University Reporter: December, 2003
Center for Social Policy Reports Alternative Staffing Services Help
Workers Overcome Barriers
Finding
a job is difficult for everyone, but millions of job seekers face extra
barriers such as physical disabilities, homelessness, or recent incarceration.
A national study released by UMass Boston's Center for Social Policy (CSP)
sheds new light on alternative staffing services, an innovative model
that helps workers overcome barriers and find quality jobs with minimal
public support.
A team led by CSP research director Françoise Carré found that alternative staffing services successfully use the temporary staffing business formula to place thousands of job seekers who face barriers and to keep them employed, according to the National Study of Alternative Staffing Services, which was funded by the Ford Foundation. The research team also included: Joaquín Herranz, Dorie Seavey, Carlha Vickers, Ashley Aull, and Rebecca Keegan. read more: CSP
University Community Mourns the Passing of A. P. "Rusty" Simonds
The
university community was saddened to learn that political science professor
A. P. "Rusty" Simonds died suddenly on October 20.
"The incredible richness and complex diversity of students in the classroom is fabulous," said Simonds of his teaching experiences at UMass Boston during a May 2002 interview for UMass Boston, the university's alumni magazine.
Simonds's infectious enthusiasm for his teaching earned him the Chancellor's Distinguished Teaching Award twice in his 34-year career at the university. He was the only faculty member to be honored with the award more than once. read more: Simonds
University Appoints Vice Chancellor of Administration and Finance
On November 19, UMass Boston announced the appointment of Ellen M. O'Connor as the new vice chancellor of administration and finance. O'Connor will begin her tenure on January 1, succeeding David MacKenzie, who will retire at the end of 2003.
O'Connor has served as vice president of finance for Brown University since 2001. Her responsibilities there included the supervision of the controller's office, purchasing, student financial services and banking, risk management, insurance, and environmental health and safety. During her time at Brown, O'Connor was involved with improving student and faculty customer services. She implemented an enhanced liquidity and investment program that increased earnings and established a large-scale internal loan program.
Of special significance to the university, O'Connor served the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for more than twenty years as budget director and comptroller in the Executive Office of Administration and Finance and as a budget analyst at Senate Ways and Means. O'Connor held other significant positions in Massachusetts state government administration in the 1970s and 1980s. She brings a wealth of knowledge of government finance to UMass Boston having had responsibility for financial forecasting and planning for multimillion-dollar state and agency budgets.
Previous roles include serving as chief financial officer of Community Builders, Inc., of Boston from 1999 to 2001; as the vice president of the Washington Business Group on Health from 1995 to 1999; and as the deputy mayor for financial management in Washington, D.C., from 1991 to 1995.
O'Connor is a 1967 graduate of Regis College, with an AB degree in mathematics. She also received an MBA degree in 1977 from the Graduate School of Management at Simmons College.
She currently serves as the chair of the finance committee of the Board of Trustees at Regis College and is a member of the finance committee of the Board of Trustees at YouthBuild Boston.
Division of Student Affairs Kicks Off S.T.A.R.S Mini-Grants Program
Have
a good idea on how to improve services to students? You could be the next
S.T.A.R., an acronym that stands for Student Affairs Resources for Success,
and might be eligible to apply for the Division of Student Affairs' new
mini-grants program. A first of its kind for the division, the program
seeks to award up to $2,000 for initiatives that enhance the university's
strategic goals of retention, research, and reputation, and improve student
life. The mini-grant program will provide resources for collaborative
efforts between students, faculty, and student affairs staff members.
"We're looking for people who use their talents to help move forward the agenda for students," says Keith Motley, vice chancellor for student affairs. "We want to be able to fill in the spaces between pre-orientation and graduation, from student to alumni."
Proposals are being sought campus-wide and will require collaboration with a student affairs staff member, a member of the faculty, and a student or student group. One-time funding of the grant will be awarded by the vice chancellor of student affairs and the Student Affairs Leadership Training Team on an ongoing basis.
The concept was born of a staff brainstorm at a recent planning meeting for the division, which is dedicated to finding new ways to foster a culture of student services at the university.
Motley says, "It gets all of us involved. There may be projects now that exist below the surface, and this program will help bring some of these great initiatives to light."
"Be creative – don't limit yourself," advises Motley.
For more information, visit ww.umb.edu/students_affairs/programs/stars.html.
Image: Keith Motley, vice chancellor for student affairs, explains the new mini-grant program at the kick off event. (Photo by Harry Brett)
Pulitzer
Prize Author Leads Brann Lecture
Pulitzer Prize winner Douglas Hofstadter, the College of Arts and Sciences Professor of Cognitive Sciences at Indiana University, paid a visit to UMass Boston on October 29 to present his lecture "Translation as a Search for Beauty: The Artistic Blending of Two Cultures" at the Ryan Lounge. The lecture was part of the Alton J. Brann Distinguished Professorship Science Lecture Series. (Photo by Harry Brett)
Community Supports Blood Drive in Droves
In
conjunction with the New England Division of the American Red Cross (ARC),
University Health Services sponsored a campus-wide blood drive on November
17 that drew 72 donors from the UMass Boston community. The event encouraged
25 first-timers to donate blood and, in total, collected 50 units of blood
for the American Red Cross Community Blood Program. The contributions
of faculty, staff, and students helped meet the medical needs of over
170 hospitals throughout New England.
Loretta Lewis, an ARC recruitment representative for the New England region, wrote in a letter to Linda Jorgensen, director of the University Health Services Department, "Your efforts are deeply appreciated by the countless numbers of people whose lives are saved everyday thanks to blood transfusions."