Kipp's HiFi Makeover

Kipp bought an old HiFi cabinet a few months ago and we have been steadily refitting it. We took out the old stereo, turntable, and speakers, then reworked the interior to hold larger components and modified, smaller speakers. I think it turned out very well after a few minor design challenges:

Here is the original unit

This is the center of the unit, the two sides were filled with large speaker we would replace

Starting to gut the unit

Patrick cut out the new hinged lid for the turntable

Making cleats for the new shelf to hold the turntable

The new turntable space

Cutting through the top to make the new lid

The new speakers are much smaller, allowing us to put shelves above them on either side

Kipp's first stab at upholstering the speaker panels - too much white showing through

A quick coat of black paint cures everything

The new receiver was far too large to sit in the center space, so we built this angled cradle for the receiver

The receiver cradle and new space for the turntable

Chiseling out the slots for the hinges

Treated myself to a new set of nice chisels - well worth the expense!

The finished product with the new lid on the right

The turntable was a tight fit, but it worked out well

The receiver sits nicely at an angle and there is room for LPs on the side

It's 1965 again!

A Paper About Student Engagement

This is a paper Grant and I wrote last week about engaging students:

dl=0https://www.dropbox.com/s/joo0g8bhknpvzuf/Elicitation%20Model%20-%20Digging%20Into%20the%20Notion%20of%20Student%20Engagement.docx?dl=0

A Nice Evening

Tonight, I attended our annual employee recognition dinner. It is a great event where faculty and staff from every area of the college are recognized. This year, Kipp, Aaron, and Jeff were part of a larger interdepartmental team that won the Innovation of the Year award. It is called the COM 101 Bridge program, and it allows students to bypass one of their developmental English courses and enter directly into a credited course. Kipp and Jeff were part of a small team that attended a conference in Baltimore several years ago where they created their version of the program. They worked hand in hand with the COM faculty to develop the supplemental instruction necessary to bridge the students' skill gaps.To date, more than 300 students have participated and they are succeeding at a much higher rate than those students who test directly into the COM 101 course. Aaron was the first of our developmental faculty to teach one of the credited courses, and the collaboration is helping us align our respective curricula. It really has been a stellar program from the beginning.
I was also very happy to see many of our staff and faculty receive recognition for their years of service to the college. Those with ten, fifteen, twenty, and twenty-five years were honored. It humbles me to think of all the quiet and great work so many do for our students. It really is a great way to finish off a school year :)

Aaron, Kipp, Rose, Jeff, and Samson 

I like this picture! Evidently, from this angle I look taller and a bit thinner

We all got certificates that symbolize a great deal of teamwork. I couldn't be prouder of this team