MATC Matters

Dear Faculty and Staff,

Since my last message, the Midwest is still recovering from the devastating floods. I’ve been awed by the outpouring of support for the people affected. A fund has been created to help victims of the flooding in the MATC community-our staff and current students. We’re off to a great start with donations of more than $2,000 but more is needed. I hope you will consider joining your colleagues in this important cause. For more information, please see the MATC Matters article.

I hope the better weather lately holds out and that many of you can make it to the Concerts on the Square, which begins this Wednesday. We’ll kick off the summer season in true MATC style with a Pre-concert Patio Party under the Arch at the Downtown Education Center starting at 5 p.m. What a great way to shake off the winter blahs and get energized for the warm (and, hopefully drier) months ahead.

Enrollments
Great news about our summer enrollment-we’re up almost 4 percent over last year. And, Fall is in the air! Okay, not really but the Fall registration campaign is. We’re running 60-second radio spots and print ads, along with billboards through mid-July to advertise open registration for Fall classes. Take a look and listen by clicking on the links below and feel free to share these.

MA-2-Cool MP3

MA-2-Cool MP3 (compressed)

Billboards (PDF)

Fort Update
And speaking of summer, or the “construction season” as it’s known in Madison, despite all the rain work is well underway at the Fort Atkinson Campus. Cindy Bowen shared a brief report in MATC Matters. It looks like the heating and air conditioning work and phone installation will be done in the coming week.

I want to echo her thank you to faculty, students and staff for their continuing patience and flexibility during this project. I can’t wait to see the new space this fall!

Getting better all the time
As some of you know, an outside consultant firm has been doing an extensive review of our business processes in the Finance and Human Resources areas. We are in the process of examining and implementing more than 90 recommendations focusing on business simplifications, organizational change, process enhancements and PeopleSoft changes. This work should greatly improve efficiency in these areas. Thank you to all those who offered input and participated in these continuous improvement efforts.

Transition
With Deb Derr’s imminent departure, I have separated the College Preparedness and Academic Advancement Center from reporting to the vice president for learner success. The center, led by Keith Cornille, will report directly to me now and in the future.

MATC Marvels

In the big league
Great news from the Athletics Department! Former MATC lefthander, Steve Gilgenbach, who played for the WolfPack during the 2006 season, was drafted by the Kansas City Royals. In addition, three recent graduates have signed with NCAA Division I schools: Evan Kohli, MATC starting first-basemen and pitcher, signed with Illinois State; MATC Outfielder Dan Putnam signed with the University of Central Arkansas and Pitcher Lucas Annen signed with UW–Milwaukee.

Congratulations to these outstanding players and to our top-notch coaching staff-Head Baseball Coach Mike Davenport and Assistant Coach CJ Phieleke (by the way, CJ also is manager of the Madison Mallards).

Technology news
I am pleased to announce the news that MATC is one of only 39 colleges across the country to receive a 2008 HP Technology for Teaching grant. MATC will receive an award package of HP products and a faculty cash award valued at more than $77,000. The grant package includes 21 wireless HP Tablet PCs to be used by MATC’s electrical engineering and electronic technology students and faculty. I know that the department worked very hard on this award. Congratulations and special thanks to Gashwin Saleno, electronic technician instructor, and, from the Grants Office, Ed Clarke and Dana Maya.

We have just completed our first of the intensive two-week GED preparation and career advising project for new enlistees with the WI Army National Guard who do not have high school diplomas. The National Guard calls the project “Learning for Life” because their goal is not only to help them pass the GED but also to begin to focus on educational next steps with a career focus, whether it’s within the military or not. 24 out of 24 students passed all of the five GED tests. We have 100% success for our first round! Thanks to Kelly Kotewa-Veldey, lead teacher, Lisa Lomasney and Jane Griswold for assisting and Kent Koebke, advisor.

Highlights of my last two weeks:

• greeted summer semester students;
• conducted four “Executive Awareness” visits as part of the MATC Foundation’s major gift campaign, which has been named “Smart Future;”
• attended the annual meetings of TEMPO and the Madison Symphony Orchestra;
• heard about the 2008 political scene from UW–Madison Professor of Political Science Ken Goldstein at Downtown Rotary;
• attended the MATC District Board meeting;
• participated in the annual two-day strategic planning session with WTCS presidents;
• welcomed new employees at their orientation session: John Hansen, Strategic Advancement; Trish Kelm, clerical assistant in Human Resources; Jose Lopez, computer lab specialist; Marcelllo Moreira, Tech Services senior analyst/project leader; Molly Peterson, Tech Services senior analyst/project leader; and Rebecca Pigeon, human resource specialist;
• participated in an appraisal of the state-wide marketing director;
• attended the college’s Leadership Brown Bag session where Roger Price reported on the results of the Business Processes Review;
• met with a small group of Madison area women business leaders;
• interviewed three final candidates for the position of Associate Dean-College Preparedness & Academic Advancement;
• attended College Council;
• welcomed participants to the Summer Institute for International Education, which is a three-day program providing five national speakers on Islam, politics in the Middle East and leaders in community college curriculum development; Geoff Bradshaw deserves a thousand thanks for his efforts in organizing and bringing this conference to MATC;
• met with David Smith, director of the U.S. Institute of Peace, Washington agency;
• participated in a conference call discussing the WTCS state-wide advertising campaign;
• provided an update on the college’s Biotechnology Technician program at the BioPharmaceutical Technology Center Institute (BTCI) Board meeting at Promega in Fitchburg;
• attended the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce Board meeting;
• welcomed 17 graduate students to the TEC Center who were participating in the Dane County School-to-Work Summer Career Enhancement Opportunity;
• met with Joe Lowndes, president of the full-time faculty union Local 243;
• met with Peng Her, candidate for the 81st Assembly District;
• conducted a new board member orientation with new District Board trustees Josephine Oyama-Miller and Joel Winn; and
• attended the conference of the American Council on Education Office of Women in Higher Education’s Summit for Women Presidents.

In closing, as Deb Derr prepares for her move to the presidency at NIACC, here’s, “The Paradox of Leadershipâ€? that I shared with her and would like to share with you once more:

1. People are illogical, unreasonable and self-centered. Love them anyway.

2. If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Do good anyway.

3. If you are successful, you win false friends and true enemies. Succeed anyway.

4. The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.

5. Honesty and frankness can make you vulnerable. Be honest anyway.

6. The biggest people with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest people with the smallest ideas. Think big anyway.

7. People favor underdogs but follow top dogs. Fight for the underdogs anyway.

8. What you spend a year building may be destroyed overnight. Build anyway.

9. People who need help may attack you if you help them. Help them anyway.

10. Give the world the best you have and you may get kicked in the teeth. Give your best anyway.

Doing the right thing won’t always win you the prize – life is full of compromise and even disappointment. True leaders know that the right thing is reward in itself, and eventually other rewards and recognition will follow.

Bettsey