Psychology Careers

“All Psychology Schools Spotlights Industrial Organizational Psychology - PR Web (press release)” plus 1 more

2011-03-16T15:31:00.001-07:00

“All Psychology Schools Spotlights Industrial Organizational Psychology - PR Web (press release)” plus 1 more

All Psychology Schools Spotlights Industrial Organizational Psychology - PR Web (press release)

Posted: 16 Mar 2011 12:25 AM PDT

Seattle, Washington (PRWEB) March 16, 2011

Acknowledging the emergence of industrial organizational psychology as a growing and highly desirable psychology career, All Psychology Schools has launched a guide to Industrial Organizational Psychology degrees, salaries and jobs.

According to an article in the American Psychological Association's magazine Monitor, membership in the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology grew 11 percent between 2000 and 2008, and student membership grew a whopping 63 percent. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects the average rate of growth for industrial organizational psychology careers at 26 percent—far above the national average for other types of professions.

This comprehensive guide includes an in-depth industrial organizational psychology job description, master's and graduate program requirements and salary data for this exciting psychology subfield. For students seriously thinking about entering the industrial organizational psychology workforce, this resource guide will provide insight into the many opportunities that are available within the career field—and reinforce your decision to make industrial organizational psychology your chosen path.

No matter if you're just beginning your psychology education, or moving on from within the industry, All Psychology Schools' Industrial Organizational Psychology guide will help you learn everything you'll need to know to succeed in your new career.

About All Psychology Schools
All Psychology Schools (http://www.AllPsychologySchools.com) is an Internet site dedicated to helping people interested in counseling and psychology careers find the traditional classroom and online training they need to succeed. Users can search for psychology and counseling schools, get information about education requirements, find degree programs and read articles about various specialties.

About All Star Directories
All Star Directories, Inc. is one of the Internet's fastest growing publishers of online and career school directories, matching millions of highly qualified prospective students with the schools that best meet their education needs. Recently, Inc. Magazine ranked All Star among the fastest growing companies in the country, and the Puget Sound Business Journal has recognized the company as one of Washington State's fastest growing companies for five consecutive years. From leading research institutions to fast-growing online and for-profit schools, nearly 6,000 featured schools trust All Star Directories as the authority in online student recruitment. The All Star network of sites focuses on a wide range of fields, including All Allied Health Schools, All Art Schools, All Business Schools, All Education Schools, All Psychology Schools, All Criminal Justice Schools, All Computer Schools and All Nursing Schools. Please visit http://www.allstardirectories.com or call 1-888-404-8043 for more information.

Press Contact
Jason Standifer
(888) 404-8043x7511
jason(dot)standifer(at)allstardirectories(dot)com

###

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Central Falls students receive career advice - Providence Journal

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 07:04 PM PDT

01:00 AM EDT on Wednesday, March 16, 2011

By Jennifer D. Jordan
Journal Staff Writer

Ernest Almonte, former auditor general of the State of Rhode Island, offers career advice to student Bryan Dominguez as Leadership Rhode Island visited Central Falls High School. Below left, Junior Jabbie, sales manager at Banneker Industries, meets with students.

The Providence Journal / Mary Murphy

CENTRAL FALLS

Bryan Dominguez, a high school junior, brought a visitor to his world geography class at Central Falls High School Tuesday morning.

A tall figure in a dark suit and polished shoes, the guest listened intently as the class discussed the creation of Israel after World War II.

Afterward, as he and Dominguez walked down to the cafeteria, he told the young man he was a certified public accountant with a firm in Warwick.

Videos chronicle changes at
Central Falls High School

What It Takes

The mile-square city of Central Falls drew national attention this year when every teacher at its high school was fired in a battle over education reform.

For four Sundays in May, The Providence Journal explored the challenges facing dropouts, parents, students and teachers at Central Falls High School.

Ernest A. Almonte did not mention that until last year, he was Rhode Island's auditor general for 15 years, serving as the state's chief financial watchdog.

Instead, Almonte told Dominguez, who moved to this country with his parents and two younger siblings from Mexico four years ago, that his father, too, was an immigrant, from Italy.

Almonte grew up in a three-decker in Providence. He was the first person in his family to go to college.

"You need to develop your own skills and network with people," Almonte said, pulling out one of his business cards as they talked at one of the cafeteria tables.

He flipped the card over, pointing to four words.

Integrity. Reliability. Independence. Accountablity.

"If I were you, I'd develop your own business card, even for an internship," Almonte said. "Put your core values on the back. It will help you to differentiate yourself from other people."

Dominguez, who hopes to study mechanical engineering in college, said he hopes to keep in touch with Almonte.

"I thought it would be a good experience, and it was," Dominguez said later. "He told me I should make my own values and stick to them."

Almonte was one of 25 past and present members of Leadership Rhode Island who visited the high school Tuesday. The 30-year-old organization connects people from business, education, government and nonprofits to make them better leaders.

Their visit was designed to help students translate their interests and aspirations into future careers, said Leadership R.I.'s executive director, Mike Ritz.

"We have over 1,600 alumni, and we asked people to volunteer to come," Ritz said. "We hope they bring the students inspiration."

Among the participants were small-business owners and executives with large companies such as CVS. They included commanders from local police departments, lawyers, hospital directors and heads of organizations such as Teach for America, the Girl Scouts and Habitat for Humanity.

The adults met with 120 students for brief, five- to seven-minute interviews over a two-hour period that Deputy Superintendent Victor Capellan compared with "speed dating" sessions. Some conversations were one-on-one, while others were in small groups

"I started my career really by volunteering," Robert Ferreira, assistant vice president for alumni relations at Providence College, told junior Brianna Cooley. "It teaches you what you like and what you don't like."

Ferreira, who attended PC, volunteered for his alma mater after graduation. He used his catering experience to help the college plan events, and that connection eventually led to him working full-time for the college as a fundraiser.

Cooley, an honor roll student, came prepared, with a set of four questions for the three adults she met with. She took notes.

She told Scott DiChristofero, vice president of finance for Gateway Healthcare Inc., that she is interested in psychology and the medical field. Her mother is a certified nurse assistant who wants to make sure her daughter goes to college.

DiChristofero, who chairs Leadership R.I.'s board, told Cooley he would try to find an internship for her, and told her to keep in touch.

"I think all of them could be mentors to me," she said later. "They all gave me advice I can really use."

"I think they need role models," DiChristofero said. "They need to know there are folks out here who know about them, who care about them and we want to see them succeed. When else would these kids have the chance to talk to Ernie Almonte? Maybe they'll walk away thinking, 'I could be like them.' "

For Jeshua Zapata, 28, Tuesday's visit was a homecoming.

He graduated from Central Falls High School in 2000, seven years after he arrived in the city as an ESL student from Colombia.

Zapata now runs his own marketing agency, Xzito, based in Johnston.

"I wish they had this kind of program when I went here," Zapata said.

"These kids need more than a classroom. They need to see more of life."

jjordan@projo.com

“Touro University Worldwide Online MBA Program Featured on Best Online MBA ... - PR Newswire (press release)” plus 2 more

2011-03-15T15:26:00.001-07:00

“Touro University Worldwide Online MBA Program Featured on Best Online MBA ... - PR Newswire (press release)” plus 2 more

Touro University Worldwide Online MBA Program Featured on Best Online MBA ... - PR Newswire (press release)
Annual SIOP Conference Scheduled April 14-16 in Chicago - Newswise (press release)
What is the key to longevity - Times of India

Touro University Worldwide Online MBA Program Featured on Best Online MBA ... - PR Newswire (press release)

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 11:04 AM PDT

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., March 15, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In only a few months since its launch in November 2010, the online MBA degree program at Touro University Worldwide (TUW) is receiving recognition. The website "Best-Online-MBA.net" (http://best-online-mba.net/) lists Touro University Worldwide as one of its best online MBA programs.

"TUW's online MBA program allows working professional's access and opportunity to earn a top-notch education with accomplished professors in an online environment while also balancing home and family life," noted Dr. Andy Sangster, director of the online MBA program.

"TUW's online MBA degree program is high touch and includes a great deal of personal attention," stated Dr. Bernard Luskin, chief executive officer and senior provost at Touro University Worldwide. "Small classes, flexible schedules and experienced scholar practitioner faculty are signature features of this quality TUW program."

To receive further comment from Dr. Bernard Luskin or Dr. Andrew Sangster about Touro University Worldwide's online MBA program, please contact Kipp Lanham at (202) 449-9807 or Alisa Weinstein at (818) 575-6800.

About Touro University

Founded in 1971, Touro College and University System has experienced significant growth and educates more than 18,000 students at locations in New York, California, Florida, Nevada, Jerusalem, Moscow, Berlin and Paris. An accredited, non-profit university established in 2008, Touro University Worldwide offers fully online Masters' Degrees in Business, Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Media & Communication Psychology and Professional Psychology including Marriage, Family Therapy, and Pastoral Counseling. For more information, visit: www.TouroW.edu .

About Dr. Bernard Luskin

Dr. Luskin has had distinguished careers in commerce, education, entertainment and psychology. University Business Magazine selected Luskin as one who has had exceptional careers in both education and corporate life. He is a licensed psychotherapist, with degrees in business and a doctorate in Education, Psychology and Technology from UCLA. Luskin has been president and CEO of divisions of major Fortune 50 and 500 companies, including Philips Interactive Media, Philips Education and Reference Publishing and Jones International, including Mind Extension University, Knowledge TV, and Jones Education Networks. He also has been president and CEO of four colleges and universities.

About Dr. Andrew Sangster

Dr. Sangster has had a long and successful career in industry serving as a Xerox executive for many years. He earned his doctorate in Management from the Drucker School of Claremont Graduate University, an MBA from USC and an MA in Finance from California State University. Dr. Sangster has been dean and professor of business in several universities.

Contact:
Kipp Lanham (202) 449-9807
Alisa Weinstein (818) 575-1600

SOURCE Touro University Worldwide

Annual SIOP Conference Scheduled April 14-16 in Chicago - Newswise (press release)

Posted: 15 Mar 2011 09:47 AM PDT

Newswise — Current issues and trends in the workplace will be featured at the 26th Annual Conference of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology April 14-16 at the Hilton Chicago hotel.

The conference is expected to attract more than 4,000 people,, including some of the world's top workplace scientists.

More than 600 symposia, practitioner forums, panel presentations, posters and other sessions will feature a wide range of workplace topics including how the changing world of work impacts the careers of older workers; why high IQ and education may not be enough to get and keep a job; negative and positive aspects of mentoring; strategies to select the best employees; the use of personality tests to predict worker behavior; achieving a balance between work and family; coping with change during corporate changes and how the science and practice of I-O psychology can be applied to worker and public safety concerns.

Also there will be two theme track sessions during the conference. One focuses on how the research and data I-O scientists produce can be used to impact strategic decision making within organizations. The second theme track explores how organizations can utilize their human resource areas to become more environmentally sustainable. The sessions include approaches to understanding green jobs and industries and new scholarly findings about employee behaviors that support environmental sustainability.

Other sessions will highlight various aspects of leadership including the good and the bad of leadership styles; avoiding mistakes in selecting leaders; the importance of political skill for predicting managerial success; abusive supervision; and dealing with conflict at work and understanding its impact upon employees.

Some additional topics to be discussed:
• The impact of aberrant self promotion at work. Self-promoters are more likely to be unsafe, have a higher absentee rate and are likely termination risks.
• Preventing deviant behavior in young workers. Strategies to create an environment that will blunt work cynicism and negative attitude towards work.
• Turnover in dirty work. This study examines how animal shelter employees with euthanasia responsibilities are impacted by their job.
• Workplace stigmas. Workers are expected to be healthy and capable. Being pregnant, disabled, sick or surviving can lead to stigmatization and, in turn, discrimination. This symposium features case studies involving workers facing these stigmas.
• Can top dogs be fat cats? A study of 757 executives suggests that evaluations and/or impressions of top executives are negatively associated with body size.
• Multigenerational talent. What's the matter with kids today? A presentation featuring real life case studies that involve generational differences and best practice approaches for addressing these differences in a practical and productive way.
• Internet pre-screening. Does it lead to better hiring decisions? Practitioners from four organizations who have more than a million on-line applicants discuss the pros and cons from the perspective of both companies and candidates.
• Out of the closet and into the workplace. A dialogue of what we know and don't know about sexual orientation and transgender identities at work.
• Workplace mistreatment. The latest research will be presented on weight/obesity, personality and political party preference as predictors of incivility.
• How social media is changing the workplace. A presentation on social media's impact on organizational culture, selection, training, employee engagement and leadership.

SIOP President Eduardo Salas of the University of Central Florida will open the three-day conference Thursday (April 14) morning with the keynote address. Also, during the opening session, SIOP will present its annual recognition awards and Fellows, men and women who have made significant contributions to the field of IO psychology.

The Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP) is an international group of more than 7,900 industrial-organizational (I-O) psychologists whose members study and apply scientific principles concerning workplace productivity, motivation, leadership and engagement. SIOP's mission is to enhance human well-being and performance in organizational and work settings by promoting the science, practice and teaching of I-O psychology. For more information about SIOP and the conference visit www.siop.org.

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What is the key to longevity - Times of India

Posted: 12 Mar 2011 03:16 AM PST

ANI,Mar 12, 2011, 04.30pm IST

It's long been said that always looking at the positive side of things and not working too hard will lead to a long and happy life, but a new study by University of California, Riverside researchers has challenged those beliefs.

"It's surprising just how often common assumptions – by both scientists and the media – are wrong," said Howard S. Friedman, distinguished professor of psychology who led the 20-year study.

Friedman and Leslie R. Martin, a 1996 UCR alumna (Ph.D.) and staff researchers, examined, refined and supplemented data gathered by the late Stanford University psychologist Louis Terman and subsequent researchers on more than 1,500 bright children who were about 10 years old when they were first studied in 1921.

"Probably our most amazing finding was that personality characteristics and social relations from childhood can predict one's risk of dying decades later," Friedman concluded.

The study followed the children through their lives, collecting information that included family histories and relationships, teacher and parent ratings of personality, hobbies, pet ownership, job success, education levels, military service and numerous other details.

"When we started, we were frustrated with the state of research about individual differences, stress, health and longevity," Friedman recalled.

"It was clear that some people were more prone to disease, took longer to recover, or died sooner, while others of the same age were able to thrive. All sorts of explanations were being proposed – anxiety, lack of exercise, nerve-racking careers, risk-taking, lack of religion, unsociability, disintegrating social groups, pessimism, poor access to medical care, and Type A behavior patterns."

But none were well-studied over the long term. That is, none followed people step-by-step throughout their lives.

When Friedman and Martin began their research in 1991, they planned to spend six months examining predictors of health and longevity among the Terman participants.

But the project continued over the next two decades and the team eventually involved more than 100 graduate and undergraduate students who tracked down death certificates, evaluated interviews, and analyzed tens of thousands of pages of information about the Terman participants through the years.

"We came to a new understanding about happiness and health," said Martin, now a psychology professor at La Sierra University in Riverside.

"One of the findings that really astounds people, including us, is that the Longevity Project participants who were the most cheerful and had the best sense of humor as kids lived shorter lives, on average, than those who were less cheerful and joking. It was the most prudent and persistent individuals who stayed healthiest and lived the longest."

The study also found that "don't work too hard, don't stress" doesn't work as advice for good health and long life. Terman subjects who were the most involved and committed to their jobs did the best.

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“ASU, Maricopa Community Colleges streamline pathway to degrees - Arizona State University” plus 2 more

2011-03-14T15:38:00.001-07:00

“ASU, Maricopa Community Colleges streamline pathway to degrees - Arizona State University” plus 2 more

ASU, Maricopa Community Colleges streamline pathway to degrees - Arizona State University
Women are making progress, but they're still underrepresented at the top - Syracuse.com (blog)
Student Loans: How College Debt Limits Career Options - CBS MoneyWatch.com (blog)

ASU, Maricopa Community Colleges streamline pathway to degrees - Arizona State University

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 11:51 AM PDT

March 14, 2011

Alesha Pinet transferred to Arizona State University from Glendale Community College this spring, confident that all her classes would apply toward a bachelor's degree in psychology. Yvonne Burns transferred from Chandler-Gilbert Community College with the same assurance, knowing she could enter the ASU communications program as a junior.

Both had signed up for the Maricopa to ASU Pathways Program (MAPP) early in their college careers. It guaranteed them admission to ASU and into their major if they completed a prescribed sequence of courses which would transfer and apply toward a degree. They were guided by advisers at both institutions, to make the process smooth.

ASU and the Maricopa Community Colleges have announced that the MAPP partnership is expanding to 125 majors, from the 92 which have been available. New options include sustainability, secondary education, art and earth and space exploration.

Students benefit by taking only courses that apply to their chosen major, speeding up degree completion, and from tuition incentives The partnership offers more student advising and better sharing of data and information to make the transfer process smooth.

Pinet set her sights on ASU because she wants to be a child psychologist. She wanted to work in a research lab and enroll in Barrett, the Honors College.

"Because I used the MAPP program, there was no question what classes I needed to take (at the community college)," she says. "The counselors and professors were very helpful with any questions I had and also encouraged me to get involved in things such as the ASU honors college. The best thing about ASU is the one-on-one learning with a professor in the lab."

Burns wanted to enroll at ASU because it's a tradition in her family to be a Sun Devil. She also wants to go to law school, to become an attorney specializing in employment and contract law.

"I received advice and encouragement when I sought out my adviser at Chandler-Gilbert," says Burns. "Now that I've started my classes at ASU, I feel as though things are falling into place. My adviser at ASU's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences was extremely helpful in getting the last of my loose ends tied up and making sure I knew which direction to head from there. My professors have been a great source of information."

All three state universities, including the University of Arizona and Northern Arizona University, have a goal to double the number of bachelor's degrees awarded in the state by 2020. To meet that goal, ASU has been partnering with community colleges around the state to help more students transfer successfully to the university

"We've had partnerships with the Maricopa Community Colleges for a long time, but the new programs propel us forward," says Maria Hesse, ASU vice provost for transfer partnerships. "In addition to the MAPP, we have an RN-BSN pathway program for students who are pursuing an associate degree in nursing at one of the Maricopa Community Colleges.

"We're making every effort to offer a streamlined process, providing transfer students with the most efficient and cost-effective pathway to an ASU bachelor's degree."

About 3,800 Maricopa community college students currently are signed up for the MAPP, including nursing students in the RN-BSN program. More than 300 students at rural community colleges have signed up for a similar transfer admission guarantee program with ASU.

Students in the MAPP complete an associate's degree and the Arizona General Education Curriculum (AGEC) and step right into an ASU bachelor's degree program as juniors. The program was initially made available in October 2009.

"The Maricopa-ASU Pathways Program offers a great opportunity for students to complete an associate's degree at one of the Maricopa colleges and then a bachelor's degree at ASU," says Maria Harper-Marinick, executive vice chancellor and provost for the Maricopa Community Colleges. "Adding more majors to the MAPPs broadens access for our students to a high quality and affordable education."

Holly Schramm says her transfer to ASU last fall from Scottsdale Community College was easy.

"I'm getting my B.S. in family and human development, in an online program," she says. "I like the convenience and the fact that it's a reputable school. I also like the scholarship opportunities that come with excelling grades."

For more information on all of the pathway programs currently available through ASU and the Maricopa Community Colleges, visit http://transfer.asu.edu/maricopa.

Women are making progress, but they're still underrepresented at the top - Syracuse.com (blog)

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 03:12 AM PDT

Published: Monday, March 14, 2011, 5:57 AM

By Donavan Wilson
Contributing writer

Studies show that my generation still has a low number of women in math and science careers. There are a few different reasons why this is so. Women tend to choose non-math fields for their careers because they need flexibility to raise children. The timing of child rearing goes along with the most demanding periods in their career. This makes it difficult for a woman to earn tenure or to work the hours required to be promoted. As women advance in their career they tend to drop out of their scientific fields, especially math and physical sciences, due to the lack of flexibility.

According to the American Psychological Association's Psychological Bulletin, women today compromise about half of medical school classes. Yet women are less likely to be promoted; as of 2005 only 15 percent of department chairs were women.

Studies also show that not only science and math professions are affected by women's career choices. Women are underrepresented in the top positions of medicine, law, biology, psychology and veterinary science. Authors completing these studies have recommended that universities and companies create options for women who want to pursue science- or math-intensive careers.

Newer research by the University Of Wisconsin-Milwaukee indicates that self confidence instilled by parents and teachers is more important for young girls learning math and science than their initial interests. Interest is important in getting older girls to study and pursue a career, but more attention should be given to building confidence in their abilities. Many young students, particularly girls, see math and science difficult. If young girls feel they can do it, it will fill their interest.

The study also showed that old stereotypes die slowly. Both boys and girls perceived that teachers thought boys were stronger at math and science. Overall studies indicate that parents' support and expectations are the most powerful motivations for younger girls.

— Donavan Wilson is a sophomore at Homer High School

Student Loans: How College Debt Limits Career Options - CBS MoneyWatch.com (blog)

Posted: 14 Mar 2011 04:36 AM PDT

Part two of a series on college kids and money, based on an interview with Stephen Seaward, an advocate for financial education in the classroom. Find part one here.

College students taking out tens of thousands of dollars in loans for their education often have no idea how those loans will restrict their career choices — or how layering credit card debt on top of their loans is more limiting still.

Certainly, earning a degree opens many doors. So if your child needs loans to finish school, smart borrowing is a wise decision. But when a student borrows more than they truly need and burn money with lifestyle upgrades or, in some cases, by attending a costly private or out-of-state university, the burden of repayment may shut some of the same doors that their education opened in the first place.

"A lot of times seniors will come in to talk about their options," says Stephen Seaward, career development director at St. Joseph's College in West Hartford, CT. "They'll ask what could they do with a degree in, say, psychology or English. They might be interested in human services; working with at-risk children or people with cognitive disabilities, or maybe they want to be a public defender. But at the rate they're amassing debt they realize that those fields aren't really an option because they won't be able to pay the loans back."

Seaward recalls one student coming to him with $60,000 in loans and asking about the highest paying job she might get with her degree. "We didn't even get into the conversation about what she'd like to do," he says. "It was like she didn't care. She just needed to make money as fast as possible."

Plenty of people are interested in making top dollar, of course — whether they have loans are not. But Seaward says that more and more he's finding students are forced by their debts to make money the priority, which leads to unsatisfying careers and, in some cases, unhappy lives. Says Seaward: "This looks like it's becoming pervasive among a generation of students graduating with all this debt."

On top of that, Seaward says, potential employers increasingly look at a student's credit history as well as their resume and their Facebook page, which further curbs career options for heavily indebted students. Employers do not want to hire someone who may be preoccupied with financial difficulties. "If nothing else," says Seaward, "a student should look at their loans from that standpoint."

The average college graduate has $24,000 in student loans and will owe $276 a month for 10 years, according to the Project on Student Debt. The typical grad also has $4,100 in credit card debt, reports student-loan giant Sallie Mae. According to one study, here's how this debt weighs on career decisions:

47% of recent grads say their career pursuits are influenced by loan payments.
40% of recent grads took a job that provided higher pay, but less satisfaction, in order to pay off their loans.
Half of today's college students say they are willing to sacrifice career satisfaction for a bigger paycheck.
One-third of today's college students say that student loans will influence their career choice.

These are troublesome findings on more than just a personal level. Student debt is distorting the labor market, so that as a society we are getting more bankers and lawyers and fewer teachers and scientists; at the margin we probably are getting more people who are unfulfilled, stressed and headed for poor health.

Everyone knows that college is costly. But most of us do not fully appreciate just how costly.

Photo courtesy Flickr user alancleaver.

In this series:

· Part One: How One College Turned the Student-Debt Tide

· Part Three: How College Debt Limits Life (coming soon)

· Part Four: Common Money Mistakes in College (coming soon)

More on MoneyWatch:

· 8 Ways to Wipe Out Your Student Debt

· Student Loans: How They Changed One Life for Decades

· Student Loans: How They Changed Another Life for Decades

· Student Loans? First Pass This Test

· College: The Flawed Case Against Getting a Degree

· The Top Reason Kids Don't Learn Money at School

· Teaching Kids About Money, What We're Up Against

What is the key to longevity - Times of India

2011-03-13T16:14:00.001-07:00

What is the key to longevity - Times of India

Posted: 12 Mar 2011 03:16 AM PST

ANI,Mar 12, 2011, 04.30pm IST

"It's surprising just how often common assumptions – by both scientists and the media – are wrong," said Howard S. Friedman, distinguished professor of psychology who led the 20-year study.

"Probably our most amazing finding was that personality characteristics and social relations from childhood can predict one's risk of dying decades later," Friedman concluded.

"When we started, we were frustrated with the state of research about individual differences, stress, health and longevity," Friedman recalled.

But none were well-studied over the long term. That is, none followed people step-by-step throughout their lives.

When Friedman and Martin began their research in 1991, they planned to spend six months examining predictors of health and longevity among the Terman participants.

"We came to a new understanding about happiness and health," said Martin, now a psychology professor at La Sierra University in Riverside.

