WSU Learning Center-North Olympic Peninsula

Local Knowledge - Global Access

2010-03-10T15:55:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the WSU Learning Center-North Olympic Peninsula, your resource for Education & Economic Development through Technology. We provide college & career counseling as well as access to WSU Bachelor & Masters degrees via distance learning. We partner with people and organizations to improve quality of life and economic welfare for local and global communities.

Click here to get an interactive map to our facility. To the right are posts of recent activities and projects. Scroll down for a calendar of events, descriptions of classes, and notices. Visit the Otter Room for tech techniques.

Learning Leadership Through Technology

2009-04-16T16:31:00.000-07:00

WSULC-NOP was honored to host ten students, aged 15-18 years, from the North Valley Provinces of Imbabura and Pichincha in Ecuador. A two-day workshop was taught by Pamela Roberts, Jefferson County 4-H Coordinator. With the stamina of a marathon runner, Pamela shared her knowledge of many free software programs available. With Pamela's instruction, everyone created an e-mail account with Gmail , created their own blogs using blogger, participated in a Skype conference to Africa, uploaded their pictures from their digital cameras to their blogs, and learned how to use their to use their cell phones as microphones for long distance interviews. Pamela taught them some useful interviewing skills and how to take photos and video and upload it to Youtube and how to embed this video into their blogs. In all, Pamela showed them about 30 different open source programs. Robert Force and Susan Lionhart from the LC staff demonstrated the virtual world of Second Life.

These young people (with teachers & translators Oscar Beltran, Valentina Benavides, Rodrigo Flores and Barry Moses) visited the Learning Center as part of a month-long visit to WSU and Washington State to learn about tools and technology related to democracy, the environment, and leadership. The excursion was funded by the State Department and in order to participate students are part of a rigorous selection process. Theses were top students in their schools and active volunteers and leaders in their home communities for the environment, human rights and democracy.

Colleen Taugher (Coordinator, WSU International Programs) Valentin a Benavides (Teacher, Translator, In-Country Partner and Support Services) have been working around the clock with the kids, providing everything they need to make this experience beneficial to the students while they are here and helping them acquire the valuable tools and information they will take back to their homes in Ecuador.

Pamela Roberts created a group blog for the youth leaders and their teachers so they can stay connected with one another and continue to share ideas and information. This blog is beautiful to view, with many pictures of the group's adventures and links to the individual blogs the students created.

WSU Virtual Journalism Summit

2009-04-08T15:39:00.000-07:00

Robert Force, Kris Raikes, and Susan Lionhart of WSU NOPLC attended the world's first Virtual Journalism Summit at WSU in Pullman, WA.

They attended virtually within a program called Second Life. This ability to travel within virtual spaces was a topic that was discussed at length during the summit. Cost effective and environmentally friendly networking in this manner is rapidly becoming the norm.

They were able to participate in Q&A with Helen Thomas; Former White House Bureau Chief, Bob Scheiffer; CBS News Chief, Washington Correspondent, Philip Rosedale; Founder of Second Life, Lane Merrifield ; Executive Vice President, Disney Online Studios,
Lila King; Senior Producer, CNN Interactive Storytelling, Erica Driver; co-founder, ThinkBalm, Wagner James Au; Virtual World Journalist, Bernhard Drax; Virtual World Journalist.

Egyptian bloggers Eureka Dejavu and Schmilsson Nilsson of DIP's (Dancing Ink Productions) Dispatches fro m the imagination Age were able to be present in Second Life and premiere their latest documentary - Virtual Journalism: Inside the Virtual Newsroom of the American University in Cairo.The virtual event took place on WSU Island, a replica of the actual brick and mortar of the Pullman WSU campus. If you would like to see more of this event, please visit http://experience.wsu.edu/

The Second Life Adventures of Kittie Serendipity

2009-02-25T13:59:00.000-08:00

The WSU Learning Center has our own Second Life cheerleader, Kittie Serendipity. Kittie is always on the move and out researching new places in SL, attending SL classes, meeting people and learning how they are utilizing their Second Life .

She will be taking snapshots of her adventures and gathering useful information and links to the places she visits.
The Second Life Adventures of Kittie Serendipity is the blog where you can find out what's new and exciting in her Second Life.

Although Kittie's main focus in Second Life is education and new media, she also likes to have fun on the way. She will report on places of exceptional beauty or unique interest she encounters on her quest for knowledge.

WSU Learning Center is on Second Life

2009-02-11T11:22:00.000-08:00

The WSU Learning Center has rented virtual property and is making an online presence in Second Life. After researching different areas of the second life world, the Learning Center decided to rent land from the NMC, (New Media Consortium) a large community of educational organizations. The island where we are located is also the home of Lund University (Sweden), University Lille1 (France), Capella University (online) and Mt. Holyoke College (Massachusetts, USA).

Washington State University in Pullman Washington can be found in Second Life. They have two islands where they are recreating the Pullman WSU campus.

We are learning, building and growing. It is very exciting to discover new ideas and possibilities in distance education. We would love to have you join us in second life. If you are not yet familiar with the Second Life environment, we have created a tutorial that may help you get started. We hope to see you here soon.

Circle of Elders

2009-02-10T16:23:00.000-08:00

Image courtesy of Susan Lionhart - click to enlarge

Pat Perreault of Port Townsend Television is editing her latest project at the WSU learning center. Pat is working on a six part documentary series entitled "Circle of Elders" which will consist of six half hour stories.

Each segment will feature a different guest speaker ranging in age from 75 - 91 years. These people give moving accounts of history as they lived it, and describe how these events changed their lives.

A long time advocate of the environment and human rights, Pat has a history of giving her community a voice and understands the importance of documenting this information. These first hand narrations give us a version of history that we never may otherwise see. They share how their lives and the way they they lived them were forever changed. The first two shows to air will showcase Grace Chawes and Jerry Chawes.

PTTV - Future Tense

2009-02-05T15:31:00.000-08:00

Late in January, Pat Perreault conducted 2 interviews with LC technology coordinator, Kris Raikes, at Port Townsend Television. PTTV airs on cable channels 97 and 98 and also online.

The first interview covered the topic of the mandated conversion of analog television to digital television. The change was set to take place on February 17th 2009. Congress has since moved that date forward to June 12th 2009 in order to give television stations and viewers more time to prepare. Some broadcasters already had prepared for the change and may go ahead with the transition to DTV as scheduled due to the cost of airing both signals.

The second interview regarded recycling our used electronics. Kris points out the importance of reusing as much as we possibly can as this will help reduce production. If reusing is not an option than recycling is our next best choice. Kris has compiled a list of links to assist in finding information about digital television, reusing our electronics, and the best recycling options for us.

