Spring 2013 Newsletter
Spring 2013
Changes in SAC The following staff members have resigned from SAC: Kathy Comp and Marla Siekkinen. Chris Bell and Tyler Belz have agreed to fill in for the remainder of their term. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact a member of the committee. Please check the most recent minutes at the SAC website for the date and location of the next meeting. If you have a suggestion or a concern, please contact any member of SAC. SAC website: http:// sites.allegheny.edu/sac/
Chair: Lynn McManness-Harlan Vice Chair: Stephanie Shipton Secretary: Brenda Metheny Treasurer: Suzie Miller
ISSUE
3
Allegheny Staff Sentinel this issue
Staff Advisory Committee
The Staff Advisory Committee (SAC) is elected to represent the interests, opinions and concerns of the non-exempt staff by communicating these concerns to the Allegheny Executive Committee (AEC). The SAC is comprised of eleven non-exempt employees. Representatives are elected by the staff to serve a two-year term of office, which runs from July 1 to June 30, with elections being held in April. The SAC meets every first Thursday of the month, members of the campus community are welcome to attend.
New Employees P.3
Suzie Miller Brenda Metheny Stephanie Shipton Scott Schlosser Rhonda Hershelman Brenda Armstrong
Chris Bell Tyler Belz
SAC website: http:// sites.allegheny.edu/ sac/
Staff Sentinel
SAC News P.4
Harlan
Marie Hanaway
The Allegheny
Safe Zone P.2
Lynn McManness-
Teresa Pratt Staff Sentinel Issue 3 Spring Semester 2013
The Gateway P.1
What is the Allegheny Gateway? During the January 3rd SAC meeting, Terry Bensel joined the committee to explain the changes with ACCEL and the Learning Common’s. Soon to be known as Allegheny’s Gateway. On February 7th, he shared the following with SAC. The current strategic planning process, begun in the summer of 2009 when President Mullen convened a summer planning group, has resulted in a number of new ideas and initiatives for the College. One idea that emerged from the summer 2009 group, and refined by subsequent planning groups, was for a “Center” that would help prepare Allegheny students to “excel as citizens of a diverse, interconnected world”. During the fall semester of 2012 the AEC took up the recommendations of these planning bodies, especially those of the summer 2012 Middle States Alignment Working Group, and began to develop the Center idea into what is now being called Gateway. The Gateway is designed to bring together three critical areas of study necessary to prepare students to succeed in the world beyond Allegheny —
diversity, internationalism, and civic engagement. In addition, a focus on internships, undergraduate research, and careers will be at the center of the work done in the Gateway, helping Allegheny students make connections between the work they do here and the skills needed to succeed after graduation. The Gateway builds upon the success of ACCEL while bringing the work done there into closer collaboration with academic programs across campus. As part of the Gateway initiative, the Learning Commons will be renamed the Academic Commons and will be expanded to include faculty development programs, making it a teaching and learning center. The Academic Commons will also be home to the FS Experience, a program that would span students’ first two years and include academic advising, orientation , the FS program, and programs for helping students arrive at declaring a major/minor. (Continued on page 3)
Guess who answer: Cindy Hoesch
What’s Going On?
EYE ON IT Please send your ideas! If you have stories, articles
Let us know what your department, office and/or group is doing . Submissions can be sent to: [email protected] New Employee Luncheon on Tuesday, January 8th at McKinley’s
or suggestions for the Staff Newsletter, please send an email to: [email protected]
Safe Zone Level 1 sessions will be offered for any staff who have not yet had the opportunity to participate. These two-hour sessions incorporate self-reflection, vlogs (video blogs), television clips, and both small and large group discussion to foster conversation in the Allegheny community about gender and sexuality. Each session is limited to 20 people.
GUESS WHO? How well do you know your fellow staff members?
The following new employees joined SAC members for an informative session and lunch: Sara Pineo, Kelly Wright, Diane Patton, Nicole MacQuarrie, and Annie Corbin. Welcome to Allegheny!