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“Teacher encourages students to discover themselves - The State Journal-Register” plus 2 more

2011-03-12T15:35:00.001-08:00

“Teacher encourages students to discover themselves - The State Journal-Register” plus 2 more

Teacher encourages students to discover themselves - The State Journal-Register
Dancers make leap to new careers - Montreal Gazette
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Teacher encourages students to discover themselves - The State Journal-Register

Posted: 12 Mar 2011 10:15 AM PST

CHATHAM – Pulitzer Prize winning poet Mark Van Doren once said that, "The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery." There is a teacher within Glenwood Intermediate School that has been helping children discover their talents as artists and as individuals for well over 13 years.

Jessica Gillis, a Rochester native, is a familiar face around GIS and has been helping the enthusiastic young minds of the Chatham area a thing or two about discovery. Gillis is a sponsor of the fifth grade art club and is among a team of six other teachers that have lent a helping hand in the upcoming Celebration of the Visual Arts festival. Gillis' school will be hosting the event, but she is quick to point out that she is only but one member of a team of organizers.

"I am in no way more in charge of the celebration than any of the other art teachers, just because it is at my school. We all contribute to its success."

The success that Gillis refers to is the hundreds of Chatham residents that turn out to view the annual art display that will feature artwork created by students within the Chatham School District. Gillis' influence, however, expands beyond her own classroom. Many of the students from the intermediate school, all the way up to the high school, have gone through one or more of her art classes. While Gillis may be more than happy to tell you about the upcoming celebration, her students are quick to show their appreciation for her. Near her desk, in her classroom, is a wall with letters and artwork created by her students that illustrate their appreciation for her.

The student becomes the teacher

During class time on Thursday morning Gillis could be heard encouraging her students to express themselves as they worked with clay to create face mugs. "Trust your brains and trust yourselves," she said as she walked around the room helping out where needed. It became apparent very quickly, that Gillis is a very hands on and interactive teacher. Her hands were caked with white clay as she gave words of praise to each table that she visited.

In a time when attention spans seem to be shrinking, the whole class was mindful of their instructor as she instructed them how to preserve their creations by wrapping the pieces in wet paper towels and then encasing them in a plastic bag cocoon. As the class winded down she promoted the use of teamwork amongst the students to help each other out in the delicate process of wrapping their clay creations and cleaning up after themselves.

Gillis prides herself in being a good teacher. Part of teaching is also being a good student. Gillis performed exceptionally well in high school, graduating sixth in her class, and graduated cum laude from Eastern. Her excellence as a student has transferred over into her career as a teacher and she has brought her high standards and dedication to GIS.

"My goal when I started teaching was to help art become recognized as more of an, 'academic,' subject, without extracting the fun and creativity from it. Our principal [Kerry Cox] always tells new families to our building that we teach, 'fine art,' and not, 'crafts.' That is what I want," Gillis said.

Gillis graduated in 1992 from Rochester High School and in 1996 from Eastern Illinois University, where she received her Bachelor of Arts degree in art education. Following her tenure at EIU Gillis briefly moved to England where she began her teaching career as a student teacher at Dunkirk Primary School in Nottingham. Gillis went to England as part of a student teaching program at EIU.

"I really love anything British, I don't know if it's the concept of royalty that they have over there, but I've always been fascinated with that part of the world."

From England she came back to Illinois where she worked part time at St. Patrick School as the kindergarten through eighth grade art instructor from 1997 to 1998. Gillis also worked at Rochester High School during this same period teaching first year art. It wasn't until 1998 that she made the move to Chatham. From 1998 to 2001 she taught at Ball Elementary School, aiding third through fifth graders in their art studies. Gillis arrived at her current position, and longest standing, at Glenwood Intermediate School in 2001. Gillis currently teaches art for the fourth and fifth graders.

Of her own experiences as a student of art Gillis said that her favorite teacher was an art professor that she had at EIU.

"He was from China and the most brilliant oil painter I've ever seen. He made me look at the world differently, so I could capture it better in my paintings without making them lose their painterly quality. He taught me how to draw better, how to use color better, how to create better compositions," she said. "Simple things like the science of how light and shadows are created when light strikes an object; how you don't need black to make a shadow. He completely changed everything I knew about being an artist. I keep a picture of him in my classroom just to remind me, always, of what he taught me and how I need to pass that on."

The enthusiasm and skill that her professor showed carried over to Gillis' own style of teaching. Gillis has been teaching art for 14 years now and is happy with her career choice. Things, however, could have been much different, if not for a decision that she made during her first semester in college.

It might come as a surprise to some, but art was not her first choice of majors when she began her collegiate career. Gillis was drawn to psychology because of the idea of being able to help children express themselves, in order to feel better about themselves.

"I originally set out to get my psychology degree and was enrolled in an honors humanities class at Eastern Illinois University just to fill the required credit. I ended up hating my psych classes and loving the humanities class, so I changed my major after one semester. When I told my parents what I wanted to change my major, they both said to pursue an art degree 'only if you teach.' So, that's what I did."

Gillis fell in love with art at that point and said she "knew" that this is what she wanted to do. Art and psychology went hand in hand for her as she saw art as a therapeutic means in which children could say how they felt, not with words, but with paint. Art was after all, she admitted, almost second nature to her.

Jessica comes from a family of artists. Her father, Curt Mavis, was an art teacher in Quincy but later shifted careers to be a kitchen/bath designer. Mavis now co-owns and operates Thumbs Up Designs in Rochester with Josh Gillis, Jessica's husband. Josh often incorporates his own hand made pottery into some of the unique designs that Thumbs Up Designs creates. Jessica's mother is also artistically inclined and currently resides in Minnesota.

"She works as a nanny for the pay, but she's an artist at heart. She's an amazing realist and has an incredible attention for detail," Gillis said.

Gillis also has an aunt that has extensive practice in art. Jessica has two daughters Lily (6) and Hadley (15 months), and with so much art in the family, it seems likely that her daughters might inherit the family gift as well.

"I guess you could say that art is in my blood," Gillis quipped.

The joy of art
Though Gillis strayed from the path of psychology, inklings of her knowledge of the mind and behavior can be seen in her approach to teaching. Moving from psychology to art isn't as big of a stretch as one might thing. Both studies promote the teaching of perception and art is a process in which individuals create what they perceive by means of a wide variety of mediums. Psychology is also the study of emotions, personality, and the process of thoughts. Through art, students are able to see these otherwise intangible ideas right before their eyes in whatever media they are working with.

Gillis enjoys trying to make an already fun subject for many, even more fun. She incorporates other branches of academia into her class such as history, science, literature, and math, allowing her lessons to transcend beyond the art room.

"I always tell my kids that they are never going to do a project and not know why, they are doing it and the significance of it, both in the art world and the real world."

Gillis didn't make the transition from psychology to art without a few hard earned lessons along the way. But it was her transition from student to teacher that made her realize that being a teacher wasn't going to be a walk in the park.

"Being a teacher isn't the perpetually rosy, fun-filled experience I thought it would be when I first started. Some days are hard and some kids are hard to get through to. Sometimes the politics of the school are hard and I wasn't prepared for that when I started, but I am used to it now."

But Gillis' tenure as a teacher hasn't been without its bright spots either. For a moment in time she was known as "Captin' Art," to one class. A student asked her what rank she would be if she were in the army.

"I replied, 'I would probably be a General since they are in charge.' He then said, 'No, you would be a captain. Captain Art.' He then made his way to the board and wrote on it 'CAPTIN ART,' for all to see. That is how I was known in his class for the rest of the year." Gillis said.

While her leadership in the classroom isn't exactly militaristic, she does exhibit at gentle sternness, always encouraging her students to listen to their intuition. She also encourages freedom of thought and exploration, which she said allows them to answer their own questions. It is this growing of thoughts and ideas, and seeing the student's blossom before her very eyes, that Gillis enjoys most about her job.

"I would like to be remembered as someone who gave kids permission to be creative and think freely and perhaps be that one teacher that got through and gave them that spark to tap into something magnificent they never knew they could do before. I'm rewarded every day I get to see my students be creative and free-thinkers."

Fast facts about Jessica Gillis:

Favorite Quote: "Do what you love. Know your own bone; gnaw at it, bury it, unearth it and gnaw it still." –Henry David Thoreau

Hidden talent: She can wiggle her ears.

Can't live without: Coffee.

Currently reading: Carolina Clay, The Life and Legend of the Slave Potter Dave, by Leonard Todd.

Favorite song: "Speak Now," by Taylor Swift. "She paints pictures with words," Gillim said.

Unwinds from work by: Playing with her daughters.

Favorite subjects in school: Literature and German in high school.

Hobbies: Scrap booking and reading.

Childhood hero: Michael Jackson

Best advice received: "It's okay if you don't get it right the first time."

For more information about the upcoming Visual Arts Show click here.

For more information about the Performance Arts show click here.

Keep an eye out for an upcoming photo gallery of the Visual Arts Celebration on the Our Towns – Chatham site.

Dancers make leap to new careers - Montreal Gazette

Posted: 12 Mar 2011 02:05 AM PST

[fivefilters.org: unable to retrieve full-text content]

Dancers make leap to new careers
Montreal Gazette
He works for Quebec's Régie de l'énergie while continuing his postgraduate studies and hopes to defend his thesis in psychology next winter. He took leave from the Régie last year to do an intense 12-month internship as a psychologist at the Montreal ...

and more »

Comcast Employees Pass on Career Tips to Young People - Patch.com

Posted: 12 Mar 2011 04:00 AM PST

Michigan's Comcast headquarters in Plymouth had about 70 extra people walking its halls Friday, as young people from City Year Detroit came through to learn skills for entering the workforce.

City Year is a national nonprofit organization that gives young people ages 17 to 24 the chance to do full-time community service in inner-city schools for 10 months.

In addition to helping underachieving students succeed in school, City Year's goal is to help its corps members learn skills to succeed in future careers.

"We want to develop this group of young people to be lifelong leaders," said Allison McElroy, a City Year employee who attended the Comcast workshop on Friday with the corps members.

Comcast recruiters worked with the corps members on skills such as resume writing and tips for effective interviewing.

"In the past, the corps members have told us that the Comcast day is the most valuable training they get all year, in terms of the business side of things," McElroy said.

This is the seventh year Comcast has hosted the young people for the workshop.

Brandon Graves, 19, of Westland works with seventh-graders at Warren E. Bow Elementary-Middle School in Detroit as part of his commitment with City Year.

After his year with the program, he plans to start classes at Schoolcraft College, then move on to Central Michigan University, where he plans to major in communications or social work.

He said the resume workshop at Comcast taught him some things that will help him as he progresses through college and into the workforce.

"I learned a lot of logistical things, like how you should format a resume, which I didn't know about," Graves said.

Wafaa Al-Hachamil, 21, of Dearborn Heights said the best advice she got from the resume workshop was about targeting resumes and cover letters to the job she's applying for.

Al-Hachamil graduated with a degree in psychology from Wayne State University last year and plans to go to graduate school for social work after her time with City Year is up.

She said the most rewarding part of the year so far is seeing the progress with the students she works with.

"It's been a little challenging, but I know I'm helping these seventh-graders understand that what they do now affects their whole future," she said.

“David Brooks's Theory of Human Nature - New York Times” plus 1 more

2011-03-11T15:44:00.001-08:00

“David Brooks's Theory of Human Nature - New York Times” plus 1 more

David Brooks's Theory of Human Nature - New York Times

Posted: 11 Mar 2011 11:20 AM PST

[fivefilters.org: unable to retrieve full-text content]

New York Times

David Brooks's Theory of Human Nature
New York Times
By THOMAS NAGEL Readers of his Op-Ed column in The New York Times know that David Brooks is an aficionado of research in the social sciences, especially psychology, and that he believes it has great practical importance. Now he has written a book, ...

and more »

Keys to Long Life - UC Riverside

Posted: 11 Mar 2011 11:24 AM PST

[fivefilters.org: unable to retrieve full-text content]

UC Riverside

Keys to Long Life
UC Riverside
"It's surprising just how often common assumptions – by both scientists and the media – are wrong," said Howard S. Friedman, distinguished professor of psychology who led the 20-year study. Friedman and Leslie R. Martin , a 1996 UCR alumna (Ph.D.) and ...

and more »

“The Eulogizer: Top political writer, sports psychologist, baseball player - Jewish Telegraphic Agency” plus 2 more

2011-03-10T15:11:00.001-08:00

“The Eulogizer: Top political writer, sports psychologist, baseball player - Jewish Telegraphic Agency” plus 2 more

The Eulogizer: Top political writer, sports psychologist, baseball player - Jewish Telegraphic Agency
The squirmy ethics of breast milk ice cream - Salon
Palo Alto University Spearheads Psychology Training Initiative in China - PR-USA.net (press release)

The Eulogizer: Top political writer, sports psychologist, baseball player - Jewish Telegraphic Agency

Posted: 10 Mar 2011 08:56 AM PST

By Alan D. Abbey · March 10, 2011

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- The Eulogizer is a new column (soon-to-be blog) that highlights the life accomplishments of famous and not-so-famous Jews who have passed away recently. Learn about their achievements, honor their memories and celebrate Jewish lives well lived with The Eulogizer. Write to the Eulogizer at . Read previous columns here.

David Broder, 81, top political journalist

David S. Broder, a correspondent and commentator for The Washington Post who covered 11 presidential campaigns and hundreds of other elections, authoring books and winning top journalism prizes along the way, died Wednesday at 81.

Broder was being remembered for setting the "the gold standard" for political reporting in the United States for decades and as the "dean of political writers." He was influential as a commentator, was revered by his colleagues, and earned politicians' grudging respect for his thoroughness, fairness and doggedness.

Longtime commentator Jack Germond said that "For those of us who spent our careers competing with David Broder, the hardest thing to abide was the inevitable comparison. If someone said Jack Germond … is a pretty good political reporter, the default response would be 'but he's no David Broder.' "

In a statement from the White House, President Obama called Broder a "true giant of journalism" and said he "built a well-deserved reputation as the most respected and incisive political commentator of his generation."

Former Washington Post Executive Editor Benjamin Bradlee said Broder "knew politics from the back room." Broder gained that knowledge the old-fashioned way -- with relentless travel and interviews with the professionals of small- and large-scale politics in state capitals and cities across the nation. That degree of "shoe leather" reporting often put him ahead of national figures in understanding political trends.

His longtime employer, The Washington Post, presented a detailed package of stories, audio recordings, photographs and elegies of Broder, and described him as "Balding, sporting horn-rimmed glasses and measured in his speaking style, Mr. Broder was once likened to an MIT professor in appearance. He was a frequent and instantly recognizable panelist on TV news-discussion shows, a penetrating questioner who often put politicians on the spot and a clear-eyed analyst who could cut to the heart of an issue."

The New York Times, where Broder served a short stint in the 1950s, said he "was often called the dean of the Washington press corps and just as often described as a reporter's reporter, a shoe-leather guy who always got on one more airplane, knocked on one more door, made one more phone call. He would travel more than 100,000 miles a year to write more than a quarter-million words. In short, he composed first drafts of history for an awful lot of history."

Some of Broder's best scoops included identifying Spiro Agnew as Richard Nixon's vice presidential running mate and reporting that U.S. Sen. Edmund Muskie of Maine cried during a public appearance before the 1972 New Hampshire Democratic primary. However, Broder's strength was not as an investigative reporter, but rather as a collector and disseminator of insights and information gathered through hours of legwork.

Washington Post political writer Dan Balz wrote that long before the Internet, Broder built a network of stringers who provided him with updates of local political news.

"He knew the details of everything but never lost sight of the big picture," Balz wrote. "In an era in which political reporting has become more and more focused on minutiae, he kept his focus where it belonged -- on the events and forces that move ordinary Americans and shape history."

Broder balanced reporting and commentary; he was criticized by partisans on the right and the left for being too "centrist." New York Times columnist Frank Rich called Broder "Washington's bloviator-in-chief," to which Broder responded, "He's on my case. But that goes with the territory."

Broder was born in Chicago Heights, Ill., in 1921. His father was the dentist to the area's Jewish community. He received a master's degree from University of Chicago and wrote for an Army newspaper during a two-year stint in the military. After a short internship at the Pantagraph in Bloomington, Ind., Broder moved to Washington, where he worked for the Congressional Quarterly and others, including The New York Times, before finding his home at The Washington Post.

Over the years Broder became a TV talk show staple, as well, and is the all-time leader in appearances on "Meet the Press" with more than 400. He won a Pulitzer Prize for commentary in 1973, during the height of the Watergate scandal, many awards and at least 16 honorary degrees.

On a personal note, Broder was an idol of mine in my early days as a journalist. I studied his coverage of the 1976 presidential campaign for my master's thesis in journalism and his writing as a working professional, especially in Washington.

Baseball deaths: Harvey Dorfman, 75, sports psychologist; Greg Goossen, former player

Harvey Dorfman, who worked with many Major League Baseball stars and wrote books on sports psychology, including "The Mental Game of Baseball: A Guide to Peak Performance," as well as two memoirs, died Feb. 28 at 75.

New York Yankees pitching coach Larry Rothschild credited Dorfman with "helping him refine his touch with players through lessons passed down over years of work and friendship." The Eulogizer offers a hat tip to Ron Kaplan, author of the fine Jewish sports blog Kaplan's Korner on Jews and Sports, for helping get information on Dorfman.

Kaplan also joined the debate over whether Greg Goossen, the former catcher for the New York Mets and other teams, who died Feb. 26 at 65, was Jewish. Author Howard Megdal in his 2009 book "The Baseball Talmud," called Goossen the seventh-best Jewish first baseman in history. But Goossen, "a lifelong Roman Catholic … was perplexed" by the ranking, The New York Times reported.

Goossen's father was born Jewish, but Goossen apparently wasn't moved to re-sign, as it were, with his father's "team." His obituary said his memorial service was at Saint Francis de Sales Church in Sherman Oaks, Calif. Kaplan, who delved into the Goossen matter in depth, including citing a recent letter from Megdal, came to the same conclusion as The Eulogizer, in opposition to Megdal. You can only play for one team at a time.

Click to login and write a letter to the editor or register for a new account.

This article was made possible by the support of readers like you. Donate to JTA now.

The squirmy ethics of breast milk ice cream - Salon

Posted: 10 Mar 2011 11:58 AM PST

iStockphoto/Salon

Airplane food has been a punchline for so long that it's almost shocking to remember that it used to be a striking symbol of class. It was the meal with the flavor of a remade world, a globe suddenly shrunken, an awe-inspiring update of the glorious days of ocean liners and trans-continental railroad dining cars, all big wines and beefsteaks, but, magically, thousands of feet in the air.

It's a history that seems to ring hollow, though, when you're cramped in coach, eating your packet of sorry peanuts and considering whether it's worth the eight bucks for a cardboardy chicken wrap. But those in the know remember a different time, like Patrick Smith, author of "Ask the Pilot," who recalls: "My very first airplane flight was in coach, an hour-long domestic flight in 1974. They served hot sandwiches and a cheesecake dessert," a far cry from pretzel dust and two more cookies you wish you could ask for. So what happened?

Well, nostalgia aside, it turns out that airplane dining has a long history of high suckitude. This is not to say that airlines haven't in the past paid more culinary attention to what they offer -- in fact, at one point, certain airlines once threatened to sue others for unfairly competing by offering food that was too good -- but an enlightening essay called "Is It Really Better to Travel Than to Arrive?" by historian Guillaume de Syon shows how the history of midair dining was never really a pretty one.

Yes, at first, well-heeled travelers took off in these new flying machines, white-gloved hands on their matching luggage, and prepared to enjoy civilized repasts seated at tables. The food was prepared by chefs, some hired from the finest hotels on earth and working in actual kitchens on board. But there was a problem: Flying back then was thoroughly nauseating. As de Syon writes:

"Up to World War II, airplanes flew unpressurized at low altitudes, and oil leaks, kerosene smells, deafening noise and serious vibrations were par for the course ... A Ritz chef hired to work for Air France in 1946 [said], 'altitude was always [a problem]. Like most passengers, I became ill. While caring for them, I would run to the bathroom and throw up [before coming back].'"

Of course, you have to imagine that, even without visible oil spills reminding you of the mortal vulnerability of the machinery around you, the very idea that you could get into a hunk of metal that took you up in the air for hours at a time had to inherently terrify the genteel passengers, and existential terror is rarely the stuff of which delicious meals are made.

Then there was the practical ramification of trying to cook, serve and eat while flying. At the time, their idea of turbulence correction was to hang on for dear life, so meals were spectacular demonstrations of physics and gravity, with hot food, knives and cooking fuel just flinging everywhere. If you think stale peanuts on your seat tray are lame, think of how exciting it could have been for pots of roiling soup to be splashing around the cabin. Or, decades later, when airlines moved to reheating food in huge microwaves that actually interfered with the plane's navigation. "Well, we were getting the Chicken à la King ready, and all of a sudden we were in Soviet airspace. Oops."

Undeterred, airlines never gave up on feeding their customers, and in fact, perversely, the fear and misery of air travel became its own reason to keep people fed:

"Any occupation that helped keep passengers' mind away from staring at the engines on the wings, for example, was a good thing ... Most airlines proceeded to downgrade to a heavily supplied bar, while some introduced female flight attendants expected to act as nurses administering aspirin and 'cordials' to worried passengers."

So if they couldn't make the skies friendly, airlines realized they could at least make the passengers thoroughly zonked. As flights got longer, passengers were fed food and booze early and often, and "flight attendants often knew enough to jack up the heat after takeoff to ensure most would doze off."

But as flight comfort technology improved, why did the food itself go to pot?

A lot's been made of a recent study on the effect of noise on diners' perception, which suggested that the constant roar of jet travel may actually dull our ability to taste, and it's long been understood that sitting in the bone-dry cabin air at high altitude actually impacts our senses of taste and smell. But John Besh, a star chef in New Orleans with a gaggle of superb restaurants and a pilot for a father, has designed meals for Lufthansa airlines and doesn't entirely buy the physiological argument.

"It's not hard to make up for that," he says. "A touch here or there -- lighter, citrus, spicy flavors are incredible. You really can still taste them." And he similarly dismisses the technical limitations of how the food has to be reheated and held on-board, saying that all you have to do as a chef is recognize that something that's saucy and cooked for hours anyway is going to hold up much better than something that might dry out, so you can focus the menu on cold dishes or braises and stews.

"The real issue is the sheer, vast quantities of food," he says, "made in multiple kitchens across the globe, and finding the fish you can buy in 500-ton lots. The food is going to lose a touch of soul in the process. The other thing is that airlines fly all around the world, with dietary restrictions that come into play. Cooking food from New Orleans, I grew up thinking pork is a vegetable. It's difficult to make that work for flights to the Middle East or India, for example. So these are the challenges you have to contend with."

Besh is quick to compliment the airline catering he worked with, but of course, he also designed his in-flight cuisine for business and first class. For the rest of us in coach, cuts in food service budgets mean meals rely more and more on national brands to put passengers at ease with what they're about to eat, which means they are in the awkward position of showing you minicans of Pringles to raise your confidence in the value and quality of your lunch. Sure, it's undeniable that Pringles are the world's finest reconstituted potato crisps. But are they enough to make you excited for a tray of mushy chicken pasta and a diamond-hard roll?

Still, the only thing we will accept less than bad free food is no free food (at least on long-haul flights. Cuts in domestic meal service across all the airlines has us beaten). In an interview, de Syon relayed that when one U.S. airline tried to charge for meals on transatlantic flights, furious passengers revolted and the carrier provided free meals again.

Since it was first used to signify class, then used to mollify the frightened masses, then to position flying as an experience of hospitality and not just transport, dining in the sky is ingrained in passengers as an inherent part of the ritual. And maybe, because there's still a part of our lizard brains that finds it hard to accept that a giant tube of metal can take you into the sky safely, a ritual as mundane as having a sip and a snack is what helps us stay sane as we rocket our way through the heavens.

Michelle Loayza contributed invaluable reporting to this article.

Palo Alto University Spearheads Psychology Training Initiative in China - PR-USA.net (press release)

Posted: 10 Mar 2011 12:25 AM PST

[fivefilters.org: unable to retrieve full-text content]

Palo Alto University Spearheads Psychology Training Initiative in China
PR-USA.net (press release)
The Anxiety Disorders and Depression Research Clinic will serve as a practicum site to better prepare Chinese students enrolled in PAU's master's-level mental health counseling program for future careers in mental health care while also providing ...

“Who lives longest? You might be surprised - Hamilton Spectator” plus 2 more

2011-03-08T15:12:00.001-08:00

“Who lives longest? You might be surprised - Hamilton Spectator” plus 2 more

Who lives longest? You might be surprised - Hamilton Spectator
Could this be your dream job? - Knoxville City View
Arab-Style Democracy: The Answer to the Post Dictatorship Era - Huffington Post (blog)

Who lives longest? You might be surprised - Hamilton Spectator

Posted: 08 Mar 2011 05:39 AM PST

Who tends to live longer: The happy-go-lucky type or the plodding worrier? The slacker or the workaholic? The never-married female or the divorced male?

A study of 1,500 people over the course of eight decades found that some of our common notions about longevity are dead wrong.

The key factor leading to a long life? Not cheerfulness, not marriage. It's conscientiousness.

"This is the first study to ever follow people over such a long time period and gather this type of data," says research psychologist Leslie Martin, co-author of the new book The Longevity Project.

