KUDOS

• Over 80 NIACC students were inducted into the Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) international honor society this year.
  
• NIACC earned 4 Paragon Awards during a national competition sponsored by the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations. The NIACC Performing Arts & Leadership Series brochure received first place, while a NIACC poster, folder, and print advertisement series each earned silver awards.
  
• Over 70 North Iowans, including 73-year-old Virginia Reublin of Mason City, earned their GED through NIACC this year.
  
• For the fourth consecutive year, graduates of NIACC’s Electronics Technology program passed the national Certified Electronics Technician (CET) exam on their first attempt. The national average is 66 percent. Certified technicians include Brian Cook, Arnold Dorenkamp, Jeffery Lampe, Adam Roethler, and Derek Paulus.
  
• Over 350 individuals earned scholarships up to full tuition through the NIACC Foundation for the 2000-2001 academic year.
  
• 99% of NIACC’s 1999 career program graduates are employed; 96% in positions directly related to their education. 94% of those in training-related jobs are living and working in Iowa, with 75% in North Iowa. The survey involved nearly 300 graduates of the one- and two-year training programs in NIACC’s Business, Health, Agriculture, and Industrial Technology divisions.
  
• Karen Regal’s Children’s Literature students recently announced the NIACC Children’s Choice Awards 2000. The book display may be viewed in the NIACC library.
  
• NIACC hosted the first "Taste of College Night" for Mason City High School students and their parents to learn about career opportunities and to discuss specific majors with NIACC staff and faculty.
  
• 160 North Iowans earned $1,300 Will F. Muse Scholarships through the NIACC Foundation for the 2000-2001 academic year.
  
• The 11^th annual Iowa Student Art Competition at NIACC drew 354 entries submitted by 226 students across Iowa. The final selection consisted of 80 pieces representing 70 students from 15 schools.
  
• Jim Degen, NIACC applications programmer/network manager, has earned the Cisco Network Associate 2.0 (CCNA) certification, one of the most difficult and highly valued credentials in the information technology arena.
  
• Dr. Ed Dobrzynski, chemistry instructor at NIACC, has been elected Treasurer/College Sponsor Chair of the Committee on Chemistry in the Two-Year College.
  
• Several NIACC graduates are now Certified Medical Assistants (CMA). Cindy Berkland, Amy Boge, Alice Ciavarelli, Lisa Faridi, Christine Slattery, Emily Pederson, Nichole Stortz, Robin Thompson and Marilyn Engels were the first students to take the exam since the NIACC Medical Assistant program became accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs last fall.
  
• NIACC Karate Club member Matt Schonnhorst won first place in the men’s brown/black belt division during Northwestern University’s 4th Annual Collegiate Karate Tournament.
  
• White Oaks Cabinetry of Rudd was awarded $10,000 through the Pappajohn Seed Capital Grant Program, designed to assist North Iowa start-up ventures and existing small businesses to achieve growth and positively impact the area economy.