President's Message: November 2, 2009

Dear Faculty and Staff,

I hope you had a fun Halloween! We received an early “treat” on Friday when alumnus Mark Schmitz from ZD Studios presented the college’s proposed new logo during Convocation. As you could see, Mark is very passionate about his work and our school.

We will continue to keep you updated on the progress of our new logo, which could still be tweaked a little bit. Thanks to Patrick Barlow, and to everyone who made our Convocation such a success.

Nickname Change
As you probably know, in addition to the logo transition, we’re also morphing from our acronym to a shortened version of our formal name, Madison Area Technical College. Our nickname or “street” name will now be Madison College. As many of you know, we’re often confused with the MATC in Milwaukee, especially on the internet. That’s why we’re now asking you to use Madison College in place of MATC when referring to our college. There is no need to throw everything out with MATC on it, as the college will gradually change over to Madison College on all of our printed documents. However, when making reference to the college in presentations, in communications (such as answering phones), and on materials promoting the college, let’s use “Madison College.”   

Chinese Delegation Visit
For the next two weeks, we’re hosting a community college delegation from China! This is a reciprocal visit linked with Vice President of Strategic Advancement Becky Baumbach’s visit to China last October. We hope the visit will help develop student exchange and study abroad programs between our colleges, as well as expand our Chinese language offerings. Special thanks to Geoff Bradshaw and his staff for coordinating this visit.

Free Car Care Clinic
It won’t be long now before “old man winter” is here. Madison College students, with the help of their instructors, are having a free car care clinic at the Truax campus this Saturday (November 7) from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Just drop-off a non-perishable food item(s) and you can get your brakes, belts, hoses, and other key parts checked for free! This is a wonderful way to help our students and area food pantries.

College Marvels
When I talk to students and hear about their favorite teachers, I also ask them to tell me about anyone at Madison College who has especially helped them or been kind to them. Here are the names mentioned to me most recently:
June Sarbacker, business technology
Amy Grams, sociology
Antonia Garcia Breitweiser, design fundamentals
David Muse, American history
Laura Mitchell, earth science
Penny Johnson, business technology
Kelly Schulte, strategic advancement
Zong Her, Dan McCormick and Ali Zarrinnam, research and planning staff

Congratulations to our Employee of the Year award winners!
Michael Shumway, veteran services coordinator
Scott Beard, regional campus manager-northern region
Valentina Ahedo, diversity and community relations
Sandra Blumer, retention and student services
Dennis Michaelis, shipping/receiving specialist
Maria Banuelos, diversity and community relations
Sandy Philip, center for excellence in teaching and learning
Hiep Tran, client services
Denise Reimer, business procurement assistance center
Susan Worth, CHASE
Enrollment Center-team award
Ally Adams and Fred Brechlin-Facilities Professional Services

Highlights of My Week:
• accompanied Bob Dinndorf on a visit to a major donor to our nursing program;
• finalized plans for the 2010 college calendar;
• participated at a United Way of Dane County Board meeting;
• participated in a conference call of the American Council on Education’s Commission on Women in Higher Education;
• attended a Downtown Madison Rotary Club meeting;
• met with Geoff Bradshaw to finalize plans for the Chinese Delegation visit this week;
• attended the District Board meeting where our trustees received a presentation on the college logo;
• addressed the college community at the mid-semester Convocation;
• met with an area developer; and
• attended a pre-game brunch at the Olin house, the home of Chancellor “Biddy” Martin.

In closing, I leave you with this quote from President Barack Obama, who will be visiting Madison on Wednesday:
“If you’re walking down the right path and you’re willing to keep walking, eventually you’ll make progress.” 

Bettsey