Day: February 17, 2020

College Prep Class for High School Students Shares the Power of Journalism

To be a person is to have a story to tell. — Isak Dinesen
For thousands of years, storytelling has been a way for humans to engage, share feelings, and convey personal experiences.
Sharing stories with words and images helps us connect with the world around us and better understand one another.
This summer, high school students will have the opportunity to enhance their storytelling skills in Journalism through Words and Photographs, a college prep class offered in UVM’s Summer Academy program.
Taught by photographer Andrew Frost and writer Jenny Grosvenor, the course is part of UVM’s Summer Academy, a four-week residential and online program offered to high school juniors and seniors who want to explore areas of study and earn transferable college credit.
The course’s photography component is new this year, Frost says, adding that students will work on a variety of projects, from writing assignments to research to telling stories using words and photographs.
The goal of the course is for students to understand “real visual literacy coupled with the tools to tell a powerful story,” Frost says. Students will learn to appreciate the ability of words and pictures and to illuminate universal human experiences. Students will also learn to capture an audience and build a visual narrative that communicates without written language.
In an era when smart phone cameras are ubiquitous and everyone is posting online, Frost says students will better understand how to make an impact.
“This is nothing new—photographs have been staged since the inception of the medium, and from a fundamental starting point photographs are not true representations of reality,” he says. “We’ll delve into this in class and work on strategies to use photographs in interesting and compelling ways through both practice and an examination of historical photographic examples.”
Frost, who has been a photographer for 15 years, says he generally creates photographs of whatever he finds interesting—a pile of keys in the afternoon sunlight, icicles in a cave, a ski lodge perched on top of a mountain, and his dog running in the snow.
“Storytelling is all around us. We spin the events of our lives into a story we tell people when we meet them,” he says. “Understanding both how storytelling works and how to tell more engaging stories is almost like a superpower.”
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCzOJDJZHoBttdHAjJsnN9w?sub_confirmation=1

How Web Analytics Can Help You Understand Your Customers

digital marketing course
Bounce rates. Page views. Acquisition. New vs. returning visitors. When it comes to web analytics, which metrics are the most important?
When used collectively and strategically, all of them matter, say experts Krista Park and Ryan Andricks, who will separately teach UVM’s online Web Analytics and Data-Driven Decision Making course.
“It’s about understanding analytics as a whole,” says Park, director of analytics at Greenlane Marketing in Philadelphia. “Analytics are only one piece of the larger puzzle. You use web analytics to inform. But just because your web numbers are going up doesn’t mean things are going the way you want for your company. You need to think about the data strategically.”
The five-week course offers a deep dive into Google Analytics and interpreting web traffic data. It’s designed for digital marketers, analysts, and professionals looking to deepen their understanding of how to identify and use data to support their campaign planning and performance. It will also show how to leverage data as a way to better understand how a company’s website is being used—by whom and in what ways—for better reporting.
“We’ll look into how the process of selecting key data works, evaluating data, presenting it effectively, and communicating findings and recommended actions—based on the data—to achieve a business’s objectives,” Park says. “The course will help participants more efficiently and effectively evaluate their business’s performance and create actionable insights.”
Those actionable insights will then be used to achieve their business objectives, whether it’s growth in a particular area, stemming a loss, or working to achieve parity with their competitors, Park says.
In the course, Park and Andricks will also demonstrate how to create connections between offline and online data so digital marketers and analysts can understand and communicate a whole-world view of their business.
“I don’t think there is anything wrong with looking at a top surface piece of Google Analytics information, but segmentation is key,” Park says. “Otherwise it’s likely you’re missing some really important things that are happening.”
Andricks, a senior analytics manager at Seer Interactive in Philadelphia, agrees. He adds that if a digital marketer or analyst is working for a new employer or is hired by a web client that already uses Google Analytics, it’s important to educate them.  “A lot of people are using Google Analytics and assuming that it’s been set up properly,” he says. “If goal tracking isn’t being used, it needs to be. And they need to be sure to focus on the users, don’t think about sessions.”
When measuring analytics and communicating results, Park and Andricks say it’s critical to pay attention to and communicate patterns and standard fluctuations.
“One of the most basic patterns is seasonality. It’s a standard catch-all such as back-to-school or Christmas,” Park says. “But fluctuations don’t have a primary driver and might be less obvious. Maybe there’s a marketing campaign happening or selection of channels being promoted. You need to ask yourself, what is the context behind this data? What else is happening?”

