Moraine Park Technical College’s nursing program earned an eight-year accreditation status, the maximum time frame that can be granted.
The Accrediting Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN) completed an on-site visit in February of 2019, and the College was notified of their award on October 15, 2019.
To earn this accreditation, Moraine Park had to meet the standards set by the ACEN and demonstrate compliance by having policies that support the College and mission, students, faculty, curriculum, resources, and outcomes.
“We are extremely proud that Moraine Park’s nursing program has achieved the highest level of accreditation possible,” Kelly Shafaie, associate dean of nursing at Moraine Park, said. “Earning this accreditation means our students are receiving an exceptional education in nursing. We are grateful for our communities and their continued support that promotes the success of our program.”
In 2018, Moraine Park’s nursing program pass rates were an impressive 99 percent, and currently, the program ranks in the top 10 for nursing programs in Wisconsin. For more information on Moraine Park’s nursing program, visit morainepark.edu/nursing
Moraine Park Technical College students and staff will host a Christmas in a Shoebox drive, collecting items for our local troops who are serving our country overseas and away from family during the holiday season.
Donations will be accepted until Friday, Nov. 8, and can be dropped off at room K-323 on the Beaver Dam campus, or with the Student Veteran Specialist in room C-003.3 at the Fond du Lac campus Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Moraine Park’s goal is to collect enough items to fill 200 postal service large flat rate boxes and have them in the hands of our troops stationed overseas by the holidays.
The packages will be assembled on Nov. 13 on the Beaver Dam campus, and students and staff will also have the opportunity to fill out note cards to send a personal message of encouragement, or holiday wishes.
Donations should be new and no larger than shoebox-sized. Some suggested items are personal hygiene products like deodorant, eye drops, Q-tips, and baby wipes, or snacks such as beef jerky, sunflowers seeds, nuts, granola bars, and flavored drink mixes. Additionally, miscellaneous items like current magazines, batteries, paperback books, and small travel games are great ways to let the service members know they’re remembered and help to bring some joy to their holiday season.
For questions on Christmas in a Shoebox, contact Steve Pepper, student veterans specialist, at spepper1@morainepark.edu or 920-924-3489.
232 years ago, on September 17, 1787, the Constitution of the United States of America was signed by the founding fathers.
Trivia: How many men signed the constitution?
If you guessed 39, you guessed correct. At the time, 12 of the 13 states sent representatives to the Constitutional Convention. A total of 74 were named, 55 attended, 39 signed.
This day not only recognizes the formation and signing, but also all who are born in the U.S. or by naturalization, have become citizens.
Moraine Park Technical College will host their Heavy Metal Tours event during October’s manufacturing month. This free event offers participants a behind-the-scenes opportunity to tour local manufacturing facilities and learn more about the skills needed to fill current employment gaps.
The events will run from 4:30-8:00 p.m. Participants will meet at the Fond du Lac campus, and after a brief introduction, they will be bussed to the Heavy Metal Tour event locations.
Tours will take place at the following Fond du Lac area manufacturers. A light meal will be served.
Wednesday, October 2, Kondex Corporation
Thursday, October 10, Fives Group and RB Royal Industries, Inc.
Wednesday, October 16, Wells Manufacturing Corporation and Mid-States Aluminum Corp.
Wednesday, October 23, BCI Burke Co. and Mercury Marine
“The manufacturing world is changing,” Marcia Arndt associate dean of manufacturing at Moraine Park said. “This is a fun opportunity to highlight our local partners, the advancing technology, and the overall changes within the industry.
Space is limited for this unique opportunity, and registration is required. Interested individuals are invited to participate in all four weeks, or they may choose their preferred date(s). For more information, or to register, visit morainepark.edu/heavymetal or call (262) 306-5321.
Sometimes where you start, isn’t where you are destined to end up, and Catherine Holmes of Fond du Lac knows that first-hand.
Her educational journey began after she earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology and started her career working with special needs children. She left the workforce for a short time when she relocated to Fond du Lac and began raising her family. Catherine then joined the team at Agnesian HealthCare in Fond du Lac, where she has been an employee for over 10-years. It was there that she was introduced to the business analyst career field, a high demand job that is considered one of the best-kept career secrets.
The beauty of this career path is that it wears many hats. In fact, you may have never actually seen the job title of business analyst. However, jobs like project manager, business systems analyst, functional analyst, process analyst, market research analyst, or management consultant, are all actually business analysts.
Catherine enrolled in Moraine Park’s business analyst program in August of 2017 and was hired as a business analyst for Agnesian prior to graduating.
