Around the College

Flight Nursing

The second year Nursing Students have been participating in some special events that we would like to share with you! We were honored to have Daniel Kollars, Flight Paramedic in some of the 4th semester classes at the College. Daniel arranged for the classes to tour his "home away from home" at the UPMC Stat Medivac #13 hangar in Thomasville. Students were greeted by Certified Registered Flight Nurses Jen and educator Gene who gave the class a wonderful introduction not only to themselves and their nursing journeys -- but to the world of flight nursing. Daniel then exposed the class to many of the specialized equipment needed in order to safely transport a highly unstable patient.  They also had the opportunity to tour Stat Medivac's helicopter. It was a wonderful day and extremely interesting! 

Adjunct Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award

The purpose of the award is to recognize adjunct faculty who demonstrate excellence in teaching.  We would like to recognize the following Adjunct Instructors for receiving the Adjunct Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award. 

Dr. Susan Beam is consistently excellent in the classroom, demonstrating a high level of knowledge of writing instruction as well as a deep appreciation for students’ individual learning needs. Dr. Beam’s students are engaged in their work together. They clearly felt a sense of inclusion and belonging as they worked with one another and with Dr. Beam on the matters of the day.  She knows each students’ work as she wove details of their writing and their lives into the lesson. Dr. Beam is a long-time adjunct faculty member here at HACC who is deserving of recognition for her work with our students. She inspires them each day with a challenging but compassionate approach to teaching.  Students are in good hands in her classroom.

Farhan Brelvi has been serving nursing students as a Nursing 240 level clinical faculty since May 2018.  Students have stated that they find the educational environment created by Farhan Brelvi on the clinical unit to be “no nonsense” and patient focused. The students appreciate how Farhan Brelvi is clear in written and oral communication of his expectations. Students who work hard to meet those expectations find the environment to be appropriately challenging and fun. Fostering an environment that makes them want to learn instead of just “getting through” the task assigned.  He is student focused, with a clear intent to motivate each student to be the best that they can be.  Farhan is also dedicated to the nursing department.  He is always willing to engage in conversations to assist in consistency of expectations across the curriculum. 

Dale Ekliss has been an adjunct with the mathematics department for nearly 20 years.  Dale has always been willing to help where he is needed. Often, he teaches at two different campuses (York and Gettysburg) to assist in teaching daytime courses where we have minimal adjunct support. Students are at the heart of Dale’s teaching philosophy and thus, their opinions of him that matter most. Comments such as “the professor has a positive attitude and is truly invested in his students,” “amazing professor who teaches math very effectively, makes problems easy to understand, and is willing to go above and beyond to help every student succeed in his class,” and “the instructor is amazing at teaching and very helpful with the assignments,” are commonplace in his SmartEvals. As Dale often teaches our developmental courses, his dedication to our weakest math students is invaluable; as he creates an environment for them where they feel important, supported, and set up for success.

Patti Fernsler has been an adjunct professor at the Lebanon Campus for the past 14 years. Patti has been an integral member of our Math and Computer Science Department and a pioneer in HyFlex instruction. Over the course of the 2022-2023 academic year, Patti has taught four classes in the HyFlex modality from the Lebanon Campus. Her willingness to teach HyFlex has enabled us to remain committed to offering courses in-person at Lebanon, while also being fiscally responsible in opening those courses up to remote learners as well. As you can imagine, HyFlex mathematics courses are incredibly technical and involve a great deal of technology and coordination and Patti has excelled in creating an inclusive and welcoming HyFlex learning Environment. Patti has been instrumental in assisting as a one-on-one tutor since the

program’s inception. In this capacity, Patti spends roughly 20 additional hours each week tutoring students outside of the classroom.

Cathy Hess has been serving nursing students in multiple levels of the curriculum, and multiple campus locations, as clinical faculty since May 2018. She is “interactive”, and a great role model for engagement with patients, staff, and fellow students to create an energized and positive learning environment. Students stated that the learning environment promoted comfort in talking out their thought process when working through a challenging patient situation. Having the time to think/” talk through” the decision, fostered a feeling of readiness in their last semester before graduation. Cathy Hess fosters time management skills necessary to be successful as a graduate nurse and works to develop skills of prioritization. She is creative in finding ways for students to “make a difference” they can feel good about in an uncomfortable situation.

