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Amanda J. Billings
Director of Marketing and Communications
Phone: 812.330.6222
Fax: 812. 330.6106
email: abillings7@ivytech.edu
This Story is provided by The Herald Times

New program designed to fit around workday

Ivy Tech Community College
Two-year associate’s degrees offered

By Steve Hinnefeld 331-4374 | shinnefeld@heraldt.com
May 8, 2007

Ivy Tech Community College is reaching out to people who hold down jobs but want to earn an associate’s degree in two years.

Its new College for Working Adults program will debut this fall at 16 campuses, including Ivy Tech-Bloomington.

“We are saying to students, if you enroll and make a commitment to this program, our commitment is you can get through this program in two years’ time,” said John Whikehart, the Ivy Tech-Bloomington chancellor.

Students honored
Ivy Tech-Bloomington students were honored for academic achievement Friday. They included:
• Accounting: Theresa Stevens
• A.S. in Nursing: Cynthia Shively-Adkins
• Biotechnology: Jacob Cagan, Anthony Roberts
• Business administration: Faye Jameson, Brent Thompson
• Computer information system/computer information technology: Chris Harr, Brenda Russ, Kelly Spencer
• Criminal justice: Rhea Goss, Debra Morrow
• Design technology: Daniel Wilcoxen
• Early childhood education: Diana Lake
• Electronics and computer technology: Jason Fiscus, Morris Thompson
• General studies: Gretchen Bass, Obie James
• Manufacturing and industrial technology: Daniel Lawton, Harold Sumner
• Office administration: Laurie Garlisch, Shirley Hamilton, Ben Taylor, Stefani Richardson
• Practical nursing: Abby Sanders
• Industrial apprenticeship technology: Julia Graham, Morris Thompson
John Rucker, assistant professor of criminal justice, won the President’s Award for Excellence in Instruction. Instructor Jodi Pope-Pfingston was a finalist.

The Bloomington campus will offer College for Working Adults degrees in design technology, health information technology and criminal justice. Additional degrees are likely to be added later, Whikehart said.

The program will include sequential courses offered at scheduled dates and times, so people can fit the courses into their busy schedules. It will include eight-week courses and probably online study. “It moves us away from the standard 16-week semester,” Whikehart said.

Tom Snyder, who will take over as Ivy Tech’s state president July 1, hinted the program was coming last week during a visit to Bloomington. He said its market includes young people who didn’t go to college and are tied down with work and family duties.

“There’s a half-million young people under the age of 30 that we should be reaching out to,” he said. “That would really help Indiana’s work-force capability.”

Whikehart said the College for Working Adults may include classes on Friday evenings and Saturdays, when students are less likely to be working. Once students sign up, he said, the college will offer the courses they need, when they need them — regardless of how many people sign up.

Other Ivy Tech campuses offering the program are Gary, Valparaiso, Michigan City, South Bend, Fort Wayne, Lafayette, Kokomo, Muncie, Terre Haute, Indianapolis, Richmond, Columbus, Lawrenceburg, Evansville and Sellersburg.

For more information about the Ivy Tech-Bloomington program, contact Neil Frederick at nfrederi@ivytech.edu or 812-330-6026.

Scholarships available for summer students

Ivy Tech-Bloomington has scholarships available for 2007 high school graduates who plan to attend Ivy Tech this summer.

Friday at 5 p.m. is the deadline for applying. For information, see the college Web page at www.ivytech.edu/bloomington and click on “Summer Student Grants Deadline Extended.” For answers to questions, e-mail Lori Handy at lhandy1@ivytech.edu.

The campus offers 10-week and eight-week summer courses. The 10-week session is from May 21 to July 28. The eight-week session is from June 11 to Aug. 4.