In 1921, Stanford University psychologist Lewis Terman began studying a sample of 1,500 bright boys and girls, most born around 1910, to discover what traits — social, psychological and physical — are sources of leadership. On his death in 1956, researchers continued collecting information about the now middle-aged participants.

Terman's bright boys and girls grew up to lead diverse lives — as businesspeople, lawyers, engineers, housewives, clerks, policemen and technicians. A few gained some fame: Shelley Smith Mydans was a reporter for Life covering World War II in Asia, where she was captured and spent months in a prisoner-of-war camp; Jess Oppenheimer helped create the I Love Lucy show.

In 1990, psychologist Howard Friedman, co-author of The Longevity Project, began collecting data on the surviving participants, now elderly men and women, to analyze the lifespan factors they shared.

Martin, a psychology professor at La Sierra University in Riverside, Calif., spoke to the Star recently about the traits that promote a long life. Here is an edited version of the conversation:

So who lives the longest?

A number of factors predict a long life, but one of the most consistent findings is that people who are conscientious lived a long time. Another characteristic is social connectedness, particularly if it involved helping others. We also found that individuals who worked hard tended to live long lives. And we found that worry is not the risk that people think.

Conscientiousness is the top predictor. How so?

A conscientious person is responsible and organized and not very full of ego. They're pragmatic and they think ahead. It makes sense that these qualities would be related to a long life. Because they think ahead, they are less likely to encounter as many stressors. They tended to wind up in more stable marriages. They gravitated to stable careers that they found fulfilling. All these dimensions are pathways that can lead to a long life. The highly conscientious were more likely to be moderate drinkers or abstainers and were less likely to smoke.

What if you weren't conscientious as a child but became more so as an adult?

We divided the data into categories: stably conscientious, stably not so and those who switch, becoming more conscientious over time or becoming less so. The stably conscientious lived the longest and the always not conscientious fared the worst. Those who took steps to be more so in early adulthood improved their life expectancy and those who became less so had greater risk of a shorter life.

What finding surprised you the most?

The difference for men versus women who divorced and remarried. Divorce is harmful to anyone. But men who remarried diminished their risk quite a bit. For women, remarrying didn't help. Many of them had similar outcomes to those who stayed single after divorce. For both men and women, being steadily single was almost as good as being steadily married.

What common beliefs about living a long happy life are wrong?

You commonly hear, "You're working yourself to death. Take it easy." That's wrong. Those who worked the hardest tended to live the longest.

And contrary to what most people think, the most happy-go-lucky, cheerful people had the greater risk of dying earlier.

How do you explain that?

That was one of the most surprising and hardest to explain. We looked at other studies to reconcile our findings. If you are faced with a crisis, being cheerfully optimistic is a good thing, enabling you to engage the problem and recover. But as a life approach, where decisions are shaded by unrealistic optimism, it leads people to take more risks and make potentially problematic choices. In our study, the most cheerful kids grew up to smoke and drink more and have riskier hobbies.

The participants in your study were all smart and nearly all white and middle class. They were born and grew up long ago. How relevant are the findings to people today?

When we look at personality characteristics, the participants are not so different from people in a developed country today. These were all smart kids but they ran the gamut of educational and career success. Personality characteristics don't vary according to IQ. It would have been great if the sample had more ethnic diversity, but we fortunately had almost half girls. Nobody looked at girls in the 1920s. When we look at other studies with a more diverse sample — none go back 80 years — we see our findings are confirmed.

Maybe the ones who lived longer just had better genes.

We didn't have genetic data for our sample but because we have the full-spectrum of a life span, we are able to look at all these other factors. Certainly genetics plays a role but these other characteristics also play a very big role.

What about exercise? Do nerds live as long as jocks?

Yes, they do. People who were active early in life often feel they've built up a bank of activeness that will protect them. We found that's not the case. Being active in mid-life and later was important regardless of what you did early on.

The other important thing, if you don't like going to the gym or jogging, we recommend you don't do it. These participants tended not to jog or have formal exercise regimens. We found that the people who stayed active were doing the things they liked, maybe playing tennis, gardening, skiing, woodworking, and they were more likely to be consistent.

You say that being sociable doesn't necessarily help you live longer, but social connectedness does. That's confusing.

Envision a social butterfly with lots of casual friends. A sociable person doesn't necessarily have the kind of deeper, emotional connections that are protective.

After doing this research, how have you changed your life?

I'm a workaholic and it used to bother me that I wasn't doing myself any favours. I would hear that from my parents. Now I don't worry about it. I've always valued my friends, but now I value them even more, recognizing how vital they are to my own well-being, not just my happiness but perhaps my life span.

Toronto Star

Could this be your dream job? - Knoxville City View

Posted: 08 Mar 2011 07:10 AM PST

[fivefilters.org: unable to retrieve full-text content]

Could this be your dream job?
Knoxville City View
After graduating as a psychology major, Shirley, who had been a pre-med major before changing to psychology, decided to work for a Young Life program in Knoxville. "I thought I was going to go to med school and then decided that it just wasn't what I ...

Arab-Style Democracy: The Answer to the Post Dictatorship Era - Huffington Post (blog)

Posted: 08 Mar 2011 01:01 PM PST

When the twenty-six-year-old college graduate, Mohammed Bouazizi, set himself on fire in Tunis, he sparked a revolution that was more than 40 years in the making. Sadly, he did not live to see the change. "Revolutions do not cause change they confirm the change which has already happened," wrote Dr. Don Beck, a complex systems strategist. Typically, this happens more to societies, which are already changing, as the raised expectations put pressure on existing leaders and structures, like the geologic tectonic shifts that will rise to the surface as earthquakes.

As a once second generation Arab Nationalist who now works on emergence and geopolitical reform in Arab cultures, I have longed for this day to come. Since the end of colonial rule we in the Middle East have taken several shots at defining ourselves and our nations. We haphazardly embraced Marxism and Socialism, copying ideas that did not fit our cultural values. My generation believed that the roadmap to democracy in our region should not come from bloodshed but rather from building capacities in Arab people and institutions in the culture. Unfortunately, our political -- clannish leaders who were embroiled in the history of the region were not interested in making our vision a reality. We were defeated. Our aspirations were crushed as we left our homeland in droves seeking opportunities in other parts of the world. For those who couldn't leave they watched the oppression fester for years as it took the lives and the freedom of hundreds of thousands of people.

For the Arab world, this is just the beginning.

To help shape the newly liberated Middle East, we must look at what type of institutions must be created to harness the dreams of the people demonstrating on the streets and co-design for their emergence. Unfortunately, because of the effects of past repression and the historic absence of democratic institutions, the Arab street lacks the depth of political maturity required to create a full picture of democracy with viable and sustainable institutions. The Arab street never had effective leaders who concerned themselves with building the foundations for democracy. From Nasser to Assad to Saddam Hussein, leadership in the last fifty years in the region has lacked vision and capacities. It has too often relied on the rhetoric of empty promises. These men were leading as paternal leaders with impassioned speeches rather than pragmatists with a developmental road map for their countries.

This revolution is one that is toppling the old patriarchy and has little chance of succeeding if women are not given a voice as an equal partner in society. "Arab women will no doubt change the world" tells me Dr. Jean Houston, one of the founders of the Human Potential Movement who consults with the UN and advises on our projects in the Middle East.

It has been my experience through numerous projects I start in the Arab world that women emerge as natural leaders in these projects, their community and beyond. They are the power that is moving the Arab world forward, and are creating their own version of feminism that does not look anything like the Western feminist revolution. Theirs is one that empowers their daughters to get the best education and gain the autonomy needed to be a true partner in Nation building. In doing so they have been fostering and practicing their own brand of Arab and Islamic feminism that fits the value-systems within their cultures.

Dr. Suleiman, a charismatic woman in her 40s, is the former psychologist of the Dubai Police Department who acquiesces women's role in Arab culture: "We now have two generations of women who obtained advanced degrees from Western countries and came back home and yet we're still veiled by society and not by the veils on our heads. We are working to change this unhealthy attitude towards women, and will not rest till our daughters have the same rights and social standing that our sons." Demanding equal rights for women has to be an integral component of the new Arab identity that is being shaped, and must be recognized under the law and enforced by authorities. Adding this evolutionary piece will serve as the catalyst for this monumental change.

With such an explosion of repressed potential, how can the Arab world prepare for true democracy? What will be the ideal form of governing that works for the Middle East? And how can we in the First World understand and support the emergence of Arab-Style Democracies?
The crucial insight here is that one style of democracy does not fit all. The Myth that Western democracy, if given the chance, can spread throughout the Middle East has proven to be a false doctrine. We need not look further than the Western coalition's experience in Iraq and Afghanistan to recognize the failure of this thinking. Tom Barnett in his book The Pentagon's New Map states that Arab-style democracies will resemble more those of India, Malaysia or Singapore rather than Western Europe or the US.

Ayman, a young Egyptian national who holds a business degree looks and sounds much like the protesters in Tahrir Square. He says that there has to be a system for the older people to retire with a pension that honors their past contribution. This will be the only way for the younger educated generation to have careers and participate in the socio-political development of their country. He is one of millions of Egyptians who couldn't find work in Egypt and settled for being a waiter at a Kuwaiti restaurant. We've seen many intelligent men and woman like him demonstrating in Tunisia, Bahrain and Libya who are well aware of the processes and the themes of democracy but lacked the comprehensive view of what it takes to build a viable nation.

Maysa, a Gen Y activist for Palestinian women in the West Bank reiterates the view about Arab patriarchy providing her pragmatic solution "to the Palestinian people, Arafat was the father figure. To the Arab street, Nasser was the father. But, now it's time to move on. We must build civil and government institutions that lead to nation building." From where will the determination and leadership emerge to accomplish this monumental task? Would a benevolent autocrat provide that interim role that will support the establishment of structures and systems that will lay down the foundation for this Arab-style democracy?

"The pathway from tribalism to democracy has to pass through autocracy" wrote professor Clare W. Graves, founder of psychology at the large scale. In these tumultuous times can the intelligence of the masses elect a benevolent autocratic leader without him becoming another Qaddafi or Mubarak? A benevolent autocrat is someone who recognizes the frailty of the infant stages of democracy and has the best interest of his/her people in mind and has their respect. Someone who has the power to quell the disruption caused by zealots and extremists, while promoting robust institutions and development prone societies. This is where the West has to rise up to the challenge and balance its interests with those of the Arab street.

If the West aggressively focuses on creating innovations in green technologies, then the Middle East will be relieved of an exploitative economic relationship and left with no choice but to focus on developing its most underutilized resource and that is women and GenY. This has to be coupled simultaneously with a layered and culturally fit development program that addresses the most nagging issues in the Middle East. In a town hall meeting with young Fatah leaders in Bethlehem, I asked the audience to come up with a future vision for Palestine and the Arab world. In compelling Arab emotional outburst, they all said they want to have world class hospitals and universities where Westerners choose to come.

Democracy Arab-style is one where everyone is equal under the law -- women, men and children regardless of their riches or political or tribal affiliations. This has to spread and be enforced at a systemic level. New governments along with the private sector have to embark on robust and fully integrated development programs that go beyond the reach of a typical World Bank strategy. These programs cannot stop at ad-hoc projects that build the infrastructure of highways, power and sewer systems without building the supporting societal and civil structures that can sustain nations.

Since religions plays a crucial role in the Middle Eastern identity, religious institutions have to be regulated to preach tolerance and supported, as they play a vital role in society. Schools have to become institutions that build autonomous individuals not followers of clan leaders. This should happen in quality public schools that are available to the masses. Financial pressure on parents has to be alleviated by creating good paying jobs that fit their capacities. This list is merely the beginning of the changes that are needed to establish the new Arab nationalism within the unique boundaries of each Arab nation. The Arab league has to come out of the shadow of dictators and become a functional body that includes a trade organization to benefit the region's human and natural resources.

The values of the industrial age are just emerging in the Middle East under the umbrella of the age of technology and knowledge. Arab cultures have no choice but to advance in this global world, this has to be a systemic, holistic approach that will ensure the future of Arab Gen Y and stop the brain drain from the region. This is the time where the Arab intelligence can empower individuality, a quality that has long been the catalyst that helped the developed world thrive.

“Gender gap still exists in science, technology, engineering and math - Journal and Courier” plus 1 more

2011-03-07T15:20:00.001-08:00

“Gender gap still exists in science, technology, engineering and math - Journal and Courier” plus 1 more

Gender gap still exists in science, technology, engineering and math - Journal and Courier

Posted: 06 Mar 2011 11:02 PM PST

Kristen "Kat" Ziegler is a senior in honors physics and math at Purdue University. Her career goal is to become a professor of high-energy physics.

Although Ziegler has never had a female professor teach one her physics classes, she was thoroughly inspired to see a room full of female physicists at a regional conference held at Purdue in January.

"For one thing, seeing 100 female physicists in one room is pretty empowering," she said. "Just having these women be there, being able to talk to us about family issues, the unique thing that happens with trying to balance children with post doc-ships and what not. It just gives you hope that you can do it too."

Seeing successful women in academic environments involving science, technology, engineering and math -- STEM fields -- protects and enhances other women's interest and motivation to pursue these careers, according to a study published in February in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

"For men, the gender of the professor or the gender of the scientist didn't make much of a difference, but for women it made a huge difference," said Nilanjana Dasgupta, principal investigator of the study. "For men, science and engineering is considered a male domain so there is no suspicion or question of lack of ability. Their group clearly belongs."

Dasgupta, who is also an associate professor of psychology at University of Massachusetts Amherst, said the gender gap in these fields still exists today.

At Purdue, the percentage of females who decide to study science, engineering or technology is still much lower than their male peers. For the 2009-2010 fall semester, 37 percent of the undergraduates enrolled in sciences such as chemistry, physics or mathematics were female. For engineering it was 18.5 percent and technology it was 12.9 percent.

The gender gap still exists in STEM occupations as well. In 2010, 17.4 percent of chemical engineers, 9.7 percent of civil engineers, and 22 percent of computer programmers were women. Women made up about one third of chemists and materials scientists, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

(2 of 2)

Barbara Clark, director of the Women in Science Programs at Purdue, said one benefit of women pursuing these fields is that these types of occupations tend to pay better. So women can work fewer hours to support their families, especially if they are the sole wage earner.

"Another benefit is to the field," she said. "I think we get better outcomes when things are designed and implemented by people who have different points of view."

Dasgupta said the problem of the gender gap in STEM fields is multifaceted and there is no one solution. However, invisibility of female experts is an important contributor.

"I think women, female students in STEM, very rarely see other women who are experts, who are scientists, who are engineers or computer scientists and so on," she said. "The invisibility of women sends the subtle signal that they do not belong here."

The signal is subtle and most women are not cognizant of the fact that this is happening, according to Dasgupta. She said the women in these studies were often unaware that seeing or not seeing other female experts was having such an influential affect on their decisions.

It was only by using indirect testing that the researchers were able to get at these underlying affects.

So if educational institutes want to increase the number of women who pursue these careers, they need to expose young women to female experts such as advanced peers, professionals and professors in STEM careers early on during the critical years of education --in high school and first two years of college. These are the times when students are deciding what careers to pursue, she added.

Also, the research implies that professions and majors chosen are not entirely a matter of free choice or will, Dasgupta said. "It is really very much constrained by where we think we belong," she said.

Singular pursuit by Saudi firms - Arab News

Posted: 07 Mar 2011 01:21 PM PST

JEDDAH: Many Saudi employers prefer giving jobs to single women over married ones, especially when prospective employees are hunting for their first jobs.

"I would rather employ a single woman rather than a married woman because I fear her other responsibilities might preoccupy her mind off from work," said Mona Siraj, managing editor of Sayidaty women's magazine.

"Of course, it depends on her experience and knowledge and what she can offer to the business. But if they were equally experienced and I had to choose between the two, I would definitely choose the single one," she added.

Married women are stereotyped as lazy and inactive when it comes to work, said Talal Al-Wajeeh, a human resources manager at a cosmetic company in Jeddah. "I find it really hard for married women to make time for work when they have their hands full with problems relating to home," he said.

"They come in late and leave early saying that their children or husband kept them away. They also sometimes come to work exhausted and sleepy because their children have kept them up all night," he added.

"On the other hand, single ladies are willing to improve themselves by working extra hours… and prove to us men that they are worthy of the job they are employed for," he said.

Another reason why employers prefer single women over married ones are husbands whose jealousy and lack of trust might cause problems for wives at work. "I had an employee whose husband used to call her every 15 minutes to make sure she is in the office and not talking to male employees," said Sara Obaid, a human resources manager at a bank.

"What bugged me was that when she wouldn't pick up her phone because she was busy helping a client, he would call the bank's operator and ask what she was doing and who she was busy with," she added.

According to Usama Al-Maliky, head manager of an advertisement company, married women tend to spend most of their time chatting. "I find married women chatty. They spend most of their time in the office talking to each other about their problems at home and speak about their children non-stop," he said.

"Single women, on the other hand, are more focused and punctual... I think this is because they have fewer problems and they want to develop their careers," he added.

Hawazen Jazzar unsuccessfully applied for several jobs after graduation. "I was called up for an interview at a top class educational institute in the Kingdom. Everything went well and I was confident that the job was mine until the interviewer asked me about my marital status. I informed him that I was engaged and he frowned and ended the interview as fast as he could," she said.

"A day later, they called me up and said that they were uninterested and hoped I would get another job elsewhere. I think they became worried that I would become busy with planning my wedding and honeymoon and would not focus on my work," she added.

Not all companies stereotype married women as terrible employees. "Its all based on psychology. Single women are usually high risk takers … whereas married ones are not; they already have their families to look after," said Raed Al-Ghalib, a recruitment manager at a retail company. "On the other hand, married women are good troubleshooters and have a good sense of commitment," he added.

“Online career-oriented programs fit into busy lives - Las Vegas Review - Journal” plus 2 more

2011-03-06T15:17:00.001-08:00

“Online career-oriented programs fit into busy lives - Las Vegas Review - Journal” plus 2 more

Online career-oriented programs fit into busy lives - Las Vegas Review - Journal
Student News - The Ledger
Oregon-based school offers new psychology program for adult learners - Education Today

Online career-oriented programs fit into busy lives - Las Vegas Review - Journal

Posted: 06 Mar 2011 02:15 AM PST

Posted: Mar. 6, 2011 | 2:02 a.m.

Marisol Martinez works as a custodian for the Clark County School District and, like many Southern Nevadans, is interested in broadening her collection of job skills.

So, Martinez, a native of Mexico, signed up for an online course in writing designed for people who speak English as a second language.

"In my work, I sometimes need to leave a message," she explained. "So I have to use good writing."

The writing course "helped me a lot," Martinez said. As a result, she signed up for another online course, an introduction to Microsoft Windows.

"Everything is in the computer now," Martinez said. "I need to know how the computer works."

Now, Martinez is taking her third online course, an intermediate computer course. And while the new skills are helping in her current job, Martinez said she hopes they'll also help to build a foundation for other career options in the future

"I want to improve everything," Martinez said.

It's a sentiment shared by many Southern Nevadans seeking to advance in their jobs or even prepare for an entirely new career. Although Martinez, 46, is divorced with no kids, she does have a large extended family here. And, like Martinez, many Southern Nevadans are finding that online courses -- which enable workers to take vocational classes at their own speed and on their own schedule, in some cases without ever leaving the house -- can help to make job training mesh with the demands of job and family.

The College of Southern Nevada, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and Vegas PBS all provide online job training classes to Southern Nevadans. CSN and UNLV offer nondegree vocational training courses in addition to online courses taken by students working toward degrees, while Vegas PBS kicked off its career-focused work force training initiative last summer.

"The No. 1 priority in our community right now is putting people back to work," explained Debra Solt, Vegas PBS' director of work force training and economic development. Many of the work-related courses it offers online -- which focus on such fields as casino management and in such jobs as travel agent, bookkeeper and wedding planner -- are designed to give workers skills they can use in starting a new career.

Terry Norris, CSN's director of eLearning, said the most popular online courses at the college -- introductory English and psychology, for instance -- are for degree-seeking students out to fulfill their general education requirements.

"When you look at courses that are more career-oriented or potentially career-oriented, a lot of them are going to be in the computer field," such as web design and programming languages, Norris noted. These "can help you in getting a new job."

UNLV's Division of Educational Outreach offers online vocational training programs to augment the certification and job training programs it offers on-campus.

The online courses -- both UNLV and Vegas PBS partner with a company called ed2go, which designs the curricula -- "supplement courses that we don't offer in a traditional setting," said Kyle Yahiro-Okino, program coordinator in the university's continuing education department. "So most of the online courses that we offer do not directly compete with our traditional sort of offerings."

At UNLV, the vocational-oriented online courses that garner the most interest are in the health care and medical fields, Yahiro-Okino said, "things like medical billing and coding, medical transcription, medical terminology."

Online vocational training courses can cost from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars, depending on their complexity and the number of hours required to complete them. And, they have a variety of aims.

Some -- say, a course in Microsoft Word -- are designed to teach additional skills a student may use in a current or future job. Others enable a student to earn certification at the course's completion. Still others prepare students for national licensing exams after the course.

While some online vocational courses can be taken completely online, others require in-field work or an unpaid internship. For instance, Solt said, students in a pharmacy technician course offered through Vegas PBS also work an unpaid internship with a local pharmacist.

Some programs, UNLV's Yahiro-Okino noted, are "hard to convert to a 100 percent online setting. It still requires some face-to-face."

Typically, online courses enable students to access lessons 24/7. Teachers post lessons and assignments at specific times, and homework and assignments must be returned electronically by specific due dates. Students may post questions to a teacher or participate in online discussions. And, the student must complete the course within a specified period of time.

Most students cite the 24/7, stay-at-home nature of online learning as the reason why they prefer online classes over on-campus classes. Martinez said online classes mesh well with the demands of her job.

"I like to take (courses) online because I don't want to spend time in travel. For me, online is perfect," she added.

According to Solt, when students in Vegas PBS' online program were asked why they chose an online course instead of an on-campus course, 84 percent called it "more convenient" and about 73 percent said it "fit better into (their) schedule."

The survey also said 55 percent preferred to continue learning in an online, rather than an on-campus, learning environment.

"There are many reasons people take online courses," CSN's Norris said, including holding current jobs that prevent them from getting away to attend classes and odd work schedules that make taking on-campus classes impossible. Single mothers, he said, also cite the cost of providing for child care while they're attending an on-campus class.

However, virtual education isn't for everybody. Online students "need to be highly motivated," Norris said. "It's not where you can skip a couple of weeks and come back. They have to be there every week, doing the reading and submitting the assignments."

Also, Solt said, "some people need that one-on-one. They need to see (an instructor) eyeball to eyeball. For some people, online instruction is not compatible with how they learn best."

Before enrolling in an online class, prospective students should understand a course's objectives (learning a new job skill, receiving a certification, preparing for a licensing exam) and its requirements (whether all the work can be done online or whether a field experience or internship also is required).

Patrice Ross, president of the Southern Nevada Human Resources Association, said a student who is considering taking a course to enhance his job skills should ask a supervisor or his company's human resources department whether the course would be considered useful.

"If you're looking to benefit in a job or organization, it's got to be something that's relevant," she said.

Then, Ross said, "if you can locate the instructor, ask them (about) what are my goals and will this help me meet them."

Students who are considering taking an online course to change careers also might ask a few potential employers what they think about an online program.

Then, investigate the outlook for jobs in the new career. "If they're changing careers," Ross said, "make sure there's a market for it."

Contact reporter John Przybys at jprzybys@ reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0280.

Student News - The Ledger

Posted: 06 Mar 2011 03:32 AM PST

Published: Sunday, March 6, 2011 at 5:48 a.m.
Last Modified: Sunday, March 6, 2011 at 5:48 a.m.

The University of South Florida Polytechnic Psychology Club recently took on a project to help certify a therapy dog. Echo, a 2-year-old German-Australian shepherd mix, belongs to Lisa Zilinski, business librarian at USF Poly.

A therapy dog is trained to provide affection and comfort to people in hospitals, retirement homes, nursing homes, schools, people with learning difficulties, and stressful situations, such as disaster areas.

Club members began by setting up a schedule to meet the qualifications for therapy dog certification. Students learned about animal-assisted therapy and the effort it takes to train a therapy dog. They also visited Aryn Bush's classes, discussing the benefits of animal-assisted therapy, as well as cognition and learning in dogs. Bush is an instructor in cognitive psychology.

The Psychology Club plans to include Echo in various community service activities.

"Poly Ergo" represented the University of South Florida Polytechnic in the fourth annual Ergonomics Design Competition for Student Teams. The student team includes Henryk Duly, Charissa Powell, Suzanne Mannis, Juliana Colon and Richard Haggbloom. Led by Colon and Duly, Poly Ergo received an honorable mention. Faculty adviser is Rebekah Pratt from the Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences in the College of Technology and Innovation.

AUBURNDALE HIGH SCHOOL

Auburndale High School's National Art Honor Society held its 2011 Induction Ceremony Feb. 7. Officers Sam Weddington, Olivia Orella and Melissa Murphy conducted the program. John Hill and Donna Dynes addressed the 30 inductees and commended each for scholastic prowess in the arts, leadership and character.

