Letter from the President
Lewis and Clark enters 2018 with a great deal of optimism and momentum, following a strong 2017, highlighted by a number of strategic successes, highlighted below.
Through fiscal responsibility and without fanfare, Lewis and Clark weathered two consecutive years of severely diminished state funding by reducing total dependency on the state by more than 25 percent. Further demonstrating our positive financial track record, a third party audit resulted in zero findings, while the college received praise for its $1.2 million reduction in spending, the lowest in five years. All the while, the college continued to meet obligations to its employee groups and offer the highest of quality services to the district.
L&C’s 2017 freshman class, an impressive 1,860 students, topped freshman class sizes at Northern Illinois University (1,852), Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (1,797), SIU Carbondale (1,319), Western Illinois University (1,206) and Eastern Illinois University (634). The college is ranked the 12th largest of 22 higher education institutions in the St. Louis metropolitan area by the St. Louis Business Journal, educating 10,145 credit students and more than 15,000 total students annually.
Our continued $369.4 million economic impact on the region continues to be essential. Increasingly, we are becoming known as experts in defining economic development needs throughout our region.
Our 43 career programs, guided by advisors who work in and lead the region’s workforce, ensure that students leave here with the skills they need for a successful career. We have 65 guaranteed transfer agreements with 28 colleges and universities, assuring transfer students, who represent 52 percent of the L&C student body, a smooth academic transfer.
The L&C National Great Rivers Research and Education Center contributes to the economic and environmental sustainability of the rivers and watersheds throughout our district. This year, we partnered with Riverside Research to launch a research pilot to improve water quality monitoring through the use of nanosatellite technology. In education, we expanded programming for teachers through the Swarovski Waterschool USA Mississippi River and teamed up with SIUE and the MJCH Foundation for a new “STEM Meets Humanities” initiative.
Through the Hatheway Cultural Center and Mannie Jackson Center for the Humanities, L&C provides cultural programming across the spectrum. One standout this year was a forum, featuring basketball Hall of Fame legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, which focused on addressing contemporary issues of polarization.
As president of Lewis and Clark Community College and on behalf of the Board of Trustees, faculty and administration, I want to express my appreciation for the commitment of the people and businesses of our district for their continued support for these programs and many more. With your continued support, we look forward to another banner year in 2018.
Achieving Academic Excellence
L&C launched its first Honors College cohort in Fall 2017 with six students. By the end of the year, the program grew to 10 students and a one-year fellowship program.
Jersey Grad Madelynn Clevenger, 18, of Piasa, Illinois, became L&C's first Honors College student.
The 40th Annual Honors Banquet celebrated the achievements of 78 outstanding Lewis and Calrk students Friday, April 29, 2017.
Members of the L&C's Phi Theta Kappa, Eta Psi chapter, recreate historical images on the campus of the former Monticello College.
In 2017, a record total of 15 area valedictorians and salutatorians applied, and 12 ultimately enrolled at Lewis and Clark.
L&C and The Bridge hosted more than 100 students from 13 member schools for the Illinois Community College Journalism Association (ICCJA) spring conference.
The college’s first winter intersession, which ran December 2016-January 2017, comprised 11 courses in a four-week format between traditional semesters. In total, 113 students took one or more courses with a success rate of 94 percent.
The Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) program was granted continued accreditation by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) in August 2017, with the next on-site evaluation scheduled for 2022-2023.
L&C's Medical Assisting Program received an initial four-year accreditation from the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES).
L&C’s Dental Hygiene program announced 100 percent first-time pass rates for both clinical regional boards and written national boards for 2016. The L&C Dental Assisting program also had a 100 percent first-time pass rate for the written national board exam in 2016.
The Nursing program announced that L&C’s National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) pass rate of 86 percent exceeded the 2016 state and national average of 85 percent for all Baccalaureate and ADN programs.