UVM’s Digital Marketing Course on Web Analytics

The UVM course will help prepare participants for the Google Analytics certification exam. Participants will also learn:
  • How to identify key performance indicators within the data and contextual supports
  • Mapping data to key performance indicators, strategies, and objectives
  • Identification of ancillary factors impacting a data set
  • How to work with trends to identify patterns versus standard fluctuations
  • Data combinations for more robust outputs (e.g. segments, filters, dimensions, custom views)
  • Presenting data in digestible formats
  • Data presentation structures—report types (sheets, docs, slides), frequency, update methods (manual, automated)
  • Creating actionable insights
  • Developing baselines and projection
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCzOJDJZHoBttdHAjJsnN9w?sub_confirmation=1

Cabot Creamery Co-operative Manager Nick Managan Strives to Keep Learning

management program
What makes a good manager?
For UVM alumnus Nick Managan ’05, it’s all about accountability and hard work.
Managan has been employed full-time at Cabot Creamery Cooperative for ten years, working his way up through the ranks and being mentored by his supervisors along the way. In 2017, he was promoted to Northeast marketing manager and had years of experience under his belt in customer service, marketing, communications, and event planning.
But one area he needed more training in was managing staff. His new role was the first time he would be in a supervisory role with full-time employees reporting to him. Managan enrolled in UVM’s Leadership and Management Program, which offers eight, one-day seminars in Burlington. The program addresses everything from emotional intelligence to conflict and negotiation to accounting.
“I thought the program did a great job giving a broad perspective of the things you need to focus on as a manager,” he says. “I really loved the emotional intelligence and conflict and negotiation seminars. It was nice to learn more about those areas and gain a little more self-awareness.”

A Priority to Never Stop Learning

Managan joined Cabot in 2005, first as a part-time staffer sampling cheese at events in New York City. He returned to his native Vermont in 2009 as Cabot’s special events coordinator. He later became the co-op’s Northeast marketing and communications integrator before being promoted to his current role.
Even though Managan has worked for Cabot for more than a decade, he says he strives to continue to learn and grow.
“It’s important to improve all the time,” he says. “Education is one of the seven co-operative principles and a priority for Cabot. I’m grateful for the opportunity to learn.”
Another principle at the heart of Cabot is concern for community. In February, Managan and 100 Cabot staff and farmers participated in the Special Olympics Vermont Penguin Plunge in Lake Champlain fundraiser. The co-op’s Department of Gratitude  also promotes and supports a variety of volunteer opportunities with its Reward Volunteers program.

A Sense of Community

Meanwhile, outside of work, Managan and his wife are raising a therapy dog—a golden retriever named Lou—who visits schools and nursing homes through Therapy Dogs of Vermont. Managan also coached for the first time this winter, volunteering for first and second grade basketball in Waterbury.
“Volunteerism is part of the fabric of Vermont and at the heart of our farmers,” he says. “You can change the trajectory of someone’s day by helping someone. It comes down to caring and trying to make the world a better place, starting with the community you’re in.”
That sense of community and caring carries over to the workplace, he says. Being engaged, accountable and hardworking are just a few of the things that make a leader and manager effective.
“It’s about making sure you’re supporting your team, making sure they know what the expectations are and making sure you’re providing the resources they need,” he says. “A good manager is checking in with staff, making sure things are running smoothly and putting in their own work.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCzOJDJZHoBttdHAjJsnN9w?sub_confirmation=1

Using a Public Health Approach in Physical Therapy

epidemiology certificate
The best part of Mariana Wingood’s job has always been helping patients return to their everyday lives.
She has spent most of her career being a full-time physical therapist at UVM Medical Center’s Fanny Allen campus in Colchester, providing care to patients who have suffered a fall or illness and helps them get them back on their feet and stay healthy.
However, in the fall she decided to take the next step and start her PhD in Human Functioning and Rehabilitation at the UVM College of Nursing and Health Sciences.
“Many older adults stop exercising as they age. My interest is figuring out how can we change that,” she says. “One avenue may be through increasing physical activity discussions in healthcare. The thought is that older adults value the advice they get from healthcare providers, and by having them discuss physical activity with their patients, it may impact an individual’s level of physical activity. My question is, how can we increase healthcare providers promotion of physical activity?  What tools can be developed, validated and implemented to increase this ease? Do those tools make a difference in the level of physical activity?”
She hopes that these two important parts of her life—hands-on clinical care and research—could one day coalesce into a job teaching at a university with a pro bono clinic offering physical therapy and preventative care.

