WMCC Campus News: President's Columns

WMCC Offers Courses for Everyone

Katharine Eneguess, President of White Mountains Community College

Every once and awhile I put my administrative work aside, take off my college president hat and try to look at the college the way a prospective student would. If I were someone considering going to school at the college, what would attract me to it? What is the image that the college presents?

A growing number of our prospective students check us out on the Internet before they even set foot on the Berlin campus or one of our other North Country academic centers. Knowing that, on a recent cold and snowy day I took a few minutes to peruse our website. I admit, I got a little sidetracked from my original mission and instead looked through the courses with an eye on what I would like to take.

I like to explore areas I know nothing about. In my shopping the course descriptions, I came across more than one course that piqued my interest. I was raised in rural New Hampshire, so my personal experience with gangs is pretty limited to watching "West Side Story," so the course "Gangs: Theory, Impact, Prevention and Intervention" sounds appealing to me.

In our course catalog, which is available online, the description for this class reads in part, "This course will provide students with an historical perspective of gangs, theoretical explanation for the causes of gangs, formation, dynamics, structure, and the societal impacts."

I don't ever intend to move to an urban area, where gangs are more prevalent, but this course would give me a better understanding of gang situations when I read articles in national publications. I may even find out that gangs are not just an urban problem, but that some rural areas are plagued by them too. For me the fun of learning is not just in increasing my knowledge, but in questioning my preconceptions.

I would also like to learn something that is hands-on, and "IT Essentials: Hardware and Software" fits that bill. "Through hands-on activities and labs, students learn how to assemble and configure a computer, install operating systems and software, and troubleshoot hardware and software problems," states the course description. I can't think of anything that would be more useful, save learning car repair through one of our automotive courses, than learning how to fix my own computer!

One of my favorite websites to go to is the Mount Washington Observatory website at www.mountwashington.org. The crew at the Observatory posts a daily weather report and uses words such as "gradient" and "mid level ridge." While I have a working knowledge of weather terminology, I am sure that our Meteorology course taught here at White Mountains Community College would make me a well-informed amateur weatherperson by the end of the semester.

There are other courses that I'd like to take someday. "North Country Literature and the New England Tradition" sounds like a pleasure. "Science Fiction and Philosophy" intrigues me. And of course, I would love to free up my time for any of our Culinary Arts classes!

Even if you're not considering taking any college courses, take some time on a cold and snowy day and click through our website and our course catalog. You may find some courses that interest you, that you want to take just for fun. We at WMCC support everyone who wants to be a "lifelong learner." You don't need to be enrolled in a program with us to take advantage of all we have to offer! Hope to see you on campus soon.

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