impact Your community college
Vol. 1, No. 2
Tests of
faith
Mobilizing a generation to build a better world Former COD student Eboo Patel helped to advance President Obama’s Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge through his work on the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships Advisory Council.
Eboo Patel is a man on a mission—a really big mission of the Pluralism Project at Harvard University Patel leads the Interfaith Youth Core, a Chicago-based said Patel, whose outreach vision has captured and its pioneering study of America’s changing international nonprofit organization he founded in the attention of people in high places, including religious landscape. 2002 as a way to connect young people of all faiths President Barack Obama. Named one of America’s Best Leaders by U.S. through community service and, in a big way, build Patel serves on the Advisory Council of the White News and World Report (2009), he also writes The cooperation in a world often divided by religion. House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood “There are a lot of people who believe we are Partnerships, an opportunity he attributes to friends, Faith Divide blog for the Washington Post and is a regular contributor to National Public better apart, whether that’s Muslims Radio, USA Today and CNN. In his and Christians or blacks and whites or —Eboo Patel book, “Acts of Faith: The Story of an Americans and Arabs,” he said. “I believe American Muslim, the Struggle for the we are better together. In a variety of Soul of a Generation,” Patel chronicles ways, I make that idea reality.” his personal journey, from a young boy That idea has inspired the Rhodes growing up in Glen Ellyn to a young Scholar and former COD student to take man discovering his global purpose. many bold steps in a career even he admits “We are all many possible people. can be hard to wrap your head around. How we become who we are has Internationally, Patel’s organization everything to do with which of those has partnered with the New Delhi-based possibilities is nurtured,” he said. Kutumb Foundation to tackle issues “College of DuPage helped nurture the like education, women’s health, the intellectually curious, ethically focused environment and conflict resolution. He Eboo Patel.” has partnered also with the LondonThe son of COD Accounting based Three Faiths Forum to start social Professor Rukshad Patel explored many action projects on their campuses. Closer college subjects during his high school to home, IFYC has teamed with One years. “Here was this wonderful resource Chicago, One Nation, a philanthropic Eboo Patel first met the Dalai Lama when his Interfaith Youth Core was just an idea. right around the corner from where we collaborative spearheading Better Twelve years later, the former COD student had an opportunity to thank the Buddhist spiritual leader for his encouragement and guidance. (photo by Matt Stone/The Courier-Journal) lived,” he said, recalling the classes, the Together events throughout the area, professors, even some of the lectures including an interfaith community that became his introduction to some really big ideas. service day held in April, a joint venture with the peers and contemporaries who likely recommended “I am personally glad that what I got to do at Benedictine University Unity Foundation benefitting the activist, writer and teacher with a doctorate from College of DuPage was wander off the beaten path of the Wayside Cross Homeless Shelter in Aurora. Oxford University. typical professions, to whet my intellectual appetite “We want to create a movement in America The 35-year-old delivered closing remarks at this a little bit, and then to follow that path to where it with tens of thousands of college students who are year’s Nobel Peace Prize Forum and has spoken at would lead me.” committed to the idea that we’re better together,” the TED Conference, the Clinton Global Initiative and universities around the world. He is an affiliate
“I believe we are better together.”
College of DuPage :: impact :: cod.edu/impact
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Taking a
Healthy interest Adventist CT Scanner Donation Delivers Better-Than-X-ray Vision
COD Surgical Technology student Danielle Odstrcilek is becoming well-versed in operating room protocol.
