Linn-Benton Community College

Linn-Benton Community College’s 50th Commencement ceremony will be held Monday, June 18 at 7 p.m. at the Linn County Fair and Expo Willamette Event Center in Albany. The college will award 1,000 degrees and certificates to 829 students this year. In addition, approximately 90 students will be awarded LBCC’s General Educational Development GED certificates. Graduates should plan to arrive no later than 5:45 p.m. at the Santiam Building behind the Willamette Event Center. Doors open for seating at 6 p.m. No tickets needed to attend. No strollers or backpacks. Carry bags will be checked. A traditional bagpipe processional will be lead by the Portland Metro Pipe Band, with posting of the colors by the American Legion Travis Moothart Post 184 of Brownsville. Members of the LBCC choir will sing the National Anthem. LBCC President Dr. Greg Hamann will give the welcome and present several awards including Phi Theta Kappa, Distinguished Alumni, and Distinguished Citizen. Outgoing ...

After more than 80 years of combined service, Paulette Myers, left, and Teresa Patterson are retiring. Two Long-time Staff Members Retire with Combined 80-plus Years of Service With more than 80 years of combined service, long-time staff members Teresa Patterson and Paulette Myers are retiring, capping careers of 40 and 43 years respectively. Teresa started work as part-time, non-contract in the college registration office when she was 16, working through her junior and senior year at South Albany High School. Back then, the Registration office was in the Calapooia Center, where Human Resources is today. After graduating high school, Teresa was offered a full-time position in Registration, a job she held for 20 years before moving into her current position as IT Specialist with Information Services. Some of her coworkers call her the “Banner Queen,” since she was part of the original team that helped bring Banner online. Teresa’s last day was May 31, but she will continue to work...

LBCC Librarian Richenda Hawkins. This year, the college dedicated $50,000 in Strategic Initiative funds to help pay for faculty work needed to adopt more affordable textbook options, with another $50k for next year. Librarian Richenda Hawkins shared that campus-wide more than 40 faculty representing every division have adopted Open Educational Resources (OERs) and 20 faculty have replaced textbooks with library resources. More than 60 classes have been converted from traditional textbooks to OERs or library resources, such as ebooks from the college's subscription to the Ebrary and EBSCO ebook databases. An added benefit for students receiving financial aid is the students have access to textbooks on day one, rather than having to wait for a financial aid award. Library staff applied for an Open Educational Resources Degree Initiative grant for $300,000. If awarded, the funds will be used to help with the short-term goal of saving students $500,000 by the fall of 2017 and the...