By Anna Taylor
Friday, April 17, 2015 at 4:00 am
Felicia Toliver, director of cultural diversity at Elizabethtown Community and Technical College, dressed Thursday in a costume of hundreds of plastic shopping bags. She walked through the Regional Postsecondary Center on campus with a sign that said “One shopper, one year, 500 bags” at the college’s EarthFest event to acknowledge Earth Day.
“When you go to the grocery store and you make your purchase and when you go to department stores and make your purchase, you don’t think about what 500 bags over a year actually looks like,” she said. “It’s easy to kind of minimize the impact on the environment when you’re just doing maybe five bags or two bags at a time. This project is to encourage people to use reusable bags instead of always just getting the plastic bags.”
Toliver requested plastic bag donations from ECTC faculty and staff throughout the past week to create her “bag monster” costume.
“A lot of times, people will keep them under their sink and they’ll reuse them for a couple of different things at home or they’ll take them to the recycle bin, which is still better than just throwing them away,” she said.
Many different booths and vendors were lined up inside to avoid the rain during EarthFest to educate guests on earth sustainability.
ECTC student Jon Elmore recently learned one of the worst places in the world for air pollution is Fresno, California.
He was assigned in a group to research an Earth Day concern for his physics class. His group chose pollution for its topic and created a display for EarthFest.
“Fresno has significantly more air pollution than any other place in the U.S.,” he said.
He said the pollution mostly comes from factories, automobiles and a large landfill.
“It’s really hard for one person to make a difference,” he said. “There’s cleaner solutions than the easier route. It’s easy to take the cheap way out and maximize profits by doing whatever’s unhealthy for the environment, but if you put the extra money into it and you do other things instead of just like burning coal constantly for energy ... that would really decrease the amount of smog and (particle pollution) that’s put into the air.”
Angie Benson, a member of ECTC’s Bio¬logy Club, handed out packets of milkweed seeds during EarthFest. Monarch caterpillars and many butterflies rely on milkweed for food.
“There’s a lot of habitat destruction because people think of it as a weed,” she said. “We are giving away seed packets and information on how to grow them. We’re trying to rebuild their habitat.”
Faculty members also planted a dogwood tree on the campus. The tree, sponsored by ECTC’s Student Government Association, is one of 10 Kentucky native trees they will plant this spring.
A second portion of EarthFest events, hosted by Hardin County Earthcare Collaborative, is Saturday at First Presbyterian Church at 1016 Pear Orchard Road in Elizabethtown. The event begins with a 5K run at 9 a.m.. then live music and activities at 11 a.m..
Anna Taylor can be reached at 270-505-1747 or Taylor@thenewsenterprise.com
Friday, April 17, 2015 at 4:00 am
Felicia Toliver, director of cultural diversity at Elizabethtown Community and Technical College, dressed Thursday in a costume of hundreds of plastic shopping bags. She walked through the Regional Postsecondary Center on campus with a sign that said “One shopper, one year, 500 bags” at the college’s EarthFest event to acknowledge Earth Day.
“When you go to the grocery store and you make your purchase and when you go to department stores and make your purchase, you don’t think about what 500 bags over a year actually looks like,” she said. “It’s easy to kind of minimize the impact on the environment when you’re just doing maybe five bags or two bags at a time. This project is to encourage people to use reusable bags instead of always just getting the plastic bags.”
Toliver requested plastic bag donations from ECTC faculty and staff throughout the past week to create her “bag monster” costume.
“A lot of times, people will keep them under their sink and they’ll reuse them for a couple of different things at home or they’ll take them to the recycle bin, which is still better than just throwing them away,” she said.
Many different booths and vendors were lined up inside to avoid the rain during EarthFest to educate guests on earth sustainability.
ECTC student Jon Elmore recently learned one of the worst places in the world for air pollution is Fresno, California.
He was assigned in a group to research an Earth Day concern for his physics class. His group chose pollution for its topic and created a display for EarthFest.
