REGENTS & RETENTION
Many important items are on the agenda of the Board of Regents’ first regular session of the New Year at Charleston Campus yesterday and today in Bldg. D152. Topics include the UCCSN master plan, credit card solicitation, termination of CCSN’s agreement with Las Vegas to build soccer fields at Charleston, support policies for increased university admission standards, Regents awards, and approval of the nomination of a new CCSN vice president for student services. Other items include handbook revisions dealing with naming buildings, confidential records, summer session salary flexibility, and personal use of System property. Complete agenda details are available online at UCCSN.

In my President’s Report to the Regents yesterday and in my speech last week to the Latin Chamber of Commerce, I was pleased to share some great news about our student retention efforts. Ordinarily a one percent jump in retention in one year would be greeted with smiles. But when CCSN increased retention by 2.13 percent this fall over last, that deserves a rousing cheer. During the same time, our Millennium scholar retention rocketed from 82 percent to almost 90 percent while we grew from 1,100 to nearly 2,000 Millennium scholars this fall.

We should cheer our persistent students and committed faculty who are central to our improved retention, but there are other colleagues who also help our students to take a long range view and assist them to successfully stay the course to continue and complete their educations. In the forefront of making all these progress is CCSN’s student government. Thanks to a special ASCCSN $60,000 grant to help all students succeed, a special student coaches program was born and our mentoring program was substantially strengthened. Student government and the rest of our Retention team of student services and TRIO, counselors, mentors, student coaches, tutors, and financial aid and Millennium Scholarship staff among others all deserve applause.

In addition to seeing our most talented students advance, we should all feel special satisfaction and pride knowing we are truly helping our most challenged students succeed and reach their goals.

Opening Day at Cheyenne

DR. ROBERT ANDERSON NOMINATED AS STUDENT SERVICES VICE PRESIDENT

Dr. Robert A. Anderson Jr., president of Colorado Northwestern Community College, was approved unanimously today by the Board of Regents as nominee for the position of Student Services Vice President. He is an outstanding college educator with 35 years experience in executive administration, student development and academics.

JASON EXPLORES “ FROZEN WORLDS” photo
CCSN is once again a national host site for the worldwide JASON Project from Jan. 28 through Feb. 8 via live satellite broadcasts and interactive Internet programming in the Horn Theatre and exhibits in the Horn lobby and student center at Cheyenne campus.

Locally, JASON XIII “Frozen Worlds” will take 25,000 southern Nevada students and teachers in grades 4-9 on an adventure to some of the colder regions of our planet and solar system. Alaska and the Polar Regions will serve as comparative venues and the laboratory for examining three main research questions:

• What are the dynamic systems of Earth and Space?
• How do these systems affect life on Earth?
• What technologies are used to study these systems and why?

The public is invited to free live satellite broadcasts in the Horn staged by the JASON Argonauts Monday through Friday, Jan. 28-Feb. 8 at 7 a.m. and 8:30 a.m., as well as Saturday morning, Feb. 2 at 7, 8:30, 10 and 11:30, plus 1 p.m.

Theo Byrns and Debra Solt
Confer on ACT Center Plans

ACT CENTER GRAND OPENING
The Green Valley Center now houses southern Nevada’s ACT testing and specialized training in workforce and economic development. A grand opening on Friday, Feb. 15 from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. will introduce businesses, employees and students to services and technical instruction.

ACT is a national testing and training network that provides assessment, research and program management services for educational planning, careers and workforce development. ACT provides pertinent and timely information to help students achieve educational goals, employees reach career goals and employers meet business objectives.

"A skilled workforce is crucial to a prosperous economy," said Dr. Ron Remington, president of CCSN. "Our ACT Center will be a resource for area employees and employers to benefit from the latest training programs and methods."

ACT services include WorkKeys™ assessment and job profiling services, information technology programs, e-Learning for business, personal, management and functional skills, direct mentoring and other collaborative support for the learner.

"Local residents can use the ACT Center to boost their skills and qualify for better jobs, while employers use the assessment and training programs to hire and develop employees, raise productivity, morale and profits," said Debra Solt, Green Valley site manager.

Other services include SmartForce, an online training library for community businesses; REALskills!, which trains employees to earn information technology certification; Computer Adaptive Technologies, providing certification tests for providers such as Lotus, Compaq and Navision; and GlobalEnglish, which provides English as a second language Internet training to native speakers of ten languages, including Spanish, Japanese, German, Chinese and Portuguese.

