Nutshell News, Jan. 8

Ryukoku @ MHCC

Sixteen students from Ryukoku University, located in Kyoto, Japan, are scheduled to attend Mt. Hood Community College classes from mid-February to March 6, and host families are needed for this exchange student opportunity.

“Many faculty, staff and students at MHCC have hosted students for the previous programs and they had great experience with the students,” said Yoko Sato, the onsite director of Ryukoku @ MHCC Winter 2016.

A few requirements for a host family are:

Breakfast and dinner must be provided each day; and the host family must speak in English while the guest student is present.

To ensure the safety of the students, criminal background checks will be conducted.

Mandatory host family orientation will be held in the evening of Jan. 22.

Those selected as a host family will receive an orientation packet by mid-January, so they can prepare for the orientation.

Ryukoku @ MHCC Winter Program is a cultural exchange that helps the Japanese students enhance their knowledge of American culture and English language by interacting with the people they meet, especially the host families and MHCC students.

For more information about how to host an exchange student from Kyoto, Japan, contact Sato at: [email protected].

– Gloria Saepharn

Team cyber security competition

Fall Term competitions end for cyber security teams at MHCC

In the first year of participating in the national competitions under MHCC instructor Paul Morris had three teams compete – two at the silver level and the third at the bronze level.

Regional competitions ended with:

Silver teams – Ninth place and 19th place out of 34 teams

Bronze team – Eighth place out of 37 teams

– Gloria Saepharn

CNNs @ MHCC

Mt. Hood’s Associated Student Government is accepting submissions for the February Call of Nature News (CNN) until Jan. 20. The February edition of CNN will be shown between Feb. 6 and Mar. 6. If any clubs, organizations or departments have announcements or events coming up, they may display them on the CNNs.

The CNN is published by ASG every month during the school year and is placed in restrooms and glass cases around the MHCC campuses. MHCC employees are also welcome to submit entries.

For more information or questions regarding the CNN and/or submission guidelines, contact: [email protected]. To submit an announcement or other information for the MHCC community to be aware of, visit: mhcc.edu/CNN.

– Gloria Saepharn

Popular planets

Mt. Hood Community College’s planetarium has grown more popular, so its public showings will double.

Planetarium Director Pat Hanrahan said, “We wanted people to have more opportunities to see our live shows.” Shows will now run the usual first Tuesday of each month, plus the second Thursday evening.

The next show is on Jan. 14, with the 2016 Sky Preview. (A campus closure scrubbed the Jan. 5 show.)

The changes come at a time where Winter Term is beginning and new students are attending Mt. Hood. They also brought a slight increase in ticket prices, now $5 for the general public, $2 for children (17 and under) and MHCC students (I.D. required).

Show times are 6 and 7:15 p.m. During each 45-minute program, visitors are encouraged to ask questions. The Planetarium is wheelchair accessible.

– Gloria Saepharn

Laptop thefts

On the second day of the Winter Break, two laptops were stolen from the Information Technology Department office area in AC 170, on the main Gresham campus.

The thief has not been identified, and Public Safety would like students and faculty to help find the culprit. A person captured by surveillance video (see photo) is a person of interest in the case. If you can identify this person or see this person on campus, please call Public Safety at 503-491-7310. Do not confront this person.

“As a community, we rely on one another to watch and report suspicious activity and to prevent crimes of opportunity,” Public Safety’s alert adds. To avoid becoming a victim of theft, don’t leave any personal property of value unattended in your car or in plain sight – keep it with you at all times.

Report all suspicious activity to the number above, but for a crime in progress, call 503-491-7911.

– Gloria Saepharn

New Fireplace Art: The Watercolor Society of Oregon Traveling Show

The MHCC Visual Arts Gallery is hosting an exhibition from the Watercolor Society of Oregon (WSO) through Feb. 4.

Founded in 1966, the WSO is a statewide organization consisting of close to 1,000 members. According to the group’s website, primary activities are the display of members’ work and providing education opportunities, both for the members and others interested in the creation and appreciation of the visual arts.

The Visual Arts Gallery is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays.

– Hayden Hunter