College of Lake County notes

For more information, call (847) 223-6601 or visit www.clcillinois.edu.

Paralegal information: Learn what it takes to begin a paralegal career at information sessions sponsored by the College of Lake County Paralegal Studies Program. Potential students will learn about the paralegal profession, the job outlook and CLC's paralegal certificate and the Associate in Applied Science degree. They will also meet the faculty and other students.

Information sessions will be held from 9 to 10 a.m. Jan. 12 and from 7 to 8 p.m. Jan. 15 in room T 117 on the Grayslake campus.

Art gallery exhibit schedule: Several new art exhibits are planned for 2007-08 at the College of Lake County Robert T. Wright Community Gallery of Art. All events are free and open to the public. The gallery will present the following exhibits in the coming year, and opening receptions are planned for each exhibit:

• Jan. 18 to Feb. 24, 2008: Members Exhibition. A diverse group show of all fine art media by 100 Lake County artists. Funds from artist memberships support the endowment of the Robert T. Wright Gallery. A reception will be from 7 to 9 p.m. Jan. 18.

• Feb. 29 to April 6: Carrie Iverson -- Survey. Carrie Iverson is a printmaker, painter and glass artist based in Chicago. She will exhibit works in these media and display a site-specific installation. A reception will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Feb. 29, with a gallery talk by the artist from 6:15 to 7 p.m.

The Robert T. Wright Community Gallery of Art on the Grayslake Campus is a project of the College of Lake County Foundation and is located at 19351 W. Washington St. For more information, call curator Steve Jones at (847) 543-2240 or e-mail sjones@clcillinois.edu or visit gallery.clcillinois.edu/.

Spring semester: Spring semester credit courses begin Jan. 22. To apply for admission to CLC, call (847) 543-2061 or log on to www.clcillinois.edu/applic.htm. To register for classes by phone (after completing CLC's admission process), call (847) 223-1111. To register online, log on to www.clcillinois.edu/selfserv.htm. For more information, call (847) 265-5343.

ESL support: English language learners can receive English language support through bilingual tutors or instructors in three career program areas at the College of Lake County: Administrative Office Systems, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning and Automotive Technology. In addition, Applied Food Service Sanitation class (FSM 113-101) is taught in Spanish or in English.

For more information (in English or Spanish) or to register, call Irma Fleischer at (847) 543-2751. Financial aid is available for qualified students. Spring semester at the College of Lake County begins Jan. 22. To apply for admission to CLC, call (847) 543-2061 or log on to www.clcillinois.edu/applic.htm.

Career Exploration Course: Designed for students of all ages who are unsure of what college major or career to pursue, this one-credit course includes assessments, research and activities to help students better understand themselves and their interests, values, personality traits, skills and experiences as they relate to finding the right career field.

Five sections of Career Exploration (PDS 122) will be offered during the CLC spring semester, with two sections starting in late January and three sections beginning in March. One section (200), taught by Counselor Nancy DeMuro, will be held from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Wednesdays from Jan. 23 through March 19 at the Southlake Campus in Vernon Hills.

Classes for Microsoft users: Microsoft has completely redesigned its latest version of Office, with menus and toolbars being replaced by new applications such as Ribbons, the Office Button and the Quick Access Toolbar.

The College of Lake County can help computer users ease the transition to a new version this spring with an array of credit courses and non-credit workshops covering the 2007 versions of Microsoft Office Suite products, including Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Access.

During spring semester, which begins Jan. 22, the CLC Business Division is offering the following in-depth credit courses that teach Microsoft Office 2007 software packages:

Comprehensive Word Processing (AOS 113) covers Word 2007; Advanced Word Processing/Desktop Publishing (AOS 118) now uses Office 2007; Presentation Software (AOS 215) covers PowerPoint 2007; Comprehensive Spreadsheets (CIT 111) covers Excel 2007; Comprehensive Databases (CIT 112) covers Access 2007 and Introduction to Office Software (CIT 119) covers all the 2007 Microsoft Office packages. A new course, Project Management Software (CIT 211), covers Microsoft Project 2007, a powerful project management tool.

