be thinking of her at about mile 75 when the going gets tough.”
The local chapter of the National MS Society has been serving Arizona residents since 1956, and serves more than 8,000 Arizonans affected by MS.

If you would like to support Matt Freed by donating, please click HERE.

To learn more about the Arizona Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society or to donate, visit www.nationalmssociety.org/chapters/AZA. To learn more about the Rio Salado College, please visit www.riosalado.edu.

Scholarships available

2010-03-12T14:54:00.000-08:00

There are nearly 50 scholarships available for the 2010 – 2011 academic year for new and continuing students. The dealine for most scholarships is April 9.

The TriWest Military Scholarship deadline for the summer I 2010 term is May 1, 2010.

The TriWest Military Scholarship is available to service members in the active, reserve, or guard component of any U.S. military service branch or spouses/dependants of service members.

To learn more or to apply for a scholarship, please click HERE.

Additional questions may be directed to Kala Weinacker at 480.731.8407.

Phoenix Teacher Wins 'Excellence' Award

2010-03-10T10:04:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday, KEZ's Marty Manning and Rio Salado College's David Staudacher surprised Cactus View Elementary School teacher Dianne Orr with the Excellence in Education Award for March. With Manning and Orr are Sara Lee and her son, Zachary, who nominated the teacher.

Class Encourages Students to Write Their Story

2010-03-08T08:27:00.000-08:00

By David Staudacher, Rio Salado College PR Manager

“Everyone has a story to tell,” said Sandi Marinella, the Coordinator of the Creative Writing Program at Rio Salado College. “So we created a creative writing program to help people develop and write their stories.”

Rio Salado College started helping people write their stories over a year ago when it launched the introductory course for the program. Based on the demand they are developing courses that will allow aspiring writers to take a variety of classes and complete an Academic Certificate in Creative Writing.

“We have classes that appeal to everyone,” added Marinella. “The program is quite diverse, and we want to draw people from all walks of life.”

In the coming month, the Tempe-based college plans to release a second series of classes, which include Introduction to Fiction Writing and a course on writing scenes, Topics in Fiction. The new courses focus on in-depth writing of short stories and development of scenes to create stories, novels, or film scripts. Current elective classes in the program include magazine article writing, modern fiction, children’s literature, and contemporary cinema.

“When we launched the first classes last year, we were pleasantly surprised by our online enrollment,” said Marinella. “We have high expectations for our new classes.”

Marinella isn’t the only person excited about the classes. Students have flocked to the classes and are thrilled to share their work.

“I'm enjoying this class very much,” said student Seth Anderson, who is enrolled in the Introduction to Creative Writing class. “I've been a writer for a long time, but through this class I've been exposed to more ideas and techniques. The class keeps me accountable each week and keeps me writing - and thinking about writing - all the time.”

Besides brushing up on his skills and learning new approaches to writing, he said the classes keep his attention, too.

“My teacher has given us some fun assignments that didn't feel like I was just going through the motions to get a grade,” said Anderson, of Tempe. “I'm allowed and encouraged to be creative and think outside the box.”

“The Introduction to Creative Writing class has a lot of high-interest activities,” added Marinella. “The students get to create a character, create a setting, write the same scene with two unique voices, write a “short short”( story), prepare a query letter to send to a publisher, and create a polished story to send out and actually market.”

Being thoroughly engaged is a concern of many students who take online classes, but Anderson thinks the writing classes are well suited for the online platform.

“I've taken other online classes in the past and I missed the discussion and interaction that a classroom allows,” said Anderson, who holds degrees in economics and Russian. “However, writing is such a solitary activity that a creative writing student doesn't need to be in a classroom. Some assignments that I have had in the class I'm taking now required us to upload one of our short stories for peer editing. A student doesn't need to be in a classroom to do that.”

Additional classes focused on non-fiction writing and novel writing are expected to rollout in coming months, and the entire program is slated to be available by the end of the year.

