April 15, 2010
Teaching and administration combine well for new manager of POD
When the Support Professionals Development Day gets under way April 21, two of the sessions will be taught by its sponsor’s new leader. Ujima Donalson, who has been the manager of Professional and Organizational Development (POD) for just six months, will teach a morning session called “Radiating Possibility,” which is a repeat of a program she offered two years ago and is “back by popular demand.” And, she’ll teach a shorter afternoon session on taking care of oneself through stressful times.
Donalson may be POD’s manager, but she still does a fair amount of teaching. Since the budget cuts, the unit is down five people and she says her staff are all juggling — doing multiple jobs to continue to offer the services the University is accustomed to. Donalson doesn’t mind the teaching duties, however.
“I love being in the classroom,” she said. “It’s a sacred tension being department head and teaching, but it’s something I’m learning to navigate.”
Donalson has been teaching throughout her career, largely because she loves working with people. During her undergraduate years she was employed at a bank, so she thought she would be a business major. But she soon found that subject unfulfilling and switched to communication studies. Meanwhile, at the bank, she began leading new employee orientation and loved it.
“Once they saw that worked for me, I was mentored in that direction,” Donalson said. “I got into curriculum design, doing small, customer service courses.”
Over a 15-year career with first Seafirst Bank and then Bank of America, Donalson rose to become assistant vice president of training and development. Then came the troubles in banking, and she was laid off. She had just given birth to her daughter and decided to take some time off to be with her. But then a friend called and told her there was an opening in Professional and Organizational Development, and Donalson had an interview with then-director Elizabeth Warrick.
“I came to the interview not thinking that I would ever work here,” Donalson recalled. “But I was impressed with the commitment to research, the innovation, plus the incredible work we’re doing with organizational development — some of the most cutting-edge folks are here at this institution. So afterward, I became much more curious and began to think more seriously about a position here. The opportunity to have access to those minds in various ways was intriguing to me.”
There were also some family connections to draw her; Donalson’s sister is married to Jacques Robinson, a former Husky football player, and her nephew is Nate Robinson, a former Husky basketball player who is now in the NBA.
Ultimately, she took a job as a training and organizational consultant in the fall of 2007. POD had just conducted an assessment centered around what people said they needed to be successful in their current position and what they needed to grow. They also commented about what they thought their supervisors needed.
A small part of Donalson’s job was business development and outreach. So she got the opportunity when she started to meet with leaders across the organization to discuss the results of the survey and to talk about their training needs.
“What that did for me was give me connections in various areas,” Donalson said. “Everything at the University happens by relationship, so it opened a door for me. It set the groundwork for what I’m doing now.”
Staff development at the University is, she said, much different than it was at the bank. There, people did not pay for training, so she often didn’t know whether people in the courses were there because they were really interested in the topic or because they had been told to be there. Here, POD is a self-sustaining unit, so those who enroll in classes usually are motivated to learn the material.
“The academic setting makes for a very different classroom environment,” Donalson said. “There’s much more collegiality than at the bank. Nonetheless, I teach a great deal of the same material. The content hasn’t changed too much — just the process by which I deliver it.”
Donalson is the prime teacher in the Strategic Leadership Program and also teaches a number of classes in the Supervisory Skills Certificate Program. Those programs, as well as others POD offers, are doing well despite the tight budgets in departments, she said. In fact, in winter quarter, enrollment was 121 percent of the goal the department had set.
“I think that speaks to the fact that POD is getting it right. We’re offering things that are topical and timely,” Donalson said. “It also speaks to departments’ faith and trust in our ability to deliver on our products and services.”
She added that spring numbers are looking really good as well.
And speaking of numbers, the Support Professionals Development Day is full at 65, which is half the number the day has drawn in the past. That’s because, with the lean budget, the event will be held at Roosevelt Commons instead of at the larger Bell Harbor Conference Center as in the past. However, the program will be offered again Sept. 9 with the same content.
Given the environment of austerity in the state, Donalson isn’t looking to offer any brand new programs just now. “I’m most interested in continuing to offer the suite of programs that we currently offer,” she said. “I want folks to continue to expect the same level of extraordinary service from POD. If we can maintain what we have and do really well, I’ll be happy about that.”
