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April 2023

News @ Snow News @ Snow

Institutional Update

Office of the President

President McIff 

Here we are! As I reflect on the past month, I am filled with gratitude, excitement, and quite a bit of relief! I am grateful for the search committee and all of their work, I’m grateful for our state board members and their confidence, and I’m especially grateful for all of you.

I believe what makes Snow College extraordinary is the PEOPLE of Snow College, and I am excited about our future. We can be proud of so much good work that is happening across campus, and together we will continue the momentum. This search process has caused me to reflect on my college experience and the mentors I have had throughout my life. I’m grateful to them, and I recognize that you are doing the same for our students. Because of you, our students will remember their time here with fondness and will have a lifelong connection. These feelings of fondness and connectedness are one of the reasons I love commencement so much – we get to celebrate our students’ successes and support them as they embark on their next steps.

After commencement, we want to celebrate you! You are invited to an employee appreciation lunch on May 8 (Ephraim) or May 9 (Richfield), where the only purpose is to thank you and provide an opportunity to socialize with each other. The Snow Fit Committee is organizing roller skating and other games, again with the hopes that we can all gather and enjoy each other’s company. Later in the week, the Staff Association and Academic Affairs Office have other activities planned, and I know you will find great value in the programming. This is one step in our plan to support employee engagement, leadership, and professional development. We want you to enjoy what you do, feel valued, and have the training needed to be successful in your position. Please join us!

I have every confidence that Snow College can reach greater heights in student and employee success, access, opportunity, and engagement. We can serve our community partners in ways never seen before. The Snow College name and unique value proposition will be elevated and strategically promoted so more students can join the Badger family. I hope you’ll join me as we build on the tradition of excellence of those who came before us. There is a survey in each newsletter asking for your input, and I welcome your feedback in the suggestion box. I believe in continuous improvement, and I am committed to the success of every student and employee at Snow College. We are truly better together and our strength is in our unity. I look forward to seeing you at commencement!

Stacee

Technical Education and Industry Connections

Technical Education and Industry Connections

The US Department of Education designates February as Career and Technical Education month as a public awareness campaign to celebrate and focus on the CTE achievements across the country. To bookend CTE Month Snow College Convocation featured Rush Cane of Kane Industries. Rush was raised in Delta, learned welding at Delta Tech, and was a welding professional on the “Diesel Brothers” reality TV series. He is CEO of Kane Industries which distributes welding gear and accessories. Rush’s entrepreneurial story is inspiring for any Tech Ed student.

Rush Cane
Rush Cane's welding helmet

Snow’s Construction Management program is also making an impact. This year CM faculty Ivan Star, David Barker, and Robert Tubman at the Central Utah Correctional Facility joined with “The Other Side Village” a tiny home project to help with Salt Lake’s homeless crisis. Construction Management students at Ephraim and CUCF will finish two 400 sq. ft tiny homes which will be shipped to “The Other Side Village” at the end of the school year. CM faculty said “we are excited to be part of this project, it provides students with experience in all phases of building construction and contributes to meeting a critical community need and we are excited to continue this partnership.”

Construction Management crew building a tiny home
Construction Management tiny home
Academic Affairs

Academic Affairs

Organizations dedicated to improvement provide professional development opportunities to their people so that individuals, as well as the organization, are strengthened. Here is a small sampling of ways our institution has been strengthened by professional development:

  • Jon Ostler learned ways in which libraries could support OER efforts of the institution and has subsequently partnered with faculty to save students thousands of dollars.
  • Heidi Johnson, because of recent leadership opportunities, has come to understand more fully the effects that she can have on student success in ways other than teaching.
  • Brad Taggart was introduced to techniques of a renowned sculptor that improved his own sculpting work, which will directly impact his students.
  • David Rodriguez implemented communication strategies presented at a faculty development opportunity into an online course he was teaching; he was subsequently given a teaching award for that very course, which led to his hire at Snow.
  • Fernando Montano attended a conference with a focus on belonging, and it enhanced his own knowledge so he could be more effective in helping students succeed.
  • Lindsay Chaney asserts that every conference attendance helps her appreciate and value working at Snow; she returns with tips to improve her own teaching, like strategies for equity minded assignment creation.
  • Amy Noblett returned excited about how a curriculum software package will improve work flow and reduce workload for faculty and staff.

Auxiliary Services

Delicious desserts made by Annette's Food Services team

We have had a great month in Auxiliary Services! The Campus Stores on both campuses continue to serve us with a collection of gear for all Badgers. The weekly special provides opportunities for employees to wear our school colors! Housing has moved offices to the second floor of the GSC and are already filling beds for fall semester! Soon we will have Richfield housing which they are excited to provide support for our students on the Richfield Campus. Food services has had a very good year and continue to provide more options for students, faculty and staff. They are gearing up for FSY which will be on campus beginning the last Monday of May and going thru the first Saturday of August. We are planning on over 12,000 potential students visiting Campus this summer. Thanks to all for your support of Auxiliary Services.

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Who's New?

We welcome the following individuals to the Snow College Team:

Bryan Moulton Student Counseling Center Administrator
Ashley Jensen Part-Time Administrative Assistant for Health Professions
Alesha Hill Part-Time Custodian for Campus Housing
Viki Bailey Part-Time Nursing Instructor
Audrey Sanders Part-Time Records Assistant
Randolf Scott Assistant Soccer Coach
Jeffrey Lewis Assistant Soccer Coach

In last month's newsletter, we misspelled one of our new employees' names. We apologize for the oversight. Our new Instructor and Program Specialist is Mandie Valenzuela. Welcome, Mandie!

Richfield Update

Nathan Beck dressed as a leprechaun for Spring Expo

While the Spring Expo started as a concept to showcase Snow College programs, the idea quickly blossomed with support from other community partners; Sevier County, Richfield City, and the Richfield Area Chamber. Over 20 college programs from both campuses and 50 vendors participated in this year’s event. Hundreds of community members enjoyed live music, delicious food, and hands-on activities for all ages Friday March 17th in the Sevier Valley Center.

“The purpose of this event is to bring a lot stronger unity from the community,” Brandon Hawkins, Director of Student Services and Success said. “We wanted to make this a really big whole community event. Something that was really fun along with showcasing Snow College. It’s a gem. If people don’t know about it, we want them to know about it.”

Kudos to the entire planning committee, volunteers, and attendees across both campuses that made this event a success. Thank you and stay tuned for next year. You won’t want to miss it!

Emergency medical info is shared with attendees of the Spring Expo

By The Numbers

Snow College has more than 700 campus jobs for students
87% retention rate for students with on-campus jobs