Behind Every Good Surgeon is a Skilled Technologist The next time you or a loved one need surgery, Danielle Odstrcilek may be part of the team keeping you safe. The 27-year-old has more than 20 operating room procedures under her belt, with many more to come in the months ahead, all part of her training in COD’s Surgical Technology program. Odstrcilek will complete three clinical rotations— at Gottlieb Memorial Hospital in Melrose Park, Rush Medical Center in Chicago and Hinsdale Hospital—along with classroom and lab instruction before earning her Surgical Technology certificate in December. “It’s a very intense program. COD instructors do a great job preparing us for what it will be like,” she said, adding that one of her Gottlieb preceptors, a graduate of the COD program, serves as a mentor and an inspiration. “She’s showing me that it’s possible,” said Odstrcilek. After carefully researching her options, the Lemont resident decided on a health care career that not only piques her interest in anatomy and physiology, but also challenges her in a variety of ways. “Surgical techs are the surgeon’s right hand. We prep the operating room, check the supplies, pass the instruments and make sure the environment is sterile,” she explained. “We have to be conscious of what we’re doing all the time.” Odstrcilek is prepared for the challenge and looks forward to helping surgical patients at a hospital near you. More profiles on page 4 ➜
Suppose you have a pain in the neck, or the abdomen, or the head. You’re scared. You want it diagnosed and treated pronto. First up, your physician orders a CT scan. Short for “computerized tomography,” a CT scan uses a series of X-ray views from different angles to make cross-sectional images of the bones and soft tissues of your body. The question is: Do you want a CT scanner operated by a medical professional who trained primarily by observing—or someone who’s had hands-on experience from Day One? The answer is easy. And thanks to a generous donation by Adventist Hinsdale Hospital, College of DuPage is now the first community college in the nation with its own CT scanner. That, in turn, means COD graduates in such areas as radiation therapy, radiography and nuclear medicine can move into jobs at Adventist and other medical facilities with been-there, done-that expertise. “The students who will use the CT at COD could be among Adventist Hinsdale Hospital’s future X-ray technicians and sonographers,” said Alan Schneider, a COD graduate who’s now Adventist Hinsdale’s chief patient services officer. “Donating the machine benefits not only these students, who get real-world experience, but also our patients, who get high-quality care.” It was Schneider who worked with COD Radiation Therapy Professor Jeff Papp to arrange the donation. The scanner came from an Adventist hospital in Florida that had a CT scanner being replaced with a new unit. In addition to the multimilliondollar machine, the hospital also covered the cost of delivery and installation. The COD Foundation provided $250,000 A computerized tomography (CT) scan showing to prepare the Health and cross-sectional images of a human brain. Science Center classroom where the scanner is housed. “I’m really excited,” said Papp. “Hospitals and clinics use their CT scanners around the clock. Therefore, when our students were working at clinical sites, they mainly learned about CTs through observation. Now we can use our scanner to give students the hands-on experience they need. There are university medical centers that don’t have scanners in the classroom. Now, we can strengthen our position as a leader in health care education.”
Did You Know? COD is an excellent source for some of your health care needs. We offer ultrasound scanning and blood pressure screening at no charge, and routine dental services at minimal cost. Visit cod.edu/impact for more details.
The Dental Hygiene program seeks patients of all ages. Students learn a variety of preventive services under supervision of COD faculty.
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The First and Only
College of DuPage :: impact :: cod.edu/impact
College of DuPage students are now using a GE CT scanner for health care education, making COD the only community college in the nation to own this important piece of equipment. The scanner was a gift from Adventist Hinsdale Hospital and made possible by former COD student, Alan Schneider, the hospital’s chief patient services officer.
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Changing
The U.S. higher roughly the sam
Lisa Lanagan, Nuclear Medicine Technician and Radiation Therapist, Hinsdale Hospital
Kelly Braun, Registered Nurse, Downers Grove South High School
Catherine McMillan, Physical Therapist Assistant, Action Therapy Services, Naperville
Carol Williams, Epic Application Coordinator, Central DuPage Hospital, Winfield
✚
We Care About your Health Care
COD Alums Enhance Your Health and Well Being From paramedics to nurses to therapists to testing technicians, COD educates the professionals you count on to keep you healthy. Our top-notch facilities, high-tech equipment and outstanding faculty make sure your health care providers are trained and ready when you need them. New ways to earn require new ways to learn
As the economy grows and changes, more workers will need a college education. But the traditional four-year, bricks-and-mortar college model won’t train and graduate the numbers we need at a cost students can afford or on a schedule that fits their lives. If higher education doesn’t come to grips with big barriers to college graduation—capacity, accessibility, retention and affordability—experts believe our workforce could be competitively disadvantaged. “Without college-level learning, workers simply won’t have the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in today’s global economy,” said Jamie P. Merisotis, president of Lumina Foundation for Education.
Chris Ryba, Paramedic, Superior Ambulance Service, Lisle
Keri Dorushka, Surgical Technician, Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, Melrose Park
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Julie Belsanti, Dental Hygienist, Private Dental Practice, Glenview
Naomi Jones, Respiratory Therapist, St. Alexius Medical Center, Hoffman Estates
Changing the model To recruit and retain more students, our colleges and universities must educate a higher percentage of the population in more creative, affordable ways. Fortunately, College of DuPage is creating many options to make it easier for our residents to afford and complete a quality education for today’s world. A few examples: Lewis University 3+1 Four years at a residential university can easily cost $150,000 or more. But through an innovative partnership starting this fall, criminal/social justice students can complete three years of study in COD classes at affordable COD rates, then finish their bachelor’s degree via one year of Lewis courses with Lewis faculty at a significant discount. All four years will take place at the new Homeland Security Education Center on the COD campus. The program is available to students who’ve completed their associate’s degree at College of DuPage and want to earn a bachelor’s. “The main attraction to me is that I get to stay on campus,” said Criminal Justice student Betsy Bowden. “The people who started the program with me are going to grow with me and then graduate with me.”
the Landscape of Education
education system has been using the same methods to educate me proportion of the population for the last 40 years.
