Bruce Forciea, anatomy and physiology instructor at Moraine Park, has had a career journey that has taken him around the world. Early on in his career, he was an international ice skating coach and a director of skating programs in both the United States and Australia. He later worked as an electrical engineering technician, and then went to college and become a Chiropractor. “While working in my chiropractic practice, I began presenting at seminars and found that I love teaching,” Bruce said. “One of my patients was a dean at MATC and asked if I would be interested in teaching at the College.” Bruce eventually left his practice to pursue teaching full-time. He has been with Moraine Park for 16 years, and his worldly experiences have made him the knowledgeable leader and mentor that he is today.
“I feel my life calling is to help others,” Bruce said. “It is rewarding to see students develop the ability to understand complex material, and I love discovering new ways to teach using technology.”
Bruce works to keep the Moraine Park on the forefront of teaching technology. He led the College in implementing an Anatomage Table.This comprehensive 3D tool allows students the opportunity to see all aspects of the human body on a virtual screen. It is now used college-wide by many of the health science classes. Technology like this also allows Bruce to keep his teaching methods fresh each semester.
“I really enjoy helping students learn the difficult content in my courses,” Bruce said. “I find it a real challenge to break down difficult concepts and present them in a way that is as simple as possible without lowering the rigor.”
It is this exact drive and motivation that makes Bruce a staple at Moraine Park’s West Bend Campus, and an inspirational instructor for many students.
“I think of every semester as a challenge to teach the best course I possibly can. Sometimes things work and sometimes they don’t, but the point is to continue to try and never give up.”
When CNC student, Cory Schumacher, completed his semester project this last December, he couldn’t help but share his accomplishments on this personal Reddit feed. Little did he know, it would quickly climb to be the top post on machinist site. If you take a look at the image, and his quality work above, it should be easy to see why.
“The chess board was created in my advanced 3D milling and turning classes,” Cory said. “It was a combination of a few classes because of the time involved. That’s the only way something like this could come together.”
Jim Hokenson was the CNC instructor for this project. He created the drawings and prints for the chess board.
“Not every college is doing stuff like this,” Cory said. “I got to talk to people from around the country through Reddit and was told this from a few students at other colleges. It just goes to show you how good of a program Moraine Park has.”
Cory has his chess board proudly displayed, and he says it’s one of those things that he will keep for life.
“This was probably my favorite project we have made here to date,” Cory said. “It was also the most complex project we have made.”
His Reddit post so well received that he even had people requesting him to make more. He did state that the time and energy involved in this project is significant and that he doesn’t expect to create this chess board again.
“A project like this is the best experience you can get,” Cory said. “From the blueprint reading, programming, and setting the block up to be machined. You’re doing everything you would be doing in the workforce.”
As if 1/21/2019, Cory’s post still remains at the top, as the #3 top post of the year.
For more information on programs like CNC, visit morainepark.edu
Many of us can identify life-changing moments as a result of being in the right place at the right time. For Danairis (Deedee) Melendez, that is exactly how her Moraine Park journey began.
Deedee is a mother of six children and originally came to Wisconsin from Puerto Rico. Her family settled in Milwaukee, and she found employment at a local Optometrist office. To the outside world she led a normal life, but behind closed doors, she was in a vicious cycle of abuse, both mentally and physically. It is apparent that Deedee has a strength that is rare to come by. However, she said that even her strong, independent personality was no match to her abuser.
“I never thought that I would be a victim of abuse,” Deedee said. “I knew my family deserved more. So, I packed up and fled the situation.”
She relocated her family to the West Bend area and welcomed this as an opportunity to have a fresh start.
Deedee started working at Advanced Focus Eyecare in West Bend. On a typical workday, she was helping a woman find glasses when they began to talk about career goals. Deedee mentioned her desire to become a nurse, and her customer just happened to be Kathy Vandemark, a counselor at Moraine Park Technical College in West Bend.
“We hit it off, I liked her immediately,” Deedee said. “Kathy helped walk me through the enrollment process, and ultimately helped me get into my program.”
Deedee not only wants to be a nurse, but she also has aspirations to be a neonatal nurse.
“My oldest son was born at 23-weeks,” she said. “He had a one-percent survival rate, and he just turned 17!”
Her experience in the neonatal unit as a parent is what motivates her to want to serve the parents and babies in need of care.