DTV

DTV
DTV Coupon Program
DTV=ATSC Digital Broadcast Format
Miro - Opensource Video Podcast Program
Netflix - Streaming Movies
Hulu - Streaming TV and Movies
Boxee - Streaming TV for Mac and Linux

Reuse

TigerDirect Computer Parts and Electronics
NewEgg Electronics
Apple TV
Roku - Netflix Digital Video Player
XBox Live

Ecycle

Jefferson County Electronics Recycling
Ecycle Washington
FreeGeek Oregon
GreenPeace Green Electronics
Greenopia Eco Living
Dell and Staples recycling

Virtual Education

2009-01-27T12:28:00.000-08:00

Many educators are using the the internet as a learning tool and offer online classes (WSU Distance Degree Program, for instance) . A relatively new addition to distance learning is Second Life. Some major colleges and universities have discovered Second Life to be a valuable teaching resource. Stanford University, Princeton University and Harvard Law school are a few who are utilizing Second Life to teach classes. They have virtual classrooms, libraries, art galleries, gardens and more.

January 25 - 30 Second life is hosting an Education Support Faire where academics, students and educators can meet and discuss education in Second Life.

Second life is free to download and use. Simply create an account and design your character, also known as an avatar. Virtual money can be bought and spent on many things such as land or clothing if desired. Some people are using Second Life to earn money as builders or fashion designers. Second Life has the appearance of a video game and is fun to explore. Avatars have the ability to fly or teleport to new and exciting places. Second Life also brings a social element to distance learning and when learning is fun it is definitely a good thing.

OlyCAP & the LC - pt. 3

2008-12-31T13:37:00.000-08:00

Continued from Pt. 2

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Susan Lionhart was initially brought by OlyCAP to us as an un-paid Supported Works client to polish her professional skills and gain insight on developing technologies. She studied at Lake Washington Technical College in the field of multimedia and 3-D computer animation.

Soon it became apparent that Susan had a wealth of skills that fit well into the Learning Center's objective of discovering new channels of discovery and education. One such outlet with which Susan was familiar was Second Life, a virtual environment that allows interactive collaboration and connections to people around the world.

Her capabilites spurred the Learning Center to rent space in this virtual network to develop a presence for WSU. We then hired Susan to create 3-D objects to customize our area, find educational content, network with other interested individuals, and assist state-wide Learning Center staff in navigating this new world.

The near goal was a free, interactive, and easy-to-use substitute for teleconferencing. The ultimate goal was to test the virtual world as a viable area to facilitate distance learning. Susan has proven an apt researcher and, with her natrually bubbly personality, a great asset in networking and relations.

If you want to see some of the results: Susan complements her virtual work with updates on her blog and and Twitter (which are new phenomena, yet more tradtionally website based).

Read Pt. 1 of this onging article

OPen Network Media - Video Class

2008-12-18T13:28:00.001-08:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

The organization is called OPeN Media. No, that is not a typo. It is a web 2.o-style shortening for "Olympic Peninsula Network Media" to align the group with new-media and the direction in which independent multimedia content will likely be moving in the near future.

The group seeks to work as a cooperative that will give local performers and the generally knowledgeable a channel to area enthusiasts & the world at large with an emphasis on open-source or creative commons licensing. This initiative includes archiving pre-existing A/V materials that have not already made their way to the web.

OPeN Media sought our help in training a core group of their members in the process of shooting, editing, publishing & archiving video and audio in a publicly accessible way. This group would then share their knowledge with other group members while working on their own projects.

This process of members sharing their expertise with one another will hopefully continue as each new individual brings unique perspectives, his/her own technical ability, and locally-based content. The content provided on OPeN Media's site (now on Blogger with video hosted by Blip.tv, but soon to be on their own server) could then link back to the artist with option to purchase works of art, video and music.

Helpful Links*:
Wikiversity on Filmmaking
Lowel Lights
DIY Stead-Cam
Free Video Editor for Linux
Free 3-D Effects Creator
Free Sound Effects
Video Distribution
DIY Special Effects

*Awareness of links made possible by Epic-Fu video podcast

Introduction to Mac Computing

2008-12-16T13:35:00.000-08:00

The Learning Center will be teaching a course in Macintosh computing on behalf of Peninsula College starting in January. Due to the growing base of Apple computer users requesting instruction, and our lab being the only Mac lab in the area, Peninsula approached us to satisfy this need.

The class is designed with the beginner in mind, but the intermediate will get some tips specific to the OS X operating system. In addition to getting a strong foundation in terms, the student can expect to learn file & software manipulation, email, troubleshooting & maintenance, online research and internet safety.

The class is currently to capacity in our lab equipped with 9 iMacs. It will begin on January 13th and run every Tuesday from 10 a.m. to Noon until March 17th.

OlyCAP & the LC - pt. 2

2008-11-12T12:37:00.000-08:00

Continued from previous article

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

One of the recipients of the program, Erik Montoya, was placed with the NOPLC as a paid (by OlyCAP) intern as well as in the capacity of a part-time, non-credit student. During the time he was at the LC (thirty hours a week) not only did Erik achieve his GED from Peninsula College, but he also graduated from the Clemente Course with 6 college credits. After his initial placement for six months, his LC-directed job skill acquiring regimen was assessed as having been been so effective that he was given a time extension by OlyCAP, ten months total.

During his internship, Erik digitally remastered three years of Chimacum Valley TV footage for the LC's Community Archive Project (in cooperation with the Jefferson County Historical Society and Port Townsend Television). He gained new skills in hardware and software maintenance as well as in networking. As he worked on various community video projects, Erik decided he would like to become a video journalist. For the short term, he also looked into the possibility of starting a local, small business installing high-tech entertainment systems.

In addition to the other projects Erik worked on at the LC, he was also able to put his new knowledge to use for the Port Townsend Film Festival, creating an animation sequence for the 2008 Festival's 36 film trailers, seen nearly 6,000 times by over 750 attendees. Working with the LC staff and the creative directors at the PTFF, Erik was an integral team member in designing and executing the spotlight-in-sky portion of the animation

Through his LC study and paid internship, Erik was able to advance his education, provide a living wage for his family, and to learn to apply new skills to creatively solve technical issues in a state-of-the-industry, publicly-acclaimed manner. The development of his technical capacities, social and office skills, and the creation of a contemporary, well-rounded and documented portfolio has provided Erik with the confidence to be an asset to the community, whether as wage-earner or as an entrepreneur.

OlyCAP & the LC - pt. 1

2008-11-12T12:22:00.000-08:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

In Fall of 2007, Karolina Anderson approached the WSU Learning Center-North Olympic Peninsula in her new position with the Olympic Community Action Program (OlyCAP). Karolina was familiar with the LC from her participation in the Bard College Clemente Course that takes place here. After graduating from the course she came to the LC for counseling and as a consequence enrolled in, and graduated from, The Evergreen State College.

After getting her degree Ms. Anderson came back to Jefferson County and began working on the Community Jobs program at OlyCAP to assist those in her community with similar hurdles to those she had had prior to beginning her path to further education. As part of her new job, she asked if we would collaborate on working with her clients in conjunction with WorkSource, a State-run employment assistance agency. She believed our strength in the technical & computing fields could greatly help those in need of these skills for the contemporary workforce.

