On Feb. 22, students will have the opportunity to talk one-on-one with their state representatives and senators during Missouri Community College Rally Day, an annual event held at the state capitol in Jefferson City.

“This year, MCCA’s Rally Day is more important than ever, as the state’s higher education budget could be reduced by as much as 12.5 percent,” wrote MCC Associate Vice Chancellor Tom Vansaghi in a district-wide email.

Rally Day will begin at 9:30 a.m. with a gathering where elected officials will speak about the importance of community colleges.  Participants will then divide into groups according to campus and visit their state representatives and senators.

MCC will provide transportation for students interested in participating.  Students must pre-register with their campus coordinator.  Contact information and guidelines can be found in the Rally Day email sent to all MCC students.

The deadline for registration is Feb. 10.

Shorelines editor Matt Porto preps for more submissions (David Hiestand/The Current).

by David Hiestand

“There is just something magical about seeing your work in print,” said Terri Lowry, faculty sponsor of Shorelines, Longview’s annual publication of student writing and artwork.

Shorelines pays students for exemplary work through its annual “Creativity Contest,” which features cash prizes for fiction, poetry and artwork.  The entry fee is $1 per submission, but Lowry says students do not have to enter the contest to benefit from publishing in Shorelines.

“Many publishers and literary magazines read college publications like Shorelines,” said Lowry.  From her experience as a novelist and poet, Lowry says that having published works to put in a portfolio or cover letter helps immensely when submitting to larger publications.

Shorelines student editor Matt Porto will oversee much of the production of this year’s issue.  Last year, Porto took second place in the poetry contest and worked as a reader for Shorelines.

“It’s a great confidence booster to write something and see it actually published,” said Porto.  “It opens up a lot of other possibilities because, once you see how easy it is to submit something, you realize that there are so many other places you can submit to with similar criteria– especially online.”

Someone who can personally attest to the possibilities that open up when one takes a proactive approach towards writing is internationally published sci-fi author and Longview history instructor Steven Murphy.

Murphy says that the Crystal M. Field award he received in 2007 for his student work with Shorelines, along with the short stories he published in prestigious magazines such as Interzone, greatly assisted him in landing a position as a history instructor– a position which provided him with the credentials to work as a historical research assistant for sci-fi author John Birmingham.

“There are lots of people who aspire to be writers but 99.9 percent never submit anything.  When you submit to a magazine like Shorelines, you move away from the wannabes and that much closer to publication,” Murphy said.

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The 2011-2012 edition of Shorelines will be available in the Longview library and spread around campus after the first week of May.  Although a digital release is unlikely for this edition, Lowry and Porto would like to integrate a website in the near future.  They say they envision a website that would regularly publish student art and writing, and also feature student film, music, and animation.

“A Shorelines website would further broaden the submission process and allow for greater creativity; there are almost an endless amount of mediums you can exhibit online,” said Porto.

To achieve this dream, Shorelines needs students with web design skills.  Lowry says any such students would be welcomed to the Shorelines team.

Students interested in submitting to Shorelines, or working on their website, can pick up a blue flyer with further information from Terri Lowry’s office at the LA in room 202W.

The deadline for submissions is March 15.

The MCC-Blue River Trail Blazers soccer teams are preparing for the upcoming fall season. The coaches, Brad Childers (women) and Dave Owens (men), are in the process of signing new players in hopes that this season will be as successful as the previous seasons.

The women’s team just signed Bailey Barnett, who will graduate from Liberty North High School this spring. From Lee’s Summit Community Christian High School, the men’s team signed Hunter McRoberts, who has an excellent scoring record.

Childers said that this season will be challenging and rewarding. The team will lose nine of his 2011 starters, whose time at Blue River has expired. Two 2011 starters will be key players while they continue to rebuild.

The new player, Barnett, will be added as a goal keeper. She has “attributes that are vital to maximizing her development,” Childers said.

According to Barnett, the trick is to develop quality players who will blossom at the right moment.  “If history repeats itself, we will likely become legit contenders again next season,” he said.

