Welcome to our New T/LI Coordinator

We want to welcome Joe Zimmerman as the new Coordinator of the Teaching/Learning Institute for the 2004-2005 academic year. Joe brings with him a wealth of knowledge related to teaching and student learning having taught here at CFCC for the past 18 years. Joe has been involved actively with the T/LI from its inception and hopes to maintain the momentum the T/LI has gained and perpetuate the original vision of the T/LI which is to support opportunities for faculty which stimulate excellence in teaching in order to enhance student learning.

Joe loves teaching and says that what he loves most about teaching is the opportunity to interact with students and watch them grow as the knowledge they gain opens up new vistas to them. He hopes to share some of his enthusiasm for teaching with his colleagues as Coordinator of the T/LI. Joe mentioned, “Teachers need to keep learning how to teach and learning how to learn. The T/LI is the place where they can learn and also have the opportunity to interact with other faculty on campus.”

When asked why he decided to accept the T/LI position he said that he felt honored to be asked by President Dassance to take the position. He feels that it’s time for a change in his professional life and is excited about the new position because he has always been a strong supporter of the T/LI mission.

“I look forward to serving faculty in any way that I can. The T/LI will be working on the development of a New Faculty Mentoring Program as well as considering an Adjunct Certification Program for the future. We couldn’t do what we do at this college without our many talented adjuncts, and giving them an opportunity to “move up a level” by being involved in professional development is something I will be working on next year. I’d also like to invite the entire faculty to come to Building 1 to visit us and see the newly revamped Professional Development Center (PDC -originally T/LC).”

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Best Wishes to our Retiring Faculty


David Brown	Dr. Shan	Dava Tobey
Sometimes it's important to work for that pot of gold. But other times it's essential to take time off and to make sure that your most important decision in the day simply consists of choosing which color to slide down on the rainbow

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Since its inception six years ago, Science Professor Kathy Kilcrease has been an integral part of the Teaching and Learning

Institute. For the past three years, Kilcrease has served as the coordinator of the institute that has resulted in the development of new programs and services for faculty and staff. She is returning to the classroom full-time after this semester and Communications Professor Joe Zimmerman will assume the coordinator’s position. This move is a sentimental one for Kilcrease, who has been at the college for 27 years.

Always humble, Kilcrease says the biggest challenge as coordinator was “filling Lynne’s shoes” in reference to the first TLI Coordinator, retired Humanities Professor Lynne Boele.

“We had great expectations for the TLI and I wanted to make sure that we continued to meet the professional development needs and expectations of the faculty,” says Kilcrease.

During her tenure in this position, the TLI expanded its original Summer Fantasy Workshops to also offer the popular Super Saturday seminars targeted to the individual faculty’s professional need. Kilcrease adds one of the greatest values for these two programs is the dedication of time and resources given to faculty to work on a project that would impact teaching and learning.

“I think the best thing about both of these programs is that they have given us the opportunity to get to know and interact with our colleagues from other parts of the campus,” adds Kilcrease.

The TLI has also been the leader in implementing the faculty rank and reward initiative. Kathy has dedicated many hours in working with eligible faculty on the development of their portfolios.

CFCC President Dr. Dassance agrees.

“Kathy has provided strong leadership for the TLI and helped it achieve a new level of service to faculty,” he notes, adding “She has contributed much, including great support of and direction for the new rank and reward process.”

As the original coordinator and visionary for the TLI, Lynne Boele says it was Kilcrease’s personal desire for growth that has made this effort so successful.

“Learning is the key word that drives Kathy’s approach to her profession,” says Boele. “Kathy’s student and learning centered philosophy has helped to forge the vision and mission of the TLI.”

Boele also observes how Kilcrease’s ability to build consensus encouraged colleagues to develop new ideas and programs.

“Finding a match for the excellence, integrity, and commitment of my good friend Kathy Kilcrease will be a challenge,” adds Boele.

So, what words of advice can Kilcrease give to Zimmerman as the new TLI leader?

“Strive to be a servant leader and remember that meeting the teaching/learning needs of faculty bring with it great personal rewards!” says Kilcrease.

Speaking of personal rewards, Kilcrease hopes to use this new period in her life as a time to develop some science courses specifically designed for elementary and middle school educators. Yet, while planning ahead, she is also appreciative of her time at the TLI.

“My greatest joy has been in working with wonderful people. The faculty at this institution are truly amazing and I’ve enjoyed the opportunity to get to know and work with so many of them,” she adds, “A special thanks also to Sandy Pell whose great sense of humor has kept me sane through it all as she made all that we’ve done possible.”

