The Call - January 2022

THE January 2022 Edition

CALL
of The Timberwolf

TABLE OF

Contents

4 LEARNING
6 LEADERSHIP

8 COMMUNITY

10 CONNECTION

One Wolf One Pack

2

The CALL of the Timberwolf | January 2022

WELCOME

2022

Tomball by Design
Work Continues

The initiative that I announced in the fall DR. LEE ANN NUTT
intended to take advantage of several
intersecting unique opportunities, LSC- President, LSC-Tomball
Tomball by Design, got quickly underway
at the start of the semester. Personnel
from across the college dove into
examining three areas: Structure, Shared
Leadership, and Finance. Surveys were
conducted, best practices examined,
and hard questions were asked. Several
of our subcommittees and task forces

have crafted proposals that President’s Cabinet and I will review in the early part of this
semester with the goal of coming up with a plan we might implement in the fall.

Though I have been formally hands-off in this process so far, the benefits of this endeavor
are already becoming evident to me. The intentional collaboration that has taken place
between areas of the college that may not normally work together has seeded relationships
that I am confident will only grow and make the fabric of the campus stronger. The
excellence and accomplishments of our stellar faculty and staff, much of which you’ll read
about in these pages, will only be enhanced and increased by the sort of cooperative
evaluation that Tomball by Design has afforded us the opportunity to engage in together.

In addition to Tomball by Design initiative, our college has been very busy! I hope you
enjoy this small sampling of what our pack has accomplished in the last few months

3

LEARN

LSC-TOMBALL AWARDED THREE MAJOR GRANTS

Department of Education Awards Will Promote STEM and Student Success
The U.S. Department of Education awarded Lone Star College-Tomball a $2.8 million Hispanic-
Serving Institutions Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) and Articulation
Program grant to help increase the number of Hispanic students obtaining degrees in STEM
fields. The five-year grant will also be used to increase the transfer rate between LSC-Tomball and
University of Houston-Downtown. LSC-Tomball plans to develop the Science First Success Center.
This center will incorporate integrated centralized academic support and guided pathways to
streamline STEM degree requirements, as well as support faculty and staff through professional
development to impact transformative changes. An Hispanic Serving Institution is defined as
an institution of higher education that has an enrollment of undergraduate, full-time equivalent
students that is at least 25% Hispanic. In fall 2021, Hispanics made up 38% of the total LSC-
Tomball student population.

Another U.S. Department of Education award to LSC-Tomball in the form of a $1.5 million
Strengthening Institutions Program grant will help increase overall enrollment as well as
persistence and graduation rates through the Tomball Experience project. We will use these
funds to strengthen equitable access for more vulnerable populations by creating the LSC-
Tomball Career and Transfer Center. The grant will run for five years and will also be used
to strengthen employer partnerships by utilizing strategic planning and evidence informed
practices. Students participating in the Tomball Experience project will receive academic, career,
and financial counseling to prepare them to enter the workforce. This project will incorporate
strategies designed to align academic support practices to changing workforce needs through
the LSC-Tomball Career and Transfer Center.

In a third large Department of Education award this fall, LSC-Tomball received a $1.39 million
grant for a talent search program to help students from disadvantaged backgrounds succeed in
college. Aimed at students in junior high and high school, participants will be offered activities
and resources that will help them not only receive a high school diploma, but then be prepared
to enter Lone Star College. In our case, the program will focus on Waller County schools. A
large percentage of people living in Waller and Royal school districts live below the poverty
level compared to national and state averages. The grant will allow us to provide both group
as well as one-on-one advising and mentoring to students in addition to opportunities such as
out of school STEM programs.
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NING The CALL of the Timberwolf | January 2022

