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On Campus

Social Work Alum Returns to Discuss International Aid

    Between Nicki Adams' junior and senior years at Ferris, she went on a study abroad trip to France and Switzerland led by Dan Noren. Like many students, she dreamed of further travels. Adams managed to make that dream a reality - although she didn't at first think that her destination would be Tonota, Botswana.
    Last spring, Adams returned to campus to discuss her experiences working as a Peace Corps volunteer on issues regarding HIV/AIDS in a country whose official infection rate is between 35 and 40 percent.

Social work alum Nicki Adams discussed her experiences in Botswana at FLITE.

    "The actual rate is probably more than 50 percent, because people usually don't get tested until they are very sick. It's having a really devastating effect on their country," said Adams, who spoke on the topics of "Macro Community Practice in Botswana" and "International Social Work" at the Ferris Library for Information, Technology and Education. 
    Adams works with government agencies to help identify and define prevention efforts in such a way as to promote funding by non-governmental organizations. She also works with local schools to help youth groups organize to promote AIDS awareness.
    "The kids just need some direction. They come together each week but don't really know what to do," Adams explained. "We try to get them out into the community to say, 'I'm a young person. I care. We can help fight this.' They take what they've learned to other schools and perform plays or songs to make it interesting for younger kids to educate them in ways they can understand."
    Tonota is a village of about 15,000 people in the eastern part of the landlocked country situated just above South Africa. After two weeks in the states, Adams returned with a cache of children's books and art supplies for a daycare/recreation center she is helping create to begin to meet the needs of thousands of children orphaned by the pandemic. The Phi Alpha Social Work Honor Society, of which she is also an alumni member, helped organize the collection of the materials. She will be in Botswana for several more months before returning with plans to pursue graduate study in social work with special emphasis on public health or administration.

Student Volunteers "Rock"

Zack Wallin points out changes to the campus to visiting alumnus Art Hayner.

    From summer 2004 through winter term 2005, Ferris students volunteered more than 24,000 hours in service to their campus and community. Last April, Health Care Systems Administration students taking a course in Long Term Care Concepts devoted some of those hours to bringing several residents of a local nursing care facility - including a Ferris alumnus - to campus for the afternoon.
    The outing was one the residents were especially interested in, according to Heather Keener, activities director for Altercare in Big Rapids.
    "The residents asked to come here," said Keener, during the afternoon visit. "We have a lot of Ferris students coming in and doing volunteer work, so this worked out great."
    The excursion began with lunch at The Rock in the University's South Commons Building, then continued with a tour of the campus.
    "We took them through the Recreation Center, through FLITE and we also visited the Rankin Center," said Zack Wallin, an HCSA junior who helped organize the outing. "We walked past some of the dorms to show them how much things have changed."
    One of the visitors to campus, Art Hayner, was especially interested in seeing the Swan Building, where he took many of his classes for his degree in Printing.
    During the campus visit, other HCSA students spent time with Altercare residents at the 100-bed facility baking and decorating cookies.
    Ferris student volunteers support such organizations and causes as the Red Cross, Tsunami Relief and Habitat for Humanity in addition to helping local churches, schools and community centers.

Scholar's Visit Affirms Ferris Debrecen Ties

(L-R) Fulbright scholars Reinhold Hill, John Jablonski, Olga Bársony and Phillip Middleton.

    Linguist Olga Bársony spent the 2004-05 academic year at Ferris furthering the Fulbright program's lofty international goals of promoting knowledge, reason and compassion ­ and also getting ready to launch a whole new area of study in her home country.
    Sitting in her office in the Arts and Sciences commons last spring, Bársony talked of receiving an e-mail from her boss, the director of Debrecen University in Debrecen, Hungary. He was anxious for Bársony to return.
    "They are really heavily relying on what I have learned here," Bársony said. "We are launching a major in technical communications - which will be a new thing in my country."
    During her time at Ferris, Bársony's research into technical and professional writing included classroom observation and meeting with working technical writers. "I was able to see different approaches. I now have a lot of cards up my sleeve in terms of teaching pedagogy, which will help."
    Ferris and Debrecen University have a close relationship thanks to the Fulbright program. Languages and Literature Professor John Jablonski first visited Debrecen in May of 1985, when he was cultural affairs officer at the American embassy. "They treated me like a scholar and an equal, and I responded by helping in any way the embassy could," said Jablonski. "Back then it was in nobody's best interest to be friendly with an American when Hungary was a Warsaw Pact country."
    Bársony, who co-taught Technical Communications with an International Perspective with Jablonski during last winter semester, spoke glowingly of her time in Big Rapids. "I can't begin to tell you how grateful I am for what Ferris has done for me. These are not just empty words, not just rhetoric. I don't think many Hungarians know how helpful Americans can be."
    The cultural exchange between Ferris has been lively at both institutions over the years. Ferris professors Phillip Middleton, Chris VonderHaar, Reinhold Hill as well as Jablonski have all been Fulbright lecturers at Debrecen. "I don't know of any other relationship between a foreign university and Ferris that has this kind of history and mutual regard," said Jablonski.

Governor Granholm Visits Ferris

Gov. Jennifer Granholm received mementos of her visit to Ferris from recent 49th Circuit Court appointee and former University VP for Governmental Relations and General Counsel Scott Hill-Kennedy.

    Last April, Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm toured Ferris' Granger Center for Construction and HVACR with students and administrators during a brief visit to campus. The group made stops at an HVACR lab class and Construction Technology and Management class.
    Gov. Granholm lauded the HVACR program's success in meeting high employment demands and promoted her Jobs Today Initiative. She noted that although Michigan at the time of her visit had a 7.5 percent unemployment rate, there were 90,000 trade job vacancies in the state. "So there's a real skill gap," said Granholm. "There's no reason why Michigan cannot be a magnet for - for example - alternative energy sort of jobs."
    The Granger Center that Granholm toured is home to a variety of hands-on heating and cooling systems, including geothermal, which help students acquire the skills to fill exactly the kinds of positions Granholm referred to in her remarks.
    In addition to her visit to campus, Granholm also made stops at the offices of the Big Rapids Pioneer and met with members of the Mecosta County Chamber of Commerce.