To learn more about the Creative Writing Program at Rio, please visit www.riosalado.edu/programs/creative-writing or contact the program coordinator at sandra.marinella@riosalado.edu.

Sun Sounds Seeks Beer Fest Volunteers

2010-03-01T06:54:00.000-08:00

By David Staudacher and Mira Radovich, Rio Salado College

On Saturday and Sunday more than 200 craft beers will flowing at at Tempe Town Beach during the Great Arizona Beer Festival, which benefits Sun Sounds of Arizona. A big part of the festival’s success comes from volunteers. While Saturday’s positions are filled, festival organizers are still seeking people to fill two shifts on the second day.

“We are still in need of volunteers for Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. and from 2 to 8 p.m.,” said Andrea Pasquale, Manager of Programming and Volunteers for Sun Sounds of Arizona. “As long as someone is 21 or older they can volunteer.”

While thousand of beers will be poured throughout the day, volunteers are needed to fill a variety of roles said Pasquale.

“We are seeking volunteers to help with everything,” she said. “We need people to work the front gate, place wrist-bands on people entering the festival, man the designated-driver tent, help in with the volunteer tent, set-up, and tear down. Of course we need people to pour beer, too.”

While the festival will draw thousands of people, the beer drinkers are not the only people who will benefits from the festival.

“Sun Sounds of Arizona receives all the proceeds from the festival,” said Pasquale. “Also, anyone who volunteers for six hours will receive free admission to one of our other festivals in Flagstaff or Tucson.”

Sun Sounds is a radio reading and information access service for people who can’t use printed material. It is primarily directed toward people who are blind, have age or disease related vision loss, or have difficulty holding printed material.

“The inability to use print can cause people to become isolated from family and friends,” said Heidi Capriotti, marketing coordinator of Sun Sounds. “We give them an opportunity to stay connected with their communities. It’s a 24-hour window to the world.”

In Arizona, 49,000 listeners tune in daily to hear newspapers, books, magazines and other pertinent information read aloud, allowing them to stay informed of current events.

Five-hundred statewide volunteers read everything from local and national newspapers, including the Arizona Republic, USA Today and Wall Street Journal, entertainment magazines, health newsletters, obituaries, and the latest best-sellers.
“One of our most popular programs is weekly reading of the grocery ads on Wednesdays,” said Capriotti.

The Sun Sounds service is available in many formats: radio, telephone, online, and in some areas, cable TV.

Radio programs are broadcast on the sub-carrier of FM stations, meaning the signal can’t be heard on standard radios. Instead, subscribers are loaned a pre-tuned radio receiver at no charge.

Eligible listeners can also hear the broadcast and archived programs on Sun Dial II, a telephone access system that even allows users to surf the Web without a computer.
“One advantage of the telephone service is that listeners can pause their listening and return later to where they left off,” Capriotti said. Sun Dial II recognizes callers by phone number, and also allows them to bookmark favorites — all by voice command.

If someone can’t make it to the festival, there are a myriad of opportunities to volunteer at the radio station.

“We have many volunteer opportunities at Sun Sounds,” said Pasquale. “We are especially looking for people to make phone calls to listeners, and help in our office.”

To volunteer at the beer festival or at Sun Sounds of Arizona, please contact Andrea Pasquale at andrea.pasquale@riomail.maricopa.edu, or by going online and filling out a volunteer form at www.sunsounds.org.

Sun Sounds of Arizona is a part of Rio Salado College’s Division of Public Service, along with NPR affiliates KJZZ 91.5 FM and KBAQ 89.5 FM, and Maricopa Colleges Television. To learn more about Rio Salado, visit www.riosalado.edu.

Two Named to All-Arizona Academic Team

2010-02-22T07:17:00.000-08:00

By David Staudacher, Rio Salado College PR Manager

Thomas Edison once said, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”

Rio Salado College students Katherine Robinson, of Tempe, and Amber Jensen, of Phoenix, are two people who work hard in the classroom, and, due to their strong work ethics, have earned the opportunity of a lifetime.

