I have enjoyed most of my time at Northwest Vista College, but online classes are not for me.

I understand the need for distance learning for those with a crazy schedule needing to fit classes into their semester. It allows them flexibility in their schedule and maybe more options for their education.

I prefer interaction and feedback. I enjoy being in the class and getting to know the teacher and how the class works. I want to be able to communicate with my professor and get support from my peers.

Today’s technology allows us to stare at a screen for hours for interactions with others, but you still feel isolated.  I know for myself, I do better in a traditional education setting. It might be helpful to have “face to face” webcam sessions and remote desktop control in online classes.

Personally, I seem to get cognitive overload every time I see the list of required readings for the week. I would prefer to hear it from the professor with a class discussion.

I wish NVC could offer more variety in online learning and provide
 more face-to-face classes.

By NVC Student Shawn Borsheim

NVC recently set a single day record for the number of students volunteering to help at three houses for Habitat for Humanity projects. So many students wanted to attend that NVC (and Habitat) had to close registration.

With 59 students participating, 472 hours volunteer service hours were provided in a single day. The NVC community service effort continued with the Helping Others Today or “HOT” week from Oct. 31 through Nov. 6, which encouraged students and employees to log 200 volunteer hours in that time.

“This week, our NVC community logged 291.5 hours of service. We had four events canceled due to the weather,” said Kelly Blanco, a coordinator of NVC Student Leadership & Activities. “If they had gone on as scheduled, we would have had 138 more hours.”

She added that 152 students, staff and faculty signed up to volunteer at organizations such as: Habitat for Humanity, Haven for Hope, San Antonio River Foundation, SA Parks and Recreation, Morgan’s Wonderland, and HRMAC-Veteran & Family Assistance.

To Listen to NVC President Dr. Rick Baser’s message on volunteering, click here.

4th post in a series of articles. To see previous post, click here. 

Wow… we are already midway through the Fall 2014 semester! Time flies when you really don’t expect it to. At the end of this semester, I’ll be graduating with an Associate of Arts Degree and moving on to a university.

During the summer, the NVC website posted information about Fall 2014 graduation. The first day to apply for graduation was July 1^st. Guess where I was at 8 am? That’s right—I was on my computer using the Get in Line Now link posted on the website. I am so thankful that the school decided to use a virtual queue system. It’s extremely convenient, and it allows me to do other things instead of waiting in Cypress until they call my name.

Meeting an advisor to apply for graduation was short and simple. My advisor made sure all my classes aligned with the degree plan. I was confident that I followed my degree plan thanks to Alamo GPS in ACES which allowed me to keep tabs on my progress. There was one small discrepancy, but the advisor corrected it. Once he did the degree audit, we verified personal information (updated address, phone number, etc.). That’s it! It’s that simple!

If you have 45+ hours, I recommend you meet with an advisor. They will be able to tell you if you are on the right path to completion or if you are eligible to apply for graduation. The advising and application for Spring graduation begins November 15^th and ends March 20, 2015. Go ahead… meet with an advisor… get your degree… and I’ll see you at graduation!

By Gerona Nylander
NVC Student and Public Relations Administrative Assistant

The newly elected officers of the Northwest Vista Student Government Association took the oath of office at the NVC Interclub Council meeting in Huisache Hall on Tuesday, October 21.

The Executive Committee of the NVC SGA consists of President Rachel Harlin, Vice President John Overmeyer, Senator of Business and Treasury Brandi Kemp, Senator of Curriculum and Instruction Ashley Price, Senator of Campus Operations Jorge Torres, Senator of Student Activities Adan Guadarrama, and Senator of Student Services Miguel Castro.

The recently formed NVC SGA approved a draft constitution, which still needs approval by the college administration, at its meeting on Oct. 7.  The SGA meets every other Tuesday at 5pm in the Student Innovation Center at the back of the open computer lab adjacent to Juniper Hall.  All NVC students, faculty and staff are welcome.  Follow the NVC SGA online at:www.vistastudentgovernment.wordpress.com

The men’s and women’s NVC Cross Country teams competed against the Southwest Texas Junior College team on Sept. 27, on a short 2-mile course.

The NVC women covered the 2-mile course beating the SWTJC team and taking the race championship. The team was lead by Karla Cortez in a time of 13:15, followed by Toni Lindsay, Colleen Rojas, Daisy Rojas, and Rachael Benito in 2^nd, 4^th, 5^th, 6^th, and 7^th place respectively.

The men’s team was lead by Norby Salazar running a 10:33 2-mile time. Directly behind Norby in 5th overall place, was Vince Del Piño with a time of 10:37. Adam Soto finished in 6^th place followed by Jamaal Buchanan and Sergio Luera in 8^th, and 9^th, respectively. Diego Barba placed 11^th for NVC followed by Aaron Beattie, David Gonzales, Micah Florence, Pete Valdez, Patrick Gonzales, James Thedford, Chris Vasquez and Kris Maya in 12^th, 13^th, 14^th, 15^th, 16^th, 18^th, 19^th, and 20^th respectively.