COD is changing that.
Meteorology Professor Paul Sirvatka’s class meets a Nebraska thunderstorm head-on to analyze, track and observe real-time weather (photo by David Mayhew.)
Zen at 130 miles per hour One key to retaining and graduating more students is to make learning more relatable. Two new philosophy courses are doing just that this summer. Combining his expertise in philosophy and his interest in auto racing, Associate Professor John Santiago will put students on a race track to test their critical thinking skills with high performance driving. It’s an innovative way to tie philosophical concepts to practical experience.
Associate Professor John Santiago prepares student Jonathan Alvarado (in the driver’s seat) at NASA at Autobahn. The road trip was par for the course—or in this case, two philosophy courses—and a unique lesson in critical thinking.
Online education If you work the third shift, have an unpredictable schedule, or serve in the military, online education can make learning more accessible. The second largest provider of online education in Illinois, COD offers more than 170 online courses in 41 disciplines. Fifteen certificates and six associate degrees can be earned entirely online.
Chasing Storms Experiential learning engages students in ways classroom work can’t. COD Meteorology Professor Paul Sirvatka takes his students to the storm. Five times a year Sirvatka and his class hit the road, sometimes traveling 1,000 miles per day in search of thunderstorms to study. The program gives students the unique opportunity to analyze real data and apply what they have learned to find and track storms. Once found, the students observe and learn how real weather works.
College of DuPage :: impact :: cod.edu/impact
Global Negotiations Technology can be a catalyst for learning as in the case of the International Negotiation Modules Project. Designed to infuse an international perspective into classes, the web-based negotiation simulation program enables students to explore contemporary global issues in areas such as Global Economics, Security, Human Rights/Immigration, and the Environment. Students in classes from Economics to English research a variety of topics and, using the Internet, negotiate positions and perspectives with students in other classes and at other colleges as if they were representing a specific country. “It changes the dynamic in the classroom,” said Sandra Anderson, COD INMP Faculty Coordinator. “I learn as much as the students.” Students gain a deeper understanding of global issues and exercise critical thinking skills by learning to frame issues and solutions as part of a negotiation process. Hybrid learning When dealing with online and classroom instruction, researchers are learning that English Professor Jason Snart uses 21st century it’s not just one or the other. COD English Professor Jason technologies like “Second Life” and Google Earth to connect students to 18th century poetry. Snart has just published his book “Hybrid Learning: The Perils and Promise of Blending Online and Faceto-Face Instruction in Higher Education.” And he practices what he preaches at COD, including using the online virtual world of “Second Life” and Google Earth applications to teach English. In addition to giving students more flexibility and faculty an opportunity to integrate different components into their classroom, “the benefit will ideally be better student engagement, which is a perennial problem across higher education,” says Snart.
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impact: around your China Educators Visit When educators from China wanted to learn more about community colleges, they chose College of DuPage, the second-largest provider of higher education in Illinois. A group of 19 educators from China visited in January and the guests included principals from elementary, middle and high schools in Shanghai. The visitors met with COD President Dr. Robert L. Breuder, administrators and staff to learn more about the role of community colleges in the U.S. educational system.
Alum at Lyric Opera
A personal message from College of DuPage President Robert L. Breuder
Dear Neighbors, Chances are, when you think of a community college, you think of its impact on the local community and surrounding region. But in our ever-more interconnected world, College of DuPage is increasingly making an impact on the world—and vice versa. That international reach and understanding, in turn, has remarkable benefits for our local community and its residents.
Dave Govertsen grew up in a musical family, but while he initially set forth to play an instrument, he eventually took to singing. The switch paid off, leading the Glen Ellyn native to a full scholarship at Northern Illinois University before embarking on a graduate program at Northwestern University. Finishing up his graduate studies in spring 2011, Govertsen started the next chapter of his career, having recently been accepted to the Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center at Lyric Opera of Chicago. “This program is one of the best programs in the country and it’s an honor to be selected,” said the 1999 COD graduate.
