The Center of Nursing Excellence (CNE) at the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center will offer a Safe Sitter® course for young teens 11 and up on June 9th. Safe Sitter® is a medically accurate program that improves students’ babysitting skills by teaching them how, why, and where injuries can happen so they can be prevented. Students receive hands-on practice in lifesaving techniques designed to prepare babysitters to act in an emergency, including training in basic first aid and infant/child CPR.

In addition, Safe Sitter® students receive instruction on how a child’s age affects how to care for them, how to prevent problem behavior, and how to run their own babysitting business. Before receiving a Safe Sitter® completion card, students must pass a rigorous practical and written test that indicates their mastery of key concepts and life and safety skills. Parents who hire certified sitters will have the confidence that their babysitter knows how to prevent injuries, and knows what to do in case an injury or medical emergency occurs.

Center of Nursing Excellence staff will offer the Safe Sitter® course on June 9th from 9am-4pm. The cost is $69 per student and includes lunch. Parents may register their child by clicking here, or they can stop by the SVHEC front desk to register. Space is limited to the first 15 registrants.



 

The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) announced that it will host Workforce Forward Forum 2012 on September 20, 2012, from 9:00am-3:30pm at the Prizery in South Boston, VA.  The theme of this year’s event is Virginia Manufacturing: Back to the Future?

Workforce Forward Forum 2012 will focus on the regional needs in workforce readiness as Southern Virginia embraces manufacturing’s comeback. While the data shows that manufacturing is alive and well in the United States, it also shows that a large skills gap threatens our ability to take advantage of this opportunity. “Performance, machinery, and technology required to support manufacturing's comeback involves new and collaborative approaches to workforce preparation and readiness,” said Dr. Nettie Simon-Owens, SVHEC Director of Workforce Services. “If Virginia, and Southern Virginia in particular, are to take advantage of the national manufacturing renaissance we must find ways to work together to overcome the skills gap,” she said.

 On Sunday, April 22nd, the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center (SVHEC) held a successful open house for its new Innovation Center. More than 300 individuals attended the Open House for a look at the 46,000 sq.ft facility housing the SVHEC’s signature programs in Workforce Services, the Business of Art & Design, and the R&D Center for Advanced Manufacturing & Energy Efficiency.

The entire building was abuzz during the 12-stop interactive tours featuring demonstrations and giveaways. Tour highlights included a demonstration of the R&D Center’s Waterjet Machining Center, a laser engraver yielding wooden business cards, and a faux photo booth featuring the digital photography studio. Aspiring singers or those just wanting to test the equipment had an opportunity to record a one-song CD in one of the audio bays used by Digital Art & Design students.

For many like Zerita Newman, the Innovation Center Open House was the first time they had entered the building and gotten a first-hand look at the many opportunities available in Halifax County. “This was my first time at the Innovation Center, and I really enjoyed it. There were live demonstrations and a lot of things to see. It was a lot of fun,” Newman said.

At its regularly scheduled meeting held March 21st, the SVHEC Board of Trustees unanimously voted Patricia Thomas as Board Chair. Thomas is the Chief Nursing Officer at Halifax Regional Hospital and will serve a term of two years.

Pictured left to right are SVHEC Executive Director Dr. Betty Adams, SVHEC Board Chair Patricia Thomas, and SVHEC Board Vice-Chair Dr. Carlyle Ramsey. The SVHEC Board of Trustees is composed of leaders in education, business, and industry and meets quarterly at the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center.