A-B Tech Student Proves It's Never Too Late To Learn

Sixty-eight year-old Criminal Justice Technology student Nancy Johnson gets ready for class.

A wiry woman wearing a floppy hat and huge glasses ambles down the hallway in the Hemlock Building surrounded by throngs of blue-jean and T-shirt clad students hurrying past.

She's not in a hurry. She's not as much racing toward the future as taking a leisurely stroll, enjoying the scenery on the way while remembering to look behind her as well.

The woman is Nancy Johnson, 68 years old and enrolled in Criminal Justice Technology classes. A retired schoolteacher from Lakeland, Fl., Johnson already knows what a career feels like. She taught emotionally handicapped and severely emotionally disturbed K-5th graders for 32 years.

"I loved the challenge of teaching these children,"Johnson says. "I let the children know that I trusted them. They didn't even know what the word 'trust' meant. They didn't know what the word 'understanding' meant. They didn't know what the word 'love' meant."

Most of her students came from broken homes, where drugs and violence were an everyday occurrence. Considering herself to be as much a counselor as teacher, Johnson says the students would come to her with their problems. "I would say to them, 'You talk, I'll listen.'"

Because of her vast experience with the aftereffects of a violent and chaotic life style, Johnson jumped at the chance to attend A-B Tech Criminal Justice classes for free through a provision for senior citizens. "The children of these criminals, they're the ones that are paying for it. If I could stop one person from killing or robbing and make them see that living outside is more important than living behind four walls...."

Although she will not receive a degree, Johnson doesn't seem to mind. "I'm getting credit for myself. When I finish, I can say 'I did this, I've got the knowledge.'" She would like to take this knowledge and provide her expertise to such places as the Juvenile Detention Center in Swannanoa. In the meantime, who knows what the future holds for this woman whose energy would put most teenagers to shame? "I don't think people can learn enough. If there's something you want to know, I don't care what your age is-learn it."

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Hotel and Restaurant Management Students Enjoy A Trip To "Hotlanta"

Hotel and Restaurant Management students Amanda Cloyd, Keai Henderson, Richard Pierce, and Brittany Koch with Hospitality Education Instructor Gary Schwartz enjoyed an educational and adventurous trip to Atlanta.

As part of their Co-op Work Experience course, Hotel and Restaurant Management students travelled to Atlanta to explore hotel and restaurant market segments not available in Western North Carolina. Funded primarily with money from a very successful raffle, the students went to explore the big city hospitality scene. As part of the practical orientation to the HRM program, the students are given numerous opportunities to deliver high quality service. An important compliment to the classroom training is that students have opportunities to experience the levels of service as well.

The first stop for the field trip was dinner at an upscale Italian restaurant named Pricci's.

The second day was an immersion in the luxury of the Atlanta Four Seasons Hotel. When we arrived, the dining room manager was waiting in the lobby to greet us. Our first session was with the hotel's general manager. When the front desk manager took his turn, instead of just showing us rooms, he did a mock check-in and we were able to visit the rooms in the footsteps of Four Seasons guests. The students saw the front desk clerk walk around the counter to hand the key directly to the "guest,"because at the Four Seasons, keys are never passed over a counter to the guest. (The counter is viewed as a psychological impediment to the personalization of service)

Our tour saw the standard rooms as well as the presidential suites, where Madonna, Cher, and Elton John have all stayed. We also toured the restaurants, lounges, and talked with the chef. That afternoon, students explored downtown Atlanta, including Underground Atlanta and the World of Coke. For dinner that evening, we dined along the banks of the Chattahoochee at a restaurant named Canoe. Canoe specializes in creative American cuisine and has been the site of many A-B Tech culinary internships. Eating at Atlanta's finest restaurants and experiencing the service and ambiance gives the students ideas of what is possible.

The next day, we had a recruiting session at the headquarters of the Buckhead Life Restaurant Group. Our host was Niko Karatossos, son of the founder of the company. We learned about how Niko grew up in the company's 13 restaurants, and how the group manages the different concepts like a family. He invited us to be his guest for lunch at the Atlanta Fish Market. While we were deciding what to order, the Chef sent out trays of fried and raw seafood for us to taste. Then as we finished, we were treated to one each of every dessert on the menu.

Our afternoon session was at the 1,600-room convention hotel, the Marriott Marquis. We were hosted by recruiter Mikael Thompson. His tour began with the ballrooms, suites, and views of the 47-story interior atrium, but the essence of his presentation was shown through the Marriott people. We toured the heart of the hotel and learned the stories of the associates that make it work. The students also saw how working for a Marriott was different from other hotel properties.

One topic that was addressed at all three properties was their strategies for coping in a sluggish economy. The Four Seasons stressed holding the line on price points but adding value by raising the already high level of service. The Buckhead Life Restaurants sought to increase sales by adding value in the form of three to four course value packages, and the Marriott Marquis like the rest worked hard to reduce waste and streamline costs. They also had a program to loan associates to the other 27 Marriotts in metropolitan Atlanta to avoid losing good people by necessary reduction of hours.

On the way home, students explored the cavernous Harry's Market in Gwinnett, where food from around the world was displayed in abundance.

Returning to the cool mountains from Hotlanta, the students were excited about what they had experienced, and ready to start their second year.

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Tech Talk Readers' Survey Results Are In!

More photos. More stories about students. More profiles of faculty and staff. The results are in on the Tech Talk Readership Survey, and those are some of the suggestions you offered.

One hundred and fifty-five people responded to the survey, which showed:

• 71 percent read Tech Talk every month and another 23 percent most months.
• 41 percent spend 6-10 minutes with it, and 33 percent spend 11-15 minutes.
• 92 percent receive it by email
• 59 percent prefer the electronic version, and 41 percent, print.
• 91 percent find the length just right.
• 93 percent rate the frequency just right.
• 98 percent rate the overall quality as good to excellent, 96 percent on the content, 95 percent on the design, 95 percent on the photography, and 97 percent on the timeliness.

The items you enjoy most are feature stories on students and graduates (84 percent), feature stories on trustees, faculty, and staff (81 percent), upcoming events (81 percent), and new employees (70 percent).

Thanks to everyone who responded, and look for changes in the months ahead as we incorporate your suggestions.

And the winners of the limited edition A-B Tech quartz clocks are:

Faye Muse

Carol Rovello

Joe Franklin

David McKinney

Jacqueline Larsen

Congratulations!

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