2012

Published June 15, 2012 2:55 pm

Creston, IA—After an extensive external search, Southwestern Community College (SWCC) looked within to find the right person to lead the college’s new track and field program.  Bill Huntington, who has been the Spartans cross country coach for the past six years, was announced as the head coach for the college’s new track and field program that will begin this fall.  Huntington is wrapping up his duties as dean of students at Orient-Macksburg High School and will start full-time at Southwestern on July 9.

SWCC has had a cross country program in place since 2006.  The Spartans’ men’s and women’s cross country teams, under the direction of Huntington and Assistant Coach Cari Stalker, have been national contenders throughout the years.  They have led the Southwestern cross country team to a national ranking for the past six years.

Published May 25, 2012 1:32 pm

Mark your calendars! SWCC Nights at two area speedways will be held during the month of June.  Clarke County Speedway Night will be held on Sat., June 16, 2012, and the Adams County Speedway Night will be held on Sat., June 23, 2012. 

The Clarke County Speedway is located at 2495 Highway 34 (on the north side of Highway 34) just east of Osceola.   Pits open at 5 p.m., hot laps begin at 6:30 p.m., and racing begins at 7 p.m.

The Adams County Speedway is located at the Adams County Fairgrounds in Corning.  The fairgrounds are located one mile north of Highway 34 on Highway 148, then east on 12th Street.  Gates open at 5 p.m. and the races begin at 7 p.m.  The Adams County Speedway's 2012 schedule kicked off on April 21 and continues each Saturday night through September 22.

Published May 23, 2012 9:21 am

Dr. Jane Bradley, Southwestern Community College’s associate vice president of instruction, poses with Governor Terry Branstad at the Governor’s STEM Advisory Council Co-Chairs Reception on Monday, May 14, 2012, at Terrace Hill in Des Moines. The reception was a prelude to the Iowa Statewide STEM Summit that took place on Tues., May 15. Southwestern was recently selected as one of six regional network hubs to promote STEM education and economic development across Iowa. The college is actively seeking a dynamic person to fill the position of STEM hub manager. This person will serve as an advocate for public schools, colleges, universities, business and industry to facilitate the STEM efforts in southwest Iowa. STEM areas include science, technology, engineering and math.

Published May 22, 2012 8:25 am

CRESTON — Southwestern Community College (SWCC) students Hunter Brown of Mt. Ayr and Cody Bristow of Creston placed seventh overall in the 2012 Iowa Ford/AAA Student Auto Skills Competition on Tuesday, May 8, 2012, at Des Moines Area Community College in Ankeny.  This competition recognizes some of the best high school auto technicians in the state.

Published May 10, 2012 2:38 pm

Creston— The Southwestern Community College (SWCC) board of directors met on Tuesday, May 8, 2012, at 5:30 p.m. in the SWCC Administration Center for their regular board meeting.
During the meeting, the board approved a bid of $215,000 from Bill Messerole and Devon Leith for the sale of the student-constructed carpentry house at 1301 N. Mulberry Street in Creston.

Uncollectible account write-offs were approved as presented by Teresa Krejci, SWCC chief financial officer.  Krejci said the accounts presented to the board, most of them from fiscal year 2009-10, had been at collections with little or no activity for 18 months or more.  Krejci explained although the account balances are written-off, students’ transcripts are held and students cannot register for additional classes until the balance is paid.

Bill Taylor, SWCC vice president of instruction, spoke to the board concerning negotiations underway with the Union County Development Association (UCDA) for construction of a home by the 2012-13 college carpentry program.  Taylor explained the property, which will be located in Creston, would be owned by UCDA.  Taylor said within 60 days of completion, the home would be purchased by UCDA if it was not already sold.  Taylor reminded the board that the college has three remaining lots in the College Park Subdivision as well.  Following Taylor’s summary, the board authorized the SWCC administration to enter into a Building Partnership Contract with UCDA for the construction of the home.

