Owensboro Community and Technical College

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OCTC Celebrates Virginia Miles Nature Center History

Gallagher Book Released

by Bernie Hale

Owensboro, KY (04/05/2019) — Owensboro Community & Technical College (OCTC), the OCTC Foundation, Inc. and the OCTC Nature Committee are hosting an event on Tuesday, April 9 at 1 p.m. in honor of the history and creation of OCTC's Virginia Miles Nature Center and in conjunction with the publication of Dr. Kit Gallagher's book Creating an Outdoor Classroom/Wildlife Refuge at Owensboro Community & Technical College. The event will take place in the Learning Resource Center on the first floor and there will be some books available for purchase. Dr. Gallagher was instrumental in creating and has been a vital part of the planning, maintenance, and mission, of this unique resource for the college.

OCTC is the only community college that has a nature center available for classroom and recreational use. The area is home to numerous types of birds that have been catalogued by the Audubon Society. The area is used in various classes, including a science course that tags butterflies annually as a project. The Nature Committee hosts an annual Nature Day event inviting local children to experience nature first hand with area experts on plants, insects, and animals. The center was created during the construction of the main campus and has been maintained by the OCTC staff and Nature Committee since its inception. The area includes a nesting island in the lake which benefits the environment by providing important nesting habitats for various animals and birds. "We are extremely proud of the Virginia Miles Nature Center and delighted to honor Dr. Gallagher for all her efforts to preserve and enhance the nature center" added Scott Williams, OCTC President.

Following a brief ceremony, Dr. Gallagher will be on hand to sign books. Following the event and weather permitting there will be a brief guided hike in the nature center. The event is free and open to the public. For more information please contact bernie.hale@kctcs.edu.

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Owensboro Community & Technical College is one of the sixteen community and technical colleges that make up the Kentucky Community & Technical College System. OCTC serves the KY counties of Daviess, Hancock, Ohio and McLean. OCTC has three campuses in Daviess County and a Center and Annex in Hancock County. OCTC strives to serve the communities in the service area by providing associate degree education for transfer, state of the art technical education for students focusing on entering the workforce, customized business and industry solutions through the Workforce Solutions division, and adult education and business and industry testing through the SkillTrain unit.

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The Kentucky Community and Technical College System is the Commonwealth's largest postsecondary institution with 16 colleges and more than 70 campuses. We also are Kentucky's largest provider of workforce training and online education. Through partnerships with business and industry, we align our programs to meet the needs of local employers. We help students fulfill their dreams of creating a better life through programs that lead directly to jobs or help them transfer to one of our four-year partners.

Connect with OCTC: Owensboro.kctcs | Facebook.com/owensboroctc | Twitter@OCTC_Tweets | Instagram OwensboroCTC

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