Computing Sciences and Information Technology Division – CSIT

HCIS – Health Information Systems, MIRM – Medical Information and Revenue Management
The Health Information Technology (HIT) Career Mentorship Program is in full-swing! Mentors from local industry have been paired with current HCIS and MIRM students – conversations and networking are in-progress! (See photo below). Students and mentors are requested to meet monthly throughout the course of the semester and take advantage of the events and/or meetings of local professional organizations (Greater Kansas City HIMSS, AAPCKC, KCHIMA). A new class of mentors/mentees is planned for Spring 2020. This is a Carl Perkins funded project.

MIRM – Medical Information and Revenue Management
The following Spring 2019 MIRM graduates have successfully passed the Certified Professional Coder (CPC) credentialing exam: Rebecca Bruce, Amy Crowther, and Amber Roderick. This credential is nationally-recognized, awarded by the American Academy of Processional Coders (AAPC).

WEB – Web Development and Digital Media
Angie Reed, Spring 2019 graduate of the Web Development and Digital Media program has accepted a Search Engine Optimization position with Thruline Marketing of Overland Park, Kansas. Angie met Thruline through the spring 2019 Reverse Career Fair, organized in collaboration with the Career Service and CSIT Division. Based on her resume and portfolio she built during her time in the WDDM program, Angie received a job shadowing opportunity, which transitioned into an internship and then full-time position; a win-win for all!
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Game
Game chair Russ Hanna and Animation faculty member Jeff Byers have set up a “Free Roaming VR” lab in the MoCap room in the CoLab. Students in the Game program can use it to build and test free-roam (no cables connected to the computer) VR/AR games. If anyone is interested to learn more, contact Game chair Russ Hanna at rhanna@jccc.edu

HCIS – Health Information Systems
MIRM – Medical Information and Revenue Management
To create student connections between the Health Information Technology (HIT) programs at Johnson County Community College and the robust, local HIT industry, faculty from Healthcare Information Systems (HCIS) and Medical Information Revenue Management (MIRM) Medical Coding Specialist programs will collaborate to develop a student-employer mentorship program. In order to see continued growth in the field, mentoring is highly encouraged by the advisory boards for both programs. Advisory Board members have indicated a strong need to make the industry more accessible and less intimidating to students.

Faculty will work with local employers and the Greater Kansas City Chapter of the Health Information Management Systems Society (HIMSS) to develop a program that connects students and employers, creates educational and networking opportunities, and provides employment pathways. Initially, the mentorship program will leverage the dates of the Greater Kansas City HIMSS Chapter meetings and events for student/mentor connection opportunities. Students and mentors will then participate in focused activities and/or discussions through guided mentorship program materials.

During the Carl Perkins grant period, a pilot program will be developed and deployed. Initial efforts will focus on developing mentor program requirements and materials for both students and mentors. First-semester students with declared majors will be approached about the opportunity to participate, and Greater Kansas City HIMSS (Health Information Management Systems Society) Board Members will be asked to serve as mentors.

Computing Sciences and Information Technology Department May 2019 Update
Computing Sciences and Information Technology Division – CSIT
CSIS – Computer Information Systems
Department Chairs Mark VanGorp and Perla Weaver attended the K-State transfer conference on February 22nd and met with the department head of K-State’s Computer Science department to discuss new articulation agreement opportunities. They have also met with Wichita State and University of Missouri –Kansas City, to review course agreements and discuss potential new articulation to strengthen the transfer paths for Computer Science students.

The CS department hosted a 2-day workshop on Improving Diversity in Computer Science on March 8th and 9th. The workshop was part of the NCWIT Academic Alliance Seed Fund Grant awarded to Professor Perla Weaver in 2018. The workshop was led by Lighthouse for Computing, an NSF funded, highly recognized, research-based group from the University of Virginia that focuses on broadening the participation of Computer Science through professional development. Attendees included Full-time, Adjunct, and College Now faculty, as well as staff from the recruitment office. The Education and Computing research group guided the attendees through proven, engaging, and researched-based practices for improving diversity and recruitment practices in Computer Science Education.

