Instructor Bobby Hicks taught a two-hour session on the Introduction to WordPress, one of the most common blogging platforms used in the world today. In this class, WordPress users learned how to set up their own website using the WordPress platform and how to maintain it.

Hicks, who has been involved in Internet Marketing for several years, will be leading another lunch & learn session on the Introduction to WordPress on Wednesday, June 26, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at The Center.

Other upcoming Your Center of Learning classes Hicks will be teaching include the following:

• Marketing to the 21st Century-June 5 (Day Session)
• Social Media Marketing-June 12 (Day Session)
• Introduction to Adobe Photoshop-June 19 (Lunch and Learn)

For more information on these Your Center of Learning classes, click on the course offering to register or contact Robyn Phillips at 606-677-6000.

The Center’s Your Center of Learning training program has announced a new slate of instructor-led classes from professional business and workforce training, personal development seminars, lunch & learn sessions, and an exclusive K-12 grant writing workshop for teachers and administrators.

Click on the course offering to register online and start building your skills:

• Terrorism and WMD in the Workplace-On Demand/Web-based course for first responders (Free)
•  Extremely Essential Camera Skills 1—Saturday, June 1, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. (EDT) (Day Session) This course takes you through all the essential camera skills you will need to get confident and creative with your photos. Requirements: DSLR camera or point and shoot (if available please bring camera manual).
• IPhoneography —Tuesday, June 4, 5-8 p.m. (EDT) (Seminar) Learn how to maximize the potential of the camera in your smart phone and what you can do with some of its most popular photo apps. Requirements: iPhone
• Marketing to the 21^st Century—Wednesday, June 5, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (EDT) (Day Session) This course will provide a brief overview of some of the best online marketing techniques used today.
• Get Going with QuickBooks 2012—Saturday, June 8, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (EDT) (Day Session) This training guide is dedicated to providing you with a flexible, high-performance learning system.
•  What Do I Do With These Photos!—Saturday, June 8, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. (EDT) (Seminar) Organize and use your photos in FUN ways. Requirements: flash drive, external hard drive with photos.
• Social Media Marketing—Wednesday, June 12, 8:30 a.m.-4 :30 p.m. (EDT) (Day Session) Learn popular social media marketing trends used today.
• Computer Training Part 2: Introduction to Windows 7—Thursday, June 13, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (EDT) (Day Session) This class will help you become more comfortable using a personal computer.
• Night Photography—Friday, June 14, 5-8 p.m. (EDT) (Seminar) Spark your creativeness by creating long exposure light painting photographs. Requirements: Point and shoot or DSLR camera.
• Grant Writing for Education—Monday, June 17, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. (EDT) (Day Session) This intensive K-12 grant writing workshop is designed for teachers and administrators who want to strengthen their grant writing skills. (Approved for six Continuing Education Unit (CEU) credits)
• Windows 8—Tuesday, June 18, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. (EDT) (Lunch & Learn) Requirement: You will need to bring your own laptop with Windows 8 software already installed.
• Excel Level 2—Tuesday, June 18, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (EDT) (Day Session) Create and edit basic Excel 2010 workbooks.
• Introduction to Adobe Photoshop—Wednesday, June 19, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. (EDT) (Lunch & Learn) In this class, participants will discuss some of the most popular tools and practices used by graphic designers around the world.
• Get Going & Keep Going with QuickBooks 2012—Thursday, June 20, and Friday, June 21, starting at 9 a.m. (EDT) (Two-Day Session)
• Introduction to Computers Using Windows 7—Saturday, June 22, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. (EDT) (Saturday Session) Become more familiar with the basic components of personal computers.
• Extremely Essential Camera Skills 2—Saturday, June 22, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. (EDT) (Day Session) Learn about lenses, depth of field, camera settings, and other features.
• PowerPoint Level 2—Tuesday, June 25, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (EDT) (Day Session) Students will learn how to enhance their presentation by using features that will transform it into a powerful means of communication.
• Night Photography—Tuesday, June 25, 5 -8 p.m. (EDT) (Seminar) Spark your creativeness by creating long exposure light painting photographs. Requirements: Point and shoot or DSLR camera.
•  Introduction to Word Press—Wednesday, June 26, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. (EDT) (Lunch & Learn) Learn how to set up your own WordPress website and how to maintain it.
• Excel Level 1—Thursday, June 27, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (EDT) (Day Session) Create and edit basic Excel 2010 workbooks.
• IPhoneography—Thursday, June 27, 5-8 p.m. (EDT) (Seminar) Learn how to maximize the potential of the camera in your smart phone and what you can do with some of its most popular photo apps. Requirements: iPhone
• Italian Cooking—Thursday, June 27, 6-7:30 p.m. (EDT) (Cooking Class) Learn Italian Cooking with Chef Mete Sergin.

