ImprintS p r i n g 2 0 1 1

Johnson County Community College

A GlobalCitizen

4The Internationalization of JCCCToday, JCCC’s International Educationencompasses college activities fromcredit and continuing education classesto the performing and visual arts.

6Easley looks at howimages makeargumentsTerri Easley, associate professor, speechand debate, will present two lectureson visual rhetoric in April as part of theJCCC College Scholars program. Herresearch has contributed scholarlyknowledge to the topic.

JCCC College Scholar

Women’s History Month

Carolyn Kadel is professor and directorof International Education, a positionshe has held since 1985.

“Carolyn is deeply committed tointernational education, personally andprofessionally,” said Bob Perry,professor emeritus, sociology.

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7Free College Day is April 30, 2011Johnson County CommunityCollege had its first FreeCollege Day in 2009 as partof its 40th anniversarycelebration. It was such asuccess that it will beoffered again on Saturday,April 30.

ImprintImprint at JCCC is published five times a year by Johnson County Community College, 12345 College Blvd., Overland Park, KS 66210-1299; 913-469-8500, fax 913-469-2559. Imprint at JCCC is produced by College Information and Publications and the Office of Document Services. Imprint is located online at http://www.jccc.edu/Imprint.Editor: Peggy Graham • Photographer: Bret Gustafson • Designer: Randy BreedenWhen planning your estate, remember Johnson County Community College. For more information, call the JCCC Foundation at 913-469-3835.

Spring 2011 | Imprint

Contents

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8Scholars examine ‘360 Degrees ofWomen’s Lives’JCCC is hosting a series of events toexamine and untangle the influences ofhow women are perceived andrepresented in the world.

Community Event

Faculty/Staff

12Kansas writers meet at JCCCDr. Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg, PoetLaureate of Kansas, will speak at 4p.m., Saturday, April 16, in the M.R. andEvelyn Hudson Auditorium of theNerman Museum of Contemporary Art.

15April showers bringrain barrelsMichael Rea, JCCC’s recyclingcoordinator, will teach participants howto construct and install a 55-gallon rainbarrel with materials donated by Coca-Cola on Saturday, April 30.

AQIP reaffirmationIn January, Johnson County CommunityCollege received reaffirmation of itsaccreditation by the Academic QualityImprovement Program, a programdeveloped by the Higher LearningCommission of the North CentralAssociation of Colleges and Schools toprovide colleges and universities with aprocess for continuing accreditation.

Back CoverContinuing Education

14Contest is music to his earsAbel Ullón’s musical career has takenoff with talent, persistence and Englishskills learned at JCCC.

Student

Notice of Nondiscrimination – Johnson County Community College does not discriminate on the basis of sex, race, color, national origin, disability, age, religion, marital status, veteran’s status,sexual orientation or other factors that cannot be lawfully considered in its programs and activities as required by all applicable laws and regulations. Inquiries concerning the college’s compliancewith its nondiscrimination policies may be referred to the Dean of Student Services or Director of Human Resources, Johnson County Community College, 12345 College Blvd., Overland Park, KS66210, 913-469-8500; or to Office for Civil Rights, 8930 Ward Parkway, Suite 2037, Kansas City, MO 64114, 816-268-0550.

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KSI/English department

Faculty

10Center for AmericanIndian Studies focuseson health, educationWhen the American Indian HealthResearch and Education Alliance heldits fourth annual health and wellnesspow wow at JCCC in May 2010, morethan 815 people participated in cancer,cholesterol, diabetes, blood pressure,vision and lung screenings.

13Superheroteaches atJCCCBehind the mild-mannered demeanor ofDr. Dennis Bishop is aman who knows everydetail of crime inGotham City, the darkside of Batman and themaniacal killings ofThe Joker.

Carolyn Kadel is seen here with Dr. Charles Morrison, president of the East-West Center, at a conference in Kansas City in 2004.

The Internationalization of JCCC

Carolyn Kadel, professor/director ofInternational Education, started at JCCC,

teaching what was then called Social Sciences I and II.

“In 1975, it was still possible to consider yourself aneducated person or prepare for a career withoutunderstanding other cultures,” Kadel said. “Today, it’simpossible. Our students may end up working in China, buteven if they work on College Boulevard, they need tounderstand people from other countries.”

Kadel assumed the role of director of InternationalEducation in 1985. She credits faculty and administrators forthe support of International Education from its beginning in1980, the result of a grant to expand international classcontent awarded to JCCC under then-president Dr. JohnCleek, to the present.

Today, JCCC’s International Education encompasses collegeactivities from credit and continuing education classes to theperforming and visual arts. JCCC teaches 70 sections of eightforeign languages each semester and at least 70 courses withinternational content spanning multiple disciplines. Studentshave the opportunity to study for a semester in one of 31countries. Shorter overseas summer and intersessionprograms are offered — nine opportunities in 2010-2011.

