For more information, contact Dr. Penny Quinn, 620-792-9303.

May 13, 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Story by: Linda Jerke

Barton Community College honored two Distinguished Instructors during its 40th commencement ceremony May 13. Full-time mathematics instructor Joseph Harrington has taught on the Barton County Campus for six years and Barton Fort Riley associate instructor Blanca Oviedo has taught for two years on Barton’s Fort Riley Campus.

Presenting the Distinguished Instructor Awards was Barton’s Vice President of Instruction and Student Services Dr. Penny Quinn.

Harrington jointly chairs Barton’s Outcomes Assessment Committee, working with other Barton instructors and staff to aid student learning.

He has earned accolades for his commitment to student learning with receipt of the 2008 and 2010 NISOD Instructional Excellence Awards and inclusion in the publication, Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers, in 2006.

Originally from Columbus, Neb., Harrington earned an associate’s degree from Central Community College in Columbus and a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics with a minor in computer science from Wayne State College in Wayne, Neb.

He earned a Master of Science degree in Mathematics from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln in 2004. That same year, he began instructing Barton students, achieving his dream of becoming a teacher, which began when he was in second grade.

Harrington continues to seek opportunities to enhance his instructional techniques. Recently he earned e-Certification in developing, teaching, reviewing and enriching online courses.

He enjoys developing friendships with his colleagues while helping them with the technological tools that can enhance teaching and learning. He and his wife, Laura, have a young daughter, Madelyn “Maddy,” with whom they enjoy spending as much time as possible.

Oviedo has taught both traditional and hybrid classes on Barton’s Fort Riley Campus. She is currently developing a Spanish course for delivery to Barton’s online students.

She is a recipient of the 2010 NISOD Instructional Excellence Award. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Texas at El Paso in 1989, Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education in 2007 and Bachelor of Arts in Modern Languages in 2008 from Kansas State University.

Before coming to Barton, Oviedo taught Spanish courses on the high school and elementary school levels in Kansas and Texas for eight years. She currently is working toward a fourth college degree, a master’s from Kansas State University.

In her non-work time, she enjoys spending time with her husband, Sergio, 14-year-old daughter, Leah, and 21-year-old son, Alex. She also volunteers her time in Children’s Ministries at Junction City Church of the Nazarene.

Barton Fort Riley associate instructor Blanca Oviedo receives the 2010 Distinguished Instructor Award from Barton’s Vice President of Instruction and Student Services Dr. Penny Quinn.


Barton math instructor Joseph Harrington shakes the hand of Dr. Penny Quinn as he accepts the 2010 Distinguished Instructor Award.