Walden University Alumni Association Blog

Walden Announces Scholars of Change Video Contest Winners

Walden announced the winners of its Scholars of Change video competition earlier this week. Each of the five grand prize winners will receive $5,000 plus an additional $2,500 to donate to their favorite charities. More than 90 students and alumni submitted videos, and members of the general public voted on their favorites. A panel of judges evaluated the top videos and selected the five grand prize winners.

The video contest kicked off this summer when Walden invited students and alumni to submit short videos showing how Walden has helped them to make a positive change in their careers, their lives, or the lives of others.

“These impressive videos demonstrate how Walden students are using their degrees to proactively bring about positive social change in their communities everyday. It is an honor for all of us at Walden to celebrate their achievements and to further their efforts,” said Jonathan Kaplan, president of Walden University.

The Scholars of Change video contest grand prize winners and their designated charities are:

• Tina Cloney, a Ph.D. in Public Health student from Decatur, Ill., who designed a diabetes self-management program for her community; her charity donation will go to Millikin University’s Department of Exercise Science & Sport program enhancements.


• Linda Davis, an M.S. in Psychology student from Marco Island, Fla., who is empowering young women in Latin America through education; her charity donation will go to Miracles in Action.


• Mary Morrissey-Ross, a Ph.D. in Public Health student from Fairfield, Conn., who implemented screenings to address emerging diabetes and hypertension concerns in Senegal; her charity donation will go to Arts Are Essential.


• Lee Ann Walker, a Doctor of Business Administration (D.B.A.) student from Jacksonville, Fla., who is creating public transportation education campaigns for her community; her charity donation will go to The Women's Center of Jacksonville’s Rape Recovery Team.


• Elisa Watters, a Ph.D. in Public Health student from Poulsbo, Wash., who has created sustainable community health education programs in Nepal; her charity donation will go to Children of the Nations.

Click here to view the winning videos.

Walden Student: Eric Langhorst, Missouri Teacher of the Year (2008)

Walden University is proud to have more than 40 state teachers of the year—including Eric Langhorst, education doctoral student—currently working toward advanced degrees at its Richard W. Riley College of Education and Leadership.
 
“Teaching tends to be a very isolating profession,” says Eric Langhorst, the eighth-grade American History teacher who was 2008 Missouri Teacher of the Year. “Even though you're in a building with other teachers, there are relatively few who teach exactly the same thing you do.”

Langhorst is used to relatively isolating environments. He grew up in a small Nebraska town and, soon after college, started teaching in another small Nebraska town. “I taught every history or social studies class for every grade from seventh to 12th,” he says. When he and his wife, also a history teacher, moved to Liberty, Missouri, to teach at South Valley Junior High, Langhorst wasn't expecting the same sense of seclusion—after all, his new position would see 150 kids a week through his classroom. But he found, that despite a larger environment, peer-to-peer interaction remained elusive. To bridge the divide, he looked to technology.

“I bought an MP3 player about six years ago and just started to play with it,” he says. “I created a podcast for teachers and decided to just kind of share some of the things that were happening in my classroom and put it on a blog, too.” He uses the space and time to discuss events in his classroom as well as the latest in educational technology and his personal explorations. Topics may range from current events to methods of teaching the Constitution to the details of his recent trip to walk the Freedom Trail in Boston.

“I can put an idea out in my podcast and have teachers from all over the world listen to it and give me feedback,” he says. “I get a lot of comments from teachers that are in their first or second year—they say that my material really helped them get started when they were feeling overwhelmed.”

Technology is something that Langhorst hopes to focus on while getting his doctorate in education at Walden. He's already creative in the way he uses the Internet with his students: In addition to posting study-guides via podcast before each unit exam, when possible he uses video chat to conference in the authors of books he's using in class. He also encourages his students to experiment with the tools that are available to them. For a section on Abraham Lincoln's election, for example, he set them up with cameras and editing equipment to make television ads as if Lincoln were running for president today.

