Become proficient in Microsoft Office

The EVIT Continuing Education Department is putting together a Microsoft Office course that will teach adult students how to use five popular computer programs.

Students can take any or all of the five sections:

• Word: Students will learn how to create, write and edit documents.
• Excel: Students will perform complex equations through the use of spread sheets.
• PowerPoint: Students will create slideshow presentations.
• Access: Students will create databases.
• Outlook: Students will learn to manage notes, calendars and e-mail.

The course will start Jan. 26 and will be held each Tuesday and Thursday from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in EVIT's Health Sciences Center. This is a great opportunity for adults who want to improve their computer skills and become proficient in these widely used programs.

For more information, call Cliff Richeson at (480) 461-4027.

Looking forward to next semester

The 2009 calendar year is winding down, and at EVIT, that means staff and students are mid-way through another school year.

The first half of this school year has been full of successes:

• A former EVIT student challenged an Iron Chef on national TV.
• Fashion students were inspired to create "green" garments.
  
• Culinary students opened their own restaurant.
  
• Former Diamondbacks star Luis Gonzalez visited the campus and talked to students about hard work and dedication.
• Automotive students job-shadowed at local dealerships.
• Interior design students unveiled three new set designs for the video productions class.
  
• HOSA students raised more than $6,000 for autism research.
• Staff and students collected more than 2,000 canned food items for the United Food Bank.
• And cosmetology students held their annual Masquerade Hair Show and Competition.
  

But we're not done yet! There are many exciting things coming up in the spring:

• Tech Fest - Jan. 30!
  
• The crowning of this year's Mister and Miss EVIT.
• The creation of EVIT's first-ever Non-Traditional Student Club.
• SkillsUSA Arizona State Championships.
• The perfect attendance truck giveaway.
• And countless other competitions, projects and activities.

Here's to a great 2010, and a great second semester!

No rest for culinary

Even when the rest of the campus is calm and quiet, culinary students always seem to be going full throttle.


Entering the culinary kitchen today, you'd never know that the school was on winter break. Several students were in, practicing for various cooking competitions coming up in the spring.


Their teacher, Mike Turcotte, gave them pointers and timed them as they practiced.


But the smell of chocolate brought me over to the bakery side of the classroom, where I discovered this:


These bakery students volunteered to come in and work on a wedding cake, which smelled heavenly. Ahh, to be the bride and groom that gets to eat THAT.

Student of the Month

Congratulations to Brendan Clark, the Mesa East Rotary Club's Student of the Month!

Brendan was honored at the EVIT governing board meeting on Monday, where he told board members that he signed up for Mr. Pikosz's construction technologies class because he enjoys working with his hands.

"I want to go to college for air conditioning, and hopefully one day, I'll have my own business," Brendan told the board.

Here is Brendan at the meeting with his family:

Congrats, Brendan!

Mesa PD lands at EVIT

The Mesa Police Department landed a helicopter on EVIT's campus yesterday, near the law enforcement and fire science building.

Here are the law students, watching it land:


It's the first time I've ever seen a helicopter up close, and it was smaller than I would have thought.

The officers talked to students about what it is like to fly the helicopter. They are available to back up patrol officers for a wide spectrum of calls -- everything from a barking dog to a homicide. Their primary role is to support patrol, but they also can serve as a search and rescue unit.

The pilots start out as regular Mesa police officers, and then they can request to begin training to work on the helicopter. They have to go through a couple hundred hours of flight training, as well as refreshment training every 90 days.


The students got to ask questions and check out the inside of the helicopter.

The adventures of Fire and Massage, Part 2

Last week, the massage therapy students invited the fire science students over for chair and sports massages.

Today, fire students repaid the favor by teaching the massage students how to repel.



A couple of exceptionally fearless students even repelled upside-down.

Mr. Baugher offers some words of encouragement, mid-repel:

Even teachers Ms. O'Connor and Ms. McBride joined in the fun. Here they are, right after Ms. O'Connor's repelling adventure. Can you sense her relief?

A successful drive

Today was the last day of the canned food drive for the United Food Bank, and the final tally is ....

*drumroll*

... more than 2,000 items!

Mr. Allen's AM & PM programs really stood out. He and his classes donated more than 10 items per student. Wow.

HOSA raises $6,000 for autism research

EVIT health students wowed the folks from Autism Speaks today when they presented them with a check for $6,000.

Students in the Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) organization have been fundraising all semester to raise money for the organization, which is dedicated to changing the lives for those who struggle with autism spectrum disorders. The group held a comedy hypnosis fundraiser show last month as part of the project, and they also solicited donations from family, friends and businesses.

The student organization raised more than $2,700 for the organization last year and were honored for their efforts at the HOSA National Leadership Conference in June. They set a lofty goal of raising $5,000 this school year, and surpassed that by 20 percent!

Amazing job.

A Non-Traditional assembly

EVIT Non-Traditional students were invited to their first assembly to learn why they are special and brainstorm ways to help other students like themselves get involved in programs they are passionate about.

The term "non-traditional" refers to students of a certain gender who are studying a field dominated by the opposite gender. For example, male students in cosmetology or female students in law enforcement. I explained more about it here.

The non-trad committee got a lot of positive feedback from the students. The committee is hoping to set up a club and find ways for the students to mentor others.