Tuesday, 3/12 at 4:30pm, location TBA Wednesday, 3/20 at 2:30 pm, Friday, 4/12 at 2:30 pm, To learn more about Safe Zones and the Gator Safe Zone program please visit the Safe Zone section of the Intercultural Center (CIASS) website: http:// sites.allegheny.edu/ciass/gator-safe-zone/ If you are unable to attend these sessions, future dates will be scheduled during the spring semester and can be found on the Upcoming Programs page on the Intercultural Center site. For more information, please contact valerie guerrero. What is a Gator Safe Zone Ally? An ally is an individual who works to end oppression personally and professionally through support and advocacy of an oppressed population, such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer communities. Allies may be prompted to action because they are alarmed at the pervasive negative attitudes towards LGBTQ people in a heterosexist and gendered society. Although the term ally is most often used to refer to heterosexual allies, we include LGBTQ individuals who actively support the needs of their community in our definition of a Gator Safe Zone ally. Track 1 – Developing a Common Understanding This two-hour session focuses on understanding key terms and the impact of language as they relate to gender, sexuality, and individual identities. This first track helps participants clarify their own attitudes and beliefs about homophobia & transphobia while also identifying examples of heterosexism & privilege. This track aims to assist participants in understanding how the stated objectives relate to your own role on campus. Individuals who participate in track one have the option to continue to track two.
This person has worked for
Gateway (continued)
Allegheny for 7 years. He/
Current plans are to house the Gateway in the upper floor of Pelletier Library and for a move-in to occur during the summer of 2014. Most of the offices and staff that currently comprise ACCEL will move to the new Gateway space at that time. In addition, the space currently occupied by the Learning Commons on the main floor of the library may be slightly expanded to accommodate the new programs to be housed in the Academic Commons. However, even before any physical move or renovation, Gateway projects and initiatives will begin to be developed and piloted as soon as this semester. In terms of personnel, there is still a lot of work to be done to develop an organizational structure for the Gateway and Academic Commons, and that work is best done by those individuals who will themselves comprise these organizations. Therefore, on-going meetings, consultations, and an extended summer retreat will take place to discuss these matters. Additional information on the Gateway structure, organization, and timeframe for transitioning people and projects into the new structure will be forthcoming in the months ahead.
she attended Conneaut Lake High School and has a B.A. in psychology from Edinboro University. This person was born in Tokyo, Japan. Married for 20 years. They have 3 children, including twins, 2 dogs and a cat. Hobbies include fishing and listening to audio books. This per-
New Employees
son’s lucky # is 13 and
Join SAC in Welcoming the Newest Allegheny College Employees!
loves turtles. He/she worked for the Girl Scouts for 7
Kelly Wright
Wayne Lynn (pt)
Physical Plant
Safety & Security
years as their IT person.
Belinda Nichols
Ryan Presnar (pt) SAFETY & SECURITY
(Answer is on the back)
Development
Dan Henninger (PT)
Nicole MaCQuarrie
AV Tech
Financial Aid
Changes in SAC The following staff members have resigned from SAC: Kathy Comp and Marla Siekkinen. Chris Bell and Tyler Belz have agreed to fill in for the remainder of their term. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact a member of the committee. Please check the most recent minutes at the SAC website for the date and location of the next meeting. If you have a suggestion or a concern, please contact any member of SAC. SAC website: http:// sites.allegheny.edu/sac/
Chair: Lynn McManness-Harlan Vice Chair: Stephanie Shipton Secretary: Brenda Metheny Treasurer: Suzie Miller
ISSUE
3
Allegheny Staff Sentinel this issue
Staff Advisory Committee
The Staff Advisory Committee (SAC) is elected to represent the interests, opinions and concerns of the non-exempt staff by communicating these concerns to the Allegheny Executive Committee (AEC). The SAC is comprised of eleven non-exempt employees. Representatives are elected by the staff to serve a two-year term of office, which runs from July 1 to June 30, with elections being held in April. The SAC meets every first Thursday of the month, members of the campus community are welcome to attend.
New Employees P.3
Suzie Miller Brenda Metheny Stephanie Shipton Scott Schlosser Rhonda Hershelman Brenda Armstrong
Chris Bell Tyler Belz
SAC website: http:// sites.allegheny.edu/ sac/
Staff Sentinel
SAC News P.4
Harlan
Marie Hanaway
The Allegheny
Safe Zone P.2
Lynn McManness-
Teresa Pratt Staff Sentinel Issue 3 Spring Semester 2013
The Gateway P.1
What is the Allegheny Gateway? During the January 3rd SAC meeting, Terry Bensel joined the committee to explain the changes with ACCEL and the Learning Common’s. Soon to be known as Allegheny’s Gateway. On February 7th, he shared the following with SAC. The current strategic planning process, begun in the summer of 2009 when President Mullen convened a summer planning group, has resulted in a number of new ideas and initiatives for the College. One idea that emerged from the summer 2009 group, and refined by subsequent planning groups, was for a “Center” that would help prepare Allegheny students to “excel as citizens of a diverse, interconnected world”. During the fall semester of 2012 the AEC took up the recommendations of these planning bodies, especially those of the summer 2012 Middle States Alignment Working Group, and began to develop the Center idea into what is now being called Gateway. The Gateway is designed to bring together three critical areas of study necessary to prepare students to succeed in the world beyond Allegheny —
diversity, internationalism, and civic engagement. In addition, a focus on internships, undergraduate research, and careers will be at the center of the work done in the Gateway, helping Allegheny students make connections between the work they do here and the skills needed to succeed after graduation. The Gateway builds upon the success of ACCEL while bringing the work done there into closer collaboration with academic programs across campus. As part of the Gateway initiative, the Learning Commons will be renamed the Academic Commons and will be expanded to include faculty development programs, making it a teaching and learning center. The Academic Commons will also be home to the FS Experience, a program that would span students’ first two years and include academic advising, orientation , the FS program, and programs for helping students arrive at declaring a major/minor. (Continued on page 3)
Guess who answer: Cindy Hoesch
What’s Going On?
