THE INFORMER PAGE 2

MARCH 31, 1992

Cindy Rogers: Avid Traveller Vancouver Born and Bred

.. Cindy Rogers, Cap’s new Manager of Personnel Services, is
one of those British Columbia rarities. She was born in Vancou-
ver, she grew up in Vancouver, she was educated in Vancouver
and she has spent her work life there. Her firm roots may be
what has given her the urge to travel.

She has travelled to the Bahamas, Hong Kong, Thailand,
China, Singapore, Mexico and Hawaii. She’d like to have a
yearly adventure, she says.

She hasn’t always been able to do so because she is often
too busy at her career, improving the working lives of employ-
ees. She’s got a lot of work ahead of her at Cap, but it will be
satisfying, she says, “because I really like the people here.”

Her route to the College began with a long stint in banking.
While a student at Simon Fraser University she took a job at
Vancouver City Savings Credit Union, where she became loans
manager. She took courses at BCIT and acquired a Personnel
Management Certificate. That led to a job at the B.C. Central
Credit Union, where she was personnel manager and trained
staff at branches throughout the province.

Why, after 15 years in banking, did she opt for the job at
Cap? “I wanted to see if there was life beyond credit unions. I
thought it was a good time to expand my knowledge base and
use my skills in another area. I like the educational atmos-
phere.... It’s really enjoyable to be here, and not as a student who
has to deal with exams and those kinds of pressures.”

She says the staff environment at the College comes close to
what she had expected when she started her job here in January.

“T’ve chatted with about 40 staff members so far. They’ve

been short talks, but you add them all together and it gives you a
view of what life is like here. People are very committed to their
work here, and they are proud of what they do.”

That helps account for the noticeable longevity of service at
Cap, she says. “People also tell me it’s because there are lots of
new things going on all the time, new students coming in, new
technology.”

That doesn’t mean the working environment at the College
can’t improve, she is quick to add.

“In some jobs there seems to be less room for people to
advance, which is one of the things we are addressing.”

Also, she says the preponderance of women staff members
means certain concerns, such as flexible work weeks and day
care, need a lot of attention.

She wants to get more input from staff and use it to develop
objectives for her department. “I’d really like people to know
that they can come and talk to me, that I’m interested in them. It
doesn’t have to be about a problem. I don’t want to sit up here in
my Office all the time. I want to hear what is going on in the Col-
lege.”

Mentioning that enough has been said about work, Cindy
smiles and muses again about her desire for yearly travel. She’s
an avid bicyclist and cycled the San Juan Islands last year. “Next
year I want to cycle through Europe,” she says.

North Shore Gymnast
Ranks Highest in B.C.

She lifts her body into the air with the grace of a ballerina.
Then, like a precision anti-gravity machine, she comes to rest on
one arm, her legs and other arm outspread.

Aparna Ray, 17, is the only gymnast in British Columbia
who has mastered the one-arm elbow stand. It is one of many
moves that have distinguished the North Vancouver teenager and
thrust her to the top level of Canadian gymnastics.

Last spring she placed first in every event—the beam, bars,
floor and vault—in the 1991 provincial championships. She
achieved second place over all, just below a competitor from
Romania, in international competition in Oregon a few weeks
ago.

Ray attributes her success to her strength, adding that some
other gymnasts do better than her in flexibility. Strength helps
her achieve a high altitude when swinging her body through a
myriad of moves, and altitude scores points. Her gracefulness,
perfected by regular training in ballet and modern dance, also
puts her at the top of her sport.

Ray will compete in this year’s B.C. Gymnastics Champion-
ships, which takes place at the Sportsplex April 3-5. Sessions are
from noon to 7:30 p.m. on Friday, from 8 a.m. to 8:15 p.m. on
Saturday, and from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets are
$3, available at the door.