Skip to main content

Newsroom

Bentley Footbridge

The Bentley Buzz

Connecting faculty and staff, one story at a time

Welcome to the latest issue of the Bentley Buzz, where we share news and stories about the faculty and staff who make Bentley special. It is compiled by Kevin Wong, associate director of internal communications. To share your news or an idea for a story, please email buzz@bentley.edu.
 

July 7, 2022

The Community Learning Conference is Back!
Learn about this year's offerings and learning opportunities
Melissa Looney Headshot
         Melissa Looney

From July 25-27, staff and faculty will come together for the fourth annual Community Learning Conference, which will offer in-person sessions for the first time in three years! The professional development conference, which gives community members an opportunity to share their expertise and learn from peers, will feature in-person, remote and hybrid sessions in order to provide a flexible learning environment for all. 

But being flexible is something that the Learning and Development team in HR has been accustomed to over the past few years. “We’ve had to be agile with the modalities over the past few years thanks to the pandemic,” said Director of Learning, Development and Engagement Strategies Melissa Looney. Though offering the conference in a fully remote format wasn’t exactly in the plans after first launching in 2019, Melissa and her team embraced the flexibility that the remote setting could offer. 

“We started the first year by selecting specific presentations, but after that, we opened calls for proposals,” explained Melissa. “We have such a plethora of expertise on campus, and staff and faculty have so much to offer. By switching to remote for the past two years, we were able to really expand the conference offerings.
 

Dr. Jimenez Headshot
      Dr. Jacinta Jiménez

This year’s conference will feature more than 20 sessions that include themes focusing on Best Self, Inclusive Excellence and Positive Culture. The conference will kick off with the keynote address “Buffering Against Burnout!” by Jacinta M. Jiménez, an award-winning author, psychologist and board-certified leadership coach with more than 20 years of experience dedicated to the betterment of individuals, leaders and organizations.

From Bentley trivia and an outdoor relaxation yoga session to allyship and burnout prevention seminars, there is no shortage of offerings at this year’s conference, with some led by our own experts across campus and others by outside presenters. “I’ve been at other institutions that have had similar, more niche professional development conferences, but I haven’t seen one that invites every role within the community,” said Melissa. “It’s been so great to see everyone share their expertise and learn with their peers.” 

In addition to learning from one another, attendees will have the chance to catch up at breakfast before the keynote event, at lunch on each of the three days and over gigantic ice cream sandwiches from the Cookie Monstah food truck! Community members are welcome to attend any number of sessions as their schedule allows, whether joining for one session or the full three-day conference, something that the Learning and Development team has stressed since the conference first began. 

Conference Logo with the Bentley Falcon“The emphasis really is on community,” said Melissa. “Whether you join in person or by Zoom, or come for lunch in between a session, the most important thing is that everyone can choose what works best for them and ultimately feel included no matter how many events they can attend.” 

All sessions are free and open to Bentley staff and faculty, but registration is required before the July 20 deadline. Registration is filling up quickly, so be sure to sign up for your sessions today! Click here to see the schedule of events.

Conference Registration

Liberation in Progress
Bentley celebrates Juneteenth

Juneteenth speakers on stageThis year, our community gathered to celebrate Juneteenth by sharing personal reflections, celebrating successes for Black Americans and advocating for the work yet to be done. In the first in-person celebration on campus, Director of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion Patrick Couillard Hale emceed the event and spoke about the importance of the holiday. "We in the Black community see [Juneteenth] as an important milestone in our nation’s history, but I will admit that I learned about it much later in life,” said Patrick. “It became clear to me, after learning the truth, how much of my story and my history was never taught to me by the very institutions to which I entrusted not just my learning but my livelihood.”

Reflections were shared by Professor of English Barbara Paul-Emile, Jayden Cooper ’23, Ileaqua Adams ’23, Dean of Business Sanjay Putrevu, Assistant Director of Mentorship and Advising Claudette Blot and Assistant Director of the Residential Center Otis Johnson throughout the hour-long event. “The story of African Americans is a powerful and stirring one,” said Barbara. “Under great duress, the culture reflects high achievements in all areas. It is replete with music, song, dance, storytelling and laughter, but great pain and struggle have been at the center of it. The journey is filled with tragedy, anguish, endurance and the joy of overcoming. No aspect can be overlooked, for the strength of this nation is buried deep within this history and this literature. The willingness to recognize and celebrate Juneteenth reflects how far we all have come.”

