Employee Engagement and Wellness

Employee Engagement and Wellness Committee

Upcoming Events

Time to Breathe: A Seven-Week Meditation Offering

Bring your breath back home to your body and have some moments of grounding and quiet with guided and silent meditation. A brief topic and inspiration (15 minutes) and then five minutes of guided meditation and 10 minutes of silence. Give your nervous system some TLC and join us. Sessions are 30 minutes and are held via Zoom. Cathy Colella, director of institutional support services, will facilitate the meditation sessions. Be sure to coordinate with your supervisor for attendance. Find a quiet and comfortable space and join. Everyone is welcome.

The themes for this seven-week series are:
Oct. 3: Letting Go | Register
Oct. 10: Noticing | Register
Oct. 17: Falling Leaves Meditation | Register
Oct. 24: Looking for My Smile | Register
Oct. 31: I Belong Meditation | Register
Nov. 7: I am Grateful Meditation | Register
Nov. 14: Present in this Moment | Register


Employee Engagement and Wellness Committee

Welcome! This committee is dedicated to nurturing employee engagement and wellness with the understanding that these two features are interconnected and vital to a healthy workforce who is prepared to serve our students, one another and the community. The college values guide the committee work including: Caring and Respect, Integrity, Excellence and Quality, Humor and Well-Being, Teamwork and Stewardship. Employee Engagement is promoted and supported by exploring best practices and research-based methods for maintaining engaged teams. Employee wellness will be promoted and supported by focusing on the concepts of healthy mind, body and spirit.

The committee shall limit activities to advising on matters that directly concern its specific purposes, which may include the following responsibilities:

  • Recognize and honor the diverse makeup of our workforce -- understanding that individuals have unique and varying needs and experiences as it relates to engagement and wellness.
  • Identify employee engagement and wellness standards and best practices and recommend and share these methods with the college community.
  • Offer professional development opportunities to present, share, learn and grow in a variety of settings. Some of these formats may include but are not limited to: Summit involvement, assistance with employee presentations, vendor and external community participation, part-time employee celebration, college community events, seminars, small interest groups and mentoring.
  • Celebrate and utilize campus resources and experts in related subject matters.

If you have ideas to share, please reach out to us!

Committee Members:
Bethann Talsma, Business Faculty
Sheila Eisenhauer, Math Faculty
Sara Tanis, Biology/Horticulture Faculty
Renea Peruski, Wellness and Fitness Center Manager
Charles Heidelberg, Director of Recruitment & Outreach
Jessica Potter, Facilities and Events Manager
Renee Martin, Employment Manager
Ashley Bergkamp, Library Circulation Reserve Supervisor
Megan Osetek, Museum Interpretations Manager
David Kobb, Academic Dev. Instructional Tech Analyst

Co-Chairs: Cathy Colella (), Aaron Hilliard ().