On Thursday, Robinson and Jensen were named to the All-Arizona Academic Team during an awards celebration at Mesa Community College.

“We are honored to have these two students represent Rio Salado College,” said Rio Salado Interim President Chris Bustamante. “They are outstanding students who have shown a passionate commitment for education and their community.”

Robinson was named to the first-team, and was awarded a cash prize of $1,000 and a full two-year renewable scholarship at one of Arizona’s three state universities.
Robinson earned her spot on the first team by maintaining a 3.93 grade-point average (GPA), earning 57 credits, and participating in a variety of college and community activities. Her activities include: Vice President of Leadership for the Alpha Theta Omicron Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa; editor and writer for The Alpha Theta Omicron Alpha Bits; student coordinator of a Beautification and Community Garden Program; and a victim response member for Pandora’s Project.

As a member of the first team, she also is a candidate for the All-USA team, which will be announced in April. If named to the team, Robinson could win an additional $2,500 and be featured in the USA Today newspaper.

Jensen was named to the second team and received a $750 cash prize and a full two-year renewable scholarship at one of Arizona’s three state universities.

Jensen, who plans to transfer to Northern Arizona University, earned her spot on the team by maintaining a 3.8 GPA, earning 127 credits, and being active at Rio Salado and in the community. She used the skills she has been learning at Rio Salado’s School of Dental Hygiene by volunteering as a hygienist at the Central Arizona Shelter Services, the Dave Pratt Boys and Girls Club, and at the Give Kids a Smile for elementary school students. She also served as a member of the AmeriCorps Project Ayuda where she provided dental hygiene care for special needs patients.

“I am privileged to volunteer my services as a dental hygiene student at the Central Arizona Shelter Services clinic for the homeless,” said Jensen. “Not only am I able to practice technical skills I have learned, but I recognize the impact I can have on someone’s life through my education.”

The All-Arizona Academic Team scholarships are offered every year to two students from each of the state’s community colleges. To qualify, students must have earned a high grade point average and many credits in different academic disciplines at Rio Salado College, be working toward an associate degree, and be an active participant in service learning activities such as block watch participation, charity organizations, political organizations, religious groups and other community groups.

For more information about scholarship opportunities at Rio Salado College, please visit www.riosalado.edu/financial_aid.

Adults may not be able to get their GED's due to budget cuts

2010-02-18T15:13:00.000-08:00

Channel 3's Carina Sonn recetly talked to students, teachers and administrators at Rio Salado College's Orangewood Learning Center about proposed budget cuts that could lead to GED classes being elimintaed.

Kishia Brock Named New Interim Vice President

2010-02-17T09:57:00.000-08:00

Kishia Brock, Dean of Student Services, will serve as the Interim Vice President of Student Services, reporting directly to Interim President Chris Bustamante. Brock’s leadership in the development and oversight of major Student Services programs has greatly increased access and student success as Rio’s headcount has surged during the past decade.

In her interim assignment, Brock will join the Executive Council and will plan, organize and direct the Student Services division to include the areas of Institutional Advancement (Marketing, Advertising, Public Relations, Web, Copy Center, Outreach and Recruitment), and Student Enrollment and Success Services (Admissions, Records, Registration, Advisement, Career Counseling, International Education, Testing and Assessment, Military Advisement and Outreach, Financial Aid, Veterans Affairs, Disability Resources and Services, and the ACE Puente Program).

Rio, KEZ Award Laveen Teacher

2010-02-12T12:19:00.000-08:00

On Wednesday, KEZ's Marty Manning and Rio Salado College's David Staudacher surprised Laveen Elementary School teacher Jonathon Clauss with February's Excellence in Education Award.

