Month: August 2024

To get it out of the way, when most people meet me, they ask if I have ever watched, “The Office,” and yes, I am a huge fan of the show!  For that reason alone, you should come and see me in the Ombuds Office.  I am very excited to be the new Associate Ombuds here at Clemson University, and I hope to have the opportunity to get out and visit with all of you very soon.

Just a little bit about myself, I am a US Air Force Veteran who retired in 2021 after serving 23 years on active duty.  I was privileged to join the wonderful team in the Office of Human Resources through an internship as part of the DoD SkillBridge Program (ask me about it) during my last 180 days of service.  During that program I had the opportunity to work with every team in HR and became familiar with the services they provide to the staff and faculty of Clemson.  Upon completion of the four-month program, I was honored to accept a role within Staff and Faculty Relations and then Talent Acquisition where I was able to give back to the Veteran Community by managing the Veteran Preference and DoD SkillBridge Programs.  I have also been an active participant in the Veteran’s Commission, partnered with the Military and Veteran Engagement Center on several projects and serve as a member the Military-Connected Service and Support Committee.

Throughout my entire career, both in the military and HR, I have been a mandatory reporter and not able to keep the confidentiality of those I have supported.  I pursued this opportunity in the Ombuds Office to help all members of the Clemson Family through confidentiality, impartiality, informality and independence.  I also hope to spread of awareness and increase access to our services throughout the state to all of our geographically separated team members.  I am not only passionate about helping all of you but of what the Clemson Family does to support the people of South Carolina.

Please reach out to me if you ever have questions, concerns, or just don’t know who to talk to.

The Clemson Area Bosom Buddies (CABB) is a support group founded by breast cancer survivors in the mid 1990’s. The support group offers regular informal meetings, guest speakers, holiday events, craft projects and outreach efforts.  In addition, through word of mouth, newly diagnosed breast cancer patients are the recipients of a card shower (current members send cards of encouragement) as well as chemo bags distributed to local cancer centers for those breast cancer survivors undergoing chemotherapy.

Over the past 6 years we have worked with a variety of Clemson University classes/students who have provided a variety of support and materials to further our goals.  In the Spring of 2018 a Clemson University graduate course (ENGL 8320:  Content Strategy and UX Design for Professional Communicators) developed a well-researched content strategy plan for CABB.  The results provided information about how current communication and outreach strategies could be improved.  The class recommendations included multiple ways to provide information to newly diagnosed patients, including a timeline of the average breast cancer journey and when interventions by a support group could be helpful. They developed a template for an informational flyer/brochure, recommended increasing presence through Facebook or a website, and developed branding materials, including a logo, word mark and color palette. Using that information, CABB leadership received non-profit status.  Since then we have received two Dabo Foundation grants which help us provide chemo bags, program and outreach activities. And we have continued to work with Clemson University classes/students.

Our chemo bags for breast cancer survivors are currently being distributed at the Seneca Prisma Health Cancer Institute, the AnMed Cancer Center and the Easley Prisma Health Cancer Institute.

For more information, contact Wendy Howard at ClemsonAreaBosomBuddies@gmail.com

Members of the Clemson Staff Senate took a peek at some of the behind-the-scenes work that goes on at Clemson Libraries with a special tour of the Library Depot. Located at Clemson Research Park in Anderson, the Depot is home to offsite shelving, technical services and collection management, the digital imaging lab, and the University Records Center.

During the tour, senators saw presentations on topics such as acquisitions and e-resources, continuing resources and government documents, metadata services and records management. They toured the off-site store unit and the digitzation lab and then went to the Strom Thurmond Institute for a tour of Special Collections and Archives.

Staff Senate President-Elect Stacey Miller said the tour was part of the Senate’s continuing effort to learn more about various departments and functions across the University.

“We learned so much but were amazed at how much libraries have changed over the years,” Miller said. “They are leading the way regarding digitizing books, photos, and theses, ensuring you have the information and technology needed to do your job while preserving history.”

Senators learned about the process of requesting books or articles from offsite storage for delivery, how photos and documents are digitized, the work that goes into acquiring and making collections searchable, the important role of records management, and the work Special Collections and Archives is doing to preserve and share Clemson’s history. They got to see a number of items from Special Collections, including a 400-year-old book, old recipe cards from the dining halls, a brick from the first building on campus, and Tiger Band uniforms.

“The Collections and Discovery division of the Libraries works hard to elevate our library collections and the ability of our students and researchers to find the resources they need. We were delighted to be able to share our work with our colleagues in the Staff Senate. Their kind words and appreciation of our team truly made our day,” said Ariel Turner, associate dean of collections and discovery.

Article contributed by Angela Nixon, Director of Marketing and Communications, Clemson Libraries