UNews - Kris Magnusson

Sound advice allowed Robinson to seek path

trevor.kenney — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 21:49:47 +0000

Derek Robinson (BA '00, MEd '03) always knew what he wanted to do – he just needed someone to tell him it was OK.

The former ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Pronghorns men's hockey forward had an interest in psychology that he wanted to pursue but it wasn't until a career counselor at the U of L affirmed it was a realistic path, that Robinson really believed he had the right stuff.

"Most of the guys I played with were in education or management and pretty much told me I'd never get a job in psychology," Robinson, now a mental training consultant at the Canadian Sport Centre in Calgary who works primarily with Canada's National Long Track Speed Skating team, says.

So he continued on, studying psychology but never fully committing to a major until his third year.

"I always wanted to be a psychologist and obviously loved sports but I was a hockey player, I swore in the dressing room, drank beer in the pub and never really thought I had the material to be a psychologist," he says.

"I think back now to the sessions I had with the counselor and everything we talked about I actually ended up doing."

The events he refers to include research projects, working with elite athletes and coaching at the highest level of sport. In February, Robinson will be in Vancouver as the long track speed skating team looks for a golden harvest at the 2010 Olympics.

A Victoria, B.C. native, Robinson found the U of L to be a perfect fit when he came to campus in the fall of 1995. The size of the city suited him well and he was joining a hockey program fresh off its first national title. However, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ would prove to be much more than just a hockey stop.

"The U of L was a great fit," Robinson says. "Lethbridge is a great place to go to university and it was a really good experience getting my BA there and playing for the Horns. Obviously I liked it enough to go back and complete my master's degree."

The research focus for his master's thesis was on the prevalence of mental training in hockey, specifically the Alberta Junior Hockey League, and whether the league's coaches felt it would be beneficial. The majority did but were lacking the resources to add a mental trainer to their staff.

"Over the course of my thesis, I formed a great relationship with Dr. Kerry Bernes," Robinson says. "I really respect both he and Dr. Kris Magnusson, who was running the program at the time. Those two guys were pivotal through my master's and were really helpful for my career."

He's looking for a career high note in February, after which he'll try and curtail his travel schedule and devote more time to his family.

"I'll be with the support staff at the Games," Robinson says. "Working with the athletes on such a personal level, it's very exciting to see them excel and I'll be thrilled if they do well in Vancouver."

GET THE FACTS

• Robinson and his wife Lisa (now an art teacher) both came to the U of L from Victoria and they have two children, a four-year old son and 18-month old daughter.

• Robinson has also worked in private practice with the Calgary Health Region.

• While at the U of L, Robinson had a 20-goal season in 1998-99.

Shepard settling into new role

trevor.kenney — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:17:20 +0000

She comes with a big-time resumé and reputation and yet it's the small-town, small-school setting in which she thrives. Dr. Blythe Shepard seems a perfect fit for the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge – and vice versa.

Just wrapping up her first year at the U of L, Shepard, an associate professor in the Faculty of Education, came to Lethbridge from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Victoria. It was there she finished her master's and doctorate degrees (educational psychology) and had settled into a faculty position. Ironically, as Shepard helped grow UVic's research reputation and graduate programming, she found herself part of an institution that took her away from her teaching roots.

"Victoria used to be where Lethbridge is now, but it's moved into a much more research focused institution, more of a business model, and I found I was doing a little less teaching than I wanted," Shepard says.

"Being at a small school, working with smaller numbers, that seems to fit more with my style."

Invigorated with a new challenge, Shepard has been quick to contribute to the U of L's MEd (Counselling Psychology) program and the Master of Counselling program. Specifically, she's helping to overhaul the Campus Alberta Applied Psychology (CAAP) program.

"It needs to be revamped, so we're looking at all the courses," she says. "My colleagues and I are making revisions to them and making them more Lethbridge oriented and something that is unique for our students.

"Many of our students are mature students who are already out there practicing but they lack the credentials. They've probably been out of school for a while, so making that transition back into university is a pretty big step for them."