“Studying abroad is important on so many levels — aphilosophical/educational level and a practical level,” Kadelsaid. “Certainly in terms of broadening their perspective on

the world in which they live and issues that are going to beimportant during their lifetime there is nothing for studentsthat beats studying abroad.”

JCCC’s six partner colleges from around the world sendinternational faculty to the campus and, in turn, JCCC’sfaculty learn abroad. JCCC sends 30 faculty members abroadeach year for professional exchanges, workshops andinstitutes.

“We encourage people to participate in staff developmentwith the end product being curriculum development,” Kadelsaid.

JCCC is also one of 19 U.S. regional centers for the AsianStudies Development Program of the East-West Center at theUniversity of Hawaii and a member of the Global CollegeNetwork, Institute of International Education and the CollegeConsortium for International Studies. Kadel serves asdirector of the JCCC Regional ASDP.

JCCC was honored in November by the 2010 HigherEducation Task Force and U.S. Center for Citizen Diplomacyfor its Las Pintas International Service-Learning Project.Begun in 1998, the project has assisted the people of LasPintas with health care, dental care, after-school programs,training of local home-health promoters, family counseling,financial support for children to attend grades K-12 andcommunity education.

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In 1975,

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Locally, JCCC international studentsserve K-12 schools by speaking abouttheir home countries as part of theInternational Classroom PartnershipProgram.

The International Education programhas received many significant grants.Most notable recent grants include theTitle VI-A Islamic Studies grant, whichhas resulted in new language classes inArabic and Hebrew, History of theMiddle East, Islam: Religion andCivilization, History of India andMiddle East and South Asian contentadded to classes from InternationalBusiness to Chinese Society: Past andPresent. A Title VI-A Asian Studies grantwas recently awarded to the East-WestCenter at the University of Hawaii todevelop Chinese studies at six collegesacross the U.S., including JCCC.

The addition of the annual GreaterKansas City Japan Festival in 2004 hashelped market JCCC’s Japanese classes,been an inspiration for the Japanesegarden, and served as an impetus forother international celebrations nowheld at JCCC — India Nite, ChineseNew Year and Korean ThanksgivingDay Cultural Festival.

Being at a community college in themiddle of the U.S. has never been alimiting factor for JCCC’s InternationalEducation.

“Faculty and staff come from strongacademic backgrounds and recognizehow important study of languages,culture and history are,” Kadel said.

Kadel modestly refuses recognition forwhat the ASPD calls a “well-developedinternational program,” but colleaguesput the credit squarely on hershoulders.

“Carolyn is deeply committed tointernational education, bothpersonally and professionally,” saidBob Perry, professor emeritus,sociology. “In her dedication, no task istoo small and few are too big. She’llmeet someone at the airport, buygroceries for a newly arrivinginternational student, pin up a posteror write a federal grant. Carolyn beganthe international service project to Las

Pintas in Mexico in 1998. It is nowcoming up on its 13th year. Followinga brief meeting with several collegeteachers from China back in 1987,Carolyn worked with NorthwesternPolytechnical University, Xi’an, to craftan exchange agreement. That exchangeis still in place 22 years later. Carolynsucceeded in writing a Title VI grant todevelop curricula in the areas ofIslamic history and cultures, and theresults have been significantinternationalization of courses at JCCC.Also, Carolyn worked tirelessly toestablish JCCC as a regional center forthe Asian Studies DevelopmentProgram of the East-West Center inHawaii. She genuinely enjoys theprocess of encouraging and supportingothers in their international educationendeavor.”

“Carolyn continues to have a direct rolein changing the lives of countlessnumbers of people from the college and from across the globe through the college’s International Educationprogram,” said JCCC counselor JeffAnderson, a leader in the Las Pintasproject. “The change I’m speaking ofhere is transformative change — the typeof change that forever alters the way yousee yourself and the world around you.This change is quite powerful, and it’ssomething you carry with you all thedays of your life. Carolyn has been anagent of transformative change. That’sher contribution, and that will be herlegacy.”

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Milestones for the InternationalEducation Program1980 $50,000 grant to establish

International Education program,U.S. Department of Education

1980 First International Club1981 First visiting scholar from Taiwan1988 First Chinese exchange 1988 First semester study abroad to

Ecuador, Ireland and England1993 First Russian exchange begins1998 Las Pintas Service-Learning

project begins2000 Intercultural Semester begins2000 ACIIE International/Intercultural

Achievement Award2001 Asian Studies Development

Program Regional Center2002 First Dutch exchange for faculty

and staff2004 Greater Kansas City Japan

Festival2006-09Title VI grant — Islamic Studies,

awarded directly to JCCC fromU.S. Department of Education

2011 Title VI — Asian studies,awarded to East-West Center atthe University of Hawaii fromU.S. Department of Education

Kadel brings in international speakers,including Dr. Lawrence Korb, expert onterrorism, who spoke at JCCC as part of a program co-sponsored by theInternational Relations Council of GreaterKansas City.

