Spring 2007
It's official: spring is here! Students are returning from spring break, and the end of the academic year is only a couple of months away. In terms of your mentor relationship, this may mean a few different things.
This final e-newsletter of the 2006-2007 SPH Mentor Program is intended to help you determine the next steps for your mentor relationship. Will you connect at an upcoming event? Can you attend the mentor appreciation reception? Do you wish to stay in contact with your mentor or student when the formal program comes to a close?
In this newsletter you will find:
The Next Step
By: Emily Abbott
As the formal mentor program comes to an end for the 2006-2007 school year, it is important to reflect on your mentor relationship. You have likely had a chance to define your mentor relationship, set goals, and asked questions of each other. Over the next few months, you will need to discuss with your mentor/student where you would like the relationship to go. As the formal program ends, there are many possibilities of where your relationship can go next.
Have you satisfied your goals and expectations in your mentor relationship and feel it’s time to part ways? Do you plan to formally continue your relationship into next year’s mentor program? These are a few of the question you can ask yourself and your partner.
Some mentors and mentees may have mixed feelings about continuing the relationship. You may feel you have achieved what you hoped for during your mentor relationship. Remember departing from the formal mentoring program does not necessarily mean the relationship is ending. Mentors can still hold an important place in mentee's life.
To celebrate and reflect on where your relationship has been, here are a few questions you may wish to discuss together.
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Did we meet our goals and expectations as a pair?
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What was the best part about working with my mentor/student? What was the most challenging?
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Did we put enough effort into this relationship such that leaving it (or continuing it) left us more enriched than when we entered it?
If you decide to not to move forward, remember ending the relationship well is important to your continued success. Make your last impression a positive one. Be clear about why you want to end the relationship. Celebrate the goals you have achieved. If you are unable to have a formal closure meeting, make sure to connect by email or phone.
Lastly, you may also want to reflect on what personal growth you have experienced from your participation in a mentoring relationship. Here are some questions you may want to ask yourself for personal reflection.
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What was I most pleased about with my role as a mentor/student? What am I disappointed with, and how can I improve?
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Did I maximize the potential of this relationship to lead me in the right direction(s)? How many contacts did I make? Is there a project, job, or area of study that I considered because of this relationship?
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Would I be willing to go through this process again? Would I recommend it to my colleague or classmate?
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What have I learned about myself?
Finally, there are a few simple things we'd like you to keep in mind as the end of the academic year draws near. First, remember to thank your partner for their commitment to you. Secondly, ensure that both parties are aware of whether the relationship is ending or continuing, and that this decision is made mutually. Last but not least, celebrate your accomplishments and time spent together regardless of what is to come.
Please attend the Mentor Appreciation Reception on April 18, 2006. Registration information is below.
Thank you for a wonderful year, and best wishes to you all!
Sources:
Participant Reflections
We emailed SPH Mentor Program participants in February to solicit feedback on the program and inquire about mentor relationships. Thank you to everyone who participated! We received excellent ideas to implement next year. Additionally, we have kudos and compliments to share with you:
SPH students offered enthusiastic praise for their mentors
"My mentor is great! She has gone above and beyond my expectations. She
helped arrange networking opportunities for me from Minnesota to Washington, DC."
"My mentor has given me insight into the diverse field of dietetics and has provided me with invaluable experience. I have thoroughly enjoyed my relationship with her."
"My mentor has given me support, advice, and direction in my career goals,
and exposed me to areas in the field of veterinary public health I did not
know even existed. Her encouragement has had such a positive influence on my
public health education and I am certain will remain invaluable throughout my
career in public health."
SPH mentors offered kind words as well
"As a first-year and 'new to the U' mentor, I'm learning about the fantastic SPH curriculum that's introducing its students to areas that professionals are already at work on. For example, my mentee and I spent an afternoon meeting talking about the logic models that Allina uses in its daily work, and my mentee exclaimed that she's learning and creating logic models for her classwork. And, I am learning just as much from my mentee with the current challenges we all face in public health and how to engage our communities. But besides the public health learning, it's wonderful to enjoy some of the activities on campus, too, that this program offers - Bob Dylan exhibit, etc. Having the educational and social connections with other mentor/mentee groups has been incredibly valuable for me as well.
"As a mentor, it's exciting to watch my mentee learn and grow in the public health arena and that her future will be bright with possibilities from all of the great networking possibilities that exist both on and off campus from the SPH program.
I've really enjoyed working with the SPH mentor/mentee program this year, and I hope to come back next year!"
"This is my third year as a mentor. Each student has had different skills and interests, but all have been truly committed to some aspect of public health. I've enjoyed sharing what it's like to live a life committed to the pubic good. I try to role model how family life, community life, a career in public health can all knit together toward the greater good of society."
"I've really enjoyed getting to know my mentee-- she has a lot of curiosity and passion, and I think that energy will take her very far."
To all the mentors and students who have offered time and insights to their mentor relationship this year we say, thank you! Your commitment is invaluable and the benefits to sharing your experiences will be long lasting.
Registration Information
To Show You Our Appreciation Please Join Us at a Special Reception!
 The SPH Mentor Program and the University of Minnesota Alumni Association (UMAA) Mentor Connection invite all mentors and students to attend the Mentor Appreciation Reception on Wednesday, April 18 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the McNamara Alumni Center.
Mix and mingle with other mentor program participants around the University, or specifically with SPHers at tables reserved for us during the reception. Light appetizers and punch will be served. U of M President Robert Bruininks will host a brief program starting at 6:15 p.m. You will also have a chance to get your picture taken with Goldy and to network with other mentor pairs!
