Cutting into the big 4-0
Dignitaries gather at a 40th Anniversary hamburger cook out to recreate the opening of the college on Sept. 2 of 1969.
CRUSADER SEWARD COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE/AREA TECHNICAL SCHOOL
— See page 8
Year 41, No. 1
www.crusadernews.com
September 11
2009
Presorted Standard US Postage PAID Liberal, KS Permit NO.114
Liberal, Kansas
Guitarist brings classical string venue to campus performance
Crusader photo/ Morgan Allaman
Student worker Angie Saythany displays a few of the items donated by companies and employees supporting the college and student scholarships.
Scholarship Auction to mirror past 40 years Morgan Al l aman Editor in Chief
Enrollment breakdown numbers 90
80 70
Percent
60 50 40 30 20 10
Women
Men
From Kansas
Categories
Ages 18-23
The classical guitarist’s concert will be at 7 p.m. Sept. 21 in the Showcase Theater. Admission is free but free-will donations are encouraged and will go toward the Development Foundation for Seward County Community College/Area Technical School scholarships. Jankovic’s concert will center around Spanish music, which he says is one of his favorites and he is excited to play at the college. “I’ve never been there, but I have played shows in Oklahoma before,” Jankovic said of his upcoming trip to Liberal, which will present him approximately 15 hours of driving from Indiana. “Sometimes I choose to drive because it’s easier and you’re touring, so you have to be on the road and I can enjoy all the scenery.” Jankovic is originally from Belgrade, Yugoslavia (now Serbia), and he began his music career early. “I started when I was 7 years old. We start music education the same time as elementary school,” Jankovic said. “Then I went on to college.” Jankovic earned his master’s degree at Indiana University in the Jacobs School of Music and was offered a teaching position after finishing grad school. “This is one of the top places in music, there are probably others on the East Coast or New York but it’s the place you want to be, one of the top places in classical music,” Jankovic said. Jankovic was brought to the SCCC/ATS by the music department along with the help of student services.
“It’s important to not only bring culture to the campus but anytime you can get a professional to come to Liberal is a great thing,” music instructor Darin Workman said. “I’m very excited because, coming from a college town to southwest Kansas, I started to miss watching pros live. Here you have to go to Dallas and Denver to see something like this,” Workman said. Jankovic will also host a Guitar Master Class at 2 p.m. on Sept. 21 in Room H148. Jankovic, who still teaches at Indiana University, finds great joy in both performing and teaching. “These two things feed one another and both are equally important,” Jankovic said. “You need two different approaches, teaching is verbalizing, explaining, and it helps me because when I verbalize something it helps me better understand. But performing helps me teach my students, they are both integral.” Those interested can find more information on Jankovic online at w w w. p e t a r jankovic.net. Story by Jose Rodriguez
SCCC Development Foundation will host the 15th annual Scholarship Auction at 6 p.m. Sept. 19 in the Seward County Event Center located at the fairgrounds. “Reflections of the past” is the theme, in honor of the college and the foundations 40th anniversary. Director of Development Tammy Doll sets the standards high for this year’s auction. “We always try to do better than we did the year before, and last year was our best ever. We had almost 500 people in attendance and we raised over $40,000,” Doll said. “I would love it if we could surpass those totals because that means that we have more money for student scholarships.” The presidential scholars, one group of students out of the many students who receive scholarships earned from the auction, will be helping with the event. “We have to dress according to the theme so we will be dressing up like we’re from the past,” presidential scholar Will Rector said. The Scholarship Auction will be divided into two parts. The first part of the night will consist of the silent auction, dinner, entertainment and a chance to enter the Lucky Draw and 50/50 drawings. The live auction, called by former Liberal native Mike Gatlin, will take up the second part of the night. With a $1 donation, a ticket can be bought for the 50/50 drawing. At the end of the evening, a winner will be drawn and the total money earned during the 50/50 drawing will be split with the winner. Doll has seen the gratitude the 50/50 drawing can bring. “Last year, the person who won the 50/50 drawing was so excited because she said that meant that they could go on a honeymoon,” Doll said. “I don’t remember the exact amount but it was a good pot.” The Lucky Draw places 10-12 items on a table. People can give $5 donations for a ticket and then put their ticket in the jar of an object they are interested in and a ticket will be drawn for each item at the end of the night to determine a winner. A new addition to the live auction is a PowerPoint provided by the college’s multimedia director Doug Browne that will be displayed on two different screens showing a picture of the item being auctioned. Hillary Anderson, a former Seward County choir student and a current employee in the admissions office, is coordinating a group of choir members who have attended the college in the past and will provide the evening’s entertainment to go along with the theme. The menu will consist of beef brisket by National Beef, pulled pork sandwiches donated by Seaboard, shrimp and dessert bar with chocolate fountain. Great Western Dining will cook everything. Doll believes raising more money is crucial with the increase in enrollment. “The more we raise the more we give, and we have increased enrollment at the college this year, so we have a greater need for student scholarships,” Doll said. “We’ve got to raise more money to help more students.” Tickets will be sold up until the Thursday before the auction and must be purchased in advance.
Petar Jankovic is a professional classical guitarist who will perform a concert Sept. 21 at SCCC/ATS.
Petar Jankovic
Enrollment sees 35 percent increase Rusti n Watt Sports editor
As of Sept. 9, last year, the total number of students attending Seward County Community College and Area Technical School was 1,384 students. The number has increased in one year by 35 percent, with the total student count now at 1,864. The number is liable to fluctuate slightly with the college not quite at the certification date yet. With the number of students up 35 percent, the total number of credit hours currently taken at SCCC/ATS has increased by 30 percent. Dean of Student Services Celeste Donovan believes the economy has something to do with an increase in enrollment. “Part, I believe, is do to the current economy situation,” Donovan said. “Our campaign “Go Green
Save Green” showed the comparison of costs between Seward and other four-year universities and the amount of money one could save by attending SCCC/ATS was a big contribution as well.” The marketing department at Seward County played a role in delivering the Go Green Save Green campaign to prospective students. “It’s an exciting time,” Donovan said. “We sent out a lot of marketing from admissions, and we are seeing all the hard work pay off.” The costs are definitely lower attending two-year college compared to a four-year university across the board, but Seward County presents a lot more opportunities to its student compared to most community colleges in the state. Of the 1,864 students at Seward, 58 percent are women and 42 percent are men. Nearly 85 percent of the students are from Kansas, with 34 interna-
tional students. The rest are out-ofstate students and many athletes from out-of-state. Forty-three percent of the total number of students are between the ages of 18 and 23. According to Donovan, about 95 percent of the freshman who gave their reason for attending Seward County indicated one of three categories. Students attended SCCC/ATS because it is more affordable, in close proximity to home, and had career programs many were aiming for. These were the three key themes for new incumbents to Seward County. The 35 percent increase in a single year will be something to keep an eye on in the continuing development of SCCC/ATS. “Recruiting was done by the school as a whole with everyone doing their part, and now everyone can take a share in the success,” Donovan said.