K-State Current - November 3, 2021
K-State Current is a weekly news update for the Kansas Board of Regents to apprise the Regents on a few of the many successes and achievements made by K-State faculty, staff and students.
K-State News
Inaugural K-State Salina Social Work Wildcat Conference trains industry professionals
The four presenters at the inaugural Social Work Wildcat Conference at K-State Salina. Nearly 90 participants attended the online conference, which focused on substance and behavioral addictions.
Kansas State University Salina Aerospace and Technology Campus hosted nearly 90 participants from three states at its inaugural Social Work Wildcat Conference.
The focus of the Oct. 18 virtual conference, organized by K-State Salina's social work faculty and professional education outreach, centered on substance and behavioral addictions. Presenters led discussions around the link between addiction, trauma and suicide; health care's response to addiction; and brain function and addiction recovery. Four different presenters — Shane Hudson, CKF Addiction Treatment; Danielle Blea, Smoky Hill Family Med Residency; Jeremy P. Elledge, NewView Healing Solutions LLC; and Jana Hinz, Architect Counseling Center — led the discussions with the attendees.
The attendees, from Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma, watched and took part in the discussion to build upon their professional skills. Those participating included social workers, counselors, behavioral health consultants, substance abuse professionals, school professionals, therapists and others involved in the social work industry.
Also, a part of the Salina Social Work Wildcat Conference were two Salina-area businesses, First Bank Kansas and CKF Addiction Treatment. Director of professional education and outreach for K-State Salina, Kirsten Zoller, says that the support from both organizations was critical for the success of the conference and shows the value that these type of training programs provide to the region.
"K-State Salina is steadfast in nurturing a talent pipeline for the industries we serve as part of our campus vision and mission," Zoller said. "The generous support of CKF Addiction Treatment and First Bank Kansas also shows that local employers recognize the value of partnering with our campus and encouraging the continuing education of professionals in the area. We are looking forward to growing and hosting this program as a new outreach tradition."
The goal of Social Work Wildcat Conference was to create a learning opportunity for professionals, alumni and students, and to demonstrate how the K-State Salina social work department serves students across their lifespans. K-State Salina wants to make conferences like this for working professionals a regular event.
K-State Salina has offered continuing education unit courses such as the Social Work Wildcat Conference for social workers, for helping professionals since 2015. Deb Marseline, assistant dean of diversity, equity and belonging and social work faculty member at K-State Salina said that the program has grown over the past six years to over 50 courses serving more than 1,100 professionals.
"As the CEU training program has grown over the last several years, we have continually seen the value in providing an opportunity for skilled practitioners to gather and learn from each other," Marseline said. "This conference is an extension of that, providing an important outreach from the campus to the community. Particularly important to us is the ability to stay connected to our alumni and connect our current students with industry professionals."
Learn more about social work and helping professional training at salina.k-state.edu/research-training/training-professional-development/social-work. K-State Salina is a pre-approved continuing education provider approved by the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board.
College of Business human resources track aligns with SHRM
The Kansas State University College of Business recently participated in the Society for Human Resource Management, or SHRM, Academic Alignment Program, aligning its human resources track with the SHRM HR Curriculum Guidebook and Templates.
"Aligning our program of study with SHRM's program requirements is one more way to let our students know that our program covers the knowledge and competencies that are key for HR professionals," said Valerie Barnett, management instructor with the college. "In addition, our students are then eligible to apply for and take the SHRM-CP exam, earning the SHRM-CP credential prior to graduating through SHRM's Student Eligibility Program."
Throughout the world, more than 500 programs in approximately 425 educational institutions have been acknowledged by SHRM as being aligned with its suggested guides and templates. The HR Curriculum Guidebook and Templates were developed by SHRM to define the minimum HR content areas that should be studied by HR students at the undergraduate and graduate levels. The guidelines — created in 2006 and revalidated in 2010, 2013 and 2017 — are part of SHRM's Academic Initiative to define HR education standards taught in university business schools and help universities develop degree programs that follow these standards. The K-State human resources track has been aligned with the SHRM curriculum since Sept. 1, 2010, and the current designation is good for three years.
