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Creating A Collaborative Community
Callings and Careers
Dr. William Hensel
Career & Personal Counselor
What is God doing?
• At LeTourneau University
• Across Christian higher education
The Purpose of the University“Perhaps the most important contribution schools can make...is to give [our youth] a sense of coherence in their studies, a sense of purpose, meaning and interconnectedness in what they learn. Modern secular education is failing… because it has no moral, social or intellectual center. There is no set of ideas or attitudes that permeates all parts of the curriculum. The curriculum is not...a ‘course of study’ at all but a meaningless hodgepodge of subjects. It does not even put forward a clear vision of what constitutes an educated person, unless it is a person who possesses ‘skills’. In other words, a technocrat’s ideal – a person with no commitment and no point of view but with plenty of marketable skills.”
- Neil Postman, Technopoly: The Surrender of Culture to Technology
The Mission of the University
• To give students a sense of coherence in their studies, a sense of purpose, meaning and interconnectedness in what they learn.
• To create a set of ideas or attitudes that permeates all parts of the curriculum.
• To put forth a clear vision of what constitutes an educated person.
Emerging Vision: Cultural Renovators
• The Student Outcomes Commission
• The Center for the Development of Christian Leadership
• The Personal Educational Portfolio
Emerging Vision: Collaborative Consensus
We are committed to collaboration toward excellence in
Five Areas of Student Growth and Development
Ethical Beliefs and Values
Intellectual Foundational Concepts
Professional Specialized Studies
Personal Holistic Development
Social Community Life
Career Services in Community
Co-educators with faculty and
professional colleagues
Co-creators with God of His
collaborative community
What is God doing?
Two trends:
• Integration in a community of learning
• ‘Pilot Study’ approach to development
Integration in a
community of learning
Exploring Call and Career…
A model consistent with what God
is doing at LeTourneau University
Exploring Call and Career
Questions we want to help students answer:
• What career best correlates with my sense of God’s call for me?
• Among my strengths and talents, which do I most want to use in my work?
• Which careers will provide the best opportunities for me to develop and use my key strengths and talents?
Exploring Call and Career
• In this career, will I be able, on a regular basis, to do what I do best?
• Will God be honored, and will my strengths and talents blossom and flourish, as I pursue this career?
• How will I model Christ in a global market place? In contacts with my colleagues? In my own organization and community?
Exploring Call & Career
A continuous developmental spiral:
Self-Discovery ����
Investigation ����
Decision Making ����
Implementation
Self-Discovery
• Opportunities for
students to integrate
interests, personality,
strengths, skills,
values, lifestyle
preferences, goals,
and dreams, and a
sense of God’s call.
Investigation
• Opportunities for
students to acquire
personally-relevant
information about
the changing world
of work and service.
Decision Making• Opportunities for the student to
assess purposes and goals and
plan means to achieve them.
• Building from outcomes of
Self-Assessment and
Investigation, the student
produces an increasingly
detailed and practical plan to
guide his or her development
vocationally.
Implementation
• Opportunities for
the student to take
action to achieve a
specific vocational
objective.
Vocational Implementation
Seeking, Securing and Succeeding…
in Being, Knowing and Doing…
as God Creates, Calls, and Enables us.
Exploring Career & Call
Three levels of Student Services:
Tier One: All students
Tier Two: Some students
Tier Three: One student
Self-Discovery
Tier 1 (All new students) – Fall Semester
– Assessment instruments
• CSI � Group and individual interpretation*
• StrengthsFinder/StrengthsQuest*
• Myers-Briggs Type Indicator*
– CS website and SIGI Plus
– Personal ACTion Plan (PACT) / Personal Educational Portfolio (PEP)*
* Addressed in Cornerstones for Life & Learning course
Self-Discovery
• Tier 1 (All new students) – Spring Semester
– Activities coordinated with major programs
– Parallel activities for Undeclareds (see Tier 2)
– Familiarization with Career Services/
Achievement Center
• Staff and interns
• Services – Resource Center, website, SIGI Plus, Co-
op/internship/employment services, Credentialing,
Career Events, Alumni networking, Company
Seminars, standard instruments, and more.