The Fall 2017 Inservice Week put a spotlight on the research efforts of the college's faculty and academic administrators. Projects highlighted included General Psychology contextualized with developmental reading and writing, a report on student success during the first winter intersession, a report on Complete College America pilot results in math and English, a data report on the impact of student support services on success, a data update from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), a system of interrelated surveys conducted annually by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), and a study of the States of Faculty Development and Using Qualitative Data to Improve Student Success.
Paul Kuebrich joined the college as a new instructor in Process Operations Technology and Instrumentation and Control Systems.
Tricia Martin joined the college as new associate professor in Criminal Justice.
Vice President of Enrollment Kent Scheffel announced research showing dual credit students are more successful. Researchers found that 53 percent of community college students in Illinois who have dual credit earn higher education credentials (degree or certificate), but that rate drops to 45 percent among students who did not take dual credit.
Celebrating Awards and Accolades
Assistant Professor Luke Jumper, who coordinates the Architectural Technology and Drafting & Design programs and is director of the St. Louis Confluence Fab Lab, became the college's first statewide Illinois Community College Trustees Association (ICCTA) Outstanding Faculty Member Award recipient.
Nursing student Whitney Weeks, who was sworn in for her second term as L&C's Student Trustee in 2017, was given an award for being the "Most Passionate" student serving on the Illinois Community College Board's Student Advisory Committee in early 2017.
The Bridge Student Newspaper staff won third place win in the John M. Ryan Best of Show Competition at the Illinois Community College Journalism Association's Fall Conference, held at Eastern Illinois University Oct. 5-6.
Student Art Show award winners in 2017 included Kevin Greene, Taylor Cranmer, Marion Black, Teresa Frisch and Dustin Kent.
L&C Trustee Robert L. Watson was honored by the ICCTA for 40 years of service to the L&C community.
Former WLCA 89.9-FM DJ Amanda Valentine and her on-air partner Jesse Tack won the Country Music Association's Large Market Personality of the Year Award in 2017.
Women's Tennis players Jane Grieser and Madeline Swiecicki were named to the NJCAA's Third Team All-Academic.
The 2017 Trailblazers Women's Soccer team went to the NJCAA National Tournament in Melbourne, Florida, and ended their season at 18-3.
The men's soccer team finished the season with a record of 12-5. Darcy Madden was named Region 24 Defensive Player of the Year. Three players were named on the All Region 24 Team - Morapeli Lesoesta (First Team), Rhys Saunders (Second Team) and P.J. Amponsah (Second Team).
The volleyball team finished its season with a record of 18-17. Bailey Jarman was named to the First Team MWAC All Conference Team. Both Bailey Jarman and Jenna Brown were named to the Second Team All Region 24 Team. Out of 131 NJCAA Division II Teams, the volleyball team ranked 1st in digs, 9th in blocks, 25th in assists and 28th in kills. Out of approximately 1,400 NJCAA Division II players, Jenna Brown ranked 3rd and Bailey Jarman ranked 20th in digs per set; Jenna Brown ranked 1st, Bailey Jarman ranked 29th, and Grace Stephens ranked 44th in total digs; and Allie Jackson ranked 11th in assists/set. Savanna Stevens also played back-to-back matches without any hitting errors, a feat which Coach Johnna Kinney said she hadn't seen yet in her 20 year career. On Oct. 27, against Frontier, she had 13 kills out of 26 attempts; and then on Oct. 28, against Rend Lake, she had 14 kills out of 27 attempts. The women were also noted for their academic performance, with several players planning to graduate with 4.0 GPAs.
Trailblazer Golfers Joaquin Perez and Brian Gebben competed against more than 130 junior college players in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) D-II championship tournament May 23-26 at Longbow Golf Club in Mesa, Arizona.
Golfer Brian Gebben was named to the NJCAA's Second Team All-Academic.
Baseball player David Ertl was named to the NJCAA's Third Team All-Academic.
In August, the college welcomed members of the 1979 Bucks Volleyball team, along with Coach Judy Gass and Athletic Director Arnold Copeland, to the George C. Terry River Bend Arena for their induction into the L&C Athletics Hall of Fame.
