Pierce College News

Famed musicians Little Bill and the Bluenotes will rock the brand new Pierce College Puyallup Arts and Allied Health Building at a benefit concert to support the Pierce College Foundation.

The local, longtime band will perform a concert at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 5. A pre-reception with lead singer Bill Engelhart will be held from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. for guests who want the chance to learn more about life in the Seattle Blues scene from a Northwest Music Association Hall of Famer.

“The Pierce College Foundation is thrilled to have someone of Little Bill’s caliber playing on our behalf,” said Suzy Ames, executive director of the Pierce College Foundation. “Community members will have a special treat listening to this great music in our brand new performing arts theater.”

Little Bill and the Bluenotes has released 11 CDs and Engelhart has won every award possible (except for female vocalist) from the Washington Blues Society. The band deems itself the first rock and roll band in Tacoma. Formed in 1957, it is the only Northwest band with an original member (Engelhart) still performing on a consistent basis today.

“We are looking forward to putting on a good show for Pierce College and the community,” said Engelhart. “It’s a great opportunity to support a worthy cause and have a good time while we’re at it.”

Tickets to the advance reception and concert are $25. Tickets to the concert only are $10. Seats are limited. For tickets, contact the Pierce College Foundation at (253) 864-3260 or foundation@pierce.ctc.edu.

As a Pierce College student, you received a Gmail account when you registered. This account is how we inform you of upcoming important dates, financial aid information, registration times, withdrawals, etc. It is very important that you check this account regularly and stay current on this critical information.

For convenience, you can forward your official student Gmail account to any of your other email accounts.

To access your student Gmail account, visit Student Online Services.

It was a grand celebration on Oct. 1 to officially open the new Arts and Allied Health Building on Pierce College Puyallup’s campus. Event emcee and new College President Patrick Schmitt welcomed a large crowd of students, college employees, and community members to the new 61,600-square-foot building, which includes a theater, recital hall, music library, recording studio and practice rooms, art studios, and an expansive lobby.

Puyallup President Patrick Schmitt addresses the crowd at the grand opening ceremony Oct. 1.

It is also the new home of Pierce Puyallup’s nursing program and features a fully-equipped nursing skills lab, lifelike (but synthetic and computerized) patients, and medication and observations rooms to provide real-life hospital experiences and state-of-the-art technology.

“This building gives us wings,” Schmitt said. “It enlarges the human spirit. The beauty of the design reflects the beauty of the art and science going on inside.”

Speakers at the grand opening ceremony included: Michele Johnson, Pierce College District chancellor, Don Meyer, chair of the Pierce College Board of Trustees, Dan Bennett, president of the Pierce College Foundation Board, Lauren Adler, president of the Associated Students of Pierce College Puyallup; Roya Sabeti, chair of the Puyallup science and allied health division; and Ann Salak, chair of the Puyallup arts and humanities division. The keynote speaker was Karen Scott, chair of the business and social science division.

“It’s the heart of the college,” said Scott. “It’s the place where the arts and the sciences come together in the middle.”

Special guests at the event included: Sean Murphy, Pierce County liaison for Sen. Patty Murray; Veronica Marohn, South Puget Sound regional representative for Gov. Chris Gregoire; Sen. Jim Kastama and Reps. Bruce Dammeier and Dawn Morrell from the 25^th District; Rep. Steve Conway from the 29^th District; Sen. Pam Roach and Tammi Lewis (representing Rep. Dan Roach) from the 31^st District; Pierce County Council Member Tim Farrell; Puyallup Mayor Kathy Turner; Puyall City Council Members Kent Boyle, Tami Brouillet, Rick Hansen, John Knutsen, and Nicole Martineau; Puyallup City Manager Ralph Dannenberg; the architectural design team of Kathy Leonard, Tom Sanford, and Bill Sloan from MSGS, and Alec Holser, James Meyer, and John Shorb from Opsis; Amy Sparks and Lillian Northern from Sparks Management; Steve Wall, former chancellor and Pierce College Puyallup president; Tana Hasart, former Pierce College Puyallup president; Mary Chikwinya, former vice president for student learning and success; Mike Lamka, former division chair for natural and social sciences; and Koryn Rolstad, creator of the building’s new art piece “Reflection in Motion.”

Classes began in the Arts and Allied Health Building on Sept. 22.