Community College knows TerriEasley, associate professor,

speech and debate, as the tireless coach who devotes her freetime and weekends to practicing with the JCCC debate team,winner of the 2010 Community College National DebateChampionship and ranked No. 1 among community collegesso far this year. Equally impressive, Easley has a reputation asa scholar in visual rhetoric, presenting at national conferences.

Close to home, Easley will present two lectures on visualrhetoric in April as part of the JCCC College Scholarsprogram. Her interest in the power of images tocommunicate complex messages began during her years ingraduate school at Baylor University, when visual rhetoricwas a fairly new concept in the field of communicationstudies. Easley has continued to contribute scholarlyknowledge to the topic through her research looking at thespecific aspects of how images make arguments.

“Since images are generally emotionally charged objects, it isimportant that we assess how those images can be evaluatedas effective persuasive tools,” Easley said. “Because imagesplay a dominant role in our lives, it is important that weunderstand how images play into the process of persuasion.”

Easley will deliver two lectures on the topic that are free andopen to the public.

• The Visual as Argument: An Analysis of Images as Tools ofPersuasion will be from 7-8 p.m. Wednesday, April 13, in theM.R. and Evelyn Hudson Auditorium of the Nerman Museum ofContemporary Art. A reception precedes the event at 6:30 p.m.in the Atrium.

In this presentation, Easley explores the ways images shapeand communicate persuasive messages. Instead of just actingemotionally upon viewing images, Easley encourages peopleto learn the tools to evaluate visual images and becomebetter consumers of media.

• Two Steps Forward, One Step Back: Visual Representationsof Women in American Politics will be from 11 a.m.-noon

Thursday, April 14, in the Hudson Auditorium.

As women have stepped onto the stage of American politics,images have been crucial to defining their role in the politicalsphere. In this presentation, Easley discusses the tactics andimpacts of the current state of the visual representations ofwomen in the image-oriented political arena.

As a bonus to faculty and staff, Easley will present a seminar,Visual Imagery and Historical Parallelism: The GenocideAwareness Project and the Evolution of Argumentation in theAbortion Controversy.

In this seminar Easley examines images used by the GAPpro-life movement traveling to universities throughout thecountry. Displays of images of aborted fetuses juxtaposedwith genocidal visuals — the Holocaust, African Americanskilled in racist lynchings and the extermination of NativeAmericans by the U.S. Army — strive to draw historicalparallels between these events. Easley’s primary researchinterest for her master’s thesis was the use of images on bothsides of the abortion controversy.

Easley has a bachelor’s degree in literary studies from theUniversity of Texas at Dallas and a master’s degree incommunications from Baylor University. Easley has used herresearch to establish an important place for herself in thediscourse of communication. She has had two presentationsaccepted at the National Communication AssociationNational Conference, both of which focus on visual rhetoric.She serves on the editorial board for ContemporaryArgumentation and Debate: The Journal of the CrossExamination Debate Association.

For more information about the JCCC College Scholarsprogram, contact Karen Martley, director, Staff andOrganizational Development, 913-469-8500, ext. 3467.

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Johnson County

JCCC College Scholar

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Easley looksat howimages makearguments

Terri Easley

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CommunityCollege

offered its first Free College Day in2009 as part of its 40th anniversarycelebration. It was such a success thenthat we’re doing it again – this time onSaturday, April 30.

Free College Day is a great way forJCCC to give back to the community,bring new people to campus and showoff what we have. On Free College Dayin 2009 the college welcomed between1,500 and 2,000 people to campus.Those participants then spent the nextweek telling staff how much theyenjoyed the day, how much theylearned, how fine the teachers wereand asking how they could sign up fora class. If the event is just as popular in2011, then the college will make it aregular event every other year.  

To date college faculty and staff havevolunteered to teach more than 220classes, ranging from the arts toscience. Some of the classes to beoffered are Personal Computer Safetyand Privacy, Financing a CollegeEducation, Careers: Women inTransition, Using Spanish in aRestaurant, Your Green Healthy Home,Writing about the Self, FreshHomemade European Croissants, The

History of Rock ‘n’ Roll, InvestigatingParanormal Phenomena and Dinnerwith the March Family.

The 45-minute classes will be offered at1, 2 and 3 p.m. across the collegecampus. In addition, participants canenjoy live entertainment that afternoonin the college’s performing arts spaces.And – as the name says – everything isfree.

