December
17, 2004
Alumnae
Association Expands Career Support to Graduates
Photo
by: Paul Schnaittacher
Cori
Ashworth |
In response to rising demand
from alumnae for career development services, the MHC Alumnae
Association started a pilot program last January tailored to
alumnae needs and experiences. The program will run through June
2005 and may continue longer, depending on alumnae response.
“Alumnae have consistently expressed that career development is an area
that needs attention,” said Alumnae Association executive director Rochelle
Calhoun ’83. While Calhoun noted that young alumnae especially have conveyed
this sentiment, she added that “the Association’s hope is to be relevant
throughout an alumna’s lifetime. We have created this program to assist
alumnae through the spans of their careers.”
Alumnae in every stage of professional life around the world have been invited
to take advantage of the new offerings. They have access to a wide range of support
services—most of which are free—ranging from assistance with building
marketable skills to networking to refocusing career goals.
Spearheading the project is Cori Ashworth, a career development adviser hired
by the Alumnae Association in September. Ashworth earned a master’s degree
in education from the College of William and Mary and a certificate of advanced
study in counseling from the University of Massachusetts. Through 20 years of
career consulting in both corporate and academic settings, she has developed
a broad range of expertise.
Ashworth has drawn upon her extensive work experience to support the specific
needs of alumnae, and she is particularly mindful of the varied professional
lives that MHC alumnae lead. “Career is a process that people work with
over a lifetime,” she said. “It’s an ebb and flow. Our lives—women’s
lives, especially—go through phases. We want to respond to that.”
Toward that end, Ashworth offers one-on-one consultations by phone, email, or
on campus; assessment tools such as the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator personality
test; and enhanced Web resources.
Working at the Career Development Center on campus, she has promoted the synergy
between the CDC and the Alumnae Association and is planning several programs
and workshops for alumnae clubs this spring and during reunion weekends. “My
greatest hope,” said Ashworth, “is that I
can facilitate healthy change for women and help them realize their potential.”
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