Thank you to our 2013-14 volunteers!

They gave it heart and they made it happen. These are true professionals and they rose to the challenge.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Rebecca Noran, chair
Kate Sophia, chair emerita
Honey VanderVenter, vice chair
Sarah Hollerich, at-large director and designer
Patrice Johnson, at-large director
Kess Knight, recorder and newsletter editor
Nicole Price, treasurer
Kris Junker, awards committee co-chair
Ann Nordby, awards committee co-chair
Serena Wright, conference committee chair
Katie Covey, membership committee co-chair
Erin Kober, membership committee co-chair
Sarah Howard, programs committee chair
Lani Payette, technology committee co-chair
Mandee Nguyen, technology committee co-chair

COMMITTEES
Programs Committee: Derrick Aly, Jenna Egan, Kelsi Klaers, Laura Krueger Vitko, Vickie Lee-Her, Martin Moen, and Holly Santiago
Events Circle Workgroup: Julie Bartels, Geida Cleveland, Sue Couling, and Christina Owen
Awards Committee: Echo Martin, Maggie Catambay, Amelie Hyams, Pamela Vold, Matthew Tveter, JoAnne Makela, and Sara Cannon
Membership Committee: Tracey Bartlett
Technology Committee: Vickie Lee-Her
Conference Committee: Lindsay Bork, Karina Carlson, Crystal Fernandez, Wokie Freeman, Sara MacKenzie, and Nathan Waldvogel

Member Spotlight Editor: Janelle Nivens

2014 VOLUNTEERS OF THE YEAR
Lindsay Bork, conference committee
Echo Martin, awards committee

Upcoming programs - Summer 2014

Find more details and register on the events page. Miss a program? Find info and recordings when available on past programs.

Regularly scheduled Communicators Forum programs will begin in September.

Interested in shaping monthly programming for communicators? Contact Holly Santiago (hsantiag@umn.edu) and Laura Krueger Vitko (krue0192@umn.edu) to get involved in the Programs Committee.

Monthly Mixer
Thursday, July 10, 3:30-5:30 p.m. - Campus Club, Coffman Union

There's no formal program, just networking, and you don't need to be a Communicators Forum or Campus Club member to attend. Nachos provided, drinks on your own. Drawing at 4:45 p.m. to be entered to win free lunch at the Campus Club. RSVP here.

Events Circle Brown Bag Networking Lunches
We have this summer's Events Circle Brown Bags all lined up. If you plan an event (or two or ten...) as part of your job, you are welcome to this brown bag lunch, filled with informal discussion, idea generation and networking. No RSVP required.

• Tuesday, July 15, 12-1 p.m. - 125 Coffey Hall (St. Paul)
• Thursday, August 7, 12-1 p.m. - 100 Murphy Hall (East Bank)

Events Circle Presents: Muse Event Center Site Visit
Wednesday, July 16, 4-6 p.m. - Muse Event Center (107 3rd Ave. S., Minneapolis)

You're invited to an exclusive open house to tour and experience the newest event space in Minneapolis: Muse Event Center. CRAVE Catering (Muse's exclusive caterer) will offer food and beverages. Plus, learn about on-campus catering options from CRAVE Catering.

Transportation is on your own. There is meter parking available with paid lots nearby. RSVP here.

To connect with fellow event planners and stay up-to-date on the Events Circle, join the Event Circle Google Group.

Who me, volunteer? Yes!

This summer we build the teams who make the year's activities happen. We have an opportunity for Recorder/Scribe on the board and opportunities on all the committees.

Do you care about the Communicators Forum? Membership and volunteers are the foundation of what keeps us going as an organization. The Membership Committee hosts a table at every new employee orientation, leads the member drive, plans the Member Appreciation Event and Awards Celebration, works on volunteer recruitment and appreciation, and more. If interested contact Patrice Johnson (johns388@umn.edu) and Tiffany Clemens (tclemens@umn.edu).

Looking for a leadership role within a committee? The Communications and Technology committee is seeking members to take on these important roles, if interested contact Honey VanderVenter (hvander@umn.edu), Mandee Nguyen (kugli005@umn.edu), and Lani Payette (payet003@umn.edu): 

• Designer: Design all the stuff! Awards, conference, fancy email banners, and more materials of an array of formats, with a theme to inspire you (and past files and production info to have for reference!).
• Social media coordinator: Be in charge of our social media accounts, working with other volunteers and setting the strategy, including starting any new accounts.
• Newsletter editor: Produce the newsletter each month.
• Web content manager and contributors: We're undertaking a web revamp in the coming year, and need content created, edited, and improved. Could this be you?
• Photographer to capture and share key moments, gather images from our existing supply for the website project.
• General support with our technology and communications tools
• And...wherever you see a need and want to offer support and solutions!

Annual Conference--it's a wrap!

This year's conference broke registration records and transcended the everyday with three innovative keynotes. While we know there were a couple of hiccups...lunch...we hope that those who attended this year were able to grow and thrive in this day of dedicated professional development!