Volleyball Coach Johnna Kinney and Men's Basketball Coach/Athletic Director Doug Stotler were each elected to serve two year terms on the NJCAA National Board of Directors.
Men's Tennis player Jared Smith was named to the NJCAA's Third Team All-Academic.
1998 Women's Soccer standout Angie Bode-Parsons was inducted into the NJCAA Hall of Fame in front of her former coach, Tim Rooney, and with the support of the 2017 Trailblazers, Sunday, Nov. 12, in Melbourne, Florida.
Four Men's Basketball players earned full ride athletic scholarships to NCAA universities: Tobi Ewuosho (Alabama State University), Will Sides (West Georgia University), Wale Odifin (Truman State University) and Luka Radosevic (Lindenwood University).
Women's Basketball player Jordann Wilson was named to the NJCAA's Third Team All-Academic.
Blazing New Trails
In May, Jersey Community High School Senior Anne Snyders participated in L&C's Commencement a week before walking in her high school graduation, thanks to dual credit and concurrent enrollment courses.
L&C's Early Bird Registration program saw a record 465 participants, registering for a total of 5,505 credit hours in 2017. Early Bird Registration begins in February and allows students from high schools across the district to visit campus as a group, talk to Financial Aid and Admissions, take a campus tour, enjoy a free lunch, and meet with advisors to sign up for summer and fall classes.
L&C announced a new Reverse Transfer Agreement with Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, which allows students who transfer to SIUE prior to receiving a degree to transfer courses backward and earn L&C credentials on their way to a bachelor's degree.
Dennis Krieb, director of Institutional Research and Library Services, presented on the ethical use of library data to discover correlations between library use and student success at the national conference of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) in Baltimore, Maryland.
The L&C National Great Rivers Research and Education Center became the site of the first North American Swarovski Waterschool, now known as the Swarovski Waterschool USA Mississippi River.
Director of Enrollment and Advising Delfina Dornes was elected to serve as the Southern District chair for the Illinois Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (IACRAO), a professional organization that serves about 500 individuals from more than 100 colleges and universities throughout the state.
L&C and the Southern Illinois University School of Dental Medicine partnered to provide oral health care for underserved patients in Calhoun County, as part of its focus on interprofessional collaboration.
The L&C Honors College's first student, Madelynn Clevenger, received the St. Louis Regional Chamber's Game Changer Award. Along with four other community college students, Clevenger was awarded a $2,000 scholarship, payable over a two year period, for embodying outstanding drive, grit and academic ambition.
L&C received the 2017 TRPP Innovation Award and $1,000 to continue its successful efforts as part of the Co-requisite Remedial Academy conducted by Complete College America. After one semester, L&C showed increases in the percentage of developmental students in co-requisite courses who successfully completed college-level courses in one semester.
Building World Class Learning Environments
The Monticello Sculpture Gardens' 2017 curated garden show, Solar Flair, celebrated light, energy, lunar cycles and how plants connect with the cosmos. The show coincided with a total solar eclipse, which took place on Aug. 21, also the first day of fall classes.
As part of the annual summer cascade, a total 185 new computers, including 150 desktop PCs and 35 laptops, were installed in classrooms, offices and labs on various L&C campuses. Many PCs were upgraded to Windows 10.
The St. Louis Confluence Fab Lab at L&C's N.O. Nelson Campus in Edwardsville hosted the United States Fab Lab Network (USFLN) Symposium March 13-15, followed by a two-day Legacy Woodworking workshop March 16-17.
The college installed new Dentrix software in the Dental Clinic and for the Dental Assisting and Dental Hygiene programs. The college strives to create learning experiences using the same technology that is utilized in career fields so students are better prepared for work.
The college officially broke ground on the new Weber Workforce Center Building, which is currently under construction and slated for a spring opening. Funded by a nearly $3.25 million gift from the estate of local resident Ed Weber, the building will provide much needed space for Welding Technology and allow the college to add more programming in the future.
