School of Education hosts Annual Support Staff conference June 6 at Drumlins

School of Education hosts Annual Support Staff conference June 6 at DrumlinsMay 20, 2002Jonathan Hayjhay@syr.edu

The School of Education and Study Council at Syracuse Annual Support Staff conference will be held June 6 at Drumlins Country Club. The conference is designed for administrative assistants, school secretaries, clerical assistants, teacher’s aides and higher education office professionals to enhance their personal and professional skills.

Jackie Robinson ’78, will deliver the keynote address at 1 p.m., speaking on “Doing it All and Doing it Well: Evening News Anchor, Family and Community Service.” Robinson, currently an evening news anchor at WSTM Channel 3 in Syracuse, received a degree in broadcast journalism from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and rose through the ranks of the broadcasting industry to become an evening news anchor.

“Jackie was most gracious in accepting our offer to speak this year, and having one of Syracuse University’s own to keynote is a real coup,” says Sandy Trento, director of professional and organizational relations in the School of Education. “This is always a wonderful conference, but I think it will be particularly strong this year.”

Along with Robinson’s address, the program will feature an opening presentation at 8:30 a.m. by Joan M. Hebert of Joan M. Hebert Training and Consulting. Hebert will speak on “Understanding Ourselves and Others: What Makes us Tick?” Following Hebert’s talk, three workshops will be held on “Being Your Professional Best.” Those workshops will feature discussions on time management, an introduction to PowerPoint and dealing with change in work and life.

“Focus on You” workshops will be held from 11 a.m. to noon, focusing on living in balance, holistic wellness and expecting the unexpected. After lunch and Robinson’s address, the School of Education’s exercise science department will host a mini health fair featuring “Relax and Renew with Hatha Yoga.”

Trento says that more than 80 Central New York school districts will participate in the program as well as University faculty and staff. “Most workshops are led by SU professionals, who are always willing to share their expertise,” she says.

“This is an important program because it has tremendous outreach and it builds a better understanding of the comprehensive human resources activities we offer at SU,” Trento says.

For more information or to sign up for the conference, call 443-4696 or visit the School of Education’s Web site at http://soeweb.syr.edu/prodev/profess.htm .