The students had a chance to give "testimonials" about why they got into the programs they chose. Here are a few things they had to say:

• Male massage therapy student: "It's a pretty cool field to be in. It makes people feel good."
  

• Female fire science student: "Ever since I was little, I always wanted to do the guy jobs. I like the excitement of fire fighting."
  

• Male medical assisting student: "This is a way to be in the medical field while I go to college to become a doctor."

• Female radio student: "I love music, I love talking, I love meeting new people. So what could be better for me than radio?"
  

• Male cosmetology student: "I always wanted to do cosmetology, since I was little. I love helping people look pretty."
  

The assembly was also a way for the students to meet each other ... and to dance a little. Let's compare moves, shall we?

A few talented AM non-trads dancing up a storm:


And some PM non-trads rockin' out some "YMCA":


That's good stuff.

Sealed with a vote

Last week, I told you about the fashion students' beautiful store window displays. EVIT students and staff had a chance to vote, and the winner is...

The Valentine's Day theme: "Seal with a Kiss!"

We also did our own informal poll on this blog. Those votes didn't count toward the official judging, but that was the most popular one here, too!

Calling all Misters and Misses!

It's time to nominate all those potential Mister and Miss EVITs!

The annual competition (and United Way fundraiser) is kicking off this month. Nomination forms can be picked up and dropped off at the front desks in Building 1, the Health Sciences Center and the Cosmetology Building. Nominations must be in by 3:30 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 11.

Mister and Miss EVIT are crowned at Tech Fest, the school's biggest event of the year. They represent their fellow students in a variety of ways, including by leading their classes into the completion ceremony at the end of the school year.

Once students are nominated, the nominees are asked to fill out an application form. A selection committee will narrow the nominees down to five girls and five boys from the morning classes and five girls and five boys from the afternoon classes. Then students will get to "vote" for their Mister and Miss by dropping money into a jar for each candidate. The money will be counted at Tech Fest on Jan. 30, and those who raise the most money for United Way will be crowned! The winners also each receive a $100 Westcor giftcard.

To qualify as a Mister or Miss EVIT, students must have a 2.5 GPA at EVIT and grades of "C" or better. They cannot have any discipline issues or more than the allowed tardies and absences.

Last year, the fundraiser brought in more than $1,600 for United Way. Meet last year's Mister and Miss EVITs: Michael Tanner (PM), Katie Warner (PM), Cortney Couch (AM) and Michael Rudd (AM)

A relaxing assignment

The massage therapy classes got a lot of practice in today -- on the fire fighting students.

Massage students practiced their chair massage and sports massage techniques on the very willing fire students, who exited the room looking much more relaxed than when they entered.


On Friday, fire students will repay the favor by teaching the massage students the finer points of repelling.

Fashionable window displays

Second-year fashion students created store window displays, which are being voted on this week by students and staff.

The windows are being judged for their cleanliness, professionalism, the cohesiveness of the theme, and whether you can envision them actually being displayed in a store. Vote in our poll on the right side of the page!

Here's one with a Valentine's Day theme:


A Back to School theme:


And a New Year's theme:


I thought they were all pretty amazing. What do you think? Which one is your favorite?

Law students visit daycare

Once a year, the law enforcement class visits the daycare in the Early Childhood Education building.

On Wednesday, they went down to teach the kids about safety, introduce them to McGruff the Crime Dog, and set up stations for fingerprinting and temporary tattoos.


The kids even got to sit in a police car, which was a huge hit.


The balloons were pretty popular, too.


Law enforcement teacher Tony Garcia told me it's a positive way to introduce young kids to police officers (to five-year-olds, the high school students do look like real police officers).

What a Ball!

Cosmetology students put on a Masquerade Ball and Hair Show Competition on campus today to show off their creativity with hair, make-up and costume ensembles.

First-year cosmetology students created looks based on an era, such as the 1960s or 1980s.



Second-year students paired up and each team chose Fantasy Masquerade theme. Here is Zeus' wife:


And the Queen of Hearts:


The students will hold another show for family and friends at 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 3 in the main auditorium in Building 1. Admission is $5.

Canned Food Drive

It's Canned Food Collection time! The ECC kicked off its Annual Food Drive today.

From now through Friday, Dec. 11, bring your canned and/or non-perishable food items to EVIT and drop them off in a collection box.

Each class will have its own donation box, and the class that collects the most items per student will receive a $100 prize for their class account.

Extra boxes also are located in the main lobby and in the district office building for staff and public donations.

All of the food will be donated to the United Food Bank, so bring in those cans!

EVIT health students learn CPR

EVIT students in the Nursing Assistant and Allied Health programs were trained in CPR this week.

Students who completed the training from Heart Savers received a two-year certification for healthcare provider CPR.

Here are students in Ms. Thorson's afternoon class, practicing their breathing techniques on infant dummies:

A very Culinary Thanksgiving

I just went over to pick up my Thanksgiving baked goods order from the Culinary program. I knew the students got a lot of orders this year, but I wasn’t entirely prepared to see this:

It appears they’ve been a little busy.

I bought some of these:

But now I’m wishing my name was also on one of these:

Great work, students! Happy Thanksgiving to all!