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
Just in time for spring break … or when you just need a day to hit the reset button: I’ve boiled down years of research about creative people, creative spaces, and creative habits into a simple way to plan your own creativity retreat, which you can do ASAP, in your own home, with stuff you already own. (The idea for this blog post bubbled up during my own “DIY creativity retreat” over Thanksgiving break.) Why is creativity so important? My very first grants blog post explained how innovative ideas power the best grant proposals. And last year, we learned *creativity* was the No. 1 soft skill sought by employers. This is a skill that is slippery and quite magical, but everyone can be creative. Celebrated biologist Edward O. Wilson believes our capacity for imagination and creativity is the distinguishing trait of our species — a trait that was born as we told stories around ancient campfires. Creativity is what makes us human. So you are already creative … and we can learn how to teach it as well. A creativity retreat can help us tap into our unconscious — this is the mysterious, murky space where creative connections are made, and where big ideas… Continue Reading DIY creativity retreat: Choose your own adventuresRead More
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About three years ago, I first learned about Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU). The private, nonprofit school has been celebrated as not only one of the most innovative colleges in the America … but one of the most innovative organizations in the world. They are able to serve over 3,000 residential students on their campus in Manchester, while enrolling over 135,000 online learners worldwide. All while touting affordable tuition. I’ve been impressed by how SNHU designed themselves to serve those two different student groups: (1) The more traditional student who wants an on-campus, coming-of-age experience … and (2) the adult learner who wants convenience, credentials, and speedy completion times. I blogged about SNHU in 2018. Just recently, I have considered taking a few a la carte classes in screenwriting at SNHU, which would round out my master’s degree and give me enough graduate-level credits if I ever wanted to teach English. Their online program would meet my needs as an adult learner. So I was very much interested to hear what Dr. Paul LeBlanc, SNHU’s visionary president, had to say during this Future Trends Forum (Feb. 25, 2021), available to watch on YouTube. I must give a shout-out to writer/host/futurist… Continue Reading What can we learn from one of the most innovative schools in higher ed? (Plus: *Your* professional development ideas)Read 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.
Recent Posts
- Have you heard? October 28, 2024
- The Game of Life – Innovation Edition! August 29, 2024
- Why Try An LOI? May 10, 2024
- Grant Nerds Unite! March 12, 2024
- The Power of Collaboration November 17, 2023