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by Cristi Brigmon

	Earth Day is celebrated annually on
April 22.  The date was established over 25
years ago when people realized the necessity to
become aware of the damage humans do to the
environment.  Unless people "clean up" their
activities, the planet will be destroyed.  Earth
Day is a reminder to preserve our habitat.  

	At Southeast Community College
everyone is welcome to participate in planting
flowers in the flower beds on campus to
celebrate Earth Day.

	"Throughout the growing season,
until the first frost, these flowers remind us
of our need to pay attention to the environment
and practice good habits in regard to energy and
resource conservation," said Pat Scopa,
coordinator of the event at SECC.

	Surprisingly, it is usually
difficult to get students to participate.  Many
people choose to simply observe, rather than
participate in the work.  It appears that some
students are afraid to get their hands dirty and
to sweat.  During the activities, local
newspapers cooperate by taking pictures.

	In addition to planting, printed
information will be distributed concerning the
three main points of conservation--"REDUCE,
REUSE, AND RECYCLE."  

	Anyone interested in preserving the
environment should participate in the Earth Day
celebration actively.

by Terry Day

	Southeast Community College has a
Vision.
 
	Last year a three step process was
developed to formulate a statement that would
effectively communicate this vision to the
community at large.

	The first step of the process
involved a “town meeting” of faculty, staff, and
administrators at each of the three campuses to
gather input as to what the vision statement
should say. These meetings were also charged
with the task of reviewing and updating
Southeast’s mission goals.

	The second step of the process
involved committee consideration and
recommendation of the input gathered at the
“town meetings”.

	The third and last step was
ratification of the committee’s recommendations
by faculty and staff.

	With the completion of this process
Southeast Community College now has the
following vision statement: Southeast Community
College, the catalyst for educational, community
and economic development, opens the door to a
brighter future.

	The updated goals are as follows:

	1. To maintain a transfer program
which is responsive to the needs of students
pursuing a baccalaureate degree.

	2. To provide technical programs,
based on local, regional and state employment
needs, for students who seek immediate
employment upon graduation.

	3. To provide a multifaceted
continuing education program that places
emphasis on (a) a flexible delivery system and
(b) responsiveness to the needs of the area.

	4. To offer a community service
program that helps to meet the recreational,
cultural, educational and social needs of the
area.

	5. To maintain a financial aid
program that will help students to gain access
to the college.

	6. To provide adequate academic and
support services so that students have realistic
opportunities for successful attainment of their
educational goals. 

	7.  To provide for the development
and implementation for alternative approaches to
learning through the use of a flexible
educational delivery system. 

	8.  To prepare the College to be
more responsive to needs and opportunities by
maintaining a program for faculty and staff
growth and development.

	9.  To maintain a flexible
educational structure to accommodate the special
economic, cultural, and development needs of the
area.

	10. To actively seek external
funding for projects and programs supportive of
and compatible with the college and its mission.

	11. To ensure that the college’s
land, buildings, and equipment are utilized
effectively, well maintained, and enhanced.

	12. To create a service-oriented
environment responsive to the college community
and the public.     

	Each of the goals listed above has
an accompanying list of suggestions as to how
they might best be achieved.

	The goal revision and the
development of the new vision statement are only
two of the many things that the leadership at
Southeast Community College is doing to insure
its preparedness to meet the challenges of
fulfilling its portion of the mission of the
University of Kentucky Community College System
for the 21st century.

by Jamie Raines

	On Saturday, March 22 the SECC Bell
County campus hosted its first Southeast
Regional Science Olympiad. “It was a resounding
success,” said Barry Nichols, event coordinator.

	Many local schools participated in
the event and won several awards. In the middle
school division, Bell County placed first and
Corbin finished second. In the high school
division, Bell County took the honors again this
time followed by Middlesboro.

	Some of the events that took place
include bridge building, the egg drop which
consists of dropping an egg from a specified
height without breaking it, and fundamental lab
experiments.  In the fundamental lab
experiments,  students received a box of
ordinary items like rubber bands, pencils, paper
clips, etc. and were asked to build something. 
Also, there was an event called “write it  to do
it” in which a person writes in detail what the
supervisor has built and then gives it to
another person (in a room) who hasn’t seen the
structure, and he or she must duplicate it in
the exact form.
 
	“I was most impressed with the
students’ enthusiasm and the support from the
college,” said  Nichols. “Hosting this Science
fair gives us the chance to show area students,
teachers, and parents what a good facility this
is and how fortunate they are to have it.”

	There are plans to host the event
again next year, Nichols said.