Continued>> Read More

Karen Russell Marrowstone Island History Project

2008-07-31T13:35:00.000-07:00

Karen Russell

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Karen Russell moved to Marrowstone Island in Jefferson County in the early 1970's. Having been raised on an island herself, Oahu in Hawaii, she was intrigued by the history of the people and places of her new home. In 1978, along with Jeanne Bean, she co-authored a book on the history of the island. In a partnership with the WSU Learning Center-North Olympic Peninsula and the Jefferson County Historical Society, thirty years later she is employing modern technology tools to add to the knowledge of the area. Working with NOPLC Director, Robert Force, together they interviewed residents and created archival quality, high definition digital videos that preserved invaluable pictures and stories of the island's past. DVDs of the interviews are available at the Historical Society for research. To further the use of this medium, the LC provides classes in videography and editing in its state-of-the-art computer lab.

Biz Kid$

2008-07-17T17:24:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

The crew from Biz Kid$ (Shilpa, Rusty & Mark), filmed Pamela Roberts and her 4-H youth on location and in the Learning Center's Otter Room computer lab using the tools that their involvement with the organization has taught them. Claire Turner (pictured above) spoke about her use of blogging to communicate with the world and Jesaint Baril gave insight into the shooting, editing, benefits and online posting of video.

Biz Kid$, produced by the same people that made Bill Nye The Science Guy, is filmed for public television to engage youth in the entrepreneurial opportunities available to them today.

Youth Revolution in Jefferson County

2008-05-15T09:55:00.000-07:00

From the desk of Robert Force:

Four young Jefferson Extension workers, including Kris Raikes here at the NOPLC, are going out this weekend with a new look in the form of a youth forum for jobs and sustainability called the Rhody Revolution.

In a series of brainstorming sessions with myself, Kris, and the the founders of the "revolution"-- Shelby Smith and Kai Wallin-- the concept for the name was born, building on recognition for the local Rhododendron Festival which regularly attracts 20,000 people back home to Jefferson County.

Their idea is to promote online forums about what it would take to get youth to move back to the area. Kris helped set up interlocking web pages with access to popular youth sites such as MySpace, FaceBook and Twitter.

The LC dot.commed the name for them to get them started. Assembling the parts of the promotion in less than 72 hours-- and with the festival just a day away-- the RhodyRevolution.com movement now has a website, stickers to hand out at the parade that say "Join the Rhody Revolution", and a coordinated look for volunteers handing out information.

Give it a look at http://RhodyRevolution.com

As a personal note, having taught three of the organizers during some phase of their High School experiences, it is wonderful to have this circle come 'round full.

The local newspaper carried an article on the movement today as well as a ran a full-color picture of the organizers.
(link to original article online)
The project is supported and funded by JeffExt and their economic development group, Team Jefferson.

Good luck all-- and welcome home!

PTFF Silent Auction

2008-04-15T14:34:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to visit

Utilizing a simple blogging solution, an email address and some coding know-how, the LC is helping the PT Film Festival to conduct their silent auction online this year. The current offering of items and services will be ongoing until 4/18/08 or until the guaranteed bids have been fulfilled.

Due to the local-nature of many of the items, using a global medium was not an ideal option. The LC also whole-heartedly supports the local film community. Partnering with PTFF to help generate funds, along with the many generous companies and individuals, was a logical extension.

Visit the site at: PTFF.blogspot.com

To start your very own social network, try Ning.com

Horse Park Development Project

2008-04-08T12:35:00.000-07:00

We are pleased to announce that the information publicity DV that the NOPLC made for the new Jefferson County Horse Park is now finished. The 15-minute DV will be used by members of the Jefferson Equestrian Association as part of their fundraising presentations to public and civic groups.

The goal of the promotional effort is to begin gathering people and resources for the planned 1/2 million dollar facility located on 40 acres off Loftus and Cape George Roads. The DV features many local youth horse champions from Jefferson County talking about how the facility will help them and others to hone their skills. The Washington State Department of Agriculture estimates that horse parks are potentially a 1.2 billion dollar income area for the state with regional horse parks, such as this one in Jefferson County, expected to provide hefty boosts to local economies.

View online!

Rita Marie Kepner, PhD, ABD

2007-12-17T12:57:00.000-08:00

Until recently, Rita was a Graduate Student at the illustrious Edward R. Murrow School of Communication, learning and teaching via distance-bridging tools such as DDP Internet courses & LC-NOP's Polycom video conferencing device.

Rita took her PhD exam this December in the LC-NOP Otter Room computer lab and was happy to report (just 2 days later) that she passed with accolades from her professor. The ABD attached to her title denotes that she has completed her doctorate with "all but dissertation".

Congratulations, Rita! We knew you could do it.

Mobilisa Unveils New Buoy

2007-12-03T15:22:00.000-08:00

Image courtesy of Pamela Roberts of 4H - click to enlarge

Dr. Nelson Ludlow, WSU graduate and CEO of Mobilisa, unveils the company's newest project, a buoy that can be multi-tasked to wirelessly report on shipping, tides, water quality, and more.

To his left is Port Townsend City Councilwoman, Michelle Sandoval. To his right is WSU Extension's Vice-president for Economic Development, John Gardner. Next to him is Team Jefferson's, Bill Wise, and WSU Jefferson's, Kai Wallin. Dr. Gardner was part of a group from WSU Extension and the newly-formed local economic development consortium, Team Jefferson, for a presentation acknowledging the company's innovation and its contribution to local economic development. NOPLC 's Robert Force is pictured documenting the event, viewable at:
http://video.google.com

Video Chat

2007-11-30T14:19:00.000-08:00

We now have a Stickam.com account where we can show live feeds of our daily operations or special visitors exploring our facility.

If a live session is in progress, click the "Enter Chat" button to open a larger player and join the experience using text or your own webcam.

We hope you enjoy this inside look into the LC-NOP.

Kind Words

2007-11-26T15:29:00.000-08:00

We recently received a letter -by post!- that wonderfully addresses the community presence we strive to provide here at the Learning Center. (Click on image at left to read entire text.)

"... I was extremely happy to find the computer lab at the WSU Extension office on Patison Road, open to the public, free WiFi, very fast, and most of all, welcoming to all residents of the community...

...I have seen all kinds of uses of its resources: student's preparing papers and doing research older people creating family genealogies with pictures and audio components, others participating in video conferences and oral history projects....

...What a wonderful community resource you have here, There is nothing comparable where I come from, and I can see Oracle headquarters from my windows. Please keep it in operation for the residents of this area."

Thank you, Sherely Higuera, for taking the time to write to us. Your letter is very much appreciated.

Julia Hudnall Graduates Summa Cum Laude

2007-11-13T15:47:00.000-08:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

All of us here at the WSU North Olympic Peninsula Learning Center want to offer our congratulations to Julia Hudnall. She took on a very challenging program, worked diligently, and just recently graduated from Washington State University with a Bachelors in Social Science. Taking advantage of the University's Distance Degree Program, Julia was able to complete her degree from home without having to put the rest of her life on hold while she did so. We'll miss her smiling face coming in for her proctored tests and occasional chats. Way to go, Julia! Summa Cum Laude (with the greatest praise) indeed!