We thank you, Kathy, for the time and passion you have given to both the TLI and the college. You have carried on the spirit of innovation in a way that has provided many new and different learning opportunities for faculty at CFCC.

Kudos to Kathy

Well, I guess it had to end some time—after 3 years as TLI Coordinator, Kathy is passing the baton on to Joe Zimmerman and returning to teaching science, her first love, full time. Though the T/LC is now the PDC , it will always be the T/LC to her (and many others). Here are a few remarks from her comrades. We’ll miss you (but we know where to find you)!

“Kathy and I have share a long-running theme of “housekeeping.” As teachers we have both pushed for attention to instruction based on input from the actual teachers, as opposed to decisions about teaching always being made by non-teachers. The Summer Fantasy and activities

like that at least partially stem from those kind of fruitful discussions and focus. I will miss her in the T/LC, but I am sure students will be overjoyed to have more opportunities to experience her classroom skills. CFCC benefits wherever she is involved.”

~Dave Hartley

“Kathy's student and learning centered philosophy has helped to forge the vision and mission of the Teaching/Learning Institute. It is impossible to say enough about this outstanding professor and person. She dedicates herself to serving others in her profession, in her church, and in the community. As TLI coordinator, as the first science department program facilitator, as participant in every major college committee and task force, Kathy has always been the person each group depends on to shoulder responsibility and follow through on tasks. Maybe we’ve all leaned on her too much. But she has performed all these miracles with grace and her characteristic wonderful smile.”

~Lynne Boele

“When jokingly asked if she were the person we could hate when we thought of the portfolios, Kathy responded, ‘Sure. Hate me if it makes you feel better. Or eat some chocolate.’”

~Debra Vazquez

“Kathy Kilcrease was the first person I met here at CFCC when I arrived on a rainy day in January 2001. She was smiling (of course!) and so warm and welcoming that I was certain I had come to a wonderful place to teach. And in the subsequent years, I have come to recognize in her a calm, steady, and wise colleague and friend.”

~Cassandra Robison

“Kathy,

May this new phase in your career bring you all the fulfillment you desire - our students will be the beneficiaries of having you full time as a dedicated science teacher!”

~Love, Amy Mangan

“Kathy is one of the most professional, hardworking, organized and helpful technophile I’ve ever met and had the supreme pleasure to work with. You are much loved and appreciated, Kathy!”

~Jack Thursby

“Kathy, You’ll always have a special place in my heart! We’ve shared laughs & tears. You’re a dear professional & personal friend!”

~Love, Robin Seymour

“Kathy’s my chocolate sharing/tennis playing buddy. I can’t wait to get her back over here in the science department full time!”

~Susan Cable

“Kathy made serving on a CFCC committee lots of fun AND very rewarding. She inspired me with “new ideas” on how to help students learn, understand, and apply ideas in the “real world’. She introduced me to some available technology that I didn’t know we had. I will miss her diplomatic way of getting things done.”

~Kay Fowler

“Kathy taught me how to use PowerPoint at the very first Summer Fantasy Workshop. I admired her patience and persistence (I’m a slow learner). I also admire her style of leadership as TLI Coordinator—quiet, calm, understanding, persevering and creative. She mentioned at the TLI Open House last week—really an excuse to give her a cake—that in the three years she headed the TLI nobody ever said “No.” Well, how could anybody say “No” to a nice person like Kathy?

Usually we wait until somebody is retiring to do this—write nice things about them: I’m glad Kathy is not going anywhere and will be an important part of CFCC in the years to come.”

~Joe Zimmerman

2004 Community College Futures Assembly in Orlando, FL
by Adam Hayashi, Science

The Futures Assembly was held from 1/31-2/01/04. Attending the Special Guests dinner on 1/31/04 was an opportunity to meet others involved with St. Petersburg cohort as well as to hear select administrators from various colleges talk about what they felt was important to their careers. Sitting at my table were: Edward Knudson, Nancee Bailey, Karl Dawson, Mike Gordon, Dr. Paul Szuch and Terry Cox. I enjoyed talking with Mike Gordon about his many sailing adventures in the Caribbean. Both Nancee and Mike were very supportive. They assured me that I can make it through the program. I also enjoyed reminiscing about Wisconsin with Edward Knudson. It is ironic that The Conference-Commando Field Manual talks about making small talk. At our table we talked about the weather in Wisconsin, which was in the single digits when Mr. Knudson left. Nancee talked about living Buffalo, New York, where the temperature is consistently in the single digits. From there our conversation switched to hockey, Nancee admitted to being a Buffalo Sabres fan, and Mike talked about his role in telecommunications for the 1980 “Miracle on Ice” hockey game.

