WNC News and Notes: HVAC, biology labs enhance learning experiences, job opportunities for students
Construction of a heating, ventilation and air conditioning laboratory is nearing completion in Sage Hall Room 101.
Wednesday 7 July 2021
Construction of a new heating, ventilation and air conditioning lab in Sage Hall Room 101 began in February and is nearing completion. In addition, a $1 million project is currently underway to renovate and expand the current Biology Lab at Virgil Hall Rooms 307 and 309, with completion scheduled for January 2022. Both projects were generously funded by the William N. Pennington Foundation, who has been instrumental in helping WNC upgrade classroom and learning experiences for science students.
“Having a renovated biology/chemistry lab gives new energy to the science programs here at WNC,” said Holly O’Toole, director of Fallon Campus. “Students will love working in the redesigned examination room with advanced equipment and the anatomy students will gain a better understanding with the addition of the anatomical table. I’m very excited to be able to offer labs in the new space!”
WNC will begin offering HVAC/R courses in the fall. The Certificate of Proficiency in HVAC prepares students for a career in the heating and air conditioning industry. The new program provides the skills, knowledge, and experience for students preparing for high-demand jobs installing, troubleshooting, and repairing HVAC systems.
The Biology Lab will bring technological advancements to students and dramatically improve teacher-to-student and student-to-student interactions in the classroom. Student tables in the new biology lab will surround the classroom, and large LCD TVs mounted around the perimeter of the room will replace aging screen projectors so that various teacher demonstrations can be easily displayed and seen by students. These upgrades allow students to participate in hands-on lab experiments and undergraduate research.
“The WNC Foundation is deeply grateful to the William N. Pennington Foundation for their investment in WNC. It is exciting to be able to provide WNC students with state-of-the-art education on all our campuses,” said Niki Gladys, WNC executive director of Advancement.
The lab will also become one of a handful of university labs across the country to contain the highly interactive, state-of-the-art anatomical table. This virtual dissection tool provides an 8-foot display of preloaded cadavers, medical scans showing pathologies (MRI or X-rays), and more.
70 Fallon-Area Students Make Spring Dean’s List
Western Nevada College has announced its Dean’s List for the spring semester.
The list of 413 students includes 70 from the Fallon region.
To earn the distinction of making WNC’s Dean’s List, students must complete at least 12 units during the semester and achieve an average of 3.50 or higher.
They are:
Fallon: Hunter Arends, Jelen Rose Bayoneta, Josh Bloomfield, Christine Brantley, Wendy Bullock, Sequoya Casey, Jasmin Castanon Hernandez, Matthew Catlin, Dario Ceresola, Karter Conway, Elvira Correa, Kara Derby, Ashley Devault, Tayler Felton, Grace Griswold, Lauren Halloran, Trevor Halloran, Heidi Hansen, Ericka Heath, Kaitlyn Hert, Samantha Hines, Jayden Jensen, Ryan Jones, Jase Kroll, Isabella Leal, Samuel Lee, Britney McArthur, Joseph Mikulak, Madelyn Mikulak, Eddie Morrow, Amanda Ngo, Sadie O’ Flaherty, Madison Paladini, Shalby Palmer, Hailey Penfold, Callista Perez, Timothy Petersen, Melanie Plasse, Benjamin Polish, Luke Rechel, Lainee Reid, Emma Robinson, Nelly Ruiz, Novaleah Sampley, Skye Schafer, Megan Shyne, Kailyn Sorensen, Madeline Stephens, Maiya Swan, Will Swisher, Jackson Turner, Linda Wadsworth and Shailynn Winter
Fernley: Abigail Abrahamzon, Cailynne Bixby, Samantha Funk, Carson Humes, Brandi Kjose, Paula Maghirang, Mark Mitzen, Persephone Mulei, Khang Nguyen, Christina Rasche, Sherry Stafford, Blakeley Shoemaker, Nayeli Stopani, Jacqueline Torres, Kayla Ward and Kari Weitzel
Silver Springs: Lorraine Fratto
Military personnel can earn points for a diploma
Clifton Bullock’s extensive service to his country put some of his educational goals on hold.
Due to a military credit policy at Western Nevada College, Bullock was awarded college credits toward his military service, accelerating his goal of earning an associate degree.
“My son also applied his Air Force transcript to his associate degree,” said Holly O’Toole, director of WNC Fallon Campus and Rural Outreach. “Because both my sons are veterans, I am extremely happy to offer this program to WNC. I’m so proud of Cliff. He worked hard for his degree!”
Through his US Navy transcript, WNC granted Bullock credits toward an Associate of General Studies degree.
“I’m relieved that my past military and college experiences weren’t a waste,” said Bullock, who served his country in the United States Navy for 20 years as a hospital corps man — a medical assistant to physicians.
Not long after the policy was introduced several years ago, Bullock became the first WNC graduate under the university’s new program to help military personnel earn degrees. Individuals can receive up to 45 credits from their Joint Services transcript for an AGS degree.
“While credits can apply to other WNC degrees, in most cases more can be applied to the AGS degree because of its flexibility, so we encourage the AGS degree,” said WNC Director of Admissions & Records and registrar Dianne Hilliard.
To take advantage of this opportunity, military personnel must submit their Official Joint Services Transcript to WNC’s Admissions Office for transcript review.
For information, call 775-445-3277 or email admissions.records@wnc.edu.
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