“We have to realize that the world that we're preparing them for is much different than the world that we prepared for in previous generations,” he says. “Our students are going to need to solve problems—they are no longer just trying to gain information. I can remember doing my term paper and having to drive to a larger town to go to a library that had some information that I needed. Now the problem isn't finding the information, it's about figuring out what's correct and applying it.”

His goal? “To use technology in a way that will help them become literate in how to use this tsunami of information that's available to them,” he says. This kind of shift in education might just be history in the making.

Visit ConnectEd to read other education-related articles.

Walden Ph.D. Survival Tips: Expect the Unexpected During Your Dissertation Process

Starting a Walden University Ph.D. program requires resolution, grit and determination, but students don’t make the journey on their own. Walden not only helps doctoral students navigate through milestones, academic residencies and mentoring, it encourages alumni to share their experiences.
 
At the summer 2009 academic residency in Minneapolis, Dr. Jessie Kilgore Jr., who earned a Ph.D. in Education in 2009 from The Richard W. Riley College of Education and Leadership, offered the following insights and dissertation tips to an audience of Ph.D. students just beginning their own dissertations.
 
Find Creative Solutions to Professional Roadblocks
Kilgore’s doctoral study—a multiple exploratory case study that examined student achievement on computerized tests—required Kilgore to collect test data from two different schools. In order to use the data he collected, Kilgore had to obtain permission from each student tested, as well as students’ parents.
 
“I had a really hard time getting students to turn in their consent forms,” said the 40-year-old Canton, Mich., resident. Knowing that the consent forms were imperative to the future of his study, Kilgore offered students incentives such as pizza parties, iPod giveaways and even Cheetos in exchange for returning their forms. (“When I promised Hot Cheetos, all these forms started coming in, like a river overflowing. It was truly unbelievable.”) Ultimately, Kilgore received the hundreds of signed consent forms he needed to continue with his study.
 
Plan for the Unexpected
Kilgore experienced unexpected setbacks when he was refused a set of test data due to privacy concerns, and again when a school administrator gave him the wrong date for a test he was planning to observe.
 
“Expect the unexpected,” said Kilgore. “That’s something that rang true throughout my dissertation process.” When faced with an unexpected setback, Kilgore said, address the problem, adjust and keep moving forward with your study.
 
Use Personal Challenges as Motivation
As Kilgore was working toward his Ph.D., his father was losing a battle with cancer. “I had a choice,” said Kilgore. “I could allow my father’s failing health to alter my focus, or I could use it as motivation.”
 
He chose the latter and set a personal goal to have his dissertation approved before his father passed away. Kilgore’s dissertation was approved on Feb. 16, 2009—his 40th birthday—and his father passed away two days later.
 
“During the dissertation process, you will have sunshine and rain. You’ve just got to keep your eyes on the prize no matter what. Just hold on throughout the entire process.”
 
Look Ahead to Completion, and Keep the Greater Goal in Mind
Despite the sleepless nights and seemingly endless sets of revisions, Kilgore encouraged Ph.D. students to keep the greater goal of social change in mind.
 
“Remember, at Walden, you become a doctor of social change. And when you walk across the stage at commencement and are hooded by your professor, it will all be worth it.”
 
Watch the video of Dr. Kilgore sharing his insights on successfully completing a Ph.D.

Walden Think+Up: MEDEX Global Group, Inc "Turnaround" and "Acquisitions"

MEDEX Global Group's president and CEO, Bruce Kirby, CPA, FLMI, speaks about the company's turnaround and their acquisition strategy.





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Walden Think+Up: MEDEX Global Group, Inc "Risk Assessment"

Tom Winn, senior chief of operations and intelligence at ASI Group, a MEDEX Global Group company, speaks on their risks assessment process.



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Voting is OPEN for the Walden Scholars of Change Video Contest

Public voting for the winning entries in Walden University’s Scholars of Change video contest began last week. Walden students and graduates created and submitted videos on how a Walden University degree will change their lives and empower them to personally effect positive social change. Grand prize winners will receive $5,000 plus an additional $2,500 from Walden to donate to their favorite charities.