A lot of the speakers at the dinner had interesting anecdotes to share. I found Dr. McCall’s words about how long it took to get his Ph.D. especially reassuring. Mr. DeVriendt also made some very good points about the importance of classes in finance and law. Connie Szuch, of the St. Petersburg cohort, would later tell me that Dr. Wood’s law course was one of the most difficult courses she had in the certificate program. Her husband, Paul Szuch also had some important words of wisdom in stressing you should always follow your heart. This message especially hit home for me after speaking to Michael Kane, who I strangely gravitated to, perhaps because of his ponytail. Mr. Kane is working on his Ph.D. in evolutionary biology, which I found extremely interesting.

Cycles: How We Will Live, Work, and Buy

I was fortunate to be able to attend Maddy Dychtwald’s presentation on Sunday. In her presentation Ms. Dychtwald stressed the importance of life long learning. She pointed to key demographics to support her claim that baby boomers make up the majority of population. She also pointed out the impact the baby boomers have had on transforming our culture. Their large amount discretionary income makes baby boomers especially attractive to advertisers. As a whole, baby boomers are highly educated, they believe in life long learning, and are an empowered consumer. Baby boomers question doctors, finance, and education. I think in large part this is true. I marvel at commercials today, especially those dealing with prescription drugs; they are highly informative. It seems the layperson of today is much more informed. Ms. Dychtwald talked about how baby boomers made alternative medicine mainstream. While I do not share her view on this, I do believe more people are turning to alternative medicine even though it has not fully been or may never be accepted by the medical community at large.

The impact baby boomers will have on community colleges will be substantial as more boomers are preparing for new careers. Many of these boomers have concerns about their retirement, and may choose to continue working on into their 60’s and 70’s. There is a tremendous opportunity for community colleges to capitalize on this potential. Central Florida Community College already has a wide array of courses in adult enrichment not to mention the many vocational programs which it offers in programs ranging from nursing to law enforcement. While I think Ms. Dychtwald is right in her assessment of the ageless workforce, I think it is important not to lose sight of the scores of younger individuals that will be our future. They also deserve a quality education.

Not Just Another Roman Holiday
by Michele Wirt, Humanities

The College Art Association’s annual conference was held in Seattle this February on 2/18-22. It turns out that it doesn’t rain there everyday, after all. Seattle is a fairly easy city to navigate. It’s much less vertical, and quite a bit more cozy than Manhattan, the site of last year’s CAA event.

Historical session highlights included court life in both the west and the east, namely the Medici family, Rudolph II, and Emperor Kangxi. Astronomy and astrology figured prominently in the Medici court culture; various artworks clearly linked their power with cosmic predestination.

Rudolph II was fascinated with alchemy, the secret knowledge that was ever so much more than turning base metals to gold. Allegorical works extended the definition of alchemy to feminine-masculine, cross dressing, and in general, anything which began with the invisible and then became visible. The popular, albeit clandestine Corpus Hermeticum turned up in the collections of many court libraries, even those in Spain, during the inquisition at that.

Jesuits brought linear perspective to China, where Emperor Kangxi developed a fascination with the single point system. Works from his era reveal a rigid symmetry, and a twin preoccupation with the camera obscura, another artifact of Jesuit occupation. They affect a distinct departure from traditional perspective systems of the east, which are non-converging, although they do contain diagonals to suggest receding forms and depth.

The “Rise of Memorial Sculpture” began with medieval tombs as civic primers. An interesting feature of these tombs were the “squeezing places,” large openings through with devotees of one saint or another could, and still can, squeeze some part of themselves into the tomb’s antechamber for a sort of “reality mourning” effect.

“Religion and Art in the Nineteenth Century” was full of religious symbolism. Thomas Cole’s landscapes, The Oxbow in particular, contain Masonic imagery, allusions to the secrets of this somewhat supremacist society within the overarching aegis of Manifest Destiny. The “all seeing eye” is visible through the clouds, and a snake with its tail in its mouth, symbolizing the Masonic concept of the universe, can be seen in the river’s hairpin path.

The illustrations in Uncle Tom’s Cabin were called into question, as to whether they were really anti-slavery, or just propaganda for evangelical Christianity; Tom’s life reads like the passion of Christ in many instances, and other characters were likened to Mary Magdalene and Pontius Pilate.

