NWI-Student Chapter Conference - School of Health Sciences and Wellness

National Wellness Institute-Student Chapter Annual Conference

Join the UW-Stevens Point National Wellness Institute-Student Chapter for the 2021 Virtual Student Wellness Conference on Friday, April 16!

The 2021 conference will provide a day of pre-professional development for students interested in health-related careers. Nationally recognized speakers will guide you through how to find your purpose, and how to inspire change and build community in your work and personal lives. Discover how to enhance your personal wellness and resiliency and learn about health related careers from a panel of working professionals.

Agenda

8:00-8:15 a.m.: Welcome review of platform and agenda

• Chancellor Welcome

• Sponsorship acknowledgement

8:15-8:30 a.m.: Introduction to UW-Stevens Point and the Seven Dimensions of Wellness

8:30–9:30 a.m.: Keynote – Find Purpose

• Zach Mercurio: Discover and Activate Your Purpose

9:30–9:45 a.m.: Break: Sponsorship Acknowledgement

9:45–10:45 a.m.: Individual Session: Finding Purpose

• Joel Bennett, Ph.D. - Soul Work and Emerging Adulthood: The Journey of Connection

10:45–11:00 a.m.: Energy break: Move and Stretch!

11:00–11:45 a.m.: Breakout: Build Community

Session 1: John Munson, Ph.D.: Reflections on an ongoing career of 45 years in wellness – steps for success
Session 2: Christopher Benney: Difficult Discussions: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

11:45 a.m–12:00 p.m.: Student Activity: How to build your personal community

12:00–12:45 p.m.: Virtual lunch and sponsor acknowledgement

12:45–1:00 p.m.: CV Academics: Tools to help you build career skills

1:00–1:45 p.m.: Keynote: Inspiring Change

• Susan Bailey, MS: If Change Were Easy, I Wouldn’t Have a Job

1:45–2:30 p.m.: Inspiring Change: Take Aways

• Rebecca Kelly, RD: Steps to making change actionable

2:30–2:45 p.m.: Break: Sponsorship Acknowledgement

2:45–4:00 p.m.: Breakouts

Expert Panels: Suzanne Hunt, MS Facilitator

3:00 – 4:00 p.m.: Career Roundtables

Ability to explore multiple career paths in health fields during 15 sessions with experts and alumni working in their chosen discipline. See graphic pg. 2 of breakout sessions

4:00 p.m.: Wrap up

Speaker Bios and Session Descriptions

Keynote: Find Purpose - Zach Mercurio

Zach Mercurio, Ph.D.

Discover and Activate Your Purpose

Zach's session will introduce three main principles for living, studying, and leading with purpose. The session will provide tangible steps students can take to begin discovering their own authentic purpose while learning the skills to "see" purpose where they are. Zach focuses on three major areas:

How to see your contribution in everyday school, work, and life
How to identify your passions, talents, and articulate the impact you want to make through creating a purpose statement
How to develop habits to consistently live your purpose statement

Focus Session: Find Purpose - Joel Bennett

Joel Bennett, Ph.D.

Soul Work and Emerging Adulthood: The Journey of Connection

In this highly interactive session, participants will learn about different paths of transformation that person goes through in life. The transition to adulthood is an amazing time to connect to these paths. You will interact with others to learn about this path

CV Academics

Riley Coon

CV Academics: Tools to help you build career skills

On his way to becoming a physician, Riley is currently an M1 student at the Medical College of Wisconsin, Green Bay. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, in May 2019 with a Bachelor of Science degree while majoring in biomedical sciences and minoring in chemistry. Riley grew up in Mount Horeb, Wisconsin, a small community just west of Madison. During his undergraduate years he worked as a medical scribe in the emergency department, coached basketball for Special Olympics, volunteered as a first responder, and worked as a direct support professional in a group home setting. He enjoys both playing and watching basketball football, golf, baseball, and tennis. He also enjoys reading, mostly non-fiction, and listening to a wide variety of podcasts.

Breakout Session: Building Community

Session 1: John Munson, Ph.D.