Staff Report

	Southeast Community College
alumnae Regina S. Edwards, assistant
United States Attorney for the Western
District of Kentucky, will deliver the
commencement address during graduation
exercises Friday, May 2.

	The graduation ceremony will
be held at the Cumberland Campus on the
upper parking lot adjacent to the Dale
Library beginning at 6 p.m. 

	Edwards, a native of Lynch,
attended SECC during the 1984-85
academic year before transferring to the
University of Kentucky. At Southeast,
she was named Miss Southeast. 

	She was graduated with honors
from UK in 1988 receiving a B.A. in
Psychology and Sociology. She then
enrolled in the Vanderbilt University
School of Law graduating in 1991.

	Upon graduating from
Vanderbilt, she served as clerk for the
Honorable Robert S. Brandt, Chancellor
or the Chancery Court, Nashville, Tn.
She also served as a clerk to John T.
Nixon, Chief Judge of the Federal
District Court, Middle District of
Tennessee before becoming an associate
with the firm of Brown, Todd and Heyburn
of Louisville. 

	She became an assistant U.S.
Attorney for the Western District of
Kentucky in 1994 specializing in the
areas of civil litigation in civil fraud
and civil rights matters.	

	She is the daughter of Alberta
Edwards Austin of Lynch and the grand
daughter of Eliza Edwards and the late
Jerry Edwards. She is the sister of SECC
assistant professor Marlisa Austin. 

	She has been married four
years to Blair D. Butler, they are
expecting their first child in
September.

by Melissa McCreary and Eddie Day

	Academic Advantage, a
government funded program at Southeast
Community College, serves students who
either are first generation college
students (their parents do not have a
college degree) or who are considered
low income.

	Academic Advantage provides
consultation to students in three areas:
academic, personal, and transfer.

	"Academic Advantage looks for
students who have strong potential for
achievement and who are responsible",
says Linda Spoelman, tutorial
coordinator on SECC's Cumberland campus.

	Academic Advantage provides
services to students by consultants to
make the transition through Southeast
and beyond as smooth and as successful
as possible.

	The program's consultants are
Spoelman; Dianne Fain, a transfer
specialist; and Rich Richmond,
counselor.

	Spoelman said the services are
available but not mandatory to students
enrolled in the program.

	Academic Advantage also
provides help to students with learning
disabilities.

	According to Spoelman, a
learning disability (LD) is a permanent
disorder which affects the manner in
which individuals with normal or above
average intelligence take in, retain,
and express information.

	Like interference on the radio
or a fuzzy TV picture, incoming or
outgoing information may become
scrambled as it travels between the eye,
ear or skin, and the brain.

	Commonly recognized in LD
adults are deficits in one or more of
the following areas: reading
comprehension, spelling, written
expression, math computation, and
problem solving.

	Less frequent, but no less
troublesome, are problems in
organizational skills, time management,
and social skills. Many LD adults may
also have language-based and/or
perceptual problems.

	According to Spoelman, persons
with learning disabilities often have to
deal with the frustration of having to
"prove" that their invisible
disabilities may be as handicapping as
paraplegia.

	Spoelman, who coordinates the
learning disability program for Academic
Advantage, can assist students in three
areas: initial screening, determining
and providing accommodations.

	Academic Advantage welcomes
all students with a disability to
participate in the program.

	"Everyone with a disability is
entitled by law to accommodations,"
Spoelman said.

	"If a student has a
disability, they may be entitled to
accommodations, depending on what the
disability is and how it interferes with
academic performance," Spoelman added.

	Spoelman assures LD students
that they can receive accommodations
without disclosing their disability to
anyone (including their instructors).

	Accommodations include:
reading of tests, text books on tape,
monitoring of tests, extended test time,
or just a quiet place to take a test
with no distraction.

	"Cooperation from instructors
is fantastic. Our faculty members are
really helpful, understanding, and
supportive," Spoelman said.

	A student is not labeled or
treated differently because of his or
her learning disability.

	"Most of the learning disabled
students who come into our program are
pretty determined people, and by and
large they are very successful,"
Spoelman said.

	If you know that you have a
learning disability and can substantiate
your claim, talk to your instructors
before the semester begins.

	Two students who are currently
enrolled in the program and were willing
to be interviewed are June Thomas and
Roger Colinger.  Collinger enrolled in
the Academic Advantage's LD program when
he first enrolled at SECC.

	"Another counselor told me
about the program when I first started
at SECC and encouraged me to speak with
Ms. Spoelman.  She became my counselor
and got me involved in the tutoring
program" Collinger said.

