EDUCATIONAL AND TRAINING/DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES
SRC Staff Training/Development
Staff can expand their skills and expertise as well as develop their careers in many ways. There are numerous educational and training/development opportunities that exist in SRC, ISR, the greater University and the Ann Arbor area. It is the responsibility of each and every staff member on this Campus to maintain a skill level that is relevant to the work they perform. This relates to the changes in technology as well as to the substantive fields for which they are responsible in their positions.
As endorsed by the Primary Research Staff and with the help of the SRC Staff Training and Advisory Committee (STAC), a Staff Development Philosophy exists which emphasizes the importance of continuing development for Center staff members. The Center presently supports a number of training activities, some provided in-house and others supported by small stipends, tuition support, etc. Naturally the extent of training and development that the Center can offer and/or support is contingent on available Center funds and workload issues. The following web site (http://www.compute.isr.umich.edu/srctraining/ contains the training schedule and links to forms for class Registration, tuition support and scholarship requests. All questions and suggestions about training can be posted at the “SRC Training” e-mailbox address.
Training and development needs are established by the development of a Staff Development and Training Plan with your supervisor (see Appendix A in SRC’s Section 9 for the current “Guidelines for Establishing a Staff Development and Training Plan”). Such a plan is helpful in the review and approval of requests to release time, related costs, and central planning.
Subsequently, individual requests to attend sessions throughout the year can more efficiently be reviewed and approved by your direct supervisor, since there will already have been some discussion about the year’s plan. In some cases your Unit or Program Director, and the Staff Training Advisory Committee (if financial support is needed centrally) will review/approve your training requests. Sessions that have typically been attended by staff include local/non-local non-SRC sponsored seminars, professional conferences, and Summer Institute courses.
The SRC Assistant Director, senior management staff, and staff representatives are available one hour per month (according to the schedule below) on a drop-in basis for Center employees seeking professional development advice. Other times are available by appointment. Listed by each name are the areas in which that person specializes.
Ø Marcy Breslow, Research and Project Management, 1st Thursday, 9-10 am
Ø Bill Connett, Computing and Multimedia Technologies, by appointment, 936-0074 or e-mail
Ø George Myers, Diversity, Administration and Research, 2nd Friday, 3-4 pm
Ø Todd Richardson, Finance, 1st Tuesday, 10-11 am
Ø Marlene Smith, Human Resources & Career Development, Monday or by appointment 3:45-4:45
Ø Cathy Thibault, General Career Development Advise & Finance, by appointment
Ø Esther Ullman, Survey Management, by appointment, 222-8934
A copy of the SRC Staff Development Philosophy follows.
SRC Staff Development Philosophy
The Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, supports the Staff Development Philosophy developed by the University of Michigan Executive Officers in May 1993. As such, in the spirit of the existing University Efforts, the Center has adapted this statement:
ISR Summer Programs
The ISR conducts two summer training programs specifically geared to survey research. At the present time, these programs are offered through the SRC and the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR). SRC provides financial support for eligible staff members interested in attending these programs. See Appendix B in Section 9 “Guidelines for Academic Educational Opportunities for Clerical, Professional, and Administrative Staff” for details on eligibility and requesting and receiving approval.
This year the SRC Summer Institute offered two, three, four, five, four-week and eight-week courses, which can be attended without academic credit. This might be helpful to staff who wish to participate. Information is mailed to all staff the first of April.
A program brochure is available from the SRC Director's Office, or a copy can be obtained from the SRC Summer Institute Program office.
Staff Training/Development Seminars
SRC encourages its staff members to continuously develop their skills during their employment with SRC. Various SRC, ISR, University, and outside seminars are offered regularly and available to all eligible staff. As such, SRC has an active and viable staff training initiative.
A listing of computer and other training classes is posted continually on the bulletin boards at all three locations as well as in the Center Survey Newsletter published September thru June and the SRC training website (http://www.compute.isr.umich.edu/srctraining/). These courses are most all in-house and pre-registration is necessary to manage space in each session.
There are also many seminars offered on-campus through Human Resource Development, Information Technology Division, and Center for the Continuing Education of Women, as well as a number of organizations off-campus. Training brochures are regularly received in the SRC Director’s Office and we encourage our staff to review these and to continually develop their skills through these various mechanisms. The Center has a training budget for attendance in most of the sessions and can accommodate fees associated with registrations.
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10/17/2006