Aug. 24, 2009

The DigestWhat’s Happening at KVCC

What’s below in this edition

Digistar preview (Pages 1-3) Cougar Connection (Page 10) Recycling push (Pages 3-5) Financial future (Pages 10/11)

Wind partnership (Page 5) Cougar winner (Page 11) Incubator success (Pages 5/6) Sierra Leone (Pages 11/12) The Great Debate (Pages 6-8) Sustainability (Page 12) Eagle exhibit (Page 8) Toy, game history (Pages 12/13) Meier on stage (Page 8) Motown in town (Pages 13-15) Welcome-back tables (Pages 8/9) Gustas saluted (Page 15) Aug. 28 (Page 9) E-mail alert (Pages 15/16) Corrections IV (Pages 9/10) And Finally (Page 16)

☻☻☻☻☻☻Teachers to get preview of planetarium upgrade

K-12 teachers from throughout Southwest Michigan, along with science colleagues in higher education, will receive a special preview of the Kalamazoo Valley Museum’s new planetarium technology on Wednesday, Sept. 2.

Teachers from school districts in Kalamazoo, Van Buren, Allegan, St. Joseph, Barry, Cass, Calhoun, Branch and Berrien counties are being invited to observe the next generation of full-color, full-dome planetarium experiences that will open to the public on Saturday, Sept. 19, and learn about the technology’s teaching capabilities.

The preview will run from 3 to 6 p.m. Teachers can RSVP by calling (269) 373-7990 or by going to the museum’s web site at www.kalamazoomuseum.org.

When the new Digistar 4 is ready to strut its stuff for the public on Sept. 19, all of the shows will be free that day.

As with its predecessor Digistar II, which was among the attractions when the downtown-Kalamazoo museum opened its doors in February of 1996, the newest $1.3 million version will be among the handful in operation around the world with its first public programs.

“According to my research,” said planetarium coordinator Eric Schreur, “this new Digistar system will be one of a dozen digital planetariums in the world that use a laser

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beam to cover the full screen with video imagery. It becomes even rarer when considering the interactive features that we have - probably one of six in the world. And we certainly will be among the smallest venues to have a Digistar 4 Laser.”

The museum’s inventory of planetarium offerings has grown to more than 50 shows since the opening 13 years ago. Schreur is in the process of upgrading the best of them - about 15 -- to be Digistar 4 Laser ready when the planetarium theater goes back into action in September.

The purchase price includes five programs produced by Evans & Sutherland for the updated planetarium. They are “Ice Worlds,” “Invaders of Mars,” “New Horizons,” “Secrets of the Sun,” and “Stars of the Pharaohs.” Two others - “Secret of the Cardboard Rocket” and one featuring the music of U2 - are being purchased from another source.

The teachers will be shown highlights of two, along with one that Schreur has produced:

“Stars of the Pharaohs” takes viewers back to ancient Egypt where the sky served as a clock and calendar, and the movement of imperishable stars guided the Pharaohs on their journey into the afterlife. Temples and pyramids were aligned with the stars and decorated with images revealing cycles in the sky connected with life on the Nile.

“Secret of the Cardboard Rocket” is a journey through the solar system fueled by imagination. Guided by a talking book, two children visit and discover unique environments found at each planet.

“Galileo's Skies” is the museum’s production that celebrates the International Year of Astronomy. It is a tour of the autumn night sky, featuring views of the moon, planets and Milky Way as they appeared through the telescope of Galileo Galilei 400 years ago.

“Part of the presentation at the preview will help teachers identify where these shows fit into their curricula,” said Elspeth Inglis, the museum’s assistant director. “’Stars of the Pharaohs,’ for instance, will cross science and history; ‘Secret of the Cardboard Rocket’ can apply to the sciences and language arts. “In addition to the previews,” she said, “we'll have related science demonstrations, and tours of the Mystery of the Mummy exhibit and of the Challenger Learning Center. In this way, we hope teachers will see that their students can have a full, well-rounded educational -- and fun -- experience when they visit the museum.” Digistar is the trademark name for the computer-projection system of Evans & Sutherland based in Salt Lake City. It uses digital-graphics technology to create three-dimensional scenes on the 109-seat Kalamazoo planetarium’s 50-foot dome.

“There are two differences between the new system and the older one,” said Schreur, who has been presenting and producing planetarium shows in Kalamazoo since his days as a museum volunteer in 1969. “First, and most apparent to the audience, will be the change in projection technology. The Digistar II was a black-and-white video display projected on the dome through a fish-eye lens.

“It was supplemented,” he said, “by four video projectors fixed on different parts of the screen, dozens of slide projectors, and dozens of special-effect projectors - all very functional and all very exciting.

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“The Digistar 4 Laser is a single projector that will do the work of all of those in the earlier system,” said Schreur, who has held his current position at the museum since 1985. “It fills the dome with images projected by a colored laser beam.”

Schreur said the second difference will be out of the view of audiences and be behind the scenes where the shows are created. New computer software is used to assemble electronic images and digital audio into shows. “Gone forever are the slide films and recording tapes used in the past,” he said.