NEW DEGREE TRUSTMARK
PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT

Medical Lab Technician Workforce Scholarship Awarded

Lone Star College-Tomball has been A Lone Star College-Tomball student was
approved by the Texas Higher Education awarded a Trustmark Workforce Development
Coordinating Board to offer an Associate of Scholarship to help her complete the
Applied Science (AAS) degree in Medical occupational therapy program.
Laboratory Technology beginning with its The student, Michelle Koepl, is a first year
first pre-requisite semester in August of this student in the LSC-Tomball OTA program, and
year. Medical Laboratory Technicians (MLT’s) said she plans to put the scholarship to good
are vital healthcare detectives, uncovering use.
and providing laboratory information from “This scholarship is going to help financially
laboratory analysis that assist physicians in with everyday needs,” Koepl said, “such as
patient diagnosis and treatments, as well as in getting back and forth to school and getting
disease monitoring or prevention (maintenance my personal computer fixed so I don’t have to
of health). use the college’s computer.”
MLTs use sophisticated biomedical The scholarship was awarded to 25 members
instrumentation and technology, computers, of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society across
and methods requiring manual dexterity to the country “Members of Phi Theta Kappa
perform laboratory testing on blood and are committed to academic excellence,
body fluids. The program will be housed in and we are proud to partner with Phi Theta
our LSC Tomball Health Science Building and Kappa to recognize their accomplishments,”
will begin accepting applications in the Fall of Trustmark Senior Vice President and Director
2022 for its inaugural cohort in Spring 2023. of Corporate Communications & Marketing
“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to Melanie Morgan said.
begin offering a degree program in another
vital medical field. We all understand the OONNEEWPAOCLKF
importance of accurate, timely diagnostic
testing and we are eager to begin providing
these qualified individuals to the Houston
job market,” said Dr. Christina Hagerty, vice
president of instruction.

5

LEADE

PROFESSOR SELECTED LSC-Tomball have already been impacted by
experiences brought by Colby and the National
for Constitution Center’s Teaching Constitution Center in the fall semester.
Advisory Council
According to its Web site, the National
In the fall, professor Constitution Center is a private, nonprofit
of political science and organization, which serves as a platform for
Student Government constitutional education and​debate and is
Association advisor committed “to disseminate information about
Cory Colby was named the U.S. Constitution on a nonpartisan basis.”
a member of the 2021-
2022 Teacher Advisory ACADEMY GRADUATES
Council for the National RECOGNIZED
Constitution Center.
“I believe this is an Congratulations to the Timberwolves
exceptional opportunity who recently graduated from the Lone
for me to learn from really Star College Leadership Academy. Political
prominent educators in science professor Cory Colby, Government
fields related to mine, as well as developing professor and department chair Alice Ferron,
more ways to positively impact the student and former professional development
learning experiences at LSC-Tomball,” Colby trainer Rene Arnold, completed this year-
said. long program.

Over the next year, he and his cohort will As Lone Star College’s premier Leadership
participate in more than twenty hours of Development program, The Academy is
learning opportunities as well as serve an committed to growing, supporting and
advisory role for educational materials. “I celebrating Lone Star College’s current
am so excited about this and look forward to and emerging leaders by encouraging
spreading the name of LSC-Tomball among Fellows to lead from where they are. The
those with whom I come into contact through Academy prepares individuals for future
the program.” service to Lone Star College, our students,
and our communities through a curriculum
As part of his Teacher Advisory Council role, that inspires a personal leadership
Colby also works to promote opportunities for transformation. The program focuses on
students and the public to interact with high- philosophical and theoretical aspects of
profile and accomplished scholars around leadership, collaboration, problem solving,
important issues of the time and fundamentals strategic thinking, and personal awareness.
of our constitution and form of government.

Many students and other professors from

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The CALL of the Timberwolf | January 2022

ERSHIP

PROFESSOR ELECTED part-time teachers will skills such as resolving
conflicts, how to teach online, and how to deal
to Lead TCCTA with life skills as a part-time teacher. Gilbert
hopes to make sure part-time faculty members
Lone Star College- at community colleges as well as staff have
Tomball government their voices heard.
professor Dr. Patrick
Gilbert was recently Dr. Gilbert’s joy for teaching started when
elected President to he himself was attending Blinn Community
the Texas Community College in Brenham where he received his
College Teachers Associate in Arts degree. He says he felt
Association (TCCTA). comfortable there. “It opened up my eyes to
Founded in 1948, what a community college is.” He grew up in
TCCTA is the largest a family of educators, so his inspiration for
organization of teaching was sparked by his environment.
postsecondary
educators in Texas, dedicated “to the pursuit of According to Dr. Gilbert, “It’s not work,
excellence in teaching and the advancement of when you enjoy what you do it’s not work.”
education.” Dr. Gilbert is the third LSC-Tomball Dr. Gilbert does not plan to stop teaching for
professor to be elected TCCTA president. a long time.