Epidemiology Certificate Program at UVM

To help her prepare for her career plans and the doctorate program, Wingood enrolled in the UVM Certificate of Graduate Study in Epidemiology in 2017. The 18-credit program is a one-year, online certificate that is a collaboration of the Larner College of Medicine, Continuing and Distance Education, and the UVM Graduate College.
“What I enjoyed most about the program was the application of research, statistics and analyses,” she says. “It really deepened my understanding of public health and prepared me well for the PhD program. Public health and epidemiologists have a different view of healthcare, I really enjoy their promotion of health and prevention of disease. As a healthcare provider it’s important to be aware of their view and efforts. By understanding them, we can improve collaborations and become better clinicians and better researchers.”
The program’s core courses include epidemiology, applied research in public health and public health biostatistics. Program electives range from public health law and ethics to investigating disease outbreaks.
“The program did a good job making the assignments based on real-life scenarios and making it applicable,” she says. “We would also apply any recent news of an outbreak—such as flu or salmonella—into our work as well.”
Wingood studied biology at SUNY Oswego and received a doctor of physical therapy from SUNY Update Medical University. Raised in Austria by her parents and grandmother, she moved to the United States in 1999.  She says that she always knew she wanted to work with older adults.
“I love exercise and how it makes me feel. It’s really beneficial to be able to enjoy physical activity and exercise later on in life and seeing how it can help people get better was a huge motivator for me wanting to become a physical therapist,” she says. “I always knew I wanted to go into geriatrics. My grandmother helped raise me and I always wanted to thank older adults for everything they have done. This is a great way for me to do that.”
Helping patients get better and helping them enjoy the life they lived prior to going to the hospital or getting injured is her favorite part of the job. More than anything, the human connection is what makes Wingood’s work in physical therapy so rewarding.
“I learn as much from my patients as I hope I teach them, especially the older adults as they have so much life experience,” she says. “Patients tell me that I have a great outlook on life and I inform them it is thanks to them, I have learned it all from my patients.’ It’s a great connection to have
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCzOJDJZHoBttdHAjJsnN9w?sub_confirmation=1

Medical Mentorship Program Helps Medical Students Prepare for Revised MCAT

Originally published on March 17, 2016. Updated March 27, 2019
The University of Vermont offers a four-week Medical School Mentorship and Enrichment Summer Program to help prepare students for the new Medical College Admission Test (MCAT).
The revised MCAT is designed to place greater emphasis on critical thinking and cover additional content. In addition to being broader and more difficult, the new MCAT is twice as long as the old edition and has a heavier section on biochemistry.
“On the new MCAT, students need to know even more,” says UVM College of Medicine Biochemistry Professor Paula Tracy, who is leading the Medical School Mentorship and Enrichment Summer Program. “Our goal is not to reteach students everything they’ve already learned over four weeks. We want to identify concepts students struggle with and offer an active, hands-on learning experience.”
The revised MCAT also added a fourth section dedicated to behavioral tactics, psychology, and sociology. The Association of American Medical Colleges conducted five years of research to revamp the test in April 2015, which had not been updated since 1991.
In addition to preparing for the MCAT, the Medical School Mentorship and Enrichment Summer Program will also help students build clinical experience with formal shadowing and medical-simulation-center activities and give them the opportunity to practice essential interviewing skills.

An MCAT Prep Course and the Benefits of Mentoring

The program is not just about testing. Tracy points out that mentoring is a key component to help students prepare for medical school. Students are assigned to a current UVM medical student who will serve as a personal mentor and provide students with firsthand knowledge about applying to and succeeding in medical school today.
“What I like about mentoring is finding the best in people,” says Tracy, a champion of mentoring and a member of the UVM faculty for more than 30 years. “It helps students realize their own potential.”

During the Program, Students Will:

  • Perform virtual medical procedures in UVM’s state-of-the-art medical simulation center and have an opportunity to watch a live surgery
  • Practice for medical school interviews through mock multiple mini interviews (MMIs) with feedback to improve interview skills
  • Receive a detailed, personalized assessment

Is a MCAT Prep Course Right for You?