Inductees include Kennedy Alleva, Bussarin Binmamah, Natthinan Bootsom, Natasha Cadwalader, Isabelle Cavazos, Christa Colon, Marcie Cook, Ashton Cox, Courtney Ferguson, Rhyne Mark Guilaran, Miranda Hawker, Johann Kopsch, Patrick Lalka, Adam Mathieu, Nicholas Mendez, Dylan Mitchell, William Parham, Brittany Powell, Alyssa Renard, Riley Richards, Eduardo Robles, Ariane Rosario-Martinez, Amberly Singh, Emily Skaggs, Nicholas Skaggs, Brooke Sloan, Haley Solan, Renee Stephenson, Kaitlyn Widner and Genevieve Womble.

FLORIDA SOUTHERN COLLEGE

Florida Southern College's student affiliate chapter of the American Chemical Society has received national recognition from the American Chemical Society for its plan to educate Polk County high school students about chemistry-related careers. The chapter will receive an International Year of Chemistry Student Chapter Grant.

Mike Politis, a senior majoring in biology, wrote FSC's grant proposal. It focused on educating high school students in the Polk County area about the important role chemistry plays in everyday life and the variety of careers that are available to those who study chemistry.

ALL-STATE MUSIC STUDENTS

The following students were named all-state in music for 2010-2011 and were selected to perform at the Florida Music Educators Association Conference held at the Tampa Convention Center in January. Students listed were named all-state in one of three categories: band, chorus or orchestra. All-state students are listed by school location.

Auburndale

Auburndale High: William Mathis, Michelle Mincey

Bartow

Bartow Middle: Matthew Brown

Bartow High: Jordan Bontrager

Bartow International Baccalaureate: Eugene Kim, Jesus Martinez, Jose Martinez, Alana Snyder, Casey Yamano

Union Academy: Abby Adeyemo, Zachary Cochran, Anna Dodd, Samantha Hall, Alexander Spinosa

Davenport

Davenport School of the Arts: Amanda Beck, William Dettmar, Emily Gabriel, Nicholas Gonzalez, Jakob Hansen, Travis Simpson, Jorge Texidor, Ben Wilmoth

Dundee

Dundee Ridge Middle: Christa Cuff

Eagle Lake

Lake Region High: Daniel Clewis, Reed Jostes

Fort Meade

Fort Meade Middle-Senior: Jacob Bigsby, Trey Rhoden, Madeline Payne, Jessica Swain

Haines City

Boone Middle: Sophia Oldham

Daniel Jenkins Academy: Sarah Renuart

Haines City International Baccalaureate: Amber Hamlet, Carlene Madsen

Lake Wales

Bok Middle: Lindsay Weppelman

McLaughlin Middle And Fine Arts Academy: Lilli Elliott

Lake Wales High: Austin Hicks, James Hignight, Tommy Stephens

Lakeland

Blake Academy: Jonathan Sallee

Carlton Palmore Elementary: Caitlin Wizda

George Jenkins High: Austin Briggs, Grace Johnson, Jennifer Royce, Savannah Mulder, Aubrey Presnell, Jessica Teaff

Harrison School For the Arts: Alejandro Bendana, Bradley Berry, Sarah Brackman, Elliot Brown, Nathan Clarke, Torin Crittenden, Maria Cuervo, Jaden Cunningham, Levi Davis, Clint Dawson, Layne Garretson, Annie Garrett, Madison Gartrell, Brooke Giles, Bethany Green, Serena Hall, Sophia Huneycutt, Sarah Kendall, Krister Lawlor, Mathew Massam, Bradlee McCoy Alec Nutting, Nathan O'Neal, Natalie Richard, Alexia Riner, Libbi Rogers, Emily Smailes, Lindsey Stein, Marissa Walker, Peter White, Sage Williams

Kathleen High: Jana Wells

Lake Gibson High: Tyler O'Neil, Jordan Power, Emily Richard, Kristen Ryan, Vanesa Vanzile

Lake Gibson Middle: Hannah Elrod, Joseph Peterson

Lakeland High: Tyffani Crespo, Isabella Arce, Jonathon Sherrouse

Lakeland Highlands Middle: Anna Fennell

Lawton Chiles Middle: Bella Basalone, Hannah Davis, Cheyanne Hutchinson, Michael Jean, Prit Patel, Corinne Titus

Rochelle School of the Arts: Juliana Bolano-Becerra, Emily Baranowski, Juan Bolano, Brian Brown, Alannah Cullen, Megan Fielders, Miranda Gallucci, Lauren Gay, Jaida Hawkins, Stephanie Hidalgo, Kortney Hurtt, Isaiah Kirkland, Abbie Lipe, Gwen McGary, Connor McMillan, Laini Rogers, Zharea Sanders, Dailyn Sprague, Shaniqua Stevens, Kaitlyn Webb, Christopher Wilfalk

Sleepy Hill Middle: Allison Knight, Keron Wilson

Southwest Middle: Patrick Blanchette, Rachel Castor, Rebekah Castor, Samantha Cameron, Jason Diffey, Hilarie MacLeod, Christopher Reyes, Alexis Stephens, Elordegee Teague

Tenoroc High: Alexis Huber, Cindy Rowe

Mulberry

Mulberry High: Breanna Costa

Winter Haven

Jewett School of the Arts: Amanda Vega, Jason Vergara

Jewett Middle: Logan Faulkner, Joanna Sands

Winter Haven High: Rachel Harris, Josh Lew

WINTER HAVEN HIGH SCHOOL

Jacob Booher, a senior trumpeter at Winter Haven High, was selected in 2010 for the American High School Honors Performance Series at Carnegie Hall.

Through a nomination and selection process that included an audition, Booher and other accomplished student musicians from across the country were brought together at Carnegie Hall to comprise an honors orchestra. Jacob played principal trumpet in the orchestra.

Booher also plays the French horn. He attended Winter Haven's Jewett School of the Arts prior to Winter Haven High. His musical experience includes theater work, church orchestras, jazz and professional bands.

Upon graduation in June, Booher would like to continue his music career in the U.S. military as an Army bandsman and trumpeter.

JEWETT MIDDLE ACADEMY

Olivia Hemp, a seventh-grade student in Barbara Brooks' art class at Jewett Middle Academy in Winter Haven, had her Peace Poster published in the Lions Club Magazine. Olivia's poster won first place ($40) for the district, then a finalist Award ($50) in the Multiple District 35 Contest for the state. 4,800 students participated in the Peace Poster Contest this year from Multiple District 35.

Art work by Brooks' students is on display in an exhibit at Winter Haven Library until the end of February.

GEORGE JENKINS HIGH SCHOOL

Clara-Jessica Rances was nominated George Jenkins High School Mathematics and Science Sunshine State Scholar. She will be honored at a ceremony in May along with other juniors from the district for their outstanding contributions in mathematics and science.

NEW YORK UNIVERSITY

Hunter J. Martin, who graduated from George Jenkins High School in 2002 with honors, was accepted into the New York University's School of Dentistry where she has been a student for the past 3 1/2 years.

Last year, Martin was selected to be in the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Honors Program at NYU's College of Dentistry. She will graduate in May from NYU's School of Dentistry.

Recently, there was "match day" in the United States for dental students wanting to pursue surgical degrees. Martin was selected by NYU's School of Medicine to participate in two years of medical school and four years of residency in oral and maxillofacial surgery/NYU Medical School at Bellevue Hospital. If all goes as planned, Martin will graduate in 2017 as an oral and maxillofacial surgeon.

BRYAN COLLEGE

Allison Joy Baker was named to the dean's list for the fall semester at Bryan College, Dayton, Tenn. A 2010 homeschool graduate, she is the daughter of Jim and Sue Baker of Lakeland.

Oregon-based school offers new psychology program for adult learners - Education Today

Posted: 01 Mar 2011 09:38 PM PST

admin February 28, 2011 10:44 am Online Education News

George Fox University, which is located in Oregon, recently announced that it will be offering a bachelors degree for adult learners who wish to complete their education.

Officials said that the social and behavioral studies (SBS) program will help enrollees learn the stages of human development, identify issues in delivering services to special populations, study group and family systems as well as ethical issues in human services.

The program will span 16 months and will involve 36 credits. Classes will meet one night each week beginning next fall.

"The SBS major is an excellent springboard major into the university's Department of Counseling programs, with many alumni moving on to complete a graduate degree in counseling or marriage and family therapy," said Dan Predoehl, an adult degree programs enrollment counselor.

Officials noted that the school also offers online adult completion degrees in elementary education, health administration, project management, technology management and organizational leadership.

According a 2008 report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, job opportunities for psychologists are projected to increase by 12 percent over the next seven years.

ClassesandCareers.com is a division of One on One Marketing,Inc.

“The workplace should be segregated. Maybe. - Brazen Careerist by Penelope Trunk (blog)” plus 1 more

2011-03-05T15:28:00.001-08:00

“The workplace should be segregated. Maybe. - Brazen Careerist by Penelope Trunk (blog)” plus 1 more

The workplace should be segregated. Maybe. - Brazen Careerist by Penelope Trunk (blog)

Posted: 05 Mar 2011 07:39 AM PST

Increasingly it makes sense to me that the workforce is segregated by gender.

There are, in fact, jobs where mostly women belong, and there are jobs where mostly men belong, and that's fine. It's outdated to think there are no differences between men and women. And once we accept there are differences, we need to study them instead of downplay them.

One of the most difficult parts of coming of age today is that there are no clear paths in the new topography of work. The terms quarterlife crisis and emerging adulthood have come to us as a result of the new scramble to figure out where to go in adult life. In order to create safe, compassionate, growth-oriented paths through adult life, we need to understand where women and men fit best.

I have taken a lot of shots at this topic before. Most notably, I've pointed out that women want to be with kids more than men do. That explains Pew's findings that most women want part-time jobs rather than full-time jobs after they have kids, but men do not.

But what about gender differences before there are kids? Where do men belong? Where do women belong? Here are three places women do not generally fit:

1. Highly competitive sales jobs are not for most women.

Most women are not happy when they are competing, rather than collaborating with their co-workers, whereas men love competition, according to a study from the University of Chicago. And research from the National Bureau of Economic Research shows that even in the case of men who are poor competitors or women who are strong competitors, the gender-based preferences for competition persist.

Women who achieve high levels of success played sports as kids and experienced huge satisfaction with winning. However women are less likely than men to choose competitive environments due to millions of years of evolution encouraging women to mitigate risks to protect themselves for their children. (Tons of studies support this, but my current favorite is from Anne Campbell, psychologist at Durham University in England.)

So who is a good fit for a career in sales? Richard Goldman, COO of Birkman International, a company that helps businesses make intelligent hires by using the Birkman Method for personality assessments, explains that collaborative, team-player types simply do not make good salespeople. When it comes to sales, though, the people who are the best fit for the high-level jobs are those who have an eat-what-you-kill mentality.

2. Men are better at very high-level math, science and engineering.

A 2008 survey of US universities by the National Science Foundation revealed that less than 30% of PhDs in the physical sciences were awarded to women. Higher up the ranks, women make up only about 10% of full professorships in physics-related disciplines. Yet a study from psychologists Stephen Ceci and Wendy Williams of Cornell University found no evidence of gender bias during the interview and hiring process for science positions.

Now that we have a few decades of data coming from girls who were encouraged to do math, we can say, with a decent amount of certainty, that the average girl is as good at math as the average boy. But in the world of hotshot math, women are outclassed.

One fundamental difference between the male and female brain is gray matter. And University of California at Irvine released solid data to explain why men are good at math.

"Evolution has created two different types of brains designed for equally intelligent behavior," said Richard Haier, professor of psychology who led the study.

"In general, men have approximately 6.5 times the amount of gray matter related to general intelligence than women, and women have nearly 10 times the amount of white matter related to intelligence than men. Gray matter represents information processing centers in the brain, and white matter represents the networking of—or connections between—these processing centers."

This chart, from Gene Expression, shows the difference in brain makeup.

Also, now that we have a slew of data about Asperger's syndrome, we can say that the people who are incredibly terrible with language (white matter) or incredibly gifted with mathematical thinking (gray matter) are usually boys. Boys, rather than girls, populate the two extreme ends of the bell curve.

So it should not be surprising or controversial that studies repeatedly find that there are large gender differences among extremely gifted math students. More boys are gifted.

Now the world starts making sense. This is why there are more men in math and science positions in universities. This is why the hot-shot companies in Silicon Valley are full of male engineers and not women. And this is why we need to stop complaining that science departments are boys clubs. It's not just the department—high end scientific thinking is a boys club.

3. Men are best suited for the insanely fast-paced startup arena.

More than 95% of venture capital goes to male-run startups. (To be clear, we are talking here about companies that plan to grow to more than $100 million in sales over five years and these companies court investors to achieve that.)

These startups are largely male, and the reason is that women are not interested in the crazy life that startup founders live. Women prefer lifestyle-focused companies where they can have better control over the intersection of their work life and personal life.

I laid out the argument in a post on TechCrunch, but, as you can imagine, it comes down to kids. Women want to spend more time with kids, and they have less desire to give up everything for their company. It would be great if you could do both, but when it comes to startups, you can't.

If you poll women who are CEOs of venture-backed startups as well as mothers, you will find that most women have either lost their marriage or their sanity while trying to run a startup and a family. Of course, no woman (besides me) will say this publicly because it will kill her career as an entrepreneur. One woman, (who has been lauded on TechCrunch for her startup), told me confidentially that she is getting a divorce and her husband thinks her drive is pathological. Which, frankly, is probably true, because much has been written about how most successful entrepreneurs are almost-but-not-quite crazy.

And Sara Lacy has explained the process whereby the boys-club startup founders perpetuate the boys club: if you get through it once, you can keep going, and helping other people to live out the crazy, family-unfriendly pipe-dreams of startup founders.

Many of you will want to tell me stories of the exceptions. I know. I'm one of them. I've driven myself and my ex-husband completely insane with my startup dramas, and I keep doing them. Each time I tell myself I will stay small. I will do a lifestyle business, and then I don't. I think too big and I take in outside funding.

But going into a field where you are the gender minority is very difficult. For one thing, people judge you more harshly, and you are more quickly to be deemed a failure. And it feels uncomfortable. Sure, it's fun to be the only woman in the room because you get a lot of attention, but on balance, Live Science reports that women are uncomfortable in a male-dominated setting.

One of the worst adages of feminism was "you can be anything." Because you can't. You can't be an iconoclast if you're not. And most of us are not. It's a lonely life. Why encourage it? Look at the paths that have a more sure footing. Look at the lives they create. If you like that life, give it a try.

When we look to create new paths for new careers, look at what real lives look like along the way. If you are 20 and you want to be the rare woman getting a PhD in math, ask yourself, are you really that different from all other people? And if you are 30 and you want to get funding for your startup, ask yourself if you truly are crazy enough to give up sanity for a company. Most of us look for more stable, surefooted ways to go through life. That's rational behavior.

Keep the mind and body going after retirement - Malaysia Star

Posted: 04 Mar 2011 04:48 PM PST

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Keep the mind and body going after retirement
Malaysia Star
Moreover, according to a study in the October 2009 issue of the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology published by the American Psychological Association, older people who continue to hold a job after retirement enjoy better health than their ...

“Submit this story - Huffington Post” plus 2 more

2011-03-04T15:14:00.001-08:00

“Submit this story - Huffington Post” plus 2 more

Submit this story - Huffington Post
Why starting over is so hard - Boston Globe
Women's Health Program Launches Seminar Series, Awards Scholarships - UCSF Today

Submit this story - Huffington Post

Posted: 04 Mar 2011 01:43 PM PST

Our country needs the federal government to invest in innovative science -- support that may be seriously cut in budgetary wrangling. It's not simply that other nations may make competitive gains; the greater concern is that young scientists may lose confidence in the United States as the best place to establish their careers. The country cannot afford such a "brain drain."

Indeed, key trend lines are moving our country in the wrong direction. For example, the continuing resolution bill passed by the House of Representatives to fund the federal government for the remainder of fiscal year 2011 includes a rollback of federal science spending to 2008 levels. Specifically, the National Institutes of Health would see cuts totaling $1.6 billion and the National Science Foundation would see cuts that Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-HI) stated would translate into the awarding of 2,000 fewer grants. These grants fund thousands of American science jobs that would be lost. Yet, the House budget bill leaves intact federal subsidies for industries with substantial private market viability including oil and agriculture.

Federal support has become critical in launching research. This is because the risk and uncertainty inherent in innovative science often precludes private market investments. In fact, private companies often refrain from supporting cutting edge research until there is initial evidence that any investments they make will bear fruit. As a practical matter, high-risk/high-gain research does not get off the ground in America without federal investment.

A reduction in federal investments in innovative research severely undercuts the ability of American scientists to compete with their peers in other countries. This is because other nations are making large research commitments in science and technology, and the growing "investment gaps" with the United States are already having an impact. For instance, in 2010 China purchased more wind turbines and solar panels than any other country and laid over 11,000 miles of high-speed rail. Importantly, Americans invented both wind turbines and solar panels and now China will likely make competitive gains in these technologies. Stated another way, we may essentially have to buy back technological advances in products that Americans invented.

A lack of funding in innovative science disproportionately affects young scientists. They often need to begin their careers conducting this kind of research in order to land American science jobs. Thus, if the federal government reduces investments in innovative scientific research, fewer young scientists will be able to get and keep American science jobs, and this makes the global marketplace a more viable alternative.

All this puts the country at risk. America's ability to compete with other counties rises and falls on its ability to raise the young scientists who conduct innovative scientific research. If the nation can't offer young scientists a good chance to launch their careers, we're encouraging them to leave for countries that in recent years have made heavy science investments, particularly in health research, such as Singapore and China.

If you think young American scientists leaving to work overseas is a far-fetched notion, consider the reductions in the private sector workforce that our country has suffered in recent years. In part, this is the result of American companies' business decisions to move operations overseas to countries with tax and regulatory structures that allow them to reduce their costs.

I fear we are on the road toward a profound "American Brain Drain" in which young scientists may begin to ask themselves, "If I cannot begin my career at home, what is keeping me from moving elsewhere where I know the government will invest in my work?"

Cutting federal support for innovative science, and thus investments in the young scientists who often conduct this work, constitutes short-range thinking. Whatever savings the federal government seeks to make by cutting these investments will only lead to substantial costs in future years.

Andres De Los Reyes is an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Maryland at College Park.

Why starting over is so hard - Boston Globe

Posted: 04 Mar 2011 09:06 AM PST

I had only been working in my new career for less than a week when I felt like a failure.

My wife, Susan, had asked casually whether I would show her a copy of the syllabus I had already handed out to the 18 undergraduates taking my course in my new incarnation as a university professor. While I was a novice as a teacher, she was an expert who had studied in a master's program in education and later won teaching awards and received high marks in her students' course evaluations. And it took her only seconds of scanning my syllabus before she couldn't suppress facial expressions of alarm. "Oh, dear," she said, and "Whoa" and finally "Oy!"

I felt utterly deflated, and it took awhile before I could begin to understand why. After all, I knew – at an intellectual level, at least – that teaching was a new challenge and that I would make countless more mistakes before I gradually improved and ultimately strived for mastery. And I realized that I was lucky that my spouse could guide me through the trying process. But at age 45, after more than two decades of being successful in my old field, it felt awful to be inept at my new line of work.

That's one of the many pitfalls – entirely predictable but painful and punishing – about trying to reinvent yourself in a new career. Even if you've studied the vast research on behavioral change – as I did when I was writing my book Change or Die – it's still maddeningly difficult to go through major transitions in your own life. And career change is one of the hardest. Why is it so surprisingly vexing, and what can you do to make it easier? The best answers I've found come from three fields that study human behavior: psychology, cognitive science, and the current darling, neuroscience.

When I talked with one of the world's leading neuroscientists, Dr. Michael Merzenich, professor emeritus at the University of California, San Francisco, he explained that practicing a craft or profession for a long time makes your brain change dramatically. If a doctor conducted a scan of the brain of a female flute player in a symphony orchestra, the image would show that the regions that control the fingers, tongue, and lips are unusually large. All of her years of training and practice have actually distorted her brain. Whatever your particular trade or occupation, your brain becomes specialized to do your job.

The good news is that your brain is capable of extraordinary change throughout middle age and well into your senior years. You're capable of "rewiring" it with the complex learning you'll need in a new career. Neuroscientists call this "neural plasticity." But the catch is that unless you've stayed in the practice of learning hard things, then your "brain fitness" declines. The cognitive muscles you need for change have atrophied. It's a use it or lose it situation. Unfortunately, few of us really use it. Merzenich told me that most people "haven't 'learned' anything in twenty or thirty years."

Can that really be true? After all, most of us put a lot of effort into keeping up with the latest developments in our professional fields. But that's not what Merzenich is talking about. To him, "learning" isn't maintaining your long-entrenched expertise; "learning" means becoming a true beginner in another challenging pursuit. You know that you're learning something new and different if it's really hard for a long time and you're constantly making mistakes and feeling like an idiot. No one wants to feel that way, especially once they've become used to the headiness of being an expert in another area. Complex learning is undeniably difficult and discouraging. Think of the immense frustration of trying for the first time to drive stick shift, play golf, dance the tango, or speak a foreign language. That's how you'll feel if you switch careers. The way to make it manageable is to seek support from good coaches, teachers, and mentors who'll help sustain your efforts, just as you would if you were learning Chinese or how to snowboard.

Changing careers also forces you to shift to an entirely new way of thinking – a new mind-set – and that's equally challenging. When I realized that my longtime fields, magazine and book publishing, were facing upheaval and uncertainty, I tried blogging for an online publication, but I quickly realized that this new medium came with beliefs and values that contradicted nearly everything I had learned and practiced in my old career. I was trained to spend weeks, even months, carefully researching a topic and then to take great care about getting the facts precisely right and forming reasonable and nuanced opinions. But in the online world I was expected to spend only a couple of frantic hours writing up a highly polarized and contentious viewpoint about a topic that I had hardly any time to research – and if the facts were wrong, I might try to correct them later. Playing by these new rules just felt wrong to me at a gut level. Blogging was such a big switch that I gave up rather than persist in learning a new approach. Cognitive scientists would say that I was stuck in the "conceptual framework" of old media and that I couldn't get my mind around the innovations of new media.

Even if you're able to adopt a new mind-set, old friends and family members may not understand. While researching my book, I talked with Claudia Berman, who left a career as an opera singer in Italy to return to the United States and become a personal fitness trainer. Her opera friends, who didn't believe in exercise, were befuddled by her move. I talked with Tim O'Mahoney, who gave up a career in corporate finance to become a carpenter and cabinetmaker. His switch sparked tension with his former peers and closest family members, who thought that he was taking a big step down, from white collar to blue collar, and that he was rejecting their values and way of life: His father had been a corporate vice president, and his siblings were lawyers, dentists, and executives. "Where I grew up, the service people who worked with their hands came in through the back door," he told me. After he finally followed his passion, he went years without being in contact with his parents. But he felt more fulfilled and he thrived in his new trade, becoming such a master of fine woodworking that he taught classes.

In my own career switch I received lots of encouragement from family members. My father sent me ads for academic positions for a long time before I applied for any. It was easy for the people around me to realize that my old field was in turmoil and that I could thrive in a new one, but I stubbornly avoided thinking about it – for years. Psychologists call this an "ego defense mechanism," though there's a more popular movie-of-the-week term for it: denial. When we're faced with a challenge that seems so overwhelming that we don't think we can handle it, we typically protect ourselves from this unwanted news by putting it out of our minds. Even in today's tough economy, when large numbers of jobs are being wiped out and entire industries are disappearing, it's hard for many of us to break through that denial.

The idea of becoming a beginner again is rightfully scary, especially when it has been years or even decades since we've last done it. But it can be done. Our brains are built for change. We need to keep in practice, and then it will be easier to do the next time . . . and then the next.

A former writer for Fortune, Fast Company, and GQ, Alan Deutschman is now a professor at the Reynolds School of Journalism at the University of Nevada, Reno. E-mail comments to magazine@globe.com.

Women's Health Program Launches Seminar Series, Awards Scholarships - UCSF Today

Posted: 04 Mar 2011 02:02 PM PST

March 4, 2011

The Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women's Health (BIRCWH) program has named four scholars selected for career development awards and will launch a new seminar series open to the UCSF community beginning March 8.

Sponsored by the Office of Research on Women's Health, BIRCWH provides substantial career development support for translational and clinical researchers in a wide variety of disciplines addressing issues in women's health.

The BIRCWH program is a collaborative effort of UCSF and the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research (DOR), based in Oakland, CA. UCSF School of Pharmacy Dean Mary Anne Koda-Kimble, PharmD, and Joe Selby, MD, director of Kaiser DOR, are co-principal investigators for the award program.

The BIRCWH is led by Research Director Ruth Greenblatt, MD, of the UCSF School of Pharmacy, and Program Director Monica Gandhi, MD, MPH, of the UCSF School of Medicine.

The four scholars selected for career development awards study topics as diverse as post-traumatic stress among HIV-infected women in sub-Saharan Africa, genetic differences in cancer risk among Latinas, the impact of abortion on mental health, and age-associated functional impairment.