Perla Weaver participated as a judge for the PLTW senior showcase at Union Station on April 9th. The event showcases engineering and biotech projects from students who took one of the PLTW KC metro capstone courses. Prof. Weaver also volunteered as a project portfolio reviewer for the PLTW capstone projects. Through this process projects are evaluated and compete regionally and nationally with other PLTW student projects.

Perla Weaver collaborated with KCUR reporter Celia Llopis-Jepsen on two special reports focused on the outlook and challenges of the Computer Science workforce and Computer Science education in the state of Kansas. The first report aired on March 11, and the second one on May 28th.

Perla Weaver attended the PLTW Achievement Level Descriptors Panel meeting on May 6th and 7th at the PLTW head office in Indianapolis. As a Higher Ed representative, she is contributing to the development of their national End-of-Course Assessments.

On May 9th, Perla Weaver hosted a virtual session for Olathe North students exploring careers in computing. During this session, Prof. Weaver shared relevant local and national data on the computing industry as well as opportunities and pathways for programs of study at JCCC. These sessions support the career exploration activities for students enrolled in introductory programming courses at Olathe North.

On May 20th, Professor Suzanne Smith’s students in the software capstone course, CIS 264 – Application Development and Programming, presented their final projects to an audience of JCCC faculty and staff, Trustees, members of the CSIS Advisory Board, friends and family. This year students worked on three projects: a patient intake system for the KU Medical Center Infectious Disease Center, a system to keep track of current and past capstone projects for the course, and a library checkout system for “STEM education kits” for educators. The goal of this course is to help students prepare for the demands of the workforce by providing them the opportunity to develop a significant software project, communicating, planning and implementing as a team.

Suzanne Smith attended the Pacific Center for Advanced Technology Training (PCATT) conference hosted by Honolulu Community College from May 22nd – 24th. PCATT brings together K-12 and community college/college educators focused on technology issues. This year’s theme was Data Science. As part of the Creating Pathways Grant, Prof. Smith was able present at pre-conference and workshop sessions during this conference.
CSS – Computer Support Specialist
Lisa Friedrichsen and Carol Smith attended the Cengage Computing Experience conference in April. The conference was held at the Microsoft compound in Redmond, WA. Keynote presentations and breakout sessions focused on Microsoft Office 2019/365 as well as Microsoft’s strategy in the area of artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and augmented reality.
Game
A Game Development capstone team received an offer to lease their game if they would complete it. The game will be free roaming VR and in the horror genre.

MIRM – Medical Information and Revenue Management
MIRM students have completed Spring 2019 internships with a variety of employers – College Boulevard Vision Care, Lakeview Village, Olathe Health Systems. Not only were they able to gain valuable experience in medical coding, they were able to see the ins/outs of the Health Information Management, Revenue Cycle Management, and Information Technologies departments in a variety of healthcare settings!

MIRM graduated six students with the Medical Coding Specialist Certificate, Fall 2018 – Spring 2019. These students include: Kathleen Baska, Dilfuza Matyakubova, Mylan Wiseman, Rebecca Bruce, Amy Crowther, and Angela Bambi Pinon.

Fall 2018 Medical Coding Specialist Certificate graduates achieved a 100% passing-rate on national certification exam tests! These tests include the Certified Coding Specialist (CCS), offered by AHIMA, and the Certified Coding Professional (CPC), offered by AAPC. Congratulations!!

IT-Networking
The NSA and DHS have designated Johnson County Community College as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education (CAE-CDE) through academic year 2024. The goal of the program is to reduce vulnerability in our national information infrastructure by promoting higher education and expertise in cyber defense (CD). The designation was attained by the Information Technology- Networking department.