In addition, from 11 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.that same day, the college’s annualCareer and Technical Expo will takeplace in the lobby of the CarlsenCenter. Junior high and high schoolstudents and their families are invitedto visit with representatives from JCCC’smore than 50 career and technicalpreparation programs, ranging fromautomotive technology to veterinarytechnology, to learn more about joboutlook, salary potential, and trainingand education requirements.

More information on Free College Dayis available atwww.jccc.edu/freecollegeday or bycontacting Julie Haas, associate vicepresident, Marketing Communications,jhaas@jccc.edu, 913-469-3120.Registration begins March 7. For moreinformation on the Career and

Technical Expo, contact Minnie Adams,director, Career Pathways andCooperative Programs,madams52@jccc.edu, 913-469-8500, ext. 4170.

Story by Julie Haas 

Friends Brandy Veatch (left) and Ginny Madden found themselves in “stitches” in the Free College Day knitting class in 2009.

Community Event

Free College Day is April 30, 2011

David Kriegh, landscape horticulturist,JCCC, is seen here teaching a kayakingclass in 2009.

Johnson County

a series of events to examineand untangle the influences of

how women are perceived and represented in the globalworld. The series, 360 Degrees of Women’s Lives: AcrossHistory, Comparative Culture, the Arts, Media, Ethics and thePersonal is scheduled throughout Women’s History Month inMarch and culminates in a daylong conference on eatingdisorders May 13. Events will feature nationally recognizedleaders and local experts.

“These events will look at the symbols that influence thepublic and private self and particularly how body imageinfluences self-image and control,” said Toby Klinger,professor, psychology/women and gender studies, aprincipal organizer of the series.

Events are free and open to the public, except for the May 13 conference.

March 1• Darryl Roberts, executive producer, America theBeautiful, 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. in Craig Community Auditorium,and 7-8:30 p.m. in the M.R. and Evelyn Hudson Auditoriumof the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art. A receptionprecedes the evening event at 6 p.m. in the Regnier CenterAtrium.

America the Beautiful (2008) is a documentary about themedia’s definition and depiction of beauty. Roberts, writerand director of the film, examines the fallouts for women inthe documentary. He will be at JCCC for the screeningfollowed by Q&A.

By following a 12-year-old model for two years andinterviewing 200 women, Roberts incorporates elements ofmedia, fashion and advertising in the documentary to showtall, skinny and blonde, as the beauty ideal, is not only anillusion, but one falsely sought after by most of thesewomen.

The documentary is not only for women. This obsession andconsequences are gender free and affect all relationships.

March 8 • Susan Bordo, internationally known cultural feministscholar and author of the Pulitzer Prize-nominated bookUnbearable Weight: Feminism, Western Culture and the Body(1992, 2004) and a new book The Creation of Anne Boleyn(publication summer 2011), will be at JCCC for severalevents. Bordo, who holds the Otis A. Singletary Chair ofHumanities, the University of Kentucky, is a philosopherwho deals with the representation of the female body inmarketing and advertising.

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JCCC is hosting

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March — Women’s History Month

Philosopher and author Susan Bordo will talk about body imagesand Anne Boleyn during Women’s History Month.

Scholarsexamine ‘360Degrees ofWomen’sLives’

• International Women’s Day 2 p.m.Craig Community Auditorium

Round table: Susan Bordo, LindaRodriguez and Arzie Umali:moderators Miguel Morales, JCCC staffand contributor to the KC LatinoWriters Collective, and StephanieSabato, professor, graphic design,JCCC.

Rodriguez has published Heart’sMigration (Tia Chucha Press), recentlyawarded the 2010 Thorpe Menn Awardfor Literary Excellence, and The “IDon’t Know How to Cook” Book:Mexican (Adams Media). Umali,assistant director, UMKC Women’sCenter, is a painter and graphic artist. A theme for 2011 InternationalWomen’s Day is to gather womenwriters and artists to discuss theirworks and the influence their creativeand scholarly works have onaddressing issues related to theperceptions of women historically,

culturally and globally. Q&A will followthe presentation.

• Celebration of Bordo’s The Creationof Anne Boleyn at 7 p.m. in the HudsonAuditorium. Reception 6-7 p.m. in theAtrium.

Bordo presents from her forthcomingbook, The Creation of Anne Boleyn, thethesis that we know very little aboutAnne Boleyn. Much of what we thinkwe know is mythology, built up overthe centuries by changingpolitical/religious agendas and factions,gender ideology and, more recently,the commercial interests of pop culture.

March 9• Brown bag lunch with Bordo, noon-2 p.m. in the Capitol FederalConference Center (drinks and dessertsprovided)

During a casual lunch withBordo, faculty, staff and students willexchange ideas on the ethical issues

raised by popular media images andrepresentations of the body. Along withBordo, JCCC’s philosophy departmentwill guide the discussions.

• Beyond ‘Eating Disorders’: Why WeHave to Re-Think Everything WeThought We Knew, 7 p.m. in theHudson Auditorium. Reception 6-7 p.m. in the Atrium.