During the president’s report, Charlie Mundy, SWCC Osceola high school carpentry instructor, presented to the board concerning the many service projects his students have completed.  The group has traveled to locations affected by disaster to assist with rebuilding efforts.  Trips have included locations such as Louisiana, Texas, South Dakota, and Joplin, MO.

Dr. Barb Crittenden, SWCC president, and Tom Lesan, SWCC vice president of economic development, presented to the board regarding the recovery effort that has been underway on the Creston campus following the April 14 tornado.  Crittenden showed the board a presentation outlining the damage on campus and Lesan updated the board about progress-to-date, as well as upcoming reconstruction that will take place.  According to Lesan, reconstruction quotes are due from contractors by Friday and reconstruction could start as early as next week.

Crittenden reminded the board about Spring 2012 Commencement, which will take place Fri., May 11, 2012, at 7:30 p.m.  Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President of the United States Joe Biden, will be the guest speaker.

Other upcoming events Crittenden mentioned included Summer 2012 Commencement, which is scheduled for Fri., June 29, at 7:30 p.m. and the 13th Annual Athletic Golf Tournament, scheduled for Sat., May 19, at Crestmoor Golf Club in Creston.

Jerry Smith, SWCC board member and Iowa Association for Community College Trustees (IACCT) representative, reported the annual IACCT Retreat will be held at Okoboji from July 25-27.

Published May 3, 2012 8:21 am

Planning is underway for the Fri., May 11, 2012, Spring Commencement Ceremony.  The ceremony will be held at 7:30 p.m. in the Student Center on the Creston campus.

Graduates, if you haven't already received a letter in the mail related to the commencement ceremony, please read this important Graduation Information. 

Graduation Checklist

Published May 2, 2012 4:15 pm

CRESTON — Southwestern Community College collision repair/refinish student Sheldon Triggs of Mt. Ayr was named gold medalist in collision repair at the Iowa SkillsUSA 2012 competition in Ankeny on Fri., April 25, 2012. He is now headed to the national competition, which will be held during the National Leadership and Skills Conference, in Kansas City, MO, June 23-27, 2012.

Triggs, a freshman, is a May 2011 graduate of Mt. Ayr high school. He will receive his diploma in collision repair/refinish at the end of June and then plans to return to SWCC in the fall to earn his associate of applied science degree from SWCC’s collision repair program. Triggs is maintaining a 4.0 cumulative grade point average.

Published May 2, 2012 10:22 am

Southwestern Community College and 10 other Iowa community colleges that educate high school students through concurrent enrollment programs have earned accreditation from the National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships (NACEP). NACEP accreditation validates the quality of programs providing college courses to high school students.

Published April 27, 2012 11:23 am

The Southwestern Community College Education Foundation will soon provide scholarship funding to students through the Bob Bauman Memorial Scholarship. Beginning fall 2012, one scholarship will be awarded annually to a second year student with a major in music.  The student must have compiled a 3.0 or above grade point average. The endowment was recently established by Bauman’s family.

Pictured above from left to right are Dr. Barb Crittenden, SWCC president; Unity Bauman-Anderson, Chris Anderson, Adam Bauman, and Dr. Matt Thompson, SWCC Education Foundation executive director.

Published April 24, 2012 5:02 pm

Be sure to check out the Pay it Forward Week photos at SWCC Pay it Forward on Facebook!

Southwestern Community College’s Pay it Forward (PIF) Week is back on the calendar!  Activities begin Wednesday at the college and around the community.  During PIF Week, which will run April 25-May 2, SWCC students, faculty, and staff get involved in encouraging positive behaviors and service to the community.   

Originally, SWCC’s PIF Week was scheduled for April 15-20, but events had to be re-scheduled due to the April 14 tornado that hit the college’s Creston campus.
This is the fourth year SWCC has held PIF Week.  For a complete list of PIF Week activities planned at SWCC, please visit www.swcciowa.edu/pif.