2013 Garrett G. Eppley Alumni Recognition Award

Each year the Department of Recreation, Park, and Tourism Studies presents the Garrett G. Eppley Alumni Recognition Award, the highest alumni award presented by the department designed to honor the contributions of Garrett G. Eppley (1896-1989) Indiana University’s first Recreation and Park Administration chairman and a key player in the establishment of the National Recreation and Park Association.

The 2013 award was recently presented by Dr. Bryan McCormick, Chair of the Department of Recreation, Park, and Tourism Studies, to alumnus Dr. R. James Sibthorp. Dr. Sibthorp joins the exclusive rank of exemplary professionals in the field of recreation and leisure who have received the award since 1965. This award speaks well of Dr. Sibthorp’s local, state and national reputation, as well as his commitment to Indiana University and to the field of recreation and parks.

Exploring Summer Internships --- What our students are up to!

Brie Deka is majoring in Human Development and Family Studies, with minors in Sociology, Counseling Psychology, and Human Sexuality. She is currently spending her summer as an intern for Bloomington Area Birth Services (BABS), a non-profit resource center for new and expecting families dedicated to improving birthing outcomes through education, providing a safe, comfortable gathering space for clients and their children, and increasing exclusive breastfeeding rates.

As a BABS intern, Brie is involved in a variety of different projects ranging from data input and management to event planning. One of the main events she will assist with planning, “Latch On Indiana”, will occur in August, “…celebrating exclusive breastfeeding, there will be food, decorations, door prizes and much more for families to enjoy,” she said.

“Pregnancy and new babies are so interesting to me and I would love to continue my work on improving birthing outcomes, and for that first year and beyond to be successful as well. Wherever I end up after graduation I want to be improving these young lives, beginning even before their conception,” she noted.

IU receives Grand Challenges Explorations grant for research in global health and development

The Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington has announced that it is a winner of the Grand Challenges Explorations, an initiative funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Debby Herbenick, co-director of the school's Center for Sexual Health Promotion, will pursue an innovative global health and development research project, titled Development and Testing of the Female Pleasure Condom.

Grand Challenges Explorations funds individuals worldwide to explore ideas that can break the mold in how we solve persistent global health and development challenges. Herbenick’s project is one of more than 50 Grand Challenges Explorations Round 12 grants announced Tuesday by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

To receive funding, Herbenick and other Grand Challenges Explorations Round 12 winners demonstrated in a two-page online application a bold idea in one of five critical global heath and development topic areas that included agriculture development, behavior change, and looking into animal and human health. Applications for the next round will be accepted starting September 2014.


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Public Health & YOU Launches

Looking for ways to earn continuing education credits? Simply want to learn more about the field of Public Health? 

Public Health & YOU is designed specifically for those whose work impacts the health of our communities. The initiative offers free online courses designed to promote the development of skills and knowledge associated with public health and encourage professionals to explore the area of study.

Five courses are currently being offered which can be taken alone, or in sequence to earn a Professional Development Certificate in Public Health from the IU School of Public Health-Bloomington.

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Where are they now? Tracking recent graduates as they embark on their professional careers.

Kathleen Chelminiak

IRHITEN Apprentice Coordinator

HealthLINC

Kathleen Chelminiak graduated in 2013 with a Bachelor of Science in Public Health majoring in Community Health. She joined the HealthLINC team in January of 2014 as an Apprenticeship Coordinator for the Indiana Rural Health Information Technology Education Network, or IRHITEN. HealthLINC is a local, not-for-profit Corporation, which supports health information technology (HIT) adoption, health information exchange (HIE), and innovative use of information for improved health care outcomes. HealthLINC governs a regional HIE that provides secure, clinical messaging system that delivers greater than 110,000 medical results per month between the hospital, private practices, and care clinics.

Having completed an internship with the organization during her undergraduate years, Kathleen was well versed in the needs met by her new company. “..the internship was very relevant, as my supervisor and I discussed my interests so we could tailor the internship to relate to an area I was passionate for. As a result, I worked with an electronic medical record (EMR) at a pediatric office in town.”