EYE ON IT Please send your ideas! If you have stories, articles
Let us know what your department, office and/or group is doing . Submissions can be sent to: [email protected] New Employee Luncheon on Tuesday, January 8th at McKinley’s
or suggestions for the Staff Newsletter, please send an email to: [email protected]
Safe Zone Level 1 sessions will be offered for any staff who have not yet had the opportunity to participate. These two-hour sessions incorporate self-reflection, vlogs (video blogs), television clips, and both small and large group discussion to foster conversation in the Allegheny community about gender and sexuality. Each session is limited to 20 people.
GUESS WHO? How well do you know your fellow staff members?
The following new employees joined SAC members for an informative session and lunch: Sara Pineo, Kelly Wright, Diane Patton, Nicole MacQuarrie, and Annie Corbin. Welcome to Allegheny!
Tuesday, 3/12 at 4:30pm, location TBA Wednesday, 3/20 at 2:30 pm, Friday, 4/12 at 2:30 pm, To learn more about Safe Zones and the Gator Safe Zone program please visit the Safe Zone section of the Intercultural Center (CIASS) website: http:// sites.allegheny.edu/ciass/gator-safe-zone/ If you are unable to attend these sessions, future dates will be scheduled during the spring semester and can be found on the Upcoming Programs page on the Intercultural Center site. For more information, please contact valerie guerrero. What is a Gator Safe Zone Ally? An ally is an individual who works to end oppression personally and professionally through support and advocacy of an oppressed population, such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer communities. Allies may be prompted to action because they are alarmed at the pervasive negative attitudes towards LGBTQ people in a heterosexist and gendered society. Although the term ally is most often used to refer to heterosexual allies, we include LGBTQ individuals who actively support the needs of their community in our definition of a Gator Safe Zone ally. Track 1 – Developing a Common Understanding This two-hour session focuses on understanding key terms and the impact of language as they relate to gender, sexuality, and individual identities. This first track helps participants clarify their own attitudes and beliefs about homophobia & transphobia while also identifying examples of heterosexism & privilege. This track aims to assist participants in understanding how the stated objectives relate to your own role on campus. Individuals who participate in track one have the option to continue to track two.
This person has worked for
Gateway (continued)
Allegheny for 7 years. He/
Current plans are to house the Gateway in the upper floor of Pelletier Library and for a move-in to occur during the summer of 2014. Most of the offices and staff that currently comprise ACCEL will move to the new Gateway space at that time. In addition, the space currently occupied by the Learning Commons on the main floor of the library may be slightly expanded to accommodate the new programs to be housed in the Academic Commons. However, even before any physical move or renovation, Gateway projects and initiatives will begin to be developed and piloted as soon as this semester. In terms of personnel, there is still a lot of work to be done to develop an organizational structure for the Gateway and Academic Commons, and that work is best done by those individuals who will themselves comprise these organizations. Therefore, on-going meetings, consultations, and an extended summer retreat will take place to discuss these matters. Additional information on the Gateway structure, organization, and timeframe for transitioning people and projects into the new structure will be forthcoming in the months ahead.
she attended Conneaut Lake High School and has a B.A. in psychology from Edinboro University. This person was born in Tokyo, Japan. Married for 20 years. They have 3 children, including twins, 2 dogs and a cat. Hobbies include fishing and listening to audio books. This per-
New Employees
son’s lucky # is 13 and
Join SAC in Welcoming the Newest Allegheny College Employees!
loves turtles. He/she worked for the Girl Scouts for 7
Kelly Wright
Wayne Lynn (pt)
Physical Plant
Safety & Security
years as their IT person.
Belinda Nichols
Ryan Presnar (pt) SAFETY & SECURITY
(Answer is on the back)
Development
Dan Henninger (PT)
Nicole MaCQuarrie
AV Tech
Financial Aid