Emerson, a global technology and engineering company headquartered in St. Louis, became the first premier corporate member of Lewis and Clark Community College's St. Louis Confluence Fab Lab in Edwardsville
Developing the Region's Workforce
More than 1,000 students earned degrees or certificates and nearly 200 students participated in L&C's 46th Annual Commencement ceremony May 17, 2017 in the Ann Whitney Olin Theatre inside the Hatheway Cultural Center.
Karen Hunter Anderson, executive director of the Illinois Community College Board, addressed the crowd celebrating L&C's Class of 2017 at the 46th Annual Commencement.
A new program in Instrumentation and Control Systems, related to the college's popular Process Operations Technology program, was approved and began enrolling for Fall. The program includes an Associate in Applied Science and Certificate of Proficiency and operates from the college's N.O. Nelson Campus.
Lewis and Clark Community College (L&C) and the University of Missouri-St. Louis (UMSL) signed a new transfer agreement for criminal justice students to help provide a seamless transfer between the two institutions.
More than 100 students earned their General Equivalency Diploma (GED®) through Lewis and Clark Community College's Adult Education department and the Regional Office of Education No. 40 Adult Learning Center in 2017.
Engaging Our Communities
The college hosted around 2,500 students, faculty, staff and visitors for a Solar Eclipse Viewing Party on Aug. 21. The free event, which was open to the public, included music and various activities, as well as solar/space-themed Moon Pies, Eclipse gum, solar sausages, Sun Chips, Blazer Dogs and complimentary Solar Flair-themed eclipse viewing glasses.
Building Futures YouthBuild students participated in multiple days of service to their community. One project this fall involved participating in Alton's Citywide Cleanup in the Hunterstown neighborhood, filling more than 60 bags with trash. Another involved volunteering at two local fire stations - trimming hedges, pulling weeds and cleaning up the grounds - to honor first responders on the anniversary of 9/11.
Community savings from the college's dual enrollment efforts reached $38 million since the program was started in 1999.
More than 100 L&C students, faculty and staff volunteered their time in our communities during L&C Cares Week 2017 April 23-29. The event is held during National Volunteer Week each year.
The 13th Annual Illinois Chapter of Concerns of Police Survivors (ILCOPS) Cycle Across Illinois ride received a warm welcome on L&C's Godfrey Campus on the morning of July 13. After dipping their tires in the Mississippi River at Alton, riders made their way to The Commons for a short ceremony honoring Trailblazers alum Ofc. Blake Snyder, and afterward continued their ride north toward Chicago.
Although the college experienced an enrollment decrease overall, the number of dual credit students attending the college was up this fall - 61 percent of new students had dual credit coming in. Students in the 18-19 age range also trended upward.
The college hosted an exhibition by Artist Michiko Itatani entitled "Celestial Narratives," which opened Aug. 21 with the total solar eclipse, and ran through Sept. 22 in the Hatheway Gallery. About 200 guests attended the opening, which doubled as the culminating event of the Solar Flair Garden Show.
In the fall, L&C hosted 120 potential students and their families for its first Discover Day event. A new spin on Open House, Discover Days are held once each semester when area high schools have a day off but the college is on a regular schedule, giving prospective students a chance to mingle with current students and get a better grasp of L&C campus life.
New York Times Bestselling Author Laurie Halse Anderson held two free discussions in L&C's Reid Memorial Library Wednesday, Nov. 15.
The L&C Media Services Department received six awards from the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations (NCMPR) District 3 Conference (which includes all two-year colleges in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota and the Canadian province of Ontario). The college received a Gold award for logo design (Lewis and Clark Has Heart), Silver award for website (lc.edu), Silver award for Communications Success Story (Remembering Blake Snyder), Silver for Annual Report (digital version), and took Gold and Silver in the Novelty Advertising category (Solar Flair Eclipse Glasses and L&C Has Heart vinyl sticker).
NGRREC launched a community engagement program called Neighbor Nights @NGRREC. The monthly events serve as opportunities for citizens to attend a short presentation, meet the staff and scientists, and tour the Jerry F. Costello Confluence Field Station.