In this issue, you see a world of impact from COD: A former student now touching lives around the world through work with the White House. Faculty members gleaning and sharing lessons from the Japan earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crises. Foreign dignitaries learning at our school— and getting to know our state and community in the process. A world of campus technology teaching new ways to learn—and new ways to diagnose illness. As always, I welcome your feedback and insights as to how COD can benefit your world. Sincerely,
Dr. Robert L. Breuder President, College of DuPage
Visit Us on the Web
We hope you enjoy this issue of impact and discover something new about your community college. There’s more to these stories, so be sure to check out our impact web page for other highlights, photos and video interviews.
cod.edu/impact 6
Chinese delegation members learned about COD’s role in the U.S. education system.
Anjum at Argonne After College of DuPage offered him a scholarship, Azeam Anjum researched the school and applied. He’s never doubted the decision. In 2010, Anjum was one of two science students from College of DuPage to participate in summer internships at Fermilab. This year Anjum earned a place in Argonne Laboratory’s Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship program. “At Fermilab I was designing and doing mechanical engineering,” he said. “At Argonne I am basically a computer programmer.” Anjum is working on a program that calculates the emissions and fuel use of many vehicles. “It’s basically all collaborated in Excel sheets and it is 50 pages long and has been maintained for 15 years,” Anjum said. “It is being converted into a real program now in .NET and I need to help with the conversion process.” Anjum plans to transfer this fall and pursue a bachelor’s degree in Engineering at the University of Illinois-Chicago. “COD has great opportunities,” he said. “All of the science classes transfer, and I could take upper-level courses. To study thermodynamics at a two-year college is impressive.”
Lt. Governor Simon Tours COD Taking physics at COD opened up the world for José Gallegos.
Army Vet Gallegos Interns at Fermilab Aurora resident, Army veteran and College of DuPage student José Gallegos began his 10-week internship at Fermilab in May. “I’m pretty excited,” Gallegos said. “I’ll be working on a research project with scientists and engineers that will consist of assembling, operating and testing ultra high vacuum systems and high-power microwave electronics.” Gallegos was a squad leader and a section sergeant before working in the quality assurance shop for helicopters, where he would inspect the work of other soldiers before a helicopter would take flight. In August of 2009, only a few days after leaving the Army, Gallegos began taking classes at College of DuPage. “I’m in school because of Army benefits,” he said, “And I chose COD’s Engineering program because it has such a strong reputation. I never took physics in high school. But when I took it here for the first time, it opened up the world to me. I can see how things work, and I’m now hooked on the subject.”
Looking for innovative ways to improve college completion rates, Illinois Lt. Governor Sheila Simon brought her Complete College Tour to College of DuPage on April 20 to hear about a new way the school plans to graduate criminal justice majors. College of DuPage has launched a 3+1 partnership with Lewis University to make it easier and more affordable for students to earn a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. “Illinois is serious about increasing college course, certificate and degree completion,” Simon said. “We must increase completion rates so that more students who walk in the door of community colleges walk across the stage at graduation and into an Illinois workplace.”
Lt. Governor Sheila Simon (right), joins COD President Robert L. Breuder (center), and State Representative Kirk Dillard (second from right) during a tour of the Homeland Security Education Center.
campus, your world
Crisis in
Japan
Lessons Learned From a Triple Crisis in Japan
In March, a massive tsunami struck the northeast coast of Japan, triggered by one of the largest earthquakes ever recorded. Then, these natural disasters were compounded by a man-made catastrophe at a nuclear power plant. It was, as COD Chemistry Professor Richard Jarman dubbed it, “a trifecta of horrors.”
far more than its fossil fuel counterparts. Consequently, said Carter, no nuclear plants have been built in the U.S. for 30 years. If the financing were there, or some kind of government incentive, Carter said nuclear plant design and operations can be safe.
Avoid complacency When it comes to such crises, COD Meteorology Professor Paul Sirvatka says the first and most-valuable lesson we should learn is the risk of growing too comfortable and confident. “People get complacent,” said Sirvatka. “Catastrophes wake us from our slumber. Whether it’s nuclear power or nature, we can’t afford to be complacent.” But once we’re shaken from our comfort zone, how do we better prepare? Sirvatka says money is often a bigger issue than engineering when it comes to preparedness.