The NVC men’s Cross Country team participated in the Incarnate Word Cross Country Invitational on Oct. 11. The men placed 13^th in the team rankings. The team was lead by Sergio Luera running the 8k race in a time of 29:23. Sergio was followed by teammates Diego Barba, Norby Salazar, Adam Soto, Aaron Beattie, Vince Del Pino, Jamaal Buchanan, Robert Barrasa, Pete Valdez, Jonah Wascheck and Chris Vasquez in 122^nd, 126^th, 138^th, 142^nd, 149^th, 155^th, 159^th, 164^th, and 166^th, respectively.

The women’s team was represented by Karla Cortez. Karla ran the 6K course in the pouring rain finishing in a time of 30:23.

At Northwest Vista College, opportunities are available for all students. Northwest Vista not only offers education at a low rate, they offer nothing but the best teachers. Northwest Vista offers quality education regardless of any social class.

Compared to other colleges such as public, in state schools, the annual tuition is almost $8,000. When compare to Alamo Colleges, which is an average of $2,000 that is a $6,000 difference. We all have other expenses and responsibilities we need to attend to, and I’m sure most of them require money.

Imagine having $6,000 extra to pay off a car bill or house payment. To me that sounds like great deal. The average cost for a public college, out of state is about $25,000.  By going to the Alamo Colleges, you can save $23,000, which is money that can be used for other purposes.

There are also other opportunities that can help you with your finances for school, such as scholarships. The Alamo Colleges has a wonderful database full of scholarships that anyone can apply for. They have a variety of scholarships, so that any student can find at least a few that they are eligible for. Money should never be an excuse to not continue your education because there are always ways to make it work at Northwest Vista.

– NVC Student Tiffany Rico
Wildcat Mentor & Public Relations Work Study

3rd in a series of posts. To see 2nd post, click here.

Two weeks before the Fall 2013 priority registration became available, I was obsessively looking at all the different classes I could take that would cover my basics and my electives.

About a week before registering, I contacted my academic advisor (my instructor) and asked if I could meet with him to discuss choices for future classes. We met in his office and talked more about the general field of Psychology. I gave him a general description of what I wanted to do. I want to work with military families, specifically the spouses. There are always people out there for service members to go to. Rarely do you find someone or someplace that really caters to the military spouse. When I needed the support, I was looked-over or turned away. I would not want anyone go through what I did.

After listening to a part of my story and aspirations, my instructor looked over the different classes available to me and helped me choose the right courses. Because I was straight-forward about what I wanted to do as a career, I registered for classes that would benefit me and help me receive an associate degree. I signed up for two psychology courses that will definitely prepare me for more in-depth psychology courses at a senior institution.

Sometimes it’s difficult to look inside ourselves to find out what we really want to accomplish in our lives. It’s even harder to explain it to someone else. It’s important to get the assistance of an advisor or a mentor, even if you feel like you know what you’re doing. It’s especially important to those who are just beginning their college career. If you keep quiet about your thoughts, feelings, desires, likes, and dislikes, you’ll end up following the wrong path—or no path at all.

By Gerona Nylander
NVC Student & Public Relations Administrative Assistant

2nd Part in a Series. To see first post, click here.

I had a slow start with my degree completion plan. At the time, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with my life. Since I had some experience in the medical field, I thought I should study something along those lines. So in the Fall of 2012, I decided to take one class—Anatomy & Physiology I. I wanted to ease myself back into the classroom. I was nervous and thought I would feel out of place. I didn’t quite have the “first-time-in-college” look, if you know what I mean. I quickly realized that age, gender, and appearance didn’t matter. We were all there for one thing—to further our education.  Within the first two weeks into the semester, I became more confident and truly believed I had the potential to obtain a degree from NVC.

In the Spring 2013 semester, I took a leap of faith and registered for two classes—Anatomy &Physiology II and General Psychology. I’ve always had a passion for Psychology, but I never pursued it. With the influence of the classroom environment (and a very animated instructor), my love for psychology overcame me and put the medical field on the back burner.

One day, I requested a meeting with my instructor to talk about my newfound aspirations. At that point, it seems like I unknowingly “hired” him as my academic advisor. When we were talking, the question of what I wanted to be when I grow up came to the surface. I told him a very specific job title in a very specific field of psychology. He helped me realize that each step toward degree completion would allow me to gradually narrow my choices of specializations or fields. He also spoke to me about future courses I would take and which ones would help in the Psychology field (like Ethics, etc.). Whether it be an advisor or an instructor, it’s always good to have someone help you to pave your path to the right degree.

– Gerona Nylander
NVC Student and PR Admin Assistant