A new, non-credit Nonprofit Management Certificate Program designed for anyone interested in learning to create or manage a nonprofit organization effectively and efficiently, will be offered by Northern Essex Community College’s Center for Corporate and Community Education, Wednesdays from 6 to 9 p.m. for nine weeks beginning May 7 at the NECC Riverwalk, 360 Merrimack St., Lawrence.

This program will be helpful for those new to the field as well as seasoned professionals, nonprofit board members or volunteers. The program covers critical aspects of nonprofit management.

This noncredit course is taught by, Stefanie J.B.  Muscat, founder of Bevara, who has nearly 20 years of experience managing and advising nonprofit organizations. In addition guest speakers will be invited to lecture. A new topic will be covered each week.

Topics covered include, Introduction to the Nonprofit, Legal Issues, Board Development and Engagement, Strategic Planning, Nonprofit Fiscal Management, Volunteer Management, Resource Development and Grant Writing and Effective Marketing. Individuals may register for those classes of interest or complete the entire nine-week long series to earn a certificate of completion.

For more information or to register, please contact Dianne Lahaye at dlahaye@necc.mass.edu or 978-659-1222.

For additional information on all noncredit offerings visit the noncredit webpage.

John Chemaly and Gary Sepe know well the life of an EMT and the skill set needed to perform the job successfully. So when Northern Essex Community College was building its new Dr. Ibrahim El-Hefni Allied Health & Technology Center on Common Street in Lawrence, the two men, who are co-owners of TrinityEMS, didn’t hesitate to donate a fully-equipped ambulance to be embedded in the first floor of the building.

That state-of-the-art vehicle, which will be used in the training of future students enrolled in Northern Essex’s EMT Basic course and Paramedic Technology certificate and associate degree programs, was unveiled at the recent ribbon cutting for the El-Hefni Center.

Chemaly, a resident of Chelmsford, and Sepe, a resident of Pepperell, co-own and operate TrinityEMS, which is headquartered in Lowell and includes 40 ambulances and 275 employees.

In addition to the ambulance, Trinity has pledged $100,000 over the next five years to purchase equipment for the Paramedic Technology Program at Northern Essex. The paramedic technology program exists, in part, because Chemaly saw a shortage of trained paramedics and asked NECC to develop the program.

“I’m committed to doing anything I can to help this college continue its good work,” says Chemaly, president of TrinityEMS. “Our partnership with the college has benefited our company and the delivery of emergency medical care in the region.”

“Industry leaders like John Chemaly and Gary Sepe are committed to helping Northern Essex offer the very best in academic programming,” says Jean Poth, NECC vice president of institutional advancement. “This donation will allow us to train more individuals for jobs in emergency medicine.

The 44,000 square foot El-Hefni Center features a Health Education Simulation Center, where health care students receive hands-on experience in simulated environments such as a hospital intensive care unit, a trauma room, an acute care hospital room, an apartment, and a doctor’s office in addition to the ambulance. The building also includes classrooms and computer labs and a Career Planning and Advising Center where students receive academic and career counseling.

“An important part of the college’s mission is providing local residents with the skills and credentials that will lead to jobs, and that is just what this new facility is helping us to do,” said Lane A. Glenn, president of Northern Essex.

Last year, 381 students received certificates and associate degrees from Northern Essex in health-related fields and 93 percent of those graduates are employed in their field a year after graduation, according to Glenn.

The building is named in memory of Dr. Ibrahim El-Hefni, a native of Egypt who was a longtime resident of North Andover and a successful business owner. An electrical engineer, he began his business in the basement of his home, and for 30 years provided jobs for hundreds of people. Before his death he created a foundation, now carried on by his widow Wensley El-Hefni, which has provided significant support to the college, including a $1 million donation to provide equipment for the new building.

Are you one of the 50 to 70 million adults in the United States who have difficulty sleeping? If yes, you may want to attend Northern Essex Community College Professor John Murray’s Thursday, April 17 presentation at the Haverhill (MA) Public Library titled “How to Get a Good Night’s Sleep.” Free and open to the public, the presentation will begin at 7 p.m. at the library, 99 Main St., Haverhill.

Sleep issues affect all ages from babies who can’t sleep through the night to teens who simply don’t get enough sleep to elderly people who suffer from insomnia. While having a few sleepless nights can be frustrating, undiagnosed sleep issues can also threaten a person’s health, leading to stroke, hypertension or heart failure.

In this presentation, John Murray, coordinator of the Sleep Technology Program at Northern Essex, will provide a general overview of sleep issues.

Murray is a registered respiratory therapist as well as a registered polysomnographic technologist. He earned an Associate of Science in Respiratory Therapy from Newbury College and a Bachelor of Science in Polysomnography from California College of Health Science.

Before joining the Northern Essex faculty in 2007, he worked at the Maine Sleep Institute at Maine Medical Center, where he was the manager of the service. Prior to that, he was the director of Rehabilitation Services at Huggins Hospital in Wolfeboro N.H. where he was responsible for clinical operations in cardiopulmonary care, cardiac rehabilitation, physical and occupational therapy, speech pathology, and long term care patient activities.

