IMPORTANT NOTICE AFFECTING ALL NCNM STUDENTS!!

As you may know, Congress has targeted to eliminate the School As Lender program – the only needs-based scholarship program available to students in graduate programs. At NCNM 100% of students choose to participate in this program and NCNM has been able to generate over half a million dollars in need based student aid for students in 2006-2007 alone.

NOW is the time to contact the Members of Congress who will be working on this very important issue. At this point in the legislative process, we are most concerned with the two committees who have jurisdiction over legislation to reauthorize the Higher Education Act: 1. the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions; 2. the House Committee on Education.

The Senate has already passed a provision that will eliminate the program and the House is schedule to being its work on companion legislation very soon. Our strategy:

1) make sure that the House Committee on Education does not include a provision to eliminate the program, 2) communicate with Members of the Senate Committee the direct value this program has for students so that 3) with the two Committees come to the table to conference on their respective bills the program stays alive.

To accomplish this we must have as many students and alumni who have benefited from this program write to these two committees and ask them to keep this program alive. Our tool for enabling you to effectively communicate in rapid speed is known as CapWiz. This tool is being loaned to us for this effort from the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians and their sister organization, the Association of Accredited Naturopathic Medical Colleges. Your correspondence to your Members of Congress will be received as an individual constituent, not as any part of a group or association.

LINK TO SAL ALERT:

http://capwiz.com/naturopathic/issues/alert/?alertid=10487771

FYI- Use your home address with full zip code, if this doesn't work you can use the NCNM address:

049 SW Porter Street, Portland , OR 97201-4848

If you have questions, comments or concerns please contact Susan Yirku, NCNM Director of External Affairs, syirku@ncnm. edu 503.552.2005 or Sarah Giardenelli, NCNM SALT Team Leader, s1giard@yahoo. com 503.381.2792.

Portland Triathlon

The first annual Portland Triathlon took place in September 2007. This was the first ever medical tent run solely by a Naturopathic medical team. Students volunteered their time to assist the naturopathic doctors in the medical tent. The tent provided acute care to race participants for minor injuries and exhaustion. In addition to the medical tent, students assisted in directing athletes along the course. Approximately 20-30 students helped with the event. There were even a couple student relay teams.

WINNERS!!!

2007 marks the second annual year that NCNM has won the Bike Commute Challenge (an event put on by the Bike Transportation Alliance in Portland, OR), for the category of 500+ "employees". Not only did we win, we biked city laps per capita over the other contestants.

Students, staff and faculty logged their daily bike mileage for one month. Here are some stats:
29.2% of the 500 employees/ students of NCNM participated
1380 bike commutes were made
14.5% is the percent days biked. This is the winning criteria based on number of bike commutes, number of employees and the presumed number of work days in September. The next closest runner up only had 6.0% days biked.

Most of the NCNM bikers were STUDENTS!!
30 is the larges number of bike trips by one person.
579 miles is the most biked miles by one person in the total month.

What a way to be healthy and be environmental!