After a feasibility study by community leaders, Kalamazoo Valley Community College in July of 1991 assumed the governance of the Kalamazoo Public Museum. Voters in the college's 10 K-12 school districts also approved a charter millage to fund the museum's operations in perpetuity. Part of its annual budgeting process is to build up a capital-improvement fund for such projects as the Digistar 4 Laser.

In response to that mandate from voters, community leaders launched a $20-million capital campaign to build a new museum in downtown Kalamazoo. Since its opening, the museum has attracted 1.5 million visitors.

It was possible with the Digistar II "to fly" the audience to any of the 9,000 stars in its data base and look back to this solar system from their locations in the universe. Schreur reports the new data base is much larger and the “trips” are no longer limited to stars or black-and-white experiences.

“It will be safe to say,” Schreur said, “that people in Southwest Michigan would have to travel great distances to get the same experience that we will be able to offer beginning in September.”

Students spurring new recycling initiativeSouthwest Michigan landfills have some new friends – members of four KVCC

student organizations who want us to stop throwing away stuff that can be reused.Leaders from the Phi Theta Kappa and PeaceJam chapters on campus have joined

forces with Recycle Now! and the college’s International Student Association to guide the activities of an implementation arm they have named the KVCC Active Green Committee.

Working in conjunction with the college’s facilities division, they will be locating 16 blue, triple-holed recycling bins – 10 on the Texas Township Campus, one in the Center for New Media, one in the Kalamazoo Valley Museum, and the rest in Anna Whitten Hall.

Involved are PTK chapter president Mike Waldschmidt, Recycle Now’s top two officers Thomas Henley and Casey James, and a PeaceJam leader.

Working as a team and beginning with the fall semester, each organization has been assigned responsibility for collection areas and for the storage of the recyclables.

Any revenues generated will be plowed back into the program or other “green” efforts envisioned by the committee, such as replacing paper towels in restrooms with warm-air machines and toilets that use less water.

On the main campus -- from the gymnasium to the Student Commons to the technical wing to the computer lab to the food-service area -- plastic bottles, glass products and metal containers can be deposited and salvaged.

Waldschmidt, a graduate of Bangor High School majoring in business administration, said his PTK chapter’s participation stemmed from the national organization’s agenda to promote “green” actions in communities

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“The Alpha Rho Nu members are excited about improving campus recycling efforts,” he said, “and mobilizing student awareness of environment impact. Personally, I strongly believe this will be a great step toward reducing waste at KVCC.”

As part of the college’s “Cougar Connection” that welcomes students to the fall semester, PTK will staff a table to spread the word and pass out re-usable plastic bottles in an attempt to cut down on bottled-water containers becoming landfill fodder. Putting a 10-cent deposit on water bottles might be another deterrent, Waldschmidt believes.

James made arrangements with Center for New Media graphic designers to fashion a logo for the committee, which is also hosting a “Cougar Connection” table to distribute information and draft volunteers.

James, who grew up in New Orleans, chose to attend her father’s alma mater, Western Michigan University, which pointed her toward taking classes in the sciences at KVCC. As a military science minor, she would like to pursue a career as a veterinarian in the Army.

Henley spearheaded the establishment of Recycle Now! about two years ago “because I couldn’t find a place to recycle my drink bottle one day.”

When the international studies major approached President Marilyn Schlack about his dilemma, she told him that the PTK chapter and PeaceJam shared his concern. The collaboration followed and the college gave its full support.

James became involved when she thumbed down a list of student organizations and spotted Recycle Now!

“I’ve always been very environmental,” James said, “starting with an ecology club in high school. One of the projects was converting a bog into a pond with a waterfall and butterfly garden. I’ve been recycling since I was little.

“I’m no hippie,” she said. “I just like taking care of the planet and community, both in looks and health. We have to live off the land so we should try to take care of it.”

This student-driven initiative complements what the college has been doing when it comes to recycling paper products, cardboard, scrap metals leftover from technical courses, and batteries -- even predating the currently popular “Green Revolution.”

In just about every classroom and office is a blue bin for recycling paper. By doing that, trees that replenish the planet with the stuff we all breathe stay upright.

Hammered through all of us in science classes is that trees eat what we exhale and what comes out of our vehicles’ exhausts. Each time a tree is saved through the use of recycled paper, so is an oxygen generator.

Recycling paper is not that tough to do. All that is required is a little patience and a sense that one is doing the right thing.

The same goes with metal and plastic products that touch our lives and, without any consideration, end up in trash containers. What good is it to down a plastic bottle of that good, clear, clean water, and then relegate the containers to the landfills?

Most of this applies to what we do in our homes, too. By taking the time to recycle paper, plastic, metal and glass products, the amount of trash, debris and garbage bound for the landfill can be drastically reduced.

If possible, establish a compost pile in your yard. That can accomplish at least three goals – create your own fertilizer, build up a personal supply of worms if you are an angler, and greatly reduce the amount of trash you put out along the roadside for pickup, thus reducing your costs.

