College of Lake County notes

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

Small Business Workshops: The spring 2008 "Know to Grow" workshop series covers topics that are important for the healthy development and growth of a small business. The workshops will be held in the T Wing of the Grayslake campus

Upcoming workshops include:

• Starting a Business in Illinois, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday; cost: $20.

• Quickbooks Module 1 - A Practical Introduction, from 6:30 to 10 p.m. Thursday and Feb. 14; cost: $149.

• Making Marketing Work on a Tight Budget, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Feb. 13; cost: $35.

• Basic Recordkeeping for Small Business, from 6 to 9 p.m. Feb. 20; cost: $40.

• Understanding Technology for Your Small Business, from 7 to 9 p.m. Feb. 28; cost: $35.

For information, call (847) 543-2033 or visit wpdi.clcillinois.edu/sbdc.

Black History Month Events: College of Lake County Lakeshore Campus has several events scheduled in February to celebrate Black History Month.

A free, two-part Trace Your Family History Workshop will be held at 6:30 p.m. Thursday and at 10 a.m. Friday in the Lakeshore Campus Conference Center. "History Comes Home: Family Stories in Community" is a pre-Juneteenth activity designed to engage the community in researching family history to determine ancestral roots, traditions and oral histories that can be shared in community for generations to come.

Participants will learn how to collect the family stories, frame family history, create a kinship chart and link individual family history with American history. The workshops are sponsored in part by the Juneteenth Cultural Committee of Lake County, the American Family Institute, Trinity Universal Center Inc. and the College of Lake County Lakeshore Campus.

A soul food dinner will be served up by the CLC Black Student Union from 4 to 6 p.m. Feb. 14 for $4. The dinner will be served at the Lakeshore Campus Conference Room, located in the 111 N. Genesee St. building in downtown Waukegan.

To top off Black History Month, the college will present its 24th Annual Salute to Gospel Music Concert at 7 p.m. Feb. 23 at the Genesee Theatre in Waukegan, featuring Darius Brooks Presents the Tommies Reunion, along with many other performers, presentations and special guests. For tickets, call (847) 543-2191 or (847) 543-2300 or go to www.geneseetheatre.com.

For information, call the CLC Lakeshore Campus at (847) 543-2191.

Spend a semester in China: CLC students of all ages are invited to study at Xi'an International University in China, taking courses in English from international faculty in a variety of disciplines. Students will be accompanied by CLC English instructor Mike Latza and will live with a Chinese family or in a university dormitory.

Information sessions to explain the semester in China program will be at the CLC Grayslake campus: at 7 p.m. Friday in T130; and 2:30 p.m. Feb. 13 in T130. Scholarships and financial aid are available to qualified students.

Latza will accompany the CLC students as part of a faculty exchange program and he will teach two courses at Xi'an International University.

The application deadline is March 1. For details, contact Audrey Iffert, project coordinator, at (847) 543-2456 or via e-mail at aiffert@clcillinois.edu. Information is also available at www.clcillinois.edu/depts/socdv/studyabroad.

International Film Series: There is no charge for films in the International Film Series, which will be screened at 7 p.m. on Friday nights in Room A162 on the CLC Grayslake Campus. The films are subtitled when necessary, have adult content and are not suitable for children. For more information, contact Patrick Gonder, CLC film instructor, at (847) 543-2555 or at pgonder@clcillinois.edu.

"Volver," starring Penélope Cruz (2006) will be shown on Friday. "Offside," which follows a group of female soccer fans in their attempts to disguise themselves as men and sneak into the largest stadium in Tehran, where women are forbidden, will be screened on March 14. "The Host," which merges a dysfunctional family comedy and a monster movie, will be shown on April 25.

Lean Office Workshop: Business leaders will learn techniques geared to make their offices run more efficiently at a half-day "Lean Office" workshop from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Friday at the CLC Southlake Campus, 1120 S. Milwaukee Ave., Vernon Hills. The workshop will offer tips to implementing Lean Office techniques to streamline processes for efficiency. To register or for details, call (847) 543-2615 or visit wpdi.clcillinois.edu. The cost is $99 per person, which includes a continental breakfast.

Chinese Language Program: Community members are welcome to attend CLC's Chinese Language Immersion Program sessions from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday and March 8, April 12 and May 10 in the lower lobby of the C Wing at the CLC Grayslake campus. Sessions are open to anyone with a desire to learn Chinese, including adults, high school students and CLC students. No proficiency is required to participate.

The Chinese Language Immersion sessions will feature four or five native Chinese speakers who facilitate a series of language-building activities. Refreshments will be provided, and participants may attend any or all sessions, with no commitment to attend future sessions.

For information, call Li-hua Yu, project director, at (847) 543-2741 or via e-mail at lyu@clcillinois.edu.

Valentine's Day art sale: Find unique and artistic gift ideas for at the Valentine's Day Art Sale at the College of Lake County from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Feb. 13 and 14 The sale will feature 10 percent off all original art, including hand-made jewelry, scarves, ceramics, sculpture and photography, with 20 percent off for Friends of the Gallery.

The sale will be held in the ARTcetera Sales and Rental Gallery, located adjacent to the Robert T. Wright Community Gallery of Art in the Library/Learning Resource Center, 19351 W. Washington St. in Grayslake. Parking is available in Lots 7 and 7A, just off the Brae Loch Road entrance to the campus.

Shoppers who become a "Friend of the Gallery" will receive 10 percent off in the gallery at any time for one year and an additional 10 percent off gifts purchased during art show openings and seasonal sales. The next ARTcetera sale will be held April 30 and May 1. For information, call Christina Rasmussen at (847) 543-2405.

