September 19, 2003 News
Releases
Released 9/17/03 and 9/18/03
UTAH STATE NEWS RELEASES FOR 09-18-03
PARTNERS
IN BUSINESS TRADITION CONTINUES AT UTAH STATE
LOGAN - Utah State University's nationally recognized Partners
in Business seminar continues its 34-year tradition of bringing
prestigious business leaders throughout the world to Utah State’s
campus.
The seven-seminar season covers various aspects of business,
including Operational Excellence (Oct. 1-2), Accounting (Oct.
23), Customer Service and Marketing (Nov. 19-20), Women in Business
(Feb. 12), Information Technology (Feb. 25-26), Financial Services
and Banking (March 18), and Human Resources (March 31-April
1).
Some of this season's featured speakers include Stephen Milovich,
senior vice-president of corporate human resources for Walt
Disney Company; Gus Villanueva, F-117 program director for Lockheed
Martin Aeronautics; Lisa M. Weber, senior executive vice-president
and CAO for MetLife, Inc.; Scott Hymas, CEO of RC Willey; and
Louise Francesconi, executive vice-president for Raytheon missiles.
Ross Robson, director of Partners in Business and associate
dean for the College of Business, said, "This year's speakers
continue the rich tradition of Partners in Business by applying
the principles taught to students on campus and giving both
professionals and students the opportunity to network with presidents
and CEOs of prestigious companies."
Partners in Business, a non-profit, student-coordinated organization
sponsored by Utah State's College of Business, began as part
of a one-day banking seminar in 1970. Since then, the organization
has expanded to seven separate seminars devoted to every aspect
of business. Prominent leaders, including Alan Greenspan, Dan
Quayle, Jon M. Huntsman and Malcom Forbes have come to Utah
State as a part of the organization’s goal of "Building
an Academic Corporate America."
The seven seminars, held from October to April, have brought
leaders from companies such as Microsoft, Nike, FranklinCovey,
Ford Motor Company and Hewlett-Packard to share innovative experience
and provide valuable networking for business professionals and
students interested in specified areas of business.
"The Partners program is unique because it is student managed
and attracts the top business leaders in the nation," said
Jacob Raymer, program administrator of Partners in Business.
"As a recent addition to the management team at Partners
in Business, I have the opportunity to view the organization
from an outside perspective," Raymer said. "I am amazed
with the seminar coordinators’ ability to provide innovative
solutions and cutting-edge training to local and national businesses."
Business professionals are encouraged to attend Partners in
Business seminars, where they are provided with low-cost, high-quality
management education and can earn professional education credits
accepted by the Society for Human Resource Management, Certified
Public Accountants, Certified Financial Planners, APICS ---
The Educational Society for Resource Management, and the American
Society for Training and Development.
"Partners in Business seminars are one of the best venues
I have seen for businesses to build their competitive advantage
through networking and benchmarking best practices," said
Shaun Barker, associate director of Partners in Business.
All students majoring in business at Utah State are required
to attend seminars as part of their curriculum. Many students
have found the seminars valuable for networking and future employment.
"I think the Partners in Business seminars are one of the
best opportunities students have to put their classroom knowledge
to practical use," said Jamia Gill, a former Customer Services
and Marketing student host. "Besides, how many other chances
does a student get to talk to CEOs, COOs and other managers
on a personal level?"
Seminar dates are:
Operational Excellence: October 1-2, 2003
Accounting: October 23, 2003
Customer Service & Marketing: November 19-20, 2003
Women in Business: February 12, 2004
Information Technology: February 25-26, 2004
Financial Services & Banking: March 18, 2003
Human Resources: March 31-April 1, 2004
For more information about the Partners in Business seminars,
contact Jacob Raymer at (435) 797-2279 or visit the Web at:
www.partnersusu.org
September 17, 2003
Contact: Jacob Raymer (435) 797-2279, jacob.raymer@usu.edu
Writer: Matt Hawks (435) 797-1350, mhawks@cc.usu.edu
UTAH
STATE UNIVERSITY TO DEVELOP SUPPORTIVE WORKPLACE MODEL
LOGAN — Four researchers at Utah State University have
a good question, and they just received $3 million from the
National Science Foundation (NSF) to help them find an answer.
Their question, and the question of many in academia, is: How
to change the climate in academic institutions so women not
only stay, but thrive. Women have left academics in droves for
the last 20 years, even while the number of women obtaining
doctorates has soared.
Many women find it difficult to balance the demands of raising
a family with tenure track positions that can translate into
50 to 80 hours a week of teaching, preparation, research, writing,
publishing, committee work and advising, according to The Chronicle
of Higher Education. And after the long, hard grind of graduate
school, women often find themselves left out of discussions
at the water cooler about funding opportunities, or they face
professional isolation, with mentors and collaborators few and
far between.
"Highly qualified women are being lost at each stage of
advancement during their careers," said Ronda Callister,
principal investigator and management professor at Utah State.
"That means a loss of investment, a loss of qualified thinkers,
a loss of role models and a loss of diversity."
Utah State researchers and administrators hope to do more than
conduct ivory tower research about why women stay at universities,
or leave. The groundbreaking, five-year project, one of only
10 funded in the United States, will develop a prototype that
can be used at schools across the nation. Utah State was awarded
the NSF grant, in part, because timing and conditions are ideal.
President Kermit L. Hall and Provost Stan Albrecht have promoted
an agenda of change, making recruitment, retention and promotion
of women a top priority, and the faculty team has already laid
the groundwork. Utah State's effort, the ADVANCE: Supportive
Workplace Initiative, aims for nothing less than institutional
transformation.
"We want to change the workplace climate for women and
minorities at Utah State," said Callister.