Appraiser Brings Real-World Experiences to Class

2010-02-11T14:40:00.001-08:00

By David Staudacher, Rio Salado College

“Art always reflects the period of the artist and society,” said Allison Gee, an adjunct faculty member at Rio Salado College. “Art shows quite a bit of who we are and where we have been. It shows laws, values, and culture.”

Gee’s knowledge of art reaches beyond the classroom. When she is not teaching, she is running her business, Appraisals By Allison. The business is a full-service nationwide fine art appraisal firm based in the Valley, and specializes in the appraisal of American and European paintings, sculptures and works on paper. As a professional appraiser, Gee has had the privilege to evaluate an original painting by Picasso, a sculpture by Robert Indiana, and prints by Andy Warhol, Salvador Dali and Marc Chagall. It is this type of unique experiences she brings to students in her art history and humanities classes at Tempe-based Rio Salado.

“As a professional appraiser, I have to keep up with the art world,” said Gee. “Adding my work to the classroom, allows me to bring real-world experiences to my classes. This is something I like to share with all of my students, especially Valley students who can go to local gallery openings.”

Keeping herself and students up to date with art movements has kept the teacher busy. Gee is active in the Phoenix-Metro Chapter of the American Society of Appraisers (ASA), and was elected to serve as an officer of the local chapter, which included a stint as the group’s president. She is involved in the local arts community and is a member of the Phoenix Art Museum, Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, West Valley Art Museum, and a member of the Steering Committee of the Inaugural Quest for Art of the West Valley Arts Council.

Outside of Arizona, Gee has studied art and conducted research at many of the world’s finest museums, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Casa Buonarroti in Florence, Italy.

She also works throughout Arizona and in neighboring states, but said that it is teaching classes online that has taken her to more places around the world.

“I’ve worked in Texas, California and New Mexico, and my students are all over the world,” said Gee. “I’ve had students contact me from Paris, Milan, and often teach military students stationed in the Middle East. It’s one of the things that make teaching online interesting. Students in different parts of the state, country or world have access to different works of art.”

According to Gee, who holds a lifetime teaching certificate in Art History from the Arizona Community College system, she often suggests places for students to see original works based on where they are located in the world. She also has had experience with students writing about artists she has appraised.

“There have been times when a student has written a paper about an artist, and during the same week or even the same day I was holding an original piece by that particular artist,” said Gee. “It’s moments like this that I feel like I am bringing more to classes.”

To learn more about Rio Salado College, please visit http://www.riosalado.edu/.
More information about Allison Gee can be found at http://www.allisongee.com/.

Board Agrees to Buy West Phoenix Building, Land

2010-02-01T10:35:00.000-08:00

The Governing Board approved a plan for the District to spend $1.15 million, plus closing costs, to purchase property at 3631 W. Thomas Road, Phoenix. The facility is about 23,500 square feet and sits on 2.3 acres. The property also includes a second piece of plan that contains a parking lot.

The Governing Board in 2008 had approved an agreement with the Isaac School District #5 for Rio Salado College to build and operate a 12,000 square foot Adult Learning Center. Purchase of the Thomas Road property, which is in the same general area, gives the college nearly twice the space at a much lower cost. The college will operate Adult Basic Education, GED, English Language Acquisition for Adults, general and developmental education, workforce education and training, academic assessment for prospectus students, advising, testing and tutoring services.

Teachers Offer Advice for Job Seekers

2010-01-25T07:51:00.000-08:00

By David Staudacher, Rio Salado College PR Manager

When interviewing, job seekers have to make more than one first impression. They have to make two first impressions. Job seekers will make their first impression with a solid resume and another first impression when they get invited to a face-to-face interview.

Recently, Rio Salado College’s faculty members have been offering interviewing advice to December’s graduates, and the teachers wanted to share this advice with anyone who is looking for a job.

The teachers stressed the importance of researching the company, preparing questions for the interviewers, and practicing by rehearsing with a family member or friend.

