Did you read Highlights magazine as a kid? One of our neighbors — a retired military colonel who I only remember as “The Colonel” — gifted our family a subscription when I was just learning to read in San Antonio, Texas. The subscription continued when we moved to Roanoke — and one of the features I remember most vividly was “Goofus and Gallant,” which is still published in Highlights. This is a didactic comic that contrasts two young boys: Goofus, who is always rude and selfish, and Gallant, who models virtuous and respectful behavior. As you can imagine, it is often parodied. From the July 2020 issue of Highlights I was reminded of “Goofus and Gallant” while learning about another fictional composite character: ALICE, an acronym for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. ALICE households — which made up about 29% of Virginia families in 2018 — are employed and earn above the federal poverty level, but they do not earn enough to afford basic household necessities. An additional 10% of households lived in poverty, which adds up to 39% of the state struggling to support their families. And keep in mind this is 2018 data … before the COVID disaster. … Continue Reading How to build better relationships with Goofus, Gallant and ALICERead More
We’re excited to introduce Crystal Hall, Virginia Western’s new Get REAL Activity Coordinator, who started March 25. Crystal Hall This role is foundational to our 5-year, $1.8 million Title III project, as Crystal will lead the day-to-day grant activities and serve as a connector across college departments and the greater community to help Refocus Education on Adult Learners (REAL). So far, the Get REAL core team includes Project Director Milan Hayward and Cathy Ferguson, Virginia Western’s first Credit for Prior Learning (CPL) Specialist. Future hires will include a College Career Navigator and College Affordability Navigator. Crystal earned a Bachelor of Arts from Roanoke College, with a major in Music and minor in Religion, followed by a master’s in Christian Education from the Southern Baptist Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. She served in church and parachurch minisitries for more than 15 years before joining the Roanoke Housing Authority, where she has worked for almost nine years. During that time, she helped secure and manage a federal Jobs Plus grant and became a key community partner with the RSVP program through the College of Career & Corporate Training. What called her to work for Virginia Western? Crystal said she wants to help us… Continue Reading Please welcome our new Get REAL coordinator: Crystal HallRead More
Many of us already know Cathy Ferguson. Beyond advising students through the Career Center for the past five years, she currently chairs the Staff Senate and serves on the college Reopening Taskforce. Cathy Ferguson Last year, she was awarded a $5,000 Innovation Grant to advance the work of our Credit for Prior Learning (CPL) workgroup. If you’re unfamiliar with CPL (sometimes called PLA, or prior learning assessment), it means granting academic credit for demonstrated college-level equivalencies gained outside of the classroom. This could include CLEP tests, ACE recommendations, and PLACE portfolio development and assessment. Just this month, Cathy transitioned to a new role: She is Virginia Western’s first, full-time Credit for Prior Learning (CPL) Specialist. She plans to stay “housed” in the Career Center. This job is a critical piece of our 5-year, $1.8 million Title III grant, as it helps adult learners reduce the cost and time to attainment of a credential or degree. As Cathy noted in her Innovation Grant proposal: Research shows that adult learners, who earn CPL credits vs. their peers who don’t, have better academic outcomes. In this role, Cathy will coordinate and accelerate the continued development of Virginia Western’s CPL programs. This means directly… Continue Reading Wa-hoo! Please congratulate Cathy Ferguson on her latest adventureRead More
About Shelley
Shelley Lyons is glad to be back on campus as she is a Virginia Western alum, and has served as the Administrative Officer for Grants Administration at Virginia Western since early 2022. Prior to VWCC, her career focus was within the Human Services and Arts fields. She wrote her first grant in 1996 on a whim and has continued to plan and learn since that time. She most enjoys seeing a well-planned project come to fruition, where funder, project manager and beneficiaries can all feel success and see impact.
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