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The second graduating
class of Duke's Professional Development Institute.
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Linda Washington was one of 21 employees who received a
certificate from Clint Davidson, vice president of Human Resources, during the
graduation ceremony on March 26 for the second class of PDI's office staff
development program. |
Duke Program Helping Staff Get Ahead
Professional Development Institute Graduates Second Class
The irony of working for one of the best universities in the country while education for herself was just out of reach dogged Linda Washington ever since she began working at Duke more than three years ago. A single mom working as a clerk in the grounds, sanitation and recycling department, she yearned to bolster her education credentials and advance her career, but life always got in the way.
"I wanted to go back to school, but I didn't have the finances or the time," Washington said. "I was always doing something for the kids."
As she received her certificate from Duke's Professional Development Institute on March 26 in the Nelson Music Room on East Campus, her three children applauding in the audience, Washington glowed with the satisfaction of achievement that comes from overcoming adversity. Even though she missed the first couple of classes because she was hospitalized, and a few months later lost her house and belongings to a fire, she persevered. Her classmates took up a collection; she stuck with her work and class schedule.
"2003 was a hard year," Washington said. "But I had so much support from my class and my job. Everyone pulled together."
The 21 students who graduated from PDI's second class of the office staff development program already are beginning to interview for higher-level jobs within Duke. A third class, which began in October, will begin internships in May, and a fourth class began March 1. As part of the selection process, applicants must interview with a selection committee, take an assessment and receive approval from their supervisor to take time off work to attend classes one to three days a week and complete an internship.
The intensive 10-month curriculum teaches students computer programs and helps them polish their customer service, office etiquette and career-planning skills. Students may specialize in either general or medical office administration. Each student is assigned a mentor and taught the value of networking. The program helps staff members focus on the type of work in which they will flourish by offering career and personal interest assessments and bringing in successful Duke staff to talk about their fields and how they rose through the ranks.
"The program covers the minor to the major. It starts off with basic English and takes you through advanced computer training," Washington said.
The office staff development program began in February 2003, graduating its first class in November 2003. Since then, 19 of the original 22 students ready for placement have received promotions in their original departments or have moved to higher-level opportunities in other areas within the University or Health System.
The career success of Tony Snipes, a graduate of the first class, demonstrates how PDI was designed to work. Snipes entered the inaugural class as a cashier at the computer store, a small department of longtime staff with virtually no turnover.
"I couldn't advance there," said Snipes, who has been working at Duke since 2001. "No one there was interested in moving on, so I had nowhere to go. I felt I was in a rut. I knew I had more to offer."
Some departments encourage valued staff to enroll in PDI in order to retain them by promoting them to a better-paying and more challenging position after graduation. Because of the tight-knit structure of Snipes' department, it made more sense for him to interview elsewhere within Duke. Within a few weeks of graduation, Snipes was offered a position as staff assistant for the CEO of the credit union.
"The program lifted a burden off my shoulders," Snipes said. "It opened doors for me when I felt there was had nowhere to go."
In his new role, Snipes is too busy to get into a rut. His tasks are varied and make use of his organizational and people skills. He arrives at work early by choice and is eager to take on new challenges.
"Whatever is needed, I do it," Snipes said. "I never tell them I can't do it. I may have a million things to do, but I can make it a million and one."
That sort of attitude is what Sally Allison, manager for PDI, looks for when applicants are selected for the program. PDI and the participant's department make a commitment to its students by paying for any time they put into classes and internships beyond their normal work schedule. The Institute supplies instructors from its partnership with Durham Tech and recruiters who work with students to find new positions where they can put their augmented skills to better use.
Supervisors notice a difference in their staff very quickly after classes begin.
"These were good staff to begin with," Allison said. "The program gives them confidence, poise and positive assertiveness that managers like. The students take more initiative and use problem-solving skills they might not have possessed before."
Rhonda King-Seymore, a Duke staff member for three years, enrolled in the third PDI class. As an animal caretaker in the division of lab animal resources, her days are long, but her commitment is strong. Her workday begins at 7 a.m., and PDI classes can sometimes stretch it to 7:30 p.m. She and her husband have had to juggle their schedules to take care of their family.
"The toughest thing is staying so late when I'm used to getting off at 3:30 and starting my after-work schedule: picking up kids, running errands, housework, dinner, homework, and bath time," King-Seymore said.
As someone who has always earned a living through manual labor, initially in factories, then as a housekeeper at Duke, she is motivated to reshape her career into clerical work.
"I enrolled in PDI for the chance to do something better," King-Seymore said. "I'm looking forward to graduating and having more to put on my resume."
New PDI graduate Linda Washington attests that King-Seymore will have plenty to put on her resume, as well as information that will help her clarify her career goals. Washington entered the program with the idea that she wanted to move into customer service. But by the time she completed her internship at the primate center, she realized she was happier working behind the scenes. She particularly enjoyed learning advanced computer programs, which she has already put to use in her current job.
"The instructor had us doing a lot of things we didn't think we could do," Washington said. "That was the most exciting part."
Buoyed by the success of the class before her, Washington is ready to interview for new positions.
"This is an excellent program for people who want to advance themselves and don't know how," she said. "It introduced me to a whole new world."
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