For more information on these and other Your Center of Learning training classes, contact Robyn Phillips at 606-677-6000 or email ycol@centertech.com.

The Houseboat Vacation, courtesy of Conley Bottom Resort Marina, is valued at $3,500 based on seasonal rates. The winner also will receive a $200 fuel allowance as part of the vacation package.

Each $5 ticket sold will go to support The Center’s Rogers Scholars program and the youth of Southern and Eastern Kentucky. Rogers Scholars, an intensive one-week summer program, provides leadership and scholarship opportunities for rising high school juniors within The Center’s 45-county primary service area.

The winning ticket will be drawn on July 12^th during the second and final week of the 2013 Class of Rogers Scholars. The winner does not need to be present to win, and will be notified via telephone immediately following the drawing.

Tickets for the Houseboat Vacation may be purchased by calling The Center at 606-677-6000, emailing youth@centertech.com, or stopping by the main office at 2292 South U.S. 27 (at Traffic Light 15) in Somerset, Ky., from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The value of the vacation prize will be subject to seasonal rates, and is considered taxable income to the winner, which will be reported to the U.S. Government and the winner on Form 1099. Exemption Number EXE0001356 has been assigned to The Center for Rural Development for this and other fundraising efforts.

Click here to download a PDF copy of the flyer

Seminars will be held June 6 at The Center for Rural Development (at Traffic Light 15) in Somerset and repeated on June 12 at the Foundation for the Tri-State Community, 855 Central Avenue (Citizens National Bank Building), Ashland, and on June 13 at the Kentucky River Area Development District, 917 Perry Park Road, Hazard. Sessions will begin at 9 a.m. at each location.

Click here to register online for the Somerset charitable giving seminar .

To register for the Hazard session, click here to fill out the online registration form or contact Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky at 606-439-1357.

Participants interested in attending the Ashland seminar may contact the Foundation for the Tri-State Community at 606-324-3888.

A complimentary lunch will be served at the Somerset and Ashland seminars. There will be a charge for lunch at the Hazard session.

Attorneys participating in the seminars can earn six hours of Continuing Law Education (CLE) or Common Professional Examination (CPE) credit, including one and one-half hours in Ethics (CLE pending).

Empowering communities to take action

Lankford will share her expert knowledge on charitable giving and planning. She works directly with donors and their advisors to help them develop customized philanthropic plans to meet their charitable giving goals.

ARDPI is committed to helping distressed counties in Eastern Kentucky build the capacity to capture financial assets that will provide the long-term resources for community transformation. Through ARDPI, citizen leaders are encouraged to promote a culture of philanthropy and to create structures, such as community foundations, that will secure these assets for generations to come.

ARDPI partners include the Kentucky Philanthropy Initiative, the Blue Grass Community Foundation, the Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky, the Foundation for the Tri-State Community, The Center for Rural Development, Brushy Fork Institute, and the Endow Kentucky Commission.

