Wednesday, 2/26/97
Faculty association offers staff development workshop
Focus will be on enhancement of skills for the future
By Teresa Jun
Daily Bruin Contributor
February, UCLA’s Career Month, is coming to a close, ending the
series of workshops, seminars and job fairs devoted to the career
development of UCLA students.
But while these programs for students are winding down, a
similar activity for staff members is only just beginning. The UCLA
Black Faculty and Staff Association is organizing a free
informational workshop titled "Work Force 2000: Staying in the
Game," to be held from noon to 1:30 p.m. Thursday at the Los
Angeles Tennis Center.
Geared toward all non-student staff employees of the university,
the workshop will focus on how currently employed UCLA staff
members can enhance or further develop their career outlooks for
the future. Topics to be addressed by the workshop’s four panel
speakers are computer literacy, skill enhancement for advancement,
marketing oneself with the resume and workplace dynamics.
In light of the changes occurring in the workplace today thanks
to the approach of the new millennium and the effects of
Proposition 209, speakers at the workshop will tailor the message
of each of their topics to offer an up-to-date examination of how
employees can succeed in the workplace.
"Things are changing," said BFSA Vice President Tina Simmons.
"You’re feeling it. I’m feeling it. All of us are feeling it as we
approach the new millennium."
Simmons, who also serves as the chair of BFSA’s Professional
Development Committee, stresses that workers can improve their
situations by adapting and keeping themselves open to change.
"Computers are a big thing on the horizon," she said.
To address this rising issue in the workplace, one of the four
speakers at the workshop will focus on the new significance of
computer literacy and other specific skills which make an employee
more marketable in the work force.
In addition, the program’s keynote speaker, Ronald Berryman,
adjunct professor of business administration at Pepperdine
University, will give a presentation on new workplace dynamics.
"With the growing number of college graduates entering the work
force, competition is stiff," said Simmons. "So this presentation
is for employees who want to move ahead in their careers without
having to do it in such a stressful situation."
Since this workshop is targeted to UCLA staff, the topics
presented will emphasize what supervisors are looking for in
transfers and how to improve marketability once already in the work
force, according to Blanca Chavoya, a senior employment specialist
for UCLA campus human resources.
Chavoya, who is a member of both BFSA and the Latino Faculty and
Staff Association (LFSA), will be one of the four panel speakers at
the workshop.
Though this event will be sponsored by BFSA, any current UCLA
staff member is welcome to attend, regardless of racial
background.
"The goal of BFSA is to address issues that face not only
blacks, but all of us who are employees in the workplace," Simmons
said.
Started in the early 1980s, BFSA thrived at UCLA until 1994,
when active involvement in the organization began to wane for about
a year.
However, in 1995, BFSA members refocused the goals of the
organization, to balance the needs of both faculty members and
staff members.
"In the last two or three years, the association has rejuvenated
itself," said Rene Dennis, current president of BFSA. "In addition
to social elements, there is more of an emphasis on networking,
information-gathering, and professional development for staff and
faculty members."
With these refreshed goals in mind, the organization’s members
say they are looking forward to Thursday’s discussions on the
changing workplace and other issues relevant to UCLA employees.
"We need to deal with heavy issues as we approach the
millennium," noted Simmons. "And this workshop will bring these
issues to the audience in a professional way."