Bordo’s Unbearable Weight shifted theorigins of eating disorders fromindividual maladies to the impact ofpopular culture. Bordo’s presentationwill examine how eating and bodyimage problems belong squarely in thecontext of runaway consumer cultureand the disorders that it creates (fromfiscal to physical).

March 30• Clinical psychologist Dr. MichelleMicsko and registered dietitianKathi Bjerg, both from InsightCounseling, will look at the continuumof normal to abnormal eating duringtheir presentation, Is It Healthy or Is Itan Eating Disorder?, 11 a.m.-noon inCarlsen Center 211.

Their lecture looks at the enigma ofeating disorders. An overview of thoseat risk, the recovery path, andprevention strategies will be outlined.

May 13• Eating Disorders: Beyond Diagnosisand Treatment, 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. in theCapitol Federal Conference Center ofthe Regnier Center.

The incidence of eating disorders is onthe rise, and it’s predicted that thistrend will continue. This conferencewill explore issues of parenting andfamily systems, prevention andintervention in schools, and howdieting is related to the development ofeating disorders. Recognized expertswill present case examples. Cost is $15for the general public, $88 forcontinuing education credit.

For more information about 360Degrees of Women’s Lives, contactKlinger at 913-469-8500, ext. 4173, or e-mail tklinger@jccc.edu.

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The changing representations of Anne Boleyn — from martyr to victim to viral Anne —will be a featured topic in 360 Degrees of Women’s Lives.

Indian Health Researchand Education Alliance

held its fourth annual health and wellness pow wow at JCCCin May 2010, more than 815 people participated in cancer,cholesterol, diabetes, blood pressure, vision and lungscreenings. More than 100 people were determined torequire medical interventions, including one surgeryperformed within a week.

“The Native community is the most underserved populationin the United States as far as health care,” said Dr. SeanDaley, associate professor, anthropology and director ofJCCC’s Center for American Indian Studies.

For 2011, AIHREA has scheduled a two-day pow wow May 6-7 in JCCC’s GYM that includes arts, crafts, dance anddrum competitions, healthy food and health screenings.

“To our knowledge, this is the largest pow wow and healthfair in the country,” said Ed Smith, research projectcoordinator, AIHREA.

The Center for American Indian Studies at JCCC, located onthe second floor of the Carlsen Center, is home to AIHREAand a staff of five — Daley; Smith; Sonya Ortiz, smokingcessation facilitator; and Maggie Davis and Renalda Yazzie-Smith, research assistants.

AIHREA is dedicated to the health and education of Nativepeoples and communities throughout the United States withthree locations — JCCC, the University of Kansas MedicalCenter and the Four Winds Native Center in Lawrence.AIHREA is funded by federal grants, most recently theNational Institutes of Health’s National Institute on MinorityHealth and Health Disparities grant awarded in 2010, and in-kind services from KUMC and JCCC.

The arching AIHREA goal is to ascertain and address thehealth needs of American Indians, especially targetingsmoking cessation through the All Nations Breath of Lifesmoking cessation program and prevention of diabetes,obesity, heart disease, cancer and asthma.

“In our pilot study, we had a smoking quit-rate of 25 percentat six months,” Daley said. “Most national programs feelsuccessful with an 8 percent quit-rate.”

Daley attributes the success of the All Nations Breath of Lifeprogram to its differentiation of tobacco’s ceremonial andspiritual use versus recreational use. First targeted to adults,18 and older, the program is now working with Native youthon smoking prevention.

JCCC’s Center for American Indian Studies is working on abridge program that will mentor Native high school studentsstarting their junior year in order to prepare them for JCCC

When the American

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Faculty/Staff

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Center for AmericanIndian Studies focuseson health, educationEd Smith, research project coordinator, AIHREA; Renalda Yazzie-Smith, research assistant; Dr. Sean Daley, director; Maggie Davis,research assistant; and (not pictured) Sonya Ortiz, smoking cessation facilitator, are JCCC’s Center for American Indian Studies staff.

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and then toward four-year institutions.KUMC will provide peer tutoring andmentoring for students seekinggraduate degrees in the healthprofessions. The Center has agreementswith several high schools in Kansasand western Missouri to help Nativestudents enter the educational pipeline.

In 2010, AIHREA offered sevenundergraduate scholarships toinstitutions across the United States andthree graduate scholarships to conductcancer research at KUMC inpartnership with the Susan G. Komenfor the Cure. Two AIHREA staff fromKUMC come to JCCC one day a weekas part of the program.

AIHREA offers summer internships forstudents like Davis, who attended theKickapoo pow wow in Horton, Kan.,completing health surveys with theNative population.

Service-learning students at JCCC haveworked with AIHREA to complete avideo showing three tribal membersdiscussing cultural use of tobacco andcreated a cookbook for diabetics,aimed at the Native population.