The program is for premed students who are getting ready to take the MCAT and apply to medical school. Tracy expects participants will have completed their first three years of undergraduate premedical coursework before starting the program. Recent graduates are welcome to participate as long as they have completed the standard premed course requirements.
Tracy has worked with undergraduate, graduate, and medical students at all training levels, as both their teacher and mentor. She previously served as the director of Preclinical Assessment in the College of Medicine Vermont Integrated Curriculum (VIC) and prior to that served as the director of a VIC first-year course for 13 years.
“As a result of those experiences and my membership on the College of Medicine Admissions Committee, I have an in-depth understanding of what it takes to get into medical school and how to be successful as a medical student,” she says. “I’m confident we’ve pulled together the right team of teachers and mentors in order to create the right learning experiences to help students confidently progress through their premed pathway into medical school.”
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCzOJDJZHoBttdHAjJsnN9w?sub_confirmation=1

Personalized Career Coaching Guides Master of Public Health Students Toward Success

Imagine having an advocate in your corner to help you polish up your resume, prepare for a job interview, refine an outstanding cover letter, connect to career mentors, and build an attention-getting LinkedIn profile as you advance along your career path. That’s exactly what currently enrolled students and Alumni of UVM’s Certificates of Graduate Study and Master of Public Health degree programs through the Larner College of Medicine have in Career Development Coach, Heather Palow, M.Ed, ACC.
“What I really enjoy the most is helping our MPH students and Alumni be able to better explain and showcase their strengths, transferable skills and their own unique story in ways that helps them to see their future in health careers,” said Palow.

Career Services Integrated into Master of Public Health Program

Master of Public Health degree students first meet Palow during the orientation to the online masters’ program. As part of the virtual tour of UVM and the College of Medicine, Palow helps students to think about the importance of building a professional portfolio right from the beginning. She meets with students one-on-one at the start of the course, throughout the program, and at the end of the program as part of their Applied Practice Experience (APE)  learning the unique paths that many students have taken when deciding to pursue a career in Public Health.
“So often, I experience what I think of as  ‘lightbulb moments’ with students; hearing the reasons why they are making changes in their education and career paths and discussing how their  decisions can be communicated in a positive way to prospective employers in the future,” said Palow.
May 2018 MPH Graduate, Liz Scoles took advantage of all of the services provided by Palow, from resume and cover letter writing, to interview prep and even guidance on interview follow-up emails and calls. She credits the work that she and Palow did together as one of the reasons that she is in her new position at a health information exchange company.
“It doesn’t take long to get rusty,” said Scoles. “I had been out of work for four years after completing my Master of Public Health, and a lot had changed in that time. Heather helped me translate my skills into quick takeaways that employers were looking for. She was incredibly helpful.”
Palow not only keeps tabs on current MPH students and connects them with internships and fellowship resources, but also works with students as they start to navigate the change process from Alumni to career professional. She monitors and shares job opportunities in Public Health, as well as guides important conversations as to when might be the best time to make a career change.
“Some students are naturals when it comes to transitions, but others are anxious or have unique goals and challenges advancing in their career, I work with people to get past their roadblocks to help them communicate their unique story, appeal to a prospective employer and really make the change in their professional lives that they are hoping for.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCzOJDJZHoBttdHAjJsnN9w?sub_confirmation=1

Top 10 Reasons to Attend Summer School

Remember when Alice Cooper’s song School’s Out was blasted from car radios just as the final school bells rang in early June? Times have changed when it comes to how we approach academics in the warm summer months. Whether it’s the opportunity for a student to get ahead on core requirements, boost a GPA or just stay engaged in learning while also enjoying all that summer has to offer; today, summer school is definitely – in.
The University of Vermont’s Summer University offers over 500 courses, of which more than 200 are online, making the courses accessible from just about anywhere. But taking summer courses at UVM is about more than the unique course selection; it’s also an amazing opportunity to experience Burlington, which is one of the most popular vacation destinations in the country.
And just in case you need more convincing, we’ve pulled together our Top 10 Reasons to Attend Summer School at UVM.

