By Ann Voight.
DMACC has over 20,000 students attending campuses this fall. Ankeny has a wide variety of groups students can join to meet new people who have similar interests. Here’s a rundown on some of the clubs on campus:
DMACC United, LGBTQA students and Allies
This group meets the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month in the Art Room from 12:45-1:45. The main goals of the club are to provide support for members who identify as LGBTQA. Also the club strives to educate others and be advocates about the issues surrounding those who are LGBTQA. Some benefits to participating in the group include having a safe place to meet, discuss, and socialize with students who have similar concerns; giving them a place to fit in. The group is open to all students. It’s not just for LBGTQA students, but also for allies. The student president is Sara Schaefer and the Faculty advisor is Julie Simanski.
Communicate! Club
Meets on selected Fridays from 12:30 to 1:15 PM in Room 2, Building 2. The goal is to give students an opportunity to meet other students and explore concepts of communication within a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. The main benefit is for students to develop confidence in their communication skills. Another benefit is that each student has the opportunity to earn both national and state honors in speech communication. Keep in mind that earning the communication honors are a great resume builder. Students do not need to belong to Communicate! Club in order to earn the communication honors and students do not need to be working toward honors to be part of Communicate! Club.
Students enjoy is that FREE DESSERT is provided at the Communicate! meetings! Each meeting will have communication activities such as improv, charades, word games, and impromptus. All students are welcome, and there is no student leader. Speech faculty plan the meetings and provide dessert for those who attend. Faculty Advisor is Judith Vogel.
Medical Assistant Club
The club begins meetings in October and usually meets monthly in room 114 building 24. The Medical Assistant Club participates in SAC activities, especially community outreach programs, drives or collections, and the club may select a local community organization to support. The club attends the local professional American Association of Medical Assistants (AAMA) Des Moines Chapter meetings and assists at a spring meeting with member registration. Students are required top attend at least one chapter meeting throughout the year.
For the past several years, the club has raised funds to pay for student membership in the AAMA. Each semester the club organizes a potluck for students, and a snack day during finals. They also plan a graduation luncheon and the end of summer term luncheon. Since the club interacts with the local AAMA organization, it introduces students to working CMA’s for networking, and helps with understanding of the process of certification and re-certification through continuing education.
Each year, the club decides on how active they want to be with any events or fund raisers. The club provides a time for students to socialize with full-time and part-time students within the program. Each fall the students elect officers and encourage a member to serve on the SAC. All full time and part time students in the medical assistant program are automatically a part of the Medical Assistant Club. Any other interested DMACC students are welcome to join. Debbie Odegaard is the faculty advisor.
DMACC Diesel Club
The club meets as needed, in building 14. The main goal is to enhance the students’ experience here at DMACC, especially with things pertaining to the diesel industry. Group members will receive jacket embroidery to give them a sense of belonging to the diesel group. Also, during a skills contest, members will get pizza. Sometimes the group will go on a trip to tour a trade show or factories relating to the diesel industry. The club is open to all DMACC students; however it will mainly interest those in our diesel programs. The faculty advisor is Terry Goode.
DIS-Adversity Club
The club meets once a month, on-campus. Prior to the meetings, emails are sent out to club members and/or are notified via the DMACC Daily. The main goal of the club is to support and connect students, both with or without disabilities, who face academic challenges and are currently enrolled at DMACC. Group members will participate in social events geared toward meeting new people. They will also discuss ideas on how to be better students and provide support to students within the group. The club is open to all students. Kyle Hamilton is the student leader of the club and the faculty advisor is Hollie Coon.
DMACC Student Education Association
The goal of the club is to inform its members of current happenings within the field of education, both state-wide and nationally. Members will get the opportunity to work as a group and get to know each other on a more personal level. They will also meet members from other associations at colleges and universities in the state of Iowa. The next scheduled event will be attendance at the Student ISEA Fall Conference, October 11 and 12, and will be held at Adventureland Inn, in Altoona. The club is open to all students, but is targeted for students that aspire to become educators. There will be an upcoming organizational meeting where student officials will be elected, and the faculty advisor is Dave Boelman.
Student American Dental Hygienists’ Association (SADHA) (1st year) and Student American Dental Health Experts (SADHE ) (2nd year)
The clubs meet in Bldg. 9 classroom 1 or 3 each month, or as needed. The clubs main purpose is to cultivate, promote, and sustain the art and science of dental hygiene. Also their goals are to represent and safeguard the common interest of the members within the dental hygiene profession and to contribute toward the improvement of the health of the public. Students who join the clubs will receive a subscription to the Journal of the American Dental Hygienists’ Association. Plus there will be opportunities to work together as a club on fundraising. The clubs are only open to dental hygiene students. The faculty advisor is Deb Penney
Student Activities Council
The club meets on Wednesdays at 3pm in Building 5. The SAC acts as the governing body of the student body. Also, they will plan fun and educational activities for all of the students to enjoy on campus. Some of the benefits to being on the SAC are meeting new people, gaining communication skills, learning to work in a group, and having fun, all while providing multiple leadership opportunities. Members will network with other students, clubs, faculty and staff at our campus and the other DMACC campuses. The club is open to all students. The faculty advisor is Erin Wheat.
DMACC Environmental Science Club
This club meets every Monday at 4:30, in Building 9 Room 9.