Historical Society Learns FC Pro

2007-11-13T15:40:00.000-08:00

Image courtesy of Ann Welch - click to enlarge

Seven members of the Jefferson County Historical Society are pioneering methods by which historical information will be gathered and preserved for future generations. Previous archiving relied on voice recordings, written transcripts, and photographs. With the aid of the digital technology available at the NOPLC, these archivists are learning to capture people, stories, and locations using high-definition video. Narratives are recorded with wireless microphones. Priceless photograph albums serve as memory prompts for the interviewees and scripts for the Society's interviewers. The 20-hour class in camera technique, editing and DVD manufacture was taught by NOPLC staff, Kris Raikes and Robert Force.

Todd Trewin, US Olympian

2007-11-13T15:13:00.000-08:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

The third day of shooting for the Jefferson County Equestrian Park video took Robert Force and Sharon Denbro to Redmond, WA. Todd Trewin, a member of the US Olympic Team at the 1992 Barcelona Games, spoke with them about his lifelong love of horses and the opportunities this has provided him, both personally and professionally. Todd recounted that the WA State Legislature, having recognized that such facilities represented nearly 1.2 billion dollars a year of potential revenue, approved 3.5 million to begin construction and appointed him Chairman of the Authority Board for the new Washington State Horse Park under construction near Cle Elum. He said that both Oregon and British Columbia have as many as six each of these types of parks and he looks to helping Washington become a similar destination. Much of this dialogue for the camera was given as he was simultaneously training his son, Alex, in jumping techniques. He pledged his support to help get the Jefferson Park underway.

WCFS Presentation

2007-11-08T14:30:00.000-08:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

In October, the Western Cascade Fruit Society completed a tour of Northern Italy. The group visited numerous fruit producing regions, comparing horticultural practices with their own here on the North Olympic Peninsula. WCFS member, Judy Stewart, came to the NOPLC with a technical problem: how was she to get the 500+ photos off of her camera and into a presentable format for the next evening's meeting? Not only were the pictures successfully downloaded and backed up to presentation discs in both Mac and PC formats, but a third disc, pictured, used the Otter Room Lab's capacity (and staff expertise) to create a DVD with background music and "Ken Burns" transitions-- a 45-minute show.

Growing Green Enterprise Workshop

2007-10-18T14:16:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

More than 80 people gathered at the WSU Jefferson County/ Learning Center facilities this past Tuesday for a Growing Green workshop. Presentations and breakout sessions focused on exploring trends in the evolving field of sustainable business practices and related opportunities for green enterprise development and community revitalization.

Noted eco-investment, risk-capital speakers included Margie Brand from EcoVentures International, Jason Friedman representing Women Entrepreneurs of Baltimore, Mark Bowman from ShoreBank Enterprise Cascadia, and Denise Pranger of the Northwest Natural Resource Group.

Sponsors included the Northwest Area Foundation, EcoVentures International, Women Entrepreneurs of Baltimore, the City of Port Townsend, the Port Townsend Food Coop, Enterprise for Equity, Northwest Natural Resource Group, Kitsap Bank, First Federal Bank and Washington State University Jefferson County.

LC staff recorded the event in high definition. Copies of the presentations are available on DVD from Jefferson Extension as well as net-streamed. Each segment is downloadable and able to be embedded to websites or blogs.

View the event on Google Video:

Horse Park Project pt. 2

2007-10-11T14:29:00.001-07:00

The second shooting day for the informational video helping to promote funds and interest in the new Jefferson County Equestrian Park took place on a rainy October 10th afternoon. Luckily, the clouds parted and two local, young riders demonstrated for the camera some of their Western competition riding skills. Galloping hard in figure-8 barrels, Sasha O'Meara's wireless mike went flying off into the mud. No harm done as thundering hooves and her commentary made it on to the tape.

Sasha is with the Jefferson County 4-H Rising Stars horse club. She was awarded exceptional top honors at the 2007 Washington State 4-H Fair in Puyallup, distinguishing herself as Grand Champion in Stock Seat Equitation, Grand Champion in Bareback, Reserve Champion in Hunt Seat Equitation, 4th Place in Showmanship, 8th place in Trail, and also received a Blue Ribbon in Herdsmanship.

Psychology Class Held at LC-NOP

2007-10-09T15:22:00.000-07:00

In most distance education programs, students never get a chance to actually meet with their professors. Not so for WSU DDP students! As part of the world class, face-to-face commitment to excellence on the part of Washington State University, Dr. Paul Whitney met with three of his WSU Distance Degree students here at the Learning Center. The students were in his Psychology 499 class on human memory, sponsored in part by the Associated Student Body and DDP.

Port Townsend Film Festival 2007

2007-10-09T13:54:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

The LC-NOP and Jefferson Extension combined their efforts again this year in support of the 8th annual Port Townsend Film Festival. WSU LCD projection equipment was used at the Pope Marine Park, one of the festival's five venues used to show over 60 films in three days. A large sign proudly proclaiming WSU sponsorship decorated the building.

In front of the historic Rose Theater on Taylor Street, NOPLC's Robert Force directed a beer and wine garden hospitality center for festival goers to meet film directors, including this year's guest artist, Elliot Gould. Thurston County Extension Director, Cliff Moore, stopped in for a bit of the fun and helped serve dinner to 550 festival guests on opening night. Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times chief film critic recounted festival highlights, available in the Seattle Times archives.

Film 2880 Winners at PTFF

2007-10-09T10:54:00.001-07:00

Image courtesy of Lisa Whiteman - click to enlarge

The Summers/Glenn team from our previous post (the 2 top left, above photo) won 3rd place in the Film 2880 International Fast Film Contest and had their film shown among the other winners' short films at the 2007 Port Townsend Film Festival. This gave them the opportunity to meet festival guest, Elliott Gould (shown top-center), and make connections with other creative individuals.

Congratulations Gigi & Shannon, and thanks to Peter Wiant,Final Cut Pro instructor for the LC-NOP (shown bottom-center), for creating the wonderful opportunity of Film 2880 for local talent. Lc-NOP Director, Robert Force, one of last year's top prize winners for his entry is pictured bottom left.

Lela Hilton receives 2007 Humanities Washington Award

2007-10-09T09:57:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Former Learning Center Director, Lela Hilton, was honored for her work in the Humanities as the force behind the Jefferson County Bard College Clemente Course in the Humanities. The Clemente Course, prior to Lela's adaptation of the program, was only available in urban communities. Her rural version has been such a success that the founder of the Clemente Course, Earl Shorris, is using it as a template for his new undertaking in Darfur, Sudan.

Lela's friends and colleagues joined her for the award ceremony at the Inn At Port Hadlock's Art Mine Gallery. Among the WSU supporters were Associate Dean Rob McDaniel, Learning Center-NOP Director Robert Force, and Clemente graduate & assistant at the LC-NOP Kris Raikes.

At the end of the ceremony, Lela Hilton pledged her $1,000 cash portion of the Humanities Award to the above mentioned Darfur Clemente Course.

Learn more at the Humanities Washington site

Horse Park Project

2007-09-27T13:44:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

On September 14th, 2007, shooting began on the Equestrian Park Project showcasing the proposed new area for horse enthusiasts. The director of photography is the Learning Center's own Robert Force. Brianne Hagarty (pictured above) kicked off the video project by riding through the site, captured on video and by wireless mic, commenting on how helpful this facility will be. The next day Brianne headed off to begin her college career, with the intention of eventually finishing at WSU with a Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine.