Reflections on an ongoing career of 45 years in wellness – steps for success

Professor Emeritus, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
Independent Health, Wellness and Fitness Professional
Board of Directors, National Wellness Institute - past-president

Session 2: Christopher Benny

Difficult Discussions: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Christopher Benny (He/Him/His) is a co-founder of Difficult Discussions. He has been doing work related to equity and inclusion since 2014. Chris began his journey in the field by founding and serving as the president of a Socio-Environmental organization, Reformation and Improvement of Society and Environment in Bangalore, India. Eventually he took this organization to Stevens Point, Wisconsin where he attended the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point to earn a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry. With his leadership and recruitment of fellow social justice activists, RISE established branches in nine different countries across the globe. He was also a founder, chair and later student advisor for the UWSP Alliance of Multicultural and Diversity Organizations, directly serving over 1000 students and consisting of 20 member organizations. Working as the Inclusivity Director for the UWSP Student Government Association catalyzed his leadership development, inspiring noteworthy legislation, activism, and diversity and inclusion trainings which resulted in institutional change to create a more inclusive community. In addition to serving as our Executive Director he also serves as a voting member for the Portage County Diversity Affairs and Inclusiveness Committee. Chris is exceptional at bringing diverse groups of people together to create organizations and systematically address marginalization.

Founded in 2019, Difficult-Discussions Inc's. mission is to provide resources such as legislative support, educational handouts, and interactive activities that can help make an institution more equitable while building a community where activists help each other. Their primary focus is to serve universities, businesses, and community organizations. Join them in the path to equity.

Focus Session: Inspiring Change - Susan Bailey

Susan Bailey, MS, CIC, SPHR, SHRM-SCP

If Change Were Easy, I Wouldn’t Have a Job: Understanding and utilizing behavior science to support health improvement

Individuals who choose to work in the field of health tend to be unique creatures. Through our own experiences, we have come to find the work personally applicable, inspiring and exciting. We’ve got passion and we know that living healthy and well feels good. With this in mind, we head into careers in workplaces, communities and health systems intent on inspiring others to see the light and adopt life changing health practices. Unfortunately, our passion and enthusiasm doesn’t always translate to another’s inspiration. n this workshop, we will walk through a variety of behavior science models and discuss how they can be applied to facilitate health improvement and behavior change in others. With these tools, we can help others find their inspiration and ability to be well and thrive.

Susan Morgan Bailey is a high energy leader with more than 20 years of experience in health, benefits and education settings. In her role as Senior Vice President, Culture & Wellbeing Practice Leader at Marsh & McLennan Agency, she calls upon her experience to help organizations build supportive cultures that empower individuals to live healthy, engaged lives. Prior to joining MMA, Susan consulted on and led wellbeing initiatives in a variety of settings from manufacturing to healthcare. Susan is a Certified CultureTalk™ Partner, SHRM-SCP and SPHR certified and holds a BS in Education and a MS in Health Promotion. Recognized for her passion and enthusiasm, she is on a mission to help others live with high energy, good health and passion for life!

Focus Session: Inspiring Change - Rebecca Kelly

Rebecca Kelly, Ph.D., RDN, FAND

Steps to making change and actionable takeaways

An interactive session to help participants bundle their learning and develop goals to take the next steps in their career exploration. This session will encourage group learning and to have experience working and interacting in a wide range of disciplines. Students will have the opportunities to cultivate both self-direction and the courage to pursue an idea no matter what others think of them.

Careers in Health: Expert Panel - Suzanne Hunt

Suzanne Hunt, MPH, CWP, CHC

Why is Career Exploration Important?

Career exploration experiences and opportunities can improve academic performance and satisfaction in the majors you choose. Career exploration will improve your knowledge of career options, and how the field of health careers works in a multidisciplinary fashion. Learning from graduates and practicing experts can help develop and work toward career goals and pursue appropriate majors to meet those goals.

Bio:

Well-being Consultant
Consulting Content Strategist, NWI
Adjunct Instructor, Public Health Studies, School of Health and Applied Human Sciences, University of North Carolina Wilmington
Adjunct Assistant Professor, North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine

Suzanne completed both of her undergraduate degrees in Elementary Education and Health and Wellness Promotion from the University of North Carolina at Asheville. After graduation, she received her MPH in health promotion, education, and behavior from the University of South Carolina. Soon after she went to work for North Carolina State University where she began health coaching, developing campus-wide wellness initiatives, health behavior research, and more. Since becoming a Certified Wellness Practitioner, Suzanne continued providing leadership as the Assistant Director of Wellbeing, Health Promotion at Wake Forest University before continuing to explore her passion for teaching at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. Suzanne won the 2019 Emerging Wellness Professional award from NWI, and has been leading the Emerging Wellness Professionals Task Force since then. She now continues serving in the field as both an undergraduate instructor and as the Consulting Content Strategist for NWI.