“Your appearance is the first impression you will make on an employer when you arrive at an interview,” said Brooke Toney, an instructor in Rio Salado College's Sustainable Food Systems program. “I expect potential employees to dress professionally and have exception hygiene. In my field, I am working with food safety and personal hygiene one of the main contributors of a foodborne illness.

Rio Salado’s Faculty Chair for Instructional Design Jennifer Freed agrees with Toney and added that men should wear a tie and jacket.

"I know it gets hot in the Valley during the summer, but dressing professionally shows interviewers you are serious about the position," said Freed. "If someone doesn't put in the effort to dress professionally during an interview, an employer may question their work ethic, too."

Besides appearance, the Rio Salado teachers said a person's demeanor during the interview is important, too. Employers are looking for someone who will fit into their team, company or organization, and the way they act during an interview can be the difference between getting an offer and being rejected.

"Be positive and avoid saying anything negative about a previous employer," said Toney. "Appearing angry, wounded, or sad about being laid off makes you appear unstable. Instead, focus on the positive and address how you will be an asset."

According to Toney, this will set you apart from other candidates. She suggests talking about accomplishments from past positions and how they will fit into this new position. If you have been unemployed for some time, but are volunteering locally this is another great aspect to share in the interview. Being active in your community says a lot about you as a person and a prospective employee.

"I encourage students not to be one dimensional," said Freed. "You have to address how you are qualified for the job, but it doesn't mean you have to be a robot. You have to sell yourself, and show the interviewer that you have a personality. Just make sure it is all done with good taste."
The teachers suggest talking about what you know and not trying to stretch your true qualifications too far.

“Be honest,” said Freed. “The truth always comes out, and if you lie on your resume or in an interview it is grounds for dismissal or to not be hired in the first place.”

Class Teaches Students to Navigate Second Life

2010-01-19T11:45:00.000-08:00

By David Staudacher, Rio Salado College PR Manager

On Saturday at 10 p.m., Murray Inman met friends at an education conference in Berlin while his wife was at a jazz dance club in San Francisco. At Midnight, the Inmans met at a cafe in Taipei, Taiwan, to do some people watching. To most people this sounds impossible. But to the 16 million users on the social networking site Second Life this is completely normal.

Second Life is a virtual world where people don avatars to meet other residents, socialize, participate in individual and group activities, create and trade goods and services with one another, or travel throughout the world. Unlike other social networks, Second Life is much more in depth and hands on.

“Second Life is much different than Facebook, Twitter or other social networking sites,” said Inman, a Systems Application Analyst and adjunct instructor at Rio Salado College. “All the other sites are quick little one or two-line status updates. You can reconnect, but you are not part of their lives. Second Life is much closer to being face-to-face. You get to know someone better through activities. You share more experiences, which you don’t get in other social media sites.”

Inman understands the difference between social networking sites well. That is why he developed the Current Topics in Computing course that focuses on Second Life, which Rio Salado recently launched. The class is for people who are new to Second life and teaches them how to explore the virtual world.

“We have several classes in development that will be taught in Second Life,” said Inman. “We started to realize that the more we start to use this, the more we need to train people in the basics. This course is an introduction and assumes that you are brand new. However, it offers opportunities to learn and explore to all levels of users.”

In the class, students maneuver through an obstacle course, which teaches basic movements and camera control use. They also learn how to fly, use pose balls, which allow avatars to sit, dance or swim. The class progresses to where students eventually learn how to build scripted items that can be interacted with. Toward the end of the class, the students are asked to question what it means to be an avatar.

“I have students go in and change their avatar to something that is not them,” said Inman. “For some people, it may be changing their ethnicity, their weight and height, or even becoming something non-human like an animal or robot. I have them interact with people to see what reactions they might get back. It really helps them question what their attitudes are toward other people, and how other people might feel about it. It’s fascinating in a philosophical way, too.”

According to Inman, there is a vast learning experience to discover in Second Life, and, while students will learn the basics, he wants people to get more out of the class.