WEB – Web Development and Digital Media
The Arts Council of Johnson County, in partnership with Johnson County Community College, University of Kansas, and municipal and county public art collections, is launching a digital catalog of public art in Johnson County. The mission of this new project is to create a centralized, easy-to-use collection of digital resources to give Johnson County residents and visitors alike a way to locate, view, research, and reflect upon the many pieces of public art throughout our county. The Arts Council envisions that residents and visitors, as well as educators, students, and artists, will visit and appreciate our county’s vast public artwork collection while learning more about our county’s people, culture, and landmarks. As a central resource, the Public Art Digital Catalog presents an opportunity to tell Johnson County’s story through art and raise our community’s collective profile through promotion, best practices, and educational opportunities.
Olive’s Hope (https://oliveshope.org/) -Redesigned, updated, and modernized the website for Olive’s Hope. Olive’s Hope is a volunteer-based, non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that relies on your generosity to keep our No Kill shelter running. Without the support of our gracious community we would not be able to help every cat and dog that we do. With your assistance we’ve been able to help thousands of pets find new, loving homes. Your tax-deductible donation will help us care for the animals that rely on us until they find their forever homes. Resource website for those who have a conviction and are attempting to build a better life. Stairwell.org
CCC Design Studio -Student Agency’s goal is to help grow businesses and non-profits while we build our portfolios and skills. We are learning to be networkers, visionaries and to understand what it takes to be a professional. We create unique, beautiful, and affordable web designs. We put you and your business at the heart of everything we do. At JCCC Design Studio we don’t do cookie-cutter services. We customize online strategies for our unique clients. JCCC Design Studio is a program for highly motivated, technical and artistic students to connect with and create work for businesses.

May 10, 2019

Nontraditional event format facilitates career conversations

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CIS – Computer Information Systems
Students completing the Software Capstone course, CIS- 264 Application Development and Programming, presented their end of the year projects. Students experienced a real-life software development process by developing an application to meet a current demand of our partner organizations. Students applied and increased their technical skills as well as communication, leadership, and collaboration. The CSIS department would like to thank Phoenix Family, Community LINC, and Operation Wildlife, for the valuable real-life experience granted to our students.

On November 2nd, the CSIS department held its advisory board meeting. During the meeting an increased interest was expressed by multiple members to provide shadow opportunities for students in our degrees and certificate programs.

IT-Networking
The IT Networking department recently sponsored 5 students competing in a National Cybersecurity competition called National Cyber League. We had students finish 93rd and 214th out of 4,729 students. The competition assessed critical skills such as log analysis, cryptography, and network traffic analysis.

October, 2018 – Computer Support (CPCA)
In the Summer of 2017, faculty from Personal Computer Applications indicated an interest in delivery of textbooks and course content through the Online Learning System (D2L or Canvas). A pilot was done with a few computer and economic courses in the Fall. It was expanded for Winter Session and expanded again for Spring 2018. The college has branded this DayOne Access. The advantages are that materials are available on the first day of class within the online learning system and are available to students at the lowest cost. Students have the first week of classes to opt out of this delivery at no cost. Students may also pay an additional fee for a printed version as well.

IT-Networking (IT)
Andrew Lutz from the IT-Networking department will be attending a Mentorlinks and Advanced Technological Education conference in Washington, D.C. The conference will provide further opportunities to collaborate with partner institutions and continue innovation in our Cybersecurity program.

Medical Information & Revenue Management (MIRM)
MIRM students participated in Employer Relations Orientation, presented by Linda Dubar, Career Development Center. Students learned about job shadow and internship opportunities offered through the Career Development Center – and how they differ from the internship as part of the MIRM curriculum. Ms. Dubar discussed other services offered through the Career Development Center, including the Job Links tool, mock interviews, networking opportunities, and a list of questions for potential employers. She also discussed the benefits of “knowing your employer” and key pieces of information to research prior to your interview.

MIRM student internships are underway, and include a variety of employers – Lakeview Village, Pulse Systems, and Saint Luke’s Health System.

