Stetson Commons 2000-8-2

kMmmom Winter 2000 • A Newsletter for Families of Stetson University Students ♦ Volume VIII ♦ No. 2 AIDS quilt display draws crowd Though the display in the Edmunds Center was only a few pieces of the whole, the AIDS quilt attracted a lot of attention in the DeLand community. More than 300 people came to see the display sponsored by Stetson's chapter of Circle K International and Common Ground. One hundred-twelve volunteers randomly read names of those who have tragically lost their battles with AIDS. The volunteets were accompanied by a flute quartet of Stetson students including Elizabeth Maresca, New Port Richey; Maria Hottle, Eustis; Sarah Soisson, Oviedo; and Katherina Flattich, Freiburg, Germany. Other key student volunteers were Karen Khan, Jensen Beach; Jenn Czuprynski, Osprey; Jason Croxtin, Palm City; Luis Maldonado, LaBelle; Katie Dukes, Lake Helen; Sarah Reed, Dade City; Amy Charpentier, Palm City; faculty volunteer Dr. John Pearson; and Dr. Laura Walters Baskett, univetsity chaplain. U.S. Sugar Scholar named Lisa Kay Tifft, DeLand, a senior psychology major, was named this academic year's U.S. Sugar Corporation Scholar at Stetson University. Tifft, who will soon start an internship at DeLand's The House Next Door assisting family counselors, plans to pursue a master's degree in marriage and'family counseling at Stetson. The U.S. Sugar Corporation Scholarship Progtam is administered by the Florida Independent College Fund, a not-for-profit foundation for program and resource development for the Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida. The U.S. Sugar Corporation, based in Clewiston, awarded a $2,800 scholarship to a graduating senior at each of 26 member schools in the foundation. Tifft and the other U.S. Sugar Scholars were selected on the basis of academic standing, grade point average and community involvement. While at Stetson, Tifft has been active in the "America Reads" program, in which she tutors Woodward Avenue Elementary School students who are experiencing reading difficulties. In nominating Tifft for the scholarship, Stetson officials cited her perseverance in pursuing her education as a single mother of three whose daughter was ill, requiring frequent trips to Shands Hospital in Gainesville. Each surgery required a two-week stay in Gainesville and a six-month recuperation period. "I could not begin to describe the emotional turmoil my children and I endured," Tifft said. "I was able to continue with my education because of friends and professors. My professors gave me encouragement and refused to allow me to quit. " Career Services: What do we do? If you ask some people what the role of the Career Services office is, they might answer by saying, "That's where you go to get a job." This may have been true in the '80s, but the Career Services Office at Stetson, located at 609 Bert Fish Drive, has evolved into a service that assists students in every stage of the career development process. Career Services offers students a variety of programs to assist with a number of career- related issues, from self-discovery activities and occupational exploration, to preparation for the job search or graduate study. The Career Services Office and the Counseling Center assist students with the beginning stages of their career development process. In September 1998, the Peer Career Center was opened. Its program, a free, walk-in service operated by professional staff and trained student volunteers, provides a variety of self-assessment tools and two state- of-the- art computerized guidance information systems: SIGI Plus (System of Interactive Guidance Information) and Discover. These instruments are used to help students look at how their skills, interests, and values match up with various occupations. The objective is not to pigeonhole students into one particular career, but to help them to discover careers that best complement their personal attributes. Students can visit the center to get more information about the world of work or graduate or professional schools by reviewing the library resources available. In addition to helping students with the beginning stages of the career development process, the Career Services Office assists students in developing the competencies necessary to seek internships, summer jobs, and full- and part-time work opportunities. The office provides numerous programs throughout the year to help students develop their job search skills, such as resume and cover-letter preparation, networking, mock interviews, and dining and business etiquette. (Continued p. 2)