Both Deedee and Kathy were in the right place at the right time. The result? Deedee will petition to begin her nursing clinical this March and is expected to graduate in December of 2020.
She is also writing a book documenting her journey as a victim of abuse. Her goal is to help others in similar situations find the help that they need to redefine their life.
We look forward to following Deedee’s journey and wish her the best of luck as she continues to pursue her degree.
**A fun side note**
Deedee’s daughter Jayanie age 12, sat in on our interview. I couldn’t help but strike up a conversation with her also. Jayanie is quite possibly the most polite 12-year old I’ve ever spoken with, and she also aspires to be in health care. Her goal is to be a heart surgeon, and her eyes sparkled a bit when she talked about her dream career. I look forward to interviewing Jayanie in the future as a Moraine Park health sciences student.
Meet our business analyst (BA) instructor, Jo Ann Giese-Kent!
Jo Ann grew up in Campbellsport but now resides just outside of Fond du Lac with her husband Tim (a Moraine Park Alumnus), her teenage daughter, Ashlee, and her furry feline friends Pepper and Lilly.
Prior to her current role, she worked as the VP of business intelligence and entrepreneurship for the Fond du Lac County Economic Development Corporation. During this time, she also served as an adjunct instructor, teaching small business classes for Moraine Park’s Economic and Workforce Development (EWD) department.
“I received my bachelor’s degree in business administration majoring in marketing in the early ’90s,” Jo Ann said. “When I interned as a market researcher at a paper company, I discovered I liked the analytical side of marketing. Throughout my career, I have done all aspects of marketing but felt the most comfortable with analysis from analyzing customer segments’ behavior and needs to analyzing processes or other business needs and recommending solutions to deliver more value to customers or internal stakeholders. I’ve done analysis type work in several industries including direct marketing (catalog business), banking, higher education, and economic development.”
Jo Ann worked in Moraine Park’s Institutional Research department from 2000-2009 and returned to Moraine Park in August of 2017 as the full-time BA instructor.
“I enjoy working with students and sharing my experiences,” Jo Ann said. “When I heard about the new BA program instructor position, I was very interested. I am grateful that I was offered the job! Instead of being behind-the-scenes researching and understanding our students, I now can have a direct impact on their learning and success.”
The number one reason why someone should consider a career as a business analyst is that they are in high demand across many industries. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, employers throughout the United States will need 861,400 management analysts (which includes the business analyst title) by 2024. In Wisconsin, employers will need 13,151 by 2024. That’s a growth of 14%, almost double compared to all occupations nationally. As a plus, an experienced analyst can earn $71,230 as the median annual wage.
“Employees who do business analysis have many different titles and roles,” Jo Ann said. “Most have the business analyst title but could also have titles such as systems analyst, process analyst, database analyst, market research analyst, supply chain analyst, and many others. They primarily help identify business needs, solve problems to produce better business outcomes, and help organizations add value to customers, suppliers, or end users of a process, or system. They are known as the liaison or agent to enable that change to occur.”
The online BA program teaches the fundamental knowledge areas, tasks, and techniques needed to be successful in the business analysis field.
Outside of the College, you can find Jo Ann enjoying time her yard planting and landscaping. You might even catch her at a heavy metal concert.
“I’m more of a quiet and reserved person. Some people find it surprising that I love hard rock and heavy metal music,” Jo Ann said. “At this year’s Rock USA, I won a hand-painted, autographed Dean guitar!”
Thank you, Jo Ann, for your devotion to Moraine Park and the BA program. For more information, visit morainepark.edu/programs.
Moraine Park Technical College
held its bi-annual Manufacturing Skills Academy graduation on Thursday,
December 13. The College had 23 students graduate from the program; 10 from the
Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machinist boot camp and 13 from the welding
boot camp.
This program was
designed to combat the skilled worker shortage by offering a variety of boot
camp sessions. The boot camp sessions are free to participants, teach skills
that are unique to a particular pathway, and connect students with area
employers. The program also combines a 144-hour paid internship with
coursework, including Occupational Math, Print Reading, Team Building, Problem
Solving, and program-specific courses. Participating internship sites for this
session were Amerequip Corporation, Apache Stainless, Fives Giddings &
Lewis, Integrity Saw & Tool, Mayville Engineering Company, Metalcraft of
Mayville, Mid States Aluminum, Signicast, Wabash National, and Weasler
Engineering.