• Educator (Early Childhood)—Rhonda Crigger, assistant principal, Southside Elementary School, Pike County
• Educator (K-12 teacher)—Lana Swartz, head of the science department and teacher, Menifee County High School, Frenchburg
• Educator (K-12 support staff)—Debbie Joseph Smith, coordinator of Family Resource Youth Services Center, Carr Creek Elementary School, Knott County
• Educator (K-12 administrator)—Jon Day, guidance counselor, Hazard High School, Perry County
• Educator (Higher Education)—Regina French, instructor, Adult Education, Bath County
• Community Leader—Bob Hutchison, business leader, Johnson County
• Parent/Parent Group—Kim Moore, volunteer and academic team coach, Somerset Christian School, Pulaski County
• Student/Student Group—Bonner Scholars, a service and leadership program for college students at Lindsey Wilson College (LWC), Adair County

“Today highlights the immense talent and desire of adults and students alike found within our region,” Jim Tackett, executive director of Forward in the Fifth, said in making the award presentations. “It is with this passion and attitude that we will transform Southern and Eastern Kentucky into greater educational excellence.”

The winners of the AppLE Awards were announced and recognized at Forward in the Fifth’s Education Leadership Day on Monday, May 13, at The Center for Rural Development in Somerset. More than 120 people attended the event and helped celebrate the accomplishments of these leaders in education.

Lee & Eleanor Rose Ambassador Award

Coldiron initiated the first “Read Pulaski County” literacy event in 2011 and expanded that idea, with the help of sponsors, to include a statewide literacy celebration earlier this year at Rupp Arena in Lexington. The event, “Feed the Mind—Kentucky,” drew 4,500 students with a special appearance by Kentucky First Lady Jane Beshear.

More than 900 students from 11 schools in Pulaski County attended a separate “Feed the Mind” literacy event on April 10 at The Center. Students received a free pizza party and complimentary book to take home and read.

The award, named after longtime Forward in the Fifth board member, Lee Rose, and his wife, Eleanor, acknowledges efforts expanding beyond county borders to promote education.

2013 AppLE Awards

The AppLE Awards were started in 2012 by Forward in the Fifth to celebrate excellence in education by recognizing individuals who work to accomplish the nonprofit organization’s mission: to increase the educational attainment levels for all in the region.

“We are pleased to honor our community leaders and educators with Forward in the Fifth AppLE Awards,” said board chairman Dr. Dessie Bowling. “These exceptional leaders work diligently every day to motivate, inspire, and encourage people to have confidence in themselves and the amazing things they accomplish.”

“This year’s award winners are to be commended for continuing to enhance educational progress in Southern and Eastern Kentucky,” added U.S. Congressman Harold “Hal” Rogers (KY-05), who helped launch Forward in the Fifth in 1986. “We’re tapping into great ideas from energized educators across the region for new opportunities in preparing our students for post-secondary education and a bright future.”

New Voices in Education contest winners

Ethan Morton, a middle school student at Harlan Independent, and the high school video production class at Letcher County Central were announced as the winners of the New Voices in Education video contest.  Their winning video submissions and top picks from other student-generated videos from the 20 contest entries were shown at the Education Leadership Day event.

Forward in the Fifth partnered with the University of Pikeville and Kentucky Valley Educational Cooperative (KVEC) to launch the student video contest to draw attention to the progress of education in the Appalachian region of Kentucky.

Following the awards presentation, several educational initiatives in place across the region were highlighted by students and educators during a reception.

Rogers Scholars graduate Brittany Pittman, Lynn Ashbrook and Becky Pittman, Brittany’s mother, hang flower basket in downtown Somerset.

BY: HEATHER TOMLINSON
CJ Staff Writer

The May flowers appear to have sprung up in downtown Somerset, thanks to one local high school student’s efforts.

“This started off as a small project, but it blossomed into an outstanding downtown project,” said Somerset Mayor Eddie Girdler, about Southwestern High School junior Brittany Pittman’s endeavor.

Pittman, 17, a Rogers Scholar recipient, approached Girdler and several other Somerset officials in the fall in hopes of developing a downtown beautification project. As part of the Rogers Scholar program, recipients must design and propose a community service project in their hometown to be implemented by June.