The BIRCWH scholars are:

Laura Fejerman, MSc, PhD, assistant professor, UCSF Department of Medicine;
Wendy Katzman, PT, DPTSc, OCS, associate clinical professor, Department of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Science;
Susan M. Meffert, MD, MPH, assistant professor, Department of Psychiatry and a UCSF Global Health Sciences Faculty Burke Scholar; and
Julia Steinberg, PhD, who will be an assistant professor, Department of Psychiatry as of April 2011.

About the Seminar Series

Beginning on Tuesday, March 8, the BIRCWH program will host a series of seminars that will provide a mix of lectures, research presentations, workshops, and book groups for anyone in the UCSF community interested in women's health research. Speakers include junior and senior scholars from UCSF and the San Francisco Bay Area.

Greenblatt and Gandhi have developed this innovative series to provide opportunities for cross-disciplinary learning and interdisciplinary collaboration for women's health scholars.

The 2011-2012 series begins on March 8, and will thereafter generally be held the first Tuesday afternoon of every month running from 1 to 4 p.m. on the UCSF Parnassus campus. Most sessions are open to all faculty, students, residents, and fellows. See the attached schedule for locations and additional information.

About the Scholars

Laura Fejerman

Laura Fejerman is interested in the genetic epidemiology of complex diseases. She has a Licenciate in Social Anthropology from the University of Buenos Aires (Argentina) and an MSc degree in Human Biology and a PhD degree in Biological Anthropology from Oxford University (England).

Fejerman's research focuses on understanding the effect of genetic and non-genetic factors on breast cancer risk and progression in populations of mixed descent (e.g., Latinos and African Americans). She is currently taking part in acollaborative project conducting a genome-wide association study and admixture mapping of breast cancer in Latinas in the United States.

For her BIRCWH research, Fejerman is analyzing data from a collaborative study to uncover possible genetic risk variants for breast cancer in Latinas. Her BIRCWH mentors are Elad Ziv, MD, and Eliseo Perez-Stable, MD.

Wendy Katzman

Wendy Katzman is a physical therapist and a board-certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist. She received her BS degree in Physical Therapy from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.

After years of clinical work, Katzman recently completed a Doctorate in Physical Therapy Science (DPTSc) degree to study targeted effective therapies for reducing impairments associated with age-related functional decline. She has conducted an uncontrolled clinical trial of the effects of exercise on hyperkyphosis in older community-dwelling women.

Katzman's BIRCWH research focuses on the epidemiology of hyperkyphosis in older women and the role of hyperkyphosis along the causal pathway to disability. Her BIRCWH mentors are Deborah Grady, MD, and Dennis Black, PhD.

Susan Meffert

Susan M. Meffert is a member of the research faculty for the Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma annual global mental health training program. She received her MD degree from the University of Iowa and has an MPH degree in international health from Harvard University.

Meffert is interested in developing mental health interventions to stem the individual and interpersonal impact of mass trauma in low-resource settings. She completed a successful pilot trial of interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) for depression and post-traumatic stress symptoms among Darfur refugees in Cairo, and she has an ongoing project in China with survivors of the Sichuan earthquake. Through her research and the mentorship she received from UCSF global health leaders, Dr. Meffert became interested in the strong associations of violence, trauma, and HIV among women worldwide.

Meffert plans to incorporate her BIRCWH research into the development of a pilot mental health intervention for the treatment of depression and post-traumatic stress among HIV-infected women in sub-Saharan Africa. Her BIRCWH mentor is Thomas Neylan, MD.

Julia Steinberg

Julia Steinberg will be an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry as of April, 2011. She received her PhD degree in Social Psychology from Arizona State University and completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Abortion and Reproductive Health in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at UCSF before becoming a BIRCWH scholar.

Broadly, Steinberg's research area lies at the intersection of psychology and reproductive health. In particular, she has attempted to determine whether pregnancy outcomes (abortion, delivery, or miscarriage/stillbirth) have an association with subsequent mental health. One of her current research projects assesses the influence of mental health on post-abortion contraceptive choice.

For her BIRCWH research, Steinberg is investigating the role of childhood adversities in risk of abortion, post-abortion mental health, and post-abortion contraceptive choice. Her principal BIRCWH mentor is Jeanne Tschann, MD; Nancy Adler, PhD; Alicia F. Lieberman, PhD; Tracy Weitz, PhD; and Diane Greene Foster, PhD.

“Students keeping career options open - Tahlequah Daily Press” plus 1 more

2011-03-03T15:22:00.001-08:00

“Students keeping career options open - Tahlequah Daily Press” plus 1 more

Students keeping career options open - Tahlequah Daily Press

Posted: 03 Mar 2011 07:28 AM PST

TAHLEQUAH — Brittany Krueger is keeping her options open when it comes to post-graduation employment.

Krueger, a Coweta psychology senior at Northeastern State University, was strolling through the Herb Rozell Ballroom Wednesday afternoon, meeting and greeting potential employers.

"I'm open to everything, really," said Krueger.

After an initial chat with Cynthia Simmons, associate director of human resources for Tulsa-based Family & Children's Services, Krueger returned for follow-up clarifications.

"This is the booth I had really researched for the job fair," said Krueger. "I like the idea of the job fair, to kind of see what's out there, or else I would have never known."

Simmons chatted with several prospective employees during Wednesday's job, internship and graduate school fair, but less than many other booths.

"We're looking for something very specific," said Simmons.

Employment opportunities with the nonprofit range from case managers who must have a bachelor's degree, to licensed therapists who must have a master's.

Simmons said when students drop by a job fair booth, she looks for various aspects, including what types of degrees they have, or will have; when they will graduate; and whether they may qualify for an internship position.

Fifty recruiters – from entities including government agencies, non-profits, local and regional businesses, and graduate schools – attended Wednesday's event, put together by NSU's Career Services.

Dan Pilkington, store manager for the local Family Video, visited with numerous students from a wide variety of degrees.

"We were looking for new managers we could train, and we are providing part-time and full-time positions, for students who are still going to college, or who have graduated and are looking for a manager's position," said Pilkington.

Like Pilkington, several of the recruiters said they could hire for multiple openings right away.

NSU senior Donn Brown, a chemistry major from Broken Arrow, visited with several business representatives in his quest to make connections.

"Ideally, I'd like to find a position as a chemist or lab technician," said Brown. "But 'chemistry' is so general, so really, I'm looking for something for experience."

Career Services staff met students outside the ballroom and offered their tips for entering and meeting prospective employers.

One suggested a female student not wear open-toed shoes to interviews; another, to a male student, suggested ditching a logo-covered T-shirt and house shoes.

Gayle Anderson, coordinator of Career Services, was happy to see the crowd of students and alumni, as well as the 50 recruiters, though that number was down slightly from last year's spring event.

"I'm always pleased when we get employers to come to Tahlequah, to Broken Arrow, for our job fairs, especially the economy the way it is," said Anderson. "It's a great opportunity for students looking for intern positions or careers, and they're going to get excellent experience."

Anderson also expressed her appreciate of students who came prepared by studying the recruiters, bringing plenty of resumés, dressing professionally and initiating conversation in the right way

But those who didn't come prepared were still allowed to enter – flip-flops, jeans, house shoes and all. That, too, she agreed, would provide its own experience to students about what not to do.

"For the most part, the students are presenting themselves very well," said Anderson. "I'm very happy about it."

Autumn Pierce, a Pryor senior majoring in hospitality and tourism management, organized the event as part of her internship through Career Services.

"It's been really good, and a really good experience," said Pierce.

"I've talked to students who got hooked up with interviews."

Pierce offered students advice for preparing for the fair, and also for following up.

"I've had several students who said they were told to call or e-mail a recruiter after the job fair, so you shouldn't brush it off," said Pierce. "Or even if they didn't ask for a call or e-mail, follow up. Take some initiative."

Check it out

NSU students can find career help by visiting with officials through the Career Services department. Call (918) 444-3110 or e-mail careerservices@nsuok.edu.

Beyond Bandura's Bobos - The Stanford Daily

Posted: 03 Mar 2011 03:12 AM PST

With twinkling eyes and a gently wrinkled face in a perpetual half-smile, Albert Bandura looks every inch the quintessential kindly grandfather, from the muted burgundy sweater to the soft lull of his voice.

Bandura, a man of many talents, has had a long and illustrious academic career spanning over six decades. The David Starr Jordan Professor Emeritus of Social Science in Psychology, Bandura has contributed immensely to the field of social psychology, and is the father behind the theory of self-efficacy and social learning theory. Ranked as the most cited living psychologist in the world, Bandura has authored seven books to date and has written over 180 articles.

(Courtesty of Albert Bandura)

Bandura was born and raised in Mundare, a small hamlet in northern Alberta, Canada with a population of approximately 400 people, mostly immigrants from Poland and Ukraine. His elementary and secondary school years at the only school in town were "very limited in education resources," recalled Bandura. Usually, limited educational resources would be seen as a hindrance, but Bandura looks back on his schooldays as an opportunity for self-learning, a major skill that is the center of his social learning theory.

"We pilfered a teacher's trigonometry book, so that we could study it ourselves," Bandura said. "The students had to take charge of their own education."

Bandura's early resolve for scholastic success was largely due to his upbringing because his parents, though they received no formal education, placed enormous emphasis on academic development.

"My mother told me I could till the land, play pool and drink myself to oblivion," Bandura said. "Or I could get an education."

"Needless to say, I chose the latter," Bandura added with a lighthearted chuckle.

Bandura's summers were spent picking up carpentry, a skill set that would later help pay for his college education. One memorable summer after high school graduation, Bandura ventured farther north, where he worked at Whitehorse in the Yukon filling in holes along the Alaskan highway.

Bandura recalled the shock he received almost immediately upon his arrival.

"I pulled up to the base camp, and the first thing I saw was an ambulance. I asked someone if there had been an accident, and someone told me, 'No, that's our cook. He drank all of the lemon extract for the alcohol, so we have to take him in to get his stomach pumped out.'"

The robust, quirky life of the workers at Whitehorse was an exciting time for Bandura, who saw the Yukon tundra as a backdrop for "the blossoming of the psychopathology of everyday life."

"Booze was their main nutrient," Bandura said. "They were ordering large quantities of sugar that they used to brew up. This one morning they go up early, [to check] on the deepest alcoholic mash. What they found there instead was half a dozen drunken grizzly bears lumbering around camp. Fortunately, they were a little too tipsy to actually be really dangerous."

According to Bandura, fortuity–a factor generally avoided by psychologists, who interpret such events as unpredictable–plays a more important role in shaping people's lives.

"In psych, we avoid fortuity," Bandura said. "Fortuitous events are just nuisances in our causal theories. I tried to bring some science to bear on my fortuitous life, and that's how I got into psych."

It was, in fact, fortuity that led Bandura to ultimately choose psychology as his field of study for his bachelor's degree at the University of British Columbia, a decision largely based on a chance encounter with a course catalog.

"I had originally planned to major in biology," Bandura said. "I was with pre-meds and engineers who had really early schedules. I didn't have classes that early–those were at a time that I didn't know even existed! So I had a lot of time. I noticed someone had left a course catalog. While flipping through it, there was a psych course that fit in with my schedule that I decided to take."

Bandura was hooked on psych. Making use of his carpentry skills, he was able to speed through his education, earning his B.A. in three years and receiving his M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Iowa in three additional years. It was also during his graduate student years, by another stroke of luck, that he met his wife, whom he married in 1952.

"One morning, we were late to our golf time, so they bumped us to a later time," Bandura said. "Two women were ahead of us. They were slowing down, and we were speeding up. I met my wife in the sand trap. Had we been at the earlier time, our lives would have never converged."

In 1953, Bandura joined Stanford's faculty, where he has remained ever since. He has taught thousands of students and prolifically contributed many research articles and studies involving various aspects of social psychology. The Bobo doll study, which looked at the social patterns of behavior associated with aggression, is his most well known piece of research.

"That study always seems to haunt me," Bandura admitted. "The great thing about psychology is that it is the only study that integrates interpsychic events, social relations, biology and socio-structural events. There's no other discipline that integrates all of these very different disciplines."

Bandura and his wife, Ginny, have two daughters, Mary and Carol, both of whom grew up to follow careers within the fields of either clinical or social psychology.

Over the years, Bandura has become an expert at juggling several roles at once–as professor, as father and more recently, as grandfather.

"He loves his grandchildren," said Ian Gotlib, also a David Starr Jordan Professor of Psychology. "And he appreciates good wine."

Now in the twilight of his career, Bandura has more time for leisure activities, which include wine tours, backpacking in the Sierras and gardening.

"I maintain some of my rural roots," Bandura said. "I have a huge garden, where I am the major supplier of tomatoes, which have been claimed as 'the golden standard' by my colleagues."

But Bandura still likes to keep busy. Instead of settling back into the comfort of his armchair, basking in the glow of his numerous achievements, Bandura's back is erect, leaning slightly forward toward the future, while always having a number of current projects buzzing away. One of his major current projects is the application of social learning theory and the self-efficacy model to address major concerns on a global level, such as human rights in developing countries, environmental sustainability and the AIDS epidemic.

That's not bad for someone who stumbled into psychology by fortuity. Having learned from a lifetime of serendipity, Bandura believes in maximizing every chance opportunity.

"You can take [hardships] and turn them into enabling experiences," Bandura said. "You can't afford to be a realist. Realists will abort if they run into difficulties, or they will become cynical. Learning how to work through it when encountering setbacks and conflicts is a life-long skill, but an important one for success."

"You don't get bored that way," he added.

“Oregon-based school offers new psychology program for adult learners - Education Today” plus 2 more

2011-03-02T15:19:00.001-08:00

“Oregon-based school offers new psychology program for adult learners - Education Today” plus 2 more

Oregon-based school offers new psychology program for adult learners - Education Today
Brevard's Dorfman was a giant in sports psychology field - Asheville Citizen-Times
Planning for the future as interns and scholars - The Statesman

Oregon-based school offers new psychology program for adult learners - Education Today

Posted: 01 Mar 2011 09:38 PM PST

admin February 28, 2011 10:44 am Online Education News

George Fox University, which is located in Oregon, recently announced that it will be offering a bachelors degree for adult learners who wish to complete their education.

The program will span 16 months and will involve 36 credits. Classes will meet one night each week beginning next fall.

Officials noted that the school also offers online adult completion degrees in elementary education, health administration, project management, technology management and organizational leadership.

According a 2008 report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, job opportunities for psychologists are projected to increase by 12 percent over the next seven years.

ClassesandCareers.com is a division of One on One Marketing,Inc.

Brevard's Dorfman was a giant in sports psychology field - Asheville Citizen-Times

Posted: 02 Mar 2011 02:40 AM PST

The phrase 'tough love' was created for people like Harvey Dorfman.

He made a name for himself as a sports psychologist, especially doing wonders with those who threw a baseball for a living.

Darren Holmes, the longtime Arden resident and former Roberson High standout who spent 13 seasons as a major league relief pitcher, got to know Dorfman when he moved to WNC in the late 1990s.

Dorfman died at his home in Brevard on Monday. He was 75.

When asked about Dorfman on Tuesday, Holmes chuckled and referred to the insurance commercial where the drill sergeant-turned-psychologist throws a box of tissues at a crying patient.

"That's Harvey Dorfman," Holmes said. "He was a very brash man. Todd Stottlemyre (former major league pitcher) is one of my friends, and he called him up and said, 'Harvey. I need some help.' He asked (Stottlemyre) if he was healthy.

"I'm as healthy as I can be," the player replied. "Harvey said, 'Well you big wimp, get out there and compete.'"

Dorfman was tough, but he understood the fragile mental makeup of the professional baseball player better than most people. He listened to them and was honest with them. In turn, the players trusted him. When word got out about Dorfman, many players called him, even when he was employed by other clubs.

"What I heard from other people about Harve was that he wasn't there to baby you or caress you. You're a man, let's figure this out," Holmes said. "If you have fear, let's figure out where it's coming from. If you have a mental block, let's figure out how to get out of it."

Dorfman worked for the Oakland A's during the late 1980s and early '90s, when they played in three straight World Series. He later was employed by the Florida Marlins and Tampa Bay Rays. Superagent Scott Boras hired him in 2001 to work with his clients.

Many players have credited Dorfman with turning around their careers. Among those is two-time Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay of the Philadelphia Phillies.

Dorfman wrote several books, including "The Mental Game of Baseball: A Guide to Peak Performance," which he co-authored with Karl Kuehl, the farm director for the A's in the 1980s who convinced his bosses to hire Dorfman.

(Page 2 of 2)

"I think most players in the '90s read his books," especially pitchers, said Holmes, who ended his career in 2003 as a member of the Atlanta Braves. UNC Asheville baseball coach Tom Smith was coaching at Roberson when Dorfman, whom Smith had seen at baseball clinics, moved to Brevard. He bought Dorfman's books and had his players read them.

"Chris Narveson (Milwaukee Brewers) read them, Cameron Maybin (San Diego Padres) read them," Smith said of two former players now in the major leagues. "My players here read them. He had an insight to the mental part of the game, no doubt."

He also had a big heart.

Chris Smith, the assistant general manager of the Asheville Tourists called Dorfman a few years back and asked if he'd be interested in talking to the team's fan club.

"It was a shot in the dark," Smith said. "He was a guy who didn't do a whole lot of speaking engagements, and when he did, he probably garnered upwards to 25 grand. He came and did it for nothing, speaking for two hours. It was an incredible experience."

This is the opinion of sports editor Bob Berghaus. Contact him at 232-5866 or bberghau@CITIZEN-TIMES.com.

Planning for the future as interns and scholars - The Statesman

Posted: 02 Mar 2011 08:51 AM PST

The hunt for scholarship funding and internships can seem daunting. Fortunately, there are options available for USU students. Career Services provides opportunities for students to locate internships that cater to their future careers.

internships

Donna Crow, executive director for student services, said students can visit Career Services in person or online to view internship opportunities. She said they can navigate the Career AGGIE online job posting system and there are several hard copy guides available in the Career Café for students to check out.

To create a profile on Career AGGIE, students must create a login and complete a profile. Once students have completed this step, they can start searching and applying for both internships and jobs. Job seekers can specify the type of job and start dates they are looking for. They can submit resumes through the site.

"There are some supply and demand issues with opportunities in Logan," Crow said.

She encourages students to broaden their geographic preferences to increase their chances of obtaining an internship that fits their career goals.

"Students who have completed internships are more marketable in a global economy," Crow said. "They receive approximately 10 percent higher starting salaries, 60 percent of the time they have an offer from their internship employer by the time they graduate, and they are more likely to stay with that company compared to non-interns."

Career Services will be holding its 22nd annual Career Fair Wednesday, March 2 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the second floor of the Taggart Student Center. Students with questions about internships can learn ways to prepare for interviews at the fair.

The Service Center recommends six steps to Career Fair success: research organizations, prepare your resume, dress for success, prepare your approach and introduction, ask questions and follow up.

According to the Career Guide provided by Career Services, when students graduate with internship experience, they position themselves for more meaningful career employment.

"Internships allow you to combine career-related work experience with academic coursework to enrich your total educational experience, while earning academic credit and pay," states the internship section of the career guide.

The guide explained there are tools and strategies for searching for ideal internships. Crow also recommends using a career coach who will help create a strategy for finding the internship that matches a student.

If students are interested in interning for a specific company, Crow said they are more than encouraged to reach out. She said they might want to access their system to save them time.

"This just makes the process more effective for students," she said.

Kirk Miller, a senior in accounting, said he realized employers look for potential and can look past lack of experience. Miller is interning for Allred Jackson, an accounting firm in Logan. When he first applied, they told him he was not qualified enough for the job.

"To my surprise, I got a phone call a month later saying I had an interview for the position," he said. He did not think he had a chance so he said he took the pressure off himself and joked with the interviewers. Fortunately, he said, they loved his jokes.

"But once again, (they saw) how my qualifications were very weak," Miller said. Two weeks later, they offered him the position.

"It has been the biggest blessing for me and my career as well as the skills they are teaching me," he said.

Kristen Johnson, a senior in interdisciplinary studies, has an internship with the Real Salt Lake soccer team.

"I had one of my professors with connections there contact them and inquire about available positions. Then I sent in my resume. I followed up with them, got an interview and got the internship," Johnson said.

As a soccer player, this internship suits her and her career goals well.

Scholarships

In addition to internship hunting, many students look for scholarships. Often, they do not know where to look and the process seems overwhelming.

"I've looked a lot (for scholarships), but nothing has really worked," said Mckelle Tobey, sophomore in psychology. "My new scholarship is called 'grandparents,'" she said.

Tobey said she searched all over the Internet, talked to her department, the honors department and the financial aid office.

Tobey said she felt that you have to accomplish something different from every other college student in order to receive private scholarships, "which fails when that is the goal of every college student."

Other students express similar disappointment in scholarship searching.

"I have applied before and never heard back," Selina Weighill, a junior in biology, said.

Jake Matthews, junior in sports medicine, said he never hears about scholarship opportunities.

"I haven't heard about them since high school," he said.

He is frustrated with how scholarships and other financial aid venues are set up.

"I hate how they give huge scholarships to incoming freshman who had good GPAs in high school, but I can't get grants because my parents make too much money," Matthews said.

“A Classic Education Praise Italy's Alt-Rock Scene -- Top 100 Acts at SXSW 2011 - Spinner” plus 2 more

2011-03-01T15:12:00.001-08:00

“A Classic Education Praise Italy's Alt-Rock Scene -- Top 100 Acts at SXSW 2011 - Spinner” plus 2 more

A Classic Education Praise Italy's Alt-Rock Scene -- Top 100 Acts at SXSW 2011 - Spinner
Hoosiers Open Big Ten Tournament Against Purdue on Thursday - Indiana Athletics
Changing Lanes: Social Worker to Animal Trainer - BU Today

A Classic Education Praise Italy's Alt-Rock Scene -- Top 100 Acts at SXSW 2011 - Spinner

Posted: 28 Feb 2011 08:38 PM PST

Guillia Mazza

A Classic Education, a sextet that hails from Bologna, Italy, plays the kind of music its name implies. With its lush harmonies, reverb-drenched guitars and evocative lyrics, the group draws on influences ranging from Elvis Presley to Phil Spector. Active since 2007, the band is finally readying the release of its debut album, due out later this year on Lefse Records.
Spinner spoke with lead singer and guitarist Jonathan Clancy about seeking truth in recorded music, finding inspiration in new places and balancing serious careers -- banking, computer programming and psychology -- with the rigors of rock 'n' roll touring.

Amazon

Download A Classic Education's 'Gone To Sea' (MP3) off 'Hey There Stranger' Free

You're from Canada. How'd you end up in a band from Italy?

I grew up in Canada and moved to Italy when my parents came here for work. I went to high school in Bologna, which is a few hours south of Milan. It's the largest university city in Italy, a city that lives off the university crowd. Most bands or shows will come through here more often than Rome and Milan and bigger cities. It's the perfect city to live in to play music.

How did the band get together?

People don't know much about it, but there's a vibrant alt-rock scene here. There's tons of bands and different casts of players. We hooked up because wanted to do something different from the previous bands we had been in, which were noisier. We wanted to focus more on songs.

Where does the band name come from?

We wanted a classic name, an old-time kind of name. It had some connection to our roots being here, and that in Italy, there's a classic education system that most of us have been schooled in, studying Latin and Greek and stuff like that. And I liked the sound of it.

There are six of you in the band. Do you write collaboratively, or is it more the case of one guy writing parts and bringing them to the table?

I write all lyrics and the basic song structure, but the idea of the band, with all our different instruments, like organ and violin, was to really flesh out the stuff together in a living room to get the proper song structure. When you have a lot of instruments, you tend to clog everything together, and then you search for space. It's definitely a six-piece where everyone chips in. It's a band thing, not one single guy.

When you started, how did you put your music out?

We recorded a three-song demo and started sending out to blogs we liked. Having blogs talk about us in England got us to play a ton of shows in England. Obviously, you have to be committed and send stuff away. The downside of that is for a music listener, sending stuff out takes a lot of mystery out of making the music. It's never nice saying, "I'm Jonathan from this band, please listen to this song." It gets kind of obnoxious after awhile.

We were lucky in the sense that right away big distributors, like Rough Trade, picked [our first EP] up. It teaches you a lesson that if you're able to get the music out there, you can do it. You can do it. It's a possible way to start out.

You've been active for a few years now but are just now close to releasing your first full-length record. What took so long?

Our original goal was to have a 7-inch out. In previous bands we had been in, none of us ever had a chance to get a 7-inch out. Doing two songs at a time is a good way to let a band learn their own music. For the first years, we didn't feel like it was the right time to get an album done. But after a while, you get frustrated and say, "We gotta get this done."

You recorded the full-length last fall in Brooklyn while on tour. Did writing and recording outside of Italy affect the music?

The idea behind us recording in Brooklyn, part of it was getting away from home. Being in a new place gives you inspiration automatically. It's a feeling you can't recreate in any way. I had more ideas in the flight over to New York City than in the previous four weeks.

What kind of sounds influenced the record?

We were really inspired by classical songs. More and more, we're going back to that old-time radio period of '50s music, '60s music. I'm a big fan of '60s pyschedelic music, from the Byrds to 13th Floor Elevators. The recording process we went through, a lot of people tend to call it lo-fi. I don't actually feel it's lo-fi, just similar to the recording techniques of that day, a similar feel.

What do you mean by "similar feel?"