“I hope students will take away a little bit more about themselves,” said Inman. “If you let it, Second Life can give you a reflection of who you are.”

To learn more about Rio Salado College and its Current Topics in Computing class, visit http://www.riosalado.edu/schedule/Pages/schedule.aspx?prefix=CIS.

Dr. Chris Bustamante Named Interim President

2010-01-15T09:46:00.000-08:00

Maricopa Community Colleges Chancellor Rufus Glasper today announced the appointment of Dr. Chris Bustamante as the Interim President of Rio Salado College. Bustamante replaces Dr. Linda Thor, recently named Chancellor of the Foothill-De Anza Community College District, effective Feb. 16, 2010.

The appointment of Bustamante, who has served as the college’s Vice President of Community Development and Student Services since 2006, becomes effective upon Dr. Thor’s departure.

“Dr. Bustamante is well qualified to assume this prominent position,” said Dr. Glasper. “He possesses substantial leadership credentials in education and has an extensive track record of forging partnerships within the community. Specifically, he was instrumental in the collaborative development of the Arizona Communiversity concept, which recently opened its first site — the Communiversity @ Surprise.”

The appointment marks the first change in the college’s leadership in two decades. Under Thor’s nearly 20-year tenure, the college became nationally acclaimed for its innovations as a leading provider of online learning, as well as for its customized partnerships with business and government entities. “We congratulate President Thor on these and many other accomplishments, and we wish her every success as she transitions to this prestigious new role at one of the nation’s premier community college districts,” said Glasper.

Bustamante’s considerable other successes since joining Rio Salado as Dean of Academic Affairs in 2004 include:

Oversight of the largest dual enrollment program in both the Maricopa District and all of Arizona, currently serving nearly 7,000 students annually through 54 partnering high schools
Oversight of eight major capital projects for Rio Salado, including the building of the $4 million Adult Learning Center in the City of Avondale
The launching of Rio’s Adult ACE and Puente ACE Programs that enroll more than 150 students annually
Establishment of a partnership with the Phoenix Elementary School District to reopen Ann Ott Elementary School as an Adult Learning Center

Prior to his Rio career, Bustamante served the Maricopa Community College District as Director of Government Relations & External Affairs, and also held positions as Director of State Relations and the Associate Director of Government Relations. He began his Maricopa career in 1992.

Prior to working for the MCCCD, Bustamante served as the Assistant to the Superintendent for Community Relations for the Phoenix Union High School District. Bustamante also served as a Legislative Aide in the Arizona House of Representatives from 1984-1987.

Bustamante was a member of Maricopa’s Executive Development Program (2008), the Leadership Fellows Program of the National Community College Hispanic Council (2005), and was appointed by Governor Jane D. Hull to serve on Arizona’s Merit Award System Board and served as its Chairman (2002-2004). He currently serves on the Advisory Board of Experience Matters, as Honorary Commander at Luke Air Force Base (Alumnus), as an Advisory member for the REF Fund, Arizona Community Foundation, and as a Board member for the Be A Leader Foundation. He is a former member of the Task Force for the National State Relations Conference (Chair, 2004). Bustamante also served as the community college presidents’ staff liaison to the Governor’s Task Force on Higher Education (2000).

Bustamante received his Doctorate and Master’s degrees in Educational Leadership from Northern Arizona University (NAU). He also attended Pima Community College and Harvard University, and graduated from the University of Arizona in 1983 with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration/Finance. He currently serves as an Adjunct Professor for NAU in the M.Ed. in Educational Leadership Program/Maricopa cohort.

Chandler Teacher Deemed Excellent

2010-01-12T13:33:00.000-08:00

Chandler High School teacher LuAnn Ewan was named the January Excellence in Education Award winner from Rio Salado College and KEZ 99.9 FM. With Ewan (right) is student Kate Marlowe and KEZ’s Marty Manning.

To nominate a teacher, please visit http://www.kez999.com.