Best of
Florida Schools 2003
General Categories—Page
17 (Web-Only)
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Best Student
Center
Art Institute Goes High Tech
Your mother always told you not to play in the street, but at the Art
Institute of Fort Lauderdale students had nowhere to hangout. A little
planning and patience led to the construction of a new state-of-the-art
student center that has given AiFL students every comfort but the sandbox.
“Before it was built, really the only place students could gather would be in the cafeteria area that we have or outside where we have picnic tables,” says Rick Boggs, Student Government president. Events SG used to host outside or in hallways already have been moved to the new center. Boggs says it has helped enlarge the quantity and type of events SG can organize such as the annual Valentine’s Day dating game “Singled Out.” “This has really become the gem of the place,” says Joel Nemes, director of student and alumni relations. In fact, Nemes says it’s one of the “most utilized rooms” on campus.
With cozy leather sofas and high-tech equipment all around, it’s no surprise that students have taken a liking to their new hangout. They can watch movies, play video games, play chess and other board games, or sit back and catch up on reading. The 40-by-40 center may be small, but with a brand new projector with a 6-by-8-image size, state-of-the-art sound system, and adapters for Microsoft’s Xbox, it packs a mean punch. SG makes full use of these capabilities by hosting an Xbox tournament twice a year.
“I think it’s fantastic,” says Kris Knof, SG vice president of campus events. “It’s something that has very much benefited this entire school and the student body.” —BF
Contact Nemes at nemesj@aii.edu.
Best
Student Services
A Family
Breakfast At Beacon
Day after day, students at
Beacon College
go to the only dining hall on campus and walk through its sole cafeteria
line. They see the same faces behind the counter and eat the same food; and
as warm and kind as those faces are and as wonderful as the food
is—really!—variety always is a perk.
Beacon College has a uniquely small student body of 76 students, and so unlike in larger university settings, the sense of community and human interaction is much greater. Student Services staff member Laura Garvin says that one day the students were complaining about their mundane meals, and she had a thought—she and her office cohorts would treat the students to a home-cooked, special breakfast. “It makes it more like a family thing. The students don’t think we’re off somewhere being better than them,” Garvin says. “We’re all just like a family—we don’t mind doing special things for our students.”
Last November, the cafeteria
filled up with students who came and enjoyed a breakfast complete with
pigs-in-a-blanket, fresh fruit, flavored coffee, scrambled eggs with ham and
cheese, and potato patties. Afterward Garvin says that students commented to
the staff, “We can’t believe you guys did all this, and it was good too.”
To this day the students still talk about the breakfast, and frequently ask
when the staff will do it again.
—EG
Contact Garvin at lgarvin@beaconcollege.edu.
Best Seniors
Never Too Old at
Eckerd
Are your grandparents bored with the entertainment options in their
retirement home? Have they played enough golf? Are they getting their second
wind, ready to launch a new career? It might be time to sign them up for
“Senior College” at Eckerd College which offers “life-long learning”
in classes on everything from computers and Buddhist philosophy to local
history and yoga. “It has a strong educational component, and it allows them
to have fun,” says Kathy Yonce, program associate. “Our students get to meet
other people their own age with similar interests in a safe, fun
environment.”
Senior College students also take worldwide educational trips, have international days, and enjoy breakfast forums led by professors. Some choose to explore other Florida cities on overnight trips to visit the Capitol in Tallahassee or enjoy the opera in Sarasota. They also can participate in exclusive activities such as the Writer’s Circle and receive discounts at St. Petersburg restaurants and museums. “Our program keeps the seniors active in the community,” Yonce says. “It really is a unique program.” —JB
Contact Yonce at 727-864-7889
Best
Ranking
ERAU
Soars to No. 1
In the history of the world, only a few have been able to achieve the
coveted three-peat. The Chicago Bulls, Franklin Roosevelt, and Lenny Kravitz
all stood on top in their respective fields for three consecutive terms. Add
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University to that distinguished list. For
the third straight year, U.S. News & World Report has ranked ERAU’s
aerospace engineering program No. 1 in the nation among schools without a
doctorate program.
ERAU’s engineering program, the largest in the country with 1,200 students, has expanded tremendously. The number of areas a student can specialize in, the amount of technology used in the classrooms, and the quality of the facilities have all been improved over the past few years.
