Page 7 - YC360 Spring 2021 Edition

Seven Programs, One County,
YC Making a Difference
SCHOOL OF
CAREER & TECHNICAL EDUCATION
Spencer Coffin
Unmanned Aircraft Systems
Most of us search high-and-low to find our calling. Chino Valley native Spencer Coffin knew his path early on. “I was always fascinated with aviation. In middle-school, I was flying RC toys and doing aviation projects in Boy Scouts.”
In high school, he saw an ad for YC’s then-fledgling drone program. “I thought ‘you get to fly a toy for a living?’ I was completely set that second.”
That was then. Coffin and YC’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) program have grown up together. Along with teaching UAS courses, Coffin flies, designs and creates his own aircraft in a field that seems to add career possibilities each week. “I tell students, ‘drones are in the data collection business. Whether you’re shooting video; studying topography
for civil engineers, conducting search- and-rescue or something else.’” Created by Aerospace Science Professor Matt Mintzmyer in 2014, YC’s drone program teaches piloting, construction and design. It’s part of an Aviation program that prepares future airplane pilots, dispatchers, instructors – and drone innovators like Coffin, helping to define a new industry.
Learn more at: https://www.yc.edu/v6/ schools/cate/aviation.html
SCHOOL OF
HEALTH & WELLNESS
Lauren Kooken MSN Ed., RN
Allied Health
“I want my students to be excited about healthcare,” Lauren Kooken says, “and to reach out with empathy to people in our community.”
Allied Health instructor Lauren Kooken, MSN Ed., RN, is a graduate of YC’s Nursing program. Her Nursing Assistant course (AHS 114) teaches students the basic skills and procedural background – as well as the communication, legal and ethical training – to capably support nurses in facilities like long- term care centers. Her course partners with the Mountain Institute Career Technical Education District (MICTED), an independent school district, to offer free classes to high school students.
“Many students have no experience in healthcare,” She says. “In this course, they have 40 hours of clinical training at local healthcare facilities. In 16 weeks, they’re eligible to take the state examination
to become a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA).”
That’s a definite win-win for job hunters – and for community healthcare facilities, as well.
Learn more at: www.yc.edu/alliedhealth.
SCHOOL OF
SCIENCE & ENGINEERING
Dr. Matt Pearcy
Biology
In Spring 2020, with the coronavirus raging and misinformation everywhere, Biology professor and virologist Dr. Matt Pearcy saw an opportunity to help the community make sense of the puzzling, often frightening aspects of the pandemic.
“It turns out this is a great time to be a virologist,” Pearcy says. “It’s important
to me to help our communities better understand what COVID-19 is all about.”
Pearcy created YC’s COVID-19 Video Series (www.yc.edu/v6/college-police/ covid-19/), presentations that break the virus’s biology into understandable and actionable information.
Pearcy also participated in Spirit of Joy Lutheran Church’s virtual symposium, bringing local groups together to discuss the relationship between science and religion. His presentation, “COVID—One Year On,” addressed the virus and the speed of the vaccine response.
Students seeking to continue scientific study at a 4-year institution may contact Dr. Pearcy at: matt.pearcy@yc.edu.
Learn more about YC science courses, at: www.yc.edu/scen
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