Vol. XXXV, No. 40

October 16, 2006

This Week at Valencia

Monday, October 16

Instructional Affairs, 8:30 a.m., East Campus, 3-113

Atlas Application Advisory Group, 3 p.m., West Campus, 9-218

Tuesday, October 17

District Board of Trustees, 8:30 a.m., West Campus, 6-202

Wednesday, October 18

College Operations Council, 9:15 a.m., West Campus, 6-202

Change in Class C Travel Reimbursement

Due to conflicting language in the Florida House and Senate travel bills, it was previously determined that Class C travel meal reimbursement was prohibited again in the current fiscal year (July 1, 2006 – June 30, 2007). However, the 2006 Florida Statutes 112.061 (5)(b) allow Class C travel, defined as short day trips (no overnight stay) outside of Orange and Osceola Counties, within the following guidelines:

• Breakfast ($6) if travel begins before 6 a.m. and extends after 8 a.m.

• Lunch ($11) if travel begins before 12 noon and extends beyond 2 p.m.

• Dinner ($19) travel begins before $6 p.m. and extends beyond 8 p.m., or when travel occurs during nighttime hours due to special assignment.

Effective immediately, Class C travel will be reimbursed if claimed on the Per Diem and Other Local Mileage Voucher form. Please note that departmental travel budgets will not be increased due to the State’s change in Class C travel reimbursement policy.

Please contact Marcey Camacho at ext. 3310 or Therese Simson at ext. 3312 if you need additional information about Class C travel reimbursement.

Apply Now To Participate In Valencia’s Focus On The Workplace Program

Applications are being accepted to participate in Spring Term and Summer Term A 2007. This exciting program enables you to spend time out in business and industry so you can learn more about the corporate culture; how employees are expected to communicate, perform and work together, as well as exciting employment opportunities and career paths available for students.

All full-time, tenure or tenure-track faculty, full-time counselors, advisors and professional staff are eligible to apply with your supervisor’s approval. Eligible faculty are released from two 3-credit hour classes to participate. Advisors, counselors and professional staff are released for 40-80 hours (one-two weeks) and can participate any time during the year.

For more information and to get an application, go to:valenciacc.edu/focus/. The deadline to apply is October 18th. If you need more time, please contact LeSena Jones at ext. 3344.

Annual Hiring Freeze

The annual hiring freeze for new full-time employees will soon be in effect. To hire an employee before the freeze becomes effective, the employee must begin work on or before November 13, 2006. After that date, recruitment activities may be conducted through Human Resources department and offers of employment may be extended, however, the employee may not begin work until January 8, 2007.

Faculty, Staff and Students it’s Time to Bring Your Children, Grandchildren, Brothers and Sisters to School!

A story time with children’s author Dianne Ochiltree will be held in the Health Science Building on Valencia’s West Campus on November 11 from 10-11:30 a.m. This event which is part of the Raising Readers program, will include stations for children to draw pictures of the stories they’ve heard. Light refreshments will be served. For additional information please contact the Communications Department office at ext. 1313.

Upcoming Leadership Valencia Classes

Formation is For Everyone - Join us for ongoing, relaxed lunch conversations around Parker Palmer's essay, "13 Ways of Looking at Community." Our first meeting will be to introduce Parker Palmer and Formation; thereafter, alternating lunch on East and West campuses throughout the year, each time talking with others about one of the 13 ways. This is a time for faculty, staff, and administrators to practice ways of speaking and being heard that allow a group to become a deeply respectful and caring community-in-learning where each person has a voice. October 24, 1-2 p.m., East Campus, Room 4-212B, registration code: LFORM8.

Effective Meeting Planning - Attendees will be exposed to the many facets needed to prepare an effective meeting at Valencia. Topics will include room reservations, calendaring, creating agendas, taking minutes, proper timing and more. Note: This session is sponsored by Career Staff Council. October 17, 9-11 a.m., East Campus, Room 3-113, registration code: PEMP.

AAWCC: Path to Leadership - Leadership development is for everyone. Join us as we continue our series of brown bag lunches with various Valencia leaders as they share their own stories about their path to leadership. Each person's interpretation of leadership and his or her journey is unique. Note: Sponsored by the Valencia Chapter of American Association for Women in Community Colleges (AAWCC). October 17, 3:30-4:45 p.m., Winter Park Campus, Room 108, registration code: PPTL.

Circles of Belonging - Ever wonder what makes a person tick? Individual experiences play a huge part in shaping the way in which we interact with others and view the world around us. This in-depth interactive workshop will examine how diversity of experience impacts our interpersonal communications and relationships. Through discovery and discussion, learn more about yourself and the people around you. Participants will leave the session with an increased understanding of and appreciation for similarities and differences. October 19, 4-8 p.m., CJI Auditorium, Room 100, registration code: PCOB3 OR October 27, 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Osceola Campus, Room 2-240, registration code: PCOB4.