Promoting Health and Wellness
L&C's third year hosting the Bike MS: Express Scripts GateWay Getaway Ride raised around $1.6 million in the fight against MS.
Team Trailblazer, comprising 16 riders during the Bike MS Express Scripts Gateway Getaway Ride 2017, topped their fundraising goal at more than $9,100.
Author Dr. Megan Sholar, an instructor in the Honors Program at Loyola University in Chicago, spoke about the past, present, and future of family leave policies in the United States as a part of L&C Diversity Council programming.
L&C's Health and Wellness Committee invited students to a free "Chillax" event a week before finals. The week included a Finals Relaxation Day on Wednesday, May 3, in the Hatheway Gallery, where students had a chance to engage in dog therapy, listen to music, hula hoop, color, get free snacks and be entertained by West African drummers and dancers Afriky Lolo.
For the seventh consecutive year, Lewis and Clark Community College was named to the Military Friendly® Schools list. L&C Career and Veteran Services supports veteran students not only with their academic needs, but also by helping them access health and financial benefits veterans.
Serengeti Steve performed his live show for College for Life students inside the Hatheway Cultural Center Gallery.
L&C Campus Safety and Security held free Self Defense courses for students, faculty and staff on campus.
L&C’s Dental programs teamed up with SIUE for the 12th Annual Give Kids a Smile Day, during which qualified children ages 3-13 receive free comprehensive dental care, including exams, X-rays, cleaning, fluoride treatments, fillings and extractions.
L&C and the Southern Illinois University School of Dental Medicine partnered to provide oral health care for underserved patients in Calhoun County, as part of its focus on interprofessional collaboration.
L&C's Annual Wellness Fair took place Oct. 11 in The Commons and featured everything from chair massages and essential oil samples to nutrition info, insurance info, dental screenings, yoga demonstration, a blood drive, flu shots and more.
The L&C Wellness Fair offered visitors a wealth of health information, free health food and supplement samples, depression screenings, flu shots, and much more.
In 2017 there were 56 Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) grant-sponsored interprofessional events held outside the family health clinic, which affected 2,650 participants.
In July of 2017, HRSA awarded L&C an additional $56,000 in supplemental funds, which is being used for faculty development, data analysis, and a short film about the college's interprofessional collaboration model.
The Commons and Reid Cafés introduced six new heart-healthy items to their menus. All of the new heart healthy items are marked with the college's wellness icon, which helps diners easily identify the menu items that have fewer calories and are low in fat.
The Family Health Clinic participated in 14 interprofessional collaboration health fairs outside of the Family Health Clinic. There were approximately 450 patients seen at these health fairs which took place on campus and within the community.
L&C’s best-in-class Nursing program, is one of the college’s flagships and currently the largest career program on campus.
For the fourth year, Human Resources has partnered with our group health insurance carrier to provide full-time employees an educational and rewarding wellness program. The program offers a variety of opportunities such as preventative biometric screenings, health coaching, lunch ‘n learns, and health & fitness analysis for employees to have a greater awareness of their general health. Pop-up challenges throughout the year are designed to help employees incorporate healthier lifestyle choices.
L&C's student loan default rate remained below the national average, thanks to efforts by L&C Financial Aid to increase contact with students through in-person exit counseling. Exit counseling and other measures are in place to help keep L&C students and alum in good financial health.
Student Development and Counseling held eating disorder and depression screenings for students, faculty and staff.
Raising Cultural Awareness
L&C dedicated a state historical marker honoring Scott Bibb, who fought against segregated schools in Alton from 1897-1908, June 19, 2017 at the Scott Bibb Center. William Furry, executive director of the Illinois State Historical Society in Springfield, called this marker one of the most significant historical markers the society has been asked to co-sponsor in its 118-year history.
Music students Ethan Morris and Samantha Stinson won Student Activities 2017 Talent Show in the Commons in March.
