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About The Clackamas print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1989-2019 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 30, 2005)
Clackamas Print Feature 9 Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2005 Flame on!’ for Fire Science class gbe Stone I Clackamas Print fe seldom hear about fire- ers actually starting fires. When conditions are right, torch it,” says Tom Laugle, H of the Wildland Fire hce program. [e is referring to a “bum- jam” live fire exercise at to Rilea on the coast and the [sed area used for the train- It is only one of the many king parts of the program, [other major involves land- lelicopters on campus as part air operations course? I is the only program of its I in the metro area and has yed strong support from not the school but various local, and federal agencies. It has ■seen rising enrollment in its | lifetime - a trend exhibit- no signs of slowing. The am deals with wildland, as ised to urban or structural, feting. [ugle takes pride in the er of instructors the depart- [has. All are qualified as ast a Division Supervisor, 10 years of on the job expe- Matt Olson Clackamas Print The students of Tom Laugle’s Fire Science program hone their firefighting skills in the field. The nationally certified program prepares students for positions in wildland firefighting. rience. One such instructor is Joe Crawford, a veteran trainer from the Oregon Department of Forestry. Some courses, which are certified at the state and national levels, are similar to state-level training. “Basically, it’s the same train ing as CCC,” says Crawford, referring to the FRP-130 course that qualifies students as Firefighter II, the “entry level position for wildland firefight ing.” Laugle hints at the rigorous certification process when asked if the three-year-old program has won any awards. “National certification is enough,” he says with satisfac tion. Because of this close rela tionship, students find that ODF training can help count toward a one-year certificate or a two-year degree. The depart ment also stands ready to train National Gtiard troops in the event of an emergency, or pro vide upgrade-training to existing firefighters. Lupe Martinez from the Counseling Department is also on staff to assist Hispanic students with their English skills to help comply with state and federal regulations. The department is also spear heading the development of 3-D topographical software that helps firefighters see the lay of the land. ’Laugle envisions its use in the field eventually. “We wanted to take leadership in that,” he says. Another exciting develop ment is a donation of land to be used by the program from Marc Crain, battalion chief with Clackamas Fire District #1. However, Laugle is careful to concentrate on what he sees as the core strengths of the cur riculum. “Practical is a very big part of the program,” he says. “We want to simulate everything that happens to them on the fire line.” He also stresses that many classes are open to the interested student, including the map and compass and survival courses, skills that not only help the sea soned firefighter, but the com munity at large. leech team takes on~4^A opponente, comes out on top nberly Maier Clackamas Print le speech and debate team lackamas has won 2,683 Bs for their excellence tech forensics in just the 10 years. i lot of students who win ds are people who have t debated in their lives, will hear someone and L "you would be really on the speech team, ’ then et them to join and they wards with us,” said Dr. \ Brennen, coach for the :h and debate team. “But hot just about winning Hds. Students walk away ■ this and they’ve learned Hrch skills, argument H and they become more Hledgeable all around.” He debate team has about Htudents competing each HThe debates take place ■tiie weekends, and the H attends about 10 tour- Hnts per year. Clackamas Hompeted in the largest H championship for com- munity colleges, placing in the top three 8 out of 10 times. “One year we missed the gold by two points,” Brennen said. “A lot of students get scholarships for a four-year college for their competing and speaking skills,” said Brennen. “We do the best that we can to make sure that deserving students get schol arships. Sometimes we will split them up to make sure that happens.” Students who choose to join the debate team will have the chance to compete against four-year institutions as well as other community colleges. “We’ve beat Willamette, UCLA ... The four-year col leges really hate being beat by a two-year college,” Brennen said about the friendly rivalry between Clackamas and other schools. “What’s interesting is that the coach at Mt. Hood and I went to college together and now we’re coaching rival ing teams.” The debate team is lucky to have encouragement and the end of the term, students don’t want to keep them. support from administra are allowed to take the tro Those are the ones that end tion members such as Bill phies home to keep, but many up in the trophy case.” Briare, Dian Connett and Joe '* Johnson. “As cheesy as this will sound, the speech team can only be as good as the opportunities they’re given,” Bresnen said. “PCC scrapped their speech and debate pro gram which is so unfortunate. When you cut a forensic pro gram, it’s like going to school to be an actor and you find that the school has cut the stage.” The debate team at Clackamas used to have a small trophy case in the Mcloughlin building. They were given a much larger dis play case in the Niemeyer building and Brennen says SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10 th they are already running out of room. “After a tournament, the awards are sent home with UNDERGRADUATE INFORMATION the winning students for them 9:00 A.M. *• 10:30 A.M., FLAVIA HALL SALON to caress their award and hold Discover the convenience of flexible scheduling - online, or it, and then it’s brought back to the college after the week on campus, days, evenings and weekends. Meet the end,” Brennen explained. “At INFORMATION SESSIONS academic department chairs and advisors. Learn about w courses explore gender issues scholarships and financial aid options. For more information or to reserve a place, call 503.699.6268 Im Krause tlackamas Print H. Jackie Flowers has Hduced a new sequence Hie college’s curriculum: Her studies. Hr the Winter Term, Hers, a social science Hictor, wili be teaching ■ Engendered Identities H In the fall, Gender and ■rial Culture was offered. ■’s an easy class and we M at advertisements from ■ 20s on, since the ‘20s He a Golden Age for adver- ■t■” Flowers said. H>e other course offered Hake place in the spring, ^■en in American History will cover “gender experienc es in American culture.” “[It’s about] how we define masculine and feminine-how it’s changed, defined and expressed,” Flowers said. According to Flowers, this college is the only one in the state to offer gender studies. Also, it counts as a sopho more inquiry class at PSU, making it easier to transfer credits here at the college and enroll as a junior at a four- year college. Another teacher involved with gender studies is Kjirsten Severson. She is a sociolo gist and philosopher here at the college. Severson has been instructing the Women Studies course since March of last year. It’s not prereq uisite to the gender studies sequence, but Severson and Flowers agree that taking Women Studies before taking the sequence is a good idea. The Women Studies course is an intro to gender embodi ment. “It’s an explanation of the [gender] differences we have always known and therefore don’t notice,” said Severson. Flowers said that the class es mainly deconstruct the idea that if one gender is one way, then the other is going to be the opposite. Flowers and Severson hope to expand the gender studies classes and make Women Studies a prerequi site sequence as opposed to a single class. LEARN ABOUT PRIOR LEARNING ASSESSMENT 10:30 A.M. - NOON, ROOM 200, B.P. JOHN BUILDING Earn up to 45 college credits toward your bachelor's degree for your college-level learning from work and life experience. To reserve a place, call 503.699.6260. ★ US News & World Report BEST COLLEGES 2006 "Number one in the Northwest for small classes" MARYLHURST UNIVERSITY Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities accredited International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education accredited 17600 PACIFIC HIGHWAY (HWY. 43) MARYLHURST, OREGON - JUST 10 MINUTES SOUTH OF PORTLAND Serving students since 1893. www.marylhurst.edu 800.634.9982