The group’s mission is to explore and enjoy the natural environment, educate and inform the public, and provide ideas for a more sustainable future. Students who are interested in a variety of topics including environmental issues, natural resource management, and outdoor recreation are encouraged to join. The club also provides students with opportunities to take leadership roles, plan and manage projects, meet and work with professionals in our field, attend conferences, and develop many other career and life skills. Members help maintain the DMACC Prairie, Carney Marsh, and volunteer at the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge. They also help organize and participate in DMACC Earth Week activities, participate in river clean-ups and fund raisers. The group will also go on outdoor events such as biking, birding, canoeing, and camping trips. Currently the club is working on a project to improve recycling on campus. At a typical meeting the students will discuss recent events that have occurred with past projects, get updates on current projects, and they also discuss and plan future events. Sometimes after the meetings, club members will do an activity, such as go to a park for a hike, have a pot-luck, or meet up somewhere off campus to continue discussions. The student president is Melissa Schmeling Schomer and the faculty advisor is Craig Dilley.
Anime Club
Currently, this club meets on Friday afternoons from 3:30-6pm, in Building 2, Room 1. The purpose of the club is to introduce, view and discuss Anime as an form of video entertainment, art form and exposure to other cultures. Each meeting members will discuss potential fund-raising opportunities or off-campus activities going on. Then members will watch some anime, with some members discussing what has been watched afterwards. Their goal is to try to create a calm relaxed atmosphere where people can feel free to talk and share their love of anime with other like minded people.
The club is open to all students. The faculty advisor is Jeff Gullion and the president is Jeremy Hamilton.
Management/Marketing Club
Club meeting and activities generally take place on Tuesdays or Thursdays, between 11:15 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. The main purpose of the club is to give students an opportunity to grow professionally by developing knowledge and skills in the areas of leadership, community involvement, networking and career awareness. The club will participate in study tours, business convocations, community service projects and social activities to help students grow into their potential, creating tangible examples of leadership to use in cover letters, resumes, and in job interviews. Some social events might include having a Halloween or Holiday party. Community Service activities also vary year to year, but in the past, students have participated in food drives for Combat Hunger (one year they collected close to 1000 boxes of macaroni and cheese) and written holiday cards for members of the armed services. We are open to all students with an interest in the areas of Marketing, Management, and Fashion/Design, but the clubs are mainly for students who are majoring in Marketing, Retailing, Management, Human Resources, Sales Management, Fashion/Design and Interior Design. The president is Laurel Augustine and the faculty advisors are Susan Verhulst, Neil Kokemuller and Russ Moorehead.
Creative Writing Club
In the past, this club has met once or twice a month, usually in building 5, to exchange ideas on writing, craft, and workshopping one another’s work in order to promote the world of writing for student writers/audience. The club gives each student an opportunity to share what has been written with a capable and perceptive audience, as well as find ways to help improve your writing with suggestions and comments from this audience of fellow student writers. It’s open to all students, and the faculty advisor is Marc Dickinson
Diabetes Association
The meeting times vary, and an e-mail will be sent out prior to the meeting. The main goal of the club is to raise awareness about diabetes and the issues surrounding the disease, specifically to educate others about the differences between the two types. Members will participate in fundraisers and help organize events on campus to help with informing others, like bringing in speakers and doctors to talk to students. The club also provides support and a community for those who have diabetes. The group also participates in various diabetes walks and helps promote Camp Hertko Hollow, a camp for children living with diabetes. The group hopes to create a network of people with diabetes among high schools and colleges. David Blacksmith is the president and Steve Rude is the faculty advisor
Students for Life
The meeting times vary, and an e-mail will be sent out prior to the meeting. This club strives to inform others about the sanctity of life, specifically during the gestational period, and educate others on the biological aspect of early life. The group aims to educate and raise awareness on options beyond abortion. The group plans to participate in the Walk for Life in Washington D.C. in the winter. Theresa Kelly is the club’s president and Steve Rude is the faculty advisor.
The International Club
This club meets on Wednesdays from 11:30-12:15, in building 24, room 106. This club is a way for people to meet others from new cultures. It also provides a community for transfer students to meet new people. The club goes on a trip each month. They recently went to the Omaha Zoo and the state fair, and plan to go on a ski trip in Minnesota over spring break. During the meetings, the members help organize events to inform and educate others about different cultures, like the upcoming International Food Festival at the Urban campus, where there will be informational booths and traditional food from about fifteen countries.
Plaque Busters
The group usually meets about once a month in the students’ main classroom and sometimes in the dental materials lab. The main focus of the club is to fundraise so they have money for the convocation ceremony in July, and so they can have social events. The group is open to everyone, but mainly students involved with the dental assistant program join the group. The faculty advisor is Terri Deal.
Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society
This group meets on the upcoming dates: October 22, November 5 & 19, at 1pm in the building 5 Honors Lounge. The main goal of the group is to develop members into better leaders through various community service projects. The group will also help members obtain scholarships here at DMACC, and when transferring to a 4 year college.
Members can focus on personal development, career resources, obtain graduation regalia and gain access to over $37 million in scholarships exclusively to our members.
To be eligible for membership the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society students must complete a minimum of twelve hours of associate degree course work (community college credits) and reach a grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 or higher. Students generally must maintain a high academic standing throughout their enrollment in the two-year college. For more information on Phi Theta Kappa contact Faculty Advisor Ronn Newby. All majors are welcome.
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