In an excerpt from the script, Sharon Dembro (phone: 360-385-4045) concludes, "What if the County's many at risk young people had another option, another passion to see them through difficult years? A Horsepark for Jefferson County & the Olympic Peninsula -
Together we can go from what if to reality!"

Port Ludlow Computer Club

2007-09-27T12:12:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Over the last two weeks, the Port Ludlow Computer Club has been instructing it's members in the use of OS X and its various, highly-intuitive integrated softwares on our 9 Dual Core Intel iMac's while one student used her own Mac Book connected to our free wi-fi. The class was so helpful and engaging that many members were overheard asking when the next sessions would take place.

Kimberly Montgomery

2007-09-27T11:35:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Kimberly Montgomery is our most recent WSU Distance Degree Program (DDP) graduate to visit the LC-NOP. As a DDP student, she participated in the annual river raft trip and maintained an exceptional GPA. On the President's Honor Roll, Kimberly graduated in the Spring of 2007 .

Unofficial Film 2880 Sponsor

2007-09-11T16:46:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Shannon Summers (foreground) and Gigi Glenn (back) entered into the Film 2880 International Fast Film contest in which they, along with 25 other groups, must create a short film in a 48-hour period. They had a last minute technical problem in the DVD output leg of their effort and came to the LC-NOP to get their film over the finish-line.

Another group, including Christopher Overman, Sidoniz Wilson and our lab-docent Gabe Van Lelyveld, made use of the Otter Room computer lab the previous day to edit and output their 2880 project. We wish both teams, as well as the other 20 finishing groups, luck and look forward to seeing the results at the PT Film Festival.

Making Use of Photo-sharing

2007-09-04T19:55:00.000-07:00

To give everyone a window into the LC-NOP, we have created a flickrr account to share ourselves with the world. Below is a uniquely interactive slideshow widget of those images, or you can view the profile at www.flickr.com/photos/cougarroom

To make your own go to the Flickr Slideshow Generator. You can make slide-shows of your flickr account or someone else's. But, you'll need the site's assigned ID number. It can be traced at the idGettr.

Marine Science Center Project

2007-08-30T11:17:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of Libby Palmer - click to enlarge

Libby Palmer, Co-founder of the Port Townsend Marine Science Center located in the Fort Worden State Park, recently had need of a way to get instructional footage from her DV camera to a medium that could be viewed by others. After Libby received a short orientation in the use of our JVC SR-MV30 DVD Recorder, she was able to transfer her video tapes to DVD's. She's a fast study and did all of the work herself. The footage will likely be made available on the web in the near future.

PT Marine Science Center links of note:

Orcasound Hydrophone Network (tracking of Orca whales through underwater sound)
Direct link to PT MSC's live hydrophone streaming audio webcast (hear what whales hear)
PT MSC in Education (an illuminating article by FOSSweb)

Our Facilities

2007-08-19T23:50:00.000-07:00

"Walk" Accepted to PT Film Festival

2007-08-14T12:49:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of Al McCleese - click to enlarge

Walk, the documentary created by Gabe Van Lelyveld, has been officially accepted to the 2007 Port Townsend Film Festival. The entire project was edited, printed, duplicated and promoted by Gabe in our Otter Room computer lab (view earlier posts on "Walk"), including the creation of a website (using experimental online web-design software) and posting of the film's trailer to various video-sharing networks for world-wide accessibility.

The festival takes place September 28th-30th and Walk will be shown in one of the "shorts" series - times TBA when the program is released in the beginning of September. Check the PTFF website for updates.

Congratulations Gabe!

Jefferson County Fair

2007-08-13T15:40:00.000-07:00

August 11, 2007

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Kris Raikes, the LC-NOP lab-tech, and Butch, the WSU mascot, represented WSU at the Jefferson County Fair in Port Townsend this weekend. The booth, organized by Matt Lyons of Jefferson Education Center, was a nexus of information to fair-goers for all of the higher education offerings in Jefferson County. Many of the patrons were pleasantly surprised to see the large number of educational opportunities available to our area.

Lela Hilton in the LC

2007-08-12T16:16:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of Matt Sircely - click to enlarge
Lela Hiton (far-right) awards diploma to Clemente Course graduate

Lela Hilton recently needed a base of operations to continue her work with the Bard College Clemente Course and teaching online courses for ECC. The Learning Center was happy to accommodate. The pairing is a logical step, as making education available to our rural residents is the driving goal of WSU's Distance Degree Program and the Jefferson County affiliate of the Bard College Clemente program is the only rural component to the urban-based education initiative founded by Earl Shorris.

Read Mr. Shorris' note to the Jefferson County Bard College Clemente Course

Getting A Grip On CSS

2007-08-02T16:22:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Raphael, a Bard College Clemente Course graduate, has been utilizing the Otter Room as a resource since 2004 to embark on self-directed learning. Here he is seen taking an exam on CSS (cascading style sheets) on the W3Schools site, an online web-building education knowledge-base. He is upgrading his web-design skill-set with this relatively new layout medium to apply in concert with his graphic design, video and audio abilities to gain a foothold in the competitive digital field.

Karen Russell Marrowstone Island History Project

2007-07-31T13:47:00.001-07:00

Karen Russell

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

George Nordby Talks Turkey

2007-07-31T13:25:00.000-07:00

George Nordby

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

George Nordby (WSU 1966) shares stories with Karen Russell about his childhood spent on Marrowstone Island, where his father, George, was the uncontested champion turkey grower. A thriving local industry now little-known to today's residents, in the fifties, farmers on the island grew, slaughtered, and shipped thousands of turkeys to markets in the Pacific Northwest. George recounts the many challenges of getting birds ready for market before the days of refrigeration. He is shown holding one of the trophies presented to his father by the Jefferson County Fair Association for the "Best Display Poultry by One Exhibitor." One of the pictures he supplied for the Historical Project archival filming has the prize-winning bird standing next to the trophy, three times as tall! Among many other tales, he tells of his father winning a car in the 1938 Port Angeles Salmon Fishing Derby.

Ten-year and Tenure

2007-07-27T16:45:00.001-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

John Winder, Associate Dean and Associate Director of WSU Extension beams for the camera along with North Olympic Peninsula Learning Center Director, Robert Force, and Jefferson County's WSU Extension Water Quality and Environmental Stewardship faculty, Pat Pearson. Dr. Winder's recent visit to Jefferson County was happily coincidental with personal landmarks for the two local Extension educators. Robert is holding a certificate commemorating ten years of service to the University, and Pat, earlier the same week, had just finished all of the exacting documenting process for her tenure review. Big smiles all around!

Wendy Edwards Closes in on a 20-year Dream

2007-07-27T16:41:00.001-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

WSU Distance Degree student, Wendy Edwards, proudly displays her WSU Alumni license plate holder. Received from LC Director, Robert Force, as she arrived at the LC, it was a fitting incentive to polish off the last two tests she needed for her Bachelor's Degree. As this blog was being written, Wendy finished the tests to bring to a close a journey started when she first attended WSU's Pullman campus 20-years ago. As with many DDP students, other life needs and choices changed her education pathway-- but not her destination.
Congratulations, Wendy!