Northern Essex offers a sleep technologist certificate which prepares students for a career in sleep medicine. The program includes classroom study, laboratory practice, and clinical experiences. Most sleep technologists work in sleep labs, often associated with hospitals, helping to diagnose sleep disorders.

This presentation is made possible through the Northern Essex Community College Speakers Bureau. For more information on the speakers’ bureau, visit the college’s website www.mass.edu or contact Ernie Greenslade, director of public relations, at 978-556-3862 or egreenslade@necc.mass.edu.

For more information on the April 17 presentation, contact Sarah Moser at the Haverhill Public Library, smoser@mvlc.org or 978 373-1586, ext. 641.

After a 12-year hiatus and because of job demand, Northern Essex Community College has reactivated its Health Information Technology (HIT) associate degree program through its iHealth initiative in Lawrence. This program includes in its curriculum medical coding, medical billing, and electronic medical records.

 Information sessions for the Health Information Technology program and electronic medical records certificate program, both of which will launch this fall, and medical coding and medical billing certificates, which are currently offered, will be held Tuesday, April 8, at 10 a.m., April 22, at 5 p.m., and May 6, at 10 a.m. in the iHealth Building on Franklin Street in Lawrence.

Health information technicians organize and manage health information data by ensuring its quality, accuracy, accessibility, and security in both paper and electronic systems.

NECC’s HIT program will prepare students to be entry-level health information technicians. Students will learn to manage, process, and analyze health data to ensure an accurate and complete medical record. Among other skills, they will learn to apply health information policies and systems that meet with all national and state laws and regulatory guidelines

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that the Health Information Technician field is projected to grow 22 percent from 2012 to 2022, much faster than the average for all occupations.

Jobs can be found in hospitals, medical clinics, physicians’ practices, intermediate care centers, or biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies.

With very few colleges and universities offering a Health Information Technology program,” says Scott Weber, coordinator of the iHealth HIT program, “there is a real demand for graduates of a Health Information Technology program.”

This program, he says, is ideal for anyone who has an interest in both health care and computer technology. Individuals should be detail oriented and analytical, Weber says.

The HIT program includes a 160-hour externship at an area medical facility.

“The program trains individuals for an administrative position within a clinical setting,” says Weber who brings more than 32 years of health information technology experience to the program.

Individuals who complete any one of the medical coding, medical billing, or electronic medical records certificate programs, are eligible to transfer into the HIT associate degree program.

For information on all NECC’s health care programs visit https://www.necc.mass.edu/academics/courses-programs/areas/health/

For additional information on the Health Information Technology program, contact Scott Weber at sweber@necc.mass.edu

Northern Essex Community College Student Nairoby Sanchez of Haverhill will be honored by Governor Deval Patrick at the State House in Boston on Thursday, May 8 as an outstanding graduate of the class of 2014.

A 2012 graduate of Haverhill High School, Sanchez is a Liberal Arts: Political Science major at Northern Essex with a 3.7 GPA.

After arriving at Northern Essex in the fall of 2012, Sanchez quickly distinguished herself as a campus leader.

In her first year, she was vice president of the Student Senate (she’s now president), president of the college’s chapter of Amnesty International, and an active member of the Contemporary Affairs Club.

She also participated in the college’s Student Leadership Program, is a student ambassador, and will graduate from the Honors Experience, a rigorous honors program that’s affiliated with the Commonwealth Honors Program.

As a student leader, Sanchez has organized a textbook lending library to make textbooks more affordable for students. Last year she initiated a spring break community service trip, in which students helped residents of New York who had been devastated by Hurricane Sandy with clean-up.

Sanchez was nominated for the “29 Who Shine Award” by two of her professors: Dr. Steven Russell and Dr. Ligia Domenech, both of the Department of Global Studies.

As Steve Russell wrote, “Nairoby is intensely interested in problems related to human rights and she sees herself as someone who can help address human rights problems in the future.” As an example, Professor Russell sited a presentation on the Rwandan genocide which Sanchez has delivered twice to groups of students and faculty and staff. Calling her the best of a series of presenters, Professor Russell, writes “her presentation caused me and others on the panel and in the audience to think of the Rwandan genocide in a new light.”

After graduating from Northern Essex in May, she plans to transfer to a four-year college and ultimately attend law school. Her goal is to combine her love of government with her interest in international affairs and become a United States diplomat. She speaks Spanish and French in addition to English and would like to learn additional languages—possibly Russian—while pursuing her education.

In May 2011, the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education launched “29 Who Shine,” a program to recognize outstanding students representing each of the 29 public campuses. The honorees, chosen because of their academic achievements and record of student leadership and community service, stand poised to contribute greatly to the civic life and economic well-being of the state. Whether furthering their education or entering careers here in Massachusetts in fields as diverse as education, public policy, medicine, creative arts, and engineering, they truly embody the vibrant future that we all envision for the Commonwealth.