The keynote speaker will be will be Dennis Schulstad, UMAA volunteer national president, former Minneapolis City Councilman, and retired Air Force Brigadier General.
Register by April 12
Participate in the Twin Cities Heart Walk
When: April 28, 2007
Where: Harriet Island
Mentors and their students can join thousands of other walkers at the Twin Cities Heart Walkto fight heart disease and stroke. The walk will begin at Harriet Island.You will beinspired to live a life that includes physical activity and heart-healthy choices everyday. Our team name is SPH Mentor Program. If you would like to join the walk with us or support the team, click on the link below. Donations are not required to be a team participant.
If you have any questions, please contact Emily Abbott at abbot093@umn.edu.
Join faculty, staff and students as they participate in the Third Annual Get Your Rear in Gear 5K Walk/Run
When: Saturday March 31, Run begins at 8:30 a.m., Walk begins at 10:00 a.m..
Where: Lake Harriet Bandshell in Minneapolis
March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. The walk will help raise awareness about screening and support colorectal cancer research. For more details and to sign up visit enhs.umn.edu/files/rearingear.html and look for the team, EnHS Polyp Patrol.
Free Films! Hot Topics! Freshly Popped Popcorn!
Make plans to attend the 3rd Annual National Public Health Week Film Festival, sponsored by the University of Minnesota School of Public Health, the Minnesota Public Health Association, and more than 15 other community partner organizations to mark NATIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH WEEK, April 2-6!
Admission is free. The films will touch on key areas of public health. They will be introduced by public health experts who practice or conduct research in the area highlighted in the film. Free snacks and refreshments will be served. Enter the free raffle and win great prizes.
All screenings begin at 5:30 pm and will end close to 7:30 in the newly renovated Mayo Memorial Auditorium on the University of Minnesota east bank campus.
Monday, April 2: Aging: Growing old and caring for the elderly
Tuesday, April 3: HIV/AIDS: HIV in South Africa and Political Smokescreens
- "State of Denial"- 83 minutes (2003)
Wednesday, April 4: Climate Change: Global Warming’s Deadly Progress
- "An Inconvenient Truth"- 100 minutes (2006)
Thursday, April 5: Immigrant Health
- "The Split Horn: Life of a Hmong Shaman in America"- 56 minutes (2001)
Friday, April 6: Sex Education
- "It’s Wonderful Being a Girl"- 17 minutes (1968)
- "Abstinence Comes to Albuquerque"- 45 minutes (2006)
- "Think MTV: Campus Guide to Safer Sex"- 20 minutes (2004)
- "Vintage Sex Hygiene Scare film #2: VD"- 12 minutes (1968)
- "Know for Sure" - 20 minutes (1941)
- "The Talk"- 10 minutes
Find more information at www.sph.umn.edu/filmfestival
Clinical Research Conference
When: April 2, 2007, 8:00-9:00 a.m.
Where: 2-101 Hasselmo Hall
Daniel Mulrooney, MD, MS
The Clinical Research Conference meets the first and third Monday of each month from 8-9 a.m. AHC scholars and/or faculty/staff are invited to present research findings or information on how to obtain grants or to publish findings. Daniel Mulrooney, who is an assistant professor and pediatrician at the University of Minnesota, will be presenting at this conference.
Florence Schorske Wald Lectureship in Palliative & Hospice Care
When: April 4, 2007, 3:30-5 p.m., lecture and reception.
Where: Coffman Memorial Union-Mississippi Room
Dr. Carlos Gomez will present "Dying when you're rich; dying when you're poor," a presentation that will focus on the experience of dying in poverty and the inequity, even at death, that occurs in our country between those who do and do not have adequate resources. This topic is germane to the increasing demand for hospice services for the homeless. Sponsored by the University of Minnesota School of Nursing, Katharine J. Densford International Center for Nursing Leadership and Hospice Minnesota.
2007 Gaylord Anderson Lecture
When: April 26, 4-5 p.m., reception following
Where: McNamara Alumni Center, A.I. Johnson Room
Named for our School’s founding dean, this event features a top public health figure. This year, Mervyn Susser, Sergievsky Professor of Epidemiology Emeritus of Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health and faculty of Medicine, will deliver a lecture. He is regarded as one of the preeminent epidemiologists in the world.
Spring 2007 Public Health Roundtable
When: April 27, 8:30-12 p.m.
Where: Cowles Auditorium, Humphrey Institute
Plan to attend the upcoming Public Health Roundtable. "Human Rights, the Burden of Disease, and International Tobacco Control" will be discussed April 27, 8:30-noon, Cowles Auditorium, Humphrey Institute. Speakers from the SPH include Dean John Finnegan and professor Harry Lando. Other speakers: Carolyn Dresler, University of Arkansas, is former head of the Unit for Tobacco and Cancer Group at the International Agency for Research on Cancer in Lyon, France. Benjamin Mason Meier, is an IGERT International Development and Globalization Fellow within Columbia University’s Department of Sociomedical Sciences. More details to come.
One more e-mail announcement from the program will be forthcoming in April. It will contain, among other things, an evaluation for you to offer your thoughts and feedback to the program. In the spirit of making this program stronger and more effective for each of its participants, we look forward to receiving your comments!
All the best regards,
Michelle Lian-Anderson
Director of Alumni Relations and Events Management for the School of Public Health
Emily Abbott
Student Coordinator for the School of Public Health Mentor Program |
Last modified on Friday Mar 23, 2007