=National Speaker/Researcher=
Dr. Sandra Stoskey, a national speaker/researcher presented on the Common Core National Standards controversy to our faculty and students this Monday. Dr. Stoskey discussed her article, entitled “Why West Virginia’s English Language Arts Standards Need Revision” and a condensed chapter, entitled “What Policy Makers Can Do to Improve Teacher Preparation” with the audiences. Dr. Stoskey played an integral role in the revision of the Maryland state standards and the raised certification expectation for teachers. She testified in January before the WV State Legislature at the request of Senator Boley on the proposed House bill to repeal the WV Next Generation Common Core Standards.
=Blood Drive @ WLU=
Assistant Professor in the Health and Human Performance Department, Melissa Hudson and her Community and Environmental Health class will be sponsoring the American Red Cross Blood Drive on Wednesday, April 1, 2015 from 9 AM to 3 PM in the WLU Blatnik Gymnasium. With the horrible weather that we have had this winter, many blood drives have been cancelled or have had low participation. This means that our local and national blood supply is low. West Liberty University hosts one of the biggest blood drives in the region and it is crucial for us to meet and even exceed our goal of 104 units of blood. Each unit of blood collected has the potential to save 3 lives! Patients with cancer are the number one recipients of blood transfusions and unfortunately these days, it seems like we all know someone who has been impacted by this disease. You could be helping someone you know by giving! Please contact Melissa Hudson at melissa.hudson@westliberty.edu or at 33-383-6571 to sign-up or schedule your own appointment at https://redcrossblood.org/.
=Summer Jobs by the Beach=
The Director of the Eagles Landing camps & the Night Owls summer camp, Bobby Ciccone, visited our College this week from Coconut Creek, Florida. Our College has partnered with the summer camps and the individuals involved with the camps for the past 10 years. The camps provide college students from all majors with a great opportunity to work with children in a residential summer camp in Florida in state-of-the-art facilities. During Bobby’s stay in the Northern Panhandle, he conducts interviews of interested students and talks with students about camp and school experiences.
=Happy National Athletic Training Month!=
National Athletic Training Month is held every March to spread awareness about all that athletic trainers do to support athletic programs. National Athletic Training Month was started 12 years ago to honor, recognize, and help promote the profession. It has progressed on an annual basis to include social media contests and general increase public relation campaigns. The West Liberty University Athletic Training Academic Program used the national design and national logo selected this year, “We Prepare. You Perform” on black t-shirts sold to students and staff. Below, student, staff, and faculty part of the AT Program are pictured in the t-shirts with WLU Athletes from the various academic teams. Visit the National Athletic Trainers’ Association Website to know more about the National Athletic Training Month.
=Health and Physical Education Major Zach Brown Works with a Middle School Student to Improve Her Balance Skills=
After learning about adapted physical education in the classroom all semester, students in Kathleen Wack’s Adapted Physical Education course are ready to put their knowledge into action! Every week, WLU health and physical education majors are working with students with disabilities at Wheeling Middle School. First, WLU students practiced administering the (simulated) APEAS II (Adapted Physical Education Assessment Scale) to determine middle school students’ strengths and weaknesses. They then set a goal and wrote objectives on a mock assessment report using that data. Over the next six weeks, WLU students will write and execute individualized lessons to improve middle school students’ areas of weakness in object control skills like kicking, striking, throwing, and catching; perceptual motor skills like balance, posture, and motor planning; and locomotor skills like running and skipping. Then, students will work as a large group to improve game skills, rhythm and dance, peer interaction, and fitness, all while having a great time!
=Guest Presenter in PE 211=
Courtney Huffman, Associate Professor of Dental Hygiene and a Beachbody Coach, was a guest presenter in Instructor of Physical Education, Kathleen Wack’s PE 211 Group Fitness Leadership class. Huffman talked to our students about business opportunities and personal coaching in group fitness.
=Community Education Club Meeting=
The first Community Education Club planning and informational meeting was hosted this Wednesday. The two BA in Community Education students spearheading the Community Education Club and its activities are Teracyn Rich and Michael Hensley. The club members are planning on getting involved and participating in community activities like 5Ks (e.g., Relay for Life, CASA-Court Appointed Special Advocates), fundraising activities, and the design, equipment, and remodeling of the Community Education Lounge, as well as the 368 Main Hall classroom. The attending faculty were Dr. Miriam Roth Douglas, Director of Community Education and Lou Karas, Director of Center for Arts and Education.
=Message from the Professional Education Program=
This is a reminder, from Earl Nicodemus, Professor of Education:
“As the Admissions Coordinator for Professional Education, I use the list of teacher education majors from the West Liberty University Banner Academic Database to identify who should receive notices regarding admission to the professional education program. The “Catalyst News” newsletter to professional education majors is sent to only those students who have declared a teacher education major. Those names and e-mail addresses come from my list. The newsletter contains vital information for teacher education students. If you miss an important deadline because you did not receive an e-mail notification due to an incorrectly listed major, your graduation could be delayed. You should log onto your WINS account to make sure that your majors and minors are listed correctly. If they are not, then you need to go to the Registrar’s Office web page and click the “Students and Forms” tab
where you may submit an online “Data Change Request Form” to change or declare your majors and minors. While you are on your WINS account, check to be sure that the faculty member with whom you have been working as an academic adviser is actually your assigned academic adviser. If not, you can request that your adviser be changed by simply putting the correct name into the appropriate blank. If you need assistance or have questions about the Data Change Request Form, then stop by the Registrar’s Office. Remember that the information update that you request must be manually entered into Banner after the form is received by the staff in the Registrar’s Office, so your requested changes will not immediately appear on your WINS.”
If you have questions about admission to the Professional Education Program, you may contact Earl Nicodemus at nicodeme@westliberty.edu.
=hAPPy Friday Tools/Apps Learning=
TeamViewer is an app providing secure remote access to Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. Users can use TeamViewer to control their desktop remotely. TeamViewer also offers features like setting policies, video calls, consolidated chat window, and profile pictures to conduct an online meeting. Please see a Brief Description and Tutorial Video to know a quick how-to. Special thanks to Earl Nicodemus, Associate Professor of Education/Professional Education Admissions Coordinator, for sharing the great resource!