Safety is dependent on the industry “Nuclear power is as safe as the culture of the industry that makes it,” Carter said. “If utilities get cavalier and take it for granted, then you’re headed for catastrophe. If they take nuclear plant safety to the extent of paranoia, you’ll be okay.” Jarman, whose expertise includes nanotechnology, alternative energy, recycling, fuel cells and batteries, agrees. “What is most striking to me [from the Japan crisis] is the extent to which nuclear power is still capable of exciting terror in the general public,” said Jarman. “Even after it has established a record of comparatively very few safety problems compared with other major energy sources, a bit of radiation leakage trumps any giant oil spill or mining disaster in the public’s mind.”
The safety vs. cost equation “It’s all a cost-benefit analysis,” said Sirvatka. “A 9.0 earthquake in the U.S. would cause considerable damage. In most parts of our country, our buildings are not made to the codes of Japan.” Accurate public information But, he said, the risk of such a powerful Jarman is amazed that Americans quake is lower in most parts of the U.S. than it is in Japan, so there’s less chance Police officers continue to search amongst rubble seven km from the troubled Fukushima rushed out after the Japan quake to buy Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. (Photo by The Asahi Shimbun via Getty Images) iodine tablets, when their everyday the higher cost of stricter standards is lives expose them to far more radiation worth it. through such sources as radon, televisions, chest X-rays and cosmic rays. COD Physics Professor Tom Carter, who worked on radiation safety and His main takeaway from Japan: “We can still do a much better job of recovery in the military, said the same cost-benefit issues apply to nuclear power. educating the populace regarding the facts of nuclear energy and radiation.” It’s not about the science “We could always improve safety. We could always build more redundant Nuclear power safety depends on the culture of the industry that makes it systems,” said Carter. “But that costs money.” Despite design and back-up power After the Japan earthquake, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) ordered special flaws that contributed to the Japan crisis and garnered the most media attention, inspections of U.S. nuclear reactors and found many to be vulnerable. “the problem is not physics or engineering; that’s solvable. It’s the cost.” A few, including the Dresden plant in northern Illinois seem to be doing a better To illustrate, Carter explained how a highly visible accident like Fukushima in job than most. Officials say the Illinois plant is prepared to ride out a 6.9-Richter Japan, Chernobyl in the Ukraine or Three Mile Island in the U.S. can transform a earthquake and moderate flooding according to the inspection report. billion-dollar nuclear asset into a multibillion-dollar liability. At the Byron, Illinois, plant decisions to repeatedly lower the minimum required Even if the inherent problems can be solved, “No banker wants to touch that thickness on corroding pipes rather than replace them led to a leak in 2007. The NRC [investment risk],” said Carter, so nuclear power generation ends up costing hadn’t inspected the pipes in eight years leading up to the leak.
College of DuPage :: impact :: cod.edu/impact
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impact
Vol. 1, No. 2 Published June 2011 by the Office of Marketing and Creative Services at College of DuPage President Assistant Editors Dr. Robert L. Breuder Jeff Elijah, Jane Lelugas Associate Vice President Writers of External Relations Jeff Elijah, Bruce Hetrick, Joseph Moore Jane Lelugas, Jim Vosicky Marketing Director Art Director Laurie Jorgensen Lou Demas Editor Designer Jim Vosicky Mark Brady Photography Rich Malec Direct all comments and questions to the editor at
[email protected]. ©2011 College of DuPage. All rights reserved.
“The students who will be using the CT at COD could be among Adventist Hinsdale Hospital’s future X-ray technicians and sonographers. Donating the machine benefits not only these students, but also our patients, who get high-quality care.”
College of DuPage Board of Trustees David Carlin Kim Savage Board Chairman Darien Naperville Nancy Svoboda Erin Birt Downers Grove Board Vice Chairman Joseph C. Wozniak Wheaton Naperville Allison O’Donnell Lydia Whitten Board Secretary Student Trustee Winfield Woodridge Dianne McGuire Naperville
— Alan Schneider, Adventist Hinsdale Hospital’s chief patient services officer and a former COD student. (see page 2)
impact
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Your community college Vol. 1, No. 2
In this issue The first and only. COD is the only community
college in the nation to own and operate a CT scanner.
Changing the landscape of education. To increase the number of college graduates, COD is finding ways to make higher education more flexible, more creative and more affordable. The crisis in Japan. Faculty comment on what it
takes to avoid the mistakes made in Japan and provide insight into the future of nuclear power.
The surgeon’s right hand woman. Surgical Technology student Danielle Odstrcilek shares what it takes to earn a place in the operating room. Finding out what makes COD tick. Lt. Governor Simon visits campus looking for innovative ways to improve college completion rates.
impact Your community college
Vol. 1, No. 2
Tests of Faith Former COD student Eboo Patel has captured the attention of leaders across the globe.
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