WINE TASTING FOR SCHOLARSHIPS
Wine, spirits, hors d’oeuvres, art, jazz, and a valuable silent auction highlight CCSN’s 7th Annual Wine Tasting -- “An Educational Taste of Excellence”. The scholarship fund-raiser will be Saturday, Feb. 23 at Cheyenne, June Whitley Student Center, from 7-10 p.m.

Tickets are $25.00 in advance and $30.00 at the door. (No one under 21 will be admitted). For more information, call ext. 4440. Tickets can be purchased at the Horn Box Office, phone 651-LIVE, and all Lee’s Discount Liquor locations.

THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
Thanks to the efforts of dedicated English faculty Lynn Forkos and Tina Eliopulos, the college produces “Looking Glass” a wonderful literary magazine showcasing the writing talents of staff and students as well as faculty. The 2002 edition will be published in April. Deadline for submissions is March 15. Writers are encouraged to submit an essay, short story, or poem of no more than 1,000 words. Please submit to Lynn or Tina at J2A with your name, address, and phone number. If sending a student's work, please include that information too.

GATHERING OF EAGLES MAR. 22-23
Nevada’s Second Annual Community College Conference, hosted by CCSN Mar. 22-23, marks the start of the second century of progress by America’s community colleges. Advance registration fee is $50 up to March 1 and $60 thereafter. Contact Michelle Word at ext 4518 for more information. Return applications to Gayle Thomas, H8B.

SPRING REGISTRATION
Late registration continues through Jan. 28. To govern Spring 2002 late registrations during designated time frames, the following process applies, reviewed and approved through the Office of Academic Affairs.

Week 1 (Jan. 22-28) No signatures are required unless students try to enroll in a FULL section. If FULL, the instructor's signature/approval is required. If an instructor is not available to sign, the appropriate Dean or Department Chair or their designee may sign with the instructor's approval.

Week 2 (Jan. 29-Feb. 4) Only the instructor's signature is required for all enrollments. If the instructor is not available, an appropriate Dean or Department Chair or their designee may sign with the instructor's approval.

Week 3-8 (Feb. 5-March 18) Instructor and appropriate Dean or Department Chair or their designee's signatures are required for all enrollments. If the instructor is not available, an appropriate Dean or Department Chair or their designee may sign with the instructor's approval.

Week 9 and beyond (after March 18) Instructor, appropriate Dean or Department Chair, and Vice President of Academic Affairs or the Vice President's designee must sign. If the instructor is not available, an appropriate Dean or Department Chair or their designee may sign with the instructor's approval.

Academic Master Plan
Prof. Sandra Strickland is awaiting your comments and suggestions to the draft Academic Master Plan for 2002-04. Your input is needed before the end of January to meet deadline.

COYOTE ATHLETICS

The Coyotes 100th win under head coach and athletic director Tim Chambers could come this weekend. With a stellar 99-19 record after just two collegiate baseball seasons, the Coyotes ranked among the National Junior College Athletic Association’s top twenty teams both years. The season opens with two home games against Arizona Western College today at 5 p.m. and Saturday at noon, both at Lied Field’s new stadium facilities on the Henderson campus. CCSN is 1-1 lifetime against AWC’s Matadors from Yuma.

The 56-game regular season schedule includes 36 at home with 40 against Scenic West Athletic Conference opponents. “The Coyotes switch to wood bats to compete for our first year in the tough SWAC that raises its share of nationally-ranked teams in several sports,” said Chambers. “We need to play the best to become the best and vie for the NJCAA World Series title.”

SWAC opponents include: Utah schools Dixie State which finished No. 2 last year, the College of Eastern Utah, Snow College, Utah Valley State College and Salt Lake Community College; from Idaho, Ricks College, College of Southern Idaho and North Idaho College of Coeur d’Alene; plus Colorado Northwestern Community College and Oregon’s Treasure Valley Community College.

In all, the Coyotes play 19 teams from eight states, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Oregon, Utah and Washington. These include Santa Ana and Cerritos Colleges, ranked fourth and eleventh respectively in California state polls. Check the Coyotes Men’s Baseball 2002 Spring Season Schedule.

Top Five Hardcover Fiction

1. One Door Away From Heaven by Dean Koontz
2. Skipping Christmas by John Grisham
3. Basket Case by Carl Hiaasen
4. The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen
5. The Millonaires by Brad Meltzer

Top Five Paperback Fiction

1. A Painted House by John Grisham
2. Plain Jane by Fern Michaels
3. Heaven And Earth by Nora Roberts
4. Dream Country by Luanne Rice
5. A Walk To Remember by Nicholas Sparks