The successes and accomplishments of our NHCC faculty and staff help us to be more vibrant as a community and more engaged as a college.
Community Garden Revitalization!!
Thanks to the enthusiasm and dedication of Marina Haworth and Tarsha Davis-Martin, the Community Garden outside the FAC was cleaned up and replanted this spring. Facilities provided materials for a fresh coat of paint for the garden boxes and benches, and several volunteers dedicated time and money to paint, weed, and seed the area, which is now a mix of pollinators and vegetables. The garden grew like crazy over the summer, and several people have commented on how nice it looks. We are excited to have the space looking good again, with fresh veggies to boot! Thank you to Candice Bartelle for filming this video, Courtney Popp for editing it and to Tarsha for starring in the video! We couldn't do this without you!
Several NHCC Employees Participate in Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation Institute
In the second week of June, several NHCC employees participated in our third Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation Institute. The group spent the week in a virtual conference, conversing with college leaders from all over the United States, learning about how we can make our campus a more welcoming and inclusive place to be. NHCC is the first and only community college in Minnesota to receive a designation from the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), that recognizes our commitment to confronting racism and dismantling the belief in the hierarchy of human value. If you are interested in expanding your knowledge on these topics and want to make your classroom and our campus a more welcoming place, please consider joining us for our upcoming Racial Healing Circle on this Thursday, October 9th from 1-2 p.m. over Zoom.
Local Elevate Youth Event Hosted at NHCC
Over the summer, NHCC’s Director of K-12 Partnerships & Perkins Grant, Lindsey Gutsch, organized an event for the Elevate Youth participants who came from the Brooklyn Bridge Alliance for Youth. It was a fantastic event and included sessions led by Lindsey herself, Maurice, Maria, Amy Harms Hoad, Mark Larson, Amy Goman, Monica Stanton, plus a panel of our fabulous NHCC students.
STEAM Department Excitement
Lina Saddedin, GDES and CSCI faculty, and Siva Jasthi, CSCI faculty, partnered up for a project. Last spring semester, Lina’s Web Design II students created a new website design for Siva Jasthi’s Learn and Help organization, which is a nonprofit service that teaches students computer programming online, then uses the profits to support charitable projects such as setting up school libraries, providing school supplies, and funding art projects. The work completed by Lina’s students has now been incorporated into the website, and Lina and Siva are looking forward to partnering again in the future!
Annual Educator Externship offers Teachers and Employees an Industry Perspective
In early August, a group from NHCC participated in the Educator Externship – hosted by the Hennepin West Consortium in partnership with the Minneapolis Regional Chamber!
The Hennepin West Consortium Externship program brings career-based learning to life.
Through this unique professional development opportunity, secondary and post-secondary educators, guidance counselors, and administrators are immersed in the day-to-day operations of key regional employers. These onsite experiences help create a bridge between business and education. Participants meet industry leaders, learn what is needed to be successful in career pathways, and get real-time insights into industry needs and trends.
The Externship is a four-day event that includes an opening session, five business visits, and a closing session. The opening session is a kickoff to the program, and provides an overview and introduction to the upcoming activities. The closing session provides an opportunity for all participating educators to share and compare experiences, ideate around how best to translate those experiences into classroom impact, and create tools and resources to use with students.
For the business visits, participants are divided into smaller groups based on career fields.
The following companies hosted us throughout the week: Mortenson, Kraus-Anderson and
SRF Consulting Group.
And thank you to all of the host companies who were involved with us:
3M, 5 Iron Golf, Amira Choice - Plymouth, Best Buy, Blaze Credit Union, City of Hopkins, Fairview Health Services, Great Wolf Lodge, Hennepin County, Hennepin Healthcare, McGough, MEDITECH, Medtronic, Metro Transit, Metropolitan Council of the Twin Cities, Minneapolis Institute of Art, Mosaic Venue, Nemer Fieger, Project for Pride in Living (PPL), Ryan Companies US, Inc., Second Harvest Heartland, St. Catherine University, Touchstone Mental Health, U.S. Bank and Unity Radiation Therapy Center.
Collaborations Across Campus on Video Content Lead to Engagement (and a lot of fun!)
Over the summer, NHCC's marketing and admissions department's started having weekly meetings to discuss video content ideas for TikTok. We collaborated with other individuals and departments across campus to make short and informative videos.
Some videos include: How to Get Your Books at the Bookstore, Meet the Vendors at the Farmers Market, Walk with Us to Get a Student ID Made at Public Safety, Tour the Library, Visit the Gerry Huerth Diversity Center and Explore the Community Garden, (as seen above!)
Thank you to everyone who has worked with us to create such wonderful video content!
Here's the Gerry Huerth Diversity Center tour video that Justice and Christie from our DEI department helped us with! Special shout-out to Candice Bartelle for filming and Courtney Popp for editing!
English Faculty and Alumni Shine in 2025: Achievements and Milestones
Thank you to English faculty, Brian Baumgart for sending out an email bursting with accomplishments from the English department! Visit our blog to read the full list.
Twin Cities Marathon Excitement!
Congratulations to NHCC Guided Pathways Advisor, Anong Thor (and not pictured, NHCC Social Worker, Ellie McDowell) for completing the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon on October 5! This is a huge accomplishment!
What's Your Favorite Minnesota State Fair Food?
NHCC General Maintenance Worker, Bob Newman and his friend were featured in August by Kare11 at the Minnesota State Fair. They picked french fries in a segment about what their favorite fair foods were.
Visit the Kare 11 website to watch the clip with Bob's feature in it!
That's a wrap on faculty and staff accomplishments so far. We can't wait to see what else you accomplish this semester!