Jefferson Historical Society Project

2007-07-27T16:35:00.000-07:00

Clara Lybeck

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Karen Russell's 10th interview in the Marrowstone Island Jefferson Historical Project is with long-time resident, Clara Lybeck. Clara continues the research project by verifying previously collected data and adding observations of her own based on her lifetime on the island. As in previous interviews, Clara brings to the project family photographs that add valuable backgrounds and settings for the narrative.

Visit www.jchsmuseum.org for information on the organization

Learning Center by the Numbers

2007-07-25T14:02:00.001-07:00

With the addition of Kris Raikes to the NOPLC staff, it has been possible to closely track our interactions with the public this past year. His "data mining" expertise has helped us paint an accurate picture of the areas in which we serve the public.

Click for detailed view

In these two charts, the first depicts public contacts made via telephone, email, or in person by which LC staff have: (1) met the needs of a WSU enrolled student, (2) addressed community classes or projects or, (3) provided one-on-one college or career counseling. Not recorded are any meetings, conferences, presentations, or other public encounters. Last year, 1,147 individual patrons used the LC facilities and/or worked directly with LC staff a total of 3,381 times.

Click for detailed view

This second chart adds the internal (WSU and Jefferson Extension) emails we generated to facilitate our services. IN-email is not tracked, only OUT-email requiring a staff response. In this way all list-serve or spam is sorted out of the tally. These important exchanges enable us to get advice from our University and County colleagues, hence its name: the "Business of Doing Business", bringing the total of LC-NOP Community & Educational Support contacts for the year to 5,385.

House on the Borderland

2007-07-25T13:27:00.001-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Dylan Quarles, an independent contract student at The Evergreen State College, is viewing a rough cut of his movie, House on the Borderland, in the Learning Center's Cougar Room. Dylan spent an entire school year-- 3 quarters for 48 credits-- adapting, filming, and editing British novelist, William Hope Hodgson's 1908 supernatural novel of the same name.

LC Director, Robert Force, was Dylan's mentor for the project, suggesting the Hodgson novel as the basis for his film to expand upon Dylan's interest in the Lovecraft-style literature that, along with early films such as Nosferatu and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, helped to create the modern horror film genre. Robert met with Dylan frequently during the year to critique his efforts and, along with TESC faculty members, Ruth Hayes and Julia Zays, helped guide him through his second feature-length film production.

Jefferson Historical Society Project

2007-07-24T17:40:00.000-07:00

Pat Fieldler

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Pat Fielder, along with Karen Russell, is shown holding an old, sepia-toned family photograph of the Nordlund Ferry. Pat discusses with Karen the influence of the 7th day Adventists on Marrowstone and provides pictures of the separate, non-public school she attended for Adventist children. Many close-ups of her photographs were included in the ongoing documentary being filmed by LC Director, Robert Force. Many smaller-than-postage sized photographs were included is this interview. When the footage is edited, it will make it possible to see these rare photographs and hear Pat's recounting of the people in them in high definition, full-screen, motion picture quality.

Visit www.jchsmuseum.org for information on the organization

Jefferson Historical Society Project

2007-07-24T17:38:00.000-07:00

Al Johnson

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Al Johnson, with his sister-in-law, Mary Catherine, helps Karen to record more of the history of the Marrowstone Island area. Al's family were settlers on adjacent Indian Island, now a US Navy base. He tells stories and reminiscences about the characters of the bachelors who lived on the islands and helps to untangle the bloodlines and marriages of the many Johnson families, related and not. He describes the Native American encampment on the north end of Indian Island and recounts having seen their chief, The Prince of Wales.

Visit www.jchsmuseum.org for information on the organization

Jefferson Historical Society Project

2007-07-24T17:37:00.000-07:00

Cee Rowe

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Karen Russell interviews Cee Rowe, whose family lived on Oak Bay across from Indian and Marrowstone Islands. Cee, with pictures and tales, paints a picture of the 50's and 60's in the area when her family owned 10,000 chickens and ran an egg business that stretched across the north end of the Olympic Peninsula. Later as an adult, Cee moved onto Marrowstone, built a house, and raised a family with her husband, Gary. Most of the historical record of this interview focuses on her childhood memories of the Island.

Visit www.jchsmuseum.org for information on the organization

Jefferson Historical Society Project

2007-07-24T17:32:00.000-07:00

Pat Burns

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Pat Burns is pictured outside of one of the oldest family homes still standing on Marrowstone Island, the Solie house at mile number 8 on highway 116 East in Nordland. This fine old house overlooks the southern end of Mystery Bay, connected to the the main road by a causeway. Tales in the kitchen of this home and of the Solie Family who lived there (and still do!) is the subject of Karen Russell's 6th interview.

Visit www.jchsmuseum.org for information on the organization

Jefferson Historical Society Project

2007-07-24T17:31:00.000-07:00

Carl Johnson & Family

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Karen Russell begins her 5th interview in the Jefferson County Historical Society' documentation of Marrowstone Island with tales of turkeys and the dire consequences (tongue in cheek) of interfering with one of the Island's main economies of the 40's and 50's. Carl Johnson and members of his family gathered at Karen's home bringing numerous photographs and anecdotes of growing up on the Island. Robert Force of the WSU NOP Learning Center again provided the camera work.

Jefferson 4-H Leadership Camp

2007-07-24T17:18:00.002-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Fifteen teens from East Jefferson County attended the filrst of two, week-long, summer leadership camps put on by local 4H Director, Pamela Roberts. One of the many team building activities led by instructors Susan Latham and Nancy Wyatt was photo documenting the camp. Students and their families are shown getting ready to view a DVD assembled and edited in the NOP Learning Center media lab by team members under the direction Pam Roberts. NOPLC tech, Kris Raikes heads off to the side of the room having started up the DVD on the big screen. Each student went away with their own copy-- hot off the press-- manufactured on the spot by the LC's staff.

Martha Anthony Gets Alumni Plate

2007-07-24T17:18:00.001-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Martha Anthony is congratulated by LC Director, Robert Force, after having taken her final test of her final course for her WSU Bachelor's Degree. A Jefferson County, WSU Distance Degree Student (DDP) for the past several years, Martha has diligently pursued her degree while also holding down work and other responsibilities. While her actual degree won't be posted for several months, it seemed like an appropriate time to welcome her into the ranks of WSU Alumni.

Andy Mackie Gives 35th Scholarship

2007-07-24T17:16:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Andy Mackie, holder of the Guinness Book of World Records for the Largest Harmonica Band (1,706 participants), is pictured with LC Director, Robert Force. Andy stopped by the LC office to tell Robert that the result of their having collaborated to set the world record two years ago has resulted in significant increases in donations to his Andy Mackie Music Foundation and that he had just finished giving away his 35th, $500.00 scholarship to a local college-bound youth. Andy's many programs include promoting music in the public schools by teaching and supplying students with free dulcimers, strum sticks, violins and, yes, harmonicas, having personally taught more than 1,000 elementary students to play.