On the pedagogical front; a session on diagramming first paired Raphael with Jackson Pollock in a textbook example from the late 50’s, in terms of the mechanics of formal organization. War maps, Andy Warhol’s Dance Steps, urban planning in the New Deal Era, eighteenth century engravings of unborn fetuses, and the phenomenon known as chiasmus were provided as examples, toward the notion that diagramming promises a “one best way” in teaching.

A hybrid history-studio course with a sensationalist agenda and a euro-travel voucher featured student projects like men in skirts, fusion food, raves in abandoned buildings, and my favorite, the “Crusty File”; a collection of scraps from ones travel experiences.

“Where to Draw the Line” examined the use of the computer in learning art, and its validity as a tool and/or vehicle for art. Ultimately, drawing and designing can be seen as either mutually exclusive, or to work in harmony. The mouse as an alternative to the pencil for drawing can be taught without fear of losing authenticity, especially if both student and teacher let go their prior expectations. After all, tools for learning mathematics and writing have been around for centuries.

Perplexed by Seattle’s music museum, I was determined to discover the origins of its design. Upon returning home I found out that this most unusual building began during its model stage as an assemblage of cut up guitars on architect Frank Gehry’s desk. It was further articulated by the use of a 3-d animation program, with the intent to reflect the dynamism and fluidity of music within the building itself.

Next year’s conference is in Atlanta. Much closer to home, yes; but without the Starbucks on every corner, the in-flight movies, the pre-Mardi Gras in Pioneer Square, the view of Puget Sound, and Pike Place Market, home of the snapping Monk Fish.

Florida Early Childhood Educators Network Meeting
by Marybeth Kyle, Public Service

Held in Wakulla, Florida on 3/16-19/04, this conference presented information on the latest legislation concerning Universal Pre-K. We visited Creative Preschool to see the curriculum, and attended “Beyond Centers and Circle Time: Assessing the Play of Young Children.” The Children’s Forum presented information on T.E.A.C.H. scholarships and the Administrative Credential Pathways Portfolio. Professors shared best practices.

I reported pertinent information concerning UPK and other Early Childhood issues back to Dr. Cooper and Stacy Dickson. Additionally, I presented all information to students in my classes, who were involved in calling legislators to improve UPK standards.

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Super Saturday 2004

Our spring Super Saturday was held on March 6 and projects included collaborative learning activities, Palm Pilot training, web page creation, and Excel Gradebook. Joining us for the workshop were Amy Mangan, Sallyann Jorns, Judy Haisten, Paul Rossiter, Barbara Ashby, Jackie Alvarado, Sheila Evans, Adam Hayashi, Sally Thompson, Kay Fowler, Zinnia Callueng, Cynthia Ehrhardt, Jane Hoesterey, and Cory Alexander. Kathy Kilcrease, Debbie Towns, Steve Hill, Amy Cantrell, and Sandy Pell were on hand to lend assistance.
At the end of the day, we asked everyone to evaluate the strengths of the workshop. Here is a sample of the comments we received: “I think anything where people choose their own projects is bound to be successful. This is a great opportunity for us to do important projects.” “Small group—greater interaction and support, help and guidance from experts.” “Expertise of staff, great food, and time to complete a worthy project.”
When asked for suggestions or comments, one participant asked that we “Publish or advertise what projects some people have done; a lot of people don’t know what they can get accomplished or even where to start.” Another requested “More chocolate!” No problem there!
We enjoyed working with another wonderful group of faculty members, and look forward to seeing some of you during our Summer Fantasy Workshop in June.
Remember, we’re here to help you accomplish whatever you want or need to do, so if you have any suggestions, please let us know!

Cory Alexander, Sheila Evans, Zinnia Callueng, Amy Mangan, and Sally Thompson are ready to get started.

Adjunct Junction
tales and tips for staying on track
written by and for our Adjunct Faculty Members

Life is a Five-Place Setting
by Lorraine Gerrity, Cosmetology/Barber Instructor

When someone asks me what I do, my first reaction is to laugh and reply, “How about asking me what it is I don’t do?” Remember the Ed Sullivan Show, and the man who kept spinning all those plates? Well, that’s me—spinning and spinning, and loving every minute of it.