It's that feeling of truth. Like Elvis from the Sun Studio recordings feels like truth. There's a band playing in the room, he's singing, the words might be simple but he's getting to the point where he means what he's singing about. It has an old, dusty feel to it. What draws us to that period is that those songs are evergreens. They'll always be perfect songs. Everything from the Beach Boys to Phil Spector.

How do you seek that feeling of truth in your own music?

There's a decision in what you record and how you record. We recorded on tape, and we tried to get a live feeling of how we're actually playing. We played most of the record live together in a room. We're the kind of band that, if there's crackling at the end of the song, we won't take it out. Those little things help go toward that direction.

How often do you tour abroad?

We've always had serious jobs. In Italy, one of the tough things about playing music is that it's not like Canada or the United States, where you can work at a bar, leave for tour, come back. In Italy, it's moving toward that, but socially there aren't those kind of jobs that you can quit and leave and come back. One of us works at a bank. Another guy is a computer programmer. I work in radio. One guy is a psychologist. Not your typical smaller kind of jobs. We actually all got news a few days ago that we're all set [to tour to SXSW]. We were all nervous because we didn't know if we could all get time off. We got these two months off. We'll see after that.

Has the band ever considered leaving Italy and setting up camp in a more central location?

When we started out, we talked about moving a lot because [being based in Italy] really did seem difficult. I've joked that if you're from Italy, it seems like you're starting from a minus point, and you have to do extra work to get on par with everyone else. Initially, we were looking at London. But there's a lot of us, and we all have our different lives. And now that we've got a great label, recorded an album and are going on a good tour, it seems like we've done everything to beat the tough times.

We're really proud that we're managing to do the same stuff that other bands do, while not living in the center of the music industry. We really like where we live. It's stimulating and inspiring.

Hoosiers Open Big Ten Tournament Against Purdue on Thursday - Indiana Athletics

Posted: 01 Mar 2011 02:25 PM PST

Indiana will battle the Boilermakers at 2 p.m. ET in Indianapolis on the Big Ten Network.

March 1, 2011

INDIANA (9-19, 3-13) vs. PURDUE (19-10, 9-7)
Date	March 3, 2011
Time	2 p.m. ET
Location	Indianapolis, Ind. (Conseco Fieldhouse)
Television	Big Ten Network Tom Hart, Vera Jones and Lisa Byington
Radio	WHCC 105.1 FM Jeremy Gray, play-by-play
Tickets	Ticketmaster.com
Game Notes	Indiana Notes
Statistics	Indiana \| Purdue
Internet Coverage	GameTracker
Twitter	@IndianaWBB \| @rmsheets

THE OPENING TIP
Indiana will face in-state rival Purdue on Thursday afternoon in the first game of the 2011 Big Ten Tournament at 2 p.m. ET. The game will take place at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis and will be aired on the Big Ten Network with Tom Hart and Vera Jones calling the game and Lisa Byington handling sideline reporting duties. The contest can also be heard live on Hoosier Country WHCC 105.1 FM as Jeremy Gray will be on the call.

DID YOU KNOW?
• Indiana is 14-15 all-time in the Big Ten Tournament and won the tournament championship for the first time in 2002. The Hoosiers defeated the Boilermakers that year in the semi-final game en route to the title.
• Head Coach Felisha Legette-Jack is 3-1 all-time in opening games of the Big Ten Tournament while at the helm of the Indiana program. The Hoosiers as a program overall is 10-6 in opening games of the tournament.
• Jori Davis sits alone in eighth place on Indiana's all-time career scoring list with a 1,565 points. She surpassed Jenny DeMuth's (2002-06) career total of 1,542 against Iowa on Feb. 27. The senior is 38 points shy of Jamie Braun (2007-10) for the No. 7 spot on the list. Braun finished her career with 1,603 points.
• Davis has now tallied 544 points this season during her senior campaign. That total ranks her No. 6 on IU's all-time single season scoring list and it is her second-consecutive season to eclipse the 500-point mark as she tallied 501 during the 2009-10 season.

THE COACHES
IU head coach Felisha Legette-Jack is in her fifth year at Indiana and ninth year overall as a head coach. She has a career mark of 135-138 (.495) and is 81-75 (.519) at the Hoosier helm. Purdue's Sharon Versyp is in her fifth season guiding the Boilermakers and it is her 11th year overall as a head coach. Versyp has compiled a record of 225-124 (.645) in her career and is 109-59 (.649) while leading the Boilers.

SCOUTING THE BOILERMAKERS
Purdue enters the Big Ten Tournament against Indiana winning in three of its last four games. The Boilermakers picked up a win in their regular season finale at Penn State on Feb. 24, 51-49. In that game, Brittany Rayburn led Purdue with 14 points as Drey Mingo put together a double-double performance with 12 points and 15 rebounds. The Boilers held the Lady Lions to just 31.7 percent shooting on the day.

For the season, Rayburn leads the team in scoring at 14.2 points per contest and paces the entire Big Ten by shooting 88.8 percent from the charity stripe. Freshman Courtney Moses is scoring 12.1 ppg and leads the team in assists and 3-point field goals made. Mingo tallies 11.5 ppg and is the team leader in rebounding grabbing 5.8 per contest while shooting 44.2 percent from the field.

As a team, Purdue shoots a conference-leading 77.4 percent from the free throw line. The Boilermakers are second in the Big Ten in 3-point shooting at 34.6 percent on the year.

DAVIS EARNS BIG TEN SCORING CROWN
Senior Jori Davis finished Big Ten play as the leading scorer in conference games only averaging 21.0 points per game and finished the year strong, averaging 24.6 ppg while shooting 47.9 percent from the field and 88.5 percent from the free throw line in Indiana's last five contests. Davis tallied 24 or more points in four of those five games and has led the team in scoring in seven-consecutive games.

For all games this season, Davis is averaging 19.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Her point total ranks her third in the Big Ten in scoring, as she ranks 16th in the conference in rebounding, seventh in assists (3.8 apg) and ninth in steals (1.8 spg).

Besides leading the Big Ten in scoring in conference games, Davis is also fifth in assists (3.8 apg) and 13th in free throw percentage (.813).

Davis has scored in double-figures in 27 of 28 games this season, including the last 18 consecutively. The senior has led the team in scoring in 19 games overall this year.

Davis also owns the third-best conference single-game point total in Big Ten play as she netted 31 against Minnesota on Jan. 2, the second time she achieved that total this season. Davis has tallied 30 or more points in a game three times in her career.

JORI SITS EIGHTH ON ALL-TIME SCORING LIST
Davis keeps climbing the ladder on Indiana's career lists. With her team-leading 28 points against Iowa on Feb. 27, Davis now sits alone in the No. 8 spot on IU's all-time career scoring list. She also ranks third all-time in career free throws made.

Davis' career point total stands at 1,565. She surpassed Jenny DeMuth's (2002-06) career total of 1,542 against the Hawkeyes. The senior is now 38 points shy of Jamie Braun (2007-10) for the No. 7 spot on the list. Braun finished her career with 1,603 points. Davis is also only the sixth player in school history to record over 1,500 points, 500 rebounds (559) and 200 assists (238) during her career Indiana.

Davis also has connected on 430 free throws as a Hoosier. She is 13 makes away from second on the list behind the best player in program history, Denise Jackson (1981-84).

THE SENIOR CLASS
Seniors Jori Davis, Hope Elam, Whitney Lindsay and Andrea McGuirt played in their final game in Assembly Hall against Iowa on Feb. 27. Each player started in their last game in Bloomington and have combined to start 197 games in their careers at Indiana. During their senior campaign this year, this group has accounted for 68.6 percent of IU's total point production for the season and they all rank one through four in total steals on the season led by Lindsay's 63.

Davis, Lindsay and McGuirt were part of the 2008-09 squad that finished the year 21-11, which marked the fourth time in program history a Hoosier team had won 21 or more games, and it is highest number of wins in Head Coach Felisha Legette-Jack's career.

Davis graduated in December with a degree in Sport Communication and is currently enrolled in graduate classes for Athletic Administration. Elam will graduate in May with a degree in General Studies with a minor in Criminal Justice. Lindsay is majoring in Psychology with a minor in Criminal Justice and will graduate in May. McGuirt graduated in December with a degree in Accounting and is now enrolled in the Master's of Science in Accounting program within the Kelley School of Business.

DAVIS ECLIPSES 500 POINTS, AGAIN
Davis has now tallied 544 points this season during her senior campaign. That total ranks her No. 6 on IU's all-time single season scoring list and it is her second-consecutive season to eclipse the 500-point mark as she tallied 501 during the 2009-10 season.

She is just the third player in Indiana women's basketball history to record 500 or more points in two seasons during a playing career in Bloomington. Karna Abram recorded 642 points in 1984-85, then scored 626 points in 1986-87. Denise Jackson also accomplished the feat scoring 510 in 1981-82 then 592 in 1982-83.

Davis has also connected on 172 free throws this season, which is the second-highest mark for a single season in IU history. The leader in that category is Jenny DeMuth who hit 187 free throws during the 2003-04 campaign.

The senior is also knocking on the door for one of the best points per game averages in a single season in the Hoosier record books. Davis currently is averaging 19.4 ppg, which if she would finish the season with that total would rank her No. 4 all-time in points per game for a season.

ELAM ELEVATES DOWN THE STRETCH
Elam finished the regular season scoring in double-figures in seven of IU's final nine games. During that stretch, the senior averaged 12.8 ppg while shooting 41 percent from the field and an impressive 45.3 percent from long distance in those games.

In the span, the highlight was her 21 point performance at Penn State on Jan. 23. In that game, Elam connected on a career-high tying five 3-point field goals and grabbed seven boards.

She also tallied double-digit points in IU's last two contests with 16 points at Wisconsin on Feb. 23 and 14 against Iowa on Feb. 27. She shot 55 percent in those games and 55.6 percent from 3-point range.

Changing Lanes: Social Worker to Animal Trainer - BU Today

Posted: 28 Feb 2011 09:06 PM PST

By Leslie Friday

Daniell Hepting (CAS'89) with one of the California sea lions she trains for the Navy in San Diego, Calif. Photo courtesy of the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific

How many careers does the average American worker have in a lifetime? The Bureau of Labor Statistics doesn't keep track, but we know that millions change careers at least twice. From what to what? You'd be surprised. This week, in "Changing Lanes," BU Today takes a five-part look at BU alums who studied for one career, but are now doing something radically different.

Daniell Hepting isn't a criminal, but she played one last May. She was among several swimmers treading the tea-colored waters of San Francisco Bay as part of a demonstration on the city's emergency response program. One minute she was floating freely, the next thing she knew a leg cuff had been snapped on her thigh.

The underwater "cop" who cuffed her? A California sea lion.

"It's a lot of fun," says Hepting (CAS'89), one of the sea lion's trainers. "It's almost like an advanced game of hide-and-seek."

Hepting is an animal trainer at the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific, in San Diego, Calif. Animal trainer ranks high among dream jobs—like astronaut, rock star, or professional sports player—kids cite on their what-I'd-like-to-be-when-I-grow-up list. Yet it wasn't this alum's lifelong goal.

"The seed was planted a long time ago," says Hepting, when as a kid she saw dolphins in Pensacola, Fla. "But I didn't really realize it was a real job you can have."

A New Orleans native, Hepting moved north to attend Boston University, where she majored in psychology. Her first job out of college was as a receptionist, but for a long time she'd considered graduate school to train as a therapist. In 2001, she earned a master's degree in social work from Simmons College and then worked for two years as an adolescent psychiatric social worker at Dorchester's Caritas Carney Hospital.

On a whim, she started volunteering at the New England Aquarium in its animal interaction programs. "The training of animals is very similar to kids learning how to not do a particular behavior," she says. Within a couple of years, she was a full-time staff member responsible for the care and training of Atlantic harbor seals, northern fur seals, and California sea lions.

She found out about the Navy's San Diego program from former aquarium colleagues, who urged her to apply. She has been at the Point Loma base since September 2008.

The Navy facility is home to 80 bottle-nosed dolphins and 26 California sea lions trained to work in one of three areas: underwater mine detection, identification and retrieval of underwater objects, and a diver defense program like the one demonstrated in San Francisco.

Hepting trains baby sea lions, which are all male, weigh about 80 pounds, and come from places like SeaWorld Orlando or rescue and rehabilitation facilities. Under her guidance, they get used to people brushing their teeth, checking their mouths and eyes, and drawing blood. They also become accustomed to everyday activities around the naval base, like riding on boats, walking on docks, and swimming around piers or vessels.

Once they master these skills, sea lions move on to train as aqua cops or experts in detecting and tagging submerged objects. (Only the bottle-nosed dolphins are trained to identify underwater mines.) They are perfect candidates for the job, considering they can dive several hundred feet, see well in low light, and have acute directional hearing underwater.

Sea lions in the diver defense program patrol piers to identify suspicious swimmers. Once a swimmer is spotted, the sea lions speed back to their handlers' boat and touch their nose to a paddle indicating a find. Trainers then give them a bite plate with a leg clamp attached. Within seconds, sea lions return to the intruder, affix the clamp, and book it back to the boat. "It's very quick," says Ann Dakis, a public affairs specialist at the base. "They're in and out before you even know what happens." Authorities in a nearby boat haul up the suspect by an attached cable.

Dakis can't say how many arrests sea lions have made, only that they have a "100 percent success" rate. They were deployed with the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command in Manama, Bahrain, from 2003 to 2005 and are currently stationed at the Naval Submarine Base in King's Bay, Ga.

Sea lions are also trained to identify fake bombs dropped by Air Force pilots during training exercises. They can either flag them to test pilot accuracy or attach a clamp to the device so it can be removed from the ocean floor.

Each time sea lions perform a task correctly they get a pat and their favorite treat—fish. Hepting calls the snack a reinforcement, not a reward. "We don't want to indicate that they're doing something wrong," she explains. "We're the ones that need to communicate the behavior we're looking for."

Some critics regard the training program as animal cruelty, a claim Hepting and Dakis strongly refute. Specially trained Navy divers perform all dangerous aspects of mine identification and removal. And most sea lions under the military's care live 30 years in and around San Diego Bay, longer than they would in the wild.

"The Navy is committed to caring for them their entire lives, even if they're not working," says Hepting, who is a Navy contractor, but does not serve in the armed forces.

If playing with and training baby sea lions sounds like a good gig, Hepting has advice on how to get there. Find an interesting marine mammal facility, start as an intern or volunteer, and apply for open jobs. Many places hire from within.

And yes, Hepting gets paid for this: "Animal training is a real job."

Leslie Friday can be reached at lfriday@bu.edu.

Tomorrow "Changing Lanes" looks at a one-time COM aspiring filmmaker who is now brewmaster at one of 1,700 craft breweries in the United States. Read more about body painter Diane Spadola (GSM'86).

“Terry Fyke is a 'Woman to Watch' - RocNow” plus 1 more

2011-02-28T15:17:00.001-08:00

“Terry Fyke is a 'Woman to Watch' - RocNow” plus 1 more

Terry Fyke is a 'Woman to Watch' - RocNow

Posted: 28 Feb 2011 02:06 AM PST

Leah Stacy
Living – February 28, 2011 - 5:00am

Terry Fyke wasn't raised to be a dancer.

In fact, she didn't receive her first dance lesson until the eighth grade — the same year Fyke's father accepted a job offer from Kodak and the family relocated from Philadelphia to Rochester.

Though Fyke was a quick study on the dance floor, she never intended to pursue a career in performance. Fyke's love for science and math prompted her to begin college as a biology/psychology major. However, Fyke continued to land numerous dance opportunities. Soon, she was studying dance at the State University of New York College at Brockport and finished her degrees in dance and musical theater at Empire State College.

In 1995, she opened Terry Fyke Studio of Dance & Arts in Scottsville. The studio offers dance and theater programs for preschool through adult and launches annual performances and workshops in Orlando (Disney World, Universal Studios) and New York City.

In addition to her studio, Fyke teaches four classes per week in the Wellness Center at the Rochester Institute of Technology.

Personal: 49, married with four children, lives in Scottsville.

Occupation: Founder and artistic director of Terry Fyke Studio of Dance & Arts LLC, adjunct professor of dance at Rochester Institute of Technology.

Community activities: Member of the Programming and Creative Arts teams at The Father's House church in Chili; choreographer and director for local schools and theater companies.

My favorite thing to do in Rochester: Go to the theater or have coffee with friends.

Biggest challenge I've overcome and how I did it: Having my own business is a continual challenge, but God has surrounded me with the right people at the right time. I have learned to utilize and accept help in the areas that I need it.

If I could change one thing about myself it would be: I would've gone into comedy because life is so funny.

One of my favorite sayings is: Don't burn any bridges you may have to cross later.

A person who has inspired me (and why): My parents — their commitment to each other, God, family and careers.

100 Best Jobs for Moms - Huffington Post (blog)

Posted: 28 Feb 2011 01:14 AM PST

Looking for a new gig? We've got 100 family-friendly jobs for you to consider when you head back to the grind. While it's rare that a job would meet all of our mom-positive requirements, the goal was to hit as many as possible.

We're highlighting jobs that don't have you scrambling for a babysitter on a regular basis and jobs that aren't more stressful than four months of 4 A.M. feedings. Big points for jobs that don't take you out on the road and jobs that don't have blatant pay discrimination (even though all jobs still don't pay equally for men and women). Finally, jobs that are meaningful could trump all of the above, because some people need a really, really, good reason to do something that takes time away from the kids.

You'll see that some of these "fun" jobs mainly meet the "low stress" criteria, which we think is massively important to your work-life balance.

Find your new career today, within these 100 best jobs for moms:

Interior Designer. If you have a way with frames, fabric and fabulousness, working for yourself as an interior designer is a great way to take control of your time while making the world (or at least wealthy people's homes) a more beautiful place.
Homeopath. You don't have to be a hippie to appreciate a non-Western approach to medicine. Being a homeopath means you'll always have a remedy for cold and flu season and can keep your community healthy and happy.
Landscape Architect. Want to create a yard fit for House Beautiful? Working as a landscape architect can be the ultimate green job and mom job. Get zen working with inanimate objects all day instead of people.
Life Coach. People change careers, spouses and zip codes like they change their underwear these days. Be the grounded guide for those confused souls and make a pretty penny while doing so.
Organic Farm Manager. Starting an organic farm is a heck of a lot of work, but in this growing field you'll be able to put your management skills to use by running the day-to-day operations while letting the farmers spend the long hours in the field.
Day Care Center Operator/Employee. Assuming your child is the right age for day care, this is one of those jobs where you can get paid to take care of your child (okay, and several others) all day. Patience is a must, but as a mom, you already know that.
Sonogram Technician. Remember that happy sono tech at your OB/Gyn's office who told you that you were having a girl? That could be you! In a fast-growing field, sonogram technicians are in need, and not just for baby identifying. But that's the fun part.
Market Research Analyst. Take your marketing or psychology degree and get inside the heads of American consumers and make money with that information. Sounds a little like you're a spy, right?
Lactation Consultant/Doula. Moms helping other moms during one of the most important times in her life is one of the most rewarding jobs out there, and someday it will (hopefully) be covered by health insurance.
City Planner. A great city job for the organized mind, you must be able to deal with red tape. But if you can handle bureaucracy, the benefits of a government job coupled with the fun of having all those little models in your office will be awesome.
Bank Teller. They don't call them banker's hours for nothin'! Roll quarters, use your superior math skills, learn a thing or two about interest rates and call it a day.
IT Support. You don't have to be a dude to be "that weird person in IT." If you can geek out with the best of them, there will be plenty of tech jobs for a mom to call her own.
Photographer. Weddings, bar mitzvahs, pet birthdays -- these are all things you can capture on film and make memories for your clients, and cash money for you.
Web Developer. Everybody has a website, and you can be the person to make them pretty and functional. Do your job right and your mad web skills will be in demand all over town.
C.E.O.. Run things!
Acupuncturist. Sticking needles in people may sound like your aggression is getting the better of you, but this non-Western solution to chronic pain, and long-term health is a cool way to earn a living.
Technical Writer. Making people understand science, technology and other smart talk is the job of the technical writer. Steady writing work can be yours. No, really!
Human Resources Manager. Being in a position where you can help sculpt your company's personnel policies is an advantageous place to be for a mom. Use your power wisely and all moms will be rewarded.
Marketing and Sales Managers. If you don't know a mom who is in marketing or sales, you know someone who knows someone. Selling and making people want to buy is cake for moms who convince toddlers to eat vegetables on a daily basis.
Registered Nurse. Pretend you're on "Grey's Anatomy" and romanticize your day job. But don't forget that nurses are in high demand, and you can potentially make your own hours here. So you'll have more time to watch "Grey's Anatomy."
Nutritionist. Teaching people how to be healthy is a growth industry. Luckily, most people have to be reminded over, and over and over again, so your clients will be endless.
Publicist. One mom told me this was the perfect job, which makes me think she works for James Franco. Regardless, a job working in P.R. is always interesting, whether you're pushing new baby gear or Broadway shows.
Personal Trainer. Is there anyone more bad ass than a mom who's also kicking your butt into shape? That could be you.
Custom Furniture Builder. Set up your wood shop and get crafty. Custom made furniture is super hot right now, and if you can't find a boutique to allow you to sell your wares, there's always Etsy.
Movie Star. From what we've seen, being a movie star is a pretty great mom gig. Taking your kid to work with you, having a fleet of nannies, and a personal trainer to get you back in shape. So why don't we all just do that? Okay? Okay.
Etsy Seller/Artist. Now is your chance to market your wall hangings, t-shirt dresses, artsy photographs or bookshelves (see above) and actually make some cash. The one-of-a-kind market is yours to dominate. Just don't forget to put a bird on it.
Hairstylist. Making people pretty and letting them spill their secrets while sitting in your chair is a great way to spend the day. Plus, free family haircuts!
Retail Sales. Jobs are plentiful in the retail sector. Just make sure you grab a position at a store where the employee discount will greatly improve your life. We're talking Target and Anthropologie, people.
Pharmacist. Put those chemistry classes to work, and get a job behind the counter of your local drug store. Regular hours in health care with a good paycheck equals great mom job.
Freelance Writer. If your goal is more flexibility while being able to express yourself creatively, you could do worse than freelance writing (says the freelance writer). The other benefit is, of course, no daily commute to work.
Pediatrician. Who doesn't love the pediatrician? Rather than toiling away in the E.R., use your medical school education to work in a practice where everyone understands when you have to stay at home with a sick kid.
Teacher. Summer breaks, early days that match your child's schedule, and all of those adorable Christmas presents. Who says being a teacher isn't rewarding anymore?
Social Media Expert. Moms know how to connect. We get creative about keeping our social groups together before we have kids, and after, we have to become experts just to maintain our friendships. Becoming an expert in this growing field means you can use that marketing degree while staying on top of the industry trends.
Financial Planner. Working with other people's money is not only fun, it's lucrative and can help you keep your eye on the prize: early retirement and a fat college fund.
Yoga Instructor. Hang out at a yoga studio and find out how to become one of those uber-flexible instructors you're in awe of. You'll be so blissed out at the end of the day you won't notice the spaghetti on the wall.
Social Worker. Choose your field wisely if you don't want to take too much of your work home with you. (Although, who are we kidding? don't we all do this?) A way to help people through research, clinical work or many other creative ways, social work can be incredibly rewarding, not to mention fascinating.
Librarian. Don't forget your sexy librarian glasses when you're organizing the stacks. Just be sure you get up to date on the digital revolution that's putting Dewey to shame.
Plumber. Ladies can clear a drain as easily as the next guy, so don't dismiss a high-paying, be-your-own-boss gig because of your gender. This gig is especially rewarding if you like to show off your butt crack.
Party Planner. While not everyone is Martha Stewart (thank God, right?), we've all had to organize an event, or step in to help out at a fundraiser. Why not put those mom skills to work and create a unique style that clients can only get from you?
Real Estate Agent. Yes, the housing market is in the toilet. So now is the time to get your real estate license so you can take advantage of that upswing that's coming. It's coming, right?
Clergy. Let's just assume you practice a religion that approves of women in the pulpit.
Graphic Designer. We all know at least one graphic designer in the mom group. Of course, these moms often have a side business of cute onesies they sell on Etsy. But real money can come your way if you pimp yourself out to the right corporation. I hear The Gap needs help.
Conservationist. Protecting wildlife and land is a noble pursuit and one you can turn into teachable moments every day of your children's lives. Barring any natural disasters, this is a job that won't have you burning the midnight oil.
Parks Supervisor. Channel your inner Leslie Knope and keep the parks clean and beautiful for your family and the extended community. Plus, you'll know where all the good parking is when you go on a weekend outing.
Meteorologist. You might not be home during snow days, but the rest of the year this on-air gig can be a pretty sweet. Rather than running out every time Lindsay Lohan gets arrested, meteorologists do their work in the office and on a regular schedule. For a position with minimal drama, move to Southern California.
Fashion Designer. How many moms do we need to see on Project Runway before we realize you can be creatively employed at any stage of your life? But even if you're not going for a runway show during Fashion Week, there are many items of off-the-rack clothing that need designing -- without the crazy hours and even crazier personalities.
Private Detective. Moms already have two eyes on the backs of their heads, making this a super fun job. And you'll know all the dirt about your neighbors! Just avoid the violent crime cases so you can make it home for dinner every night.
Community Organizer. Say what you will, Sarah Palin -- working to improve your community is a noble goal, and one that will benefit you and your family directly. But realize you're just a few steps away from politician, which is not exactly family-friendly.
Telephone Operator. This modern version of a "lady's job" can still work for moms. Perhaps not as fun as the days of yore when you could eavesdrop on your neighbors, but it's much less taxing than when women had to plug away at the switchboard.
Construction. Learn to operate a forklift, or just keep those burly construction workers in line by managing the work site. Either way, wolf whistles can boost your post-baby self-esteem.
Personal Shopper. Calling all fashionista moms! Yes, this is a real job. Check your department stores for job listings and start spending other people's money!
Biological Technician. Always had a taste for science, but skipped all those extra years of post-graduate work? Helping out with science experiments will satisfy your inner sixth grader, while earning you a healthy salary.
Fundraiser. Raising money for a good cause can put a decent amount of money into your bank account as well. Find something you're passionate about, so your enthusiasm becomes contagious and wallet-opening.
EBay Seller. If you enjoy cleaning out your garage, hitting yard sales and flea markets and then turning a profit, then get yourself set up on eBay and start reaping the financial reward. I do actually know people who make a living this way, and if you're a computer-savvy mom, you're already halfway there to your work-at-home dream job.
Professional Organizer. In addition to the fact that you're going to need to get your home in order once the extra people come to live with you, learning how to whip other people into shape for a living is a good gig. Just wait for the thank-you cards calling you a genius to come rolling in.
School Administrator. Fulfill your teenage dream of being the boss of everyone and work on the other side of the desk at school. If you go private, never underestimate the value of the tuition break.
Accountant. You may learn to hate the month of April, but the rest of the year you'll be sitting pretty, counting your (and everyone else's) money.
Court Reporter. If you're a "Law and Order" addict, this is your dream job. Documenting all the action in court will be an eye-opening education and give you plenty of things to discuss with your partner over dinner.
DJ/Party Performer. You knew that huge record collection would come in handy someday, and that day is now! Rent yourself and your rig out for parties and keep your weekdays free for hanging with your own tiny party people. Alternately, if you have a special face-painting, hair braiding or tea party skill set, now is the time to bring your talent to the kid-party circuit.
Political or Social Activist. If you find yourself often chanting, "Hell no, we won't go!" and signing petitions, this is the gig for you. Expect to work as a volunteer at first, but working your way up to ass-kicker-in-chief could soon follow.
Used Car Salesperson. Not only for the mustachioed men anymore, selling cars is fast becoming women's work. If you can convince a toddler to keep his hat on, you can convince an adult to get behind the wheel of a performance automobile.
Executive Recruiter. Got a nose for talent? Helping other people find jobs is a career in growing demand. Once you've established a reputable Rolodex (virtual, these days), you will be sought after as well.
Mortgage Loan Officer. Yes, people are still getting mortgages, and they need people to help them through the process. Become an honest one and help the world, as you help your family budget.
Game Developer. Impress the kids with your resume when they're old enough to play Xbox Live (or whatever the must-have game console is in the future). Also the perfect way to show your parents that all that time with the Nintendo was not wasted.
Dog Walker. Not just a job for college students anymore, you can rack up some latte money while the kids are in school and you're just hanging with your fur babies.
Paralegal. Working in law without having to rack up the billable hours -- that's a good mom job for the legally inclined, but time deficient.
Hypnotherapist. Just think about how sleepy you can make your own kids at bedtime after learning this skill.
Dance Instructor. Before you hang up your toe shoes, consider what you can give back to your local community. From ball room to ballet, you can make the world a more graceful place for only a few hours per week.
Handwriting Analyst. Help solve crimes while learning about your (creepy) fellow man. Also, this will help you figure out what's up when your children start leaving you notes with excuses as to why they didn't get home until after curfew.
College Professor. Be all intellectual and stuff while educating the youth of the world. Again, did you say "tuition break"?
Shop Owner. When you're the boss, every day is Take Your Daughter to Work Day. Whether you want to sell greeting cards or door knobs, being your own boss rules.
Historian. If you've always wanted to write a book that teenagers will moan about having to read, appear as a talking head on The History Channel or simply learn what makes this world tick, satisfy your curiosity as a historian. Even though you'll probably get a lot of blank stares as you explain the age of European colonialism, one day your children will thank you for the in-home education.
Baker. If you have a partner who can take the morning shift, why not start your day with pastries and end it in the early afternoon? Or open your own bakery (see benefits above under 'Shop Owner'), and serve your community while creating nom-noms.
Actuary. If you've got a head for statistics, your local insurance company needs you to assess risks and calculate losses. Not the most exciting field, but with your home life completely full, that's a good thing.
Music Teacher. If you can teach the local kids how to play "Beethoven's 9th," you'll be the most fulfilled lady on the block (in addition to the little one's moms, of course). Whether your specialty is violin, guitar or a variety of percussion instruments, teaching music out of your home is a rewarding and flexible gig many a mom would envy.
Administrative Assistant. Four words: You're not the boss. Which means you can take care of your business during work hours, and leave it at the office. Some industries offer significant pay for administrative duties (including bonuses), so do your research and prepare to set up your cubicle with adorable photos of the kids.
Matchmaker. Don't you want everyone else to end up happily ever after with 2.5 children, just like you? Start studying the masters, and become a Yenta for the singles in your area.
Artisan Candy Maker. In addition to being the most popular mom on the block, your sweet treats will go over super duper well at the farmers' market.
S.E.O. Specialist. Jump on the Internet bandwagon and just wait for the calls for your services to come in. Once you know something that no one else does and everyone wants to know, you can pick and choose clients while taking care of business at home. Be prepared to stay up on the latest tech trends, as search engine optimization tactics can -- and do -- change frequently.
Veterinarian. The job you dreamed of as a little girl can be yours. Keeping family pets or big livestock healthy is admirable and adorable.
Film Editor. A well-paying behind-the-scenes job can be yours. Establish yourself as a go-to editor, and you'll be the first one in town to learn what "Inception" really means.
Recipe Developer. A dream job for the foodie or aspiring chef, many cookbooks and websites need people to test, re-test and perfect recipes for publication. If this sounds like a great way to keep you and your family nourished -- it is.
Children's Book Author. Your market research is right in front of you, so if you've got a way with words, now could be the time to jump into children's book authorship. Bonus if you've got artistic talent and create your own illustrations.
Feng Shui Consultant. This job works especially well if you're on the West Coast, but there are people who want to fix their feng shui all over the country. Study the art of organization and flow, and make many a happy home.
Medical Records Technician. I know one single mom who makes her living in this high-demand job and still has time to always pick up her son from school and have an active social life. Yeah, that's a good gig.
Makeup Artist. Whether it's for film, advertisements or ladies who lunch, being a makeup artist can allow you to book your own clients and therefore create your own schedule. You'll also develop the skills to always look like you're not exhausted, thanks to the magic of makeup.
Musical Instrument Repairer. Take note, music aficionados and handy ladies! This has been voted the least stressful job. You can also work from your own home and make your own hours. Some after-bedtime violin stringing can also help your zen state of mind.
Dental Hygienist. Just make sure you can negotiate time off if your next pregnancy results in crazy morning sickness. Inside someone's mouth is not where you want to be when the nausea arrives. But this high-paying and in-demand job can be a great family-friendly find.
Industrial Designer. Ever wonder who designed the Target prescription bottle? It could be you, if you have a knack for creating useful and pleasing products for industrial and consumer use. This is one of those obscure, but plentiful, jobs that you never actually realized people did.
Data Entry. If you want to just type and leave all your brain function for your little ones, there is much work to be had in data entry. The typist job of yore, you can do this job from home (in fact, it's preferable if you do), and type away after the kids are in bed, or during naptime.
Tour Guide. Show off your town to tourists during the day, and come home satisfied that you live a truly interesting life at night. Where personality and a love of local history go hand-in-hand, this is a job that the right person can turn into a dream job. Knowledge of multiple languages a must.
Office Manager. If you run a tight ship at home, you'll be a perfect fit to run the office world as well. While you may receive the occasional after-hours call about the coffee maker, it's definitely a job you can compartmentalize... you know, as long as you don't have one of those crazy bosses. Good luck with that.
Customer Service. You can't search the job listings without seeing multiple calls for customer service representatives. Good natured, effective customer service people are hard to find, and if you've got the knack for making (sometimes irritated) customers happy, you'll find yourself gainfully employed for a very long time.
Appraiser. Whether it's real estate or antiques, if you have the know-how and background in this field, you can set yourself up with a part- or full-time job that works with your life. Knowing the value of things will also help you and your children in life, as well as work.
Baby Wrangler. If you live in a town with a television industry, chances are there are commercials being shot with adorable babies. A fun, very part-time job is that of the baby wrangler -- yep, the glorified babysitter who makes sure the babies stay on their marks, don't drool too much for the shot and are happy. Sounds fun, right?
Barista. You know your coffee consumption has gone up dramatically since the babies have arrived, so why not make a career out of enjoying the joe? Some companies even offer health insurance benefits to those behind the green apron.
Translator. If you majored in any other language and have always wondered how to put that precise knowledge to work, hit up your local court house, police station, publication house; anyone who requires some English translation when a foreign tongue comes their way.
Dog Breeder. Breeding healthy, happy, registered dogs is a great way to work from home and make sure unethical practices like puppy mills have some real competition. And you'll always have a furry friend to keep you company after you've got that empty nest.
Entrepreneur. If you can dream it, you can do it. What's that fabulous invention you've been doodling on napkins for years? Or the idea for a business that you can't seem to let go of, no matter how many excuses you make? Now is the time to create the job you want, instead of the job you have to have.
Blogger. We all know mommy bloggers have taken over the (virtual) world, and some are even creating their own media empire. Starting pay is a negative, but the joy of cataloging the events in your mom-world, the conventions made just for you, and the stress-relief of knowing how many other moms out there are just like you make it a super popular mom job.

What do you think is the best job for moms?

***

Written by April Peveteaux for CafeMom's blog, The Stir.

Follow The Stir on Twitter: www.twitter.com/The_Stir

“ECU Notes: 50-year career honored - Greenville Daily Reflector” plus 1 more

2011-02-27T15:16:00.001-08:00

“ECU Notes: 50-year career honored - Greenville Daily Reflector” plus 1 more

ECU Notes: 50-year career honored - Greenville Daily Reflector

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 06:35 AM PST

Over the course of his fifty years at East Carolina University, Floyd Mattheis has worked to change the face of science education. To celebrate his dedication to the College of Education and his contributions to the profession, the college hosted an event in his honor Feb. 17 at Brook Valley Country Club.

"I feel very honored to have worked at ECU for such a long time," Mattheis said. "During that period I have worked with many wonderful colleagues and students. I'm continuing to work at ECU with the Summer Ventures program because I'm inspired by the outstanding faculty, residence life staff and students in this great and unique program."

During his tenure at ECU, Mattheis has impacted the lives of students, faculty members and the surrounding community, his colleagues said.

At the beginning of his career, Mattheis directed summer science experiences for children in grades three through 12, exposing thousands of children to science education, outdoor-based science living and learning experiences as well as ECU's campus, science faculty and facilities. He sought financial assistance for those who could not afford to attend.

As the chairman of the Department of Science Education (now the Department of Mathematics, Science and Instructional Technology Education), he helped jump-start the careers of many new science teachers by actively engaging them in national research on science teaching, including them on national, regional, and state presentations and supporting their professional development. Many of his former students are now leaders across the country in curriculum, higher education and public education.

Mattheis believes strongly in public education and worked diligently to ensure mathematics and science teachers received high quality, sustained professional development as the director of the ECU Science and Mathematics Center (now the Center for Science, Mathematics and Technology Education).

Mattheis continues to serve as director of the Summer Ventures in Science and Mathematics, a free enrichment program for academically motivated high school students potentially interested in a career in science or mathematics.

His commitment to superior science education opportunities for U.S. students led to his active participation in the development of the National Science Standards. His work and untiring dedication to science education has resulted in many awards and honors during his time at ECU, including the National Science Teachers Association Distinguished Service to Science Education award in 1991 and the Robert H. Carleton Award for National Leadership in the Field of Science Education in 1996.

Mattheis and his wife, Pauline, created an endowment in 1997 that funds scholarships for upper level students with a 3.0 GPA who are majoring in science education. Nine students have been awarded the scholarship to date.

Susan Ganter, chairwoman of the Department of Mathematics, Science and Instructional Technology Education, said, "In his 50 years at ECU, he has truly made a difference — in the programs, in the university, and most importantly, in the people he has touched. It was important for us to recognize Dr. Mattheis, a man who truly embodies the Pirate spirit."

Poet to read her work at ECU

Poet Lavonne Adams will present a public reading of her original work on Monday at ECU.

Adams, who teaches in the MFA program at UNC-Wilmington, is the author of three award-winning poetry collections, including "Through the Glorieta Pass," which won the 2007 Pearl Poetry Prize.

Adams also published "Everyday Still Life" in 1999, which won the Persephone Poetry Book Award, and "In the Shadow of the Mountain" in 2004, which won the Randall Jarrell/Harperprints Poetry Chapbook Competition. Both were published by the North Carolina Writers' Network.

Adams' teaching interests also include the use of research in writing poetry, a kind of poetry for which she has a fascination. Prior to her reading, she will be talking to graduate students in ECU's Creative Writing Program about her uses of research in her poetry.

Adams' reading will begin at 8 p.m. in Bate Building Room 1028. Admission is free, and parking restrictions around Bate will be lifted for this event.

To read a selection of Adams' poetry: http://uncw.edu/writers/faculty_lavonne.html For more information, contact Alex Albright, director of creative writing at ECU, at 328-4876.

Twins head back to ECU together

Often graduate students pursue degrees in the same field of study as their undergraduate degrees; not so for May 2009 ECU graduates Mekara and Natara Bryant.

The twin sisters graduated from ECU in May 2009 with undergraduate degrees in psychology and management information systems, respectively, and are pursuing master's degrees in the software engineering program at the College of Technology and Computer Science at ECU.

Soon after graduation, Mekara said she realized she wanted to head back to school. After researching the top-paid master's degree careers, she found that software engineers were at the top of the list.

Convincing her twin Natara to join her in pursing a graduate degree in software engineering was a challenge, since Natara was planning to pursue a different program. It would take weeks, but Mekara won out.

"I told my sister, society has already concluded that we are against the odds of being successful in this program for a variety of reasons: we're females, we're African-American, and I didn't have the computer science-related background," said Mekara. "But as I saw it, your background does not always determine success, but by how hard you're willing to work and your attitude."

Mekara also knew persuading a software engineering program to accept her, as a candidate with a degree in psychology, would be a long shot. But then she met with M. Nasseh Tabrizi, professor of computer science and director of the program, who listened to Mekara and offered advice about applying to graduate school.

Although both sisters admitted that the program is difficult, their hard work and determination has paid off. Both sisters earned A's and B's in all classes. In May, they will graduate with a master's degree in software engineering.

"I knew that with a strong belief in ourselves, we could excel at anything we put our minds to," Natara said. "Our parents, Alphonzo and Alice Bryant, instilled that in us."

Tabrizi and David White, dean of the College of Technology and Computer Science, said that they could not be prouder of the sisters' accomplishments.

"This is what our college is all about, creating opportunities to give all a chance who want to achieve their goals," White said. "Our hope is that other students will read this story and become inspired to achieve their dream too."

Upcoming Events:

Sunday-Tuesday: "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," presented by the ECU School of Theatre and Dance, continues through Tuesday in McGinnis Theatre. Ticketed event. Purchase tickets online at www.ECUARTS.com or by phone 1-800-ECU-ARTS.

Thursday: Screening of "Awake, My Soul: The Story of the Sacred Harp," 8 p.m., Speight Auditorium in the Jenkins Fine Arts Center. Matt Hinton, producer/director, will discuss the film after its screening. Part of the Southern Circuit, tour of independent filmmakers. Free for ECU students; $5 general admission tickets.

See www.ecu.edu/cs-ecu/calendar.cfm for times, places and more information on these events and other ECU upcoming activities.

Chili Bowl: Names are in the same order, left to right, for either Chili Bowl photo. You have a vertical and horizontal option.

Getting the skinny on height + pounds = salary - Dubuque Telegraph Herald

Posted: 27 Feb 2011 08:06 AM PST

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Getting the skinny on height + pounds = salary
Dubuque Telegraph Herald
I recently wrote about a study published in the Journal of Applied Psychology; research that found heavier women and thinner men earn less than their co-workers. The study included many statistical formulas, the kind of thing ...

“GWINNETT GRADS: Davidson's Castle, Droll close college careers in style - Gwinnettdailypost.com” plus 1 more

2011-02-26T15:18:00.001-08:00

“GWINNETT GRADS: Davidson's Castle, Droll close college careers in style - Gwinnettdailypost.com” plus 1 more

GWINNETT GRADS: Davidson's Castle, Droll close college careers in style - Gwinnettdailypost.com

Posted: 25 Feb 2011 06:19 PM PST

As he finished the final meet of his competitive swimming career last weekend, Bryan Droll admitted it was a little surreal. He was satisfied, but a little sad to see it come to a close in what felt like a short span of time.

Luckily the Peachtree Ridge grad had a close friend to share in the experience. Davidson College (N.C.) swimming teammate Emily Castle, a Grayson grad, is his girlfriend.

Both swimmers did their best to make sure their last meet was a good one, putting up excellent performances at the Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association Championships. It was an enjoyable ending to a journey that began when Castle, upon meeting Droll at Davidson's post-high school summer orientation, talked him into walking on to the swim team.

"I asked her about the swim team and she said, 'Actually we could use a few guys,'" said Droll, who just began dating Castle seven months ago. "We had 13 guys my freshman year and you need 18 for a full lineup. Now we have 20, so we've gotten bigger."

That growth is another source of pride for Droll, who led Davidson to its second straight CCSA team title.

The senior repeated as conference champion in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 20.46 seconds, was second in the 100 free (45.78) and swam on first-place 200 free, 400 free and 400 medley relays. He capped an impressive career despite never swimming year-round as a youngster, and only swimming two seasons of high school.

"I was definitely satisfied with the meet and the career as a whole," said Droll, who graduates in May with a psychology major and an economics minor. "Coming in as a walk-on, I had no expectations. I did my best times in all my events, won the 50 free and won as a team, which being a captain of the team, was really important to me."

Castle also made great strides during her college career. Her best 100 buttefly time is nearly six seconds faster than her bests during high school.

She won the CCSA 100 fly title last weekend in 54.46 seconds, taking the event for the third straight year. She added solid efforts in the 50 free (third, 23.42) and 100 free (fourth, 51.96), while swimming on championship 200 free and 400 free relays. The Davidson women finished as conference runner-up.

"I'm pretty happy with it," said Castle, who graduates in May with a degree in anthropology and a concentration in environmental studies. "I had a good last meet. As far as the whole college experience, I improved a lot on my times. And the amount of improvement was even more than I expected."

Several Gwinnett products from Gardner-Webb (N.C.) also fared well at the CCSA championship meet. Parkview grads George Partin (fourth in 100 free and 200 free), Collin Burchins (fourth in 100 breaststroke and 200 breast) and Elizabeth Charter (fifth in 100 free) had high finishes, as did teammate and Brookwood grad Anna Springer (fourth in 100 breast).

BASKETBALL

Fast break
North Gwinnett grad Abby Slocumb, a freshman at Georgia College and State University, had a career-high 13 points and nine rebounds on Wednesday night in a 60-45 win over Montevallo. ... Norcross grad Tiffany Clarke had 22 points and 10 rebounds last Sunday, but it wasn't enough as Vanderbilt lost 80-71 to Kentucky.

South Gwinnett grad Javonte Maynor scored 21 points, on 7 of 10 shooting from 3-point range, Wednesday night in Georgia State's loss to William and Mary. ... Dacula's Brian Cole scored 15 points in UNC-Greensboro's loss last weekend to Elon. ... GCSU's Reece Wiedeman, a Greater Atlanta Christian grad, had 23 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks in last weekend's win over Columbus State. Brookwood grad Nate Hamilton added 12 points and three steals off the bench.

SOFTBALL

Locals help UGA to first No. 1 ranking
Georgia's fastpitch softball team got its first-ever No. 1 ranking in the latest USA Today/National Fastpich Coaches Association top-25 poll released this week. The Bulldogs went 5-0 to win the Georgia Softball Classic last weekend, winning all of their games by the run rule and leading to the top ranking.

North Gwinnett grad Brianna Hesson had a three-run homer in the first inning of Sunday's 13-4 championship game win over N.C. State, while Buford grad Ashley added an RBI single in the second inning. In last Saturday's win over Marshall, Hesson was 2-for-3 with three RBIs and a solo homer, while Shiloh grad Megan Wiggins was 2-for-4 with three RBIs and two-run homer

Razey was the star of last Friday's win over Buffalo when she went 3-for-3 with two homers, a double and four RBIs. Her 10 total bases tied a school record.

Wiggins was a combined 5-for-8 with two doubles, a triple and five RBIs in Friday's games, while Hesson was 4-for-8 with two doubles and four RBIs.

Hit-and-run
Collins Hill grad Sam Lenahan, a freshman catcher at Mississippi State, hit a two-out, two-strike, walk-off home run last weekend in a victory over Southern Illinois. Lenahan is hitting .364 with a team-high three homers and eight RBIs. ... Norcross grad Heidi Shape, a teammate of Lenahan at Mississippi State, is hitting .316 and is tied with Lenahan for the team lead with three homers. She also has a team-best 16 RBIs, nine more than her closest teammate. ... Grayson grad Amanda Hutcheson went 3-for-3 last weekend in Ole Miss' loss to Indiana, part of a four-hit weekend. The Rebels' Brittany Broome, a North Gwinnett grad, is hitting .409.

BASEBALL

Hit-and-run
Brookwood grad Ross Heffley was 5-for-5 with two doubles and five RBIs last Saturday, leading Western Carolina to a rout of Morehead State. He earned Southern Conference player of the week honors on Monday after batting .750 in his team's three-game sweep. ... Collins Hill grad Daniel Warzon delivered a clutch, two-out single in the bottom of the ninth last Saturday to give North Georgia a 4-3 win over Millersville. His hit brought home teammate Kenny Bellavance, a Parkview grad who led off the inning with a double. Warzon, in his first pitching appearance for North Georgia, earned the victory in Sunday's series finale after two innings of work with no earned runs.

Buford's Josh Rudnik, a sophomore at Young Harris, had a huge weekend against Saint Augustine's College, beginning with a complete-game pitching victory (allowing just two earned runs and six hits) last Saturday. He then went 4-for-4 Sunday with a home run and four RBIs, giving him the team lead in batting average (.400), homers (three) and RBIs (15).

GOLF

Shida gets league honor
Georgia College and State University senior Billy Shida, a Peachtree Ridge grad, was named the Peach Belt Conference golfer of the week on Monday.

Shida won last week's Matlock Collegiate Classic for his first career tournament victory. He shot 67, 69 and 69, marking the first time since 1995 a golfer at the Matlock tourney had posted three sub-70 rounds. His score helped GCSU to second in the team standings.

Rajek posts high finishes
Collins Hill grad Jackie Rajek has a pair of high finishes in her first spring season of college golf at Florida Southern.

The freshman tied for 10th (out of 50 players) and tied for 18th (out of 83) in the recent Lady Moc Classic. She shot 77, 77 and 80 in the most recent tourney.

TRACK AND FIELD

Vann on a roll for Buckeyes
Parkview grad Julian Vann, a freshman at Ohio State, posted a triple jump of 48 feet, 31⁄4 inches to place second at the GaReat Collegiate Invitational.

Vann, also a third-team cornerback on the Buckeyes' football team, placed fourth last month in the All-Ohio Indoor Championships with a leap of 45-8. He also was fourth at the Akron Invitational at 46-83⁄4.

Gwinnett Grads is a column that runs on Saturdays spotlighting the achievements of past Gwinnett standouts. Coaches and parents are urged to send suggestions via e-mail to will.hammock@gwinnettdailypost.com or via fax to 770-339-8081.

Latest Comments

Posted by: Linda Location: IN on Feb 26, 2011 at 01:21 PM

Congratulations, Emily. I am so proud of the woman you've become. I'm happy to be your aunt! I love you! Bryan, congrats to you, too!

Seniors explore new career paths - The Stanford Daily

Posted: 22 Feb 2011 02:07 AM PST

Many current seniors are branching out to different career paths after graduation, looking beyond Career Development Center (CDC) listings and career fairs in their job search.

"Students seem to be more open to alternative types of careers during a recession," CDC Director Lance Choy wrote in an e-mail to The Daily.

Choy noted that applications to Teach for America and the Peace Corps have increased in the last two years. But the most common way for students to find jobs is to use their personal networks, he said, stressing the importance of connecting with alumni.

Alli Stuppy '11, a psychology major who plans to pursue a career in clinical psychology, hopes to complete a research fellowship next year.

Stuppy said she was interested in clinical psychology, but hasn't had much exposure to it at Stanford.

"I don't really have the best idea of what clinical psychology entails from Stanford, which is more research oriented," Stuppy said.

She emphasized the importance of gaining research experience for those interested in pursuing graduate studies in psychology.

