North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC) will hold a Veterans Day Presentation on Thursday, November 9, in Beem Center 200 on the NIACC campus from 2:00 P.M. to 4:00 P.M. This free public forum will be facilitated by Charlene Gooch and Bennett Smith.

Women were first allowed to enlist in the U.S. military in 1917, although they were a part of U.S. military history since 1775. Federal law (1948) made women a permanent part of the military services; and, in 1976, the first woman was admitted to one of the military academies. Since the Revolutionary War, women have functioned in a diverse array of roles. During the U.S. Civil War, a few women disguised themselves as men in order to fight alongside the men; others served as nurses and military aides. In World Wars I & II, women served as nurses and support and clerical personnel, and tested airplanes. Korea and Vietnam conflicts brought them closer to combat; the Gulf War put them in the conflict. In this program, we want to honor the service and sacrifice of all veterans, with a special focus on the stories of women.

Charlene G. Gooch offers an eclectic professional background to her seminars: faculty, clinical, and administrative work in family therapy, counseling, employee assistance, nursing, mediation, higher education, and community health. She earned a PhD in family therapy/studies (ISU), MS in community health/ higher education, curriculum (TWU), and BS in nursing (U-MD). She has conducted over 350 presentations through a variety of modalities, at international, national, state, and local levels; and previously presented at LLI. “Throughout my work and studies, I strive to find and create ways for people to attain and maintain health and to prevent illness and trauma. Participating in LLI is another way of extending that thread. Even though I present on serious, and sometimes tough, topics, I believe it is important to share what I know if that knowledge can help someone.” A native Iowan, Charlene lived and worked in nine U.S. states, and traveled to 49 of 50 (“Alaska awaits”). She is a military Veteran, and a volunteer for several organizations.

Bennett Smith is an instructor in history and political science at North Iowa Area Community College. He is also an instructor in various lifelong learning programs including the NIACC lifelong Learning Institute; the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Iowa State University and the LIFE program at Rochester Community and Technical College in Rochester, Minnesota. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in speech communication and a Master of Arts degree in history from Iowa State University. He has also done graduate work at the University of Iowa in Social Foundations of Education.

# # #

Ref # 6196