May 29, 2024 | Curry Campus, News, Student Success
Coos Bay, OR – Southwestern Oregon Community College announces the names of students who excelled winter term for the 2023-2024 academic school year. These students are being recognized with placement on the college’s Dean’s List (DL), Honor Roll (HR) and Academic Excellence (AE) list.
• Academic Excellence – students must receive a GPA of 4.0 in at least 12 credits
• Honor Roll – students must receive a GPA between 3.5 and 3.99 in at least 12 credits
• Dean’s List – students must receive a GPA between 3.0 and 3.49 in at least 12 credits
May 29, 2024 | Community, News
Coos Bay, OR – In celebration of Juneteenth, Southwestern Oregon Community College invites the public to a free presentation “Juneteenth: Honoring the Black Freedom Struggle” by Taylor Stewart, founder of the Oregon Remembrance Project. The presentation will be held at Southwestern’s Coos Campus (1988 Newmark Ave., Coos Bay) at 2:00 pm on June 18, 2024, in Umpqua Hall, Room 184. This is a free event and everyone is welcome.
Juneteenth, officially Juneteenth National Independence Day, is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated annually on June 19 to commemorate the end of slavery. For the past four years, Taylor Stewart has been at the forefront of Juneteenth celebrations across the state of Oregon, lending his expertise and passion to the cause. Stewart’s first time working on a Juneteenth celebration was in 2021 in Coos Bay.
Stewart founded the Oregon Remembrance Project in 2018 to memorialize Alonzo Tucker, Oregon’s most widely documented African American victim of lynching, which occurred in Coos Bay in 1902. For the presentation, Stewart will share his experience in helping to organize Juneteenth events across the state, what excites him most about these events, and how communities can carry the spirit of Juneteenth forward beyond its annual observance. Light refreshments traditional to Juneteenth celebrations will be provided free of charge.
Tune in to the presentation from anywhere via our YouTube channel at: https://www.youtube.com/@SouthwesternOR/streams.
For more information contact Forrest Akers, Director of International Recruitment and Academic Partnerships, at 541-888-7185, forrest.akers@socc.edu.
May 26, 2024 | Alumni, Foundation
Call 9-1-1 in an emergency, and first responders will always come to help us.
So when Southwestern Oregon Community College reached out for help closing the fundraising gap on a new Fire Training Tower in 2023, SWOCC Foundation was pleased to be a “first responder”.
Fast-forward to today, the new tower is open and serving as a fire and rescue training hub for students pursuing careers in structural firefighting and emergency response. That’s not all. The College is making sure this $1 million investment also will support ongoing professional training and enhance annual disaster response training events that can bring together lifesavers from fire departments, the U.S. Coast Guard, medical facilities, and ambulance firms.
“With the accelerating rate of wildfires near residential areas, it becomes increasingly important for our rural firefighters to be adequately trained. This new lab will allow us to do that,” said Foundation trustee Carolyn Thompson.
Now that municipal and volunteer fire departments also using the new fire tower lab, crews no longer have to leave the region for training. The College’s partner school Columbia Pacific Maritime also plans to provide professional mariners with maritime firefighting certification classes. Soon, this will be a new opportunity for mariners.
The modular 36-foot-tall steel structure meets International Building Code/National Fire Protection Association standards. It provides students, volunteers, and professionals space to practice a variety of skills, including:
- Interior search and rescue,
- Live fire drills to learn fire behavior and suppression,
- Safe ventilation operations,
- Aerial firefighting,
- Rappelling and ladder training,
- Day and night fire drills, response and rescue,
- Maritime/vessel fire response and rescue.
SWOCC Foundation also invests in fire science students by providing scholarships to assist with tuition and help students buy fire uniforms and safety gear. To learn more about giving to scholarships, call us and let’s chat (541) 888-7209 or donate now.
May 23, 2024 | Curry Campus, News
Southwestern Oregon Community College is offering free GED® and Adult Basic Education classes summer term 2024. These classes prepare individuals to take the GED® exam and update skills to enroll in college or career training programs. Students enrolled in these classes can build a pipeline to enter college, training programs, and jobs in high-demand career areas.
We have two options for GED® and Adult Basic Education classes summer term:
- MorningGED®Class – Tuesday through Thursday from 10am-1pm
- EveningGED®Class – Tuesday through Thursday from 5pm-8pm
All classes are live and in-person on the Coos Campus (1988 Newmark Ave., Coos Bay). For students who cannot attend in-person, classes are offered via Zoom during all three sessions.
