Need money for college? Black Hawk College can help. Come to a free College Goal workshop and get one-on-one assistance completing the 2012-13 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

The College Goal workshop helps families complete FAFSA, the form that is required to apply for federal financial assistance for college. Workshops will be offered at both campuses.

Quad-Cities Campus
The event will be from 1-3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 26 in the lower lobby of Building 1 at the college’s Quad-Cities Campus.

East Campus
The event will be from 5-7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 1 in the ILC Testing Center in Building A (second floor, Room 239) at the college’s East Campus.

Parents and students should bring their latest tax information and/or last pay stub from the previous year in order to complete the form.

For more information, contact the BHC Financial Aid Office at 309-796-5400 or 800-334-1311, ext. 5400.

Three Black Hawk College East Campus students not only needed to pack their suitcases to go away to college, they also needed to pack their passports.

Basketball players Javed Williams of St. Kitts and Nevis, Gilbert Gyamfi of Canada and Aaron Branch of England are making the Kewanee area their home for two years, sharing their culture while adjusting to life in the Midwest.

Javed Williams – St. Kitts and Nevis
St. Kitts and Nevis is a two-island nation in the Caribbean, about 200 miles southeast of Puerto Rico. The waters around Javed’s island home are full of fish similar in color and size to those in “Finding Nemo.” Because he lives so close to the ocean, living in the Midwest is quite a change for Javed. Snow and hail – as well as the tornado siren he experienced last year – were a culture shock.

St. Kitts was the first English colony in the Caribbean, so on Nov. 5 they celebrate Guy Fawkes Day with fireworks, commemorating the failure of Fawkes and other conspirators to blow up the Houses of Parliament in 1605. The islands celebrate their Independence Day on Sept. 19.

Easter is celebrated by flying kites and eating dumplings with salt fish and a sweet, but no bunny or Easter eggs. At Christmas, families celebrate with a feast but no present exchange, Santa or trees with lights.

Aaron Branch – Birmingham, England
Aaron is from Birmingham, the second largest city in the United Kingdom. He and his parents are British, but his grandparents are from Punjab, a state in northwest India. The U.K. celebrates most Christian-related holidays, but his family also celebrates Diwali, popularly known as the Festival of Lights. Diwali is celebrated between mid-October and mid-December and for Hindus, is one of the most important festivals of the year.

Aaron said that he has found things less expensive in the United States and fast food portions bigger. Prior to coming to the U.S., he played on a Canadian basketball showcase team that traveled the U.S. He noted that in England, Belgium and France the game is more team-oriented.

Aaron plans on going into the music industry as a music producer and already has his own business, Just Do It Entertainment.

Gilbert Gyamfi – Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Before he was born, Gilbert’s parents moved from Ghana in West Africa to Canada. Gilbert speaks English, a little French and some Twi, the native language of his parents.

Gilbert has missed his family, friends and mom’s home cooking, such as fufu, a doughy starchy ball that is eaten all over western Africa. It takes the place of bread or rice and is eaten with the hands. A piece of the dough is pinched off, formed slightly with the fingers, and then dipped into the bowl to scoop up soup or stew.

Moving to a rural area after living his entire life in Toronto, the largest city in Canada, was an adjustment. But, the quiet has given Gilbert time to get in touch with himself and discover who he is and what he wants to do with his life. He hopes to transfer to a larger school to play basketball and pursue practicing law.

View more “I am Black Hawk College” stories.

East Campus

Come to the February Blood Drive from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 14 in the Game Room.

The need is constant. The gratification is instant. Give blood.

• Every year in the U.S. four million people receive blood donations.
• One out of five people entering the hospital will need blood.
• Your platelets must be used within five days of your donation.
• One unit of blood helps three people.
• Every two seconds someone needs blood.

Donating takes less than an hour and benefits so many. For an appointment, please sign up at the Advising Center. Walk-ins are always welcome.

If you last donated on or before Tuesday, Dec. 20, you may be eligible to give.

This event is sponsored by Phi Theta Kappa.

Quad-Cities Campus

Come to the Winter Blood Drive from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 21 in Building 1, lower lobby.

