THE INFORMER PAGE 8

APRIL 14, 1992

Capilano College Staff Career Development Committee

1991 Annual Report

This past year completes the second full year of operation for the Staff Career Development Committee under the Support Staff Collective Agreement. In 1991, the Committee benefited from the efforts of the previous year when goals were clarified and the Chairperson position established. Functioning smoothly as a working group, we approached our tasks with a great deal of enthusiasm and confidence.

Highlights

The first all-day off-campus Staff Career Development Day was mounted February 14 at Lonsdale Quay Hotel. Open to all support staff, it featured six half-day workshops, buffet lunch, entertainment, raffles, and time for staff to get ac- quainted and re-acquainted.

The workshop topics included Goal Setting, Career Growth, Using your Creativity, Career Planning and Creative Visualization. The keen participants, 108 in number, said, “Do it again!”

In May, three members of the committee, Bob Walker, Lynne Hamilton and Carol McQuarrie, gave a presentation to staff, faculty and administrators at the Association of Canadian Community Colleges’ (ACCC) annual conference in Win- nipeg. Our topic, “Career Development: A Staff-based Approach”, covered a brief history of staff career develop- ment at the College (Lynne), the current committee’s inception and activities (Carol), and development and train- ing for computer users (Bob). This presentation was noteworthy as the only one on staff development to be presented by staff.

The committee was very pleased to be invited to present at this national educational event. Some of the published materials used in the presentation included the Staff Career Development Guide (November 1990) and the 1990 Annual Report.

As well as attending other presentations on staff develop- ment, we participated in a workshop on “Development of Our Human Resources” that identified key issues, their im- pact, strategies and recommendations.

Fall Workshops

Choosing a theme of communication, we offered three 3-hour workshops in the fall, all led by faculty members. Gerrie Waugh took us from “Communicating with Ease” to “Con- flict Resolution”, while Mark Battersby armed us with “Logical Self-Defence”. All workshops were overbooked and highly rated.

Beginning in 1991, SCD workshops were implemented through the Extension Programs & Services Department. This enabled us to coordinate the committee’s offerings with staff training activities through Personnel Services. We are grateful to Lynn Jest in Extension for assisting in this transi- tion. The choice of SCD workshops and their integration with staff training was a collaborative effort between Lynn Jest, Sandra Chester (Personnel) and Carol McQuarrie. Utilizing Extension’s systems for administering the SCD workshops also allows the committee chair to make more creative and developmental use of release time.

The Committee Communicates

We continue to report to staff at regular union meetings; a monthly column appears in The Informer, the college’s inter- nal newsletter; and a resource file is maintained in the Library of articles of interest and various catalogues on train- ing and development courses.

Changes in the Committee

In October, three members’ terms were up. Lynne Hamilton and Joy Smith were re-elected and we welcomed a new com- mittee member, Judith Hall from Student Employment Centre. We wish to thank Bob Walker (Computer Support Services), who did not run for re-election, for his active par- ticipation on the committee. We continue to use Bob as a valuable resource.

The Chair Communicates

Information about the committee and its work was presented at both the New Employees’ Orientation Breakfast in August, and the New Support Staff Orientation in September by the Chair, Carol McQuarrie.

In March, the chair participated in a presentation on the Community College Exchange Program with Ruth D’Hollander, Faculty Development Chair. Our committee is investigating the possibility of support staff exchanges through this program.

With the high level of awareness about the committee, the Chair received many suggestions for workshops, enquiries about training requests, as well as external enquiries about the committee structure and function.

Budget As in 1990, the committee had no specific amount budgeted for its activities, but all costs were covered by the college.

The Future

We plan to up-date the Staff Career Development Guide into a publication that would include opportunities for all employees ranging from training and career development to wellness seminars. This ambitious project would require the input of many campus groups.

Conclusion

The Committee continues to see a high level of acceptance and expectation from support staff. We look forward to our association with the new Manager of Personnel Services in the effort to foster Staff Career Development at Capilano College.

Respectfully submitted by

Capilano College Staff Career Development Committee Carol McQuarrie, Chairperson, (Music Program) Judith Hall, (Student Employment Centre)

Lynne Hamilton (Achievement Resource Centre) Dianella Knight (Media Production Services)

Joy Smith (Extension Programs & Services Department) Wendy Weberg (Sportsplex)