Online Press Room

The McHenry County College Board of Trustees has an immediate opening for a new board member.

At a special MCC Board Meeting on June 18, 2009, trustees agreed to a contract for an interim president. McHenry County College welcomes Lawrence (Larry) W. Tyree, Ed.D. as interim president beginning August 15, 2009. Having previously served as interim president at three separate community colleges, Tyree comes to MCC with an extensive background in higher education leadership and a keen knowledge of the community college environment.

The McHenry County College Department of Athletics is sponsoring the eighth annual ScotStars basketball all-skills camps and newly-added shooting camp, June 22-25 in the air-conditioned MCC Tartan Gym. The camp is coordinated by veteran MCC men's head basketball coach Steve Ryan. He has collected 127 victories, and guided the Scots to recognition both locally and nationally. Each all-skills camp is $59 for the week and the specialty skill camps are $39.

McHenry County College Softball Head Coach Leon Palatas announced his retirement after 11 years and 13 years overall as a member of the softball coaching staff, to spend more time with his family. Palatas leaves the school with a total of 253 wins, averaging 23 wins per season, and coached the 2001, 2003, and 2004 softball teams to Skyway Conference championships. In 2003, Leon Palatas was voted the Skyway Conference Softball Coach of the Year and the Skyway Women's Sports Coach of the Year for all women's sports.

McHenry County College Shah Center is accepting registration for a Developmental Dimensions International (DDI) Frontline Leadership Series that will meet from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. Thursdays beginning July 9 through Aug. 20. This DDI series will be faciliated by Sharon Osterberg, SPHR, and will meet at The Shah Center, 4100 W. Shamrock Lane in McHenry.

McHenry County College Shah Center is offering a variety of fundamental courses for area businesses of all sizes. The Shah Center offers a cost-effective opportunity for employee training with access to experienced trainers and consultants bringing quality programs to support our area businesses. These courses are located at The Shah Center, 4100 W. Shamrock Lane in McHenry. The courses include: Ethics 4 Everyone from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. July 14, Communicating Openly and Directly from 5-9 p.m. July 21 and 23; Job Skills for Success from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. July 22; and Customer Satisfaction from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. July 27 and 29.

The McHenry County Master Gardeners' Garden Walk 2009 will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, July 11. Sponsored by the McHenry County Master Gardeners and McHenry County College, this self-guided tour begins at the Master Gardeners' Demonstration Garden at the College, 8900 U.S. Hwy. 14, Crystal Lake.

Kathleen Plinske, Ed.D., associate vice president of Institutional Effectiveness at McHenry County College, was recently named one of 24 Emerging Leaders in the world by Phi Delta Kappa (PDK) International, a global association of education professionals. The PDK Emerging Leader Program recognizes top educators under age 40 from throughout the world for their leadership and outstanding professional accomplishments.

The McHenry County College Board of Trustees recently appointed Ron Geary as executive dean of Education and Social Sciences and Thomas Takayama as executive dean of Humanities. Both appointments will begin July 1. Geary replaces Sue Maifield, who retired April 30 after serving 19 years at MCC. He served as criminal justice instructor and department chair at MCC since 2002. Takayama fills a vacancy left by Diane Nyhammer, who accepted a vice president role at Rock Valley College in July 2008. The position has been filled on an interim basis by Jay Geller, instructor of theatre and speech. Takayama, who served as instructor and department chair for eight years, also served as the interim dean in 2006.

The McHenry County College Fighting Scots Department of Athletics is conducting the eighth annual MCC ScotStars baseball all-skills and specialty hitting camps. Opening Day is Monday, June 15 for boys who will be entering third through sixth grades in the fall. The baseball camp dates are Monday, June 15 through Thursday, June 18. All-skills camp for boys entering grades third through sixth will meet from 9-11:15 a.m. and the hitting camp will be from 11:30 to 1:30 p.m. on the college campus, also for boys in third through sixth grade. Campers are encouraged to sign up with a friend, teammates or group of friends. The fee for the all-skills camp is $59 and the fee for the hitting camp is $39.

The Black Box Theatre at McHenry County College announces two productions for the 2009-2010 theatre season. MCC students and members of the community are welcome to audition for "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" or "Pippin."

Learn how to get your career back on track or retrain for a new career with career development classes offered through the Continuing Education Department at McHenry County College. The following classes are currently accepting registration: Beverage Alcohol Sellers and Servers Education and Training (BASSET), Welding Boot Camp, Introduction to Voice Acting, and Take Charge of Your Success.

Get moving with unique and enjoyable recreation classes through McHenry County College's Continuing Education Department. These classes aim to help you renew your body and mind. The classes include fencing, belly dancing for beginners, tour bicycling, family taekwondo, women's self-defense and golf for beginners and advanced.

Area youngsters can avoid summer boredom and delve into hands-on activities with the "Kids and College" program sponsored by McHenry County College. Four-day classes begin June 22.

Cary area children can tour a fire truck, activate the siren, and put out a fire right from their own home, well, actually, their computer. A new Cary Fire Department web site, created by McHenry County College students in the Digital Media program, features interactive pages to educate residents about fire safety and a fun place for children to explore. The site, which is expected to go live in late June features a new, unique mascot—a firefly. Students in the Digital Project Management class (DGM 259) and Systems Analysis and Design (CIS 275) spent 16 weeks working with the Cary Fire Department to create a more interactive web site and to gain real world experience at the same time, where they worked with real timelines and status reports.