The following article summarizes the original event which is listed below the summary.
The October luncheon program: a sampling of work funded by PDGR
The October program was a delightful sample of what can be done with an UMRA Professional Development Grant for Retirees. Kathleen O’Brien and Kathryn Fennelly talked about their projects.
O’Brien shared insights from 54 interviews she conducted of women from 35 cities in elected office from 1970–2000. The grant that she received paid for transcribing interviews but also “gave me credibility and opened doors,” she said. The Minnesota Historical Society has this archival collection, which includes the oral history interviews, transcripts, donated personal manuscripts, and memorabilia. She is planning to publish a manuscript and book of her findings.
Fennelly stated her appreciation for the PDGR funding that enabled her to adapt an e-course—one that she developed for law enforcement personnel who work with immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers—for use by other professional groups. Using her grant, she incorporated new interviews for social workers and health care professionals. Thousands of law enforcement, social workers, and health care personnel are now enrolled in the e-course in New York, where she now lives, and nationwide. For info: [email protected].
Katherine Fennelly and Kathleen O’Brien have stories to tell
Tue, October 25 2016, 11:30am
Campus Club ABC
Katherine Fennelly developed the first e-learning program for law enforcement personnel who work with immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. The program includes readings, videotaped interviews with immigrants and the professionals who serve them, quizzes, and links to additional resources. The modules cover laws, detention, deportation, attitudes, and current issues. In her PDGR-funded project, she adapted the e-course for other groups such as social workers and health care professionals, and she incorporated new interviews with personnel working with immigrants in New York State.
Fennelly will share insights into the immigrant experience and demonstrate the e-learning course. She is author of numerous publications on immigration policy. She currently lives in New York, where she works part time providing legal counseling and Spanish-English interpretation at an immigrant legal services center in Westchester County. Before her work at the Humphrey Center, she was dean of the University of Minnesota Extension Service, a faculty member and department head at Pennsylvania State University, and a faculty member at Columbia University’s School of Public Health. She continues to teach a University of Minnesota online course, PA5451 Immigration, Health & Public Policy, each fall and spring semester.
Upcoming Events
Our July 15 "hike" is going to be a kayaking adventure on Bde Maka Ska (formerly Lake Calhoun) and Lake of the Isles! If you don't have a kayak (or paddleboard), Wheel Fun Rentals, located next to the new concession stand rents single kayaks at $15 an hour and double kayaks at $25. The second hour is free if we rent before noon. Life jackets are provided with the rental.
Laura Ericksen will lead the discussion of How Stella Learned to Talk by Christina Hunger, a true story by a speech-language pathologist who taught her dog, Stella, to communicate using buttons associated with different words.
Our August 5 hike will be a reprise of our hike last summer at William O'Brien State Park. This is a beautiful park with a winding trail and a great view of the countryside. The hike is about 5.5 to 6 miles and we'll go at a moderate pace with frequent water breaks. After the hike, we will eat lunch at Rustic Roots Winery, a half mile north of the park.
Kathy Cramer will lead the discussion of The Bookbinder by Pip Williams, a book set in 1914 Oxford chronicling the life of Peggy who works in the University bindery, but craves a life beyond binding books but to being a scholar herself.
Enjoy a two-hour cruise on the Jonathan Padelford, leaving from the Harriet Island dock in St. Paul, boarding time at 5:30 p.m. We will have a brief program on board by Patrick Nunnally from the River Life Program of the Institute on the Environment.
August 31 is the due date for annual reports and updates. Annual Reports, Toolkits, web page updates, operating document updates and archives collections are all due each year on this date.
Autumn is a wonderful season in Minnesota so plan to join UMRA at the Andersen Horticultural Library at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. Kristen Mastel, head librarian and curator, will reveal its treasure trove of publications and artifacts relating to plant history, horticulture, and natural history. After the tour, those who are interested may stay to eat lunch together, sitting outside if the weather is nice. Later, you are invited to a one-hour tram tour of the entire Arboretum that includes natural areas of flowering shrubs, bogs, and forests, family garden and landscaping showpieces, and the red barn farm
After a summer break the UMRA Photo Club will next meet September 10, 2024 in the meeting room of the Hennepin County St. Anthony Branch Library. For those interested in lunch, meet at the Great Dragon at 11:30 am. For September the THEME will be Curves
We will continue to discuss the pros and cons of Medicare Advantage. You will also hear about notable non-health plan and non-broker resources.