On my first plate: teaching Cosmetology in the evenings and fulfilling my lifelong dream to teach. However, without “going there” we all know one cannot survive financially on an adjunct’s salary or hours, so enter plate #2—the phone rings at the college and it’s the funeral parlor looking for a “Cosmortologist” to do hairstyling on dead people! “Eeek!” I gasp—are you kidding? Well, I guess if I could do hair at the local Nursing Homes I can do this… How hard can it be to go from nearly dead to really, really dead? My first experience shocked me as I walked into the crematorium first, then into the cooler, past the casket room, until I finally discovered the embalming/make-up room. Three years later I’m still working there during the day, making sure my sneakers are on, so I can run as fast as my legs will carry me! It does have its plus side, though—no listening to idle babbling, no complaining, never have to show a mirror to see the back, well, you get the picture…

Ah, but life doesn’t stop there for me. Enter plate #3…..how about single handedly raising three of the finest children? Sean, 30, who attended CFCC and now performs at Disney and getting ready to release his first major CD; Stacy, 28, recent grad from our Surgical Tech Program and Cosmetology Dept., and also the Mother of the smartest and most beautiful boy in the world……yep, my first grandson, Garian…..and then there’s my Kelly, 26, attending CFCC with a 4.0, member of Phi Theta Kappa, majoring in Psychology, juggling working at the Outback and keeping her grades up to standard…….It is at this time I shall take a small bow…..whew……..they come from good stock!

Plate #4: “Hey Lorraine, doing anything this weekend? I need help putting a wedding together.” Event Coordinator to the rescue—why not? Raising three children found me many a job waiting tables and bartending—you know the song, “I can bring home the bacon, fry it up in a pan…” that’s me, but trust me, if I’m bringing the bacon home, you’re cooking it!

After teaching, doing dead people and feeding real live people, my tired body will drag on home where I will find my roommate and friend, Irene, and my dearest friend of all, my Mom... Never a dull moment, especially when Irene asks me to help her launch her baby product which she invented. It’s the first ever, safety bumper pad….Why not? I have nothing to do! So for the last two years, I worked on package designing, marketing, and attending Trade Shows in Dallas and Vegas……..and we’ve succeeded with a great product. You’re surprised?

Plate #5—Are you ready for this one? I decided to go back to school and get my Barber’s license three months ago so I could teach both Cosmetology and Barbering (I have way too much time on my hands!). What was I thinking as I performed a shave and haircut in front of a panel of judges in Clearwater? I hadn’t been to the State Board in 15 years, and this was definitely a test on commitment and having a passion for teaching. Watching my students light up when they “get it” and seeing them graduate certainly makes up for all the juggling and spinning one adjunct can do…And trust me, my students know when I’ve been to the funeral parlor, because I’ll always be wearing my sneakers—they’re a fashion statement that has become a “running” joke!

Would I trade any of it? Well, perhaps when I strike it big. The funeral parlor will be the first to go, then perhaps the catering and event coordinating. But when all is said and done, teaching has brought more laughter, tears and fulfillment into my life than I could ever imagine. I fondly remember the commercial where the young boy is leaving the house and his Dad asks him what he plans to be. He responds, “A teacher, of course.” The Dad replies, “But son, a doctor or lawyer make so much money,” to which the son answers, “So Dad, who do you think teaches them?”

The bond with my students can never be fully explained—I absolutely love them, my family, and career. How very blessed I am.

Anyone care for an extra plate?

plant

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The Constellation Award is given by the Teaching/Learning Institute each year to a group of faculty members who have collaborated on the development of a project to improve teaching and student learning at CFCC. The members of the Teaching/Learning Institute, who are faculty members themselves, realize that student learning can occur in a variety of ways and in a variety of settings and that creative approaches can often produce significant student learning.

The projects that were submitted this year were creative and exemplified the T/LI Mission of fostering a learning-centered culture at CFCC that stimulates student learning both within and beyond the classroom.

The members of the T/LI Steering Committee voted by secret ballot for the recipient of this year’s Constellation Award. The winners will be announced at the Recognition Assembly on May 7th.

Nominated Projects

Internet Services Program

Sally Douglass, Lori Kielty and Debbie Towns were involved in the development, promotion, and delivery of a new program at CFCC, the Internet Services Program. Before this program was developed, students in the computer area could choose between Computer Information and Computer

Engineering tracks. This new program of study offers students who wish to pursue careers in web graphics, web design, web administration or web master a program to meet their needs. Early research by Debbie Towns indicated a need in the tri-county region for individuals trained in this area so the new program was developed to meet this community need. With input from students and the Computer Advisory Committee, the Internet Services Program was developed, tested and then modified for delivery in both an in-class and online format..

As well as the program itself, Sally, Lori, and Debbie also developed a video to promote the new degree, a brochure outlining the program, and visited with local high school students to promote the program.

Enrollment in the program continues to grow.