The need for blood donations is great:

• Every year in the U.S. four million people receive blood donations.
• One out of five people entering the hospital will need blood.
• Your platelets must be used within five days of your donation.
• Every two seconds someone needs blood.

Donating takes less than an hour and benefits so many. To schedule an appointment, contact Sally Doran at 309-796-5304 or dorans@bhc.edu. Walk-ins are always welcome.

The last day to donate elsewhere would have been Tuesday, Dec. 27.

Black Hawk College recently honored two students as emerging women leaders at the Women’s Connection “Women in Leadership” event.

Breann Nelson of Moline (second from left) was nominated by Tiffany Hamilton, coordinator of student engagement (left), and Mariah Williams of Moline (second from right) was nominated by Marceia Duhm, coordinator of career planning and placement (right).

Nelson is the financial administrator for the Quad-Cities Campus Student Government Association.

“I nominated Bre because she has been the glue for SGA that keeps a group consisting of a majority of men focused and determined to be successful leaders of the student body,” Hamilton said.

“Bre is a take-charge kind of lady who I have had the honor of watching blossom into a strong, confident woman in the past several months.”

Williams worked for Duhm as a career assistant in the Career Services Center at the Quad-Cities Campus.

“I nominated Mariah because she is such a great example of a young mom trying to follow her dream of completing her BSN, starting with completing her ADN here at Black Hawk. College,” Duhm said.

“She was always very thorough, though friendly and helpful, with our clients and received many compliments on her demeanor. She wants to make a difference in the world – and already has, whether she knows it or not!”

The purpose of the Women’s Connection’s Emerging Women Leaders Recognition Program is to honor regional female collegiate students who are exhibit exceptional leadership initiative and high academic achievement, and who are making a difference in their school and community.

BHC men's golf team with coach Gary Huber (back row in red) and BHC president Dr. Thomas Baynum (back row in middle).

Black Hawk College recently honored its student-athletes at the Quad-Cities Campus with individual and team awards.

Below are the awards and the recipients. Individual award winners are listed on banners hung in the college’s gymnasium in Building 3.

BHC women's softball team with coach Carrie Calderon (back row in plaid) and BHC president Dr. Thomas Baynum (back row in middle).

NJCAA All-American Awards

• Owen Bell, Davenport – Men’s golf, third team
• Don McAvoy, Chicago – Men’s basketball, second team
• Kendall Patrick, Mitchell, S.D. – Men’s baseball, third team
• Ryan Schlueter, Davenport – Men’s golf, third team

NJCAA Academic Student-Athlete Awards – Players must earn a 3.60 or higher GPA during their two years of participation at Black Hawk College.

• Matthew Case, Cordova – Men’s golf – 3.64 GPA
• Shelby Wilson, Moline – Women’s volleyball – 3.77 GPA

President’s Award – The BHC Athletic Department gives this award for the highest team grade point average.

• The women’s softball team won the President’s Award for Fall 2011 with a 3.51 GPA. The softball team also earned an NJCAA All-Academic Team award for Fall 2010 and Spring 2011 with a 3.24 team GPA.
• The men’s golf team won the President’s Award for Spring 2011 with a 3.23 GPA. The golf team also earned an NJCAA All-Academic Team award for Fall 2010 and Spring 2011 with a 3.32 team GPA.

Every night millions of TV viewers play along with their favorite game shows. Buying a vowel, blurting out answers – it’s as American as apple pie. We’ve created our own entertaining and challenging program with Hollywood-style showmanship – it’s a blitz!

Come play the Hollywood Blitz Game Show!

Quad-Cities Campus: Tuesday, Jan. 31 from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. in the lower lobby in Building 1

East Campus: Wednesday, February 1 from  12:30-1:30 p.m. in the Gameroom.

This hilarious, interactive game show bombards the panel of contestants with visual trivia. This event is sponsored by the Student Life Office.

“Hi, I’m Thom.”

This is how Black Hawk College’s new president introduced himself to dozens of students at the Quad-Cities Campus on Wednesday, Jan. 18.

Dr. Baynum – as he’s also known – chatted with students about their classes, their majors and their plans for the semester.