Migrating Your Existing Course From WebCT 4.1 to WebCT 6 - This workshop will show you how to move your existing WebCT course from version 4.1 to the latest version 6. You will be given information on how to perform the procedure, learn some common pitfalls, hear about some migration strategies, and see an example of how existing content moves into the new environment. You will have the opportunity to schedule an appointment with an LTAD staff member at the conclusion of the workshop. October 20, 1-3 p.m., West Campus, Room 5-214, registration code: TWCT1020 OR October 27, 1-3 p.m., Osceola Campus, Room 3-300, registration code: TWCT1027.

Reading Circle: Eight Habits of the Heart – Join us for this 2-hour brown bag lunch discussion of Clifton Taulbert’s book Eight Habits of the Heart. Note: Sponsored by the Valencia Chapter of American Association for Women in Community Colleges (AAWCC). October 25, 11 a.m.-1 p.m., East Campus, Room 8-105D, registration code: LREAD.

To register for any Leadership Valencia classes and for more information go to http://valencia.cc.fl.us/ leadership.

NISOD Nominations

Please consider nominating a worthy colleague for the National Institute for Staff & Organizational Development (NISOD) Excellence in Learning Leadership Award. The purpose of the NISOD awards program at Valencia is to recognize members of the faculty, staff and administration for outstanding accomplishments in improving student learning. Recipients should have demonstrated meritorious learning leadership, as outlined in the award guidelines.

To request a nomination form and guidelines, please contact Becky Gallup, College & Community Relations, extension 3218. Please note the submission deadline is Friday, November 10, 2006.

For more information about NISOD and this year's conference (May 20 – 23, 2007), visit www.nisod.org .

Kudos

Jeffery Donley, professor of Fine Arts and Humanities on West Campus, made a presentation on the Winter Park Campus to students, faculty and individuals from Rollins College. The title of the presentation was "Rocking" the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Pam Sandy, program director for Dental Hygiene, and her students recently attended the Florida Dental Hygiene Association Symposium. Valencia took first place in the table clinic competition and second year students, Julie Kendall, Priti Mehta, Carol Murphy and Teresa Turner gave a wonderful presentation. First year student, Jonathan Cruz was elected as the FSADHA treasurer. Pam received numerous compliments on her student’s presence, enthusiasm and professionalism. Many thanks to Student Development for making it possible for the students to attend.

Brian and Lisa Macon are pleased to announce the birth of their son, Bryce Thomas, on July 6, 2006. Bryce was 7 lbs., 13 oz. and 21 inches long. Big sisters Tracy-Lynn and Sheridan just adore him.

Please Welcome These New Full-Time Employees

Cynthia Cerrato, director, Standardized Testing, Assessment, mc 4-29, ext. 1644
Celeste Henry, coordinator, Student Development-Osceola, mc 6-1, ext. 4159
Maureen Olivera, staff assistant II, Educational and Student Services, mc 6-1, ext. 4852
Milton Scott, Sr., Jose Camacho and Kevin Fuller, custodians, Custodial Services-West, mc 4-9, ext. 1217
Jenelle Conner, staff assistant I, Educator Preparation Institute, mc 4-1, ext. 4481
Erin Smith, coordinator, Conferencing Services, mc DTC-1, ext. 3109
Carol Thompson, instructional assistant, Mathematics-West, mc 4-23, ext. 1357
Mark Hose, facility planner, Facilities, mc 4-21, ext. 1704
Ana Alberty, Library Assistant, East, mc 3-4, ext. 2461

East Campus faculty:
Leslie Brasseux, Humanities, mc 3-2, ext. 2128
Dorothy Charron, English, mc 3-20, ext. 2113
Abdellatif, Dasser, Mathematics, mc 3-16, ext. 2488
Bushra Javid, Chemistry, mc 3-23, ext. 2893
Susan Mildner, Humanites, mc 3-2, ext. 2349
Anne Noge, Humanities, mc 3-2, ext. 2804
Terry Pasfield, Humanities, mc 3-2, ext. 2067
Patrick Prince, Business, mc 3-25, ext. 2346

West Campus faculty:
Ruby Alvarez, Nursing, mc 4-14, ext. 1546
Rhonda Atkinson, Education, mc 4-32, ext. 1415
Ken Carpenter, Journalism, mc 4-11, ext. 1170
Nelly Cintron-Lorenzo, Accounting, mc 4-32, ext. 1483
Wanda Aponte, Chemistry, mc 4-3, ext. 1435
Miriam DeJesus, Nursing, mc 4-14, ext. 1783
Sean Jennings, Psychology, mc 4-32, ext. 1072
James Kendall, Political Science, mc 4-32, ext. 1203
Michael Snyder, Economics, mc 4-32, ext. 1062
Emilio Vazquez, Electronics Engineering, mc 4-41, ext. 1945


Osceola Campus faculty:
Amee Mehta, Biology, mc 6-8, ext. 4221

A Fond Farewell to These Recent Retirees and Soon-to-Be Retirees

Dris Hallock, Testing-West, retired 8/31/06
James Weaver, CJI, retired 9/29/06
Glyne Burke, Security-Osceola, retired 9/29/06
Dale Giesel, Security-East, retired 9/1/06