Curry County Residents: Morning classes, Tuesday through Thursday from 10am-1pm are live and in-person on the Curry Campus (96082 Lone Ranch Parkway, Brookings).
Summer term starts June 24, 2024 and ends August 15, 2024. To register for orientation and classes go to https://swoccapce.org/ and click GET STARTED. For questions, please email Adult & Pre-College Education at apce@socc.edu or call 541-888-1593.
May 23, 2024 | Curry Campus, News, Student Success
Southwestern Oregon Community College’s 2024 Commencement Ceremony will take place on Friday, June 14, 2024, at noon in Prosper Hall on the Coos Campus, 1988 Newmark Ave., Coos Bay.
Southwestern is proud of the 2024 graduates! This year the College is pleased to honor a total of 402 graduates, from 24 states and eight countries.
Degrees being awarded are:
164 Associate of Arts Oregon Transfer
96 Associate of Applied Science
48 Associate of General Studies
52 Associate of Science
100 Certificates of Completion (one year)
Southwestern also congratulates 15 local high school students who acquired their associate degrees at the same time they were completing their high school diplomas.
Guest attendance at the ceremony is by ticket only. The celebration can be viewed live via the College’s YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@SouthwesternOR.
Additional information for graduates and their families can be found on the Graduation webpage located at https://www.socc.edu/graduation.
May 22, 2024 | Community, Curry Campus, Curry News
The Second Annual Wild Rivers Film Festival (WRFF) in Brookings, Oregon is a few months away, Aug. 15 – 18, 2024, however, the community can get a sneak preview at the Curry Campus of Southwestern Oregon Community College on Thursday, June 13, 2024, from 12:00 to 1:00 pm.
Sue Wright and Kat Lidell, board members of the WRFF will be the presenters for this lecture. Each brings a wealth of experience to the film festival.
Dr. Sue Marie Wright, PhD, is Professor Emeritus at Eastern Washington University’s Department of Sociology and Justice Studies. As president of the Wild Rivers Film Festival, she leads efforts like the new summer filmmaking workshop for middle and high school students, showcasing her leadership and commitment to community development. Sue founded and directed the Children’s Studies Program from 2002 to 2012. Dr. Wright is dedicated to fostering creative expression among children and youth through research initiatives, community support, and educational grant proposals.
Kat Liddell, a Brookings native, wears many hats in the community. Liddell has spent the last seven years co-hosting The Insider Report entertainment podcast with Bruce Ellis, and is the Executive Director of Brookings’ newest nonprofit theater company, Threepenny Theater Co. Liddell received a Bachelor of Arts in English from Bushnell University in 2012 and a master’s degree in library science in 2018. By day, Liddell works as a librarian.
This year’s festival will feature a film made by local young people. Students are invited to learn the art and craft of film making through a week-long workshop at the Curry Campus. The youth workshop film will be presented at the festival. Registration for this free class is May 13-June 28. The Class will be held the week of July 15-21. More information is available at: https://www.wildriversfilmfestival.com/event-details/summer-youth-filmmaking-workshop.
The film workshop is funded this summer by grants through the Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation, The Ford Family Foundation, and Brookings Harbor Education Foundation.
Last year the festival organizers screened 60 independent films from around the world that were entered into a competition for cash awards. This year the festival organizers will screen many more films and are including a screenwriting competition.
The film festival is attended by film makers and film enthusiasts. It gives the public an opportunity to meet the film makers. Selected films will include a Q & A with the film makers after the show. The festival is a multi-day experience for south coast residents and attracts people from outside the region contributing to the local tourism economy.
This is a free program sponsored by the Friends of Curry Campus and will be held in the Community Room on Southwestern’s Curry Campus, 96082 Lone Ranch Parkway (off Highway 101), Brookings. Bring a friend and a brown bag lunch.
Stay tuned for upcoming talks in our speaker series. For more information contact the Curry Campus at 541-813-1667.
May 20, 2024 | Curry Campus, Curry News, News, Student Success
Southwestern Oregon Community College invites the community to join us on Thursday, May 30, 2024, at 6:00 pm, for our Annual Student Research Symposium. In addition to the student presentations, a poster exhibit will be on display starting at 5:30 pm in the Umpqua Hall Main Lobby. This is a free event; all ages are welcome.