Truck driver training: Learn about the College of Lake County's new truck driver training program at information sessions from 6 to 8 p.m. Feb. 13, March 19 and April 16 in Room T334 on the college's Grayslake campus, 19351 W. Washington St.

Prospective students will learn about a career in the truck driving industry and how to obtain a commercial driver's license in four weeks through the college's Workforce and Professional Development Institute truck driver training program.

Four-week spring semester sessions will be offered Feb. 25 to March 21 and April 7 to May 2. Classroom instruction will be in Room T334 on the Grayslake campus, and the driving portion will be at ATS Truck Driving School in Wauconda.

The course will provide students with the knowledge and skills to prepare for the state-issued CDL exams, including the permit test, pre-trip inspection test, skills tests and road tests. Job placement assistance is available upon completion. Trucking industry recruiters from some of the top trucking firms in the nation will visit the school throughout the course.

Interested students should call (847) 543-2615 prior to enrolling to ensure they meet course entrance requirements. Information also is available at www.clcillinois.edu.

Lunch & Learn Workshops: Sample the training resources offered by the Workforce and Professional Development Institute at the College of Lake County's Client Solutions at a "Lunch and Learn Series" session. A professional facilitator will deliver one hour of training in the following subjects:

• STAR Customer Service: Feb. 14 in Room V336, Southlake campus.

• Improving Employee Work Habits: March 12 in Room T326, Grayslake campus.

• Essential Skills of Leadership: April 15 in Room V336, Southlake Campus.

All Lunch and Learn sessions are from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The cost is $30 per person, which includes participant guide, lunch and beverage. To register, call (847) 543-2615 or visit wpdi.clcillinois.edu.

Golden Dragon Acrobats: The Golden Dragon Acrobats, a group that mixes award-winning Chinese acrobatics, traditional dance, spectacular costumes and ancient and contemporary theatrical techniques, will return to the College of Lake County at 2 and 7 p.m. Feb. 16 in the Mainstage Theatre of the James Lumber Center for the Performing Arts in Grayslake.

Tickets are $23-$31 for the general public (discounts available), $13 for children under 12 and $16 for CLC students. Tickets are available at the CLC Box Office, by calling (847) 543-2300 or at www.clcillinois.edu/tickets.

Learn workplace Spanish: Get a command of Spanish language spoken in the office and workplace by taking Command Spanish at the College of Lake County. CLC's Workforce and Professional Development Institute will offer two Command Spanish courses this spring, one designed for medical professionals and one for general office personnel who interact with Spanish speakers. Command Spanish is a comprehensive Spanish language program that provides immediate access to functional language skills. The language component uses phonetic encoding to address the most important Spanish commands, questions and phrases pertinent to daily interactions. No prior knowledge of Spanish is necessary.

• Command Spanish for Medical Professionals will be offered from 9 to 11 a.m. Feb. 21 to April 17 at the Lakeshore Campus in Waukegan. The course number is PSST 14-101, and the cost is $225, which includes course materials.

• Command Spanish for Office Personnel (PSST 13-001) will be offered from 9 to 11 a.m. on Feb. 19 to April 15 at the Grayslake Campus. This program is intended for office secretaries, receptionists, medical secretaries and school secretaries. The cost is $225, which includes course materials.

For more information or to enroll in these courses, 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 the 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.

In addition, there will be a special presentation of the Sankofa Award to CLC Lakeshore Dean Eleanor Murkey. She will be honored for providing outstanding leadership since 1976, including organizing 24 Salute to Gospel Concerts.

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 information, 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.

Lake County Film Festival: The College of Lake County will host the Fifth Annual Lake County Film Festival Feb. 28 to March 3.

The festival will feature 17 feature-length documentaries, 17 narrative features and more than 100 short films. said Nat Dykeman, festival Many of the filmmakers will be on hand to present their films.

Most screenings will be held at the Grayslake Campus of the College of Lake County, with additional screenings on March 1 at the CLC Lakeshore Campus in Waukegan and the Landmark Theatre in Highland Park.

Festival highlights will include the closing night film, "Grace Is Gone," which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, won the Audience Award and was nominated for two Golden Globes. "Grace is Gone" stars Chicago native John Cusack as a man who can't figure out how to tell his two daughters that their mother was killed in Iraq. It will be shown in Highland Park.

"Wristcutters: A Love Story," another Sundance Film Festival alum to be presented at the festival, won Best Feature at Gen Art Film Festival and was nominated for two Independent Spirit Awards. The film stars Patrick Fugit as a young pizza delivery boy who commits suicide, only to find himself in an alternate and bizarre world.

"Last Stop for Paul" is a heart-warming comedy/drama about two friends who travel the world spreading a friend's ashes. It has shown at over 100 film festivals, and won over 45 awards.

The festival also offers several Chicago-based films, including the world premieres of "An Alternative to Slitting Your Wrist," a feature documenting a man's year-long attempt to find something worth living for after a failed suicide attempt, and "King In Chicago," a historical documentary about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s work in 1966 with the Chicago Freedom Movement.

Other Chicago based films are "Indestructible," Ben Byer's documentary about his own battle with ALS and his search for a cure; the romantic comedy "The Chemistry of Dating"; the drama "The Half Life of Mason Lake"; and Lake County native John Covert's film "Shut-Eye," which features Stana Katic.

Several foreign films are included this year, among them the world premiere of "L'estate d'Inverno," an Italian drama; "Statysci," a Polish comedy; and "El Violin," the Cannes and Ariel Award-winning drama.

For details, including full descriptions of all films and their show times, as well as directions and ticketing information, visit www.lakecountyfilmfest.comcall (847) 362-5666 or e-mail lakecountyfilmfest@gmail.co m.