Chemical engineering major Abraham Berhane '11 hopes to secure an entry-level position at a pharmaceutical company. His long-term goal is to work in research and development in biotechnology.

"Right now I'm focusing on trying to find a job for next year," Berhane said. "A lot of [the search] has just been Googling top pharmaceutical companies in the area."

Berhane said he found positions despite the economic downturn. His professors often provided advice on where to look for openings.

Outside of the sciences, many industries have taken a hit in the economic downturn, among them entertainment and advertising, Choy said. But some students haven't been deterred from pursuing arts careers.

Juliann Ma '11, who is majoring in music and minoring in creative writing, hopes to continue her musical training and take a stab at a career as a concert pianist. She has applied for a Fulbright in Paris and to music schools on the East Coast.

"The most important thing for me is doing something I love," Ma said. "I would like to see how far my music career can go."

At the same time, Ma is well aware of the challenges that musicians seeking performance careers face.

"It takes a lot more than just training and performing," she said. "It has been in my considerations for a long time to get a job or something much more secure than being a concert artist.

"If that's what I'm good at, I should just try it," she added.

Olivia Haas '11, an English major, would eventually like to work in theater, film or television. For Haas, the first stop after graduation is the MFA Playwrights' Workshop at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

"The resources and connections through Stanford are actually pretty remarkable for someone with my interests," Haas said.

She emphasized the importance of being proactive and reaching out to potential employers. For Haas, one key resource was the Stanford Institute for Creativity and the Arts (SICA), through which she completed an internship with the Public Theater in New York last summer.

For students pursuing careers in the arts, flexibility is key, Haas said.

"I both enjoy and am terrified of the uncertainty and the unknowns," Haas said. "That's just part of the process."

“Indiana Welcomes Iowa on Senior Day - Indiana Athletics” plus 1 more

2011-02-25T15:22:00.001-08:00

“Indiana Welcomes Iowa on Senior Day - Indiana Athletics” plus 1 more

Indiana Welcomes Iowa on Senior Day - Indiana Athletics

Posted: 25 Feb 2011 01:02 PM PST

Seniors Jori Davis, Hope Elam, Whitney Lindsay and Andrea McGuirt will play their final game at Assembly Hall on Sunday at 2 p.m.

Feb. 25, 2011

IOWA (21-7, 9-6) vs. INDIANA (9-18, 3-12)
Date	Feb. 27, 2011
Time	2 p.m.
Location	Bloomington, Ind. (Assembly Hall)
Television	Big Ten Network Mike Wolf and Vera Jones
Radio	WHCC 105.1 FM Jeremy Gray, play-by-play
Promotions	National Girls and Women in Sports Day, come early to check out local business kiosks located around Assembly Hall. Tickets for the game are just $1 and the first 1,000 fans to arrive to the game will receive a free t-shirt. It's also Senior Day, and the seniors of the women's basketball program will be honored.
Tickets	IUHoosiers.com
Game Notes	Indiana Notes
Statistics	Indiana \| Iowa
Internet Coverage	GameTracker
Twitter	@IndianaWBB \| @rmsheets

THE OPENING TIP
Indiana welcomes Iowa to Assembly Hall on Sunday, Feb. 27 at 2 p.m. ET. The game will be aired live on the Big Ten Network with Mike Wolf and Vera Jones calling the action. The contest can also be heard on WHCC 105.1 FM with Jeremy Gray handling play-by-play. It is Senior Day in Bloomington as Jori Davis, Hope Elam, Whitney Lindsay and Andrea McGuirt will play their final game at home in an Indiana uniform. It is also National Girls and Women in Sports Day and all tickets are just $1. Local businesses will have booths set up throughout Assembly Hall for fans to check out before the game begins.

DID YOU KNOW?
• Sunday's game will be the final time that seniors Jori Davis, Hope Elam, Whitney Lindsay and Andrea McGuirt will play a game at home in Assembly Hall.
• Jori Davis sits alone in ninth place on Indiana all-time career scoring list with a 1,537 points. She passed Shirley Bryant (1992-95) with her 27 points at Michigan on Feb. 16. She is now five points shy of Jenny DeMuth (2002-06) who finished her career with 1,542 points and is currently eighth on the list.
• Davis is only the sixth player in school history to record 1,500 points, 500 rebounds and 200 assists during her Indiana career. Along with her point total, Davis has tallied 548 rebounds and 226 assists.
• Indiana has now had 15 games where it has tallied 10 or more steals in a game. The Hoosiers grabbed 14 steals at Wisconsin on Feb. 23 while forcing 20 Badger turnovers. The Hoosiers have forced 12 opposing teams this season into committing 20 or more mistakes. On the year, Indiana is averaging 9.8 steals per game, good for third-best in the Big Ten.

THE COACHES
IU head coach Felisha Legette-Jack is in her fifth year at Indiana and ninth year overall as a head coach. She has a career mark of 135-137 (.496) and is 81-74 (.523) at the Hoosier helm. Iowa's Lisa Bluder is in her 11th season guiding the Hawkeyes and in her 27th year as a head coach overall. Bluder has compiled a record of 210-130 (.618) during her during her tenure at Iowa and a 566-272 (.675) mark overall.

WHAT'S COMING UP
The Hoosiers will play in the Big Ten Tournament, which takes place in Indianapolis, March 3-6. Games will be played at Conseco Fieldhouse beginning on Thursday at 2 p.m. All 10 games of the tournament will be televised, with the first three days on the Big Ten Network and the championship game on ESPN2.

SCOUTING THE HAWKEYES
Iowa comes to Bloomington riding a four game win streak, winning the last three by 11 or more points in each contest. The Hawkeyes defeated Illinois in their last outing, 83-64, at home on Thursday night. Jaime Printy had herself a game going off for 32 points, hitting five 3-point field goals, with eight rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block. Kachine Alexander finished with 16 points and six boards. Kamille Wahlin added 11 points and Morgan Johnson finished with 10.

On the year, Printy leads Iowa in scoring with 16.0 ppg and leads the team in 3-point field goals made (62). Alexander adds 14.1 ppg and leads the team in rebounding at 9.4 rpg. Wahlin averages 12.7 ppg as Johnson scores 10.7 ppg and paces the team shooting 49.2 percent from the field.

As a team, Iowa averages 70.0 ppg which is good for third in the Big Ten. The Hawkeyes are also just one of three teams in the conference that grab 40 or more rebounds per game, as they average 40.5 rpg, ranking them third in the league.

INDIANA VS. IOWA, PART ONE
The Hoosiers and Badgers met once already this season in Iowa City on Jan. 16. Iowa outplayed Indiana and earned a 71-51 victory in the process. The Hoosiers forced 20 Iowa turnovers and held the Hawkeyes to just 36.4 percent shooting from the field. However, Indiana struggled offensively, hitting on only 25.5 percent of its shot attempts.

Alisha Goodwin led the way for Indiana with 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting, to tally her second-consecutive double-digit scoring game. Aulani Sinclair added 12 points as Jori Davis netted 10 to round out the double-figure scorers for IU.

THE SENIOR CLASS
Seniors Jori Davis, Hope Elam, Whitney Lindsay and Andrea McGuirt will play their final game in Assembly Hall against Iowa on Sunday. This group has combined to start 193 games in their careers at Indiana. During their senior campaign this year, this group has accounted for 68.2 percent of IU's total point production for the season and they all rank one through four in total steals on the season led by Lindsay's 62.

DAVIS PUTTING UP ALL-BIG TEN NUMBERS
Senior All-America and All-Big Ten candidate Jori Davis has put up some big time numbers all season long. In Indiana's last four games, Davis has scored 95 points (23.8 ppg) and is shooting 45.5 percent in those contests from the field and 90 percent (18-of-20) from the free throw line.

On the season, Davis leads the team averaging 19.1 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Her point total ranks her third in the Big Ten in scoring, as she ranks 16th in the conference in rebounding, eighth in assists (3.6 apg) and eighth in steals (1.9 spg).

In Big Ten games, Davis is tied for the conference lead in scoring with 20.5 points per game, and is 10th in assists (3.6 apg).

Davis has scored in double-figures in 26 of 27 games this season, including the last 17 consecutively. The senior has led the team in scoring in each of the last five contests and in 18 games overall this season.

JORI NOW NINTH ON ALL-TIME SCORING LIST
Davis keeps climbing the ladder on Indiana's career lists. With her 27 points at Michigan on Feb. 16 followed by her 17 at Wisconsin on Wednesday, the senior now sits alone in the No. 9 spot on IU's all-time career scoring list. She also ranks third all-time in career free throws made. Davis is also only the sixth player in school history to record over 1,500 points, 500 rebounds (548) and 200 assists (226) during her career Indiana.

Davis' career point total stands at 1,537. She surpassed Shirley Bryant's (1992-95) career total 1,503 during the Michigan game and Davis is five points shy of Jenny DeMuth's (2002-06) career mark of 1,542 for eighth place on the list.

Davis also has connected on 425 free throws as a Hoosier. She is 18 makes away from second on the list behind the best player in program history, Denise Jackson (1981-84).

DAVIS ECLIPSES 500 POINTS, AGAIN
Davis has now tallied 516 points this season during her senior campaign. That total ranks her No. 8 on IU's all-time single season scoring list and it is her second-consecutive season to eclipse the 500-point mark as she tallied 501 during the 2009-10 season.

Davis has also connected on 167 free throws this season, which is the second-highest mark for a single season in IU history. The leader in that category is Jenny DeMuth who hit 187 free throws during the 2003-04 campaign.

The senior is also knocking on the door for one of the best points per game averages in a single season in the Hoosier record books. Davis currently is averaging 19.1 ppg, which if she would finish the season with that total would rank her No. 4 all-time in points per game for a season.

Trio of record setters look toward OVC Track Indoor Championships - Tennessee Tech Oracle

Posted: 25 Feb 2011 07:15 AM PST

The Tech track team will compete in the 2011 Ohio Valley Conference Indoor Championships in Charleston, Ill today and tomorrow.

Three Golden Eagles have had record-breaking seasons so far this year. Seniors Ashley Mayhew and Katherine Lynn along with sophomore Katie Lowery have rewritten the Tech record books.

"I just feel so blessed to have been able to have the career I have had at Tech," Mayhew said. "I truly believe that God has just helped me throughout this whole experience."

Mayhew, a psychology major from Athens, Tenn., won the weight throw at the Tennessee State University Invitational two weeks ago with a throw of 50 feet, 11 inches. She holds the school record of 54 feet, 11.25 inches, setting that bar earlier this season, also at TSU.

"I am just so thankful for my supportive family, teammates and coach," Mayhew said.

Lynn, an accounting major from Cookeville, now owns the school record in the high jump after her leap of 5 feet, 7 inches at the TSU meet. The previous Tech record was 5 feet, 6 inches set back in 2004.

"I was so excited when I set the school record," Lynn said. "I have lots of family and friends that have been supporting me and have made this opportunity possible."

Lowery, a nursing major from Andersonville, Tenn., was named OVC Field Athlete of the Week twice this season while setting the school record for pole vault. Her vault of 10 feet at Middle Tennessee State on Feb. 12 broke the previous record of 9 feet, 7.25 inches.

Wrapping up their careers at Tech, Mayhew and Lynn look to perform well at this week's Championships.

"I hope that it is a great weekend for everyone on the team," Mayhew said. "We have trained hard all year."

"I am hoping to win conference in the high jump this weekend," Lynn said. "I am ranked first in the conference going into this meet, so I know I have a really great chance at claiming the indoor championship title."

The Championship kicks off at 3 p.m. today and continues through tomorrow afternoon. For a full schedule and more information on the meet, visit www.ttusports.com.

Free Job Fair at FSU PC - The News Herald

2011-02-24T15:24:00.001-08:00

Free Job Fair at FSU PC - The News Herald

Posted: 24 Feb 2011 06:55 AM PST

Individuals interested in learning more about careers in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) or related fields such as psychology, social work, or education are invited to attend a free job fair on Friday from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Florida State University Panama City.

The job fair will be held in the Holley Academic Center rotunda, according to a university release.

Board certified behavior analysts who attend a lecture presented during the event from noon to 1 p.m. will be able to earn continuing education credit. William Flood from the May Institute, Southeast Region, will provide a lecture on "Intensive Behavioral Services: A Case Series of a Systematic Probing and Fading Model."

Eighteen agencies from across Florida as well as other states ranging from New Jersey to California and Tennessee to Hawaii will participate in the job fair.

For additional information about the job fair or the lecture, contact Al Murphy, FSU PC psychology faculty member, at 770-2251 or by e-mail at amurphy@pc.fsu.edu.

UK Hoops Meets Arkansas on Senior Night - UKAthletics

2011-02-23T15:37:00.001-08:00

UK Hoops Meets Arkansas on Senior Night - UKAthletics

Posted: 23 Feb 2011 02:28 PM PST

Seniors Victoria Dunlap and Carly Morrow will be honored in a pre-game ceremony Thursday

Feb. 23, 2011

LEXINGTON, Ky. – No. 20 Kentucky looks to send out its two seniors (Victoria Dunlap and Carly Morrow) on a high note when the Wildcats take on Arkansas in their regular-season home finale Thursday, Feb. 24 at 6 p.m. EST. The game will be televised live on the Big Blue Sports Network and FSN South with Garry Gupton and Christi Thomas calling the action. Carl Nathe will serve as the sideline reporter. The game also will be available nationally on the ESPN Full Court package and ESPN3.com and on the Big Blue Sports Radio Network with Neil Price.

Dunlap and Morrow will be recognized during a special "Senior Night" ceremony prior to the game.

Single-game tickets are on sale now. Single-game reserved seats are $7 (regardless of age) while general admission tickets are $7 for adults and $4 for youth/seniors. UK students, faculty and staff are admitted free with valid identification. To purchase tickets, visit the Joe Craft Center in person, call 1-800-928-2287 or go online at UKathletics.com.

"This is a big game tomorrow night," UK Hoops Coach Matthew Mitchell said. "Arkansas is a very good opponent and they really took it to us in Fayetteville. We need to certainly play better than we did on that night. We are very motivated to win our last home game of the year and send Carly Morrow and Victoria Dunlap out with a victory. That is something that is very important to everybody in the program. I would like to encourage everybody to come out and get here early and we will have a great celebration before the game for two players who have given so much to Kentucky. If a lot of people will show up and fill this place up and we have great energy than we will celebrate after the game with a victory, hopefully. No matter what, these two deserve a great sendoff and a big crowd to help us do that. We will look forward to a tough battle tomorrow night and we will work hard to send these seniors out right."

Although senior point guard Amber Smith (Winter Haven, Fla.) has decided to take a redshirt year and return to UK next season after sitting out with an ACL tear in her knee, the senior class made up of Smith, Dunlap (Nashville, Tenn.) and Morrow (Lookout Mountain, Ga.) will forever be etched into the UK record books as one of the most successful classes in school history.

UK seniors have won 81 games in their careers. That total is tied with the 2010 class for the fifth-winningest class in school history. With four more wins, the 2011 class will tie the 1981 class for fourth with 85 wins. The 1983 class is the winningest class in school history with 96 victories. In the four years prior to their arrival, UK went 71-56 overall, 22-34 in the Southeastern Conference. In the four years with Dunlap, Morrow and Smith, the Cats are 81-47 overall, 33-25 in SEC play, and have advanced to three consecutive postseason tournaments, including an NCAA Elite Eight appearance last season.

At season's end, Dunlap will undoubtedly be revered as one of the greatest players in UK Hoops history as she ranks in the top 10 of 14 career lists, including No. 2 all-time in rebounding (1,042), blocks (170), steals (291), free-throws made (414) and free-throws attempted (671). Dunlap, who is nominated for every major national award this season, is set to graduate in May with a degree in family science and a minor in psychology.

Morrow has started in 58 of 112 career games. She averages 4.8 points in her career and ranks seventh on UK's career list for three-pointers made (180) and fourth in career three-pointers attempted (395). She is a four-time member of the Dean's List, a three-time member of UK's Athletics Director Honor Roll for earning the team's highest GPA and has twice been named to the SEC Winter Academic Honor Roll. Last season she was named to the SEC Community Service Team and UK's prestigious Frank G. Ham G. Ham Society of Character for her dedication to community service. Morrow, a member of the 2011 District 4 Capital One Academic All-District Team, is set to graduate in May with a degree in business economics.

Kentucky (20-7, 9-5 Southeastern Conference), which currently ranks third in the league standings, is coming off a monumental win over Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tenn., last Sunday. The Cats defeated the Commodores 80-71, marking its first win in Memorial Gym since 1986. Five Wildcats scored in double figures sparked by 22 points from Keyla Snowden (Lexington, Ky.). The sharp-shooting junior nailed four 3-pointers while dishing out a team-high three assists in her first start since Jan. 19. Snowden has hit 52 three-pointers this season which moves her to eighth on UK's single-season list.

Arkansas (18-8, 6-8 SEC), currently eighth in the SEC standings, snapped a four-game losing skid by picking up a pair of SEC wins vs. Ole Miss and LSU last week. The win at Ole Miss was the first in program history in Oxford and the victory over LSU completed a two-game sweep for the first time in program history.

Arkansas has three players averaging in double-figure scoring. Sophomore Sarah Watkins leads with 13.4 points per game while Louisville, Ky., native and junior C'eira Ricketts follows narrowly behind with 13.3 ppg. Junior Lyndsay Harris averages 12.2 ppg and leads the team in 3-point field goals made with 69 this season.

Arkansas coach Tom Collen is the former head coach at Kentucky's instate rival Louisville. He spent four seasons with the Cardinals before becoming the seventh head coach in Arkansas women's basketball history in the spring of 2007.

Thursday marks the 28th meeting in the series between Kentucky and Arkansas, and the second matchup this season. UK leads the all-time series 14-13, including a 9-3 advantage when playing in Lexington. UK has won the last four meeting against Arkansas in Lexington. The Cats look to avenge a 78-67 loss to the Razorbacks in Fayetteville in the SEC opener on Jan. 6.

UK Athletics encourages fans to arrive early to ease traffic and parking congestion around the Coliseum. Doors will open one hour prior to the game (5 p.m.) Thursday.

Women's basketball parking is available in the following surface lots and parking structures:

Surface event lots (i.e. Student Center, Hardymon, MLK and Good Samaritan) typically reach capacity approximately 30-45 minutes prior to tipoff, at which point, vehicles should proceed to Parking Structure #5.

Student Center Lot - off Euclid Ave
MLK South Lot - between Lexington Ave and Martin Luther King Boulevard and south (towards Euclid) of the center drive lane. DO NOT PARK IN NORTH MLK LOT (closest to Wildcat Lodge) AS THIS IS A RESIDENTIAL LOT AND SUBJECT TO TICKET/TOW.
Joe Craft Center North E-Lot - large lot located north of the Joe Craft Center and accessible via Lexington Avenue or Rose Street.
Good Samaritan surface Lot - accessible off Martin Luther King Boulevard
Parking Structure #5 - entrances off Limestone and S. Upper.
- The parking structure shuttle will begin one hour prior to tip and end one hour postgame. A free shuttle picks up on Administration Drive, accessible via the sky bridge located on the third floor of Parking Structure #5.
Handicapped parking (first come, first served until full) is located in the northeast corner of the MLK South Lot; must have valid state-issued hang tag

Pregame Press Conference: Head Coach Matthew Mitchell

Opening Statement …
"This is a big game tomorrow night. Arkansas is a very good opponent and they really took it to us in Fayetteville. We need to certainly play better than we did on that night. We are very motivated to win our last home game of the year and send Carly Morrow and Victoria Dunlap out with a victory. That is something that is very important to everybody in the program. I would like to encourage everybody to come out and get here early and we will have a great celebration before the game for two players who have given so much to Kentucky. If a lot of people will show up and fill this place up and we have great energy than we will celebrate after the game with a victory, hopefully. No matter what, these two deserve a great sendoff and a big crowd to help us do that. We will look forward to a tough battle tomorrow night and we will work hard to send these seniors out right."

On the Victoria Dunlap and Carly Morrow going through senior night without Amber Smith …
"That will be a bit odd. We have known here for a little while now that it would be this way and I have just tried to direct my focus on those two. I try to tell the team that all we need tomorrow night is a really, really, strong effort and then nobody can leave the court thinking they let someone down, no matter the outcome. If we come out and play as hard as we can, as a coach that is all we can ask someone to do. As a team, we have to play really hard and execute and know what needs to happen to beat a good Arkansas team."

On Carly and Victoria's impact on the program …
"Well, it has been significant the impact that they have both had on the program. The program is definitely different the four years after they entered Kentucky. I think that if you look at both of them personally, Carly did such a great job for us in one area in particular that I think made the most impact. We tried to establish a culture at working hard on your game outside of practice and games and being a player that took responsibility to your individual development outside of any practices the coaches called or games. We tried to stress that and so many times when I would be in my office and you would hear the ball bouncing it would be Carly Morrow in the gym, working hard to try to improve as an individual player which would make our team better. Then when we went to the pressure defense last year, we put in a pretty tough set of fundamentals and started to stress defensive footwork. She worked really, really hard on that throughout her career that by the time we got to the pressure defense in her junior year, she had worked so hard that she was an example that we could put forward for the perimeter players on how to use your feet and how to play. Those two things more than any of the big games that she has had, and she has had some big games and made some big shots, are her biggest contribution. She is someone that you can point to as being a really hard worker in the program. We are closer to being a program that values hard work outside of the practice and Carly has attributed to that.

"Victoria, there are just so many places statistically that she has impacted the program, but to me the biggest thing is just her development over the four years. Being a kid that would come in here that was extremely gifted and talented but didn't have a polished game and could have just shown up every day and get better incrementally by just showing up. Instead, she embraced everything that we asked her to do. She embraced individual workouts, she embraced getting better as a free-throw shooter and all these different things that we threw her way. She worked herself into be an All-American, which is really remarkable. When we go out now and talk about the Kentucky program, I think that a lot of people think of Victoria Dunlap and what she has been able to do and how dynamic she is. She sort of gave us a face of the program that people identify with. I think that a lot of young players now have a player at Kentucky where they can say, 'Hey, I can go be the next Victoria Dunlap,' or 'I can be like Victoria Dunlap' or 'I can have some success along those lines.' I think that you need a player like that that you can point to and say that big things can happen for you at Kentucky. You can be an All-American. You can go to the Elite Eight. All of those things are important when you are trying to climb the ladder for what has traditionally been a program that has not had a lot of success. To me, that is the biggest contribution that she has made the program. Both of those kids I have become very close to and feel like family. I look forward to watching them develop throughout their life. I think that what we have will be a life-long bond and that is the most gratifying for me personally."

On Coach Mitchell coming into the program the same year Carly and Victoria did and if they grew up together …
"No question. We all came in as freshmen together. None of us knew what in the world we were doing when we got here in a sense. That is what makes this one so unique. I don't know what it is like without those kids here. They have been here since day one and certainly honoring their commitment and giving me a chance to coach them I will be eternally grateful for. They have been here through some really tough times and toughed it out and hung in there. Now look where we are now. I feel like I have learned as much from both of them as a coach and the different things that I have gone through with both of those kids and the teams they have been on has been a tremendous opportunity for me to learn."

On how much he has seen them lean on each other …
"It is interesting. All three of them have been through different things from injuries together and losing games and going to the Elite Eight. All of these different things that they have all experienced together and they have all been close-knit. It is interesting that Carly and Victoria came in rivals from Tennessee and different basketball, AAU and track and all these different things and now to see them walking out of here as life-long friends and best friends is touching to see as a coach. We had an atmosphere here where that was possible. I have seen them lean on each other a whole lot throughout the course of their career."

On the defensive system and how much it was a fit for the personalities of the seniors …
"I think that is a great observation and that can't be understated. We have always said that we went to that last year out of the desperation because we didn't have any tall players, but if you had short players that didn't work hard you wouldn't have had a chance to turn it into what it has become. It had a lot of do with those personalities. Those three kids are really hard-nosed and competitors on the court. They are hard workers in practice. There are a lot of tough, repetitive things that are so physically and mentally in a practice day after day after day. I think that their personalities were huge in us being able to be successful with it."

On them playing pranks on him throughout their careers …
"I think those things show that they care and show that you have some type of relationship if they go out of their way. In college, kids have a lot of stuff to do. To me, I always thought that was pretty special to be sitting in my house and hear fireworks go off or something like that or they take the time to blow up balloons to put in my car. Either they care about me of they have very boring lives, both are possible I guess."

On Arkansas and what problems they pose …
"That particular night we did not do a good job of matching their intensity and they were very determined to get out in the open court and make plays. I am telling you they made plays. We didn't play particularly bad, but they played with so much effort and energy. They really hurt us with their transition offense against our transition defense. Then they were really aggressive trapping out of their zones. We didn't do a good job of handling that. I thought that we had a little panic sit in that night, too. We didn't make shots early and it was just a tough night and Arkansas really did a good job. I think that the place where we start is trying to do a better job of not letting C'eira Ricketts get ahead or steam up and get into the open court and make plays because she is unstoppable when she does that. Also trying to make them work as hard as they can to make buckets because when they get out and operate comfortably they can put some points on you. That is the biggest key is to make sure we start the game with the kind of intensity of keeping them in the mindset that they are going to have to come down and earn a bucket."

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