Owens said he has confidence that the men’s season will be a success. “We have built a program that now has a good reputation and the year to year standard is high,” he said. The new player, McRoberts, has the ability to score goals with his “thunderous shot” and that’s what is going to be expected from him.

In the next few weeks the men’s team will have another signing with new players that include Adam Schroeder (Ray-Pec), Josh Medina (North Kansas City), and Chase Carter (Lee’s Summit North). All three of these players are midfielders and have “excellent all around skills and will continue to allow us to be a team that emphasizes a pass and move philosophy of soccer,” said Owens.

The greatest obstacle for the men’s team will be lack of continuity, according to Owens. Every year, half of the roster needs to be replaced and makes it tougher for the team to come together.

~Michael Scassellati

by David Hiestand

To help students and faculty stay safe and aware of their surroundings, the MCC Police Department will now be sharing safety tips and other useful information via their new Twitter account.

“We wanted to use another medium to get information out to our faculty and students,” says MCC Associate Director of Public Safety Domenick Brouillette, who recently made the decision to implement Twitter.

In addition to regularly tweeting safety tips, Brouillette says @MCCPoliceDept will keep followers up to date about campus closings, areas under construction, closed parking lots, and any other information that will “help students and faculty get around better,” he said.

Emergency messages will be tweeted in addition to being emailed, posted on the MCC Alert web page, and texted through the MCC Notify Me text messaging service.

Twitter users can now follow the MCC Police Department by texting “Follow MCCPoliceDept” to 40404, or by going to twitter.com/MCCPoliceDept.

How safe do you feel on campus after that late-night class?

On the Metropolitan Community College campuses, security is a major concern.  With some common-sense caution and help from the MCCKC Police force, students don’t have to be afraid of the dark.

Capt. Chuck McMullin, commander of the Longview branch of the MCC Campus Police, says that safety at all of MCC’s campuses is taken very seriously. According to McMullin, officers are available 24/7. If there is not an officer physically on campus, one is on call.

Three to four officers are on duty at a time, McMullin said, and their primary focus is the protection of people and property. The officers also work on patrol functions, investigations, campus networking and traffic issues.

McMullin said that in his opinion, it is not more dangerous to take a night class than one during the day. He called the environment “very safe and friendly.” To help keep safe at night, McMullin recommends that students walk in pairs and park in well-lit areas if they are concerned about taking a night class.

Reporting suspicious activity to the campus police is very important, McMullin said, because there is no way that the officers will know about the activity unless students and teachers report what they see or hear. He said that anything that seems out of the ordinary can be reported to campus police dispatch, or by calling 911.

To help ensure that you are not an easy target for a crime, keep these simple suggestions in mind:

• Secure your belongings in your trunk instead of in plain sight in your car.
• If carrying a purse, keep it close to your body.
• If you think you are being followed, cross the street or change direction.
• Always notify campus police if you witness a crime or any sort of suspicious activity.

All-American Sammi Phegley (Alex Greenlee/The Current)

by Alex Greenlee

Longview Laker Sammi Phegley has been named second team All-American. The news came as a surprise to the freshman setter.

“I didn’t think I was going to get it, so when we were at the banquet and coach Rob Kaleikau said my name, my jaw dropped to the floor. I was so surprised,” she said.

Phegley started playing volleyball in Texas. “I’ve been playing volleyball since fourth grade and I started out playing Catholic Youth Organization, which is somewhat competitive,” she said. When Phegley was a freshman in high school, she and her family moved to the small town of West Plains, Mo.

Since she is only 5 feet 7 inches tall, Phegley has always been at a height disadvantage. “You cannot give up and you always have to have a positive attitude, you have to be able to trust your teammates and trust they will do their job so you can do yours,” she said.

Phegley said she thinks her height might cause her problems in the future. “I want to play at a higher level, but I think my height is at a disadvantage to me because normally everyone that plays in a big college is over 5 foot 10 inches tall,” she said.

