Continuing Education

Professional Development Center
Resources for Business & Management

The Professional Development Center, long recognized for its commitment to helping entrepreneurs, is now offering business courses for employees of small businesses.

Managing Priorities
Get the tools necessary to manage multiple projects and priorities and maintain high levels of productivity. Gain an understanding of the benefits of an organized task list, assess your own time management mechanisms, address the effectiveness of your systems, develop a log for tasks and important assignments, and discuss the implications of an organized work system.
1 Tues., Sept. 15, 9:00-11:00 am, ADM-207, $50. #XA-P061

Oral Presentation Skills
Learn to communicate effectively when giving planned presentations. In a group setting or working one-or-one, learn how to design an effective speech, correct pronunciation skills, understand body language, and how to communicate your message. Participants should have a working knowledge of the English language.
1 Tues., Sept. 29, 9:00-11:00 am, ADM-207, $50. #XA-P062

Business Writing
Learn how to communicate effectively when writing reports, emails, letters, and memos. We’ll focus on the following skills: how to create an outline, effective email skills, compliance issues in written documentation, how to create a message that is concise and effective, editing and formatting documents, writing proposals, and grammar skills.
1 Tues., Oct. 13, 9:00 am-1:00 pm, ADM-207, $100. #XA-P064

Sexual Harassment Prevention
Employees and supervisors, get the necessary information regarding sexual harassment statutes. We’ll cover the following issues: respect in a multi-cultural environment, employment laws, quid pro quo, hostile work environment, case scenarios, legal standards for liability, and affirmative defense.
1 Tues., Oct. 27, 9:00-11:00 am, ADM-207, $50. #XA-P065

Conflict Prevention
Employees and supervisors, get the skills necessary to mitigate unhealthy interpersonal conflict in the workplace. Based on Roger Fisher and William Ury’s work, Getting to Yes, we’ll cover the following issues: the modes that people use to address conflict, factors that affect conflict mode, your conflict management style, creating an individual conflict management plan, and case scenarios.
1 Tues., Nov. 10, 9:00 am-1:00 pm, ADM-207, $100. #XA-P066

Cultural Diversity
Based around the award winning video, Village of 100, we’ll cover the nature of our integrated, “flat” world and discuss how a diverse workplace is an advantage for the organization. We’ll explore the following issues: the importance of diversity, understanding the diverse workplace, the value of accepting others’ differences, how we are a part of the diverse environment, and the need for tolerance and understanding.
1 Tues., Nov. 17, 9:00-11:00 am, ADM-207, $50. #XA-P067

Writing Press Releases
When your business does something well, you want to make sure that the word gets out. Taught by a PR expert, we’ll go over how to construct a press release, and how to release it to outlets to make sure that it gets released to the general public. Whether you own your own business and work from home or you’re the marketing director of a major organization, this program will teach you what you need to know about getting the word out.
1 Tues., Dec. 8, 9:00-11:00 am, ADM-207, $50. #XA-P068