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Need more convincing? It is estimated that it takes a plastic container 50,000 years to decompose. Think about that the next time you chuck away that empty water bottle that costs you more than a buck.

Wind-energy collaborative formedKVCC is among the 10 Michigan colleges and universities joining forces to play

a role in the creation of a wind-energy industry for this part of the state.Grand Valley State University’s Michigan Alternative and Renewable Energy

Center in Muskegon hosted a conference earlier this month at which the West Michigan Community College Collaboration was formed in an attempt to – among other things -- produce the next generation of skilled workers for the wind-turbine industry.

Other venture members are Muskegon Community College, West Shore Community College in Scottville, Grand Rapids Community College, Kellogg Community College, Montcalm Community College, Northwestern Community College, Glen Oaks Community College, Ferris State University, and Grand Valley.

One of the outgrowths of the collaboration will be communication among the entities so that Michigan, as a state, can move forward in the renewable-energy industry.

For example, a Grand Valley professor has received a grant to study the negative aspects of wind turbines, which is regarded as an important piece in improving the public perception of the fledgling industry.

Another is to make certain that each knows what the others are doing in terms of workforce training. Commented Arn Boezaart, director of the center in Muskegon: “It is important we all come together. It is not at all our desire to work in a silo or work independently of what other schools are doing. There is clearly enough work for everyone to go around. There is no need for one group to do it all. It will help decide who will focus on what.”

Called the first collaborative of its kind in this part of the state, the partners are looking for state and federal funding to advance the venture.

One of the goals is to secure a wind-turbine site for hands-on training and community education. Beyond land-based wind, lakeshore communities are interested in the creation of off-shore wind farms on Lake Michigan. With that in mind, the GVSC center has received a $1.4-million federal appropriation for a water-based, turbine-demonstration project on Muskegon Lake.

M-TEC incubator alum growing like topsy Innovative Analytics Inc., which was birthed in the M-TEC of KVCC’s business

incubator before moving to a downtown-Kalamazoo location, has made Inc. magazine’s 2009 list of “500 Fastest Growing Private Companies.”

The enterprise, which provides data-management, statistical and technical-writing services for the medical industry, was cited for posting a three-year, revenue-growth rate of more than 700 percent, reaching $3.1 million in 2008. Established in October of 2003 by former Pfizer Inc. researchers Patricia Ruppel and James Dancy, Innovative Analytics was the first start-up enterprise to locate in the second-floor incubator of the college’s Michigan Technical Education Center in February 2004. Encouraged by Southwest Michigan First to apply for Michigan Life Science Corridor (MLSC) funding, Innovative Analytics received a grant to provide data-

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management and statistical-analysis services for clinical, pharmacogenomic and biomarker research trials. By 2006, Innovative Analytics had gross revenues exceeding $1 million with pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical-device clients in the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia, Iceland, France, Great Britain and Germany. Ruppel and Dancy, who were colleagues in an Experimental Medicine unit in downtown Kalamazoo, brought with them 27 and 17 years, respectively, of Kalamazoo-based experience with The Upjohn Co. and Pharmacia. They both left Pfizer in the fall of 2003. “Our first revenue came in December of 2003,” said Ruppel, who received her academic credentials and training as a biostatistician at Western Michigan University and the University of Michigan. “The MLSC reviewers encouraged us to quickly build a core capacity so Jim and I recruited a third full-timer, Greg Elfring , who had been with Pfizer’s animal-health division. “This was followed by the employment of several experienced colleagues which whom we had worked at Pharmacia,” said Ruppel, who is president of the firm. “The level of clinical development and registration expertise that we provide is very attractive to potential clients.” Innovative Analytics has grown from 10 full-time staff members and six part-timers to 20 full-timers. Running out of space and anticipating more growth, the business leased the 6,500-square-foot, fifth-floor of The Haymarket building in downtown Kalamazoo and moved in mid-February of 2007. “While the M-TEC location was perfect for us and is a beautiful setting in KVCC’s The Groves,” said Dancy, vice president of operations, “we both liked the idea of being back downtown, which is where we had worked for Pfizer.” Dancy, who has an engineering degree from the University of Michigan and a master’s in business administration from Oklahoma University, said in the wake of the move that all of Innovative Analytics’ 2006 revenue was “generated out of state, which means we are not cannibalizing other Michigan jobs. Instead, we have been bringing new money into Southwest Michigan.” Dancy said that Innovative Analytics, in its first years of existence, has been and is involved in research and studies of both drugs and devices that are targeting cancer, cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, and migraine headaches.

Lincoln, Douglas debate, and ‘You Are There’Recreated highlights and key moments of the famed Lincoln-Douglas debates of

1858 are part of a five-day local celebration of the 200th birthday of the 16th president of the United States.

A condensed version of the seven debates between the two Illinois candidates for U. S. Senate is set for 1:30 p.m. on Saturday (Aug. 22) in Bronson Park where Lincoln spoke in 1856 in his only visit to Michigan.