Introduction to Computers (CIT 120) and Automated Office Technologies (AOS 112) will convert to the new version of Microsoft Office, offering several classroom and online sections.

Upgrading to Microsoft Office 2007 (AOS 299) is a new one-credit hour course designed to help experienced Office users quickly reach productivity on Office 2007. Daytime and evening sections are available from Feb. 21 to March 21. Programming for Office Applications (CIT 210) will also upgrade to Office 2007, covering macros, Visual Basic for Applications and XML data interfacing.

Short-term non-credit workshops covering the 2007 versions of Microsoft Word, Excel, Access and PowerPoint and ranging from four to eight hours in length are being offered by the CLC Workforce and Professional Development Institute's (WPDI) Continuing Professional Development department. These classes will get business people and computer users quickly up to speed on the new versions. WPDI workshops of Office 2007 products begin in February on the Grayslake campus.

Experienced users of the 2003 version of the Microsoft Office Suite can enroll in a series of four-hour workshops that cover the new features of Office 2007. Students can also combine two software programs in one day: Word and Excel on Feb. 21, Word and PowerPoint on April 8 and Excel and Access on April 15 or May 8.

The Workforce and Professional Development Institute also offers workshops that employ the 2003 versions of Microsoft Office software. These workshops are offered at the Southlake Campus, located at 1120 S. Milwaukee Ave., Vernon Hills, and at the Lakeshore Campus, located at 111 N. Genesee St., Waukegan. For more information on these professional development workshops, call (847) 543-2615 or visit wpdi.clcillinois.edu.

Salute to Gospel Music: An evening of inspirational gospel music is planned at the Genesee Theatre in Waukegan at 7 p.m. on Feb. 23, when the College of Lake County presents its 24th Annual Salute to Gospel Music. The featured performing group will be Darius Brooks and the "Tommies" Reunion. Brooks has assembled former members of the Thompson Community Singers from around the country, singers who helped send the group to the top of the gospel charts in the late 1980s and early '90s.

Eleanor Murkey, dean of the CLC Lakeshore Campus and founder of the Annual Salute to Gospel Concert, will be honored at the concert for her long and dedicated service to the college. Murkey is scheduled to retire in December 2008, so this is the final Salute to Gospel Concert she will be involved in organizing.

The concert will also include performances by Shekinah Glory Ministry from Matteson, Ill.; First Corinthian's Vessels of Praise from North Chicago; and the CLC Gospel Choir, under the direction of Dr. Charles Clency. In addition, there will be special guest appearances by Mark Cosey with the CLC Gospel Choir Reunion and Sisters Cotton.

Also at the concert, the College of Lake County's 2008 Harambee Awards of Excellence will be presented to Elder Torrence A. Markham, pastor of Greater St. James Temple Church of God in Christ, North Chicago, and to Rev. R.C. Taylor, pastor of Prayer Garden Church of God in Christ, North Chicago. A special tribute to the late Rev. C.L. Fairchild of Greater Faith Church Baptist of Waukegan will also be presented.

Salute to Gospel tickets are $20 for the general public and $18 for CLC students, staff, Alumni Association members and seniors 65 and over. Until Feb. 20, tickets will be sold at the CLC Box Office in the James Lumber Center for the Performing Arts on the CLC Grayslake Campus by phone at (847) 543-2300 and at the CLC Lakeshore Campus, main lobby south building, phone (847) 543-2191. Tickets will be sold through show time at the Genesee Theatre, 203 N. Genesee Street, Waukegan, and at www.geneseetheatre.com and www.ticketmaster.com.

An opportunity for church groups and organizations to raise funds will be offered for the second year. The group discount ticket pricing option will include a private pre-show reception offered only to fund-raiser ticket holders. For groups of 25 or more, tickets may be purchased at $3 off the general admission price. For groups of 35 or more, tickets may be purchased at $4 off the general admission price. Each group or organization is entitled to reassign the price of tickets. Groups are entitled to all proceeds raised above the discounted price of the tickets.

For more information on either the group sales or fund raising offers, call the group sales department at the Genesee Theatre at (847) 406-3155. Or call the CLC Lakeshore Campus special projects hotline at (847) 543-2194.