Montana State University

Professional Council

Next Meeting: May 15, 2013 @ 10:00am Reid 415

The Professional Council (PC) was established by MSU's President in 1979 as a means of facilitating communication and cooperation among professionals, and communication with administration in the development of general decisions and policies which affect professional employees. PC is not an advocacy group. The Council is intended to promote collaborative efforts by professionals with others on campus in mutual efforts to effectively and efficiently carry out the land-grant missions at Montana State University, Bozeman. Learn more about the Professional Council.

Professional Council meets twice each month during the academic year, and/or as called by the Chair. All meetings are conducted according to the MSU policy on open meetings.

Recent Announcements:

***ELECTIONS***

Please take a moment to read a letter from our Chair, Dr. Nora Smith:

Dear MSU Professional Colleagues,

It’s time to elect five (that’s right – FIVE!) new members to next year’s Professional Council.  We seek energetic individuals to fill an open seat representing Administration, one representing Outreach and Engagement, two representing Research, and one Member at Large (please see attached description of professional affiliations).
Additionally, Professional Council is also seeking nominations to fill a vacant seat in Academics; with the term ending in 08/31/14. Professional Council members will appoint this interim seat in May.
As we recently updated our by-laws, please note that the seats for professionals representing Outreach and Engagement, as well as the Member at Large, are new Professional Council seats starting this September.
Members are elected to a three-year term, starting 9/1/13.  The charge includes attending meetings twice a month ,contributing to the council via secretarial, budget, or other organizational skills, representing Professional Council on one of the university-wide councils or executive search committees if the opportunity arises, and most importantly, participating in our mission to facilitate communication on campus, using your particular experience, perspective and talents as a professional employee. 
Please do not hesitate to call or write to anyone currently on Professional Council about the charge, scope or time commitment.  You can find our email addresses on the PC website http://www.montana.edu/profcoun/. 
To nominate yourself or another fantastic colleague: please email professionalcouncil@montana.edu by Wednesday, May 15, 2013 and include your (or the nominee’s) name and area of professional affiliation. We ask professionals to submit a single, brief paragraph  describing how your work life at MSU aligns with one of the identified professional affiliations, and why you would like to be on Professional Council.
Nominations will be collated and sent out to all professional employees for election/confirmation during the third week of May. We thank you in advance for your interest in serving with us!

Nora Smith, Chair                                            Donna Negaard, Chair-Elect
MSU Professional Council
Professionalcouncil@montana.edu

For more information about elections please feel free to contact any of our Professional Council Members:

Chair: Nora Smith: norasmith@montana.edu
Chair Elect: Donna Negaard:donnan@montana.edu
Jeffrey Littlefield: jeffreyl@montana.edu
Betsy Pitts: betsey_p@biofilm.montana.edu
Carolyn Plumb: cplumb@coe.montana.edu
Chancey Ringer: ringer@montana.edu
Liz Greenfield: Lgrant@montana.edu
Julie Tatarka: pester@montana.edu
Jeanne Wilkinson: jeannew@montana.edu


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PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITY

Please join us for an interactive hour discussing millennials on Friday, June 14, from 9-10:00 am in SUB 235. 

David Cozzens, Dean of Students and Associate Vice President of Student Affairs at the University of Wyoming, will spend an engaging hour with MSU employees presenting the unique aspects and needs of the millennial generation.

Hosted by Matt Caires and the Student Success/Dean of Students Office, we will have the chance to learn about how MSU employees can best support student success in this generation. 

Capacity is 64.  Please sign up by visiting www.montana.edu/hr and clicking on the Training Registration box in the upper right hand corner.  You will need your GID and MyInfo password to register.

Hope to see you there!

 

How can you make a difference?
How does your job affect students?
  • I meet with prospective students during their campus visits, new students at orientation and advise current students. I think my job contributes to the MSU student experience by helping our students navigate university policy and make progress towards their degree, all while knowing that there are people on this campus who care about them as individuals.
  • As an academic advisor in a busy advising center, I believe my job…impacts students immensely as we are often the contact for students who are experiencing issues which will help them decide whether to stay in college or not, and whether or not to stay at MSU.
  • I provide counseling, teaching, advising (academic & student activities), supervision and mentorship. I value the contact I have with students and hope that I contribute to their personal well-being, academic achievement, retention at MSU, and overall development as a university student.
  • Everything I do impacts the student experience. I provide some of the sole support of about 200 distance only graduate students. Often my position is the main contact for the student to the university.
  • I help recruit students, communicate with potential students and I work to make the experience better for current students. It is very important to me to work diligently for the students.
  • I work directly with students regarding lab research, ensuring their research is performed in a safe and scientifically relevant manner. I also serve as a mentor in areas of academic and scientific expertise, as well as provide nurturing support in many areas of their daily lives (personally and professionally).
  • I work in a lab and the impact on student interns who work with me is huge. They learn skills in running their own projects and giving presentations on their work. They have interactions that allow them to develop their leadership skills and more fully appreciate the value teamwork. Time management is a vital part of their work with me. I know from former students that these skills benefit them far into the future.
  • Managing the MSU data network has a direct, positive contribution to the student experience. We provide a stable, high-bandwidth network that is comparable or better than our peer institutions.
  • I help develop and design the Web infrastructure at MSU…When I do my job, students experience less red tape so they can spend more time learning.
  • With over 2,000 students entering the Fitness Center every day, and working with over 100 student employees at a time, we are all about the students.
  • I deal directly with students in crisis, students with mental health issues, students with conduct issues, students with financial issues, students with family issues, and a variety of other student scenarios. I work to provide students the assistance they need to remain a successful and healthy student at MSU.
  • As a staff physician at MSU Student Health Services, my primary responsibility is the health and well-being of students (and spouses). Everything we do, whether dealing with acute illness/injury, or chronic health conditions (hypertension, diabetes, depression, anxiety, substance abuse) has the goal of improving student well-being and success. We keep students healthy so they can succeed during their academic and athletic endeavors at MSU, and hope to teach them healthy lifestyles which will serve each student well for their entire life.