Andrea Leinbach has been teaching CIS 105 for some time now. Throughout the pandemic, she voluntarily taught in-person sections of the course to ensure that students who were uncomfortable taking the course online had the in-person option.  She has a kind and supportive demeanor. Andrea creates a sense of community in her classrooms where students feel comfortable seeking help. Student evaluations are glowing with the following example; “I love professor Andi! She has made sure that whenever I've expressed any concerns on a topic that they have been addressed. She is very thorough in her explanations and gives solid examples that help my understanding develop. I also love that she has made communication easy both inside and outside the classroom. Overall, one of the best professors I've had at HACC.” Students are able to learn subjects they may have not been familiar with. Andrea makes class interesting and does not discourage students from asking questions.

Susan McGreevy has been an adjunct instructor in PE, Health and Wellness and Health Promotion for many years. Susan has assisted the department by teaching independent study courses.  Her versatility has benefitted the department, the college, and most importantly, our students. She is an amazingly competent and caring professional.  She is always helpful, resourceful, and great at building something from nothing. She faces challenges with curiosity and a problem-solving “can-do” attitude. Susan is a self-directed and driven individual dedicated to HACC and the success of our students. She requires very little “management” but may seek guidance from time-to-time, which is positive and shows a dedication to growth. Susan is known for creating engaging and innovative courses with a student-centered approach. We are fortunate to have her as part of the HACC community!

Wyatt McMartin has done an excellent job teaching CAD154 for several years. He has used both SolidWorks and AutoCAD in industry and brings that experience to the classroom. This semester he even organized live drafting sessions on Saturdays. Wyatt organized this opportunity in addition to his teaching responsibilities. He provided a zoom link where students could attend via zoom and watch him work on an industry project. In addition to providing this opportunity to his students he extended this invite to all the other CAD sections.  Wyatt’s students remark on how he helps them to understand what they are learning in class. He is an effective communicator and is always available to answer questions and provide feedback.

Carlton Randolph has been teaching trades classes at the Harrisburg Campus since 1996.  He is committed to educating the world's future workers to be safe, first and foremost, and to develop their skills to understand the fundamentals of our trades for each student.  He has trained and inspired many workers in our field for years. Student’s expressed positive comments about the way he took the time to help them understand the materials. Carlton is a very genuine and passionate teacher.

Wendy Reismiller has been serving nursing students in multiple levels of the curriculum, and multiple campus locations, as clinical faculty since August 2011. “You are going to be caring for me at the bedside” is a common phrase used to start a collegial relationship between Wendy Reismiller and her students. She fosters a student/instructor “partnership” rather than a hierarchy. This teaching style, produces a learning environment where all questions are welcome and all “thinking out of the box” is applauded. Wendy Reismiller understands that students want to engage in patient assignments that feed the passion that brought them to nursing. She engages with students to find out what their passion is, and then researches patients available that meet that student specific interest. Her role as a nurse practitioner allows her to be versatile in her scheduling and focus areas of teaching. She is effective in taking assignments from various levels and practice areas. Wendy’s flexibility was much needed as we transitioned back from classes who had a first introduction to clinical skills during the lockdown of the pandemic.

Randal Rhoades is a great communicator and astute at recognizing operational and student matters. He is able to quickly identify students of concern in the online environment and engages them quickly to best determine their individual needs. He has demonstrated care, compassion and flexibility in working with students. Most recently, he has been challenged with technology and how best to ensure all students have access to the software they need in order to perform the best in their music business classes. He has worked diligently with his supervisors and our IT teams in discussing the issues and software needed. Through instructor Rhoades’ fortitude administrators determined that there was a much higher need with the laptop program; more equipment and resources are necessary in order to sustain the ever-growing student need. 

Corrine Syster was a huge proponent in moving the library forward with making the library guides accessible to all. She presented a new topic at several workshops, demonstrated how to do it and then gave time for faculty librarians to work on it and answer their questions. She created a document that outlined each step, so if someone wasn’t able to attend the workshop they could still work on their guides. This was extremely helpful and has made the library guides better for all to use. Corrine has also created content in the library’s LibApps program. The content makes the library guides more visually appealing. Corrine is also very knowledgeable about technology. She created a system for the faculty librarians and library staff to gather data and statistics. She also knows a lot about the LibApps program and helps troubleshoot problems. Corrine is a huge asset, in so many ways, to the library.

Kathy Treaster has been serving nursing students as a simulation lab faculty; as well as, as a clinical professor. Kathy Treaster is known for her expectations, which are a high standard. Kathy is also known for empathy in her interactions with each student. While the high expectations can be described as “scary” or intimidating at the beginning of the rotation, students consistently report that their experiences with Kathy elevate them to a higher level of self-confidence, and a positive personal self-image of their ability to perform in the professional nursing role.  She is student centered and is focused on promoting the characteristics of professionalism and confidence that is core to a graduate nurse’s success in the field. Kathy takes the extra time needed to give a detailed and objective based discussion to students, which is important as it makes theory come to realization at the bedside. Kathy recognized a need in the simulation lab. Kathy took the initiative to offer her service, scheduling student appointments, communicating inventory issues to the Campus Director and mentoring new faculty to the role of a lab faculty. Kathy created a sense of stability and maintained the quality of the lab experience for over 300 students per week, who utilize the Harrisburg campus skills/simulation lab.

