Grapes, athletics and more!

I’ve almost wrapped-up my first two full weeks at Kirkwood and I’m left wondering where the time went!? I guess they say time flies when you’re having fun!


Kirkwood is a big place, but I’m starting to learn my way around. I found the closest Starbuck’s to my office, so if I need a warm cup of coffee I can quickly scoot over to the C-Store. I also discovered I can use my Eaglecard at vending machines! For someone who never has cash, I’m thrilled!


So what are the three most exciting, cool things I learned about Kirkwood this week? Let’s find out!


#1 Kirkwood Eagles Head to Nationals!



Did you know the Men’s Basketball team made it to Nationals?! The Eagles head to Danville, Illinois March 18-22 to take a shot at the National title, which they previously won in 1998. For more information, click HERE.


Good luck at Nationals and GO EAGLES!


On another athletics note, I made my first trip over to Johnson Hall and was happy to meet Kirkwood’s Athletic Director and Men’s Basketball Coach, Doug Wagemester. I also met our Head Volleyball Coach, Jill Williams. Both are enthusiastic people who I’m looking forward to working with in the future. I'm also looking forward to my first home Kirkwood sporting event...be looking for a report soon!

http://www.kirkwood.edu/athletics



#2 Professional Development Perks



Last Friday I was able to take part in a Website Manager 3.0 training course facilitated by Bonnie Cackoski. The course was part of Kirkwood's Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (KCELT).


KCELT offers a wide variety of professional development opportunities for faculty, staff and administrators. You can take technology training courses, register for webinars and audio conferences, grow professionally through interactive skills presentations and much more.


Bonnie Cackoski did a great job teaching us Website Manager 3.0. She’s upbeat and enthusiastic, plus she brings chocolate! If you have a session with Bonnie, she won’t disappoint.

http://www.kirkwood.edu/kcelt




#3 Coming Soon…Kirkwood Wine!






Possibly one of the most surprising things I've learned about Kirkwood so far is that we have a college vineyard! Most people, like me, don't think of Iowa when it comes to wine. What's incredibly cool is that Kirkwood could help change that!

Tom Moore, Kirkwood’s viticulture technician, has planted 15 kinds of grapes on about two and a half acres on the southeast side of campus. Each of these varieties could potentially yield about 75 gallons of finished wine.

In case you're wondering, viticulture is the art of growing grapes and enology is the art of making wine from those grapes.

Still in the early stages, Kirkwood will continue this exciting project. I hope to have more updates for you soon!

For an article on Kirkwood's vineyard, click HERE.

A week full of new discoveries!

First, let me introduce myself, I'm Haley Beyer and have recently been hired as a Marketing Services Coordinator in the Marketing Services department. Before joining the team at Kirkwood I received a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Journalism from the University of Iowa in 2004, then worked as a Marketing Coordinator at The Gazette for three years.

As you can see from the subject of this blog I'll be updating you once a week on all the cool, exciting and surprising things I've experienced while getting my feet wet at Kirkwood. I've already been surprised by all the many different things Kirkwood has to offer its students and staff--and I've only been here a week!

So, what has been surprising, exciting or just plain cool so far? I'm glad you asked!

1) The size of Kirkwood Community College

• Before I started at Kirkwood, I took a drive around the main campus in Cedar Rapids. As I drove I realized I was out in the corn fields and still seeing Kirkwood buildings such as the Equestrian Center and the Tippie Beef Education Center.
  
• Did you know the main campus alone covers 675 acres? That's more than a square mile!


• Kirkwood serves seven counties (Benton, Cedar, Iowa, Johnson, Jones, Linn, and Washington).
  
• The sheer size and hard work of faculty and staff of Kirkwood allow it to serve over 15,000 in college courses and 65,000 in continuing education. That's amazing!

http://www.kirkwood.edu/explore

2) Trees...and lots of them!

• I heard a cool fact that Kirkwood has every tree species native to Iowa on its main campus, so I decided to investigate further!


• According to our resident Horticulture expert, Paul Saladin, there are three plant identification classes that students are required to take to earn their AAS degree in Landscape, Nursery and Garden Center Management. Each of these three courses includes a lab component that utilizes plants growing on Kirkwood campus!


• The first class is called Woody Plant Materials and it covers about 90 trees native to the Midwest. That's a whole lot of trees!


• The second class is called Ornamental Plant Materials. It covers about 90, non-native, plants that are used in the landscaping industry. It's amazing to think that students can actually study these non-native plants right here on campus!


• The third class is called Herbaceous Plant Materials and it covers annuals and herbaceous, perennial plants.


• I can't think of a better way for students to study plants than to have them right outside their classrooms!

http://www.kirkwood.edu/agrisciences

3) The Class Act Restaurant

• Not only is it cool that you can have a high-end meal for very little money, but it's literally steps away from where you study or work!


• Prices range from a cup of soup for $2, a Panini for $5 to a fabulous Grilled Beef Tenderloin entree for only $7.50!


• The most exciting part about The Class Act restaurant is the fact that the Culinary Arts students are getting practical, real-world experience at their craft. Students prepare and serve the meals in preparation for their future careers--how cool is that?


• The Class Act is open Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. in the Atrium of the Mansfield Center.

http://www.kirkwood.edu/classact