Olney Central College alumnus Jeremy Walker finished his master’s degree in electrical and computer engineering by winning Cornell Tech’s prestigious 2020 Start Up Competition Award.

Olney Central College Men’s Basketball will host two summer youth camps. This is a great opportunity for campers to work on their game with OCC players and coaches. The Youth Day Camp will meet Aug. 10-13. Boys and girls entering kindergarten through fourth grade will attend camp from 9 to 10:30 a.m. daily. Campers entering fifth through eighth grade will attend from 10:30 a.m. to noon daily.  The cost of the camp is $60 per camper, which includes a camp T-shirt.

Olney Central College will offer after-hours registration to assist students enrolling in fall semester classes. Work-It-Out Wednesdays for Knight Registration will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. on July 29, Aug. 5 and Aug. 12.  To schedule an appointment, call 618-395-7777. Walk-ins are welcome. Fall semester schedules are available at www.iecc.edu/occ. Classes start Aug. 20.

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Olney Central College is making it easier to enroll in fall semester classes with Mobile Registration. Advisor/Recruiters Sheri Gray and Jodi Schneider will be traveling to area communities to answer questions and assist students in applying and registering for Fall 2020 classes.

Olney Central College’s success with Signal Vine is being highlighted on the company’s website. OCC implemented the two-way text messaging platform last year as part of the Illinois Eastern Community Colleges Title III Block Grant initiative to enhance academic advising. The Signal Vine platform enables advisors to strengthen communication and better engage with students.

Evening classes are now available for Olney Central College’s new Unmanned Aerial Pilot Certificate. “We know there are individuals who would like to complete the certificate, but are unable to take daytime classes because they are working,” said Morgan Henton, Unmanned Aerial Technology Specialist. “We hope this will make it easier for them to complete the training.”

Olney Central College will offer a beginning machine piecing/quilting class starting Aug. 25. During the eight-week course, students will learn step-by-step how to create their own quilts using the beautiful Tradewinds and Addison’s Star patterns. The non-credit class will meet from 6 to 9 p.m. on Tuesdays in Room 201 with instructor Laurie Rist. The cost is $100. To register or for more information, contact OCC Student Services at 618-395-7777.

Olney Central College has named Casey Wyllie as interim Men’s Basketball Coach following the departure of Mike Burris, who accepted an assistant’s position at the University of Indianapolis. “I’m really excited for this opportunity,” Wyllie said. “It has always been a goal of mine to become a head coach one day. We have a great group of guys coming back and I am excited to build on the foundation Coach Burris has laid over the last 15 years.” Wyllie is looking forward to the upcoming season as he has eight returning players from last year’s 24-win campaign.

Olney Central College has been named the No. 1 Online Community College in Illinois by Optimal’s Guide to Online Schools. The state’s community colleges were ranked using several criteria, including retention rate, graduation rates, percentage of online enrollment data, and the number of online associate degrees offered. Data was based on information collected by the National Center of Education Statistics. In order to be considered for ranking, community colleges must be regionally accredited and offer at least one fully online associate degree.