ISSUE 40 - 21 JANUARY 2008

NOT THE LANGSIDE BLOG

( or it is at langsidecollege.blogspot.com )



Polish puzzle??
Challenge – can you name the college member of staff who, on a Christmas visit to Krakow in Poland with his wife, had Christmas dinner interrupted by Polish national television who interviewed the staff member about why they had chosen Poland for their Christmas break? Rumour has it that even without makeup the member of staff was an instant television hit and has now employed an agent for similar UK TV appearances. Email or voicemail Heather Biddlecombe (hbiddlecombe@langside.ac.uk) at ext. 3618 and reveal the identity of the mystery staff member. Remember to leave your name and faculty. The winning entry will be drawn from those who leave the correct answer on Wednesday 23 January 2008. The winner will receive a bottle of 60th Anniversary champagne! Be quick!

College Guide
The 2008/09 College guide has just been published and it is even bigger and better than before! When you consider that last year’s guide has been short listed for a Scottish Further Education Unit Marketing Award for a main college prospectus, then to top that takes a lot of skill and effort, but for all who read and use the guide I am sure you will find this year’s Guide to be the best we have produced so far. The 2008/09 guide contains, amongst other items, a revamped ‘How to apply - 1:2:3’ step guidance for prospective students, a double page photographic spread encompassing the life of the College, a feature article on the College new build and this year staff profiles have been added to complement the student profiles introduced in last years Guide.
Thanks are due to the Guide steering group – Declan Fallon, Marianne Harper, Kath Mulvenny, Robert Paterson, Elaine Proudfoot, Catherine Taylor and Kim Turkington. The group set the ball rolling in design terms but Catherine Taylor and Kim Turkington are to be specially commended for seeing the Guide through to the finished article. Special thanks also to Declan Fallon for his diligent proof reading in the final stages.

Lifestyle Learning goes from strength to strength!
The Lifestyle learning programme for January 2008 consists of 66 classes engaging nearly 800 people in learning. Of the lifestyle menu on offer the language classes are always popular and the range of courses from Beginners to Next Step to Improvers are always in demand, particularly the Italian and Spanish classes. The Lifestyle programme meets Learning for Life in a really positive way with some of the healthy lifestyle classes. Isobel Ellis (78 years young) and Jean Balfour, also 78 years of age have signed up to Bryan Riddell’s Legs, Bums and Tums class!!
Never prepared to rest on their laurels the lifestyle team introduced, for the first time in 2007, College gift vouchers for redemption within the Lifestyle programme and those have been a real success.
Successful new classes introduced, include Cake Decorating, Healthy Eating Cookery Class, Starting Your Own Business and Mediterranean Cooking - indeed this class is fully booked for April as well!!
Full marks to all at Student Services for the terrific customer service given to our Lifestyle Learning students – with particular thanks to John Forbes and Liz Clark for the excellent work they do in this area

Congratulations!
Margaret Cunningham has returned home! (to Maths that is!). Margaret has returned to her first love, Mathematics, and has been appointed Senior Lecturer of Mathematics and Numeracy.
We wish Margaret well in her new post.

Simon Stewart- Payroll Administrator
If you have not already heard Simon is leaving on Friday 25th January 2008 for pastures new. The College wish him well in his new post.

Burns Bash: Friday 25th January – Emanuel Studio
To celebrate the life and works of Robert Burns, the Faculty of Arts, Languages and Social Sciences has joined with the International Office to present a Burns lunch followed by some “cracking” entertainment. A selection of Burns’ poems and songs will be performed by staff and students from the Music and Drama sections, and the food will be provided by the Hospitality students. If free, all staff are welcome to attend from 1 pm onwards to enjoy the celebrations.

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Any ideas, thoughts, scribbles to the Blog – please contact Robert Paterson or the Secretariat
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