May 14, 2021

L. Marshall Washington, Ph.D.
President

•     Caring and Respect
•     Integrity
•     Excellence and Quality
•     Humor and Well-Being
•     Teamwork and Stewardship

Fall 2021 Early Registration
Employee registration for the Fall 2021 semester will be May 14 - 16, 2021. Full and part-time employees may request access to online registration for themselves and/or their dependents through 4 p.m. today.

To request access:

1. Forward this message from your Kalamazoo Valley employee account to arr@kvcc.edu. You may also send a new message with “Employee Registration” as the subject. It must be from a “@kvcc.edu” address.
2. List the name and Valley Number or birth date for each admitted person who will be registering.
3. We will add an access code to each person’s record and reply to confirm.
4. Beginning May 14, each individual assigned a code may log into MyValley, select Register or Drop Classes from My Links and register.

Summer Hours Begin Next Week
With an eye toward energy conservation, moderating cooling costs and benefiting employees, it has been determined that the college will again adopt a four-day workweek during the time frame below:

Summer Hours
May 17 – August 13, 2021
Monday – Thursday
7:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.
(with ½ hour for lunch)

We are well aware that information technologies, facilities services, public safety, financial services and other departments with evening hours will adjust schedules to ensure coverage of important functions.
 
In cooperation with the department supervisor, individuals may be able to adjust their four-day work week schedule to Monday through Thursday 8 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
 
Employees who have earned paid vacation time will take that time in half-day blocks (4.5 hours) or full-day blocks (9.0 hours). This is pro-rated for employees working less than 40 hours per week.
 
Maintaining exemplary services for our students and guests throughout this summer work schedule is a high priority. For additional questions, please contact Amy Louallen.

Don't Be Fooled
Cybercrime is real and sophisticated criminals are targeting the college. Hackers are getting smarter and more persistent, tricking even college educated individuals into providing information to be used against them and the college.
 
We need your help:

• If an email message contains information or a request that looks unusual or is out of character for the person allegedly sending it to you, do not click on it; do not respond to the message. Dr. Washington, Dr. Eagan nor any other college employee is going to ask you for favors, personal identification information or to purchase gift cards, period.

• Review your email messages on a desktop computer. Reviewing email messages on a cell phone does not allow you to closely examine the sender name or point of origin.

• If a message looks suspicious, using your mouse, “hover” over the “sender name” to discern if the message is genuine, look for typos, incomplete or unusual sender addresses.

• If you have any doubts about the authenticity of an email message, do not respond. If a message is legit, you will be contacted again.

• Mark any suspicious messages as spam. By marking the message as spam, I.T. is automatically notified.

• Never share your personal information with anyone via email.

Soon, you will receive a legitimate email from me about your required participation in cybersecurity awareness training. You are the first, last and best defense in keeping your personal information and the college data safe from theft.
 
Do not be fooled.

Sincerely,
 
Tim Welsh
Vice President for Information Technologies
twelsh@kvcc.edu

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Kalamazoo Valley on the Road
Kalamazoo Valley Community College is celebrating the class of 2021! The Enrollment Management team is hitting the road in the Cougar Cruiser and heading to area high schools for a senior celebration! Armed with Kalamazoo Valley swag, they will meet with local seniors to celebrate their accomplishments. A complete schedule is being finalized and will be posted soon on the college calendar. #CougarCruiser2021

Tracy Labadie, Ed.D. has been named Associate Vice President for Collaboration, Compliance and Analytics. Tracy joined Kalamazoo Valley in January 2020 as Dean of Professional Trades, Business and Public Services.

Tracy’s extensive career both in and out of higher education includes work in public accounting and auditing before she joined Glen Oaks Community College as Controller. She soon discovered her passion for the classroom and completed an Ed.D. in Community College Leadership at Ferris State University. Prior to joining Kalamazoo Valley, she was the Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs at Lansing Community College, serving as the Accreditation Officer and as a member of the college’s Board Policy Review team responsible for updating Board of Trustee policies and end statements. She will continue her work as a Dean until a replacement has been identified. 