Teddy Bear Clinics

Jan Livingston and Maggie Davis engaged nursing students in a learning experience; known as the “Teddy Bear Clinics,” which was designed to expose elementary children to the nursing profession. One of the things that nurses are often asked to do is to teach about health issues. This project allows nursing students to develop age appropriate activities and be creative and open in the development of the programs for the children. The program supports the college’s mission in two ways—it facilitates the ADN students’ “preparation for careers” and “supports development of the community” as well. The clinics were initially presented to students at College Park Elementary School but have expanded to South Ocala and Madison Street as well.

Each clinic begins with a skit about some health related problem. The children then rotate through six different stations with their stuffed animals to learn about safety, eyes, ears, heart, and pain and are also able to ask the nurses about their stuffed animals’ health problems. At the final station the children are rewarded with a Teddy Bear sticker and a coloring book donated by Munroe Regional Medical Center. At the end of every program a Nurse Teddy Bear was awarded to one of the students via a drawing. Funding of materials for the clinics was made possible by a grant from the Suwannee River AHEC. Now in the third year, nursing students have taught over 700 children about health care issues. This program, developed at CFCC, is now being implemented at other institutions.

New Nursing Faculty
Video Orientation Program

Barbara Anderson and Grace Gil have developed a set of video tapes with an accompanying orientation manual to be used by new adjunct faculty in the nursing program. The orientation “packet” provides an overview of the ADN nursing program which can be viewed all at once or on a “need to know” basis by the incoming adjuncts.

The goals of the project were to minimize the perception held by students assigned to adjunct faculty that they are receiving less than equitable instruction and supervision in the clinical area, to assure that both the lead instructor and the new adjunct instructor will have more time to be available for students at the beginning of the semester, reduce student attrition due to dissatisfaction, discouragement etc., reduce faculty attrition and increase the quality, proficiency, and achievement of students.

The results from the use of the program have been positive. The adjunct faculty appreciate the advance preparation for the job and student learning within the adjunct groups has been shown to be fairly equal to that of full time faculty.

Oh, Baby,

It's Been a Busy Spring!

We’ve some new parents in our midst! Congratulations to all and best wishes!

Eric Warner is the proud dad of Alexandria Leigh, born on 2/12/04
Hope Dewlen gave birth to son Noah on Leap Day, 2/29/04
Scott Smith welcomed new daughter Lillian Grace, born on 3/8/04

Important Dates to Note

Summer Fantasy Workshop:	June 18, 19, 21 & 22—Professional Development Center
Faculty Planning Days:	August 12-13
Convocation:	August 12, Fine Arts Auditorium, 9:00-10:15
Faculty Colloquium:	August 12, Webber Center, 10:30-12:00
Classes Begin:	August 16, 2003

Look for the next issue of Directions in the fall with the return of the “Big Eyeball” and the elusive Dr. Pantagruel and his helpful advice. Don’t forget to send me your conference summaries and share your book reviews—thanks for a great year!

An Interview with Bertha Freeman
by Pat Fleming, Business & Technology

Bertha Freeman’s story at CFCC is one of dedication and commitment to students. She has taught at the college for 15 years, before that she was an adjunct. On most days, if you arrive at the college after 7:00am or leave before 9:30pm, you will invariably see Bertha’s blue and white van in the parking lot across from building 1 and 2 on the circle. Her teaching schedule extends

throughout the day; at other times, she can be found in her office marking paper after paper, worksheet after worksheet. I have always thought that those who taught writing for a living marked the most student papers. After watching Bertha review and grade the countless assignments for her classes, I asked her how much work she assigned. Then I did the math. In an average class, students have homework, yes homework, for most classes. If a class meets 30 times during the term, each class produces a minimum of a thousand pieces of work for Bertha’s highlighter, red pen or other stylus to evaluate. With a teaching load that includes an overload, and extensive lab assignments for her two lab classes, Bertha’s eyes will probably review more than 8,000 written pieces of student work this term.

Remarkably, all of this work is reviewed in her office, room 219-A in building 2 on the Ocala campus. And it is this office which is the subject of this profile of Bertha.

If you have never been to Bertha’s office know that it only requires an ‘A’ ticket for admission. Birds fly, mobiles sing, clocks talk. There are visual and tactile delights, and spontaneous sounds that squawk, chirp, startle and hum. Let me take you on a tour.

Tigers and skeletons dominate the room’s décor. Her stint in the 70’s and 80’s as a science teacher at Dunnellon High School, so nicknamed the “Tigers,” accounts for the various representations of the tiger, including Siberian, Bengal and Sumatran, on her walls.

