Written by: Pamela James, MBA, MPH, MPM, MT(ASCP), NBC-HWC, PMP

What do you use to clean your house, your dishes, your body?  Unfortunately, your common everyday products are putting the health of you and your loved ones in danger.  Every time you spray something, you inhale some of it.  Every time something gets on your skin (accidentally or on purpose), it can get into your bloodstream. 

Maybe some of you are thinking, “Yep, that’s why I buy ___ which is natural.  It says so right on the label.”  But did you know that even many “natural” products are full of chemicals, phthalates, parabens, and hormone disruptors?  And that doesn’t apply only to cleaning products but also to all those lotions and potions that we knowingly put on our skin every single day.

Here’s the great news. Making your home healthier does not have to be expensive or complicated.  There are many natural and safe options to choose from including essential oils, vinegar, castile soap, and baking soda. 

Essential oils?  Wait, aren’t those just a nice smelling alternative to candles?  Actually no, essential oils can be used in a number of ways and have been for thousands of years around the world.  I won’t bore you with all the science, but here’s the basics. 

Essential oils are naturally occurring compounds found in the various parts of trees, flowers, and other plants.  Plants make essential oils for their own health – to repel insects, protect them from the environment, resist microbes, and more.  When we use a 100% pure essential oil, those same properties work for us too! 

Have you ever used a scented candle, cleaning product, or lotion?  Ever had a cup of tea, put a lemon in your water, or added herbs and spices (fresh or dried) to your food?  Then you’ve used essential oils! 

As we’ve already discussed, we want to decrease (or eliminate completely) the use of dangerous household chemicals.  And the best way to do that is to start with simple swaps.  Make your own products and know exactly what’s in them!  Don’t let the idea of essential oils or DIY (do it yourself) overwhelm you.  Here are a couple easy DIY recipes to try.

Look at how easy it is to swap out expensive and dangerous cleaning chemicals!  Simple recipes with simple ingredients for a healthier home in just minutes.

A couple final notes.  Firstly, always use caution with essential oils as they are extremely concentrated and powerful.  A couple drops goes a long way.  Secondly, watch out for impure and synthetic essential oils as you lose all the great benefits when they are made in a lab instead of by nature.  Even those essential oils labeled as 100% pure are usually diluted or adulterated.  Do your research.

Interested in learning more about using essential oils in your life? There are a number of classes coming up that will help you get started. Visit https://www.morainepark.edu/academics/continuing-education/ find an essential oils class for you.

When was the last time you took an Excel course? If you are like most of us you have probably googled a command or two or watched a YouTube video on a specific function when needed. You get the work done, but the experience was uninspiring.  Over the course of a few weeks, you’re lucky if two or three of the new commands or functions you learned make it into your daily routine.  Sound familiar?

Here are some simple Microsoft Excel tricks you can use to be more productive at work.

Select All. This quick keyboard commands can cut your computer task time by seconds, which quickly adds up to minutes and hours.  [Ctrl]+A can be used to select all of the data in your Excel spreadsheet at one time. It also works in Word and other Windows applications.

Display formulas. Not the original author of a spreadsheet than you will find this helpful. When you hit [Ctrl] + ~, all of the formulas in a spreadsheet will be visible, allowing you to edit or tweak them as needed.

Using Quick Analysis. Who doesn’t want to analysis data quickly? Right click inside the table you wish to work with. Select the Quick Analysis button to open the menu. Hover over one of the tabs: Formatting, Charts, Totals, Table or Sparklines to preview the effects. Click on the button to apply the feature.

Moraine Park offers a host of Microsoft Excel classes that can teach you basic and advanced skills, or can be used as refresher training.  Consider what skills would make you more productive. Here are some options: 

Excel Level 1

Excel Level 2

Excel Level 3

If you’re looking to update or improve your Excel skills, please feel free to contact us today for more information on everything we offer!

Dodge County Public Health and Beaver Dam Moraine Park Technical College Nursing Students partnered up again this year to deliver vaccines to children in Dodge County. Last year the flu vaccine clinical occurred at Dodgeland School. However, this year, thanks to the pandemic the vaccine clinic looked a little different.  This was a first for Dodge County Public Health to offer the flu vaccine via a drive thru.

Over a four day schedule, approximately 213 flu vaccines were administered at the first ever drive thru clinic. According to Lina Rooney – Dodge County Public Health Nurse, “There is no possible way this could have happened without the MPTC staff & students. Through driving wind, rain, & chilly late afternoon temps, MPTC students soldiered on.  They established an efficient flow of assembling & handling syringes, supplies, & paperwork so everything went smoothly. They cheerfully greeted families, calmed anxious kids, and safely administered flu shots. We can’t forget their stellar traffic control skills, either; only one cone was run over! 

According to one of the students, “It was a great experience for us nursing students as we are growing into the role of becoming nurses. The exposure to working with children is priceless as typically that is an area where nursing students may have a fear of how to interact and communicate with them effectively. Essentially we ran the operation this year and all of us nursing students whether we are in our first semester or fourth semester all worked really well together which resulted in a really successful flu shot clinic for the K-12 children within our community.”

 – Kass Haima 4^th Semester Nursing Student

Overall, it was an amazing opportunity for the Beaver Dam MPTC students to give back to the community and formulate a partnership with Dodge County Public Health. We will continue to forge partnerships within the local communities that foster healthy outcomes. There was a sense of pride, collaboration, and passion that was witnessed among students, faculty, and Dodge County Public Health staff. To watch future nurses work with the community was the greatest reward of all!

