Professional Development TedX Style

We started something new in 2012 in our department.  Each month we had a brown bag lunch to watch a TED Talk together.  I assigned a month to each staff member, who would pick the video and lead the conversation afterward.  Coming together around a TED Talk isn't an original idea, but I have found the collective experience to be very worthwhile.

It is fascinating to see what videos people select and why.  Sometimes the videos are directly related to our work; other times they are simply a reflection of someone's passion and interests.  The videos spark discussions that sometimes go in unexpected directions.  We are working to implement a few ideas - a more formalized orientation for new professional staff and a "wolf wave" (our mascot is the Red Wolf) as a fun way to recognize exceptional customer service - that came from these discussions.

Most importantly, it's a great way to get everyone around the same table in an informal yet meaningful way.  In 2013, I plan to extend an open invite to faculty and staff outside of our department to join us.

Here are the TED Talks we watched together in 2012, selected by staff:

• Seth Godin: The tribes we lead
• Shawn Achor: The happiness advantage
• Neil Pasricha: The 3 A's of awesome
• Susan Cain: The power of introverts
• Steve Jobs: How to live before you die
• John Wooden: Coaching for people, not points 
• Drew Dudley: Leading with lollipops 
• Charlie Todd: The shared experience of absurdity
• Mike Biddle: We can recycle plastic
• Derek Sivers: How to start a movement
• Shea Hembrey: How I became 100 artists
• Chimamanda Adichie: The danger of a single story

Robb Zinkan

Vice Chancellor, External Affairs, Indiana University East

News of Interest

State of the District Report
Tina Kauffman, Past Chair
CASE District III

As I complete my two years as chair of the CASE III Board of Directors, let me tell you how fortunate I have been to lead this board and how grateful I am to you-the membership-for your support. Let me share with you some of the milestones and progress made by your board.

• We have continued to be the leading district in opportunity and inclusion diversity efforts, including the creation of a new award that will recognize these exemplary efforts.
• We have initiated and brought to conclusion a new website which now works seamlessly with CASE International to better serve you, our members.
• We were the first CASE district to create a mobi site and texting option to enhance communication among attendees at the conference.
• We have revised and streamlined the awards process to broaden our pool of judges district- and nationwide. We are also using a new streamlined software system that makes it easier to enter and pay and more convenient for our volunteer judges.
• We have increased the number of one day workshops offered -- hosted by each institution type -- historically black colleges and universities, community college, independent school and four year institutions
• We have strengthened our relationship with resource partners through feedback sessions, including a planning session at our upcoming conference site in Orlando.
• We are also proud to continue to strengthen the relationship with ASAP through involvement on the international task force and a commitment to ASAP scholarship assistance.
• Thanks to you, our members, we have seen and experienced two wildly successful annual conferences--giving our members first-hand opportunities to experience best practices.
• From the success of these conferences as well as ones before it, we have been able to put some proceeds into an investment account. The CASE and CASE III policy is to have one conference year of expenses in reserves in case something catastrophic would happen like a snow storm, etc. Thanks to the success of these conferences, we are within $10,000 of meeting that goal, on which the board has been working toward for more than a decade. Any additional revenue, the board is committed to putting into member services!

Thanks to each of you and the hundreds of volunteers from all institution types who make CASE III one of the most vibrant districts! I have been humbled and honored to serve as your chair and excited for CASE III to have Anita Walton as chair now. Our district is in great hands with her leadership.

District III Highlights

May Spotlight 

Eckerd College invites students to ThinkOutside. Located on 188 acres of waterfront property in St. Petersburg, Florida, Eckerd is a pioneer of innovation, developing programs that have been adopted nationwide and earning the College an international reputation for academic excellence.

A private, coeducational college of liberal arts and sciences related by covenant to the Presbyterian Church (USA), Eckerd College has a diverse student body with 1,800 students from 48 states and 32 countries and is one of only 40 schools listed in Loren Pope's Colleges That Change Lives. In 2003, Eckerd became one of the youngest colleges to receive a Phi Beta Kappa chapter. Eckerd also serves more than 1,000 students annually through its Program for Experienced Learners. The Leadership Development Institute, Academy of Senior Professionals, and offerings through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and Road Scholar program identify the College as a national leader in continuing education.

Eckerd's first priority is to teach students how to learn at any age. And the best education is one that prepares you for the how, as well as the what—an education that teaches you to ThinkOutside.

Note: If you would like your school or college featured, submit a very horizontal photo (jpg format) along with no more than 200 words of text about your institution.Send to: gcarroll@stetson.edu. In the subject line you must write: CASE FEATURE in all caps.

Make Waves in February 2014

If you hadn't heard, the Annual Conference will be held in Orlando, FL from February 16 to February 19. Make plans to be there! And if you would like to present at the conference, now is the time to put forward your ideas. You have until April 8 to get your proposal in. Go to the Annual Conference page for more information.

A Good Read

You should try your best, work well with others, and produce excellent work. Right? From author, researcher and consultant Jake Breeden, a former CASE III member by the way, comes an interesting book that just might help you become a better manager. He strings together a series of nuggets of advice, that in practice, have a dark side that can lead to career-limiting unintended consequences. Breeden reveals how to overcome the dangerous behaviors that masquerade as virtues at work, and how to lead with fewer self-imposed limitations and greater results. It's a guide for curious, courageous people at work. The book: Tipping Sacred Cows: Kick the Bad Work Habits that Masquerade as Virtues has great relevancy for those of us who manage a staff and think we are on top of our game.