"It's important," Hall said, "to remove the rose-colored
glasses, not because it's politically correct, but because it’s
correct, for our society and for our time. It's important for
women and minorities to have as many options before them as
possible."
The Supportive Workplace Initiative will especially focus on
attracting and retaining women in the sciences and engineering,
where women are underrepresented, across the country and at
Utah State. The university's College of Engineering, for example,
has 82 tenured or tenure track faculty members; only six are
women.
Co-investigator James Powell, father and professor in math and
statistics, is helping develop a science and engineering recruitment
team to broaden the pool of minority and female applicants for
positions.
"We need to start selling the benefits of our situation
here in Logan," Powell said, an outdoor enthusiast. "This
is already a great place to live and work, and the Supportive
Work Initiative will help open doors."
"Sometimes options are limited because of underlying assumptions
that impact women — and men," said Kim Sullivan,
co-investigator and biology professor. "Sometimes we downgrade
the accomplishments of anyone who doesn't fit the image."
Sullivan cited a 1997 study, published in Nature, which found
that both men and women rate the quality of men’s professional
accomplishments higher than those of women when they are aware
of the gender. When the gender is not known, men's and women’s
achievements are ranked equally.
"We are trying to set up ways to fairly evaluate men and
women, so the subtle biases aren't there," Sullivan said.
"But we want to look at the larger picture," said
Sullivan. "We want to create a workplace model where all
faculty, women and men, can be successful in highly competitive
research fields and still maintain a rich personal life."
"This idea that you just keep putting in more and more
hours every year isn't going to work anymore," Sullivan
said. "If we can figure out ways to be more effective with
our time and use the talents here on campus better, we can increase
career success and compete with any institution for top faculty.
At the same time, we can move Utah State to a new level of national
prominence."
Callister believes that the project's "dual agenda"
business model, which links equity to workplace effectiveness,
will lead to more dynamic results. "Our strategy is to
address problems that impact the effectiveness and satisfaction
of all faculty members, but seem to weigh heavier on women and
minorities," she said.
"An improved spousal accommodation program will help attract
women to Logan," said Christine Hult, co-investigator and
associate dean of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences. "Women
very often have professional spouses who will also be looking
for employment."
According to the NSF, married women with doctorates are twice
as likely to have spouses who work fulltime, as opposed to married
men with doctorates.
The NSF initiative will engage faculty in creative dialogues
to identify and implement change, said Hult. "With male
and female colleagues working in grassroots collaboration across
campus, a healthier dynamic will emerge for both men and women
— one that recognizes the importance of a balanced lifestyle."
Mediation training will be provided to develop a more effective
system for resolving staff tensions and conflicts. Training
and assistance will be provided to hiring committees across
campus. The Women's Center will receive additional staffing
to increase support systems for faculty. Utah State's first
childcare center will be established to assist faculty who are
parents.
A new quarter-time associate vice provost for women’s
issues, Christine Hailey, will coordinate with the provost’s
office to develop and implement supportive policies, especially
where spousal accommodation, tenure and promotion are concerned.
Many women land in tenure track positions that don’t accommodate
pregnancy or childcare, just as their biological clocks start
ticking.
"It's difficult to balance a child and an academic career,"
said assistant speech professor Jennifer Peeples. "There
is a real fear of falling behind. No one tells you it's a race
to the finish, but it sure feels like one."
Peeples and husband Charles Waugh, who teaches in the Utah State
English department, are juggling two demanding professional
careers with a 14-month-old baby.
"Because of the importance of being up-to-date in one's
discipline, as well as the time-sensitive nature of much of
our research, it's nearly impossible to take off a couple years,
raise a child and then come back to the job at the same level
as when you left," Peeples said.
"This is even more true for women in the sciences who have
to maintain funding for their labs," said Hult.
Powell, who brings expertise in math and statistics to the project,
will track results with computer simulations.
"We want to determine where critical bottlenecks to female
advancement have been," he said. "We should be able
to see how small effects grow into large outcomes."
"This will mark a milestone of change in the history of
this institution," said Hall. "We don't have all the
answers, but we've made a commitment to taking this step, and
all the steps that come after.
"A workplace that is attractive for women is attractive
for everyone," Hall said.
Date: September 18, 2003
Contact: Ronda Callister, callister@b202.usu.edu, 435-797-1905
Writer: Nadene Steinhoff, nadene.steinhoff@usu.edu, 435-797-1429
UTAH STATE NEWS RELEASES FOR 09-17-03
WILDERNESS FIRST
AID TRAINING OFFERED AT UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY
Logan, Utah — The Wilderness Medicine Institute of the
National Outdoor Leadership School is sponsoring a Wilderness
First Aid certification training Nov. 22-23 from 8 a.m. to 5
p.m. The cost of the course is $215, which includes textbooks,
syllabus, equipment and certification cards. For an additional
$15, students may obtain one college credit of PE 1670. Wilderness
Medicine Institute is well known for high quality instruction
in the recognition, treatment and prevention of wilderness emergencies.
The Wilderness First Aid course is designed to provide outdoor
leaders, guides, rangers and the general public an introduction
to first aid and patient care in remote settings. All levels
of training and experience are welcome. Topics include, but
are not limited to, wound management and infection, improvised
splinting techniques and patient monitoring. The course also
discusses up-to-date information on environmental emergencies
and can be used as a refresher for students with a current Wilderness
First Responder certification.
This course is beneficial to anyone who enjoys outdoor activities.
WMI's emphasis on the principles of treatment and decision making
and the use of scenarios, as opposed to memorization, makes
participants feel confident in their judgement and skills, said
Danene Dustin, program coordinator.
Space is limited with only 30 spots available. For more information,
call Utah State University Extension Conference Services at
435-797-0423 or toll free 1-800-538-2663.
September 17, 2003
Contact: Danene Dustin 435-797-0462
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