Veterans Day is a U.S. legal holiday dedicated to American veterans of all wars, and Veterans Day 2020 occurs on Wednesday, November 11. In 1918, on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, was declared between the Allied nations and Germany in World War I, then known as “the Great War.” Commemorated in many countries as Armistice Day the following year, November 11th became a federal holiday in the United States in 1938. In the aftermath of World War II and the Korean War, Armistice Day became known as Veterans Day.

The Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, marking the official end of World War I. Nonetheless, the armistice date of November 11, 1918, remained in the public imagination as the date that marked the end of the conflict. One year later, in November 1919, U.S. President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day. The day’s observation included parades and public gatherings, as well as a brief pause in business and school activities at 11 a.m.

On June 4, 1926, Congress passed a resolution that the “recurring anniversary of [November 11, 1918] should be commemorated with thanksgiving and prayer and exercises designed to perpetuate peace through goodwill and mutual understanding between nations,” and that the president should issue an annual proclamation calling for the observance of Armistice Day. By that time, 27 state legislatures had made November 11 a legal holiday. An act approved May 13, 1938 made November 11 a legal Federal holiday, “dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be hereafter celebrated and known as ‘Armistice Day.’”

American effort during World War II saw the greatest mobilization of the U.S. Army, Navy, Marines, and Air Force in the nation’s history (more than 16 million people); some 5.7 million more served in the Korean War. In 1954, after lobbying efforts by veterans’ service organizations, the 83rd U.S. Congress amended the 1938 act that had made Armistice Day a holiday, striking the word “Armistice” in favor of “Veterans.” President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the legislation on June 1, 1954. From then on, November 11 became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.

The next development in the story of Veterans Day unfolded in 1968, when Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, which sought to ensure three-day weekends for federal employees—and encourage tourism and travel—by celebrating four national holidays (Washington’s Birthday, Memorial Day, Veterans Day and Columbus Day) on Mondays. The observation of Veterans Day was set as the fourth Monday in October. The first Veterans Day under the new law was Monday, October 25, 1971; confusion ensued, as many states disapproved of this change, and continued to observe the holiday on its original date.

In 1975, after it became evident that the actual date of Veterans Day carried historical and patriotic significance to many Americans, President Gerald Ford signed a new law returning the observation of Veterans Day to November 11th beginning in 1978. If November 11 falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the federal government observes the holiday on the previous Friday or following Monday, respectively. Government offices are closed on Veterans Day.

Veterans Day is not to be confused with Memorial Day—a common misunderstanding, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Memorial Day (the fourth Monday in May) honors American service members who died in service to their country or as a result of injuries incurred during battle, while Veterans Day pays tribute to all American veterans—living or dead—but especially gives thanks to living veterans who served their country honorably during war or peacetime.

History.com Editors. (2020, October 9). Veterans Day 2020. In History. Retrieved from https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/history-of-veterans-day#:~:text=The%20first%20Veterans%20Day%20under,holiday%20on%20its%20original%20date.

What kind of Community Education courses does Moraine Park Technical College offer?

Our campuses offer over 800 courses per year at various locations throughout the district. We have offerings in estate planning, health and wellness, small business, culinary, crafts and recreations, computers.  Basically we offer a variety of courses in many different areas; these courses are available to help you grow your expertise or to take just for the fun of it! Continue reading

Are you curious about Reiki, balancing your chakras and other alternative approaches to well-being?  Reiki is a Japanese form of stress reduction and deep relaxation that helps to strengthen the immune system and promote healing for just about anyone. This hands-on healing is effective for emotional, mental and physical health issues and is currently being practiced at 800 hospitals and clinics throughout the United States. What about chakras, do know what they are?  Chakras are the centers of your spiritual powers inside the human body.  These energy centers help regulate all processes of the body, from organ function, the immune system, and emotions. Intrigued in learning more yet?  MPTC is offering a varierty of Health and Wellness courses this spring to help you try a new approach to your health in 2018, all taught by John Oestreicher.

John is a business owner of Hands on Healing Energy and practices Reiki full-time.  He was a past teacher of health and wellness courses in the UW-System offering health and wellness courses and workshops to individuals, organizations and businesses.  John has been practicing meditation and mind/body connections for over 30 years and has received certifications as a Reiki Master/Teacher, Lo Ho Chi, and Star Medicine.  He has also earned his certificate in Reconnective Healing.

John will be offering a new class this April called Reiki Level 1 – Health Care.  This unique class for health care providers allows students to learn stress reduction techniques for emotional, mental and the physical health of their patients.

If you are interested in learning more about alternative approaches to your well-being, see a full listing of health and wellness classes here.

When was the last time you took an Excel course? If you are like most of us you have probably googled a command or two or watched a YouTube video on a specific function when needed. You get the work done, but the experience was uninspiring.

Over the course of a few weeks, you’re lucky if two or three of the new commands or functions you learned make it into your daily routine.  Sound familiar?

Here are some simple Microsoft Excel tricks you can use to be more productive at work. Continue reading

Healthy living isn’t always just about exercise and healthy foods . . . it encompasses your thoughts, behaviors and way of life too! Continue reading

Who doesn’t love a free sample?

Around 30 students were able to get a taste of our community education classes on Saturday, November 12. Saturday Sampler is an event that has been happening for over 5 years and gives students the ability to attend a small portion of a class in a variety of topic areas; with new samplings of classes offered every year! This year, participants were able to participate in one hour sessions on the following topics: Continue reading