Coos County residents can join us in-person in the Umpqua Hall lecture room 184 on the Coos Campus, 1988 Newmark Ave., Coos Bay.
Curry County residents can join us for a watch party in the Community Room on the Curry Campus, 96082 Lone Ranch Parkway, Brookings.
For those not able to attend in person the lecture will be streamed live on the College’s YouTube channel at: www.youtube.com/@southwesternOR/streams.
Southwestern’s student SPEAR (STEAM, Pathways, Experimental, & Academic Research) Team is actively working on a variety of science research projects. Participation on the team teaches students valuable skills and allows them to gain hands-on experience.
Students within Physics, Engineering, Geology, Computer Science, Biology, Agroecology, and Sociology will be showcasing their work for the community. Our SPEAR team is led by Krystal Hopper Meyers and mentored by Professors Aaron Coyner, Win McLaughlin, and Derek Morrelli.
Some of the projects include:
- attempting to increase flight time for an electrical aircraft using magnetic induction,
- recent developments in nuclear propulsion,
- searching for micrometeorites within local storm drains and investigating if they were significant in supporting early plant life,
- researching the fossils, chronology, and relationship to Cascadia megathrust earthquakes at Fossil Point,
- comparing the composition and extent of the Oregon Coast basalt and if it correlates with Yellowstone hotspot or not,
- interplanetary ion population modeling working with a Lead Scientist at Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio,
- locating never found before asteroids using data sent to us from the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System (PAN-STARRS) located at the Haleakala Observatory in Hawaii,
- statistical analysis of King Tide heights and frequencies working NOAA tidal data.
Many of these projects are supported by grants awarded through Oregon NASA Space Grant Consortium.
Additionally, Professors Jason Bennett and Maria Farinacci have two students who will be presenting research on invasive Green Crabs. These students recently finished an internship with South Slough National Estuary Research Reserve Lead Scientist, Dr. Shon Schooler. Posters from Professor Dana Pertermann’s Sociology students’ will also be on display. Topics from their research include Indigenous culture and raising grandchildren, Japanese marriage customs and culture, the study of forensics in time over the last 100 years, and changes in the human diet.
Please join us and help support these students while learning more about the exciting things happening at the College within our STEAM programs!
For more information contact Krystal Hopper Meyers, STEAM Pathways Assistant, at 541-888-7416, or krystal.hopper@socc.edu.
To learn more about STEM degrees at Southwestern visit: https://www.socc.edu/programs-classes/stem.
May 20, 2024 | Community, News
Students, fire crews and maritime workers will benefit
Southwestern officially opened its new Training Tower on its Coos Bay campus on Thursday, May 23!
The tower will serve as a fire and rescue operations training hub for Southwestern’s students pursuing careers in structural firefighting and emergency response. That’s not all. The college anticipates this $1 million investment also will enhance annual disaster response training events that bring together lifesavers from fire departments, the U.S. Coast Guard, medical facilities and ambulance firms.
Now regional municipal and volunteer fire departments from western Douglas, Coos and Curry counties will have ongoing opportunities to train at our college close to home without leaving the region. Our partner school Columbia Pacific Maritime also will have the ability to provide professional mariners with maritime firefighting certification classes.
The modular 36-foot-tall, four-story steel structure meets International Building Code/National Fire Protection Association standards. It provides students, volunteers and professionals space to practice:
- Interior search and rescue,
- Live fire drills to learn fire behavior and suppression,
- Safe ventilation operations,
- Aerial firefighting,
- Rappelling and ladder training,
- Day and night fire drills, response and rescue,
- Maritime/vessel fire response and rescue.
“It took us three years of planning with local fire departments to complete this project that will ultimately help students achieve even greater success,” said College President Patty Scott. “We could not have done it without dedicated partners at the cities of Coos Bay, North Bend, Charleston and Reedsport, the airport, and rural fire departments in Coos County. Thank you!”
Photo of fire science students: Henry Hood, Kimber Privetts, Craig Edera, Kade Spini, Karsten Jensen
May 16, 2024 | Community, News
Southwestern Oregon Community College will unveil a life-sized sculpture of Albert Einstein at our Health & Science Building, Umpqua Hall, on the Coos Campus (1988 Newmark Ave., Coos Bay) on Tuesday, May 28, 2024. The event will occur at 12:00 noon on the first floor, near the lecture hall, room 184.