The debate moderator will be State Sen. Tom George (R-Texas Township), a Lincoln historian and documentarian. All of the events are being co-sponsored by the Kalamazoo Valley Museum.

On Friday (Aug. 21) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the museum, the U. S. Postal Service will be selling the new Lincoln stamp with a Kalamazoo cancellation. Local

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students designed special cachet envelopes for the anniversary and they will be on display.

The Saturday (Aug. 22) agenda beginning at 9 a.m. will include displays of Lincoln memorabilia in the museum and library, a continuation of the stamp sale, and rendition’s of Lincoln’s favorite music by the Dodworth Saxhorn Band. The Civil War Roundtable Color Guard will present the colors at 11 a.m.

At noon, those in attendance will be able to talk with the portrayers of Lincoln (Fred Priebe), Douglas (Len Steinberg) and Mrs. Lincoln Each youngster who chats with “Lincoln” will be given a1900 mint date Lincoln penny.

The debaters, the color guard and the band will march to Bronson Park at 1 p.m. for Sen. George’s introduction with visitors allowed to join the caravan. Slated for 3 p.m. will be post-debate question-and-answer session and discussion. The winner of the envelop-design contest will also be announced.

The debate recreation will feature the actual language employed 151 years ago. Each “candidate” will have time for opening remarks, rebuttal and questions from the audience. A caveat is that the language of the debates contains some content and attitudes that might be offensive to a 2009 listener.

The debates previewed the issues that Lincoln would face in the 1860 presidential election. The main issue in all seven debates from August through October was slavery.

Three drew especially large numbers of people from neighboring states as slavery was of monumental importance to citizens across the nation.

Newspaper coverage was intense. Major papers from Chicago sent stenographers to create complete texts of each debate, which newspapers across the United States reprinted in full, with some partisan edits.

Newspapers that supported Douglas as the incumbent Democrat edited his speeches to remove any errors made by the stenographers and to correct grammatical errors, while they left Lincoln's speeches in the rough form in which they had been transcribed. In the same way, Republican papers edited Lincoln's speeches, but left the Douglas texts as reported. Thus, if you read both versions, the truth can be found.

Lincoln lost to Douglas, but the widespread coverage catapulted him into the national limelight and his nomination for president by the 1860 Republican National Convention in Chicago.

The format for each debate was: one candidate spoke for 60 minutes, then the other candidate spoke for 90 minutes, and then the first candidate was allowed a 30-minute "rejoinder." The candidates alternated speaking first. As the incumbent, Douglas spoke first in four of the debates.

In his award-winning documentary “Lincoln in Kalamazoo,” George, a Kalamazoo anesthesiologist, explained how Lincoln, who failed to win the nomination for vice president at the Republican Party's first convention in Philadelphia earlier that year, was invited here to stump for explorer/scout John Fremont, the party's initial candidate for president.

George's research also detailed how Lincoln was one of the lesser political lights invited to speak at the massive rally and the reactions of those who listened to him speak that day. Four years later, he would be elected president of the United States and a main reason why southern states seceded starting the Civil War.

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Douglas took a few stinging salvos from Lincoln in the Kalamazoo speech for recommending the question of slavery in Kansas go before the U. S. Supreme Court. “Douglas is a great man,” he said, pausing for effect, “at keeping from answering questions he doesn’t want to answer.” Douglas had been a frequent visitor to Kalamazoo in those years. It was still two years before his famous debates with Douglas.

Eagle exhibit landing in Three RiversTwo KVCC retirees are among those who are orchestrating an exhibit focusing on

the United States’ connection to the eagle that is scheduled to open in Three Rivers on Sunday (Aug. 23).

Paul Millikan, a pioneer faculty member in history, and Patricia DeHaan, former admissions coordinator for the college’s health programs, are among the five collectors who are providing memorabilia for “The American Eagle: Icon and Symbol” that will be on display through Oct. 18 in the Carnegie Center for the Arts, located at 107 N. Main in Three Rivers.

A reception from 2 to 4 p.m. is part of the opening on Sunday. DeHaan’s husband, Paul, taught history at KVCC on a part-time basis.

Interviewed for an article in The Kalamazoo Gazette, Millikan said: “It started out as a symbol, but it has become an icon. There are an awful lot of businesses, for example, that have an eagle in the design of their logo or in their name. It gives a kind of instant, not only recognition, but endorsement.”

As a symbol, the eagle threads through the historical tapestry of the nation. The lunar module that landed man on the moon was named “Eagle.” One sad irony is that Americans of all stripes and persuasions nearly caused the extinction of some species of eagles because of rampant, unwarranted shootings.

While the collectors have 450 pieces of art and memorabilia in their respective eagle holdings, about 200 – many of them dating back to the early 1800 -- will be on display during the two months.

Millikan said the eagle has evolved into a symbol of freedom in the United States “because when you think about it, there’s nothing much more free than an eagle that can soar to elevations so far you can’t even see it. It has that wild kind of freedom.”

The exhibit is free and open to the public.