Winners of the 2017 You Have a Voice Humanities Speech Contest in March were Jennifer Lewis-Kelly (first), Ethan Morris (2nd) and Michael Bevens (3rd). Lewis-Kelly's speech was about persevering as a single mother.
The "Backpack Buddies" initiative, of the new Swarovki Waterschool USA Mississippi River, empowered local students to make a positive impact on the lives of fellow students downriver, provide support for flood victims in Louisiana, and create a dialogue between the two based on mutual experiences and understanding.
Director of High School Partnership Yvette McLemore announced an increase in minority students at the college from 10.8 percent to 11 percent of the total student enrollment. New recruitment efforts included staffing an information and giveaway table at the annual Juneteenth celebration at Alton's Killion Park in June; attending the Alton NAACP's Back to School event at Killion Park Aug. 12; recruiting at local high schools; and meeting with minority students and guidance counselors about ways to improve recruitment efforts.
During Black History Month, L&C hosted more than 95 students from area middle and high schools for a Pathways to Leadership workshop in the Ahlemeyer Atrium at Lewis and Clark Community College. The students met and interviewed community leaders and professionals who have shaped their careers through perseverance, vision and discipline.
L&C took a Stand Against Racism as a part of the signature campaign of YWCA USA to build community among those who work for racial justice and to raise awareness about the negative impact of institutional and structural racism in our communities.
Vice President of Student Engagement Sean Hill announced a $1.5 million grant awarded to the college's Upward Bound program. Upward Bound serves 77 students at East Alton/Wood River and Alton High Schools, where the rate of students who go on to attend college is 20-30 percent below the national average. The program offers cultural enrichment, academic and college preparation support for its student participants.
The college's Office of Diversity and Inclusion held a successful minority student orientation in the spring. Approximately 40 people attended the event and received information on student success, careers and programs, and financial aid and scholarships.
Modeling Sustainable Practices
In honor of October as National Rideshare Month, Lewis and Clark was honored with RideFinders' 2017 Regional Sustainability Award.
Reid Memorial Library started a Digital Commons on the college's website, www.lc.edu/library, to host faculty and staff publications as well as publications like the Peppermint Rooster Review.
In the spring, the Illinois Green Economy Network named L&C Director of Sustainability Nate Keener a "Sustainability Champion." Keener has been instrumental to the effort since joining the college in 2011.
The College partnered with the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center to conduct a Waste Audit in May 2017. One project coming out of that study was a receptacle audit. Over the summer Director of Sustainability Nate Keener went building by building, room by room to assess the recycling infrastructure on campus. The outcome will be a system whereby bins are allocated appropriately across campus. All trash and recycling bins will be collocated, meaning that wherever a trash can is, there should be a recycle bin next to it. As part of this effort the college also created a system whereby recycling only happens in blue bins. Gray and white bins are for trash. This update will help students, staff, and faculty better recycle.
The results of a 2017 Greenhouse Gas Inventory showed the college's net emissions fell by 14.7% and their electricity consumption fell by 23% since 2015.
The National Great Rivers Research and Education Center (NGRRECsm), in cooperation with Riverside Research, launched a comprehensive, long-term initiative to monitor water quality via nanosatellites known as Waterlens.
The college applied for and was awarded the Ameren Strategic Energy Management Grant. This is a phased program. In year one, college personnel meet with Ameren staff to strategize energy savings projects to be carried on in year two. For meeting 12 times in year one, we will receive $15,000. If our energy saving projects achieve 1.5 million kwh saved, we will receive another $15,000 in year two.
The NGRREC mesocosms (large channels that recreate river conditions in a controlled environment) were busy this summer with collaborators from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service doing research on juvenile Asian carp and their ability to be trapped and moved in the wake of barges.
In February, the Captain Planet Foundation, an organization dedicated to funding educational programs that give students hands-on, project-driven learning experiences with real environmental outcomes, awarded an educational grant of $2,500 to Lewis and Clark Community College, which planned to use these funds toward the Illinois RiverWatch Mussel Project launch.
