FHSU impacts extend beyond education

On this episode of the Post Podcast Fort Hays State University provost, Jill Arensdorf speaks about the direct benefits to the are provided by the university.

 

Transcript

 

James Bell 

Fort Hays State University is more than just an education center for the region. It provides direct benefits to the community. Provost Jill Arensdorf stops by to talk a little bit about some of those benefits on this episode of the post podcast.

 

Jill Arensdorf 

Obviously, the purpose of a Fort Hays State University and really higher education is to educate primarily our student population. However, we also have part of our mission to serve the public good. And many of our outreach programs and impact that we make in Kansas, specifically western Kansas, focus on what you called the impact of teaching and learning. And so I'll share just a few examples. And if you have questions about them, please please ask. But we have the fhsu Literacy Center. And that may be one that people aren't that familiar with, because it's relatively new is a partnership with the Hayes Masonic Lodge, and they're providing virtual and face to face helped area schools that need additional assistance in their reading skills. And this was really primarily due to the COVID 19 shutdown and some of the needs that came from that. And so this Literacy Center has, has risen and been created in the last year or so to provide that assistance that that students may need. In addition, you know, we've got great programs at Sternberg Museum and many people in the community and outside of the community and enjoy those educational outreach activities throughout the year. And then we have a gem in Great Bend with the Kansas wetlands Education Center. And that is connected to Fort Hays and folks might not realize that connection to Fort Hays and the educational opportunities that that provides.

 

James Bell 

Yeah, that's something we talked about the events down there. And and I think that's one of those things. And I grew up near that region. I grew up in Stafford County. It is such a such a jewel down there. And it's really, you know, when you when I think about these events, you think about that drive, but my goodness, it's not that big of a deal, really, in the long run to get down there 45 minutes or so.

 

Jill Arensdorf 

Yeah. And they've got I mean, they've got indoor and outdoor excursion activities and things going on all year. So I really hope that people can take advantage of that. You know, one other thing that if you drive through campus, many days, you won't see the maker van there but many days you will meet the maker van has programs for STEM. And so that maker van allows us to take our STEM show on the road so to speak, and and go into schools and communities to teach students about physics and science and using robots and the mobile planetarium and then our ever popular high altitude blond balloon experiments which go on pretty regularly throughout the year.

 

James Bell 

Yeah, this stuff is so neat. I was I actually got to hang out with one of your Dean's Paul Adams the other day, the who's doing a robot session training session with some middle school teachers and may My goodness, how cool is this stuff? It's just, you know, and I'm pretty tech savvy, I'd like to thank but even the way that this is developing an education so quickly and rapidly, it's just It blows my mind.

 

Jill Arensdorf 

Yeah, if we can get students excited about science at an early age through things like the maker band through things like Sternberg through things like the wetland center, they're more apt to maybe find that as a career path and passion as they choose higher education and a career. So I mean, there's obviously a reason for this outreach. And it's an important part of our mission at Fort Hays State University.

 

James Bell 

Very cool. And that, you know, one other thing in that in that regard, we talked about the weekend center. I don't know that you want to talk a little bit about that one as well.

 

Jill Arensdorf 

Yeah, it's relatively new. So this is a cooperation with USD 489. And the west central Kansas Special Education Cooperative, and several other regional school districts, and the Heartland Community Foundation, so a partnership with many entities. And it is a center where preschool and 18 to 21 year old transition programs occur where students are working with these populations preschool and then the 18 to 21 year olds, adults as they prepare to become teachers. And so it's just a, it's a unique new opportunity that for Hayes's has gotten involved in here in the local community, downtown, at the Hadleys at the Hadley old Hadley hospital, that Hadley building, and it has been a fantastic partnership thus far to create opportunities both for our students to learn but also to impact the community. Very cool.

 

James Bell 

Yeah. And in schools, those economic are about I mean, educational opportunities are there's also some real economic benefits to having the university here and we hear about the Small Business Development Center and you know, Management Development Center as well. And I think that's a huge way that Fort Hays can help and especially right now with so many people going remote work and looking at those kind of things are working for themselves. It's got to have like a tremendous benefit on the area.

 

Jill Arensdorf 

It is and you know, for higher education specifically for Hey, does make an impact on our business and economic development, as you said, and so, through the pandemic, and as we've come out of it, the Small Business Development Center and our management development center, have pivoted, and then they've grown from that and and have expanded their services and expanded the way that they're serving the western Kansas population. So I'll just give you a couple of quick examples. James, the Small Business Development Center for Hayes's the statewide host, but we also have a regional center. And so the numbers I'll share with you our regional numbers, for Hayes, the regional Small Business Development Center establishes and helps startup businesses. So lots of workshops and counseling services that can be done in person, but that also can be done remote now, because of our learning through the pandemic. And so this past year, the center has developed 78 workshops, assisted 124 established businesses in their regional area, which is primarily western Kansas, and then helped 14 new entrepreneurs launch business in this area, which is exciting for the economic drivers that we need to be as an institution and in our in our region. The Management Development Center is housed at Fort Hays State University as well provides lots of public workshops, the focus on customer service, managing people mastering business and communication software and applications. So really serving anyone that has needs in management leadership areas.

 

James Bell 

Yeah, that's we talked about leadership earlier this week on the show and the difference between leadership and management and, and how that works and how it develops. And it is such an interesting field and Fort Hayes has been a leader, I think in in Leadership Studies and how that all not only academically, it comes together, but how it works in the practical world as well.