“How’s your semester going? Are you having fun?” he asked.

Dr. Baynum also swapped stories with some new students about coming to Black Hawk College and getting to know the community. He and his wife recently moved to the Quad Cities from Beeville, Texas, where he was president of Coastal Bend College for four years.

OTHER PHOTO GALLERIES

Above: Art professor Zaiga Thorson enjoyed an “artistic pilgrimage” to Italy for two weeks during her 2011 sabbatical. Click the image above to view several photos she took during the trip.

For one semester, Zaiga Thorson the teacher became Zaiga Thorson the student. It’s a change of perspective that she highly recommends to her fellow faculty members.

The BHC art professor took Professional Development Leave (or sabbatical) during the spring of 2011. She spent most of her time creating artwork and researching various art techniques, particularly encaustic painting, an ancient technique that involves painting with hot, pigmented beeswax.

Zaiga also enrolled in two BHC courses: ART 200 Digital Photography and CIP 170B Dreamweaver, an online course.

“Digital photography gave me the opportunity to take a class in my own department,” she says.

“I was able to sit beside students I had taught, as a student – which created an interesting dynamic. They saw me struggling at times, just as they were.”

Zaiga joined Black Hawk College in 1999 and teaches courses such as Drawing & Drawing Theory, Digital Imagery, Production and Prepress, Type and Digital Layout, and Applications in Computer Art.

“Although I have worked in the image manipulation program Photoshop for many years and teach our ART 215 Digital Imagery class (which is Photoshop-centered), I quickly felt like a beginner again when it came to working with features geared toward professional photography, such as Camera Raw and Adobe Bridge.”

The sabbatical also allowed her to make an “artistic pilgrimage” to Italy for two weeks.

“I was moved not only by the art and architecture of the country, but perhaps more so by the rugged beauty of the Amalfi Coast, ruins of Pompeii and gentle rolling hills of Tuscany,” Zaiga says.

"Autumn Evening" - Encaustic, oil and leaves on clayboard, 12” x 12”, 2011

She also visited Rome, Assisi, Venice, Verona, Lake Como, Milan, Pisa and Florence, taking hundreds of pictures.

“I was able to take what I had been learning in the digital photography class and apply it to the many photos I shot.”

After studying a new art technology (digital photography) and a very old art technology (encaustic painting), Zaiga created a series of artwork that combined both techniques.

“I was intrigued by the possibilities of combining a variety of mixed media (paper, oil paint, digital photos, oil pastel, actual leaves, etc.) within the layers of wax and then being able to rework and manipulate the surface.”

The artwork Zaiga created during her sabbatical is on exhibit in the ArtSpace Gallery at the Quad-Cities Campus through Friday, Feb. 10. The exhibit includes photographic prints and encaustic and oil paintings.

The exhibition – “Refuge in Four Seasons” – reflects her interest “in the spiritual in nature and preserving our environment for future generations to enjoy,” she says. “This particular body of work fulfills a long-time desire to create a series based on the four seasons.”

Professor Zaiga Thorson gives advice to a student in her ART 121 Drawing class.

Zaiga says her sabbatical was rewarding not only for her personally, but also will benefit her students – she is incorporating what she learned into her classes.

“It recharged my enthusiasm for working with our students and being able to share what I had learned with them.”

Opening Reception for “Refuge in Four Seasons” by Zaiga Thorson

View more “I am Black Hawk College” stories.

Club members Larry Fells of Silvis (left) and Gary Miller of East Moline presented the check Dec. 15 to Shelly Wells Cain, executive director of the BHC Foundation, and Dr. Gene Gardner, outgoing Black Hawk College president.

The money was generated by gate admissions to the Quad City’s Vintage Rods 40^th Annual Car Show held Sept. 25, 2011, at the college’s Quad-Cities Campus. The 2012 show will be Sunday, Sept. 30.

The donation goes to the Vintage Rods scholarship, which is available to Quad-Cities Campus students with excellent academic performance. Five students received a scholarship in the fall of 2011.

Since 1984, the rods club has given more than $58,000 to the BHC Foundation and has donated to the college for more consecutive years than any other organization.