New SAPA Site!

Hi Friends of SAPA,

We have officially migrated to a new site location and you can find us now over there from this point forward! Thanks for keeping up with us and all the exciting things that are happening with SAPA!

http://sites.arbor.edu/sapa/

-The SAPA Executive Committee

SAPA selects the 2011-2012 verse of the year

The 2011-2012 SAPA verse of the year will be:

If being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care--then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. ---Philippians 2:2 (MSG)

Meeting Dates

Greetings to all SAPA members,

Dates have been set for 2011-2012 SAPA meetings.  Meetings will take place from 10am to 11am in the Ralph Carey Forum. 

We look forward to seeing you there!

Meeting dates:

Tuesday, September 20^th

Tuesday, October 4^th

Tuesday, November 1^st

Monday, December 5^th (SAPA Buck Lunch Christmas Party)

Tuesday, January 17^th

Tuesday, February 7^th

Tuesday, March 6^th

Tuesday, April 3^rd

Tuesday, May 1^st

Tuesday, June 13th (SAPA Picnic)

Thanks to those who attended the 2011 SAPA Picnic

Thank you to everyone who came to and helped out with the 2011 SAPA picnic.

Click here for pictures

It was a blessings to have time to share food and fellowship with the amazing people that work at Spring Arbor University.

Introducing your new SAPA Committee

2011-2012 SAPA Executive Committee

We look forward to a great year with your leadership!

Stephanie Bartell, President
Marie Slisher, Vice President
Donna Bentle, Secretary
Steve Newton, Benefits Chair
Gary Mason, Benefits Chair Elect
David Goodrich, Faculty Representative
Lorie Cornell, SGA Representative

Congratulations to Steve Reed

Steve Reed, the 2011 Punch Prize Winner

SAPA’s 2011 Punch Prize goes to Steve Reed of Financial Aid.  Grand Prize was a $50 Gift Card to Red Lobster.  Congratulations Steve – and the 7 other SAPA members who had perfect attendance at all of our meetings this year!

SAPA meetings were well attended throughout the year, with an average of 60 staff present at monthly meetings.  The SAUToid contest was a hit – and produced 8 winners throughout the year – thanks for joining in the fun! 

Several offices worked together to provide refreshments for our meetings – the spread of delicious snacks were always a welcome sight! Thanks to each of you who donated and baked, organized and arranged the refreshment table.

SAPA continued to provide door prizes this year – with the most annoying prize being a pack of disposable razors!  (we finally got rid of them all).  The most appreciated prizes were the Sacred Grounds coupons – and most valuable prizes were the books that followed the theme of each meeting.

I’d like to express a special thanks to the following committee members who made each meeting come together with success:  Lorie Cornell, Carol Ann Bunnell, Terry McClintic, Steve Newton, Rob Kingsley, and Stephanie Bartell.

Listening is a Spiritual Thing

On May 3rd, we will welcome Mary Darling, Associate Professor of Communication, to our last SAPA meeting of the year. Mary will share thoughts about listening from her latest book, Connecting Like Jesus, which she co-authored with well-known communicator, Tony Campolo. Something you may not know:  Connecting Like Jesus was a required text in the COR 100 sections this year.  A few quotes from the book to get you thinking...

"We can learn to 'listen in the moment' no matter what is going on in our lives."

 "Jesus listened, not for what he needed to hear, but for what others needed to   say and have him hear."

"When we listen to the deepest needs and concerns of another's soul, we affirm his or her very personhood."

A copy of Connecting Like Jesus, courtesy of Shar Fortress in the Bookstore, will be given away during the meeting.

Visit Mary's website....

Announcing....the 2011-2012 SAPA Committee

President
Stephanie Bartell (Admissions)

Vice President
Marie Slisher (Academic Affairs)

Secretary
Donna Bentle (Business Office)

Benefits Chair
Steve Newton (Student Development)

Benefits Chair Elect
Gary Mason (Admissions)

Faculty Representative
David Goodrich (Technology Services)

Student Government Association Representative
Lorie Cornell (Student Development)

Be sure to extend your congratulations!

GPS December 2010 Employee of the Month

We would like to recognize Janet Vannest as our December Employee of the Month. We recognize Janet’s longevity with SAU and the various roles she has filled. Janet has been a recruiter, assessment counselor, academic advisor, registrar, academic coordinator, coordinator of academic services, and a fine faculty member. She has enthusiastically taken on every role and has done a great job in each. Janet is a joy to work with and always friendly, helpful, and willing to go the extra mile. Janet will receive a gift certificate as a small token of appreciation.

 Special recognition to:

Academic Advisor/Instructor – Bay City/Flint Sites

         
              Please join us in congratulating Janet!

GPS February 2011 Employee of the Month

Special recognition to

Sara Lancaster

SARA LANCASTER

We would like to recognize Sara Lancaster as our February Employee of the Month. Sara has a reputation for working “overtime” to provide top-notch customer service to our MSN applicants and cohorts while maintaining her other responsibilities, all under deadline pressure! Sara puts herself in the shoes of the students and thinks of ways to ease their stress in order to make their SAU experience a very positive one. Sara is creative in the use of technology to find better, faster, more efficient ways to expedite the enrollment process. She is always cheerful with a smile you can “see” over the phone, and consistently delivers more than promised, faster than promised. Sara will receive a gift certificate as a small token of appreciation.