“I love that no two days are the same,” Catherine said. “We call ourselves the engineers of change, but my role is to reevaluate processes and offer guidance.”
More specifically, she is helping to navigate a change in computer systems by holding conversations and being the liaison between her employer and the computer system company.
One of the best parts of this career path is that it is considered in high demand by many industries, including healthcare, insurance, manufacturing, finance, and retail. Employers throughout the United States will need 861,400 analysts by 2024. That is a growth of 14% compared to all occupations at 6.5% growth. In Wisconsin, employers will need 13,151 analysts by 2024, and the median annual wage is $71,230 for an experienced analyst. (Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections).
Today, Catherine is a college graduate, with goals to continue her educational journey.
“I highly recommend this career field,” she said. “My instructor, JoAnn, was supportive and flexible, and set me up for success in the field.”
“I started this college adventure at a more advanced stage in my life than I ever thought I might. I came back to Moraine Park Technical College in search of getting 60 college credits for a promotion at work. I received that promotion, so now that I am into the educational process once again, I am continuing on for myself and finally earning a college degree. As a nontraditional student in the Criminal Justice program, I am looking at the educational process through different eyes than a lot of students. While there are many students in the college setting that are nontraditional, a great deal of them are following a career change and not searching for a degree in the field that they are currently employed in. Moraine Park Technical college has made me feel at ease through this adventure. I have been welcomed into the college atmosphere by staff and students as well.
The Think Critically and Creatively class offered through the college and the instructor Dr. Rebecca Leichtfuss is another area where I feel welcomed in class each week. While over the years working in corrections, and as an EMT/Firefighter I have had to think outside the box. I never really took into consideration that thinking critically and creatively was a learned process. I always took it as common sense. Dr. Leichtfuss and the way she has her class designed has taught me that I can still improve daily on the thinking process – that thinking critically and creatively is a growth process that we should strive to improve on throughout our lives regardless of our career status or education.
I am looking to wrap up my degree after the Fall semester of 2019. While it has been a journey, I am glad I undertook the personal challenge of pursuing my degree. Taking the Think Critically and Creatively class is turning out to be an asset. I wish I would have registered for the class a little earlier on in my college career. I am sure that it would have assisted me in juggling work and school with a little less stress and a more open mind. I am appreciative of what Dr. Leichtfuss has taught me, and I can see myself improving in my thinking skills from here on out.”
Greek poet Archilochus stated, “the fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.”
Let me elaborate on this parable as it relates to a Moraine Park Technical College education, career, learning and life.
It is impossible to know everything, so most of us find an area of interest and become very good at one thing. Perhaps, as a plumber, electrician, nurse, accountant, cosmetologist, etc.
We are a hedgehog, a singular point of expertise and discipline. The hedgehog specializes in areas that they enjoy and produce value for others and makes a living for self and family and it spills over into the community. The skills of a hedgehog are focus, precision, reliability, tenacity, purpose, and completion. Hedgehogs take pride in their work. Technical College education offers this focus.
What value does the fox offer? The fox knows many things that may be connected or not. Curiosity is a favorite trait of the fox. Always looking for new ways to find solutions to complex issues, figuring out problems that did not exist before, taking a different point of view than the majority, questioning why and how things can be improved. The fox knows how to communicate well with others, understands trade-offs, values diversity of thought and ideas, works with uncertainty when things change, knows that ethical dilemmas exists, adopts and values team dynamics, can make computations and thinks critically. These skills are for careers, life and relationships. Thus, the need for the General Education courses offered at a Technical College.
The primary focus and credits earned at a Technical College education is a major or trade and becoming great at one thing, hedgehog, but the fox knows how to continue to learn, self-improve and contribute to a complex and changing society with General Education skills.
The Moraine Park Foundation has received an annual scholarship contribution of $700 from their long-time community friend, the Beaver Dam Noon Kiwanis.
“We are so grateful for the continued commitment from the Beaver Dam Noon Kiwanis,” Dana Bourland, director of college advancement at Moraine Park said. “Their loyal and generous contributions benefit many students and have helped make educational dreams become a reality.”
The partnership between the Foundation and Kiwanis dates back more than a decade, providing financial support to students who need it most.
“We understand that a college education can help influence a family-sustaining career and break the cycle of poverty,” Lisa Karst of Beaver Dam Noon Kiwanis said. “For this reason, the Beaver Dam Noon Kiwanis is committed to providing scholarship support to Moraine Park students.”
The Beaver Dam Noon Kiwanis scholarship is offered to students who are enrolled full-time, attend at the Beaver Dam campus and have a minimum GPA of 2.75.
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