Local quilter Laurie Rist will share her expertise with students during Olney Central College’s 10-week evening quilting course. The non-credit class is open to varying skill levels and will meet at the West Richland Center in Noble from 6 to 9 p.m. on Tuesdays, starting Sept. 14. Beginners will complete a designated quilting project from start to finish while learning how to read patterns as well as cut and prep material. More advanced students can work on a project of their choice with Rist’s guidance.

Lincoln Trail College is getting set to make some upgrades to the Rowland-Nicholas Natatorium. The first phase of the project will improve access to changing rooms and begin adding recreational features to the pool. Patrons of the pool will see some improvements in how they can use the facility. Plans call for two individual showers and a changing area. Previously, people that wanted to change had to either use an athletic locker room or a restroom at the College. 

OLNEY, Ill. — Outstanding students at Olney Central College have received academic honors for the Spring 2021 Semester. Students named to the Chancellor’s List have attained a grade point average of 3.90 or higher, on a 4.0 scale. Those on the President’s List have achieved a grade point average between 3.75 and 3.89, while those students named to the Dean’s List have earned a grade point average between 3.50 and 3.74. Chancellor’s List: Albion: Camden Cowger and Omalee McDonald Allendale: Ashley Carie

On July 13 – 16, 2021, the Illinois Eastern Community Colleges TRIO Student Support Services program took 30 of its participants to Washington D.C. Travel was by charter bus so in two days, the group was able to visit many of the D.C. landmarks. TRIO SSS is a program that is 100% funded by the U.S. Department of Education to help students that are first-generation, low-income, or have other qualifying barriers to completing their education. The program offers many services to assist students with basic college requirements and increase college retention and graduation, and transfer rates.

Olney Central College Director of Choral Activities Dr. Andrew Pittman is excited to announce the OCC Community Choir is returning for Fall 2021. “After a very difficult year, I’m so excited to see my friends in the Community Choir again, for us to sing, to connect, and to just plain have fun,” he said. Last fall the OCC Music Department made the difficult decision to cancel Community Choir and its annual Christmas Concert due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Olney Central College Instructor Heather Sandy’s artwork, Protect and Respect, won first place in the 2021 Art for Health and Unity Competition sponsored by Unity in Action Magazine in Champaign. Sandy used both Procreate, an iPad app, and Adobe Illustrator to create the digital piece, which features four individuals walking together as the COVID-19 virus lurks in the background.

The Lincoln Trail College Athletic Department produced 41 student-athletes that earned All-Academic honors from the NJCAA. Six teams earned Academic Team of the Year honors. “This is a great honor,” says Athletic Director Kevin Bowers. “It is a very important part of our culture that our student-athletes work hard in the classroom as well as in their sports.”

Lincoln Trail College is planning a variety of different Community Education Classes throughout the Fall. LTC’s summer Community Education offerings wrap up with a Herb and Botanical Extractions and Infusions class that begins August 3. Instructor Nicole Martin will teach the class about flower and herb infusions that you can do yourself. Students will learn how to create their own lotions, salves, and oils. The class is on August 3, 10, and 17 from 6-8 p.m. each night. 

Lincoln Trail College Summer Theatre Director Brennan Seth Tracy announced the cast for the College’s production of Eurydice by Sarah Ruhl. Eurydice reimagines the classic myth of Orpheus and Eurydice not through Orpheus's infamous pilgrimage to retrieve his bridge, but through the eyes of its heroine. Dying too young on her wedding day, Eurydice must journey to the underworld, where she reunites with her father and struggles to remember her lost love. With contemporary characters and plot twists, the play is a fresh look at a timeless love story.