A procession of students and staff will walk across campus carefully wheeling the sculpture from Eden Hall to Umpqua Hall delivering it to the reception site, leaving Eden Hall at 11:40 am. Upon its arrival at Umpqua Hall the sculpture will be welcomed with brief comments from the college president, the artist, and others. To access Umpqua Hall use parking lot #1.
The sculpture, titled “My Friend Albert” was created by artist Kathleen Zappelli, a resident of Coquille, OR. Ms. Zappelli graduated from the University of Oregon in 1999, and this piece was part of a capstone project for her Bachelor of Fine Art degree. The life-sized, full-length portrait of a standing, laughing Albert Einstein is made of stoneware clay about an inch thick and weighs about 400 lbs. Ms. Zappelli is currently a board member of the Coos Art Museum.
The sculpture was donated to Southwestern last year. Since then, Art Professor James Fritz designed and fabricated a base to secure the sculpture for public display and looked for the best place to exhibit it. Physics Professor Aaron Coyner immediately wanted it for display in Umpqua Hall, preferably near the Physics Lab.
The sculpture is titled “My Friend Albert” because of its whimsical approachability. It breaks down the barrier that often stands in the way of our understanding of a “genius” figure like Einstein. He was one of the great physicists of the early 20th century whose theories paved the way for research into atomic fission, modern cosmology, and understanding of the universe.
Ms. Zappelli’s sensitive rendering of Einstein as a laughing professor in a suit-and-tie highlights the great man’s humanity and genial nature. The sculpture had been on public display for 20 years at the Oregon State University Extension Office in Myrtle Point. Concerned that it was not quite the right fit for the Extension Office and looking for a more appropriate home, the Extension Office and Ms. Zappelli made the donation and transfer to the Southwestern Art Department.
The College gladly accepted the donation and planned this public event to unveil the sculpture in its new home in Umpqua Hall. Part of the unveiling is “A walk across campus with Albert Einstein” with college faculty, staff, and students. This will be a light-hearted experience for all to walk across campus with the most famous college physics professor of the 20th Century.
This is a wonderful opportunity for the public to help welcome this sculpture donation and celebrate our STEAM programs (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, & Mathematics) at Southwestern. For more information contact James Fritz, 541-888-7322 or jfritz@socc.edu.
May 14, 2024 | Community, Curry Campus, News
COOS BAY, OR – Southwestern Oregon Community College invites the community to join us on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at 6:00pm, for “Ice Age Horses of the American West” with vertebrate paleontologist, Eric Scott. This is a free event; all ages are welcome.
Coos County residents can join us in-person in the Umpqua Hall lecture room 184 on the Coos Campus, 1988 Newmark Ave., Coos Bay.
Curry County residents can join us for a watch party in the Community Room on the Curry Campus, 96082 Lone Ranch Parkway, Brookings.
For those not able to attend in person the lecture will be streamed live on the College’s YouTube channel at: www.youtube.com/@southwesternOR/streams.
Southwestern’s Professor of Geology, Dr. Win McLaughlin welcomes Eric Scott, a vertebrate paleontologist specializing in extinct Ice Age mammals, particularly horses and bison. Horses have a long history in the Americas before going extinct at the end of the ice ages… only to be brought back a few thousand years later! During the ice ages North America supported a diversity of fossil horses ranging across the landscape. Tune in to learn about these beasts in Oregon and elsewhere and what our rich fossil record can tell us about them.
Scott studies the evolution and extinction of North American Pleistocene megafauna, with a focus on biogeography – particularly, how the geographic distribution of species can change through time, and how this can inform our understanding of Ice Age extinctions.
He has worked throughout western North America as well as East Africa. He is Vice President and Principal Paleontologist of Cogstone Resource Management, Inc., and an adjunct lecturer at California State University, San Bernardino. He is emeritus Curator of Paleontology for the San Bernardino County Museum in Redlands, California, where he worked for 24 years. He graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles.
For more information about the lecture series contact Dr. Win McLaughlin, Assistant Professor of Geology, at 541-888-7002, win.mclaughlin@socc.edu.
For more information on upcoming lectures contact Krystal Hopper Meyers, STEAM Pathways Assistant, at 541-888-7416, or krystal.hopper@socc.edu.
To learn more about STEM degrees at Southwestern visit: https://www.socc.edu/programs-classes/stem/.