Watch for a survey to be emailed soon-we would love advice for how to improve.

The Conference Committee already has wheels turning for how to make next year's conference even better-and we could use your help! Content development, marketing, session brainstorming, logistics-there is a significant spectrum of skills needed to develop a successful conference.

If you're interested in helping to organize the 25th annual conference, please email Lindsay Bork (lindsay@umn.edu).

Maroon & Gold Awards 2014

This year, from a record number of entries, we gave 34 Maroon & Gold awards for excellence in communications at our member appreciation party. At that event, we also recognized two Communicators Forum volunteers, Echo Martin and Lindsay Bork, who went the extra mile.

A full list of winners is posted on the Communicators Forum website.

Do you want to be one of those who recognize the best work produced at the U next year? Join the awards committee by contacting 2014-15 chairs Echo Martin (mart1794@umn.edu) and JoAnne Makela (makel024@umn.edu).

Message from the chair - Summer 2014

Hello communicators!

That was some conference, right? It's not every day I get to see my design author hero, Ellen Lupton; get inspired by artist Seitu Jones; and hear a compelling talk and then musical performance by Dessa, joined by Aby Wolf. And it's not every day all these communicators emerge from the U's nooks and crannies, and beyond. It's my favorite thing about the conference each year.The people.

The conference is a great example of what professionals like all of you can make happen. We are an engaged group. Like past year's themes, we're good at "making something out of nothing," "making our case," seeing "the big picture," and exploring "unchartered territory."

Our theme this year was "craft the future" and we certainly did. A lot went down in 2013-14:

9 monthly programs of relevant content, with around 30 peopleconsistently attending 
Collaborations: Web People, PCMC, OIT, Portal... 
Events Circle launched: 3 programs + monthly brownbags

425 members at our peak
33 members profiled on the blog 
Monthly member newsletter 
Monthly Mixers at Campus Club

200+ RSVPs for 2nd year: Member Appreciation Event and Awards Celebration at the Weisman Art Museum

34 awards given | 144 awards submitted, up 10% from 2013 |New awards categories introduced to better reflect the work of communicators today | Innovator award introduced | Improved submission process! | 2nd year of online voting for Mike (people's choice)

Listserv » now Google group | New, improved website planning underway 

Am I a member? No guessing needed. Members can check their last renew and join dates online!

1 awesome conference | 3 keynotes | 202 registeredparticipants

Letterpress coasters created, nachos consumed, connections made: Many, many, many!

This is my last issue of the newsletter as your chair, and I'd like to welcome your new chair for 2014-15, Sarah Howard. Sarah was chair of the programs committee this past year and she was the Communicators Forum 2013 Volunteer of the Year, as a member of the programs committee. Monthly programs are core to what we offer members. Sarah has shown great leadership to find relevant programming for all of us. She's a true blue communicator and I'm excited to be on her board of directors team this upcoming year.

In the conference program I included a quote from Charles Eames, half of the inspirational, design innovator team with his wife, Ray:

"Choose your corner, pick away at it carefully, intensely, and to the best of your ability and that way you might change the world."

This has always resonated with me as a communications professional at the U. It's not always bounteous, glamorous, notorious, and glorious on the grassy knoll. Our buildings can be old, cracking, stinky. People don't get what we do, often. Editing an article in an alumni magazine or drafting how-to content for a web page might not bring fame and yachts. We can't always get the U's great research on the cover of Newsweek, but we get it in front of people who matter. We target. We accomplish. Looking at this year's award winners at the member event, I was impressed with all the content we cover and the range of what we do, discover, and deliver as communicators at the U.

So go forth, stronger together: Make it happen. Make connections. Make sense of it all. Make a difference.

Thanks for all you do,
Rebecca Noran, chair, Communicators Forum, 2013-14

Board for 2014-15

The term for the 2013-14 board of directors ends June 30, 2014. At the annual conference on June 19 we elected the board for 2014-15. Please welcome them!

Chair: Sarah Howard
Chair emerita: Rebecca Noran
Vice chair: Stuart Robbins-Butcher
At-large director: Kit Breshears
Treasurer: Andrea Jacovitch
Recorder/Scribe: OPEN--If interested contact Sarah Howard,showard@umn.edu 
Awards chairs: JoAnne Makela and Echo Martin
Membership chairs: Patrice Johnson and Tiffany Clemens
Programs chairs: Laura Krueger Vitko and Holly Santiago
Conference chairs: Pam Belding and Lindsay Bork
Communications and Technology chairs: Lani Payette, Mandee Nguyen, Honey VanderVenter

Member profile: Lindsay Bork

Lindsay received a 2014 "Volunteer of the Year" award from the University of Minnesota Communicators Forum. 

Research Program Manager, Natural Language Processing-Information Extraction (NLP-IE) group within the Institute for Health Informatics

Started working at the University of Minnesota in 2008 and started her current position in July 2013.

UMCF member since 2011.