Self-Discovery
Tier 2 (Undeclared & CSI-identified) – Fall
– MBTI Groups – ‘Taste-Test Your Strengths’
• Attend one of four 2.5-hour dinner sessions (N = 25)
• Faculty/staff facilitators with PA assistance
– SIGI Plus Groups – follow up MBTI sessions
– Peer Advisors work with individuals to
integrate strengths with PACT/PEP
Self-DiscoveryTier 2 (Undeclared & CSI-identified) – SpringMajor-selection activities
– Co-op Panel
– Individual reviews PACT/PEP with PA �
– PACT/PEP First-Summer Plan
– Information-gathering and decision-making
skills training
Self-Discovery
Tier 3 (unique individuals)
• Students usually self-referred or identified
through Early Alert process
• Individual or small-group involvement,
based on 1:1 consultation with CS
professionals
Self-DiscoveryTier 3 (unique individuals)Additional resources to include:
– Campbell Interest & Skill Survey (CISS)
– DISC and StrengthsQuest instruments & activities
– Spiritual gifts/Christian vocational assessments
– Referral for personal/academic/social/spiritual consultation (1:1 and small group modes)
– Other assessments and experiences – pending Assessment Task Force
‘Pilot Study’ approach to
development
Strengths Assessment Study
to guide selection and use of a program
of strengths assessment and
enhancement.
Strengths Assessment Pilot Study
Fall 2001
• Precepts for Success (1st-year course)
• 8 weeks, 1 credit
• 4 experimental sections
– Two using StrengthsFinder® (SF) (N=32)
– Two using CAREERQuest™ (CQ) (N=24)
• 9 control Sections (N=133)
Practical Issues:
• Is it worthwhile to incorporate strengths
assessment and enhancement in our
first-year course?
• Are there significant differences
between effects of SF and CQ in the
context of our first-year course?
Questionnaire
• Assess & compare effects of SF and CQ
• 56 items
• 7-point scale
• Completed at penultimate class meeting
Longitudinal Factors
• Focus groups
• Retention or planned transition
• GPA, community involvement, satisfaction
• Suitable academic program
• Qualitative assessment of portfolio
• Post-graduation surveys (1 and 5 years)
Practical Issues:
• Is it worthwhile to incorporate strengths
assessment and enhancement in our
first-year course? Emphatically YES
• Are there significant differences between effects of SF and CQ in the context of our first-year course?
Generally NO
Strengths Assessment Project
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SF
CQ
Control
No Significant Differences(16 of 56 items , p<.05, 2-tailed test)
• Ease in understanding & using course materials
• Peer Advisor availability
• Instructor concern
• Aware that teacher’s style may not match my learning style
• Growth in understanding and ability to make lasting friendships
• Understanding God’s gifts and call on my life
• Christian view of personhood and excellence
• Decision-making and goal achievement
• Belief that success involves optimum use of God-given strengths
• Examining strengths & values regarding vocation
• Understanding and considering my general career
preferences
• Confidence in deciding my major and career
NOTE: Career focus addressed in the course after the pilot
study questionnaire was completed.
Significant Benefits from SF/CQ(40 of 56 Items, p < .05, two-tailed test)
• Setting realistic goals
• Understanding self and others
• Course content interesting
• Student enjoyment of self-learning
• Perceived instructor enthusiasm & preparation
• Class interesting and effective
• Advising effectiveness
• Quality of activities & discussions
• Identification of own and others’ styles of personality and learning
• Understanding own personality and learning strengths & limitations
• Understanding why diverse styles can conflict and benefit collaboration
• Insights to relate well with others of diverse personality styles
• Devising learning strategies fitting for oneself
• Understanding how to adapt to diverse teaching styles
• How select/improve one’s own learning environment
• Understand own information processing
• New insights re: self
• Understanding own general thinking style
• Practice identifying thinking styles of others
• Identify ways to
improve own thinking
• Clarified own
strengths and talents
• Able to maximize
strengths and manage
weaknesses
• Define high
achievement for self
• More honest
assessment of
priorities
• Able to perceive
others in terms of their
unique strengths
• Growth in confidence
and peace of mind
Generalizable Elements
• The top has to believe and support it
• Consensus building: We are in this together. So…what is “this”?
• His ways are not our ways.
• Tension can be constructive in creating collaborative community
Process Questions
• What would you like to state or ask now?
• What is God doing in Christian higher
education? What common elements do you
perceive?
• What do we want students to be, know, or
do in connection with career services?
• How can we benchmark (assess, judge the
progress toward) these objectives?
Creating A Collaborative Community
Callings and Careers
Dr. William Hensel
Career & Personal Counselor
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