Western Nevada College News & Notes | Native Washo language the focus of spring class

The endangered Washo language is the subject of a new non-credit class this winter at Western Nevada College in Douglas. Laura Smith-Fillmore will teach Washo Language and Culture on Mondays and Wednesdays, 6:30-8:45 p.m., Feb. 11-May 11 in Bently Hall on the Douglas campus.

The Continuing Education class will introduce conversational Washo, the writing system and life ways, including songs, hand games, traditional storytelling and the ecology of the homeland.

Since dropping to just 20 elderly speakers of Washo in the past decade, there has been an effort to revitalize the number of speakers of the language that’s indigenous to California.

This Native American language is spoken predominantly in an area near Lake Tahoe and extends from Honey Lake in northeastern California to the Antelope Valley north of Los Angeles.

For more information or to register for the class, go to www.campusce.net/wnc/course/course.aspx?catId=107.

Charitable project spawns ‘Recycled Rides’ auto body class

The goodwill of Western Nevada College auto body students and instructors last fall has spawned a new class repairing vehicles to donate to financially strapped Carson City area residents.

Introduction to Auto Collision Technology will be offered this spring through the college’s non-credit Continuing Education program.

Under the guidance of the WNC auto body faculty, students will restore a late-model vehicle that will become a part of the National Auto Body Council’s Recycled Rides program. Cost for the class is $100.

WNC partnered with Recycled Rides and Capital City Circles Initiative to restore a Chevrolet Cobalt in automotive collision and automotive refinishing classes last fall. The vehicle was presented to a local family just before Christmas.

The class provides a unique opportunity for auto body students and faculty members to work along side other industry professionals, including insurers, repairers, paint suppliers, parts vendors and others, to repair and donate needed vehicles to individuals and service organizations that may be in serious need of transportation.

The class is open to students who are at least 16 years old. It will be directed by Mark Leonard and Joseph Ouellette, meeting 2:30-5:30 p.m. on Wednesdays, beginning Jan. 21.

For more information or to register for the class, go to www.campusce.net/wnc/course/course.aspx?catId=108.

Gain soldering skills employers want

A job skill that’s valued and needed by employers in Northern Nevada can be acquired through one of Western Nevada College’s electronics technology classes during the spring term.

ET 104: Fabrication and Soldering Techniques is offered during the spring semester at the Carson City campus, Tuesdays, 7 to 9:45 p.m.

“It’s a course that counts towards the Associate of Applied Science Technology degree specializations in general industrial technology or automated systems,” said Emily Howarth, a computer information technology professor at WNC. “It’s a job skill that’s in demand in Northern Nevada.”

Students will acquire the knowledge and skills to earn proficiency in making and repairing high-reliability solder connections. They will be given extensive hands-on training in the soldering lab, where through-hole and surface-mount techniques will be covered and practiced.

Classes start Tuesday, Jan. 20, and continue through May 16.

For more information, contact Howarth at Emily.Howarth@wnc.edu.