Mary Brady and Rachel Rader, MIRM graduates (Spring 2018), passed the Certified Coding Specialist (CCS) credentialing exam in September. These credentials are nationally-recognized, awarded by the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA).

Update – May, 2018

Computer Information Systems – CIS
The department welcomes new full-time faculty Jacob Kier. We look forward to the value he brings to our department and students.

Professor Suzanne Smith and assistant dean Deb Elder attended the Two-Year College Data Science Summit hosted by American Statistical Association and funded by the National Science Foundation in Arlington, VA, May 9-11. JCCC is one of only 14 colleges in the US providing Data Science/Analytics education programs. The Summit convened a cross-section of community college, four-year colleges, industry, and non-profits in an effort to address the high demand for educating and training the workforce. JCCC was validated as a successful model, based on the design to engage employers from the initial planning stages. JCCC appreciates the partnership with Normandale Community College and Bunker Hill Community College through the Educational Development Center in Boston, MA with funding from the National Science Foundation. National partnerships provide opportunity to put JCCC students at the forefront of educational initiatives to be responsive to our students and our community with cutting edge and relevant offerings. We look forward to continued relationships with our local stakeholders and peer institutions.

As part of the Data Science program grant, Professor Suzanne Smith attended a Stackable Credentials for Data Science Workshop. This area is developing fast in the industry and there are great opportunities for JCCC to integrate these options with our new certificate.

CSIS students in the capstone software development course, CIS 264 – Application Development and Programming, under the guidance of Professor Suzanne Smith, presented their end of the year projects. A joint presentation with other departments at JCCC and KU showcased the back-end system to support an online outdoor art catalogue for the Johnson County Arts Council. The second CSIS-hosted gathering welcomed industry partners, staff and board members. Students projects were very well received, and follow-up actions are developing.

Professor Perla Weaver attended the NCWIT Summit at Grapevine, Texas on May 15-17. The NCWIT Summit is the world’s largest annual convening of change leaders focused on significantly improving diversity and inclusion in computing. Educators, entrepreneurs, corporate executives, and social scientists from across industries and disciplines participate in this one-of-a-kind opportunity. The summit focus is to provide the venue to convene, learn from experts, take action and celebrate accomplishments. Professor Weaver accepted the official award for the NCWIT Seed Fund Grant for the CSIS department.

Professor Weaver took the Computer Club to participate at the Hack-KU (coding hackathon) event in Lawrence, KS from April 20-22. At the event, students are given the challenge to develop an application from scratch in 24 hours. Students are judged on their learning, the design of their application, the completion level and the technology used for their project. The experience of a hackathon is packed with short deadlines, big goals, and little sleep, but most importantly it gives the opportunity for students to maximize their collaborative work. Both of the JCCC participating teams were able to submit projects for final evaluation, and received recognitions and awards!

The ACM Kansas City chapter Meetup welcome its members and some JCCC students to their bi-monthly gathering on May 10th. We look forward to continued collaboration with its members.

The Girls Who Code club welcomed parents, and family members to its end of the year graduation. Students showcased the projects they have been working on during the semester. Girls Who Code is a nonprofit organization which aims to support and increase the number of women in computer science. The organization is working to close the gender gap in technology and change the image of what a programmer looks like and does. This year, the JCCC hosted club had a record 41 students enrolled. The club meets weekly for 2 hours from September to May thanks to the support of JCCC staff and faculty Sandra Warner, Rachel Morris Singh and Perla Weaver, along with Computer Science professionals who work with work with students every week: Annissa Freeman, Anna Scheuler, Asha Chandrappa, Amanda Halek, Ariadne Spes, Abbey Trotta and Lindsay Brechler.

The Computer Club hosted its last special session with Tom Pagano, JCCC CIO, who discussed with students the value of informal leadership in career development. Students had a great question and answer session on this valuable soft skills topic.