Since the induction of these
sessions in 2012, Moraine Park has had 298 students graduate from the welding
and CNC boot camp programs.
Those who
completed the most recent CNC boot camp include: Darlene Anderson of Fond du
Lac, Nicole Busack of West Bend, Robert
Fisher of North Fond du Lac, Ryan Gaus of Fond du Lac, Cory Herrmann of Fond du Lac, Kyle
Jenquine of Fond du Lac, Montgomery Kikkert of Fox Lake, Carissa Metz of
Waupun, Rick Rodriguez of Fond du Lac, and Alex Russart of Fond du Lac.
Those who
completed the welding boot camp include: Brennan Bryan of Fond du Lac, Nita
Cook of Beaver Dam, Jennifer Donahue of Beaver Dam, Jordan Finley of DeForest,
Dave Finn of Fond du Lac, Michelle Flanagan of Plymouth, Casey Hermann of Fond
du Lac, Frank Huber of Juneau, Amy Mann of Fond du Lac, Noah Prost of
Watertown, Cecilia Tovar of Beaver Dam, Jeremiah Vanderkin-Jus of Fond du Lac,
and Brian Wilcox of Fond du Lac.
The graduation
ceremony included speeches from students Busack and Mann.
Busack, a CNC
graduate, is grateful for the experience Moraine Park gave her through the boot
camp program.
“A lot of us have
worked dead end jobs, and didn’t know our hidden potential,” said Busack. “Thanks
to Moraine Park and our instructors, we all have a chance to find it. This has
opened so many doors for a lot of us.”
Busack served her
program internship at Signicast in Hartford and was hired full-time prior to
graduation.
Mann, a welding
graduate, came to Moraine Park in search of a career she could be passionate
about. She completed her internship at Mayille Engineering Company (MEC) and
was also hired on as a full-time employee prior to graduation.
“The boot camp
program taught me that if there’s something I really want to accomplish, I can
do it,” Mann said. “I am standing here today as a welder, a high school
graduate, and a newly hired employee of Mayville Engineering Company.”
Moraine Park’s
Skills Academy boot camps are free to participating students, thanks to grant
dollars from Wisconsin Fast Forward and financial support from area businesses
including Amerequip, Apache Stainless, Elkay Interior Systems, Fives, Integrity
Saw & Tool, Inc., John Deere Horicon Works, John Crane, Mayville
Engineering Company, Midstates Aluminum Corporation, Signicast, SJI/Busse, and
Wabash National.
“We are very
pleased to participate with Moraine Park’s CNC boot camp again this semester,”
Paul Reetz, owner of Ingetrity Saw & Tool, Inc. said. “We have been able to
gain quality employees who are advanced on the learning curve. The
program teaches them to become a valuable member of our company by the time they
become full-time employees at the end of the semester. It’s a rare
win-win-win situation for all involved in the partnership!”
In addition, welding training is also funded,
in part, through a GPR grant that incorporates both Adult Basic Education and
welding. The purpose of this training is to allow students seeking their High
School Equivalency Diploma (HSED), the opportunity to take the welding boot
camp in conjunction. This training opportunity is open to anyone interested in
pursuing their HSED.
Individuals interested
in learning more about the CNC and welding boot camp opportunities are
encouraged to attend a Boot Camp Test Drive event scheduled at Moraine Park’s
Fond du Lac campus on January 23 and 24. Registration is recommended.
Moraine Park Technical College will hold their spring 2019 New Student Welcome Day event on Wednesday, January 16 at all three of their campuses; Beaver Dam, Fond du Lac, and West Bend.
The event will be
held open-house style at all three campuses from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. New students
who are beginning program classes in spring 2019 are encouraged to attend.
Participants will be offered personal guided tours to help locate classrooms, assistance
in finding the most convenient parking lot, printed course schedules, ID
photos, and the opportunity to purchase their textbooks. Registration is encouraged but
not required.
Moraine Park Technical College will be hosting a site review February 5 -7, 2019 for its continuing accreditation for the Nursing Associates degree program by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN).
The public is invited to meet the site visit team and share their comments about the program. The open forum meeting will take place on Wednesday, February 6, 2019, from 4:00 to 4:30 p.m.at any of Moraine Park’s three main campuses, Beaver Dam, room K-201; Fond du Lac, room E-141; West Bend, room L-137.
Written comments are also welcome and should be received by January 31, 2019.
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