Meier in ‘Chicago” in the UPLaw-enforcement instructor Nick Meier is spending part of his summer hearing

the roar of the crowd and sensing the smell of the greasepaint.Meier has been cast in the role of “Amos Hart” in the Eastern Upper Peninsula

Fine Arts Council Cultural Arts Center’s production of the musical “Chicago.”The show has been booked to run in DeTour Village (population 470), located at

the extreme eastern edge of the Upper Peninsula, through Sunday (Aug. 23) and from Aug.28-30 at the Soo Theater in Sault Ste. Marie.

Student welcomers needed to launch fall semesterFaculty and staff are invited to man welcome-back-students tables on both the

Texas Township and Arcadia Commons campuses for an hour or two.“We're looking for a few good women and men to help staff fall-semester

welcome tables on Tuesday and Wednesday (Sept. 8-9),” Mike McCall said. “Let's get

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our new students off to a good start and remind our returning students why they came back to the most helpful college in Michigan. In addition to serving our students, it is quite fun to do.”

Those who would like to volunteer for an hour or two can contact Rose Crawford at extension 4347 to sit with a colleague at locations around the Texas Township Campus, answer questions and give directions. Folks can also stop by her desk in the Admissions, Registration and Records Office to sign up.

Personnel at the Arcadia Commons Campus can contact Jackie Cantrell at extension 7805 to volunteer, offer directions and answer questions.

Those who would like to be the friendly faces behind the tables in the Student Commons during the Cougar Connection and on Wednesday should touch base with Mary Johnson at extension 4182.

Adios, summer hoursKVCC will end its “summer hours” on Friday (Aug. 28).That will be the 2009 end of a work week that runs Monday through Thursday,

from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. with a 30-minute break for lunch, and the college shutting down at noon on Fridays.

With the arrival of summer hours, The Digest shifted into an every-other-week format until just before the start of the fall semester. The weekly distribution schedule will return with next edition dated Aug. 24.

Corrections Academy IV set, fifth plannedKVCC will offer a fourth Corrections Academy in the fall from Sept. 14 through

Oct. 9 with this edition slated to be held at the M-TEC of KVCC on The Groves Campus.Participants hail from Kalamazoo, Ionia, Ingham, Allegan, Kent, Barry and

Berrien counties.A fifth academy is tentatively slated to start in February of 2010.Under the auspices of the Kalamazoo Law Enforcement Training Center at the

Texas Township Campus, the Corrections Academy prepares people for jobs in county jails and other lockup facilities operated by municipalities. The last two academies were held on the Arcadia Commons Campus.

The fee for 160 hours worth of training in14 modules is $1,100. David Reid, the in-service training coordinator for the center that includes the

Kalamazoo Police Academy, reports that the application procedure for each academy produces a “healthy” waiting list, which set the stages to conduct another. Those interested should contact him.

Past enrollees hailed from sheriff’s departments in Kalamazoo, Van Buren, Cass, Barry, Branch and Allegan counties. About half were in an in-service mode because they already were in the profession while the others have been using the academy to launch a career.

The concept of an academy, he said, sprang from state legislation that now requires certification for professionals in the corrections field.

“Most of the enrollees come from those already in the profession who now need the required state certification,” Reid said, “but there are people who are interested in establishing careers in the corrections field.”

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Those who successfully complete the 160 hours of training will also receive 10 credit hours that they can apply to a degree in criminal justice at KVCC.

The college’s center, which is directed by Rick Ives, is offering the academy in conjunction with the Michigan Sheriffs Coordinating and Training Council.

“The academy was created,” Ives said, “to not only meet the need for corrections certification, but also to offer a different kind of career opportunity to KVCC students. Pre-certified candidates would set themselves up with an edge in the employment market.”

All of the instructors are certified and approved by the council. Completion of the 160 hours of training becomes one of the requirements needed to become certified as a corrections officer. Each enrollee must have a high school diploma or its equivalent.

The 14 training modules are: booking and intake, correctional law, cultural diversity, custody and security, defensive tactics, ethics in corrections, fire safety, interpersonal communications, prisoner behavior, report writing, workplace harassment, stress management, suicide prevention, and first aid, cardio-pulmonary resuscitation, and automated external defibrillator (AED) familiarity.

For information about the academy, contact Reid at (269) 488-4459 or dreid9615@kvcc.edu. Another source of information is at the college’s web site –

www.kvcc.edu – under the keyword of “Corrections Academy.” Cougar Connection 2009 on Sept. 8

KVCC programs, departments and services will be welcoming fall-semester students at the 2009 Cougar Connection on Tuesday, Sept. 8, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the Student Commons on the Texas Township Campus.

This year’s "Connection" for new and returning students will also feature:♦ door prizes and other give-aways, including a computer♦ a variety of games♦ free food and refreshments provided by vendors♦ fitness orientations by the KVCC Wellness and Fitness Center.♦ a scavenger hunt♦ massages by the Kalamazoo Center for the Healing Arts♦ a local radio station’s remote broadcast♦ displays by college and student organizations and programs.♦ and promotions by local financial institutions, restaurants, and businesses.All will be free at the eighth Cougar Connection. KVCC programs and services to students that would like to gain exposure during

the 2009 Cougar Connection should contact Mary Johnson, student activities and programs coordinator in The Student Commons.

