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@PimaNews
June 3, 2009
Contents
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College Updates
- Non-Exempt Staff Development Day
- Computer Systems Unavailable
- Coming Soon: New Web Search Engine
- Caller ID Coming to PCC, June 24, 2009
- PCC to Offer Remote Access to Y Drives Soon
- Benefits
- College Plan
- Best Practices: Respiratory Care Program
- Inside Story: Community Day at Desert Vista Campus
- Upcoming Events
College Updates
Non-Exempt Staff Development Day
The Non-Exempt (hourly) Staff Development Day will be held on Friday, June 12 from 8:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Lunch will be provided.
The event is a day set aside for idea exchange, contemplation, inspiration and nourishment of body, mind and soul. This year international speaker and author, Matt Weinstein, will open the day with an inspirational discussion on innovative response to life difficulties. Other presentations include: State of the College and Higher Education, Meet and Confer Updates, Arizona State Retirement System Q&A, Accessing Employee Learning and My Mental Health at Work.
Register in ED (MyPima/@Work). Help in registration is available from any member of the Non-Exempt Professional Development Work Group: Bob Brodie, West Campus; Robert Hooker, Northwest Campus; Liz Rollins, Community Campus; Fred Duren, District Office; Ricardo Rivero, Desert Vista; Sylvia Ortega, East Campus; Mary Anne Wilson, M&S; or by contacting Professional Development.
Computer Systems Unavailable
Beginning: Friday, June 19 at 10 p.m.
Until: Saturday, June 20 at 6 a.m.
Due to a required systems upgrade the following will be unavailable during the above times:
- Faculty and Staff email
- Student email
- MyPima
- TracDat
- Campus Web Servers
- Pima Reports
- Users Home Folders (“Y” drive)
Banner will be available during this downtime; however, access to Banner services through MyPima will not be possible. Blackboard Vista will be available during this downtime. Students and faculty will need to access online courses through a special web page that will be provided in place of the usual MyPima login. Telephone registration and payment will remain available.
We regret the inconvenience. This maintenance is part of ongoing activity to continue improving the stability and reliability of services. College staff will be working as quickly as possible to perform the needed updates.
Coming Soon: New Web Search Engine
The current PCC web site search engine will be replaced by a new search engine in the near future. The new search engine, a Google Search Appliance, is fast, accurate and customizable. Its "Advanced Search" allows users to narrow their search of PCC web pages much like the familiar Google.com search site.
A team of users from across the college has just completed initial testing of the search engine and reported positive results. Additional testing and customization is scheduled before implementation.
"I think the new search engine will make it easier for students to find information. I tried several financial aid terms and quickly got good results," reported Terra Benson, Assistant Director of Financial Aid.
The existing web site search engine will be replaced by the new search engine on or before June 15.
Caller ID Coming to PCC, June 24, 2009
All College incoming and outgoing phone lines will be able to display Caller ID information starting June 24, 2009.
Beginning June 24, your phone number will display when you call anyone inside or outside of the College, including Long Distance calls. All calls into the College will display the calling party’s phone number unless they have selected to block the information.
This was made possible by the implementation of the Avaya telephone system earlier this year.
The new Caller ID will be implemented between 4:00 and 6:00 a.m. on June 24, 2009. Anyone calling into or out of the College during that time could encounter momentary problems.
Please refer all questions to 206-2718 or telephone@pima.edu.
PCC to Offer Remote Access to Y Drives Soon
District IT is pleased to announce that faculty and staff will soon have the ability to access your networked Y drive from home. This service, although not as fast as direct access, will provide access to your files from any location at anytime. Please look for future information in @PimaNews.
Benefits
Don’t forget to confirm your 2009-10 benefits elections between June 15-19. Log in to MyPima, click on the @Work tab, select “My Benefits Statement”, click on the pull-down menu and use the July 1, 2009, date. Errors must be reported by June 19 in order for corrections to be made. To make corrections, contact the Employee Services Center, pccbenefits@pima.edu or 206-4945. If you find no errors in your benefits, there is no need to take any further action.
College Plan
PCC’s office of Planning and Institutional Research is currently documenting the completion of Strategy 4.3 of the 2008-2011 College Plan. The strategy is to expand and develop community connections.
Among the many activities underway, planned or completed in furtherance of this strategy, PCC sponsors an annual mathematics competition at the Downtown Campus for high school freshmen and sophomores. As part of the event, PCC invites teams of six students to compete. About 11 to 15 high school teams participate each year.
The students also tour the campus and their teachers get a one-hour professional development session led by Pima faculty. The next competition is scheduled for Oct. 30.
Best Practices: Respiratory Care Program
PCC’s Respiratory Therapy program is training medical professionals who will be in high-demand nationwide. “The shortage of respiratory therapists is as bad as in nursing, if not worse, across the country,” says Jody Kosanke, lead faculty.
After their first semester at Pima, students apply their growing skills in clinical rotations at local medical centers. By the time they graduate, they have completed 850 hours in clinical rotations. It’s a career with a lot of variety. Graduates can work in a physician’s office, an acute-care setting or provide home care. The starting pay locally is $17 to $19 an hour in benefitted jobs. Pay is higher for those who choose to move to Phoenix or out of the state.
Inside Story: Community Day at Desert Vista
At Desert Vista Campus’s Community on Saturday, May 2, community members and College and community leaders came together to explore ways to cope during the poor economy.
At the free afternoon event, “Uniting Families in a Challenging Economy,” individuals and families got expert advice on how to avoid foreclosure, save money during a crisis and strengthen interview skills. They also received information on job training, as well as PCC admission and orientation.
Representatives from community and PCC student organizations led small group conversations, collecting stories from participants about how they are being affected by the economy. Those stories are being shared with other student leaders, community organizations, the Tucson City Council and PCC administrators to help them find ways to help the community.
“Participants seemed to come away with a feeling that they're not alone during this economic crisis, and they are not,” says Matt Matera, Student Life Coordinator at Desert Vista Campus.
Upcoming Events
- June 12: Non-Exempt Staff Development Day from 8:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. at the West Campus
- June 15-19: Confirm 2009-10 Benefits by selecting “My Benefits Statement” in the @Work tab of MyPima. Contact the Employee Services Center at pccbenefits@pima.edu or 206-4945 for questions or to make corrections
- June 19-20: Computer Downtime (MyPima, email, TracDat, campus web servers, Pima Reports, user home folders) from June 19 at 10 p.m. to June 20 at 6 a.m.
- June 29: Summer Session A classes end
- July 1: Financial Aid Application processing deadline
@PimaNews is an electronic newsletter for employees of Pima Community College. It is published by the Pima Community College Public Information Office. @PimaNews is published weekly during the semester and bi-weekly during the summer. Back issues are available at www.pima.edu/pimanews. Please send announcements and news items to pimanews@pima.edu.
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