That she teaches basic anatomy or anatomy and physiology each term has produced more than a dozen renditions of the skeleton, including stuffed animal, paper, plastic, hanging, posted, creeping, well, you get the macabre picture.

Her self named teaching station is the 21st edition of college science teaching on wheels, a four foot high, black plastic cart, adorned with various critters suspended by bungee cords. These characters, Sponge Boy-Square Pants, Mickey Mouse, Winnie Pooh and assorted other friends, invariably catch the eye of both her students and those who watch Bertha pass on her way to her class. In addition to her laptop and zip drive, there are binders for each of her classes with complete sets of handouts, review sheets and homework. If the classroom projection technology might fail, there are backup print copies of her PowerPoint slides or graphics. This redundant pedagogical lifeline, her cart and pony show, all financed by Bertha herself, also includes spare remotes for the technology in her classrooms, just in case their designated counterparts are misplaced or with dead batteries. When her pedagogy requires anatomical models, bone matter, VizCams and other materials and technology, Bertha will wheel out another cart, from the Science area, to support her instruction.

Bertha situates her desk with enough room in her nine foot by six foot windowless and box-like office to “scoot” her chair to her computer where she creates her PowerPoint slides or to the course binders pertaining to her various teaching assignments, among them anatomy and physiology, basic anatomy, general biology, living in the environment, Florida landscape and earth science.

Her diligently organized workspace must be inspired by the thoughts, dreams and wisdom of the many characters which overlook her. In addition to her cart characters, dinosaurs, fish, birds of prey and other species breathe life into her environment; perhaps their carbon dioxide provides nutrients for the other “living” thing in her office, a small philodendron plant.

What happens when the door is shut and Bertha traipses to her blue and white van for the late night trip to her home in Anthony? Do these inmates squabble in the dark; or infect her technology; or simply relax from the heady, consistent mind power germinating each day in her office?

From personal experience, I rarely find Bertha not marking a student worksheet or grading a test. She often multitasks by catching up on a missed episode of “Monk,” “Jag” or “CSI.” When I appear most mornings, coffee cup in hand, she immediately suspends her work to “make me a cup.” And when I pass on a daily caffeine fix, she will ask me where I was the next day. As the brew fills her space with different aromas, we invariably chat about technology, ways or teaching and knowing, or some other area of her room which I didn’t notice before. For each element, a vivid story soon emerges when I ask her about this new critter, sound or message.

Each of our offices displays both our approach to the classroom and some of our personal quirks. Beyond the bookshelves, computer technology, course outlines, and marked and unmarked student work are unique, talented and interesting individuals. Don’t hesitate to visit a colleague’s office and ask them about their home away from home. You might find delightful admixtures of curios and personal mementos, or circuitous pathways of a committed teaching career, and even the building blocks of character which shapes all of us. Go ahead—stand in that door way, ask them what they might have brewing in their coffeemaker or stored in their candy jar or tacked to their door.

Bertha has used up most available wall, floor and ceiling space to construct her world. On her desk are various awards she has received, including the 2002 Innovator’s Award from the Teaching and Learning Conference in Jacksonville. Affixed to the bulletin board facing her desk are license plates (one from CFCC and another from the Bates Motel), skeletons, peacock feathers, tigers and other messages or critters. Bertha’s professional development plan is in evidence if one reads the twenty something badges from the various conferences she has attended during the past ten years. Multiple appearances at the Jacksonville conference and the Higher Education are included in this trail of badges on her wall. Several bookcases contain her course books (her Bibles) videos and some textbooks. Reference documents such as dictionaries and atlases. The 54square foot space does not permit many thick science books on these shelves. A coffee maker with supplies, Dirt Devil with extra bags and a candy stash are among the creature comforts included in her room.

When I asked her what curio, award or element she is most fond of, she referred to a framed caricature of a skeleton produced by one of her students which said. “Your (sic) the greatest A & P 2 (anatomy and physiology) teacher ever.”

Bertha means many things to me: most recently a source for coffee, at various times a collaborator on course design or a conference presentation, since soon after the first time I met her, a lifelong friend. If we savor these human treasures, individually encoded by our office or our classroom, the impact we have on each other should represent the pinnacle of professional development and engaged learning. Go ahead, find an excuse to knock on the door of someone who offices nearby, smell their coffee, brewed or unbrewed, and let yourself be enriched.

—More News from the Book Club!

From Amy Mangan—”We have received some wonderful suggestions for next year. Here are the titles we’ve come up with thus far”: Also, if you’re putting together your summer readings, don’t forget to read Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich and Mark Twain’s Huck Finn for our service learning theme of “responsibility” next year.