Did You Know?
The Kalamazoo Valley Museum is operated by Kalamazoo Valley Community College and governed by its Board of Trustees, which means every time you visit the museum in person or access its virtual programs, you are also visiting the college!

From its beginning in 1881 as a collection of curiosities in the public library basement, the museum has always been a tax-funded museum. Until 1984, the museum remained a department of the Kalamazoo Public Library. From 1984 to 1991, the museum received its operating support from the Kalamazoo City School District. In 1991, the museum became part of Kalamazoo Valley Community College and gained the support of the community through a charter millage.

In February 1996, the current 60,000 square foot facility was opened on the college’s Arcadia Commons Campus. It was funded by a $19.6 million private capital campaign that included contributions ranging from $10 to $4.5 million.

In cooperation with the college, museum staff works to develop cultural, historical and scientific literacy through innovative exhibits, special exhibitions, planetarium programs, educational programs and family events. As a point of pride, the museum is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums.

Beyond the Book Club with Denise Miller and Cheryl Almeda
For our next discussion, we will be reading Fortunes by Peter Ho Davies. (https://www.amazon.com/Fortunes-Peter-Ho-Davies/dp/0544263707) This story chronicles the lives of 4 Chinese Americans who are seeking to fit into the American landscape. Through fiction, we can appreciate these four stand-alone stories: Ah Ling (who came for the Gold Rush), Anna May Wong (the first Chinese film star in Hollywood), Vincent Chin (facing disgruntled auto workers who mistake him for being Japanese) and John Ling Smith (a half Chinese man who looks at his heritage when he returns to China).

The FSC and our library will be purchasing books; please reach out if you’re interested in picking one up!

Please join us on Friday, June 25, 10 - 11:15 a.m. via Zoom.

Location: https://zoom.us/j/8945322802?pwd=MEc1MmhwTFhMeW5DbktqcFpxTDNZUT09
Meeting ID: 894 532 2802
Passcode: 5hB6QR
One tap mobile +16468769923,,8945322802#,,,,*443853

Date & Time
Friday, June 25, 2021 from 10 - 11:15 a.m.

Center for New Media and El Concilio Collaborate for July Latino Art Exhibit
A Latino Artist Exhibit to showcase the fine artwork of local Latino artists is being coordinated by Kalamazoo Valley's Center for New Media and El Concilio, which is the Hispanic American Council of Kalamazoo.

The event will premiere from 5:30 to 8 p.m. during the July 2 Art Hop and again on July 9 and 10.

The event will be held in conjunction with the Latino Summer festival including July 9 when Kalamazoo Growlers are giving El Concilio the opportunity to be Non-Profit of the Night during their baseball game against the Madison Mallards.

Physical submissions will be accepted Monday – Thursday between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. at the center doors of the Center for New Media. Contact Cindy Parks at 269.373.7881 or cparks@kvcc.edu to schedule a time for delivery.

All artwork must be picked up after the show by August 6, 2021. The following must be submitted with your artwork: Completed Call for Entries Form and the Kalamazoo Valley Community College Loan Agreement. more

Student Profile: Robert Koss
Schoolcraft resident Robert Koss worked for years in the ink industry and switched to working with corrugated board before enrolling in classes at Kalamazoo Valley Community College. The father of two elementary school-aged children and a middle schooler now works as a part-time electrical lab assistant at the college and is completing his electrical technician degree.

“I came to Kalamazoo Valley because I wanted to change my career,” Koss said. While working at International Paper, he developed an interest in the electrical technology field. “I took a test at work and there was a lot that I wasn’t familiar with. I knew I needed to get some more education. That’s what propelled me.”

He’s been a Kalamazoo Valley student since 2017. He and his wife Kelly have adjusted to his shift from full-time employee to part-time employee and part-time student. Accommodating their children’s online schooling has been an added challenge. “We’ve come a long way,” Koss said. “We’ve learned to value our time and make sure we’re scheduling things as well as possible.” more

Kalamazoo Valley Libraries—Laptops, Hotspots and More
Do you have students in need of access to computers and the internet? The library has supplies to meet their computer needs and more.