To arrange for a table and any other preparations, contact her at extension 4182 or

e-mail her at mjohnson@kvcc.edu. Plotting the college’s financial future

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How KVCC will cope with the continuing economic and financial doldrums facing the state of Michigan and its citizens are in the crosshairs of a proactive study group whose members are across-the-board representatives of the college community.

Similar to how an organization takes a futuristic look at dealing with emergency and breach-of-security situations, this group will take a look at the college’s financial strengths and challenges, and “develop a plan for what our performance should be during a financial disaster,” stated President Marilyn Schlack.

“In order to have a realistic financial-disaster plan, scenarios must be understood prior to such an occurrence,” she said. “These scenarios must be realistic and rehearsed.”

The study group includes: Lauren Beresford, director of operations at the M-TEC Geology instructor Deb Bryant Grant Chandler, dean of instruction at the Arcadia Commons Campus. Jim DeHaven, vice president for economic and business development Lori Evans, manager of the Student Service Center Gina Fischer, operations manager at the Kalamazoo Valley Museum Tony Ide, manager of custodial services Economics instructor Philipp Jonas English instructor Mike Keller Steve Walman and Ron Young, both members of the business faculty.Schlack will chair the task force, while DeHaven and Young will serve as co-vice

chairs. Steve Cannell and Patricia Niewoonder will work in staff roles for the task force “and consideration will be given for additional support if needed,” she said.

The group will meet throughout the fall with a draft plan ready by early 2010. The college will be updated and minutes of meetings will be posted on the KVCC Intranet.KVCC

Cougar has a piece of World Series titleKVCC student Taylor Turcott was one of the 15 players on the Kalamazoo team

that won the 2009 Big League Softball World Series earlier this month at Vanderberg Park in Milwood.

The Vicksburg freshman was an outfielder/utility player on the squad that defeated in the finals a team from Puerto Rico, which represented Latin America in the 10-team international tournament. She was a member of KVCC women’s softball team in the 2009 season.

Kalamazoo’s entry in the annual tournament has now won three championships over the past 15 years. Equally as impressive is that the local squad has been in the title game 11 times since 1994.

Making the trip to Kalamazoo for the tournament were teams from Pennsylvania, Georgia, Texas, California, Canada, the Philippines and Poland. The final was televised live in prime time on ESPN.

From Sierra Leone – with perspectivesWhen KVCC student Darius Smith walks into his fall-semester classes, his

perspectives and attitudes will be markedly different from what they were last spring. That’s because he was among a local contingent that spent two weeks this

summer in the West African nation of Sierra Leone.

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In all, nine area youths and six adult chaperones experienced life in Freetown, the impoverished capital of the country, in a trip organized by the Kalamazoo Deacons Conference.

From bathing in a bucket of cold water to shopping in stores that are at the other extreme of any American supermarket when it comes to quantity and quality of food available, the youths gained an understanding that – no matter what their status in the United States – they had it far, far – far to the nth degree – better than their counterparts in Sierra Leone.

While they gain an understanding of the privileges and life style that they take for granted, they also had the chance to perform public service. Part of the conference’s Urban Youth for Africa venture, the Kalamazoo students assisted teens in running a day-camp facility and helping to repaint a church. Their daily food rations were akin to if they had chosen to be on a crash, weight-losing diet back home.

Among the acquired perspectives was the commitment to focus more on their academics when they return to high school and college classes – basically free in this country, but often unaffordable for their peers in Sierra Leone.

Smith, like his fellow travelers, vows to return. “I’m going back,” he told Kalamazoo Gazette reporter Stephanie Esters, “because there is just such a need there for people who are willing to help.”

College part of ‘sustainability’ accordKVCC has aligned itself with an umbrella organization dedicated to an improved

quality of life in this part of the state through actions and collaborations that promote environmental, economic and social responsibility.

It is among the 17 pioneer signees of what is called the “Southwest Michigan Regional Sustainability Covenant” that has been in the works since a Feb. 26 gathering initiated by Western Michigan University President John Dunn.

Other covenant originators include the cities of Kalamazoo, Battle Creek and Portage, Kalamazoo College, Borgess and Bronson hospitals, the Kalamazoo Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Kalamazoo Community Foundation, the Kalamazoo and Portage school districts, the Kalamazoo Regional Educational Service Agency, the Kalamazoo Nature Center, and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.

A key component in improving the quality of life for future generations is the concept of sharing ideas and innovations regarding recycling, energy conservation, and purchasing agreements that address economic, environmental and social issues.

The idea is to share programs and projects that work instead of each of the members trying to re-invent the wheel.

The first step is the spread the word about the covenant so that area residents and businesses can get involved. That will lead to the group blueprinting an organizational structure that identifies sustainability issues, the methods for monitoring progress, and how to share “best practices.”

There is no timetable to reach these accomplishments, other than to get started and open the door to future signees.