Pittman said she got her inspiration from downtown London, Ky., which has attracted attention recently for its own beautification efforts.

“I just loved driving down there and seeing all the flowers,” said Pittman.

Pittman said she was nervous about the reception she may get — but that quickly dissolved after Girdler and Downtown Somerset Development Corporation Director Gib Gosser voiced their support of the project.

“Sometimes it takes somebody like that (a young community member) who gets things going,” said Gosser. “The mayor’s wanted to get something on the sidewalks for awhile and we’ve talked about it, but it just kept getting pushed back and pushed back.

“ … But here came Brittany and she said she needed this done by June, and all the stars just lined up,” added Gosser.

The project features 26 commercial-grade plant pots Pittman was able to get at a discount rate from a Russell Springs resident who had previously bought the planters after they were moved from downtown Lexington.

The project was funded through the Downtown Somerset Development Corporation and the City of Somerset, and Pittman has received guidance from both the Lake Cumberland Master Gardeners Association and Sharon Truax, with J&S Garden Center, located on S. Richardson Street in downtown Somerset.

On Thursday, Pittman and several others, including her friends from school, began the process of planting flowers and shrubs in the 26 pots, with encouragement from Gosser, Girdler, Lonnie Lawson, president of The Center for Rural Development, and Delaney Stephens, youth programs coordinator and community liaison with The Center.

The Rogers Scholar program is considered The Center’s flagship youth program.

“This is the first step … in making downtown more beautiful,” said Girdler.

Pittman is also involved in the SWHS Raptor Rehabilitation program, she’s a class officer, and she’s a member of the National Honors Society. She is also on the school’s golf team. But despite her busy schedule, she was happy to make time to help carry out her project.

“I’m glad I got to do this,” said Pittman. “Maybe it’ll encourage people my age to get out more and do things for the community.”

Stephens said Pittman has set the bar high for Rogers Scholar community projects.

“I’m extremely proud of her for organizing and coming up with the idea,” said Stephens. “It’s projects like these that make a difference in the community.

“She’s really gone above and beyond here,” added Stephens.

Dr. Mike Searcy

A leading expert in communication studies is teaching a “lunch-and-learn” training class in personal development on May 28 at The Center for Rural Development.

Dr. Mike Searcy, president of Communication Resource Consulting, Inc., will be leading a class from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.  in “Leadership: Meaning Management and Exercise in Influence” as par of the new, expanded Your Center of Learning training program.

Lunch is not served during the “lunch and learn” sessions, but participants are welcome to bring a “brown bag” lunch.

The cost of “lunch and learn” training is $49 per class.

For more information or to register for these or other Your Center of Learning classes, call Robyn Phillips, training and E-Learning services coordinator at The Center, at 606-677-6000 or email ycol@centertech.com.

Lincoln County High School students listen as Holocaust survivor Lily Perry, shown on video screen, shares her remarkable story.

Most high school students have read about the Holocaust. But it’s not every day students get to meet a Holocaust survivor and learn first-hand about one of history’s darkest moments.

Nearly 200 students from Lincoln County High School were at The Center for Rural Development on Wednesday to view a live, interactive videoconference with Holocaust survivor Lily Perry.

Perry, a native of Vienna, Austria, shared her story with students in a videoconference link from the Holocaust Memorial & Tolerance Center of Nassau County in Glen Cove, New York.

The students, who watched on a large video screen in The Center’s theatre, learned what it was like for Perry and her family to survive the Holocaust.

When she was 10 years old, Hitler annexed Austria to Germany and, with that event, the course of her family’s life changed forever. Before the annexation, Perry’s family had gentile friends and neighbors; they were part of the Austrian community. Lily loved dogs and enjoyed school. Her father owned a store.

With the annexation, Jewish neighbors were humiliated, arrested, and sent to concentration camps. Eventually, her father lost his store. The family sought to escape Austria. They planned to go to Shanghai, but were able to gain admittance to the United States.

