BSC News Bits, Bytes, and Teasers—October 2019

BSC News Bits, Bytes, and Teasers—October 2019

10/1       Dr. Jacquelyn Madry-Taylor joined the BSC family as Interim Dean, School of Engineering Technology and Computer Science.  Before arriving at BSC, Dr. Madry-Taylor served in several higher education leadership positions. 

10/2/19 Bluefield State College is a “top 15” public college in the South and is the second highest ranked public college in West Virginia, according to the U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Colleges” September 9, 2019 edition.  Each year, U.S. News provides several categories of numerical rankings and lists.

10/3       Industrial Plating & Machine and Bluefield State College announced the formation of an educational partnership to help develop the local machinist trade.  The modern machine class is a 10-week program, covering topics ranging from basic measuring to CNC programming and computerized drafting.

10/7       The Bluefield State College student chapter of Gamma Beta Phi, a national honors and service society, has been selected as one of three winners in Gamma Beta Phi’s National Service Project Competition. 

10/7-8   Bluefield State College welcomed the “Last Chance K9 Services” to campus on October 7 and 8.  Speakers discussed a variety of topics.  These presentations were open to the public/free admission.   BSC and Bluefield College students and faculty, joined by area law enforcement personnel, attended the program.  Bluefield City Manager Dane Rideout extended welcoming comments to presenters and audience.

10/7       Fulbright Scholar Dr. Victoria Bubunyo Bam spoke at BSC, addressing “Public Health Challenges of Ghana.”  The program was open to the public/free admission.

10/9       Dr. Chonya Davis Johnson, an award-winning author and international speaker, discussed “Being Your Own Best Advocate:  The Importance of Self Advocacy!”  Approximately 100 BSC students, employees, and community members attended her presentation.

10/9       Students and faculty in Bluefield State College’s Radiologic Technology program recently conducted a food drive for the Wade Center’s backpack food program, collecting more than 600 nonperishable, nutritious food items for the program.

10/12    Bluefield State College welcomed to campus 40 students and three instructors from Oak Hill High School.  During the tour of campus and program, BSC administrators, faculty members, and student recruiters spoke to the high school students.        

10/21    Students in Bluefield State College’s Associate Degree Radiologic Technology and Nursing programs participated in the “Spooky Science” night at Cumberland Heights School.  They assisted students, ages 4 and 5, with simple science experiments.

10/21-25 BSC celebrated Homecoming 2019 with a variety of activities that included tie-dyeing homecoming t-shirts, extreme laser tag, an alumni basketball game, the coronation of Mr. & Miss BSC, and Founder’s Day.  This year’s Founder’s Day speaker was The Honorable Jill Upson, Executive Director of the Herbert Henderson Office of Minority Affairs.

10/14    Classes began for the Fall 2019 Semester 8-week compressed semester option for students.  The compressed format is an excellent fit for current students, community college graduates, former BSC students whose degree pursuit was interrupted after they’d earned 75 or more hours credit, and Regents Bachelor of Arts students.

10/20    Students and faculty from the W. Paul Cole Jr. School of Business at Bluefield State College participated in the Enactus Fall Collaboration Summit in Atlanta, GA. Representatives from 20 colleges throughout the Southeast took part in the event, which connected students, academic professionals, and business leaders through entrepreneurial-based projects.

10/20    Members of the West Virginia State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers (WVPE) spoke to Bluefield State College engineering technology students and faculty during a recent presentation at the College.  The program included an examination of a high profile professional ethics case and its ramifications.

10/21    Samantha Black, a kindergarten teacher at Memorial Elementary School, is the Cole Chevrolet Four Seasons Teacher of the Year’s 2019 award recipient.  She credited the faculty in BSC’s School of Education with preparing and supporting her throughout her undergraduate years. 

10/22    Bluefield State College President Robin Capehart was the featured speaker at the Bluefield Rotary Club’s weekly meeting.  He discussed the College’s desire to develop academic programs that address workforce development and meet emerging needs.

10/23    Representatives from the West Virginia Department of Highways visited Bluefield State College today, meeting with BSC Engineering Technology students and faculty member Dr. Kerry Stauffer. Leslie Adkins, WVDOH Job Recruiter, discussed summer engineering co-op opportunities and permanent full-time employment opportunities with BSC students.

10/28    Throughout the day, ten BSC alumni and students were interviewed by the Emmy Award-winning Pikewood Creative video team, discussing how Bluefield State College positively impacted their lives and career success. The interviews will be utilized to promote BSC to a variety of audiences through traditional and digital advertising in the coming months.

10/28    Bluefield State’s new website “went live,” providing prospective students, current students, and all others with a more dynamic, interactive experience.  The site is user-friendly, mobile-friendly, and much more visually appealing than the former website.

10/29    BSC SGA presented a “Trunk or Treat” night on campus.  BSC student organizations took part, helping young children from throughout the area to enjoy a safe, fun-filled pre-Halloween celebration. 

10/30    Bluefield State College students explored the depth and breadth of the West Virginia’s Legislative internship opportunities during an on-campus presentation.  The students, whose academic majors ranged from Political Science and Business to Engineering Technology, met Ms. Adair Sankoff and Ms. Jes Russo from the West Virginia Legislative Internship Office.

10/30    Bluefield State College Erma Byrd HEC First Year Associate Degree Nursing students participated in Raleigh General Hospital’s Senior Friends Fall Fair at the Raleigh County Convention Center. The students’ exhibits focused upon health topics specific to the senior adult population, while the nursing students also provided influenza vaccines, blood pressure and blood sugar screenings for attendees.

Coming Up:

11/1       A Regional Job and Resource Fair will be held at the Beckley-Raleigh County Convention Center, during which US Senator Joe Manchin will speak.  The Senator, the WV Higher Education Policy Commission’s Erma Byrd Higher Education Center, WorkForce WV, the Beckley-Raleigh Chamber of Commerce, and CBS59-TV are co-sponsoring the event.

11/13    Student teams representing regional high schools will compete in the 7th annual Bluefield State College Humanities Challenge.  The Challenge begins at 10 am in the Harris-Jefferson Student Center.

11/13    Bluefield State College’s Veterans Day Recognition Program welcomes Maj. Gen. Roosevelt Allen, Jr. (Ret.) as its keynote speaker.  The program, which begins at 11:30 am in the Basic Science Auditorium, is open to the public, free of charge.

11/25    The annual Mercer County Schools’ “Reading Bee” academic competition will be held in the Basic Science Auditorium.  Student teams from 14 Mercer County schools will take part in the event.