In her new role Kathleen oversees the development of IRHITEN, a workforce development program formed between Indiana Rural Health Association, Ivy Tech, & HealthLINC in response to an increased need of skilled IT workers in rural areas in Indiana. The program includes an online course provided by Ivy Tech, an apprenticeship portion in rural hospitals or practices provided by HealthLINC, and, finally, sitting for a certification exam

“The School of Public Health prepared me for my new position because it taught me to think outside the box. For me, SPH promoted free thinking and empowered students with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to make a change. The professors guided us; they would seldom give an easy way out, or give the answer. Although it was frustrating at the time, it really taught me to look at a given situation and see the areas that could be improved or changed,” she said.

Alumni Profile: Meet Alaina Cutler

Alaina Cutler was always drawn to helping professions and working directly with those in need. Initially she pursued a career in nursing, but following an internship experience decided to shift her focus and eventually settled in the Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Studies focusing her education on Tourism Management.

Following another internship experience, Alaina developed love of fundraising and working in the non-profit sector, a direction she hadn’t considered originally, but one that she decided to commit her career to.  In her current role as a development Associate at The Julian Center, Alaina is focused on donor engagement, utilizing a variety of tools ranging from social media and newsletters to fundraisers to reach her supporters.

“The best part about my degree is the diversity in education I received. Where else can you get a degree that is part marketing, part management, part relationship building, and more? These focus areas are applicable to any industry, not just tourism. I graduated feeling well rounded. I knew just enough about EVERYTHING to be dangerous in a conversation,” she said.

IU Alumni Assoication: Professional Enrichment Opportunities

It’s graduation season and newly minted grads from all IU campuses are heading out into the career world armed with degrees to empower them on their new professional journey. Whether you are a twenty something millennial or a non-traditional aged student, synthesizing your collegiate experience into a career opportunity can be a daunting task.

If current employment trends continue, as many as half of this year’s graduates will struggle to find full-time jobs many months after earning their degree. That’s scary. We get it!

As part of the new Professional Enrichment offerings at IUAA, we’ve just launched a series of career coaching packages to help the newest members of our IU alumni family prosper in the career world.
We know the first steps on your professional path can be the toughest, whether you are looking for your dream job, or trying to navigate a new role. IUAA has your back!

We like to think of the new graduate coaching packages as career insurance – an opportunity to work with an expert coach from Career Consultants OI Partners, a global firm with more than 32 years of coaching experience. OI coaches fully understand the challenges new college graduates face. With over 200 offices globally, OI provides world-class, hands-on help in areas including: job search strategies, mastering interviewing, developing a networking strategy, and personal brand-building.

The packages were designed to meet the needs of our newest alumni from 0-3 years out to address their unique needs in the world of work. We want to help stock your professional toolbox with resources that will help you throughout your career life. In addition to the individualized career coaching sessions, you will get IU Alumni Association membership, an IU ALUMNI lapel pin, and two of my favorite books:

The Startup of You, by Reid Hoffman and Ben Casnocha
 and
Me 2.0: Four Steps to Building Your Future, by Dan Schawbel

The coaching packages come beautifully wrapped and mailed via US Post for the ultimate gift experience. There are 4 and 8 coaching session options to choose from as well as annual and lifetime membership choices. Our goal is to help you set the stage for a lifetime of success.

The beauty of career coaching is that it can be done in-person, via phone, or SKYPE. OI Partners has expert coaches available around the world to serve our IU alumni population. Whether you are in Bloomington or Berlin, we’ve got your back!

Consider empowering a recent graduate with the gift of self-confidence and career insurance with a custom IUAA career coaching package. Order a new graduate package for your favorite grad today.

With our commitment to the lifetime engagement model of professional enrichment, job search and career management coaching is also available for those at any stage in their careers. We know that your career needs evolve over time and we have designed career coaching opportunities to help you find a new role, manage your career, or develop as a leader. Check out how career coaching can help you in any stage of your professional life.