Medical Information and Revenue Management – MIRM
MIRM and Learning Strategies have completed a joint-effort Carl Perkins Grant, developing an Online Student Success video. This video, detailing learning strategies and other tips/tricks for online student success, will be published as part of the MIRM curriculum beginning in Summer 2018.

MIRM students have completed Spring internships with a variety of employers – Freedom PTTC, KU Medical Center, in2itive Business Solutions, Lakeview Village, Pathfinder Health Innovations, and Physician Office Partners.

Ekta Priyakant, MIRM graduate (Spring 2018), passed the Certified Coding Specialist (CCS) credentialing exam in May. These credentials are nationally-recognized, awarded by the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA). With these credentials, Ms. Priyakant was offered a job at Pulse Systems, as part of the Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) team.

MIRM graduated 14 students with the Medical Coding Specialist Certificate, Fall 2017 – Spring 2018. These students include: Lindsey Bowlin, Valerie Kennedy, Paige Mansfield, Bonnie Offerman, Lovely Singh, Kilee Watson, Mary Brady, Denice Griffin, Hannah Mauk, Caila McPherson, Cynthia Pickard, Ekta Priyakant, Jessica Ramirez, Kayla Smith.

Web Development and Digital Media (WDDM)
• 5 out of the 10 students in the WDDM Capstone course graduated with jobs:
o Tatiana Trofimova and Carson Rapp – City of Shawnee ( 2 students)
o Melanie Garvey – Mylo a Lockton Company
o Talia Degisi – RealLeads, Inc.
o Jason Soltys – Computer Impressions
• WDDM, Marketing program and Small Business Development Center @JCCC are working on building the JC3 Innovations Student Agency.
• Kansas Workforce Partnership approved 6000$ for three summer interns from WDDM program.

June, 2018 Update – Assistant Dean Deb Elder attended the Cerner Show Day on June 25th, an annual event for educators and career development. Senior Director of Associate Learning and Development Laura Evans highlighted organizational overview and vision. Tessa Wood provided insight on hiring prep and process and moderated a workforce pathway panel. Senior Director of Employment Stephanie Roberts provided overview of employment practices, highlighting Veterans programs and global impact. It is great to know CSIT students are being prepared for the health IT workforce as part of the HCIS program.

Computer Support Specialist – Computer Applications (CPCA)
Adjunct Professor Phil Hauptman demonstrates the personal aspect he brings to teaching, learning, and mentoring high school students in career development! Read more of the story at: http://www.jccc.edu/experiences/2018/computer-classes-hauptman.html

Computer Information Systems
Gil Anderson, President and CEO of Dearborn Solutions gave an $11,000 scholarship gift to Computer Information Systems program. He participates on the CIS advisory board, provides mock interview, participates in the Capstone projects, and other CIS activities. He shared that he supports JCCC CSIT programs because students complete as workforce ready to hire. Thanks to Judi Reilly in the Grants Office for working with Mr. Anderson regarding scholarship processes, and to CIS Chairs Perla Weaver and Mark Van Gorp for engaging Mr. Anderson with our students.

Update – July, 2018 – Johnson County Community College – Computing Sciences & Information Technology Division –
Health Information Systems (HCIS)
HCIS chair Lori Brooks received a Carl D. Perkins grant for a Population Health Management project. One of the newest trends in the Healthcare Information Systems (HCIS) Program is Population Health. As the industry moves away from volume based care to risk based care, it is important that students understand Population Health management, which is inclusive of the social determinants of health, closing gaps in care, and robust analytics. This project would involve a HCIS faculty member working with a local industry professional to incorporate Population Health unit content and assessments into curriculum.

Medical Information Revenue Management (MIRM)
HCIS chair Lori Brooks and MRIM chair Amanda Kraus received a Carl D. Perkins grant for a labor market data project. To ensure that faculty are well-versed in specific employment opportunities and expectations for students in the Healthcare Information Systems (HCIS) and Medical Information Revenue Management (MIRM) Programs, faculty from those programs would like to collaborate and gather regional and national labor market data. In addition, HCIS and MIRM faculty will conduct visits to local healthcare organizations to build relationships and seek work-based experiences for their students. The goal would be to work to develop industry specific contacts for job shadowing and internship opportunities and create employment pathways for students.

