By all accounts, Haverhill’s Jenna Naylor had it all – a happy marriage, three boys, a respectable job, two dogs, a kitten and even a few fish. What she didn’t have was a college degree – a detail this Northern Essex Community College night student is working toward correcting.

Currently holding a 3.62 GPA, the 35-year-old Naylor was recently awarded the Haverhill Rotary Club Scholarship of $1500.She was one of some 200 Northern Essex students, 41 from Haverhill and Bradford, to share more than $200,000 in scholarships.

“This was really important…with the kids, the textbooks, life in general, it’s pretty expensive. It was a relief to receive the scholarship. It will cover my two classes this fall,” she said. “It was also a real honor to be recognized. I’m really thankful.”

When Naylor graduated from Georgetown High School in 2000, she briefly attended Fitchburg State followed by two semesters at North Shore Community College. She knew she wasn’t ready to commit to college, but was ready to work. In 2003, she accepted a position as a dealer relationship manager for an auto financing company. She has been there 13 years.

While Naylor enjoys her sales position, she said, she came to realize she wants to eventually work in health care. She is completing her college math and science classes by enrolling in two classes a semester. She attends NECC classes several nights a week after her 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. job ends, in preparation to enroll in a health care program.

“I really think I would love to be a nurse,” she says. “I love the human body and the science behind it. I really find it intriguing. And, I enjoy caring for people. My Dad is blind so I guess I have a soft spot for individuals who require that extra assistance.”

Naylor is on track to graduate in May of 2017 and continue in a nursing program in fall of 2017. Her dream job she said would be to work as a labor and delivery nurse.

One of the primary reasons the girls of Afghanistan are not educated is because there are so few female teachers to teach them, a reality that the School for Leadership Afghanistan (SOLA) is working to change said Mati Amin, chairman of the school’s board who spoke to Northern Essex Community College faculty, staff, and students Wednesday in the Bentley Library on the Haverhill campus.

He spoke as part of NECC’s “One Geographic Region” Program which explores varying issues of the Middle East.

The school, which is the first and only boarding school for girls in Afghanistan,  brings “quality education to the girls in Afghanistan” said Amin. Typically education is not accessible to them now because there are so few female teachers and culturally families prefer their girls be taught by females.

“For example, of the 3,800 teachers in one province, just 16 are female and only one has a high school diploma,” he said.

Shabana Basij-Rasikh, is president of SOLA, which she founded while still an undergraduate at Middlebury College.

This year, 22 sixth-graders and 14 high-school students live and learn in Kabul. SOLA plans to grow its enrollment to more than 340 girls, representing all provinces of Afghanistan in grades six through 12, within the next six years. Currently, SOLA rents two facilities in Kabul – one for classrooms and one for housing. The school is working with the Afghanistan government to obtain land that would allow it to build a new campus.

The education these girls receive isn’t without danger, Amin said. He cited one father who received death threats if he continued to send his daughter to the school. “We try to create an environment and engage the families so they will recreate a similar environment in their homes,” Amin said. “We work closely with families, especially the fathers. The success of SOLA students is dependent on the support of their families.”

SOLA recruits from all provinces across the country. The students who represent Afghanistan’s many ethnic groups all sign a pledge that they will treat each other with respect and honor their diverse backgrounds.

The current curriculum used by most Afghanistan schools, said Amin, is based on memorization with no room for creative thinking, he said. SOLA is developing a curriculum it hopes the Afghanistan National Government will adopt in part or in its entirety.

In addition to receiving an education at the school in Kabul, Amin said, SOLA’s 14 high school students are paired with more than 30 tutors located throughout the world who meet the girls via Skype. SOLA’s 6th-grade students will also be paired with tutors once their English skills have progressed.

“In that sense,” he said, “they get exposure from around the world.”

Their education doesn’t stop there. To date 38 SOLA scholars have received scholarships to attend boarding schools and universities in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Jordan, Kyrgzstan, and Bangladesh.

“This school gives these girls the opportunity and space for them to become who they are meant to be,” he said.

Armed with an education, these girls may become leaders, entrepreneurs, the head of nonprofits or government employees, Amin said.

“Change starts small,” he said, “Especially in a country like Afghanistan.”

Funding for the nonprofit school comes from individuals and private institutions primarily in the United States.

Amin is the holder of a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Political Science from Williams College, Amin currently serves as the controller & systems manager at the Technical Training Foundation. He previously founded the Afghan Youth Initiative, a U.S. and Kabul-based nonprofit, and worked as a senior associate at Ashoka. A web developer by training, Amin also launched two startups, including a media solutions company. His extensive writing on development issues in Afghanistan have appeared in numerous publications including The New York Times, Foreign Affairs, The Diplomat, The Hill and USA Today.