Lavender Conference - 2nd Edition

2007-07-17T16:22:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Last year (2006) WSU Clallam Extension was approached with the project of filming the 3rd North American Lavender Conference in Sequim. Key speaking engagements and lavendar workshops were recorded and the resulting products was a 21-disc DVD set.

50 sets were created with full production additions (such as opening sequences, credits and menus). That means that over 1,000 discs were duplicated and printed in this first run. Each set sold for $149.00.

The discs were so popular that the Sequim Lavender Growers' Association sold out. This year they asked us to produce 20 more sets with the possibility of creating single DVD offerings of the more sought-after segments of the set, including cooking techniques and aromatherapy.

Documentary Film in Final Stages

2007-07-03T14:50:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of Al McCleese - click to enlarge

Our Docent, Gabe Van Lelyveld, has submitted a rough-cut of his documentary, Walk, to the Port Townsend Film Festival. He is currently in the process posting the film's trailer on video and social networking sites and raising funds for completion costs.

About the story, Gabe notes:

The film tells the story of a young man who recently completed a peace walk of no ordinary kind. Carrying a sign that read, 'Walk 'til I Drop for Peace,' he left Port Townsend, Washington early in the morning with the intent of walking non-stop and without taking on any calories (only hydrating) until he reached the point of complete physical and/or mental exhaustion. Through footage shot during his walk (both my own and that of the young man himself) as well as interviews conducted before and afterwards, the film chronicles this amazing event and serves as a portrait-in-time of a young man and his search for meaning.

Gabe has made plans with The Learning Center to do a 100-disc run of DVD's to send to future festivals & sell to the public or gift to donors.

Find out more and see the trailer at walkthedocumentary.googlepages.com

Update: The completion of the audio CD from The Solvents saw a run of 30 discs to send out as a bonus to the DVD for the film project's donors.

Local WSU Alumnus Works with ISSS

2007-06-27T12:53:00.001-07:00

Image courtesy of ISSS - click to enlarge

Jack Scherting, Ph.D (WSU, 1970) recently approached his local WSU Learning Center to find a format transfer solution. He needed to convert VHS video-tape of a model demonstrating the dynamics and permutations of 'monads' to digital format. The original version was done at Utah State University in 1992.

The model is to be used as the basis for a presentation at a meeting of the International Society for the Systems Sciences. The conversion to digital format was necessary to enable a technician in Malaysia to develop an updated, animated version. We outputed a cross-platform accessible copy of the video and hosted it on the web for the overseas technician to use as a template. By using the web to transfer the visual content the problem of getting a physical DVD to Malaysia was solved, saving time and money.

NASA Comes to the NOPLC

2007-06-26T12:49:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Laura Tucker (shown in screen insert) is viewing the inside of a Russian space station via telecast from the Glenn Research Center in Ohio. She is employed by the Lawrence Hall of Science at UC Berkeley, a resource center for preschool through high school science and mathematics education.

Laura lives in Jefferson County and uses the WSU-LC tech lab to reach educators across the country, working with a NASA grant to facilitate strategies for K-12 math and science teachers of disadvantaged youth.

Gabe Van Lelyveld - diligently editing his film

2007-06-13T13:28:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Our new docent, Gabe, is seen above taking a rare, brief break in the process of editing his independent documentary film, "Walk". He is using the facilities at WSU Learning Center-North Olympic Peninsula equipped with 9 iMac's, each installed with Photoshop and Final Cut Pro, among other softwares.

In return for lab time and learning materials, Gabe offers his time and expertise to other Computer Lab patrons. Lab availability can be ascertained using our calendar below.

Jefferson Historical Society Project

2007-06-08T13:15:00.001-07:00

Bob Brown

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Bob Brown shows Karen Russell how the big guns were fired at Fort Flagler, located on the north end of Marrowstone Island. Named after Brigadier General Daniel Webster Flagler and established in the late 1890's, this old federal fort was one of the three bases creating a "triangle of fire" that protected the entrance to the Puget Sound.

Now a Washington State park, Bob is a volunteer there who has his hand in everything from historical tours to restoration of the fort. A walking encyclopedia, Bob's tour took us down into the gun emplacements, powder magazines, the power station, and around the various buildings. This is the fourth in a series of interviews by Karen on behalf of the Jefferson Historical Society documenting the history of the island.

Jefferson Historical Society Project

2007-06-08T12:49:00.000-07:00

Paul Heinzinger

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Pictured above is historian, Karen Russell, of the Jefferson Historical Society. With her for her third interview in this series is Paul Heinzinger, whose personal history with Marrowstone Island goes back more than 75 years. After earning his Masters in Engineering from Stanford University, Paul spent many years off of the island but retained the family land just north of Mystery Bay, visiting often. Karen's video interview includes snapshots from the family album documenting the changes in the environment of the island.

Cougar Room Calendar

2007-06-01T14:48:00.000-07:00

If you haven't already seen the Cougar Room calendar at the bottom of each page, take a look. It gives a schedule of events and computer-lab notices for your WSU Learning Center-North Olympic Peninsula.

Our calendar can also be viewed full-screen for easy readability, downloaded in XML or iCal formats for off-line access (i.e. PDA or un-connected laptop), or subscribed-to using the button on the sidebar of every page.

Below the main calendar is Robert Force's schedule. It is useful for DDP students, prospective students and the general public to find the best times for counseling, scheduling exams & brain-storming community projects. Robert can be contacted at any time by cell-phone at:
(360) 774-1978

To get an expanded view of any event in which you are interested, simply click on the text of that event and a new page or browser tab will give you full details (maps are available for select entries). This functionality is available on both calendars.

WECN Conferencing

2007-05-31T16:18:00.000-07:00

WSU ITV schedule available here:
cru.cahe.wsu.edu/wecn/calendar/

PT SLUG Summer Notice

2007-05-31T12:18:00.001-07:00

The Mac Digital Media workshops (SIGs) that normally take place in the WSU computer lab are canceled for the summer.

The Mac Basics Class will be taking its place in June (see previous post on this). PT SLUG will then be on hiatus from WSU though July & August.

The workshops will resume in the fall, on September 28th. The topic will be editing photos in iPhoto. Comparisons will be made between some of the photo editing differences of iPhoto and Photoshop Elements.

4H Network News

2007-05-29T12:26:00.000-07:00

Click To Enlarge Image

Under the supervision of WSU Jefferson County 4H faculty, Pamela Roberts, local 4H'ers have this past year created more than 100 video blogs using the Learning Center's facilities. Under the name, 4-H Network News, club leader, Jack Olmsted, was instrumental in bringing an awareness of the use of blogs to local staff and students. Building on a video production 4H club formed four year ago by LC Coordinator, Robert Force, the club has been able to take their productions to the world, creating links to the Jefferson County Leader, CNN, National 4H and even the Washington State Governor's office.

The Courthouse

2007-05-29T12:24:00.001-07:00

Image courtesy of Movie Makers - click to enlarge

Local production team, Movie Makers, is nearing the end of a year-long, full-length feature project called, The Courthouse. Involving more than 50 community members, co-producers, Maureen Poole and Matt Wallace, under the direction of Jack Ravage, have brought to life an original script in which an old courthouse is turned into a welcoming bar and pub. One of the former judges turns proprietor and begins to see many of his old clients in a new light. More than fifty hours of post production took place in the LC's computer lab.