	"Because I have dyslexia,"
Colinger said, "tutors help me read. 
Other tutors help me to type my papers. 
It (the Academic Support Center) also
gives me a quiet place to get off by
myself and study."

	Thomas, a social work major,
also has dyslexia.  Tutors in the
program help her by reading handouts, by
helping her with time management, by
offerring suggestions, and by giving her
books on tape.

	"I am taking a full course
load and have a 4.0 GPA.  I wouldn't be
able to come to school without the help
of the Academic Advantage program,"
Thomas said.  Thomas credits the
program, SECC instructors, and her faith
in God for her success.

	If you think that you may have
a specific learning disability but
aren't sure or would like more
information about learning disabilities
or the program, contact Spoelman at
(606) 589-2145 or 573-9654, ext. 2072,
or come by her office located in
Chrisman Hall 119B on the Cumberland
campus.

by Melissa McCreary

	According to Charles Sellars,
Dean of Student Affairs, Southeast
Community College's loan default rates
are on the rise.

	The Student Guide to Financial
Aid defines default as "failure to repay
a loan according to the terms agreed to
when a student  signed a promissory
note."

	Default also may result from
failure to submit requests for deferment
or cancellation on time.

	If students default, their
school, the lender or agency that holds
their loan, the state, and the federal
government can all take action to
recover the money, including notifying
national credit bureaus of the default.

	This action may affect
students' credit ratings for a long
time, according to Sellars. For example,
they may find it difficult to borrow
from a bank to buy a car or house. 

	In addition, the lender or
agency holding the loan may ask
students' employers to deduct payments
from their paychecks. Also, students may
be liable for expenses incurred in
collecting the loan.

	If students in default decide
to return to school, they're not
entitled to receive any more federal
student aid or other deferments,
according to Sellars.

	The U.S. Department of
Education may ask the U.S. Internal
Revenue Service to withhold students'
income tax refunds, and the amount of
the refund will be applied toward the
amount they owe.

	For additional information,
pick up a copy of the U.S Department of
Education's book The Student Guide to
Financial Aid available in the SECC
Financial Aid Office located in Newman
Hall 115 on the Cumberland campus.

	Sellars said that, from 1992-
1994, the average official default rate
at SECC was between 24% and 30%, meaning
that, of all the students who took out
loans, at least 25% failed to make
payments.

	According to Sellars, when a
college's default rate exceeds 25
percent for three consecutive years, it
is subject to a full-scale audit.

	Southeast is concerned about
its present situation, and financial aid
officials are in the process of
reviewing procedures to a possible
solution.

	Sellars said that, if the
community colleges split from UK,
campus-based aid programs will suffer.

	Campus-based financial aid
includes: Federal Supplemental
Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG),
Federal Work-Study (FWS), and Federal
Perkins Loans. 

	If UK loses control of the
community colleges then these programs
could be cut drastically, since UK
controls campus-based aid, according to
Sellars.

	For more information about
Student Aid, contact SECC's Financial
Aid Office at (606) 589-2145 or 573-
9654, ext. 2028, 2014, or 2003.

Staff Report

	Roberta Pratt, an associate
professor at Southeast Community
College, has been selected as one of six
Great Teachers of the University of
Kentucky and the Community College
System. 

	Pratt was nominated by
students and chosen for the award by an
ad hoc committee of the UK National
Alumni Association's Board of Directors.
Pratt, who has taught at the SECC
Cumberland Campus for 11 years, was
honored along with the other recipients
on April 15 at the Boone Faculty Club in
Lexington. 

	At the luncheon, Awards
Chairperson Barbara Letton presented
citations, engraved plaques and a check
in the amount of $1,000. The winner will
also be recognized during the UK
Commencement on May 10 to be held in
Memorial Coliseum.

	Mrs. Pratt said she was
humbled to have been chosen a recipient
of the Great Teacher Award. "It is
certainly a tremendous honor to receive
such an award," she noted. "It is an
award that could have easily gone to a
number of my colleagues."

	The Great Teacher Award,
according to SECC President Dr. W. Bruce
Ayers, has been awarded by the
University since 1961, and Pratt is only
the second faculty member from SECC to
be honored. Assistant Professor Carlton
W. Hughes won the award in 1995. 

	"It is quite an honor for the
college to have a winner of the Great
Teacher Award," said Ayers. "Teaching is
a passion with Roberta, and she is most
deserving of this honor."

	She is a graduate of the
University of Kentucky and attended
Southeast. She and her husband, Paul,
reside in Benham.