U-M Flint Courses: A Message to Staff

Human Resource Development is very pleased to be collaborating with the University of Michigan-Flint Campus to bring some of HRD's courses to the Michigan Rooms beginning March 18^th. Interim Chancellor Jack Kay is encouraging staff to take a close look at the offerings.

Dear Colleagues:

You may have seen the media ads with the smiling faces and the proud statement “I am UM-Flint.” the smiling and proud faces belong to students, faculty, staff, and alumni—the university family. There is a reason for this inclusiveness: we are all essential to the success of this institution. Each of us in his or her own way makes an important contribution to the achievement of our mission. A mission that revolves around the learning experience.

Sometimes we move across categories: a professor assumes an administrative position, an administrator teaches a class, an alumnus or alumna is hired for a faculty or staff position, or (my favorite) a staff member becomes a student. These moves occur smoothly, because our culture encourages them. At a learning institution everybody is expected to learn. Talk to your supervisor about these opportunities that are being made available to you.

There are many learning opportunities for staff on this campus, ranging from academic classes to self-development workshops. I encourage you to take advantage of those opportunities. Visit our Office of Human Resources or view the Human Resource Development (HRD) Web site http://www.umich.edu/~hrd/programsandcourses/flint.html for details. You may discover precisely what you need or desire—or better yet, what you need and desire.

Here, we are all teachers and we are all students, which is another way to say that we are all learners. That is our defining condition.

Sincerely,

Jack Kay