Shepard knows of what she speaks, because she was that student, coming back to school to pursue her master's degree as a single working mother in her mid-40s.

"I understand that aspect and having to juggle family responsibilities and a job you don't want to give up, all while going to school," she says.

It's no surprise many of Shepard's research initiatives revolve around this same theme. A native of small-town Ontario (she grew up in a rural setting near North Bay), Shepard offers a unique perspective. She did the majority of her undergraduate psychology degree through distance learning from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Waterloo. Her education and career path were moulded around the challenges of raising and providing for a young family in a rural setting.

Upon arriving on campus, Shepard applied for and received a Community of Research Excellence Development Opportunities (CREDO) grant to research the career paths of women and even more specifically, those in a rural setting.

"Most of the career theory out there is around men's career paths and women's are quite different," Shepard says. "Their paths are quite disrupted, at times, around family considerations. And for most women I've researched with, relationships are very important and they want work that is relationship-based.

"There's a lot more complexity to women's career paths."

Shepard has also collaborated with Dr. Priya Mani of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Manitoba as they embark on a three-part project to develop a Canadian career-counselling textbook. For that, she's also enlisted the U of L's Allison Roest of the Counselling Services Office.

"We're trying to find out what career educators across Canada would like in a textbook and then who would be interested in contributing to it," she says. "Allison has an expertise in that area so it's great we're able to work with her. What I'm really liking about the U of L is that it's small enough here that I'm starting to make connections very quickly."

It's the kind of fit that is already proving beneficial to both.

GET THE FACTS

• Shepard is one of 12 directors to the National Board of the Canadian Counselling Association, taking over the Alberta/NWT position from Dr. Kris Magnusson

• She is also co-chair of the Inter-Provincial Mobility for the Counselling Profession: Phase 1. Its mandate is the further establishment of regulatory colleges for Canadian counsellors to create more uniformity throughout the country

• An avid hiker, she has enjoyed exploring the coulees around Lethbridge and making day trips to Waterton

• Before going back to pursue her master's degree in 1995, she was teaching and performing administrative duties at an alternative school in British Columbia

• She has three children, all living in Victoria, with two attending the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Victoria

Search for new Associate VP

trevor.kenney — Tue, 19 May 2009 18:21:40 +0000

The search is on for a new Associate Vice-President (Academic) as the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge looks to fill the position vacated by Dr. Kris Magnusson.

Magnusson leaves the U of L to take on the role of Dean of Education at Simon Fraser ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ, creating an opening on the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's senior administrative team.

Nominations and applications are invited from current members of the faculty of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge for the position of Associate Vice-President (Academic). The Office of the Vice-President (Academic) is responsible for all undergraduate and graduate programs, for student services, for academic planning, for the Curriculum Re-development Centre, Institutional Analysis and the International Centre for Students, for relationships with the staff of Alberta Advanced Education and Technology and other relevant ministries, and for relations with other academic institutions. The roles and responsibilities of the Associate Vice-President (Academic) will be established by mutual agreement with the Vice-President (Academic) such that the office can respond appropriately to its mandate.

As a member of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's senior administrative team, the Associate Vice-President (Academic) will also be a member of General Faculties Council and Deans' Council.

The ideal candidate should be a full-time member of the faculty with tenure, preferably hold the rank of professor, possess administrative experience and be knowledgeable of the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ's structure, history and culture.

For more information, contact Dr. Andrew Hakin (hakin@uleth.ca), Vice-President (Academic) and Provost.

It is intended that the position will be filled by July 1 or as soon thereafter as possible. The process of reviewing applications will begin on June 1 but applications will be accepted until the position is filled.

Interested candidates should send a current curriculum vitae, a letter of application describing their qualifications for and interest in the position, and also the names and contact information for three (3) references. All applications will be considered in confidence.

The position is open to all qualified applicants, although preference will be given to Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Canada. The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ is an inclusive and equitable campus encouraging applications from qualified women and men including persons with disabilities, members of visible minorities and Aboriginal persons.

UNews - Kris Magnusson

Sound advice allowed Robinson to seek path

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