friday takeout

July 12, 2019

CUPPA JOE | straight up news.

  • WMDT-TV in Harrington, Del., broadcasts story on local fire department that won a grain rescue tube from National Insurance. Broadcast features interview with Dan Neenan, NECAS director! ... link


  • Home Base Iowa newsletter highlights the College and its outreach to student veterans ... link


  • Eighty-three students in the US, including one of our Dairy Science students, Bailey Smirnov, received a national scholarship from Targeting Excellence! ...


  • Gas Utility Construction and Service graduate's career is rising with Black Hills Energy in Dubuque, showing that ongoing learning and training is the key to advancement ... news


  • Dairy Science student, Collin Wille, was named the Wisconsin Star Farmer at the 2019 State FFA Convention! ... link

Note to Readers: The Friday Takeout has begun its every-other-week summer schedule. The next issue will be released on July 26.

WEEKLY FEATURE | good to know.

July Edition of Conversation Corner: Goals and Priorities, 2018 - 2019

Our Finances

Establish risk-tolerant strategies that are resilient to market and economic tensions.

Foundation Supports Enrollment and Retention Efforts

Wendy Knight, Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness and Advancement

The NICC Foundation has partnered with the College to fund scholarships and other programs that increase enrollment and support students in completing their programs of study so that they may advance in their academic and employment goals. It is through the generous support of staff, faculty and friends – who make one-time and ongoing gifts – that the following initiatives were created and/or funded in the past year:

  • The Golden Ticket scholarship program was expanded to each founding member of the President’s Circle. The Golden Ticket scholarship ranges from $250 to $1,000 that the President, and now founding members of the President’s Circle, can award to a prospective student to encourage them to continue their education. The President’s Circle is a program that raises unrestricted funds with gifts starting at $5,000. NICC has welcomed four new students with Golden Ticket scholarships given by founding members.
  • The Opportunity Scholarship provides one $1000 scholarship to each high school in the NICC district and three $1000 out-of-district scholarships to recruit new students. In fall 2019, 24 Opportunity Scholarship students will be attending NICC.
  • The Begin Again scholarship is for students who wish to re-enroll but have an existing balance that must be paid. In their scholarship application the student identifies the circumstances that prevented payment and how they will pay off the balance going forward. Through the Foundation, the College can award up to $1,000 to pay a partial or total balance. The College is committed to working with students to help them manage the balance payment plan so that they can continue with their program of study.
  • The Come Back scholarship is aimed at getting individuals who have started a program of study, but stopped out, to finish their program. With financial backing from the Foundation, returning students can receive 50 percent off 3 credits and get back on the path to completing their program of study. To date, 222 students have been identified as meeting the Come Back criteria for fall 2019 enrollment.
  • The NICC Staff & Faculty Endowed Scholarship was awarded to 20 students for a total of $9,000. Students who apply must explain why this scholarship is needed and how it will support them in the completing their program of study.
  • The Student Crisis Fund assisted 76 students in need and 90 percent of those students were able to remain in classes.

Review our FY19 report to learn more about Foundation donors and revenue that support programs like those described above!

Board of Trustees News

The Board of Trustees will meet next Monday, July 15, at the Calmar campus. The meeting agenda and packet can be found in: My Campus > Board of Trustees Meeting Agenda and Enclosures or by accessing this link.

PIES and BARS | sweet data.

Summer 2018 to 2019 Comparisons: Enrollment and Credit Hour Reports Available

The summer enrollment reports have been posted to NICC Shared Files on the Google Drive located at: Institutional Effectiveness > Inst. Research > Official Enrollment Reports by Term > Summer 2019. There are two reports, one with a five-year trend of enrollment counts and credits by campus and by student credit load, and the other showing the enrollment counts by program and by campus. The table above shows the summary counts and credits by campus and student load, with a comparison to summer 2018. For more information, please contact Lor Miller in Institutional Research at the Calmar campus, ext. 203.

BIG FISH | be amazed.

(Editor’s note to readers: Marilyn Boosh isn’t a real person at the College. We just love business words! Send us an email at news@nicc.edu with any comments you have.)


Marilyn Boosh

Associate Administrator of Interoffice Communications | District


What is something you do in your workday that supports the College vision?

Analyze disruptive patterns in campus fabrics. Organize a best practices committee to oversee the review committee that reviews our other committees. Diversify our ecosystem with non-invasive actors with a 360-degree implementation. Create organizational silos to better understand our silos, so the organization can begin to dismantle silo culture. Revisit longitudinal matrices using risk management strategies.

What experience most prepared you for your current role at the College?

I was on the board of adjusters for Investor Fidelity Financials for a decade. I learned so much there. So many things, you'd be amazed if I told you. Too many things, but you'd be so impressed. Before that I did a lot of consultation work and entrepreneurship.

What is the most important memory you have and why?

My father worked in commercial real estate when I was in my formative years; for years I had lavish gifts thrust upon me, but when I was 11 years old, my Christmas gift was a day planner. My dad told me, "If you want any more presents, you'll have to buy them yourself through hard work and planning." I took the lesson to heart; nothing is given to us without work or sacrifice. Although many times I'd just steal gifts from my family, which was a combination of my work and their sacrifice.

If you could invent any product, no matter how unrealistic it may seem, what would it be and what would it do?

I think a time machine would be pretty great. Crush rivals in advance, shape the minds of history's great leaders and make them even better. Normal stuff.

If you had to choose one thing you were most passionate about, what would it be and why?

Creating and leveraging scaling solutions that really impact the school and take us to the next level or even the level after that.

If you have input on a upcoming feature, Big Fish, something to celebrate or a suggestion, email us at news@nicc.edu!