Smith, who is working on a master’sdegree at KU with a focus on culturalpreservation, is putting together ayouth culture camp, training Nativecollege students in traditional AmericanIndian skills like bow and arrowmaking, quill work, herbal traditionand flint knapping. The college

students would, in turn, teach the skillsto younger students.

“We want to instill the idea thatknowledge is to be passed on,” Daleysaid.

The Center is also looking at creating aCD collection of tribal languages, manydocumented as endangered.

Currently JCCC offers Native Americansand American Indian ArtisticTradition. Daley is working with theNative community, as well as JCCCfaculty, to develop a couple of newcourses and eventually would like todevelop an interdisciplinary program inAmerican Indian Studies.

“AIHREA is addressing needs that werebrought to us by the Nativecommunity,” Daley said. “Because theIndian community has shared theirtraditions with us, we have anobligation to return that gift. AIHREA isbased on a reciprocal relationship. Tome as an anthropologist in the 21stcentury, that’s the way it should be.”

A bookshelf in the Center for American Indian Studies.

Dr. Sean Daley talks about how the IndianHealth Service is underfunded at about 50percent of its need.

Ed Smith says Native Americanstraditionally balance mental, physical,spiritual and emotional health.

the PoetLaureate of

Kansas 2009-2011, has been invited to speak at 4 p.m.,Saturday, April 16, in the M.R. and Evelyn HudsonAuditorium of the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art. A reception follows her presentation in the Atrium of theRegnier Center. Mirriam-Goldberg will give a poetry readingwith a focus on Kansas. The event is free and open to thepublic.

Mirriam-Goldberg received her PhD in English and master’sdegree in creative writing, both from the University ofKansas, and a bachelor’s degree in history, University ofMissouri. As founder of Transformative Language Arts atGoddard College, she values social and personaltransformation through the spoken, written and sung word.She is the author of 10 books including her most recentLanded (poetry, Mammoth Publications), The Sky Begins AtYour Feet (a memoir on cancer, community and ecology, IceCube Press) and the award-winning Write Where You Are.She is editor of The Power of Words: A TransformativeLanguage Arts Reader, and her poetry and prose have beenpublished in more than 50 literary journals and anthologies.

Her project as poet laureate is Poetry Across Kansas —Reading and Writing Our Way Home, intended to strengthenthe presence of poetry in Kansas, build literary communitiesstatewide and enhance Kansans’ sense of place throughpoetry.

Mirriam-Goldberg’s presentation is a capstone to an all-dayKansas Writers Symposium, sponsored by JCCC’s KansasStudies Institute and English department. The goal is tofacilitate a gathering of writers from diverse disciplineswhose work centers on Kansas as a “place.” The invitation-only event has a limit of 20 writers who will submit about

3,000 words of a published work in advance. The writerswill read each other’s works before the symposium. Duringmorning and early afternoon sessions, writers will brieflypresent their works and participate in large- and small-groupsessions.

“Our intention is to bring these writers together to celebratethe diverse ways they address the Kansas experience and toembrace the commonalities of their work,” said ThomasReynolds, associate professor, English, who will bepresenting from his poetry book, Ghost Town Almanac, atthe symposium.

Invited writers include historians, fiction writers, poets,essayists and scientists.

“I hope the writers can sit down and share ideas withpeople approaching the same subject they are,” said DavidDavis, chair/professor, English. “Writing can be an isolatingjob, and that’s why writers symposiums are so popular. Ifind the symposium an exciting idea. It’s something thecollege hasn’t done before.”

After a number of public lectures and a film sponsored byKSI during the last year and a half, Dr. James Leiker, director,KSI, says he wants to offer an academic symposium tailoredto people writing about Kansas.

“We want to let people know that JCCC is taking the studyand promotion of writing about Kansas seriously,” Leikersaid. “So if this works out, we would like to do a writersconference on an annual basis.”

The organizing committee for the Kansas Writers Symposiumare Leiker, KSI; and Davis, Reynolds, Dr. Samantha Bell,assistant professor, and Farrell Jenab, adjunct professor,English department.

Dr. Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg,

Kansas as a “place” is the subject of the Kansas Writers Symposium.

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KSI/English department

Kansas writersmeet at JCCC

studies at theUniversity of

Mississippi School of Medicine, Dr. Dennis Bishop investigatedthe role of the kidneys and vascular reactivity in thedevelopment of hypertension. Now an adjunct associateprofessor of science, Bishop teaches Human Anatomy at JCCC.

But behind the mild-mannered demeanor of this scientist isa man who knows every detail of crime in Gotham City, thedark side of Batman and the maniacal killings of The Joker.Bishop has a passion for comic book collecting, and hisspecialty is Batman comics and other comics referencing thecaped crusader’s early origins — Detective Comics, World’sFinest Comics, Justice League of America, and The Brave andthe Bold. Batman, first created by artist Bob Kane and writerBill Finger, was introduced in Detective Comics #27 (1939).