Intensive Final Cut Pro Level I class

2007-05-25T13:21:00.000-07:00

Instructor: Peter Wiant

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Peter is a noted local filmmaker and the creator of the international film competition, "Film 2880" which encourages individual story telling using the power of modern technology.

Wiant has a Masters degree in Journalism, an extensive history in digital prepress and printing and has been teaching and mentoring in Mac software for over 15 years. He was the 1st to become an Apple Certified instructor of Final Cut Pro in the Northwest.

The most recent session took place April 10th-14th, 2007 (24 cumulative hours).
Future classes TBA.

The New Face of Telecommunication

2007-05-25T13:06:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

The above image is an example of the LC's capability to facilitate communication that was previously cumbersome and impractical.

Here, LC tech Kris Raikes is setting up a video conference with Jack Reid who is at his home in Gillette, Wyoming. A team from the Jefferson County Public Works Department used this link to interview Jack the next day for the position of Supervisor of County Roads. Jack was hired.

We make use of both time-tested methods and state-of-the-art technology to guide the Olympic Peninsula and locales far-removed into the Information Age.

Chimacum HS Accreditation

2007-05-23T14:32:00.001-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

LC Coordinator, Robert Force, is pictured with Tom Edwards, Dean of Students at Washington HS in Tacoma. Both were part of a team of educators who spent a day at Chimacum High School interviewing students and faculty about District goals. The event was part of a self-study for accreditation renewal. Reunited for the first time in nearly 20 years, Tom was a former student of Robert's in the Chimacum Middle School.

Jefferson Historical Society Project

2007-05-23T14:26:00.000-07:00

Carl Johnson

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Historian Karen Russell is pictured with Carl Johnson, lifetime resident of Marrowstone Island. This is the second in a series of interviews of a collaboration between the Learning Center and the Historical Society on the history of the island and its residents. In the background is Mystery Bay, as seen from Carl's clam and oyster shed.

Chimacum Choice

2007-05-23T14:17:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Students return to the Learning Center for another session in video and using modern communication via the web. These four are experimenting with the built-in video cameras on the lab's high-powered, multi-media Macintosh computers. In the background, projected from a computer desktop, is WSU 4H faculty, Pamela Roberts.

Jefferson Historical Society Project

2007-05-15T16:27:00.000-07:00

Aubrey Redling

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Aubrey Redling, a resident of Marrowstone Island for nearly 70 years, is interviewed by Karen Russell of the Jefferson Historical Society. In cooperation with the North Olympic Peninsula Learning Center, the Society is beginning a county-wide, video documentation project on local history and the people who have lived it.

Hospital College Fair

2007-05-15T16:16:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Butch took a short trip to the Jefferson County Hospital along with LC Coordinator, Robert Force. Don't worry, both are fine! The excursion was as presenters for WSU, along with nine other colleges and universities. Organized by Matt Lyons of the Jefferson Education Committee, schools were invited that offer degrees in this county related to the health care field.

Chimacum Elementary Students Explore Video

2007-05-09T13:27:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

Led by Pamela Roberts and Sue Hay of Jefferson County 4-H, thirteen students spend a morning exploring computers and video production in the NOPLC computer lab. Chimacum Choice is a school-wide enrichment program that allows students to choose classes which are of interest to them encompassing a variety of subjects, from dance, art and drama, to science, business, and sports. This is the third year WSU-LCNOP has been part of the program.
Find out more at their website.

PT SLUG - New time in June

2007-05-01T14:25:00.000-07:00

PT SLUG will offer a Beginning Macintosh Class in June.

This class will focus on the Macintosh computer and its OS X operating system. The class is equally appropriate for first-time Mac users, those with limited knowledge of the Mac, and for experienced OS 9 users upgrading to OS X. Because we have use of the WSU Mac Lab, you do not have to have an OS X Mac to participate. There will only be room for 12 participants using WSU's 9 iMacs. The computers at WSU have all appropriate software for the course. There is additional classroom space for three people using their own laptops. Maximum class size will be limited to 12 so that adequate individual attention can be provided.

Cost of the April class will be $40.00 to be paid in advance to PTSLUG. In addition all participants will need to purchase "The Little Mac Book, Tiger Edition," by Robin Williams, also in advance. The book is is available at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and elsewhere for about $15.00.

The course will be taught by Bob Snow, who will be assisted in the classroom by three experienced Mac users, so there will be plenty of individual attention. It will consist of four 2-hour workshops on Friday evenings June 1, 8, 15 and 22 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Participants who enroll will be expected to attend all four classes. The sessions will be held in the computer lab at Washington State University North Olympic Peninsula Extension in the Shold Business Park on Rhody Drive in Port Hadlock.

Each session will include an introductory presentation, followed by questions and answers and then an hour or so of hand's-on work with the computers. All basic Mac operating information will be covered, beginning with how to turn on the computer, how the computer looks and works, use of the mouse and the keyboard, creating and printing documents, managing files, browsing the Internet, how to send and receive email and many other topics. During the class, participants will use several programs that come installed on all Macs, including the TextEdit word processor, Mail (Apple's email application) and Safari (Apple's web browser). Participants will be introduced to additional Mac programs such as Dashboard's Widgets.

If you wish to sign up you can contact PTSLUG Secretary Joy Bland. Her email is joysdg1945@yahoo.com. The $40 fee must be paid in advance of the course and is non-refundable. Only those who have paid the fee before the classes begin will be assured a reservation in the class. Participants should send a check for $40 made out to PTSLUG to Joy Bland, 810 Egg and I Road, Chimacum, WA 98325. Telephone (360) 732-4914. If you have a question about the course's content you can contact Bob Snow via email at sherman101@mac.com.

One scholarship position has been made available to WSU. Anyone interested in applying for that spot should contact Robert Force either via email (force@wsu.edu), telephone (379-5610) or in person at WSU NOP Learning Center, Port Hadlock.

Your request for a reservation and the fee must be received by May 26, 2007 to insure a spot in the class. Reservations are on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Visit PTSLUG.org for more info on this group

Multi-State Simulcast

2007-04-13T16:49:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

The Organic Seed Alliance Board conducted a successful search for their new director, Dan Hobbs, using the teleconference facility here at the WSU Learning Center. Dan flew in from Colorado and was interviewed by five board members in person. Three other board members joined the event by teleconference from Oregon, Arizona, and Maine. NOPLC Coordinator, Robert Force, videotaped the interview and DVD copies were produced for the Board's archive. Central to the success of the conference was the tele-bridge in Pullman created by Randy Cross, Media Services Coordinator - WECN, WSU Extension

DDP Student River Trip

2006-06-16T14:08:00.000-07:00

Image courtesy of The Cougar Room - click to enlarge

WSU distance education students take a raft trip down the Elwha River near Port Angeles, WA. They start in the Olympic National Park and make their way back down the Class II river toward Lake Aldwell.

This is the 2nd offering of the annual event organized by Melissa Delikat who provides access to WSU distance education for Clallam County & West Jefferson County students.