GPS January 2011 Employee of the Month

Special recognition goes to

AMANDA HERRON

Amanda Herron

Student Services Coordinator
Midwest Region – Kalamazoo Site

We would like to recognize Amanda Herron as our January Employee of the Month. Amanda is always upbeat and encouraging to students and staff and has used her gift for encouragement to assist students in crisis to stay the course and complete their programs. Her innovative ideas and organizational skills have been a benefit to other staff and have contributed to more efficient and cost effective processes at the site. Amanda was recently involved in coordinating a very successful food drive, raising over 1,150 food items for the Kalamazoo Gospel Mission and Kalamazoo Loaves and Fishes organizations. Amanda is a blessing to all and a very positive reflection of both SAU and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Amanda will receive a gift certificate as a small token of appreciation.

Congratulations, Amanda!

SAPA nomination form

Download your SAPA nomination form here:

Please submit the form to Carol Ann Bunnell by Tuesday, March 22nd.


SAPA nom form

SAUs Precious Gem

Our March keynote is Dr. Garnet Hauger from the mathematics department.  Her many professional roles on campus have given her the opportunity to hone her skills pertaining to her topic “Dealing with Difficult People.”  She has the integrity to teach this topic from the perspective of godly virtues of leadership, as well as lessons learned through mistakes.

Garnet is in her fortieth consecutive year of teaching at SAU and currently carries the title of Emeritus Faculty in Mathematics.  Although, now trying to scale back her campus responsibilities as a pseudo-retiree, she has held the following positions:  Chair of the Natural Science Division, Chair of the Math/Computer Science/Physics
department, and Dean of the school of Arts and Sciences.

Garnet brings a wealth of knowledge to her job both from her experience and her education, including her BS and MA in Mathematics from Illinois State University, A second Masters in Probability and Statistics from MSU and her PHD in Educational Psychology from MSU. 

So what does Garnet do in her free time?  She reads novels to widen her experience with people in other times, cultures, and circumstances, enjoys Sudoku puzzles and considers herself a “minesweeper” expert.  She is very involved at her church as treasurer, and part of the worship team (where she sings Alto, in case anybody wondered).  She enjoys her daily walks, and walking through life with her husband John.  She keeps life relatively simple, with a focus on family, faith and modeling the role of a life-long learner.

Please help me welcome Shawn Rutan

Let’s get down to the nitty-gritty with some highly practical tips about our desk phones and email accounts!

Please help me welcome Shawn Rutan at our next SAPA meeting, a member of the SAU Help Desk Team, who will be our feature on Tuesday, February 1^st at 10:00am in the Ralph Carey Forum.

Don’t forget SAPAs monthly highlights:

·         Prizes

·         Delicious goodies

·         Sacred Grounds coffee, hot tea and cocoa

·         Smiles, new friends, old friends

·         Refreshment!

LAUNDRY DRIVE

NEEDED: All kinds of laundry items - new and/or partly used items are welcome!
From now until Spring Break
Contact: Jill Raymond at SAU

• detergent
• bleach
• dryer sheets

The SAU Jackson Missions Team is collecting items for our Community Laundry Day that will be held during spring break. We provide underprivileged Jackson residents with free washing, drying and laundry detergent at a Laundromat downtown. THANKS for your HELP!

SHARE A DINNER WITH TEAM IMPACT

March 12 – 19th
Contact: Jill Raymond at SAU

The Jackson Missions Team is looking for volunteers who would be willing to provide our team of 12 with dinners during our trip. The dates for the trip are Friday, March 12th through Saturday, March 19th.

We will be staying at The Salvation Army in Jackson, which is fully equipped with a kitchen. So, you’d be able to cook right on site if you’d like to. Or if it is easier for you, we are willing to come to your home for dinner.

You don’t have to be a great cook, just willing! And we will be happy with whatever you cook or bring for us to eat. And…please bring your families along and even stay for worship afterwards if you’d like.

It's my pleasure to introduce...

ROBIN SMITH

I’ve personally been waiting for the January SAPA meeting (18th).  Early this fall, our committee chose to include the session “living out our faith at work” based on the feedback we had received from you (surveys and comments), and with which we agreed was a rich and appropriate topic for our meetings.  Then - having Robin Smith agree to present the session was like ‘frosting on the cake’.

A few words that come to mind when I think of Robin:  energetic, busy, fun-loving, adventurous, serious, committed, shining light. [You can add your own words as a “comment” below]

For seven and a half years, Robin has been a member of the Spring Arbor Community; first as a Financial Aid Counselor, and then in the Student Development Office.  She is also an adjunct instructor for GPS, teaching ORM 533 Spirituality in the Workplace.

Robin has served on the SAPA Benefits Committee – enjoying the chance to work with other SAU employees, ask questions and clarify policy.  She is a huge NFL fan, cheers for the Colts, loves to read, be outdoors, go to the beach, and visit Mexico.  

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Family:  Husband, Homer, who works in University Advancement; Jenna 24, who lives in Indiana with her family, Ryne 22, who is the Mongolian Chef in the Dining Commons. [She says Ryne gets his tattoos from her]

Job Title:  Director of Student Success and Freshman Programming

Favorite thing about working at SAU:  “The community…LOVE IT!!!”

Something we wouldn’t know:  She has a metal rod in her back that holds her spine up straight

Most embarrassing (“horrifying”) moment:  Mistakenly calling the parent of a deceased student to discuss a loan application…right name, wrong ID number.  Yikes!  “…taught me a valuable lesson about ALWAYS checking the details in CARS.”

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When asked what she’d like to say to the SAPA members, she replied:  “OWN IT”, which happens to be the 2010 New Student Orientation theme.  “Therefore, prepare your minds for action.” I Peter 1:13.  OWN IT.