However, according to Dr. Ray Mankbadi, dean of the engineering school, improved publicity has played a major role in the program’s recent success. “We were good, but we weren’t telling anyone we were good,” he says. When Mankbadi came to ERAU three years ago, he quickly began establishing connections with NASA, whom he used to work for, so that he could spread the word about ERAU’s aerospace program.
The improved publicity as well as ERAU’s long tradition of excellence in aerospace engineering obviously worked. “Top companies like NASA, Wang, Pratt & Whitney—they all come to our campus every year, and they know about our program,” Mankbadi says. —JL
Contact Mankbadi at mankbadr@erau.edu.
Best
Campus Clean Up
FIT’s
Litter Crusade
When Florida Institute of Technology’s president encouraged students
and faculty to clean up their act, he meant it—literally. President Anthony
James Catanese led 300 students and 65 faculty members in a campus-wide
clean-up.
For FIT, litter pick-up is more than keeping the grounds beautiful for strolling, studying, or just hanging out—it’s a matter of school pride. “The motivation was as a community builder for the entire campus,” says Paul Giberson, assistant director for student activities. “Students, faculty, and staff came together in one large event to make a difference but also interact on a level that’s outside the classroom.”
Sports teams, fraternities and sororities, and other school organizations prodded their members to volunteer. 300 students and a number of faculty and staff turned out for the Saturday morning event. With only 2,000 students, having 300 volunteers was quite an achievement, Gibeson says. “For a first-ever, it was very successful. To get as many people as we did together on such a small campus is a great turnout,” Giberson says. “We covered a lot of different areas on campus and really made a difference in what the campus looks like.”
The event wasn’t all work and no play. “As people finished with the clean-up, they were welcome to come to our thank-you barbeque. Everyone sat around and socialized for about an hour after the clean-up was over,” Giberson says. Maintenance and grounds personnel also helped, providing bags, gloves, and trash-pickers.
FIT plans another clean up for spring 2003. “This clean-up is going to be a little different,” Giberson says. “We have a ‘jungle’ on our campus that we’re proud of, and it’s been neglected for a few years, so this spring we’re focusing our efforts on this area.” The jungle, a nature preserve/botanical garden, takes up five acres and is home to one of the largest collections of palm trees in the state. “Water runs through the jungle and there are nature trails and benches to sit on where you can enjoy the peacefulness,” he says. The clean-up effort will focus on mending the walkways, bridges, and benches and getting rid of non-native plants. —RGM
Contact Giberson at giberson@fit.edu.
Best Anger
Management
Don’t Get
Mad, Get Educated
Flight attendants in training learn to treat passengers like guests in their
homes. Along with reminding passengers about locked tray tables, they learn
how to conceal their own anger and emotions. While many companies encourage
emplyees to withhold their angry feelings in the workplace and act in a more
socially acceptable manner, airlines don’t merely recommend this—they
mandate it.
Many companies spend time and money training employees on how to behave emotionally and telling them what is inappropriate behavior, says Dr. Teri Domagalski, a business management professor at Florida International University. “It was startling to me the fact that companies pay for your emotions.” It was this idea that got Domagalski interested in studying anger in the workplace. “Too much of the research in the field focuses on employee productivity and ignores the negative side of organizations.” Domaglaski says. With the increase of work-related verbal or physical aggression, Domagalski researched and explored the consequences of anger at work.
She incorporated her research into her undergrad and grad business classes. Students in her graduate “Employment Law” or “Conflict and Negotiations” classes kept an anger journal. Domagalski also had her employed students maintain a log of workplace experiences that irritated or angered them throughout a semester. Students kept track of what provoked them, who was involved, and how the conflict was resolved.
In her undergrad “Organizational Behavior” class, Domagalski taught students that organizational behavior is rooted in science. “I had them look at whether there were differences in how people handled and thought about their anger based upon sex, occupation, or age,” she says. “They were learning something about the science of investigating things like emotions in organizations.”
Besides encouraging students to become aware of their emotions and anger as employees, there’s another recurring theme in her classes. “I want them to go out into the workplace and understand how important it is to treat your employees with a sense of dignity and justice because that will minimize the negative feelings that people have,” Domagalski says. “Not only is it the right thing to do, but it will lead to a more productive workforce.” –RGM
Contact Domagalski at tdomagal@fit.edu.
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