What’s it really like to be in space? What’s the future of space exploration for NASA? Pierce County residents can get these questions and more answered by listening to former five-time astronaut Dr. Bonnie J. Dunbar as she talks about the importance of space exploration and science education in a presentation Thursday, Oct. 21, at Pierce College Fort Steilacoom.

Dunbar will speak on Oct. 21 at Pierce Fort Steilacoom.

Dunbar will be available for more intimate conversations at an advance reception from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. for ticket holders, and she will provide a one-hour presentation from 7 to 8 p.m. for a larger audience.

“The Pierce College Foundation is thrilled to bring Dr. Dunbar to campus for a community presentation,” said Suzy Ames, vice president of advancement and executive director of the Pierce College Foundation. “The future of space exploration couldn’t be a more timely topic with the events happening nationally and the opening of the college’s new Rainier Science and Math Building.”

Dunbar is executive director of Wings Over Washington, an arm of the Museum of Flight in Seattle, and is currently finding ways to bring a space shuttle to Seattle to be permanently housed at the museum.

“I am looking forward to my presentation at Pierce College,” Dunbar said. “I plan an evening filled with informative, entertaining dialogue about human space exploration and the future before us.”

Tickets to the advance reception and presentation are $25. Tickets to the presentation only are $10. Seats are limited. For tickets, contact the Pierce College Foundation at (253) 864-3260 or foundation@pierce.ctc.edu.

Pierce College District is reaching out to men and women with a series of relationship violence awareness events in October. The 2010-11 Relationship Violence Event Series is free and open to the public. Presentations are being held at both Pierce College Puyallup and Pierce College Fort Steilacoom in Lakewood.

Sin by Silence

Sin by Silence is a documentary film that tells the personal stories of women imprisoned for killing their abusive partners. Discussion with Brenda Clubine, a previously incarcerated survivor featured in the film, will follow.

• 11 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 6, Multipurpose Room (MPR), College Center building, Pierce Puyallup.

• 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 6, Health Education Center, Pierce College Fort Steilacoom.

Voices of Men

Using humor and celebrity impressions, Ben Atherton-Zeman has gained national acclaim for this provocative, one-man performance that tackles sexual assault, dating and domestic violence, stalking, and objectification.

• Noon, Thursday, Oct. 14, Library Building, Room 244, Pierce College Puyallup.

• 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 14, Health Education Center, Room 302, Pierce College Fort Steilacoom.

Understanding Intimate Partner Violence: DV 101

This interactive presentation teaches how to recognize an unhealthy relationship, the cycle of abuse, and how to get help.

• 5:30 to 7 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 26, Multipurpose Room (MPR), College Center building, Pierce College Puyallup.

The 2010-11 Relationship Violence Events Series is sponsored by the Pierce College offices of Student Life and Student Development. For more information, call (253) 840-8415 at Puyallup or (253) 964-6525 at Fort Steilacoom.

Veteran students will soon have a dedicated center and a team of specially trained advocates to help them in their pursuit of higher education.

On Wednesday, Pierce College was notified it had been selected to receive a three-year, $364,000 grant from the federal Department of Education to develop a Center of Excellence for Veteran Student Success at Pierce College Fort Steilacoom.

This center will provide veteran students a designated space to gather and learn, a person to help with one-on-one attention, and services to help them be successful in higher education and transition into civilian life.

Pierce College serves a large number of veteran students. Last year, the Fort Steilacoom campus alone served 1,084 veteran students.

For Carol Green, vice president of learning and student success at Pierce College Fort Steilacoom, this center represents not only a major accomplishment for the college, but a personal victory.

“Through my son’s career in the military (her son has served in Bosnia, Afghanistan and Iraq), I’ve learned so much about what armed services personnel do and how much they sacrifice for each of us,” she said. “This center is a way for us as an institution to say ‘thank you’ and to help them to an educational pathway.”
Pierce College anticipates the center will provide veterans with dedicated tutors, small-group instruction groups in critical courses, and evening and weekend study tables staffed with additional math and writing tutors.  The grant will also provide veterans with directed funds for childcare and transportation assistance, as well as other emergency needs, including housing assistance. Pierce College faculty and staff will be specially trained to increase their knowledge of the effects of war zone stressors and the complex needs of veterans.

The grant was made official today. Green said she and her team are already working to redistribute staff duties and secure a location on campus for the new center.

The community is invited to celebrate the grand opening of Pierce College Puyallup’s breathtaking new addition, the Arts and Allied Health Building, at 3 p.m. Friday, Oct. 1.