Famous local toys, games in museum’s TV show

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Kalamazoo inventors who created popular and award-winning recreational devices are showcased in the August installment of the Kalamazoo Valley Museum’s TV show.

Featuring Tom Dietz, the curator of research at the museum, the episode chronicles the origins of games that became famous, is being aired by the Public Media Network (formerly the Community Access Center) on Channel 22 on the Charter cable system at 7 p.m. on Sundays, 6:30 p.m. on Tuesdays, 6:30 p.m. on Fridays, and 11 a.m. on Saturdays.

One example was the Kalamazoo Handle Manufacturing Co., established in the mid-1870s by Calvin Forbes. While the factory established a profitable business making baseball bats and handles for hammers, axes, picks and other tools, it struck gold when it began manufacturing croquet mallets and balls.

The game experienced a burst of popularity in the 1870s and Forbes was unable to keep up with demand. He shipped at least one railroad carload to buyers across the country every day. In 1876, Hale Page bought the firm which became known as Page Manufacturing.

When croquet’s popularity declined, the company struggled to find a new niche. It succeeded in 1894, when it was re-organized as the Kalamazoo Sled Co. For the next 70 years, it was one of America’s major manufacturers of sleds.

Similarly, the Kalamazoo firm of Ihling Brothers & Everard won an award at the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago for its development of a tray for Duplicate Whist. Whist was a popular 19th century card game that was a precedent of modern bridge.

The tray, also known as a board, made it easier to arrange the dealt cards identically so that the teams could switch positions and re-play the hand. The trays were rapidly adopted for use in tournaments across the country and numerous references can be found about them in stories about whist tournaments in the “society” pages of national newspapers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Kalamazoo also contributed to the popularity of card games. There were two prominent manufacturers of playing cards in Kalamazoo at the start of the 20th century – the Kalamazoo Paper Box and Card Co. and the American Playing Card Co. The latter firm was organized in 1890 and eventually had factories in San Francisco and New York.

Both companies went out of business by 1920, but for more than 20 years, they made Kalamazoo a household word among card players.

Arthur Patterson created perhaps the most famous card game from Kalamazoo in 1901. Patterson was the manager of Beecher and Kymer’s bookstore on Burdick Street. In his spare time he loved to play card games.

He invented Flinch, a game that had a deck of 150 cards and could be played by two to eight players. A simple game in which players try to dispose of their cards by building on a pile in the center of the table in proper sequence from 1-15, the game quickly caught on.

In 1902, Patterson organized the Flinch Card Co. and by 1903 has sold nearly a million games. For the next three decades, it was one of America’s most popular games. In 1936, he sold the patent rights to Parker Brothers. Over a century later, the game is still popular and in production.

These examples do not include the full range of games, toys, and recreational equipment that has been manufactured in Kalamazoo.

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Exhibit bringing a bit of Motown to KalamazooRunning through Sept. 27 in the first-floor gallery, the Kalamazoo Valley

Museum’s exhibit of “Meet the Velvelettes” features costumes, memorabilia, and photographs that tell the quartet’s story as individual women, and their historical context as part of Motown’s “Hitsville U.S.A.” phenomenon that brought black music into the mainstream.

“Meet the Velvelettes” is sponsored by the KVCC Foundation and coincides with the 50th anniversary of this genre of music.

While riding a wave of popularity as the Motor City recording company’s No. 1 female singing group, the quartet followed the advice of Motown mogul Berry Gordy. “Where Did Our Love Go?,” a song ticketed to become part of The Velvelettes’ repertoire, was instead assigned to another group. Diana Ross and The Supremes never looked back.

Yet, neither has any of The Velvelettes. Two of them based in Kalamazoo followed other career paths and gave up the glitz of show business for the strong family values that shaped them.

But they have recharged their singing batteries enough to take their act to the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland and England’s distant shores.

Barbee-McNeal, raised in Flint and a pianist since the age of 9, formed a singing group with cousins and sang gigs around the community. They even cut a record.

When college called, the group broke up. She chose Western Michigan University because of the reputation of its music school. In the fall of 1962, she and new-found friends won a $25 talent contest on campus as the five-member Velvelettes -- Mildred “Milly” Gill (Arbor), a graduate of Kalamazoo Central High School, and sister Carolyn “Cal” (Street), then a student at Loy Norrix High School; friend Betty Kelley of Kalamazoo, who was destined to be part of Motown’s Martha and the Vandellas; and Barbee-McNeal’s cousin Norma in Flint.

In the audience that evening was a student who mentioned a new recording studio in Detroit might be interested in the smooth style of The Velvelettes. The student was Gordy’s nephew.

In December of 1962, the minister-father of Cal and Milly drove four-fifths of the quintet to Detroit during an ungodly snow storm. It was a cold day and a cold call. They didn’t know where the Motown studio was, and Gordy’s staff had no clue who was stopping by that gloomy Saturday.

A receptionist gave the group the cold shoulder until, walking out the door, Barbee-McNeal encountered the producer who had orchestrated her first group’s record back in Flint. Nothing like being in the right place at the right time.