  1. UVM Campus in the Summer
    Flexibility of courses: students can choose online or on-campus courses. And Summer University at UVM has three start dates, allowing students to take courses in May, June or July.
  2. Diversity of course selection: with over 500 courses—and more than 200 online—students can choose from core requirements such as Race and Ethnicity in American Literature and Culture, Archaeology of the Americas, World Regional Geography or Fundamentals of Linguistics. Or try something new such as Contemporary US Theater or Cybersecurity Principles.
  3. Small class sizes: the general student population is reduced in the summer months, which means courses taken at Summer University are small; providing more access to instructors.
  4. Build your global network: your classmates during the summer could be from just about anywhere in the world. Summer University is open to visiting undergrads, UVM undergrads, local professionals, high school students, and students from around the globe, therefore your potential network will grow.
  5. Reduced price: summer courses at UVM are 30% off standard tuition rates. Scholarships and housing options are also available making summer school at UVM affordable.
  6. Transferable credits: UVM opens its doors to visiting undergrad students each summer and offers visiting students personal advising to help determine which credits will transfer back to their undergraduate university.
  7. Short courses: studies have shown that the shorter the course, the more likely a student is to retain the information.
  8. Focused subjects: taking one course or even two means that a student can focus their attention on specific topics such as Elements of Statistics or Fundamentals of Calculus. For some students, the more intensive, short course in the summer allows them to maintain a focus that may have been difficult in a full semester.
  9. Summer in Vermont: there really isn’t a better place to be than on the shores of Lake Champlain in the summer months. By choosing courses at are on-campus, students can enjoy all that Vermont has to offer including hiking, biking, paddle boarding, boating, award-winning restaurants, outdoor music festivals, and so much more.
  10. Homework on the beach: choose from three gorgeous sandy beaches on the shores of Lake Champlain, all within a short walk or a bike ride from the UVM campus to read, work on a paper or study for an exam.

Kayaking on Lake Champlain in the Summer
Swapping traffic congestion for kayaking on Lake Champlain and substituting Facebook for actual facetime with new friends from around the globe just might be the recipe for a perfect summer school experience.
And for undergrads, high school students, and professionals, there’s so much to learn at UVM’s Summer University. Class seats are limited and registration is open now.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCzOJDJZHoBttdHAjJsnN9w?sub_confirmation=1

Creating a Healthy Workplace Environment

As a recent grad, you have probably held jobs before, but nothing that you planned on doing permanently. Now, you are out there looking for a career, and you hope to settle into one workplace. Once you find that job, you need to take steps to create a healthy workplace environment that you are going to want to be in on a daily basis for the next several years, or even longer. Even if there aren’t a lot of practices in place at the workplace, it doesn’t mean that you can’t make your own workspace a healthy environment. Today we are going to discuss some of the things you can do in order to create a healthy workplace environment.

1. Get some Plants

Not only do plants make an office look more cheerful, they are very beneficial to your health. For starters, plants help to provide oxygen, and they keep the air clean. This is going to help you to avoid catching a lot of viruses. Also, having plants around can improve your overall mood, which is going to help you to be more energetic and productive. They also add color to what could be an otherwise plain and boring office. This is a great way to inject a bit of your own personality into your workspace. Encourage others in the office to bring in some plants as well for a healthier working environment.

2. Use Color

If you are allowed to decorate your office space, make sure that you bring in a lot of color. This doesn’t mean that you have to make your space look garish. But, there are certain colors that can affect your moods, and make you more productive. For instance, oranges and reds can help to increase your energy levels. Pale blue helps people to be focused and more productive. Brown evokes feelings of tranquility and peace. The more you know about how colors affect your moods, the better able you will be to plan the ideal color scheme for your workspace.

3. Minimize the Spread of Germs

Obviously, you can’t make everyone wash their hands all the time, but there are steps that you can take to help minimize the spread of germs and bacteria in your workplace. “Make sure that you wash your hands frequently, and that you use a hand sanitizer after touching items that many other people touch. Clean your desk regularly, and wipe down your computer, telephone handset, etc. to get rid of germs and prevent the spread of various illnesses, including viruses and stomach bacteria,” suggests Dr. Shawn Khodadadian from Manhattan Gastroenterology.

4. Eat Healthy

One way to avoid getting sick is to follow a healthy, well-balanced diet. This is going to help keep you healthy, and you won’t be as susceptible to germs and viruses because you will have a stronger immune system. Instead of eating at the cafeteria or a take-out, make your own healthy lunches and bring them to work with you. Don’t forget to bring healthy snacks, and make sure that you drink plenty of water throughout the day so you stay well hydrated. Don’t skip meals, eat lunch, and enjoy healthy, protein-rich snacks during the day to keep your energy levels up.

5. Exercise

If you have an office job, it is all too easy to end up sitting at your desk all day and getting no exercise at all. In order to stay healthy, you need to move around. Take short stretching breaks several times each day. Walk or cycle to work instead of driving or taking the bus. Use the stairs instead of the elevator. Take an exercise class during your lunch break. There are plenty of ways that you can stay active, even when you have a desk job. See if you can get your coworkers to start taking walks on breaks with you, and everyone in the office will be a lot healthier and happier.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCzOJDJZHoBttdHAjJsnN9w?sub_confirmation=1