They arrived here in 1939, but many relatives were unable to escape and perished during the Holocaust. Lily’s husband was also a survivor. He endured the Dachau camp. The couple met after the war and settled in the United States, where they built a family and new life.

The videoconference was provided by The Center’s CenterNET2 videoconferencing network. CenterNET2 is a national leader in videoconferencing transmission technology supplying content on demand to all Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) campuses and other content provider partners.

Click on the image to access the EIEA nomination form.

It’s fast, easy, and convenient. With just one click, you can nominate a small business leader or entrepreneur in Southern and Eastern Kentucky for the 2013 Excellence in Entrepreneurship Awards (EIEA) program.

Nomination forms for this year’s regional awards program have been posted and are now available online for the first time.

Check here to access the 2013 EIEA nomination form and nominate a small business owner or entrepreneur for this distinguished award of excellence by the May 23 deadline.

Online nominations will be accepted in the following EIEA award categories:

• Business (in existence five or more years with greater than 25 employees)
• Small Business (in existence five or more years with 25 or fewer employees)
• Start-Up (in existence less than five years)
• Not-for-Profit Entity (in existence at least six months)
• Young Entrepreneur (for businesspeople who are 25 years of age and younger)

“What makes America great is the can-do attitude of its entrepreneurs,” said EIEA committee chair Stephen Taylor. “Their vision, calculated risk taking, energy, drive and perseverance to build and rebuild business enterprises despite adverse circumstances form the foundation of our local and national economies.”

The EIEA program recognizes small business leaders and entrepreneurs in 55 Southern and Eastern Kentucky counties for exemplifying America’s spirit of entrepreneurship. Nominees are judged on the economic success of the enterprise, contributions to the community, job creation, and entrepreneurial and business operational achievements.

The top three finalists in each of the five EIEA categories will be recognized—and the award winners announced—on Sept. 9 at the 2013 EIEA awards luncheon hosted at The Center for Rural Development in Somerset.

The program, celebrating excellence in entrepreneurship since 2001, is sponsored by Eastern Kentucky University’s College of Business and Technology, Kentucky Highlands Investment Corporation, Southeast Kentucky Economic Development (SKED), and The Center for Rural Development.

For more information about the EIEA program or the nomination process, call 859-622-2334 or email cbt.eiea@eku.edu.

Nominations  may be submitted by any individual or business within EIEA’s service area in the following Southern and Eastern Kentucky counties: Adair, Bath, Bell, Boyd, Boyle, Breathitt, Carter, Casey, Clark, Clay, Clinton, Cumberland, Edmonson, Elliott, Estill, Fleming, Floyd, Garrard, Green, Greenup, Harlan, Hart, Jackson, Jessamine, Johnson, Knott, Knox, Laurel, Lawrence, Lee, Leslie, Letcher, Lewis, Lincoln, McCreary, Madison, Magoffin, Martin, Menifee, Metcalf, Monroe, Montgomery, Morgan, Owsley, Perry, Pike, Powell, Pulaski, Rockcastle, Rowan, Russell, Taylor, Wayne, Whitley, or Wolfe.

Click on the course offering to register for one of these Your Center of Learning instructor-led classes:

• Terrorism and WMD in the Workplace-On Demand/Web-based course for first responders (Free)
•  Grant Writing 101— May 23 (day session)
• What Do I Do With These Photos!—May 25 (day session) Requirements- flash drive, external hard drive with photos
•  Leadership: Meaning Management and Exercise in Influence—May 28 (Lunch&Learn) 
• Gourmet Cooking on a Budget—May 30 (evening class)
• Computer Training Part 1: Understanding the Personal PC —May 30 (day session) 
• Night Photography—May 31 (seminar) Requirements: -Point and shoot or DSLR camera
  

For a detailed description of each Your Center of Learning training class, class times, and prices, contact Robyn Phillips at 606-677-6000 or email ycol@centertech.com.

Additional training classes will be announced in June and July. Check the website or follow Your Center of Learning’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/centertraining for more information on upcoming classes.