News & Features
The Orpheum Theater is part of a sound educational strategy
April 24, 2018
By Bob Untiedt An important part of the Iowa Valley Community College District’s current strategic plan is this core value: Partnerships – We believe in constructing effective alliances to create educational opportunities, strengthen our communities, and foster economic development. Current Orpheum partners include three different daycare centers, every elementary school in town, the YMCA/YWCA, the…
MCC turns language barriers into building blocks
April 13, 2018
By Theresa Orlovsky Most Americans grow up only speaking English, and if they have any experience with a second language, it may be limited to a high school foreign language class. But what if foreign language wasn’t just a school subject, but the medium through which you learned other subjects, such as biology, history, or…
Adult Basic Education improves skills, changes lives
February 21, 2018
By Jon Núñez and Kathy Siebring Have you ever traveled to a foreign country and found it difficult to read and understand menus or street signs? Was it impossible to communicate with the locals? Believe it or not, there are people in our own communities who face this situation every day, and it’s not necessarily…
The Importance of the Iowa Skilled Worker & Job Creation Fund
January 10, 2018
By Cindy Schulte As Iowa moves forward to implement Governor Reynolds’ Future Ready Iowa (FRI) initiative, Iowa’s community colleges stand ready to play a key role. The goal is to prepare 70 percent of Iowa’s workforce with an education or training beyond high school by the year 2025. The FRI recommendations will focus on low-income…
Sector Partnerships + Career Pathways = A Healthy Local Economy
December 19, 2017
By Sandy Supianoski There’s a lot of jargon in education … just like there’s jargon in every industry. Because education is vitally important to nearly every industry (e.g. healthcare, manufacturing, utilities, finance, communications, agriculture and more), I’d like to review some of the current lingo and talk about what it really means for our local…
The value of concurrent enrollment in high school
November 28, 2017
By MaryAnne Nickle A research article was published in September by the Community College Research Center looking at the long-term results of concurrent enrollment across the country. The study showed that of the students who have the experience of taking college classes in high school, 51% (Iowa students) will graduate from college with either an…
Why accreditation matters
November 7, 2017
By Dr. Lisa Breja Accreditation is important to educational institutions and to college students and their families. The purpose of accreditation is to ensure that an institution has met and is maintaining a high level of standards set by an accrediting agency. While accreditation may not be at the top of the mind of students,…
The evolution of Iowa Valley Continuing Education
October 17, 2017
By Jacque Goodman For years, Iowa Valley Continuing Education (IVCE) was the place to go for personal enrichment classes such as dance and yoga. At one point in history we were the only game in town! Now, you don’t even need to leave your home for these conveniences. In fact, you can live-stream this type…
Attitude Check: ‘Tell Me Something Good!’
September 5, 2017
By Dr. Chris Duree As the Iowa State Fair draws to a close each August, those of us who are passionate about our work in the field of education are anxious for the return of our faculty and students. Throughout Iowa Valley Community College District, there is an obvious renewed sense of excitement as our…
Digital Awareness among today’s graduates
April 25, 2017
By Dr. Martin Reimer Last year I wrote an article that defined student success at Ellsworth Community College. Learning is a lifelong journey, not a destination. The real definition of student success is to ensure that students are prepared to thrive in all phases of their lives. Success means our graduates will go on to…