Pulling out a stack of rare and valuable comic books, Bishoptalks in rapid-fire speed about the history of comic books.

“Look at this one — it cost 15 cents during the GreatDepression. That was a lot of money back then,” Bishopsaid. “Comic book publishers were targeting adults who readcomic strips in the paper. During World War II, Americanservicemen read comics in their barracks.”

Then came the censors, Bishop explains. During the 1950s,psychiatrist Fredric Wertham published Seduction of theInnocent about how comic books were destroying themorality of America’s youth. Comic books became thesubject of Congressional oversight under the Comic CodeAuthority in 1954.

Bishop owned his first comic book by age 7 or 8. By the1960s, $1 of lawn mowing money would buy him eight to10 comics a month — DC and Marvel titles. But it wasBatman comics he saved. The old stories were his favorite— before television portrayed Adam West as a satire ofBatman and The Joker as a trickster. When Bishop left forcollege in 1969, he gave his Batman comics to a friend.

Bishop never read another comic for 20 years until therelease of Tim Burton’s Batman movie in 1989, whenBatman returned as a dark and brooding crime fighter andThe Joker returned as evil. Bishop was lured back into theworld of comic book collecting, rebuilding his collectionand buying new ones.

Bishops has approximately 8,000 comic books. He has a

ledger that lists every title in chronological order of bookshe owns with a notation to the side of the significance ofeach one. Example: Detective Comics #205 (March 1954) isthe origin of the batcave. Blanks are left for the books yet tobe acquired.

He has consecutive Batman comics dating from April 1956.If he can fill in three more, his collection will be complete toApril of 1955. He has a consecutive collection of DetectiveComics dating from May 1957, missing only August 1958 andSeptember 1957. But he also owns older ones that date tothe 1940s.

“Comics in near mint condition can now sell for $7,000-$15,000. A copy of Detective #27 (Batman’s first appearance)sold at auction in February 2010 for $1,075,500, making itthe most expensive comic ever purchased,” Bishop said.

Bishop has a bachelor’s degree in zoology from theUniversity of Missouri-Columbia, master’s degree in biologyfrom UMKC, and doctorate in physiology from MU-Columbia. Most recently, he taught biology in the ShawneeMission School District until he started teaching as anadjunct at JCCC in 2009. By the way, Bruce Wayne was alsoa brilliant scientist, a superhero without super powers.

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During his postdoctoral

Spring 2011 | Imprint

FacultySuperheroteaches atJCCC

Dr. Dennis Bishop shows off a few of his nearly 8,000 comicbooks relating to Batman.

14 Spring 2011 | Imprint

Abel Ullón came to theUnited States from

Paraguay in 2006, he spoke little English and worked as atrash collector. He used his first paycheck to buy a guitarand began singing on the streets in the Plaza to earn extramoney. Eventually, he was invited to play Friday nights atChelly’s Café in Waldo.

The intervening years have been life-changing as Ullón’smusical career has taken off with talent, persistence andEnglish skills learned at JCCC.

Most recently, Ullón was selected to go to New York andsign a contract with Time Warner Cable, who will promotehis music video on their stations in 2011. Ullón’s videoperformance was chosen from 117 entries in the Alcanza LaFama national talent contest created in partnership with theNational Hispanic Foundation for the Arts and Time Warner.The winner was selected by judges including Latino actorsJimmy Smits and Esai Morales, Latin Grammy’s nomineemusic producer Gustavo Farias, and popular votes.

“When I found out I was the winner I went so crazy that Istarted to cry,” Ullón said. “This is a big step for me to makemy first musical video.”

That award is the latest of Ullón’s recognitions. He was alsoselected by State Farm Insurance, Kansas, to attend the LatinGrammy Awards in November 2010 in Las Vegas. And inSeptember 2010, he fulfilled a childhood dream as he wascast to appear with Don Francisco, Miami, host of SábadoGigante (Giant Saturday), the longest-running TV varietyshow in the world.

Ullón learned to play the guitar from his mother. His parentsare musicians, and Ullón started performing in the churchwhere his father is pastor. He was playing in a church campin Paraguay, when he met his future wife whose family isfrom Topeka.

“In my country, musical artists don’t have a lot ofopportunities,” Ullón said.

Ullón, a member of JCCC’s International Club, knew that tobe successful in the U.S. he had to learn English. So heenrolled in JCCC’s English for Academic PurposesReading/Vocabulary III class.

“Abel is a fine example of why teaching is such a wonderfulcareer. His great personality has inspired his classmates andme,” said Betty Teenor, adjunct professor, Reading/EAP.