What excites you about working at the University of Minnesota and for the Natural Language Processing-Information Extraction group?

I love working at the U because of the diverse and innovative environments existing here. There are endless possibilities for the kinds of work to be accomplished and I take pride that the effort being put in results in change at the individual level for students as well as at the societal level for our state and nation. 

What is your favorite place on campus?      

My favorite place on campus is the first level of Coffman Union. I love sitting in one of the oversized chairs and working or people watching or just enjoying the views outside, especially when there is a pianist playing. 

What do you consider to be a best kept secret about the U?

I think the best kept secret is the opportunities available here not only for personal growth but also employment. Before starting at the U as a student, it never occurred to me all of the roles that must be filled by staff to keep the University running effectively. I think this is something many do not consider. 

I'm happiest when:

I'm at the beach staring out into to the seemingly unending ocean, breathing in the fresh, salty air. 

Motto or personal mantra:

Be the change you wish to see in the world. -Gandhi

If I could do it all over again, I would:

Change nothing. Learn from past experiences, negative or positive, to create the future you choose. 

Member profile: Echo Martin

Echo received a 2014 "Volunteer of the Year" award from the University of Minnesota Communicators Forum. 

Communications Coordinator, Department of Horticultural Science

Started working at the University of Minnesota in 2012.

UMCF member since April 2013. 

Connect with Echo online: 

Facebook

Linkedin

What excites you about working at the University of Minnesota and for the Department of Horticultural Science?

I love to learn--about everything from biology to history to sociology--and working at the U allows me to continue to learn new things constantly even if I'm not taking a class here. People say that college prepares you for lifelong learning, and I think the U does a great job of fostering that even outside of the classroom. It's definitely improved my trivia scores.

When I came to the Horticulture Department, I thought that horticulture only dealt with flowers. Now I can tell you about the difference between sustainable and organic, the life cycle of two varieties of strawberry, and what plants changed Minnesota. No matter where I end up working at the U as time goes forward, I hope to continue learning new things about the world around me and the amazing projects taking place here.

Tell us about one of the coolest projects you've worked on for your job at the U?    

By far the coolest project I've worked on is the one I'm doing now. I'm leading a project to create an interactive e-textbook on how to grow and sell strawberries in cold climates. It's allowed me to work with a huge variety of people (researchers, farmers, videographers, conference organizers), and it's something I'm really excited to show off.

 

The program we're using to create it, Inkling, goes above and beyond most e-textbooks by allowing you to have widgets, guided tours, tests and quizzes in-text, zoomable images, videos, and more. Cold Climate Strawberry Farming is being released in early July and will be available at no cost, so if you have any interest in growing strawberries you should check it out. I really hope to work on creating more textbooks in the future, because this project has been a great experience.

What is your favorite place on campus?

The Display and Trial Garden on St. Paul campus. It's tucked away on the back corner of Gortner and Folwell Avenues. A lot of people who only visit campus on occasion don't go much out of the way of the campus connector route, so most of the visitors are staff and students who work in the nearby buildings. The garden is full of a variety of flowers, herbs, and shrubs, and even has a few different varieties of Minnesota grapes on the entrance trellis. The chipmunks and squirrels will even come right up to you because they're used to people tossing them food, and there's a pond with fish in it as well. If you've got a little bit of extra time when you come to campus, take a moment to eat lunch in the garden. You won't regret it.     

Your hometown and the first place you lived after leaving your hometown? 

I grew up in the tiny town of Roseau, MN in the northwest part of the state. For those who don't know about it, it's a beautiful little town of about 3,000 people and it is the county seat of Roseau County. It's 10 miles from Canada, near Lake of the Woods. Just to give an idea of how "middle of nowhere" rural Minnesota it is, here are some reference points: it takes one hour to get to the nearest Walmart or McDonald's, and two hours to the nearest Starbucks or mall. In any direction, including Canada. I suggest visiting there some time during the summer, and be sure to stop by Earl's Drive In.

The first place I moved to was Minneapolis. I came in 2008 to start college at the U, and decided this was a good place to stick around for awhile.

Motto or personal mantra:

The Sunscreen Song by Baz Luhrmann. Not quite a motto or mantra, but when I start to feel down or too worried it centers me again. Here's just one piece of great advice from this song:

"Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't

Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't

Maybe you'll divorce at 40, 

maybe you'll dance the 'Funky Chicken' on your 75th wedding anniversary

Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much

Or berate yourself either

Your choices are half chance. So are everybody else's."

People may be surprised to know:

While I grew up in a small town, I traveled a lot when I was younger. My parents were fair vendors, so I spent every summer until I was seven traveling to and living at different state fairs across the country. After that I started spending summers with my older sister. With her I spent one summer at a Girl Scout camp in Ely, MN, a couple more summers in South Dakota, and a few more in Colorado. Today, fairs have a very special place in my heart and I get really excited about the Minnesota State Fair; you'll see me volunteering there and attending with friends as frequently as I can manage.