Game
Game faculty Richard Fleming and Steve Smith received a Carl D. Perkins grant for a Game Design Framework Development project. The project will enhance current curriculum and provide unique game design scenarios to challenge the students by creating a framework that enables students to focus more on game design and less on framework development. Creating a standard/uniform framework that all students use for developing game scenarios also enables instructors to be more consistent in grading and evaluation. After being instructed in the use of the framework, students will be capable of developing a small, simple game in the target genre, and the framework would be available to all applicable instructors and classes on campus.

Web Development and Digital Media
The Web program received a KBOR Integrating Academics with Career & Technical Ed. Grant. Students in the Web Development Program have a difficult time translating their understanding of math to JavaScript applications. To address this need among Web Development students, the project will create supplemental online tutorials helping students to see how they can translate their understanding of math to JavaScript programming.

Update –
Computer Support Specialist (CPCA)
The CPCA program and JCCC Client Support Services are collaborating to provide employment opportunities for students in the Computer Support Specialist program. There are currently 5 students working in the Technical Support Center and 8 additional positions to be filled this semester. This is a win-win for JCCC students gaining invaluable skills in their field of study and Client Support Services employing dedicated and hardworking students.

Health Information Systems (HCIS)
HCIS student Sharon Kernes has accepted a VA contract job with GovermentCIO to start in October, even before fully completing her degree coursework. The recruiter told Sharon they have multiple 5-year contracts with the VA for the new electronic health record and need to hire about 200 IT professionals. Sharon’s prior VA work combined with her HCIS specialty degree coursework that includes Cerner labs, positioned her well for this opportunity.

Medical Information Revenue Management (MIRM)
This summer, Department Chairs from MIRM and HCIS partnered on a Carl Perkins grant project to gather regional and national labor market data, and develop industry-specific contacts for job shadowing and internship opportunities, and employment pathways for students. Work was completed on the project in August, and the departments are working with Marketing to update content on the departmental websites and in printed brochures.

MIRM and HCIS met with Saint Luke’s Health System (SLHS) health information management to discuss their requirements for coding, charge audit, charge management, and HIM IT roles. Opportunities for additional student-experiences were identified, as well as opportunities for collaboration between the programs and department. SLHS will provide additional real-world experience to MIRM students through redacted medical records, and will notify department chairs directly when applicable job postings are available. They are also willing to continue to take students from both programs in internship roles.

Game
The eSports Club is going strong and has a fine set of new officers. Nick Scobee is the new president. The first meeting this semester was Tuesday, August 21st in the CoLab. The club will meet there each Tuesday and Wednesday night this fall. One goal of the club is to develop strengths in all the top eSports games. Currently most players compete in Overwatch, LoL, Smash, CS: GO, Rainbow Six:Siege, and Rocket League. Both beginners and advanced skill levels are welcome.

Web Development and Digital Media
The Web program received a KBOR Integrating Academics with Career & Technical Ed. Grant. Students in the Web Development Program may have a difficult time translating their understanding of math to JavaScript applications. To address this need among Web Development students, the project will create supplemental online tutorials helping students to see how they can translate their understanding of math to JavaScript programming.
IT-Networking
The IT-Networking department continues to work towards building its Cybersecurity program. This summer, we had a student intern with a local company in the cybersecurity area. He mentions the great amount he is learning. He’s made a great impression with his current employer and is confident about his future job prospects. This and many other similar stories outline the importance of the internship experience for our students. It’s how we provide them with a leg up in a competitive workplace. We will continue to develop these relationships with industry partners.

Andrew Lutz, Chair of IT-Networking, met industry leaders including Taylor Milligan from BlackRock Global Information Security and Tedrick Housh from Lathrop Gage to discuss industry trends and partnerships.