Ullón says Time Warner is encouraging him to keep upJCCC English classes so he can do interviews and meet withmedia in both Spanish and English. His goal is to bebilingual and to study guitar and business.

Life is “amazing” for Ullón right now. With 3-year-olddaughter, Gabrielle, Ullón’s wife, Lisa, works at a full-timejob during the days, which allows Ullón to go to classesfrom 6-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday and play gigs Friday,Saturday and Sunday.

From January to April 2010, the couple returned to Paraguayso Gabrielle could meet Ullón’s family. He had enoughmoney to record a few songs in a studio. A music producerheard him, and enabled Ullón to produce an entire CD, You,with five songs in English and six in Spanish. Now artists inMexico and the Phillipines are asking permission to performhis music. He says the songs with the most downloads areMy Dad (a song he wrote about his dad when he wasmissing him on Father’s Day) and Mi Megor Canción (For MyDaughter).

“I am following my dream,” said Ullón, who turned 28 onFeb. 19, 2011. “I am a person, who if I say I will dosomething, I do it.”

Visit http://www.abel-Ullón.com to see and hear Ullónperform.

When JCCC student

Contest ismusic to hisears

Abel Ullón signed a contract with Time Warner Cable to promotehis music video on their stations in 2011.

Student

was a good idea 2,000years ago. It still is. JCCC

is offering a rain barrel class from 9-11 a.m. Saturday, April30, in Horticulture Science Center 124. Taught by JCCC’srecycling coordinator, Michael Rea, participants will learnhow to construct and install a 55-gallon rain barrel withmaterials donated by Coca-Cola.

According to Rea, creating a rain barrel is more than taking aplastic drum and cutting two holes — one for input from adownspout and one for outflow. Participants will learn howto use the right size pipe and right size overflow spout forthe size of their roof and make it site-specific.

“You have to measure the size of a downspout and howmuch rain comes off the roof,” Rea said. “A good rain will filla 55-gallon barrel in less than 5 minutes, so you have toconsider the overflow and how to deal with it. There has tobe a safe discharge area because a rain barrel captures onlya fraction of the roof’s run-off.”

A critical point of design is how to modify the existing

downspout to fit the barrel’s inflow site. Variables for theoutflow pipe are also a consideration. Different size valvescan be used. If the barrel’s outflow pipe is too small,pressure to a hose is low and frustrating. Rea has found ituseful to create a moveable cover for the top of the barrel,allowing him to carry water to a nearby garden.

And that brings up two more elements of planning —determining a firm, level location where the rain barrel canbe located and proximity to a garden or compost pile.

Participants can construct the rain barrel in class or takematerials home and make calculations before cutting holes.Rain barrel kits typically cost from $80-$130 so this class isan economical way to receive materials and instruction forrain barrels at the same time.

“It’s fun to discover what it is like to capture water andredistribute it for a good purpose,” Rea said.

Contact 913-469-2323 or www.jccc.edu/ce to enroll.

15Spring 2011 | Imprint

Michael Rea, JCCC’s recycling coordinator, is seenhere with a rain barrel next to the Hiersteiner ChildDevelopment Center.

Continuing Education

Aprilshowersbring rainbarrels

Collecting rainwater

Johnson County Community Collegereceived reaffirmation of its accreditation

by the Academic Quality Improvement Program, a programdeveloped by the Higher Learning Commission of the NorthCentral Association of Colleges and Schools to providecolleges and universities with a process for continuingaccreditation.

In its final report summary, JCCC was cited for its function asan “exemplary institution.”

“Furthermore, as a result of new leadership and a renewedcommitment from both internal and external stakeholders,JCCC is poised to mature its continuous quality system andprocess ... The college’s superior record of leadership ininnovation, technology, student engagement and diversityattest to its ability to remain not only viable but a model forhigher education.”

JCCC was admitted to AQIP in 2004. In March 2007, JCCCbegan a new chapter of continuous quality improvementwith the introduction of a new president. In 2008, JCCCreceived its first systems appraisals feedback report, and in2009 underwent a comprehensive AQIP quality check-upvisit. AQIP replaces the traditional 10-year cycle ofaccreditation and allows colleges and universities to practicecontinuous improvement initiatives and develop actionprojects that move an institution forward.

The Higher Learning Commission accredits degree-grantingpost-secondary educational institutions in the North Centralregion of the United States. The commission is recognized

by the U.S. Department of Education and accreditsapproximately 1,100 institutions of higher education in a 19-state region.

In January,

JOHNSON COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE

12345 COLLEGE BLVD

OVERLAND PARK KS 66210-1299

NONPROFIT ORGU.S. POSTAGEPAID

Johnson County Community College

AQIPreaffirmation

Dr. Dana Grove, executive vice president, Educational Planningand Development/COO, serves as JCCC’s AQIP liaison.