During the 2016-2017 academic year the One Geographic Region program is highlighting the Middle East with speakers, films, and other programming. On Friday, Oct. 7, Dr. Bill Heineman, vice president of academic and student affairs, will present “The Middle East: It is not as Complicated as You Think from 1:30 to 3 p.m. in the Hartleb Technology Center; on Friday, November 4, Dr. Ligia Domenech will present Introduction to Islam: Some Basic Concepts” in the Dimitry Building in Lawrence from 2 to 4 p.m.; and on Friday, December 2, the film, “Wadjda” will be shown at Opportunity Works from 2 to 4 p.m.

For additional information contact Barbara Stachniewicz at bstachniewicz@necc.mass.edu

Cedar’s Mediterranean Foods, Inc. of Ward Hill donated an array of snacks.

This event was organized, in part, by Ann Grandmaison, NECC’s coordinator of research services.

 

 

A new series of mini-grants—awarded for the first time last year— funds academic research and development, supporting Northern Essex faculty who are experimenting with new ideas designed to address teaching and learning challenges.

Five Northern Essex teams were awarded 2015/16 Academic Innovations mini-grants, and applications for 2016/2017 awards which will range from $100 to $2500 are due by Sunday October 23.

Professors Paul Cavan and Mike Cross were awarded a grant in support of NECC’s forensic science course. The two used the funding to host a mock crime scene event on the Haverhill Campus last spring, during which prospective students and community members were guided through the various forensics research stages. Funds also supported research into the success rate of criminal justice students enrolled in forensic science, with the possible aim of making the course a required part of the criminal justice curriculum.

In addition, grants were awarded to the following areas:

·         ALP Maker Space: funding to implement a Maker Space—a DIY environment through which students are encouraged to create, invent, and explore.  Students built and used cardboard cameras, gaining a better understanding of the value of creating, developing, and collaborating.  Professors Clare Thompson and Elle Yarborough

·         Art: funding to launch an ePortfolio initiative as part of the capstone portfolio course.   The funding received will help professors launch an ePortfolio template and train other faculty members to use and incorporate it into their curricula. The implementation of this initiative will ultimately enable art students to better track their creative process.  Professors Trish Kidney and Dyan Gulovsen

·         Music, Physics, and Engineering: funding for a live musical performance event, using classical guitar, to demonstrate how the physical properties of strings, wood, and air work together to create musical sounds. Professors Oscat Azaret and Johnny Yoon

·         Math/First Year Experience Learning Seminar: funding to support a linked learning community that combines a developmental math course with a first year seminar. Professors Jim Sullivan and Rebecca Rose

In deciding on this year’s awards, priority will be given to proposals that support the recruitment of new adult students and the retention of current students, according to Kim Burns, dean of academic innovations and interim dean of professional development.

Academic Innovations mini-grants are open to all full-time and DCE faculty and interdisciplinary teams of two or more. (Teams can include students as members.) The grants provide, among other things, seed money for creative pursuits and time to explore solutions that will better the classroom learning experience. Funds can be used for faculty and student stipends, focus groups, research, and collaboration. Awards range from $100 to $2500 depending on the amount requested.

Here’s a link to the application form.  Please contact Kim Burns at kburns@necc.mass.edu for more information.

 

 

Mike Cross, associate professor of chemistry and department chair of natural sciences at Northern Essex Community College, will present a free lecture at the Rowley Public Library, 141 Main St., from 1 to 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 15,  in the Community Room. The event is open to the public.

Titled “CSI: Fact or Fiction,” the lecture will cover the myths and realities of crime scene investigations, exploring the authenticity of their depictions in popular television shows and films. Attendees will learn about the strengths and limitations of modern forensics and have the unique opportunity to test their own crime-solving skills. A brief question and answer period will follow the presentation.

Mike Cross holds a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Utah, where he specialized in oxidative lesions in DNA and RNA. He teaches courses in chemistry and forensic science at NECC.  Prior to joining the faculty, Cross was an instructor in chemistry at the College of Eastern Utah.

“CSI: Fact or Fiction” is sponsored by the Rowley Public Library.  Professor Cross is part of the NECC Speakers Bureau, which has speakers available to present to public and private school systems, libraries, service clubs, and more.

For information on the presentation at the Rowley Library, call (978) 948-2850 or visit the website at https://www.rowleylibrary.org/

For information on the NECC Speakers Bureau, please visit the Speakers Bureau website or contact the group at speakersbureau@necc.mass.edu or at 978-556-3862.