The kpcWORD will be on hiatus until Aug. 12. Remember to take lots of photos over the summer and e-mail them to iynews@kpc.alaska.edu for our Photo of the Day feature. Have a wonderful summer and we will see you in August!

KRC's annual end-of-year meeting, clean-up and BBQ will be held today, May 10. The meeting will kick off at 10 a.m., with a clean-up following at approximately 11:15 a.m., concluding with a BBQ/potluck. Campus will be closed from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. and will reopen from 2-5 p.m.

Jacque Hill, KRC's dedicated, long-time arts and sciences faculty secretary, recently retired from her post. She would like to extend the following thank you to her KPC family:

"As a teenager back in the late 1960’s, I set my goals and actually achieved all of them as planned. Thinking back though, retirement was not even thought of. I mean when you are in your teens you thought your parents were old when they were in their thirties. You felt if you were lucky enough to live until you reached the age of retirement, you were doing well. I am just so thankful to God, to family, to friends and co-workers who have so lovingly and kindly made retirement a reality and not the end of the world but a new beginning. This truly is a new chapter in my life and I am looking forward to all the new chapters that life has to offer. I know there will be good and bad times ahead, but reality is that this a part of our being. Thank you everyone for all your love, kind words, generosity and the most ‘spectacular’ retirement party ever. Soon you will be out of sight, BUT never out of mind. God bless ALL of you. “Enjoy every retirement day as if it were your last and one day you will be right about it.”  ~  Author Unknown."

We'll miss you, Jacque! Congratulations on your retirement.

Students interested in applying for KRC's fall 2013 paramedic program must turn in their applications by today, Friday, May 10. View the application here. For more information about the program, please contact Paul Perry, KRC assistant professor of paramedical technology, at 262-0378.

Today, Friday, May 10, is the last day to turn in KPC summer 2013 admission applications. For more information, please contact Student Services at 262-0330.

Just a friendly reminder that there is less than a week left of open enrollment. The last day to turn in paperwork is Wednesday, May 15. Check out the presentation on open enrollment options here. You can access this from home so your spouse can see it too. The forms needed for open enrollment can be found here. There's also a cost calculator available to enter tax bracket, expected medical costs for the year to see the financial impact of each plan. Questions about which plan to choose can be directed to Melanie Hagen, KPC HR technician at 262-0307 or contact the UAA HR office at 786-4608.

Alaska Road Builders will be repaving portions of K-Beach Road beginning at 8 a.m. on Monday, May 13. ARB will begin milling one inch of the driving lanes in both directions from the Soldotna ball fields to Bridge Access Road. Weather permitting, the milling operations will be continuous in one direction from the Soldotna Ball fields to Bridge Access, taking one to two days, with paving operations close behind. Milling will then begin from Bridge Access to the Soldotna Ball Fields as soon as possible.

The mill operation will affect only the driving lanes and not the middle turn lane or the shoulders. ARB hopes to have the entire operation completed within seven days.

ARB is planning on having two-way traffic at all times, with reduced speed limits.

It's almost time for this year's UAA Staff Development Day! The event will be held on May 14 at UAA (check-in will be held from 8-8:30 a.m.). KPC employees who are interested in attending must fill in a TA with the accounting number 106210-22614-2030, electronically sign it and then send it to Director Turner for his signature. Employees may request R/T travel coupons and call either ERA ($150/ticket; 1-800-866-8394) or Grant ($145/ticket; 283-6012) and fill in per diem less one lunch (-$13). It is recommended that employees who attend this event share rental cars or cabs. Anyone who has extra room is asked to contact Cindy Finwall at 262-0308 so that if someone needs a ride, she can refer them. Learn more about UAA Staff Development Day here.

KRC English as Second Language students gathered yesterday, May 9, after their civic engagement activity of "Students Helping Students" in partnership with the Rural Cap Self-Help Housing program. Great job to these students and their instructors!