Month	Facilitator	Book
September	Amy Mangan	Reading Lolita In Tehran by Azar Nafisi Azar Nafisi's luminous tale offers a fascinating portrait of the Iran-Iraq war viewed from Tehran and gives us a rare glimpse, from the inside, of women's lives in revolutionary Iran. It is a work of great passion and poetic beauty, written with a startlingly original voice. (www.readinggroupguides.com)
October	Ron Cooper	Moors Last Sigh by Salmon Rushdie The Moor lives out a unique fate; he is doomed to go through his life at double-speed. Aged thirty-six, but with the physique of a seventy-two-year-old, he narrates the fantastic story of his life within a family who exemplify the glorious plurality of India: his mother, India's greatest artist, comes from a Portuguese line descended on the wrong side of the sheet from Vasco da Gama, while his father is one of the ancient community of Cochin Jews, and is also an illegitimate descendant--possibly--of Boabdil, the last Moorish Sultan of Granada, expelled from Spain in 1492 by Ferdinand and Isabella. Moraes, like his ancestor Boabdil, looks back at the end of his life upon his brilliant, ruined family and on the India he knew as a young man, a lost paradise of possibilities which has been squandered through the human sins of hatred, factionalism, and ethnic and religious intolerance. (www.randomhouse.com)
November	Mary Ann DeSantis	Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, translated from the original French (the book was a bestseller in France) is a tale centered on, of all things, the Cultural Revolution of China's Chairman Mao Zedong. Anyone who takes for granted the freedom from government that Western cultures enjoy would do well to read this book. But this wonderful novel (novella really) is not about politics, except in a cursory way; nor is it a treatise on the evils of China during the reign of Chairman Mao. It is, instead, a gentle, wise and humorous tale of two teenaged friends, young boys, and of a young teenaged girl, the seamstress of the title, whose striking beauty charms them both. (http://www.curledup.com/balzac.htm)
December	Book donation and party at Amy's house
January	Debra Vazquez	The Alchemist by Peter Coelho “When a person really desires something,” Brazilian storyteller, Paulo Coelho writes, “all the universe conspires to help that person to realize his dream” (pp. 64; 116). His book, The Alchemist is a two-part fable about Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy, who follows his dream from Spain to the Egyptian Pyramids in search of buried treasure. Inspired by “the joys of carefree wandering” (p. 8), and while in pursuit of his “Personal Legend,” Santiago encounters Gypsies, a king, a merchant, an Englishman, and an alchemist along the way. When he meets Fatima, he also discovers love in the desert. Ultimately, however, Santiago learns that if we only listen to our heart, for “it knows all things” (p. 129), life may be really generous to us while in the pursuit of our dreams (p. 166). Page after page, Coehlo's Alchemist is an adventure that inspires new meaning in the journey we call life. (Amazon.com)
February	Sandra Cooper	A work by bell hooks
March	Jim McCammon	Desert Solitaire by Edward Abbey Desert Solitaire describes Abbey's life during three seasons as a park ranger in southeast Utah. Written in an eloquent and provoking style, the book urges us to reconsider our relationship with the natural world. (http://www.serve.com/ecobooks/solitair.htm)
April	Bonnie Vorwerk	To be announced

Welcome to our New T/LI Coordinator

2004 Community College Futures Assembly in Orlando, FL by Adam Hayashi, Science

Not Just Another Roman Holiday by Michele Wirt, Humanities

Florida Early Childhood Educators Network Meeting by Marybeth Kyle, Public Service

Super Saturday 2004

Life is a Five-Place Setting by Lorraine Gerrity, Cosmetology/Barber Instructor

Nominated Projects Internet Services Program

Teddy Bear Clinics

New Nursing Faculty Video Orientation Program

Oh, Baby,

It's Been a Busy Spring!

We’ve some new parents in our midst! Congratulations to all and best wishes!

Important Dates to Note

An Interview with Bertha Freeman by Pat Fleming, Business & Technology

2004 Community College Futures Assembly in Orlando, FL
by Adam Hayashi, Science

Not Just Another Roman Holiday
by Michele Wirt, Humanities

Florida Early Childhood Educators Network Meeting
by Marybeth Kyle, Public Service

Life is a Five-Place Setting
by Lorraine Gerrity, Cosmetology/Barber Instructor

Nominated Projects

Internet Services Program

New Nursing Faculty
Video Orientation Program

An Interview with Bertha Freeman
by Pat Fleming, Business & Technology