Read More and Watch the Recording

Meg hiking in the woods

Featured Falcon: Meg Ward

With the Community Learning Conference around the corner, the Buzz caught up with Associate Director of Learning, Development and Engagement Strategies Meg Ward, who has along with Melissa Looney helped to make the conference a success. Learn about Meg, this issue's Featured Falcon, below! 


Hometown: Bristol, CT (also home to ESPN for the sports fans out there)
How long have you been at Bentley? 2.5 years! 
Favorite spot on campus: LaCava Café. The staff there are so incredibly friendly, grabbing a coffee there is a great quick way to get a pulse of campus energy that day. And I am a sucker for their muffins. 
Favorite snack: Popcorn! 
Favorite television show: The Great British Baking Show. It’s easily the most educational, entertaining, yet therapeutic show. 
Hidden talent: I can whistle really loud, which comes in handy when cheering at concerts, events or trying to get someone I know's attention outside! 
Summer plans: Kayaking along the Charles, biking along some coastal towns and enjoying a few outdoor concerts. 
What are you looking forward to this academic year? Continuing to collaborate with my colleagues. It’s my favorite part of my job, and there’re always so many great ways to engage, connect and learn from others.
Any pandemic hobbies you picked up? Less so picked up and more so grew more confident in -- hiking. It’s something I enjoyed but definitely did more locally and in Acadia National Park and the White Mountains the past two years.

Falcon Business Directory

Did you know that the Office of Alumni and Family Engagement has a quick and easy tool to find businesses owned and operated by Bentley alumni? The Falcon Business Directory is a growing database spotlighting more than 200 Falcon-owned businesses ranging from ice cream shops and coffee roasters to tax consultants and wealth management advisors. Users can explore businesses that are LGBTQ-, veteran-, person of color- and woman-owned, and can search by city, town or state. Interested in supporting an alumni-owned business? Check out the directory below!

Explore the Directory

Bentley Falcon Statue

A New Learning Management System Coming to Campus

Over the course of the next year Bentley will begin to bring a new learning management system to campus that's modern, user-friendly and supports a wide range of teaching methods. The new LMS will be piloted for select classes during the spring 2023 semester, “soft launched” during the summer 2023 sessions and rolled out in full for the fall 2023 semester. Check out the video and webpage below for more details on this new tool that will support teaching and learning at Bentley, and keep an eye out for upcoming faculty trainings, listening sessions and workshops on the new LMS! 

Learn More 

Keeping Score with Bentley Athletics

Bentley Falcons Logo50 Years Since Title IX: A Look Back at Bentley Women's Athletics
50 years ago, when Title IX became law, there were no athletics for women at Bentley. A year later, field hockey, basketball and softball debuted as club sports. The following year, all three were elevated to varsity level.

Bentley Hockey Announces 2022-23 Schedule
The 2022-23 schedule for the Bentley hockey team has been announced, with the Falcons set to open the season on Saturday, Oct. 1 at Boston University.

Swim Teams Recognized for Academic Success
The Falcon men's and women's swimming and diving teams have received Scholar All-America Team Awards from the College Swimming Coaches Association of America for their academic performance during the spring semester.

39 Falcons Receive Presidents’ Award for Academic Excellence from NE10
Thirty-nine recent Bentley graduates are among the 2022 recipients of the Northeast-10 Conference Presidents' Award for Academic Excellence, an honor awarded by the conference to graduating senior student-athletes for their outstanding work in the classroom during their college careers.

From the Newsroom

Bentley Earns High Marks on National List of Inclusive LGBTQ+ Campuses

Bentley is one of only 14 schools in New England to score 4.5 out of 5 stars in the Campus Pride Index, an indicator of a school's commitment to inclusive LGBTQ+ policies, programs and practices. 

By Kristen Walsh

 

Read More

Contouring a Career in Finance

Riya Bindra ’22 combines her lifelong love of makeup and financial strategy at Estée Lauder.

By Kristen Walsh

 

Read More

Emphasizing Equity

New course development grants encourage faculty to integrate race and social justice in their disciplines.

By Molly Mastantuono

 

Read More

Interested in reading past issues?