The Velvelettes, the first act from outside Detroit to be signed by Motown, got into the door because somebody was coming through the door. They began crossing paths regularly with the likes of The Temptations, Smokey Robinson and The Miracles, The Four Tops, Mary Wells, Marvin Gaye, Jackie Wilson, The Supremes, and a kid named Stevie Wonder. By 1964, The Velvelettes were the typical quartet as Kelley joined Martha Reeves’ popular group.

Gordy’s operation did it all, from booking the shows to buying outfits. Very important was for his performers to pass muster with “The Charm School Lady,” Maxine Powell. As a one-woman den mother, coach, disciplinarian and chaperone, she taught

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Gordy’s “family” the social graces, how to be in show business, how to act professionally, how to sit, walk, talk and use your hands, and how to be interviewed.

None of the Kalamazoo-based Velvelettes gave up their schooling for a full shot at show business. Bertha and Milly stayed on as WMU students, and Cal completed high school. They were the only Motowners either still in college or high school.

When “Needle in a Haystack” made it to No. 13 in the nation, The Velvelettes jumped to the big time, garnering the ultimate honor — a call from Dick Clark to appear on his TV show. The quartet was also part of one of Clark’s star-studded tours that included Bobby Freeman, Johnny Tillotson, Brian Hyland, The Drifters, and Lou Christie.

With “Needle in a Haystack” doing well, the group was called into Gordy’s lush office. A composer ticketed “Where Did Our Love Go?” for the Velvelettes, but because The Supremes hadn’t gone up the ladder quite as far, Gordy asked whether the song could be given to the Ross trio. Sure, no big deal.

The focus shifted to The Supremes when the song went to No. 1, the first of five in a row for the group.

After being knee-deep in the Motown thing for nearly five years, show business and its grind started to get a little old for three members. Bertha, Milly and Norma hung up their hip-hugging costumes in 1965, while Cal, who had married one of The Temptations, stayed in the business for another three years.

The Velvelettes each went separate ways — marriage, motherhood, divorce and careers. Cal was working at The Upjohn Co., Bertha was teaching choir in the Kalamazoo Public Schools, Milly was a registered nurse in Flint, and Norma was a marketing director for a hotel in her home town.

However, on occasions, they polished up the act and performed, especially when rock ‘n’ roll’s nostalgia era arrived with the explosion of “Oldies But Goodies” radio stations.

By 1986, they were back in Detroit as part of a retro look at the legacy of Motown, singing with many of the studio’s legends at the splashy Fox Theater. A year later, they toured England with Martha and the Vandellas. The Velvelettes were part of the billing in June of 1998 when Motown brought all of the biggies back for its 40th anniversary. The museum’s new exhibition is part of the golden-anniversary celebration. Kind words for Trustee Gustas

KVCC trustee Mary Gustas and the human-service agency she heads were praised for their activities and mission in a letter to the editor of The Kalamazoo Gazette.

Writer Lupe Gonzalez stated that he has recently relocated “back to my beloved Michigan” from Texas and he praised the Comstock Community Center for the quality of the outreach services it provides.

“They work endlessly to make the center ‘a home away from home’ because they know everyone by name as well as their individual needs,” Gonzalez wrote.

“In being kind and generous to all,” he said, the center provides “a wonderful setting for social interaction, education, health awareness and wonderful guided trips.”

Warning: E-mail can be L-mail, as in libel

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Surfing the Internet and the worldwide webs of the planet can be as invigorating for the mind as riding Hawaii's Bonzai Pipeline is for the body, but there is potential for peril in what you communicate.

E-mail is publishing and broadcasting in the broadest definitions of those terms. As such, E-mail is subject to the laws of libel that restrain newspapers and television news. In other words, the E in e-mail can stand for “evidence.”

When you communicate via E-mail, it just doesn't zip out into cyber space and is lost forever. It can be captured, saved, printed, and distributed to somebody who may not like what you are communicating.

Case in point:When a surfing college professor learned via E-mail that a group of colleagues

were bound for London and were looking for reasonable housing while there, he read some of the suggestions coming in from all over the world. He E-mailed his comments, urging them not to stay at a certain hostelry for various reasons. When that hostelry read the assessment, it contacted a law firm that demanded an E-mail apology, or else.

What this all means goes back to what your parents used to advise: If you can't say something nice about somebody or something, don't say anything at all. . .especially

via E-mail. And, if you don’t want to see it in print, don’t keyboard it on to your screen. And finally. . .

You can described the following two scenarios as moral fiber, backbone, pluck, fortitude, spirit, nerve, mettle, bravery, chutzpah, courage, gumption, grit, guts – or the ultimate in sheer stupidity.

Arriving home late after a night out with the guys, a husband is met by his wife who has a broom in her hands. He asks her, “Are you still cleaning, or are you flying somewhere?”

Or, the same guy coming home late after a night out with the fellows, smelling of perfume and beer, and with lipstick on his collar. In his amorous advances, he refers to her as “Chubby.”

☻☻☻☻☻☻

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