April 6, 2017
Story by Micah Oelze

Barton Community College will be closed on Friday, April 14 and Monday, April 17 for Easter break. Barton's Center for Adult Education and Shafer Art Gallery will also be closed. The college's regular class schedule and office hours will resume Tuesday, April 18.

April 5, 2017
Story by Micah Oelze
Photo by Brandon Steinert

The Barton Community College Orchestra will perform at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 11 in the Shafer Art Gallery. “Strictly Strings”, as the title implies, will only feature the stringed instruments.

The 12-piece orchestra is comprised of high school and college students and members of the Barton and Pawnee communities. The show will feature a wide selection of music from Mozart and Handel to the “Feather Theme” from Forest Gump.

April 3, 2017
Story and photos by Brandon Steinert

Like many post-secondary education institutions, Barton Community College offers dual enrollment with high schools to give students a head start on college and dip their toes in the waters of higher education.

Home-schooled high schoolers Alyvia and Cherith Crawley of Fort Leavenworth dove in; head first.

Cherith, a senior, will have 29 college credit-hours when she finishes her current course load; Alyvia, a sophomore, will have 26.5.

March 31, 2017
Story and portrait by Brandon Steinert

Barton student Zack Steffen, sophomore of Great Bend, managed to acquire 32 credit-hours of college coursework before graduating high school through dual credit.

He then began pursuit of an associate of science degree with an emphasis in engineering and will graduate in May.

He plans to attend Wichita State University in the fall to study Biomedical Engineering, which he hopes will prepare him to contribute to the field of prosthetics and the use of technology in medicine.

March 22, 2017
Story by Micah Oelze
Courtesy Photos

The Barton Community College Theatre Department will host open auditions for its upcoming Original Playwright Series 4-8 p.m. March 27 and 28 in the Fine Arts Auditorium.

The series consists of four original short plays from the theatre department’s Original Playwright Contest.

March 22, 2017
Story by Micah Oelze
Courtesy photo submitted

The public is invited to observe a Vocal Masterclass forum from 3-5:30 p.m. and from 6:15-8:30 p.m. on March 31 in the Dorothy Moses Morrison Chapel in the Fine Arts Building at Barton Community College. Those interested in learning more about vocal technique and performing are encouraged to attend one or both sessions. 

March 21, 2017
Story by Micah Oelze

Barton Community College’s Community Service Organization (CSO) will host a Career Closet Drive as part of the 10th annual Great Bend Job Fest. The drive will continue through March 28.

Story by Micah Oelze
Photo by Brittney Seger

Terria Ashby is by no means a traditional student and she knows it. Ashby is a 45-year-old grandmother returning to college to study early childhood education through BARTonline.org, Barton Community College’s online learning platform.

Ashby works from home running a childcare center, where on an average day she takes care of seven children.

Teaching and caring for children comes naturally to Ashby, from “playing school” as a kid to watching over her siblings and babysitting as a student for income.

March 16, 2017
Story and photos by Micah Oelze

Law enforcement professionals realize the nature of their work can put them in dangerous situations where hand-to-hand defensive tactics are required. The criminal justice program at Barton Community College has acquired two padded training suits, known as RedMan suits, to allow students to experience such situations first-hand safely.