The video contest kicked off this summer when Walden invited students and graduates to submit a short video on how Walden has helped them to make a positive change in their career, their life, or the lives of others. In response, more than 90 current students and graduates created videos, sharing compelling stories about how their learning experience at Walden has impacted their lives and the lives of those around them.

Public viewing and voting on the 40 selected video finalists is OPEN. You may vote once per day for multiple videos. Voting ends this Friday, October 9th at 3 p.m.

Grand prize winners will be announced on Wednesday, November 18, 2009.

Walden Ph.D. Survival Tips: How to Successfully Complete Your Dissertation

Beginning a Walden Ph.D. program is just as exciting as it is daunting, especially when you don’t know what to expect. From the start, Walden University helps you manage and thrive during your dissertation process. Milestone 1 of the academic residency program introduces you to faculty, staff and fellow students and gives you the information and encouragement that you need to successfully start your first year in Walden’s Ph.D. program.
 
When Dr. Susann Getsch (Ph.D. Psychology) addressed Ph.D. students in the Graduate Panel session at the summer 2009 residency in Minneapolis, she placed an attention-getting prop on the podium: her published dissertation, Educating Students With Pervasive Developmental Disorders: An Exploration of Government Mandates and Teacher Perspectives.
 
In her presentation,Getsch offered these tips for dissertation success.
 
Choose a Manageable Topic
My chair helped me focus on the crux of what I really wanted to explore. She gently pointed out to me that I couldn’t change the whole world with my dissertation, but I could add to the body of knowledge—that’s what you can do, too, if you pick a topic and follow it through in an intelligent manner.
 
Write One Chapter at a Time
Break this big project into little pieces. Many of us think, “I can’t write a book!” But you can write a chapter, you can write about how your study is designed. In the end, it all goes together.
 
Make Time for Yourself and Your Family  
Life sidelines us. Crises at work and at home are going to take you away from your dissertation. You need to plan some time to clear your head, but don’t take so long that you need to completely reacquaint yourself with your project. Go with the flow, but make sure that the flow keeps going.
 
Cultivate a Respectful Relationship with Your Committee
I trusted my committee’s judgment. I heard their concerns, and it made the process easier on all of us because I was open to what they were saying, and they treated me respectfully. Don’t take anything personally. Change, explain or adjust your method, hypotheses or research questions to get on the same page as your committee. Remember: No one wants you to complete your dissertation more than your committee.
 
Strive for Knowledge, Not Perfection
When my bound dissertation arrived in the mail, I sat down and read the book from cover to cover. I was really disappointed because I found some ... things that I could have worded better. But the lesson is nothing is perfect; don’t get stuck on perfect. My dissertation served its purpose. It shows that I understand how to envision and implement a research project and that I know how to write in a scholarly manner.

Walden Think+Up: MEDEX Global Group, Inc "Selecting Global Partners"

Harry Cashy, senior resource development specialist at MEDEX, speaks on selecting and working with overseas partners.





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Walden Think+Up: MEDEX Global Group, Inc "Global Security 2"

Tom Winn, senior chief of operations and intelligence at ASI Group, a MEDEX Global Group company, speaks on the risks of international travel.



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Walden Student: Michael Flynn, Massachusetts Teacher of the Year (2008)

Walden University is proud to have more than 20 state teachers of the year—including Michael Flynn, education doctoral student—currently working toward advanced degrees at its Richard W. Riley College of Education and Leadership.
 
The children in Michael Flynn’s class at William E. Norris Elementary School in Southampton, Massachusetts, aren’t just second graders—they’re TV stars. Several times a year, Flynn’s students find it hard to enter the cafeteria without other students asking them for their autographs. So it goes when your teacher has you make a video report on every unit you finish, and then broadcasts the 40-minute production (on subjects like weather or life in the polar regions) to the whole school.
 