 

Jill Arensdorf 

Yeah, you're right. Of course, I have some affinity for the Leadership Studies program since it's my home department. But the management development center that I think one of the beautiful things about that center, is that it utilizes expertise of not only our faculty, but business people and other people in the community that have a skill set that they can share with other folks. So they basically contract a facilitator. And then that facilitator uses their expertise to teach others about one of the areas that that we already discussed within the Management Development Center. One of the things I'll quickly mentioned, James, kind of connected to the business and economic development piece is an online bank management contest that the Robins banking Institute hosts each year, in coordination with Robins College of Business and Entrepreneurship. This institute actually engages community banks in Kansas, in this friendly bank simulation competition. So everyone likes a little healthy competition from time to time. And so this online bank management contest has been a fun way for the Institute in our community banks to compete and sharpen their banking skills as they compete.

 

James Bell 

That's very fun. You know, it's one of the things I imagine it is, it is difficult to turn that into a fun activity. But that's a good time. You know, and the other thing speaking of, you know, the activity in the university helping the area, you know, a lot of ways I think the university just kind of generally makes life better out here, right?

 

Jill Arensdorf 

Yeah, no, one of the things that I've always appreciated about living in western Kansas, and specifically now in Hays is that the quality of life is so good here. And our university contributes to that in a way that I'm certainly very proud of. An example of that would be the Herndon Speech Language Hearing Clinic, the clinic, His home is on campus, but the clinic is actually in its fifth year of providing mobile hearing screenings. This is a program sponsored again by the Kansas Masonic Foundation. And so in the last five years, the Herndon clinic, students, faculty and staff have actually provided over 830 free screenings in western Kansas communities, which is an amazing service. And it's amazing learning opportunity for our students who are in those programs. So that then when they're going out into their career, they have experience working in rural Kansas and rural communities and see the need out there and can help serve that need. Another example of just raising the quality of life in western Kansas is our Department of Geosciences is doing some research that's actually been funded by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to test private wells for contamination in western Kansas. So again, a great way for our students and faculty to connect to western Kansas communities and ensure that our water water is of high quality and is safe to drink and use.

 

James Bell 

Yeah, because I mean, otherwise, those resources are harder to find. I mean, I've done some some water testing and I know you have to ship that off and it's, you know, it gonna be a few days where you're doing a locally, just quicker and easier and And again, they're great learning.

 

Jill Arensdorf 

Absolutely. Do we have time to talk about more? Yeah. Okay. So as I, as I came over to the station today, I walked literally walked by the senior companion and Foster Grandparent Program Office, which is now housed in rare at call. These are programs for our local seniors that fill a need on our community for services for our citizens over 55. And so if you're interested in getting involved, we have a director that that would be very anxious to visit with with you if you're interested in getting involved with our senior companion and Foster Grandparent Program. And then we have just ongoing partnerships with the pace Public Library in our downtown art and event venues to host exhibitions and poetry readings and author book signings which all contribute to the quality of life in the community. And so we have lots of students in lots of different departments that are collaborating with downtown Hayes, to to raise, raise our appreciation, maybe for the arts, but also to allow people to participate in a unique way. this coming Saturday is another great event that we have, probably you've probably talked about, in fact, I think I heard about it on the radio on my way up here, the teaming up for Tots toy assembly that will occur this Saturday in the Department of Applied Technology. I can't remember James how many years this has been going on. But it's been going on for many, many years. 200 wooden toys will be assembled from start to finish for children ages two to six. And those will be delivered just in time for Christmas. But if you haven't, if you haven't ever been to that event, it's it's it's really powerful to go in and see the community come together with students and faculty to contribute in a meaningful way and also honor a former Applied Technology faculty member Fred Ruda, the toy, the teaming up for Tots toy assembly is named after him. And he started that program. And it's just a really cool way to get into the spirit of the season, but also to contribute to the community.

 

James Bell 

Absolutely. Yeah, I remember even as an undergrad here, I think it was a student reporter for the student newspaper, and I wrote some stories with with Dr. Ruta when he was doing that program back then. Yeah, it's it's cool. And I love that it's been able to continue and even expand and grow a

 

Jill Arensdorf 

little bit. Yes, yes, I and there's, I think they sometimes have more volunteers than they then they have toys, but but it's just because people find the work so meaningful. And so I believe this year, there's a team of students that's working with Big Brothers Big Sisters. And so they're connecting that project into the teaming up for Tots toy assembly as well. Which actually leads me to another example. Our university athletes, many of them serve as Big Brothers and Big Sisters are for the Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Ellis County programs spending their time with students that need to mentor in their lives. And so that's a way that our, many of our students and many of our faculty and staff are connected to youth in the community through the Big Brothers Big Sisters program.

 

James Bell 

Yeah, that's awesome. Cool program and and even cooler when you got to Fort Hays athletes, you know, leading the charge. Exactly,

 

Jill Arensdorf 

exactly. I think I think in some ways, in some of those pictures, I see I think, impacts probably the Big Brother or Big Sister just as much as it impacts the little already cool. Yeah, very cool.

 

James Bell 

Well, we've just got just about a minute or so left, we got to get over to weather. But any last thoughts before we go?

 

Jill Arensdorf 

Well, James, thank you so much for this time that you afford to us on a very regular occasion to talk about Fort Hays State University. I respect our university and love it very much. And we have a very much a shared commitment to service. President Mason often often refers to this as the ethic of care. That's what makes for hasty different. And I think the examples we've talked about here, show that we really care about our students, our faculty and staff, but also our community and that that mission that we hold as high in higher education of the public good. speaks through these examples of outreach that we've talked about this morning, and we can talk probably for 30 more minutes and not cover everything. But as people get into the spirit of the season, I hope that you find a way to get connected to your community and appreciate the outreach that we all bring in.