Core Abilities Critical Thinking Event

Congratulations to Team Zerstorung Macht, made up of Ken, Jeff and Damon, winners of the 2009 Core Abilities Week Critical Thinking Event!

Competing against the clock as well as the other teams, three groups of “super-thinkers” embarked on a timed quest to solve various mathematical, physics, and logic problems. Provided with an initial clue and maps, each team raced around campus following clue to clue in a race to locate their "missing astronuclear physics final project". The first team to find their project and fully assemble it within a one hour time frame would win the race.

The challenge began at 11:00am sharp. Each team received their first clue and together went about solving it in order to be on their way.

The solution to each problem provided the location of the next clue. Each team raced the clock and the other teams, solving

problems and working their way from building to building until finally locating their final project.














Unfortunately, the final project had been dismantled!!! Each team needed to race back to the start point and "reassemble" their assignment. Not as easy as it looks!

However, each team prevailed and completed their assembly within the one hour time frame...

CONGRATULATIONS ALL CRITICAL THINKERS!!!

Fantasy Lights Sculpture

Every year, in cooperation with Pierce County Parks & Recreation, Clover Park Technical College develops a lighted sculpture for the annual Fantasy Lights at Spanaway Park display. This year Clover Park Technical College students developed a Model-T Ford sculpture. Mechanical Engineering Design student Mike Myers created the original design, students in the Welding Technology Program fabricated the sculpture and it's supporting structure, and other students in the Automotive Program painted the completed structure.

Mike used AutoCAD to create the design on the right from a photo of an actual Model-T Ford. He plotted the design full size for use as a template. Using rebar and metal tubing, the Welding Technology students fabricated the Model-T sculpture, laying their pieces out on the plotted design.


Following fabrication, the Automotive Program painted the sculpture prior to delivery. Fantasy Lights features the Model-T sculpture as one of its brand new displays for 2008.

Click HERE for more information on attending the 2008 Fantasy Lights at Spanaway Park!

PHYS& 121

We've replaced MED 184 Physics with PHYS& 121, a new transferable class which includes a laboratory component. Dave DeBruyne teaches the academic portions of the class while we in Mechanical Engineering Design handle the labs.

Using funds provided by the Washington Stage Board for Community & Technical Colleges Allocation to Clover Park Technical College for the Transfer High Demand District Plan, we purchased lab equipment. At the right, students can be seen working on their first lab, an exploration of velocity and acceleration using a car and a ramp. Electronic photo gates handle the timing, allowing velocity to be calculated at different locations along the inclined plane. Additional calculations based on these velocities determine the acceleration.

Through a variety of laboratory activities, students expand upon the physics concepts presented to them in the academic portion of the class. PHYS& 121 will be open to all students campus wide. It also qualifies as 5 transferable credits in the sciences for those students interested in the AAS-T degrees.

Catching Up!

Apologies...it's been a long time since the last post and plenty has been going on around here!

For starters, these two guys, Steve(l) and Tim(r) graduated at the end of Spring Quarter! Both graduated with Pi Theta Kappa honors. Steve is the first student to earn the AAS-T option from the Mechanical Engineering Design Program.

CONGRATULATIONS STEVE AND TIM!!!

Summer Quarter Approaches!

Beginning June 24, 2008 Clover Park Technical College changes from a clock hour college to a credit hour college. This change provides our students with greater flexibility of class times and financial aid options. Many classes not previously available on a part time basis will now open up to members of the community.


Click the link below to peruse CPTC's Summer Quarter Offerings.

CPTC Summer Schedule

Screen Capture Technology

I am interested in adding Blackboard elements to the Mechanical Engineering Design program. One way to do this might be by creating short videos like the one below and posting them to Blackboard for student access.

Viva la Spring Quarter!

Spring Quarter is now underway and promises to be a busy one. We've seen our numbers here expand as new students joined us over the last couple of quarters. To the left is a picture of Winter Quarter new students, Dan, Jeff and Ken. The picture on the right shows Spring Quarter new students Kevin and James.

We also welcome back returning students Brenden, Mike and Sam.


Other big news for the upcoming quarter will be the graduation of Steve and Tim (left). Both will graduate from Clover Park Technical College at the end of Spring Quarter. And graduating with honors at that. Steve and Tim have joined Phi Theta Kappa , the International Honor Society of the Two Year College.

We have several events and at least one field trip scheduled for Spring Quarter. On May 2, I will be representing Clover Park Technical College at the Women in Trades Fair at Seattle Center's Fisher Pavillion. I'll be highlighting CPTC's manufacturing, construction and transportation related programs.

On May 8, 2008 Clover Park Technical College will be holding it's annual Career Conference , a campus wide event open to the public showcasing out training programs.

And on June 12th, just before the end of Spring Quarter, the MED program will be taking a field trip to Hobart Bakery Systems , a manufacturer of commercial bakery equipment.

Check back often for updates about these events and news of others we may add to the schedule!