Flynn, who studied video production in college, calls his student-actors “The Flynnsters.” With a little guidance from him, they break up into teams and write comedy sketches, do standup routines, or imitate the evening news. Flynn shows them how to make virtual backdrops using a green-screen, and then edits the pieces together, adding in sound and special effects. The only thing more impressive than the production value is the pint-sized actors’ enthusiasm.
 
Often, his students become so fascinated with the experience of seeing themselves in such high quality videos that they watch—and re-watch—the shows to the point that they learn them by heart. “It just helps them get deeper and deeper into it,” says Flynn. “I work really hard to make everything I teach really engaging. For instance, my kids think I eat and live and dream spelling, because I get so excited about it. But that’s what you have to do to get them excited.”
 
Flynn’s road to teaching began with an episode that seems straight out of The Wonder Years. When he broke his arm in the fifth grade, the principal suggested that he come to his office and read instead of going to recess. A class clown, Flynn had often been disciplined by his principal, but he got to see another side of him during these recess sessions. “He had me read The Indian in the Cupboard to him. We made a promise that we’d start it and finish it together, but he passed away before we got to the last chapter,” Flynn says. In graduate school, he broke the promise and finally finished the book. It was then that he realized how formative that experience had been: “I thought about how much time he’d given me. He really cared.”
 
That principal’s interest in him, and his commitment to finding a way to make the young Flynn feel both important and interested in learning, informs all of Flynn’s scholastic efforts, be it raising Atlantic salmon with his second graders, teaching future teachers at Westfield State College, or partnering with special education instructors to create goals that are specific to each student—not just benchmarks set by the state.

“If you’re passionate about something and you bring that into the classroom, then you’re helping to create buzz and energy, and that’s so important,” says Flynn. “I’ve had teachers say that it’s nice that I do what I do, but they can’t do anything like that because they teach older kids who need to worry about testing. I don’t buy that argument—my kids will have to take the state tests, too, but I want them to enjoy the process of learning. That’s what’s going to keep them engaged as they grow.”

Visit ConnectEd to read other education-related articles.

Walden Think+Up: MEDEX Global Group, Inc "Global Security 1"

Tom Winn, senior chief of operations and intelligence at ASI Group, a MEDEX Global Group company, speaks on the risks of international travel.



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Walden recognizes Women's Equality Day: Women Leading Social Change

In recognition of Women's Equality Day, we are pleased to present "In Power for a Change: Women Leading Social Change," a panel discussion about equal, sustainable and fair pay for men and women in the workplace and practical advice for women in leadership roles.

Paula Singer, chair of the Walden University Board of Directors, moderated the discussion on July 25th in Minneapolis. The panelists included Lilly Ledbetter, namesake of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act; Gloria Lewis, president and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Greater Twin Cities; and Dr. Anita McDonald, chancellor of Penn State DuBois.

Walden Plenary Speaker: Christine Todd Whitman

Video is now available online for the Honorable Christine Todd Whitman’s plenary speech, “Politics in an Age of Partisanship: A Prescription for Change.”
 
Whitman’s speech was given on July 23, 2009, in Minneapolis as part of Walden University’s "Perspectives on the World"speakers series. Whitman served as governor of New Jersey from 1994 to 2001, and as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency from 2001 to 2003. Governor Whitman currently serves as president of the Whitman Strategy Group, a consulting firm specializing in energy and environmental issues facing businesses, organizations and governments.
 
Drawing on her 40 years of public service, Whitman discussed the pervasive nature of hyper-partisanship in politics, and offered solutions for transcending party politics in America.
 
Watch the video of Christine Todd Whitman’s plenary speech.
 

Walden ConnectEd: KIPP on Making Schools Work (Parts 1 & 2)

The KIPP Academy charter school was profiled on Making Schools Work, a PBS special by Hedrick Smith that aired on 10/5/05.