Diann Trotman has been an excellent adjunct instructor. She spends many hours building helpful activities and support materials into her classes to facilitate learning. She is supportive and available to all the students in the program. This year Diann went over and above to help the program and the students when we lost a faculty member. She is working closely with the program director to ensure the students get what they need by the end of the semester. Diann is also an advocate for students as well. She relates well with the students and can explain complex clinical theories to the students in a way that they can understand. Diann took the curriculum and improved the content and delivery of the materials. Her contributions have greatly enriched the students’ experience.

Stephanie Wells has been a wonderful contributor to the Political Science discipline and an integral part of the adjunct team that established the Political Science Public Policy degree program. Stephanie has taught in various modalities, including in the classroom and online.  Stephanie was responsible for assessment and discipline-related tasks and worked closely with the department chair and associate dean of curriculum and schedule development. Stephanie enjoys working on assessments and evaluating course learning outcomes. She has demonstrated over time that she is a valuable faculty member that has gone above and beyond the call of duty. Stephanie is student-centered and works closely with the advising office to advocate for the courses students need to complete their degrees. She often holds additional office hours to allow her students the opportunity to meet during non-traditional hours.

John Whitehead is a tremendous asset to HACC's photography program. His student feedback over the course of multiple semesters reflects consistently high course satisfaction. John frequently receives a high rating on the SmartEval score. To provide additional resources for our HACC Photo students, John started a comprehensive Photography YouTube channel to provide video tutorials on photo editing and photography. This covers Adobe Lightroom Classic which is the desktop and laptop version of the program, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Camera Raw, Adobe Bridge, Photo Mechanic, and Final Cut Pro video editing. John uses the channel as supplemental outside-of-class tutoring for his college photography and photo editing classes.  Our students are well served with this award-winning photojournalist. 

Karen Williams has been with the college as an adjunct in the Medical Assisting Program since 2018. She has also helped teach phlebotomy in the MLT program. She is a very caring instructor who has great rapport with the students. She is able to reduce students' anxiety when learning invasive procedures in the MA Program, like blood draws. She encourages students and facilitates their success. Karen is always willing to help out the program or the department. Her upbeat personality and encouraging ideas are perfect for the many projects we work on.  She is willing to go out of her way to cover any classes as may be needed within the MA program. Karen is a very organized and talented lady and brings much knowledge to our students in our program.

Rachel Young has been serving nursing students in Nursing 242 at the Lancaster campus, as clinical faculty since February 2016.  Rachel consistently begins each rotation with a honest and safe discussion focusing on student feelings, about the upcoming rotation. Rachel uses the insights gained in that conversation to adjust clinical assignments to meet the course clinical objectives, while also highlighting how the learned clinical skills can be used in all nursing interactions. This teaching strategy is effective in validating the student's choice of career, and making the student feel they were heard and respected. experiences, Rachel has a reputation of creating a learning environment that expresses care, and actually cultivates a “fun” experience. Rachel is a reliable faculty member, always willing to assist the department with special needs. 

Elmer Criswell

Passing of Elmer Criswell, a long-time employee of HACC, passed away unexpectedly in December. He was instrumental in the HACC Criminal Justice program and well known across the United States in the field of Forensic Science of Polygraph. Elmer was one of the founders of the Mid-Atlantic Police Polygraph Cooperative, which each year brings hundreds of officers from 10 different states to continue education in the field of polygraph. Recently, the Mid-Atlantic Polygraph Cooperative approved an award in Elmer’s name to be given every year. The award will be given to police officers for dedication and outstanding performance in the field of polygraphs and who uphold the highest professional standards and perform outstanding investigative work concerning polygraphs. Our beloved in Elmer is gone but never forgotten. Thank you, Adam Barton, for contributing to the acknowledgment of one of HACC's finest faculty and colleague. 

Human Services faculty held their annual Human Services Student Reception at HACC's York campus in March. Events that evening included a showcase of transfer partners and HACC resources as well as the award of the Outstanding Human Services Award to Gabrielle Carlucci. Our appreciation goes to Dr. Wendy Bratina, Jennifer Britten, Melinda Eash, Sherrill Goodlive, and Aimee Bollinger-Smith for their support of the event.