Spring 2009 Chair's Update

Ida Critelli Schick
Professor and Chair/Director

It's clear from the classroom that we are nearing the end of spring semester. Spring fever has definitely set in! Students are working at high speed, writing papers and putting the finishing touches on presentations. The faculty is equally as busy, developing final exams and grading mountains of papers.

This year has been full of celebrations. We celebrated our 50th anniversary in the fall, and recently had an alumni reception and dinner in Chicago where Norma Rosskopf received the Distinguished Alumni Award. We also celebrated our Preceptor Award Dinner honoring Tom Urban and Pamela Zipperer-Davis. Congratulations to all!

The faculty and I are working on the self-study for accreditation, which is one of the cornerstones of this program and a feature that attracts potential students. One of the marks of the program's success is the success of its graduates. As part of accreditation we are required to document the career success of our graduates. We ask you to help by completing the career progression survey online. A hard copy of the survey should have already arrived.

The second year class is finishing their time on campus. This class was the first to use the summer off from our changed schedule to undertake internships both in Cincinnati and elsewhere. Everyone secured an internship, and some of them led to residencies.

This leads me to a second request for our alumni. Remember how beneficial it was to have a mentor when you were a student? Perhaps you are at a point in your career where you feel comfortable mentoring and possibility taking a resident. As our student numbers increase, the numbers of residencies must also increase. Please let us know if you are interested in serving as a mentor or sponsoring a residency.

Thank you for your continued support of our program. I look forward to working closely with you.