Of his plans for his tenure, Dr. Gilbert VET TECH PROGRAM
says he hopes to accomplish “as much as is AWARDED GRANT
expected of me, as well as to bring the message
to TCCTA to new people.” His wish for the Our Veterinary Technology department
students in his government classes is not much received its second grant in three years
different. “I want my students to understand from Banfield Foundation, the development
the foundations of government. I want them to arm of Banfield Pet Hospital. The most
understand that it belongs to them,” he said. recent grant, worth more than $6000,
will be used to purchase equipment and
As a former part-time or adjunct faculty supplies required by instructors and
member, Dr. Gilbert also hopes to advocate students when treating animals. “These
for adjunct faculty members of community grants are valuable because they allow
colleges. He began at LSC-Tomball as an us to provide contemporary patient care
adjunct in 2011 and then went full-time in by purchasing equipment,” said Vet Tech
2012. He is actively engaged in the American program director and professor David
Association of Adjunct Education, which Sessum, LVT. “Students have access to
“seeks to provide professional development some of the latest technology and newest
with an emphasis towards adjuncts.” They help equipment.”

7

LEADE

8

The CALL of the Timberwolf | January 2022

ERSHIP

9

COMM

CITIZEN OF THE YEAR

Dr. Lee Ann Nutt

The leader of our pack, Dr. Lee Ann Nutt,
was recognized in December by the Greater
Tomball Area Chamber of Commerce as
the 2021 Citizen of the Year. The honor was
conferred on Dr. Nutt by a board, made up
of former Citizen of the Year winners as well
as some current members of the chamber’s
board of directors.

“As undeserving as I feel, I am incredibly
grateful for the nomination and to the prior
recipients for choosing me as this year’s
honoree,” Dr. Nutt said. “It’s more than I ever
dreamed or imagined.”

Chamber president Bruce Hillegeist said all
the voters were enthusiastic about choosing
Nutt as Citizen of the Year. “She is a very
genuine, loving, caring individual,” he said.
“It goes beyond her role as president.” The
award will be officially bestowed on Dr. Nutt in
February at the Chamber’s annual Chairman’s
Ball.

OONNEEWPAOCLKF

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The CALL of the Timberwolf | January 2022

MUNITY

Dr. Lee Ann Nutt, was recognized in December
by the Greater Tomball Area Chamber of Commerce
as the 2021 Citizen of the Year.

11

CONNE

VETERANS DAY
CEREMONY

a Moving Affair

One of my favorite annual events and one
I’m glad we could once again hold in person
is the LSC-Tomball Veterans Day ceremony.
This year, the event was hosted by our director
of professional development Kentrie LeDee
(USAF). It featured a presentation of colors
by the Tomball High School NJROTC, a
welcome by vice president of student success,
Terese Craig, and the Pledge of Allegiance
and national anthem which were each led
by LSC-Tomball students. Our director of the
Office of Technology Randy Sparks (USAF)
also provided a fascinating history of TAPS.
Student and employee veterans were treated
to lunch following the ceremony.

12

The CALL of the Timberwolf | January 2022

ECTION

CHRISTINE BRADFORD LONE STAR COLLEGE
RECOGNIZED BOARD OF TRUSTEES

as a Champion of Equity in the District 1
Geosciences Michael Stoma, Vice Chair

L S C-To m b a l l District 2
Geology Professor Ernestine M. Pierce, Trustee
Christine Bradford
has been accepted District 3
to the charter cohort Iesheia Ayers-Wilson, Secretary
of the American
Geophysical Union’s District 4
LANDing Academy, Art Murillo, Trustee
a Leadership
Academy and District 5
Network for Diversity David A. Vogt, Trustee
and Inclusion in the
Geosciences. District 6
Myriam Saldívar, Chair
Members of the cohort were selected
through a highly competitive process and will District 7
be offered a designed learning experience OPEN
coupled with a high impact DEI project of District 8
the participant’s choosing. Professor Bradford Mike Sullivan, Assistant Secretary
is still working on the details of her project, District 9
but she plans to synthesize work she’ll do for Jim Cain, Ed.D., Trustee
the Academy with her work on the HSI STEM
grant mentioned above. Her hope is to develop
STEM-specific professional development for
LSC-Tomball science faculty, using coarse-level
outcomes data to guide culturally relevant
curriculum changes.

Stephen C. Head, Ph.D., Chancellor

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THE

CALL

@NuttsforTomball
LoneStar.edu/Tomball-President