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The winter months
can be a time to hunker down by the fire -- or to take classes that
enhance your professional resume and enrich your personal life.
At Mercer County Community College's (MCCC) Center for Continuing
Studies, classes begin in January to help adults advance their careers
in areas including computer software, small business and nonprofit
management, accounting and bookkeeping, marketing, and communications,
with numerous programs leading to professional certifications. On
the personal side, MCCC's noncredit classes range from creative
writing to painting to learning a foreign language, and much more.
Most classes are offered evenings and weekends to accommodate busy
schedules. Classes meet on Mercer's West
Windsor Campus, 1200 Old Trenton Road.
One of the Center's
newest certificate programs is the "Business Analyst."
Instructor Peter Johnson applies his 20-plus years of information
technology (IT) experience to address issues in product marketing,
project management and IT management. Participants will improve
their understanding of business analysis tasks and techniques, and
be prepared to apply for certification from the International Institute
of Business Analysis. Classes will be held Saturdays, Mar. 1-29,
9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
The certificate
program in "Meeting and Event Planning" will be
taught by Joanne Joham, CMP. Joham is the regional director for
North America for the International Congress and Convention Association,
and has represented and worked with convention centers, hotels,
international airlines, congress organizers and destination management
companies. Designed for those new to the field, as well as those
who want to build on their credentials, the course will emphasize
the development and implementation of clear objectives for each
event right from the concept stage. The course meets for 10 sessions,
Mar. 12-May 28, 6-9 p.m.
"Faith
Based Community Development" is a new certificate program
developed by instructor Dr. Gloria Frederick. With an extensive
resume of leadership in the non-profit sector, Frederick will teach
the first class in the series from Apr. 5-June 7 to help religious
and faith leaders from all denominations enhance the planning, financing,
and implementation of youth initiatives, child care services, housing
development, commercial real estate development, workforce development
and business enterprises. In addition to this class, the certificate
includes four other core courses - in finance and accounting, fundraising,
human resource development, and marketing and public relations,
as well as related electives.
A potent approach
to organizational management will be covered in "Six Sigma
White Belt," a one-day workshop on "lean" business
thinking on Feb. 12, and "Six Sigma Yellow Belt,"
an in-depth course from Feb. 15-Mar. 17. Taught by Lawrence Solow,
president of 3-D Change, Inc., the first workshop will present general
principles for eliminating "non-value added" work, while
the Yellow Belt course will focus on the Six Sigma methodology of
improving organizations through the effective integration of strategy,
processes and people.
In the computer
field, many classes are offered for IT professionals. Those with
A+ certification can take two courses in "Computer Forensics,"
which covers how and where data is stored, and how to recover it
using commercial and open source software utilities. "Computer
Forensics I" will be held Feb. 4-Mar. 18; "Computer Forensics
II" will be held Apr. 1-May 13. Other IT classes include JavaScript
and DHTML, Flash MX, Dreamweaver 8. Cisco courses will provide certification
training as a network associate, network professional and voice
professional. Web design courses teach participants how to develop
attractive and informative business websites. Six required courses
and one elective in this area lead to the "Web Developer/Programmer
Certificate." In the online "PC Repair" certificate
program, participants will learn to repair, troubleshoot, install
and maintain systems, as well as replace motherboards and memory.
Classes are also offered in popular software including Microsoft
Excel, MS Access, Quickbooks, MS PowerPoint, basic computer literacy
and keyboarding skills, and many more.
For those preparing
for academic admissions tests, the Center offers review classes
for the "Praxis 2" exam Jan. 7-Mar. 17; the Graduate Record
Exam Feb. 5-Mar. 11; and the Graduate Management Admittance Test
(GMAT) Feb. 7-Mar. 13. Preparation for the SATs and LSATs is available
through Mercer's online "Ed To Go" program.
Courses in writing
include the new "Writing for TV" from Feb. 4-Mar. 10;
"Creative Writing" from Feb. 20-Apr. 2; "Advanced
Creative Writing" from Apr. 16-May 4; and "Writing and
Illustrating Books for Children" from Apr. 23-May 28. "Grammar
for Grown-Ups," from Mar. 11-Apr. 1, and "Writing Without
Fear," from Mar. 4-Apr. 8, will help adults refresh their writing
skills and gain confidence in their written communications.
Online offerings continue to grow. Registrants can choose from hundreds
of courses that typically run for six weeks and include 12 lessons
that can be completed any time. Lessons provide a variety of activities
such as online discussion groups, quizzes, projects, supplementary
links and more. A new section of each course starts monthly. To
learn more about online classes, click here.
The Center's
courses for personal interest span the spectrum - from personal
finance and homebuying, to gardening, painting, glass bead making,
photography, fitness and more. The MCCC Culinary Center offers courses
that focus on both cooking basics and gourmet techniques, as well
as cuisines from around the world.
Information
on all of MCCC's professional and personal interest courses is available
in the course brochure available here.
For a printed copy, call (609) 570-3311. For e-mail inquiries, the
address is ComEd@mccc.edu.
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