K-State Faculty Highlights
Architecture professor elected chair of Kansas State Board of Technical Professions
Wendy Ornelas, professor of architecture in the College of Architecture, Planning & Design, or APDesign, at Kansas State University was recently elected as chair of the Kansas State Board of Technical Professions. Ornelas was appointed to the board by former Gov. Jeff Colyer in 2018.
The Kansas State Board of Technical Professions is a combined board that represents professional engineering, architecture, landscape architecture, surveying and geology. The board was combined in 1976 for four professions, with geology being added in 2000. The original board was comprised of nine members in 1993 and has increased in size to the present thirteen members.
Previous Kansas State University faculty elected to the chair position include Gus Fairbanks, professor of agricultural engineering; Don Rathbone, former dean of engineering; and William "Chip" Winslow, professor of landscape architecture.
Ornelas earned a Bachelor of Science in architecture from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, and a master's from Oklahoma State University.
From 2012-2014 Ornelas served as the Central States regional director for the American Institute of Architects, or AIA, and co-chair of AIA National's Diversity and Inclusion Council. She has also been active with other architectural collateral organizations, including the National Architectural Accrediting Board, serving as its president 2009-2010; she was the West Central Regional Director for the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture, or ACSA; in 2005 Ornelas was elevated to AIA's College of Fellows, and in 2013 she was named a distinguished professor of ACSA. In 2015 she received the AIA Richard Upjohn Fellowship for her service on the AIA’s national board.
The mission of the board is to provide maximum protection of the health, safety, property and welfare of the people of Kansas by assuring that the practice of architecture, engineering, geology, landscape architecture and land surveying in the state is carried out only by those persons who are proven to be qualified as prescribed by the statutes and rules and regulations of the Board of Technical Professions.
Kramer wins ACI award for sustainability
Kimberly Kramer, director of graduate studies and professor in the GE Johnson Department of Architectural Engineering and Construction Science, received the American Concrete Institute's Concrete Sustainability Award at the organization's virtual awards program on Oct. 20.
Kramer, who also holds the G.E. Johnson construction science chair, won the award for outstanding leadership and contributions, including bringing greater awareness to the environmental, social and economic benefits of concrete sustainability.
The award honors those who demonstrate or improve concrete's sustainable attributes through research, design, education or construction and use concrete in innovative ways to contribute to a more sustainable environment.
Kramer's research interests include the design of sustainable structures and rehabilitation and restoration of existing structures in the built environment.
K-State Student News
All female financial planning team takes second place in national competition
Megan Klug, Britta Beesley and Ana Sanko, seniors in the personal financial planning program, received second place in the national Financial Planning Competition hosted each year by the Financial Planning Association. Since 2014, K-State has been named a top-three team five times.
Each year, the challenge engages students in a holistic financial planning learning experience and expands awareness of the professional community and organizations that support the profession. The challenge is done in three phases. In phase one, students are given profiles for two hypothetical clients and prepare a comprehensive financial plan. Eight teams are then selected to move to phase two, which is an oral presentation of a case study. The final phase is the “How Do You Know?” jeopardy style challenge.
With their second-place finish, the team secured a $5,000 scholarship for the personal financial planning department.
“Megan, Britta, and Ana represent the first all-female team to compete from K-State and one of the first to compete nationally,” said personal financial planning department head, Martin Seay. “The team’s accomplishment is a strong testament to the success of females in the financial planning field. Though the number of CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals has seen a large growth, women continue to make up only 23% of the workforce.” “We are proud of Megan, Britta, and Ana, who despite the challenges of having to present virtually after the cancelation of the annual conference, represented Kansas State well on the national stage.”
Consistently rated as a top program nationally, the Department of Personal Financial Planning at Kansas State University is renowned for its education, research, and thought leadership in financial planning. Faculty specialize in the behavioral elements of financial planning, providing insight into how advisors can shape client behavior to promote well-being. The department offers a bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree along with several professional certificates both on campus and online.
The Financial Planning Association (FPA®) is the premier professional organization for Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) professionals, educators, financial services providers and students who seek advancement in a growing, dynamic profession.