The 61,600-square-foot Arts and Allied Health Building includes a theater, recital hall, music library, recording studio and practice rooms, art studios, and an expansive lobby with large windows, ample natural light, and high ceilings. It is also the new home of Pierce Puyallup’s nursing program and features a fully-equipped nursing skills lab, lifelike (but synthetic and computerized) patients, and medication and observations rooms to provide real-life hospital experiences and state-of-the-art technology.

“The opening of this beautifully-designed building realizes a whole new set of possibilities for Pierce College Puyallup as both a great educational resource and a cultural destination for east Pierce County,” said Patrick Schmitt, the president of Pierce College Puyallup.

The Pierce College Foundation is currently two-thirds of the way toward its goal of raising $1.5 million to equip the new building with high-tech equipment, such as nursing simulation equipment and digital recording equipment.
“The grand opening offers a great way to honor our donors who recognize the importance of providing students with high-tech, hands-on learning equipment,” said Suzy Ames, vice president of advancement and executive director of the Pierce College Foundation.

Cost of the new building is about $18.7 million. Classes began in the new building on Sept. 22.

Following the formal program, there will be building tours and refreshments. In addition, artist Koryn Rolstad, creator of “Reflection in Motion,” the new public art featured in the building, will be on-hand to answer questions and discuss the piece.

The public is welcome and encouraged to attend. Parking will be in the college’s northwest parking lot. Signs will be posted the day of the event to direct visitors.

One of the Puget Sound region’s most respected artists, Sarah Waldo, is the featured artist at the inaugural show of the 2010-11 gallery season at the Pierce College Fort Steilacoom Fine Arts Gallery.

A reception for Waldo will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesday. Refreshments will be served. All are welcome to attend.

Waldo’s painting have been featured at more than 60 juried shows and 45 invitational shows in the U.S. and Japan. She’s won numerous awards and has served as a member of the Puget Sound Sumi Artists and the Women Painters of Washington. Her work will be on display at Pierce College through Oct. 15.

The Fine Arts Gallery is located at Pierce College Fort Steilacoom, 9401 Farwest Drive SW, Lakewood. Hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 8 a.m. to noon Friday.

For more information, call Gallery Director Jennifer Olson-Rudenko at (253) 964-6535 or visit the Web site at www.pierce.ctc.edu/dist/art.

Student enrollment is at an all-time high across the state and classes at Pierce College are filling fast!

• If you are a worker retraining student, you should register immediately.

• If you are a transfer student, your choices are extremely limited.

• To search for available classes, view our online course schedule at https://my.pierce.ctc.edu/webapps/classsched/scheduleViewCredit.aspx.

Otherwise, please call the Fort Steilacoom Welcome Center at 964-6705 or the Puyallup Advising Center at 840-8431 for assistance. Due to the lack of course availability, new students should start planning now for winter quarter.

We also encourage you to check out course offerings through the Pierce College Military Program (Joint Base Lewis-McChord) at http://www.pierce.ctc.edu/dist/military. For more information, call 964-6606 or 964-6567.

Starting next spring, Pierce College is offering a new option for students wishing to pursue careers in healthcare. The Physical Therapist Assistant program targets students interested in receiving high-quality career training, while still maintaining their family and work schedules.

The deadline to apply for the Physical Therapist Assistant program is Nov. 5. Classes start in March.

The nine-quarter, part-time Physical Therapist Assistant program is offered to Pierce College students through a partnership with Whatcom Community College in Bellingham. Pierce students take online classes and complete in-person lab experiences one weekend per month in Bellingham. It’s a schedule that accommodates students with family and work obligations, said Lisa Murray, advising coordinator at Pierce College.

“This is the perfect option for working students and parents wishing to break into a really exciting healthcare field,” she said. “Physical therapist assistants typically enjoy high wages, fairly flexible schedules, and satisfaction from knowing they’re helping people recover from, or cope with, illness and injury.”

Physical therapist assistants work with licensed physical therapists to provide treatment for physical injuries and disabilities. This includes training patients in therapeutic exercises, providing hands-on treatment, documenting patient progress, and using special equipment. Assistants are needed in hospitals, pediatric centers, sports medicine clinics, private practices, retirement communities, and home health agencies.

For more information on the Physical Therapist Assistant program at Pierce College, contact Lisa Murray at (253) 964-6482 or lmurray@pierce.ctc.edu.