The Beta Nu Nursing Honors students recently made over 100 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to help feed people at the Washington Street Mission.
Pictured (left to right): Natasha Talkington, Katlyn McQuern, Megan Belcher, Hailey Coffey and Michael Corredato.
LLCC was the presenting sponsor of the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce Job Fair March 29. Participating were Mac Warren (coordinator), assistant director, recruitment and response; Jeff Martin, workforce recruitment and placement coordinator; Chris Edmonds, program director, construction occupations; Jan Szoke, program director, respiratory therapy; Diane Wilson, program director, neurodiagnostic technology; and Josh Collins, assistant vice president, business relations.
This past Saturday, the IV Leaguers student nursing club made a walking taco dinner for the families staying in the Ronald McDonald House. The club made dinner for 25 guests and had the opportunity to meet a couple of present guests.
Pictured below: Ronald McDonald with (seated, l-r) club advisors, Professor Amanda Roche and Kim Young; (standing, l-r) Carrie Jacobs, advisor; second semester club member Capria Fields; and club president and fourth semester ADN student Lily Anderson.
LLCC grant funding has promoted a partnership between the LLCC Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) program and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Illinois. The grant initiative aims to increase diversity of OTA student applications by increasing community awareness of the occupational therapy profession. This funding has supported development of a first-year OTA student service-learning project in collaboration with the Boys & Girls Clubs after school program located at Dubois Elementary School in Springfield. The project, “Healthy Minds, Hearts and Hands,” brings engaging activities promoting fitness, emotional well-being and social language development for building student confidence and success at school. Additionally, the program offers traditional school-based occupational therapy strategies to help students who struggle with homework to build skills that will carry over into the classroom.
Thank you to the LLCC Foundation; Dr. Cynthia Maskey, dean of health professions; Tiffany Mathis, CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Illinois; Ms. Shamill Hill, Boys & Girls Clubs Site Director; and Hirut Harris, COTA/L, an LLCC OTA graduate and grant co-author, for making this service-learning project possible! The first session brought many smiles during Minion zumba, yoga, relaxation breathing and a craft activity called “Say Hello to Me.”
Yvonne Cosentino, OTD, OTR/L
LLCC OTA Program Director
Many LLCC staff attended the One in a Million Inc. Black History Ball, which celebrates the contributions of Black Americans. The event was held at the Crowne Plaza in Springfield on Saturday, Feb. 25.
LLCC had a vendor table highlighting how we are serving students and providing health care training through the PATH grant.
Jeff Martin, Chief Russell, Rashawn Jones, Michelle Pulce-Flynn, Kim Wilson, Candace Silas, Keziah Gragg and Brandon Lewis
Kim Wilson, recruitment specialist, helped serve students at the Taste of Soul Food event held by Lawrence Education Center and Springfield Learning Academy on Friday, Feb. 17. She is pictured with Principal Hurd and LEC/SLA staff.
Jessie Blackburn, director, LLCC-Litchfield, recently represented LLCC at the Hillsboro Area Hospital annual gala fundraiser, serving as a celebrity waiter. A photo of the waiters and caption appeared in the Feb. 13 edition of the Journal News.
Dr. Alonzo DeCarlo, assistant professor of psychology, will be presenting “Community Awareness: Alzheimer’s and Dementia” on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 6-7 p.m. hosted at the NAACP Springfield Branch Education Center, 801 S. 11th St. The free event will explore how Alzheimer’s and dementia impact Black Americans who are living with or caring for someone with dementia. Roadblocks faced in accessing care, available resources to support those who are impacted and health equity for all will be discussed. To register, call 1-800-272-3900.
Recently, LLCC’s student nursing club, the IV Leaguers, coordinated a warm clothing drive to benefit the children of Springfield Public Schools, District 186. Club member and second semester nursing student Sarina Sloman and a club advisor, Kim Young, delivered the donations to the main district office last Friday. The nursing students donated strong — filling three large boxes with brand new coats, gloves, hats, scarves, boots, sweatpants and sweatshirts!
Brandon Lewis, program navigator, Open Door Workforce Equity Initiative; Kim Wilson, recruitment specialist; Michelle Pulce-Flynn, director, grant development; and Leigh Giles-Brown, program director, diagnostic medical sonography (shown with Monica Walls-Butler, center, of Southeast High School), participated in the Making the Grade event at Southeast High School this week. The District 186 F.A.C.E. Family Liaisons put on this event once a quarter and ask community members to volunteer and mentor students about their grades, provide encouragement and give advice about achieving their goals. Brandon and Kim also participated in Springfield High School’s Making the Grade event this week.