Culinary caught in the fire: Link round-up

So, this fellow blogger is a little surprised, to say the least, that Schenectady County Community College is rated one of the nation's top culinary schools, "Not the CIA. Not the French Culinary Institute. Schenectady County Community College". He buddy, don't knock it till you've tried it. If you look a little deeper into the history of Schenectady, you might find out how significant we really are. Wait. That's won't be necessary because you've already been told.

Hey, recognize this guy? Yeah, that's Max Mackissock, The Denver Post calls him one of Denvers rising star chefs. Guess where he went to school? I'll give you a little hint. It starts with an "S" and ends with a "CCC". Yep. You've guessed it. SCCC

The business and finance blog has also recognized SCCC's Culinary Arts Program, specifically, our Culinary Boot Camp. This blogger had done a fine job of including some info on Schenectady's rich history, the College's degrees and program information, and even the location of our nearest airport.

This boot camp program is making a lot of noise. It is also being covered on the Steve Barns' Times Union blog. The comments are hilarious.

Let's not forget our own Chris Tanner who breaks the program down. Letting you know just what to expect when you sign up for this new and exciting program.

While I'm out, you can explore the world of blogs

As my semester at St. Rose is coming to an end, I will be overly busy this week and next. Be prepared to hear less from me for a least a little while. I'll be back in full swing around December 15. Since I will be so busy, and I don't want you to miss me too much, I'll be highlighting other local blogs that you can read while I am tirelessly working at writing papers.

Today's blog comes from the Times Union Schenectady Blog.

This post is all about a first time experience at the Schenectady Holiday Parade. It's full of pictures and a first hand account of the event. After reading this, if you haven't seen the parade before, you won't want to miss it next year. I hope you enjoy!

Link round-up: something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue

Something Old:
Buffalo News reports on President Obama's plan to use community colleges to improve the workforce. The report once again confirms that community colleges have been experiencing record high enrollments and hints at possible admission caps in the future if this trend continues. The article fails to mention SCCC but does cite several community colleges in NY.

Something New:

Times Union reports on the new gymnasium being built in Schenectady's Center City located on State Street across from Proctors. This new gym, belonging to the YMCA of Schenectady will also be home to our Basketball and Volleyball teams when it is finished in January.

Something Borrowed:

This holiday season the Salvation Army will use more "plastic kettles" in addition to ringing bells outside of the department stores and hoping that jolly shoppers will drop their spare change in the old kettles. These plastic kettles will take credit cards so you can borrow money from Visa, MasterCard, or American Express, to donate to the Salvation Army and pay them back latter.

Something Blue:

Rite Aid on Eastern Avenue was robbed on Friday afternoon. Police said that when one of the suspects was confronted by a sales associate because he was shoving items down his pants the suspect punched the associate in the face and fled. He was wearing blue jeans.

Administrators on "time out"

Times Union news reporter on education, Scott Waldman, was running a little late to his presentation in my blogging class on Tuesday.

He was late because he need to get the details out about his breaking story: Albany's Achievement Academy Charter School had taped 2 of its teachers without their knowledge.

First I thought: Wow! And, I was among one of the first two know about it.

Then I realized, that the story was only particularly interesting to me and a handful of my classmates because we plan on being teachers someday and could relate on a professional level. Furthermore, I have a child in elementary school: so, issues like this interest me.

But, think about it.....

How would you feel if you were secretly video taped at your job? Any job? Wouldn't you feel violated? Angry?

God, knows I would. I would be mortified if I looked over my desk and saw a little red blinking light coming from the stacked boxes of Student Activities Board seasonal decorations in my office.

OMG did that camera just catch me pulling up my pantyhose?

Would I quite my job because of it? Maybe.

Maybe, I would just get revenge. I might to do something vile to the camera and tape, but then again, if I did this, I wouldn't have any proof that my rights had been violated. Then those pervasive employers of mine (in a fictitious world, my real employers would never record me, the students are much more interesting to watch) could just deny that the cameras ever existed.

Okay, this senerio has gone a little too far into a world of make-believe. But, seriously, what the Achievement Academy did to their teachers & STUDENTS is wrong. It's easy to forget that these student's are victims too. My mommy side would be furious that 1) they did this to my child and his teacher without consent, 2) they stirred up an enormous issue for the school and made learning and attending school a problem for all of their students.

How many reporters and administrative employees for the school and the district will be visible present on school grounds while this story is investigated?

How are students supposed to remain focused in the classroom when there's so much controversy around them?

Can the school compensate for their actions? And, what is being done for those students who have to wait for a new teacher to take over 5-6 weeks into the school year?

As college students, employees, and citizens of a community, our actions are models to young children. Children are effected by our decisions everyday.

What kind of messages are we, as professionals, giving our children?

For more information...

As a employee of Schenectady County Community College's Student Activities and an alumni of the College, and current student at The College of Saint Rose, I am designing a blog that incorporates these three different yet, overlapping perspectives to provide information about Schenectady County Community College events, special features, and student life.

Who?
Anyone can do it...

-Want to see what other colleges and college students are blogging about check out, the students of Cornell University, MCC, & Hesston College.

-Clubs can blog too! At Wake Tech each club has its own blog.

-Confessions of a Community College Dean, not ours, but even college administrators like to blog.

-Are you an English teacher? Are you taking an English class? Community College English is an insightful blog written by English teachers and has links to other English enthusiasts.

-Culinary Arts students-- check out your instructor's blog Gastronomical Inspirations.

Why?
Just one of the many reasons to blog...

-Want to find out what events are happening at other colleges you can check out the president of Campus Activities at Adrian College, or read the student activities blog by the Student Activities Coordinator at West Virginia Northern Community College. These, and other blogs, are great places to get ideas for our own campus events.

What?
You can learn a lot from a blog...

-The Study Break: The world in B-flat blog is maintained by a public media specialist it explores 21st century literacies. This blog is helpful to both teachers and students because it incorporates strong educational strategies along with special programming that can be used for educational student activities.

You can report your campaign..

-Students at NYU blog about their campaign to Take Back NYU. There is power in blogging for college students.

Where?
Check out these web sites for more local information...

-Schenectady is full of history. There are blogs about historical events in and around the Capital Region. (eg. the Stockade Walkabout).

-Local newspapers report all over the area and are active bloggers.The Daily Gazette's blogs about high school sports among other things and so does the Times Union which has a blog specifically for Schenectady. This information allows students and faculty to consider larger community perspectives and may be useful resources for student prospects.

- Say Schenectady is a website that has a calendar of events in the area and links to other local sites.

-The Official Home of Schenectady County, provides more than news; it has resources to area networks. SGA and Criminal Justice majors should check out this site.