EEAIUBZ
October 3,1990
THE CLACKAMAS PRINT
Page 3
'If you haven't got education, what do you do?'
Exchange Counselor Harper adjusts to U.S.
by Jennifer Soper
Feature Editor
Exchange Counselor Barry
Harper, who is replacing Coun
selor Norm Bernie for this aca
demic year, has had several ad
justments to make since coming
to America. He has had to learn
how to drive on the “right” side of
the road, how to deal with 7 a.m.
staff meetingsand how to renew a
devotion to recycling.
Harper is at Clackamas
through a teacher exchange pro
gram introduced by Precision
Cast Parts. The exchange, which
allows Harper the security of
moving back to his native Shef
field, England in one year, will
definitely be a learning tool for
both men.
“We’ve exchanged houses,
cars and jobs,” explained Harper.
“The whole process took a year
before it actually came about.”
At Clackamas, Harper will
spend half his time working in the
counseling department and the
other half working with area
middle and high schools. His job
at Loxley College in England
consisted of full time employ-
Five weeks into his stay,
Harper has a very positive out
look on the people he’s encoun
tered.
“When they say ‘Have a nice
day,’ they really mean it, even
though some days I would like to
decide for myself what kind of day
I have,” Hamper said.
Photo by Lane Scheideman
Barry Harper, an exchange counselor from Loxley College in
Sheffield, England, assists students during registration.
ment in the counseling depart
ment and teaching engineering
classes six hours a week.
Harper worked his way
through college beginning with a
five year engineering apprentice
ship. He was promoted to a works
engineer and moved to West Af
rica, and lived in Nigeria for four
years. He returned to England
and studied full time for his teach
ing certificate. He taught engi
neering for three years in Zambia
under a government program to
help under-developed countries.
Harper then taught at two other
colleges before attaining his cur
rent position at Loxley in 1979.
He has his Masters Degree in
guidance and counseling.
The educational system in
the U.S. differs greatly from the
system Harper is accustomed to
working with. He explained the
students in America have many
more options, a better learning
environment and more resources.
“The American students
must realize how lucky they are.
They aren’t under as much pres
sure.”
At Loxley, Harper has to deal
with a very tight budget. Counsel
ors are only allowed to make 260
photo copies a year, the phones
cannot dial out of the college be
fore 1 p.m. and some students are
not allowed into the programs
they need because of staffing
problems.
“We try not to turn anyone
away... We try to say there’s a class
for everyone.”
One point Harper made was
that if it weren’t for the students
he deals with, he wouldn’t have a
job.
“We must be here for the stu
dents. You wouldn’t be in the
game if you weren’t interested in
them. That must be the philoso
phy of every college. It’s no good
being a clock watcher if you’re in
the counseling department”
Academic counseling has
only been recognized in England
for the last three years. Harper is
hoping the things he learns while
at Clackamas will give him an
advantage when he returns to
Loxley next fall.
“If you haven’t got education,
what do you do?” he asked.
Campus clubs
strut their stuff
by Jennifer Lessard
Staff Writer
A Club Brag will be held
onOct3from 11:30a.m. until
1:30 p.m. in the Community
Center. The purpose of this
time is to familiarize students
with the numerous activities
sponsored by CCC and these
clubs.
The clubs cover a wide
range of topics from recrea
tion for the bowler or skier to
co-curricular dubs for the ac
tor, musician orwriter. Sports
clubs for track, volleyball, and
a variety of other sports are
also offered.
One. of the most active
dubs is Phi Theta Kappa,
which is an honor club for stu
dents with a grade point aver
age of 35 or better. An orien
tation meeting will be held
next week for students inter
ested in what the club is all
about
Baptist Student Minis
tries (BSM) has also started
meeting during the noon hour
on Wednesdays and Thurs
days.
The Drama
club is active in sponsoring
theatre activities that take
place on and off the campus.
Students For A Better
Lifestyle (STABL) has also
made plans to meet on Mon
days and Fridays to band to
gether, support, and educate
other students who are con
cerned about social issues and
addictive behavior. They help
people choose to make a
change for a better lifestyle.
The Booster Club pro
vides students and staff with
the opportunity to help raise
funds for the athletic teams at
the college. They sponsor
tournaments and other activi
ties in connection with the
athletic department
Students are urged to get
involved in the school and take
part in a club that centers on
their particular area of inter
est There are over 32 clubs
available; the Club Brag is a
time to find out how to get
more involved.