“Fresno has significantly more air pollution than any other place in the U.S.,” he said.
He said the pollution mostly comes from factories, automobiles and a large landfill.
“It’s really hard for one person to make a difference,” he said. “There’s cleaner solutions than the easier route. It’s easy to take the cheap way out and maximize profits by doing whatever’s unhealthy for the environment, but if you put the extra money into it and you do other things instead of just like burning coal constantly for energy ... that would really decrease the amount of smog and (particle pollution) that’s put into the air.”
Angie Benson, a member of ECTC’s Bio¬logy Club, handed out packets of milkweed seeds during EarthFest. Monarch caterpillars and many butterflies rely on milkweed for food.
“There’s a lot of habitat destruction because people think of it as a weed,” she said. “We are giving away seed packets and information on how to grow them. We’re trying to rebuild their habitat.”
Faculty members also planted a dogwood tree on the campus. The tree, sponsored by ECTC’s Student Government Association, is one of 10 Kentucky native trees they will plant this spring.
A second portion of EarthFest events, hosted by Hardin County Earthcare Collaborative, is Saturday at First Presbyterian Church at 1016 Pear Orchard Road in Elizabethtown. The event begins with a 5K run at 9 a.m.. then live music and activities at 11 a.m..
Anna Taylor can be reached at 270-505-1747 or Taylor@thenewsenterprise.com
Elizabethtown Community and Technical College student Joshua Ohde will spend the summer working at the National Institutes of Health alongside some of the nation’s top scientists and researchers. The former Hodgenville resident, who now lives in Frankfort, completed two years at ECTC and will transfer to the University of Kentucky in the fall. But this summer he’s looking forward to a unique internship experience that is the envy of researchers everywhere. 
ECTC faculty member Beverly Dile, Elizabethtown, serves as Developmental Studies Department Coordinator in the Arts and Humanities Division. Dile was nominated because of her dedication to insuring the success of all students as she goes above and beyond what is expected of her. Beverly constantly searches for ways to make college more accessible to more people through her work spearheading online course expansion and helping to create a variety of options for students that accommodate their specific needs and learning styles. Dile also has coordinated the annual North Central Kentucky Spelling Bee for the last 25 years. 
Noel Helm, Flaherty, was nominated as administrative staff recipient of KCTCS’ Award of Excellence at ECTC. Helm serves as Coordinator of Disability Services and singlehandedly attends to almost 100 of the school’s most vulnerable students every year, making himself available when the students need him. In addition to this, he regularly speaks to Interdisciplinary Early Childhood Education classes at ECTC to discuss inclusive practices, and teaches EDP 203. “The Exceptional Learner in the Regular Classroom.” He is dedicated to educating ECTC faculty and staff about issues related to disabilities. Helm is an active member of the Transition Team and has coordinated Transition Fairs for 10 school districts with students transitioning from high school to college. 
Support staff member Debbie Bryan has served the college for 20 years in various positions. She has spent the past five years as executive administrative assistant in the president’s office, where she holds herself to standards of excellence. Bryan has earned the respect and admiration of the entire ECTC college community. She serves as liaison between the ECTC president and executive assistant to the KCTCS president. She also has worked as senior administrative assistant in ECTC’s Institutional Advancement office and administrative assistant in the Associate Degree Nursing Program. In addition to her work at ECTC, Bryan volunteers with local community organizations and is passionate about issues that affect children and senior citizens. 
Joseph Wimsett graduated in May with an Associate in Applied Science Degree in Diesel Technology and plans to become a diesel mechanic. 
Amanda Coffman is a Biology/Pre-Dental major who graduated with an Associate in Science Degree. She plans to continue her education to become a dentist. 
The Elizabethtown/Hardin County Industrial Foundation Training Consortium (EIFTC) has partnered with Elizabethtown Community and Technical College to enhance the delivery of training to area industry and support the education of students majoring in high technology disciplines.