 |
|
|||||||
|
||||||||
|
|
Photo by Mike Mata/The Advocate
Student Evan Mullen (left) begins work while branch coordinator Sergio Lopez, right, supervises at the new Maywood Park campus library
Sister campus experiences growth
Maywood Park expands services offered to students
Maywood Park, MHCC's satellite campus, sits nestled amid a bustling neighborhood in Northeast Portland, on the corner of Prescott and 102nd Avenue.
It serves as a center for English as a Second Language (ESL) classes, English as a Non-Native Language (ENL) classes and community education classes. They recently added a library for students.
"We're enhancing services there all the time," said Kim Freeman, dean of economic and workforce development. "We're really reaching out to Mt. Hood's western community," she added.
Branch coordinator Sergio Lopez said the library is "the size of a normal classroom. We have several hundred titles, ranging from adult education, popular reading, kids and reference. We try to adjust to the needs of the campus."
The classroom size is no impediment to the library's productivity. Lopez said it has been successful since it opened its doors on Sept. 20.
"We've had a very warm welcome from students, staff and instructors. We're operating as normal library, even two weeks after opening. We look to our populace's needs," said Lopez.
The library serves around 60 to 100 students a day, he said, depending on the class schedules and how often Lopez invites classes to the library.
Freeman said, "They (students) no longer have to go to Gresham (campus) to check out books. They can check them out here and they'll be shipped out a day later."
Currently featured in the library is a display for Banned Books Week, highlighting books that were banned for their content. Titles include "Charlotte's Web," "Fahrenheit 451," "Of Mice and Men" and "Catcher in the Rye."
Lopez, a University of Oklahoma graduate, keeps in contact with other librarians at the Gresham campus through e-mail and instant messaging, especially when he is not around with other librarians and student workers needing guidance.
The library is open seven days a week: Monday-Thursday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m.
While the primary courses offered at Maywood are ESL and ENL classes, site coordinator Dorothy Bray said they also offer college placement testing on Tuesdays on a drop-in basis and will soon offer GED testing. There have been lots of additions besides the library, she said.
"There is now a student services representative available for students on Mondays and Wednesdays. Students can add and drop courses here. For the main campus, if they live closer to us, it is a major convenience," said Bray.
There is a full-service bookstore on site where students can purchase any books or supplies required for classes taken at the Maywood campus, Bray said.
The Community Skills Center, another service offered, is a place for students to hone their computer skills, and beef up their resumes with a 10-week, self-paced course designed to augment their skills.
Kimberly Murray, the head of the Community Skills Center, said, "They (community skills classes) are at your own pace, even if it takes you two or three days, or the whole 10 weeks. And you can start at any time of the year."
Bray said people from all walks of life attend classes at Maywood.
"We have a huge diverse group here," she said.
The Advocate reserves the right to not publish comments based on their appropriateness.