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Walden University's 42nd Commencement

On Saturday, July 25, 2009, the Walden community gathered in person and online to celebrate our 42nd commencement, where we had the honor of conferring degrees on more than 4,300 graduates. Attendance at our Minneapolis graduation made this one of the largest ceremonies in our university’s history.

Serving as our commencement speaker was equal-pay advocate Lilly Ledbetter, the namesake of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009. U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar, special guest and one of the sponsors of the Ledbetter Act, also addressed the graduates.

Other highlights of commencement and events leading up to the ceremony included

"In Power for a Change: Women Leading Social Change," a conversation with prominent women leaders, including Lilly Ledbetter, sharing their personal success stories of how they became advocates for social change and the lasting impacts their actions have made

Perspectives on the World speaker series, featuring former New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman

For those of you who were not able to celebrate in person or watch the live webcast, you can watch the video chapters here.

Walden Think+Up: MEDEX Global Group, Inc "The Big Picture Pt. 2"

Bruce Kirby, CPA, FLMI, President and CEO, speaks on the history and business model of MEDEX Global Group.



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Walden Think+Up: MEDEX Global Group, Inc "The Big Picture Pt. 1"

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Walden Think+Up: Hughes Communications Inc. on Core Businesses

Pradman Kaul, President and CEO Hughes Communications, Inc., speaks about core businesses.

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Walden and Social Change: 5 ways you can improve people’s lives internationally (pt. 3)

This week, read about members of the Walden community as they share their experiences of creating positive social change in the international arena, in the context of different avenues one can pursue to make a difference at the global level.

Called to Give
A career in philanthropy is often seen as the province of the rich and powerful. But the main criterion is having the drive to make a difference. Magdalena LaVerdiere, who received her Ph.D. in Psychology from Walden in 2005, is evidence of what can happen when one ordinary person dedicates herself or himself to philanthropy. LaVerdiere didn’t plan to close her practice in order to work as a full-time volunteer for a nonprofit development organization. But, four years ago, when she and her husband learned about the work being done by Miracles in Action, an American group interested in improving Mayan life in Guatemala, they felt compelled to get involved.

LaVerdiere and her husband started by donating a water system to a rural village. But after watching a video made by Miracles in Action, her focused changed. “In the video, they asked the villagers in the town of Canton San Antonio what was their most pressing need; they said constructing a school was more important than having running water,” LaVerdiere recalls. This realization led her and her husband to sponsor the construction of a five-room school in the village of Canton San Antonio.

“We donated the funds to buy the materials, the villagers did the building, and a professor who operates a nonprofit in Guatemala oversaw the construction,” she says. In January 2008, LaVerdiere presided over the opening of the school, where the 180 students include both boys and girls; a condition for LaVerdiere’s sponsorship was that the parents would commit to sending their daughters to school as well as their sons.

“Providing them with the opportunity to read and write improves their lives by allowing them to learn a trade,” LaVerdiere explains. “And improving their quality of life helps them to stay where they are. They love their country and want to stay there; they just want the basics—running water, safe homes, schools for their kids.” In addition, because most of the homes in the village don’t have stoves—and the open fire pits in unventilated rooms cause respiratory problems for the children, who are also often accidentally burned—LaVerdiere donated more than 80 safe, ventilated stoves to the villagers.

Stateside, LaVerdiere now serves as director on the Board of Directors for Miracles in Action, which has no paid employees (100% of donor funds go directly toward the projects). She says, “Sustainable development is what I’m interested in doing. We’re not giving people handouts, we’re giving them a hand up.”

LaVerdiere notes that working together with your community to raise funds for a project is a great way to make a larger impact than you could make on your own. “There are so many opportunities to volunteer,” she emphasizes. “It’s incredible to see what people can do when it tugs at their heart, if they just take that step of contacting an organization.”

Walden Think+Up: Hughes Communications Inc. on Core Values

Pradman Kaul, President and CEO Hughes Communications, Inc., speaks about the importance of corporate core values.

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