Phegley says she couldn’t have won the award without her team and coach. “I’m also very proud that my teammates all believe in us and that they never gave up. After we won regionals and were going to nationals, the look on my coach’s face was pure happiness and I knew he was very proud of us. You could tell coach felt great about his accomplishments as coach,” she said.

Are you truly ready to graduate? If you are like most students, your focus is on the current semester or even this immediate class, and graduation seems to be in the distant future. You might be surprised at how soon you should be thinking about your graduation.

“Each student should apply at least two semesters prior to their intended graduation date,” said Mary Buso, an advisor at Penn Valley.

“Preparation for graduation should begin day one in meeting with an advisor, and you should plan to meet with an advisor every semester,” said Jackie King, an academic advisor at MCC-Longview. “This is the best resource to ensure you’re on track for graduation and taking any prerequisite you might need to transfer to a four-year college.”

In order to communicate this to the students, MCC has placed posters throughout the different campuses indicating that students planning to graduate in May or July of 2012 should apply now. But some students still find the process difficult.

Sabrina Pacheco will graduate next semester from Penn Valley. Pacheco, whose pursuit of a two-year degree turned into four years with the birth of her two children, recently called her advisor’s office to see what she needed to do to apply for graduation.

Pacheco was told to come to the advisor’s office to start the application. She  bundled up her two children to make the 30-minute commute to the campus.

“She was gleaming with pride” as she entered the advisors office, said Pacheco’s husband, Nick. But when she got there, Pacheco was pointed to a computer to start the application and then told she would receive something in the mail.

“I was very upset and frustrated by the lack of involvement from the advisors,” Pacheco said. “I thought I did everything I could by calling first to inquire about the process, but come to find out I could have done the application on-line at home.

“It would have been nice to at least have one of the advisors either on the phone or in the office say a simple congratulations. I worked very hard to get here and I felt as though I’ve done it alone.”

Heather Stufflebean is a mom, too,  with a full-time job, and is only able to take one or two classes a semester. She anticipates graduating in 2014. “I haven’t given it a lot of thought. It still seems so far away,” Stufflebean said.

Like Pacheco, Stufflebean also isn’t sure what all is involved in applying to graduate. “I wouldn’t know where to begin,” she said.

Like many students who take most of their courses online, Stufflebean relies on Blackboard and MyMCCKC for most of her information, as it’s not convenient to travel to a campus during daytime hours, she said.

The one lesson both sutdents have learned about the graduation process? Take a pro-active approach and meet with an advisor.

Buso said most students also are concerned and surprised by how long it takes to receive their actual diploma certificate after graduation. Buso said students “don’t take into account that we have to account for the final grades from their instructors prior to submitting them.”

There are several tools and resources available to students to gather more information. King said www.mcckc.edu/graduation was the place to begin the actual application process. Buso pointed out that there is a section in the course catalog that explains about graduation and provides dates for cap-and-gown fairs.

Apply before these deadlines:

• November 15 – for fall (December) graduation
• April 15 – for spring (May) graduation
• July 15 – for summer (July) graduation

• Log onto myMCCKC.
• Click on Student Center Home.
• In the Academics section find the drop down box labeled “Other Academics, and select “Apply for Graduation”.

Electives are part of almost every program at MCC, and students can take virtually anything to fulfill the requirement. One break from traditional lecture classes is Bowling I and II offered at Blue River. Set up similarly to an actual bowling league, this physical education class gives students the opportunity to get outside the classroom.

Bowling has been offered at Blue River since 1989. Eight students participated in the first class held at Blue Springs Bowl, but the class now averages a full 32 students every semester. Bowling I and II are both held at the same time at Lunar Bowl in Blue Springs, and the students bowl together and help each other improve their game. Since the class is offered on Friday afternoons,
many students find bowling a relaxing end to their academic week. According to Peggy Tuter, who has instructed both Bowling I and II since they began, the class often sees students return to take Bowling II.

“Around four to six return every semester. This semester, there are five back for Bowling II. It happens sometimes that students just can’t get back in. That class can fill quickly,” she said. Tuter says she believes that higher level bowling classes would also see students continue on from Bowling II.  “I think if Bowling III and IV were offered, students would bowl their entire two years, just because it’s a really fun class with a little bit of competition, too.”

