Departments
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Week of 16 October 1998 |
Vol. II, No. 10 |
Feature
Article
The whole worth catalog
New BU seminar-workshop program covers work, health, life development
by Amy Dean
Boston University wants you to stay on your toes -- and keep your knees and shoulders healthy.
Beginning this fall and continuing through January 1999, the Work, Health, and Life Series (WHL) is offering seminars and workshops to faculty and staff on professional development, life enhancement, and health promotion. From learning how to conquer your fear of public speaking to understanding your knee and shoulder injuries to coping with holiday stress, this whole-body wellness experience links not just your mind, body, and spirit, but also several on-campus groups. WHL is offered to the BU community through the first-time collaborative linking of the University Training Group, the Faculty/Staff Assistance Program, the Occupational Health Center, the Office of Family Resources, and the Office of Personnel.
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Cheryl Barbanel
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Until now, each group has offered its own programs to BU faculty and staff. Cheryl Barbanel, M.D., director of the Occupational Health Center, feels that such separate programming competes for faculty and staff attention. Assistant Director of Personnel Jean Holtman adds that separate programming has led to duplication in some seminars, and more important, revealed the need for a centralized source of information to which faculty and staff could turn.
Considered the forefather of the WHL series, the University Training Group is a cross-campus assembly of volunteers who are not affiliated with the personnel department, but who do training as part of their jobs. It has worked closely with directors from each of the groups to create a series of faculty/staff educational programs that address the changing demographics, attitudes, and lifestyles of workers in order to reduce stress and tension in the workplace.
Like an all-star team made up of key players from each team in a league, WHL shows how groups from different University departments can support one another and work together to provide a more extensive and enriching program for its University family. "The idea is to present a cohesive and fairly broad offering of training and seminars to reach the diverse population of faculty and staff in the University community," says Hilary Murray, manager of employee relations, employment, and training. Murray also oversees the University Training Group.
Barbanel, who set up the health promotion seminars, is excited about the small-group settings, where top-notch physicians and specialists can provide information for participants as well as answer questions in a relaxed an unintimidating environment. "With such knowledgeable facilitators giving up-to-date information," she says, "the program can help people by encouraging changes that affect their lives in positive ways."
While Murray admits that "we're all so busy that sometimes it's hard to take time away from the actual work site to go to workshops," she adds that "people who attend the seminars will get a lot out of them."
For more information about these free seminars, to register, or to find out locations, please call 353-4486 or 353-3500.
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Professional Development Tuesday, October 20, 1-4 p.m. Wednesday, October 28, 9 a.m.-noon Wednesday, November 4, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Tuesday, November 10, 9 a.m.-noon Tuesday, November 17, 2-5 p.m. Thursday, November 19, 9 a.m.-noon Life Enhancement Tuesday, October 20, noon-1:30 p.m. Thursday, November 12, noon-1:30 p.m. Thursday, November 19, noon-1:30 p.m. Health Promotion Flue Vaccine Clinics Thursday, October 29, noon-1 p.m. Tuesday, November 17, noon-1 p.m. Thursday, December 10, noon-1 p.m. Wednesday, January 13, 1999, noon-1 p.m. Thursday, January 28, noon-1 p.m. |