The college received a $12,000 grant from the US Forest Service to conduct an inventory of the trees on campus. This inventory will individually map all the trees in the built part of campus, and will provide a general overview of the campus woodlands. Through this grant, we will be able to show on our dashboard system the monetary and environmental value of each tree on campus.
After successful completion of Solarize Godfrey, which resulted in 150kw of new solar in the Village of Godfrey, the Sustainability Office was asked to lead the public outreach portion of Solarize Madison County/Glen Carbon. Director Keener conducted 22 Solar Power Hours, one hour educational sessions about the benefits and incentives for going solar, across the county. That program increased solar in Madison County by 293 kw through 35 installs.
Students attending the 15th Annual Water Festival participated in a number of sponsor-run hands-on activity stations that teach them about freshwater topics like recreation, pollution water issues in developing nations and more. This year, participating teachers were trained in the Project WET (Water Education for Teachers) curriculum, a nationwide program for which NGRREC is the state host. For the fourth year, Water Fest student participants took part in a shoe drive for the Shoeman Water Projects during the event. This year's drive brought in more than 800 pairs of shoes for the cause.
The college purchased a 2017 Nissan Leaf for Security. This car was purchased on the state rate, which meant the college got a deep discount for it. It is all electric, so it never needs gasoline. The college then negotiated the donation of an electric vehicle charge station from Nissan.
In 2017 the college spent $42,600 on 2,243 new LED lights. Those lights will save 369,996 kwh/year and $24,461 on electricity bills. They will pay for themselves in 1.74 years.
L&C held sustainability programming during Earth Week 2017, including a campus sustainability tour April 24.
The college started the Student Textbook Exchange Program (STEP) to help students give and receive used textbooks at a reduced cost.
Mannie Jackson Center for the Humanities Foundation
The L&C Mannie Jackson Center for the Humanities launched its first research project in cultural mapping and storytelling. With project leads Dr. Shawn Dalton and Dr. Michael Pasquier, the project will take a deep dive into the social, economic and cultural patterns that make up District 536, visualize that data with cultural mapping and storytelling, and quantify the community's resiliency in the form of a Mannie Jackson Humanities Index (MJHI).
“Conversation Toward a Brighter Future,” in partnership with the Madison County Regional Office of Education, brings together youth from area middle and high schools to address ways to promote respect, dignity, understanding and forgiveness in their own communities.
The MJCHF launched its Second Chance Saturday program to help Madison County residents expunge or seal minor criminal records that may serve as roadblocks to upward mobility. With the help of attorneys and other specialists, eligible residents can fill out all the necessary paperwork to expunge or seal criminal records; resolve outstanding traffic warrants, misdemeanor warrants and ordinance violations without concern for arrest; and register to vote, during these events.
In March, the MJCHF partnered with the Regional Superintendent of Education, SIUE, and Lewis and Clark Community College to host former NASA Astronaut Leland Melvin, who flew on two Space Shuttle missions. Melvin spoke to more than 600 students from Granite City, Madison and Venice high schools on the importance of not shying away from math and science (STEM), staying focused, staying true to your dreams, and never giving up.
MJCHF President Mannie Jackson was chosen as a Class of 2017 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame member for his work on the Contributor Committee, a distinguished committee that focuses on preserving all areas of the game of basketball. Jackson, former star Globetrotter and now current owner of the Harlem Globetrotters, was the first African- American to own a major international sports and entertainment organization. It is through the hall of fame that Jackson will forever be remembered for his commitment to the basketball community and his unique impact and contributions made to the sport.
The MJCHF announced the hiring of Candice Johnson as Program Coordinator for the “STEM Meets Humanities” initiative.
Gayla Moore, previous CEO and owner of Nevco, a sports technology company, joined the Mannie Jackson Center for the Humanities Foundation as its newest director in November.
Credits:
Design by Robert Kercher; Photos and content by Laura Inlow, Louise Jett, Paige Allen and Korin Fisher