Bowling I student Brad Holder says the fun and competition are what attracted him to the class. “This is actually the only class I’m taking this semester,” he said. “I wanted to take it light and have an easy semester. Now I think I’ll probably take Bowling II with my other classes in the spring. It’s fun, and I can use it to fill out my schedule a bit.”

David Stockton, a freshman at Longview, is taking Bowling II with his wife Becca, a sophomore at Blue River. They took Bowling I together during the summer session and were glad to be able to return to the lanes. “I really like Coach Tuter, and the class has improved my game a lot. I want to be a better bowler,” David said. He also says that he enjoys the stress relief he gets from bowling. Becca agrees with him whole heartedly. “We have seven children between us. It’s nice to have a way to get out in public without them and relax with each other,” she said.

Whether looking to fulfill a graduation requirement with a non-traditional class or trying to find a niche in a new hobby, bowling is definitely worth a student’s consideration. It offers the opportunity to try something different and maybe find an unexpected skill, which is part of what college electives are intended to do.

Many women today are taking multi-tasking to new heights as mother, wife, employee, and college student.

How do women find to time to effectively manage college with a multitude of other responsibilities? Three women, who are not only working college students but also mothers, offer some insight into how they juggle these various roles.

Anne Lewis, a 31-year-old mother with a 3-year-old son, is a returning student. Lewis attended college for a short time after high school but soon realized that she had no idea what field of work interested her and chose to put college on hold, she said. An interest in accounting persuaded her to return to school, and she earned an associate of arts at Metropolitan Community College and is now finishing up an accounting degree at Park University.

Jennifer Saunders, a 34-year-old mother of two girls, ages 11 and 13, is also a returning student after attempting college “for a short time.” Saunders, who is enrolled at MCC and Johnson County Community College, said she went back to school “to further my career and show my daughters commitment and desire of completion.”

Georgina Hunter, a 36-year-old with three children, ages 11, 12 and 15, is attending MCC and hopes to transfer to a four-year college and earn a bachelor’s degree in nursing. Unlike Saunders and Lewis, Hunter did not go to college right out of high school, because she already had a data entry job and was earning a good income.

“I only really cared about working and making money,” Hunter said. “For the most part, I had no focus and hadn’t set out any goals for myself.”

While their reasons for going back to school vary, all three said they experience some high levels of stress. Lewis says she dedicates approximately 10-15 hours a week to her studies. Saunders estimates 15-20 hours a week, and Hunter about 20-30 hours a week. Each of these women said she has dropped a class due to the outside pressures of work and home life.

Lewis, who says she gives up two nights a week and her weekends to dedicate time to classroom work and homework, looks forward to the nights when she will be able to tuck her son into bed during the week. Hunter says she is not able to spend as much time with her family as she would like.

Saunders, unlike the other two, says she has experienced minimal impact on her family life, but she notes that this is only her first semester back at school and believes this may change as her course load increases.

“It can be done but there are sacrifices that need to be made,” Lewis said of going back to school. “I strongly encourage any working mom to go back and better themselves and their family’s future, but realize it is not easy.”

Lewis recommends working student-mothers to ask for help from family and friends because a support system is essential to making it work. Hunter agreed, but also encouraged women to give themselves a break.

“Lean on your support system, whether it is family or after-school programs at your children’s’ schools,” Hunter said. “Find a reliable person in each class that can take notes in case you have an emergency with your family that might cause you to miss a class.

“Don’t try to be Super Woman. Sometimes you might have to leave some chores unattended to focus on your studies,” Hunter said.

Saunders said, “Do you what you do best. Focus on what is important to you.”

Just like their families, employers might need to cope with the demands of the multi-tasking mom. Lewis advised supervisors to show some patience.

“Some students have difficult times with the balancing act,” Lewis said. “Employers should support higher education and be supportive of those employees who are making the sacrifice.”