Heartland Community College Lincoln offers a less complicated journey into higher education
Information night defines how HCC can make college life more affordable and less stressful

Send a link to a friend  Share

[June 29, 2023]    Heartland Community College (HCC) Lincoln had an informational night on the evening of June 27th at their Lincoln campus. This Information Night was used to help members of the Lincoln area community learn more about what HCC Lincoln has to offer. The staff of HCC Lincoln, as well as some staff from their other campuses, provided information on the areas of admissions, financial aid, tutoring, and more.

College is something that is discussed by many, but have you ever thought about how difficult it could be to start that journey? The application fees, the lengthy process of applying, and the fact that once you get in, depending on the size of the college, you may get lost in the crowd. None of these are problems one would have when applying to and attending Heartland Community College (HCC) Lincoln. The Tuesday night attendants had the opportunity to learn more about this local campus and all it offers before classes begin in the fall.

The evening began with a tour of the HHC’s Lincoln campus, given by Deanne Mott, the college’s Academic Advisor, Success Coach, and Associate Director. Mott showed off many interesting facilities, including classrooms, specialized computer rooms for testing, a classroom for nursing students, and a computer lab.

Rebekah Greenslaugh, another HCC staff member who is involved in Admissions, shared the college would put on “stress less fest” events in the computer lab to help students de-stress during and toward the end of the semester, including movie nights. The college also created a coffee cart for the students, but Greenslaugh shared the students this last semester preferred hot chocolate, so it became a hot chocolate cart instead. The tour also showed off HCC’s student/community lounge. This room, accessible to both students of HCC and members of the community not affiliated with HCC, is a space to relax and has access to computers. HCC Lincoln does have plans to move the student lounge to another room with some upgrades, including bean bag chairs and a refrigerator. The current student/community lounge would become a designated community lounge space.

Greenslaugh also shared the students this last year would have puzzle competitions, turning the simple activity of putting together a puzzle into a team building activity. While the facility is smaller than some community colleges, the attendants were left with the impression that this provided HCC with the ability to have a more close-knit community of staff and students. One attendee stated they liked this aspect of the campus and described it as “homey.”

Once the tour was over, the staff began a presentation including general information about what HCC’s Lincoln campus, as well as their other two campuses, have to offer, these being their campuses in Normal and Pontiac.

The presentation began with a list of “straight to the workforce” skills HCC educates people in to get them quickly into the workforce. These skills include nursing, welding, early childhood education, and many more. HCC also offers a new electric vehicle program to teach students how to work on these new types of vehicles.

Jennifer Kirby, Director of HCC Lincoln, shared that tuition costs at HCC are affordable for in district students when compared to other private or public institutions. For two years at 15 credit hours per semester, Kirby stated the estimated cost for someone in district would be approximately $10,920.

Greenslaugh then continued the presentation with how enrollment works at HCC. The application can be accessed online here and is completely free. An applicant would then want to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which provides students with the chance to receive government financial aid to attend college. After this, transcripts would need to be sent to HCC, followed by taking a placement test. The presenters did share that, depending on your high school transcripts, the placement test could potentially be waved. Finally, the applicant would need to meet with their advisor, who at HCC Lincoln would be Deanne Mott. HCC Lincoln provides assistance with the completion of all these steps, and they can also be used if applying to either of their sister campuses. Greenslaugh then shared some of the community activities HCC Lincoln has put on, including parades, food days, crafts (a popular one of which was tie dying t-shirts), and volunteer opportunities.

After the community events, Kelli Gibbons got up and talked to the audience about financial aid. Gibbons explained the importance of filling out the FAFSA and the types of financial aid students potentially have access to. She explained that, while some financial aid is based on income, there are many that are not. Two examples she gave included grants for students raised by a single parent, and students whose parents are involved in a union.

[to top of second column]

Lynn Tacket was the next to speak. Tacket oversees tutoring at all of HCC’s campuses. Tacket informed the audience of the importance of seeking tutoring assistance even before a student is failing. She also discussed that tutoring services are available online and in-person. The audience was also informed that there are tutors who are willing to drive from the Normal campus down to the Lincoln campus to help students in-person.

Christina Steider spoke to the audience next. Steider oversees student accommodations, making sure that students have everything they need to succeed in an academic setting. She informed the audience that students could apply for accommodation online through the Student Access and Accommodation Services (SAAS) website. HCC has also started providing their students with access to accommodation for physical/mental health reasons.

Jessica Jackson spoke next, talking to the audience about the counseling services provided by HCC to their students. Jackson stated two new counselors had been hired recently, bringing the total number of counselors at HCC to four. These services are also provided both in-person and online and are free for HCC students. HCC has also created a “Campus Well” website with helpful articles on the topics of health, relationships, academics, money, and mindfulness.

Before the presentation was wrapped up, a current student and current Adjunct Instructor II were brought up to talk about their experiences at HCC. The student, Elizabeth Hurley, discussed that she was currently working toward getting a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) certification. Overall, Hurley talked very highly of the campus, describing her favorite part of the community at HCC being their sharing of values and respect for one another. Hurley also shared a story that stuck out to her during her time at HCC. She shared that on one occasion she was late to class, saying, “I was surprised that my teacher and my classmates were waiting for me. They didn’t start without me.”

The Adjunct Instructor II, Loyd Kirby, discussed his perspective as an educator at HCC. Kirby shared one of his favorite parts about teaching at HCC is the small class sizes. He said a larger class at HCC would range between 12-15 students. This allows him and HCC’s other instructors the opportunity to get to know their students better. Kirby shared that since he gets to know his students better, he gets to see when they grow, and that it is very rewarding getting to see them learn new skills and get better at them.

The presentation was closed out with information about early college opportunities and continuing education courses. The early college opportunities take the form of dual credit classes that are offered at Lincoln Community High School and their career/tech center, as well as Hartsburg Jr-Sr High School. HCC does not charge any tuition or fees for these courses. HCC also allows high school students the opportunity to take college level classes before they graduate to get a head start on college, but regular tuition/fees do apply for these courses. Greenslaugh also shared information about the content of the continuing education courses. Some of these classes include STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) courses for kids, beekeeping, and soap making. Some of these classes will take trips as well, including an upcoming trip to a botanical garden in St. Louis.

[Matt Boutcher]

Visit:

https://www.heartland.edu

https://www.heartland.edu/application/index.html

 

Back to top