More than 200 staff members attended the 12th annual Staff Education Exploration Day (S.E.E.D.) July 21 in the Biotechnology Building to gain strategies to develop their careers and become acquainted with the education, volunteer and personal growth opportunities available at Cornell and in the local area.

For the first time, workshops were held on such career-specific topics as skill interest assessment, Cornell careers and self-development through volunteerism. Also a first: a drop-in resume review service, available for the duration of the four-hour event.

"We are pleased with the turnout," Judy Hart, program director in career planning and development, Division of Human Resources, said at the event. "Representatives from a number of Cornell departments and a wide range of local organizations are on hand to talk with staff. We are particularly pleased with the number of area colleges that exhibited this year."

Cynthia Morris, human resources assistant in the Recruitment and Employment Center, noted that "a steady stream" of people stopped at her table to have their resumes reviewed. Most wanted to know how to make them shorter and easier to read while highlighting their most important skills.

Panelists from the first two workshops, "Skill Interest Assessment" and "Real Cornell Careers," all "stressed the importance of owning your own career and being proactive in its development," said Maria Wolff, program manager, career planning and development.

The third panel focused on self-development through volunteerism. Panelist Thomas LiVigne, Cornell's director of real estate, and Maureen Brull, program manager of life and education plans in human resources, explained how they first became involved in volunteering (LiVigne through Leadership Tompkins and Brull through the Elves Program and more recently the Backpack Program, which she started in 2007). They noted that volunteerism builds skills in leadership and teamwork that are essential to career growth. "Find something you love," Brull advised. "There is an organization out there that does that."

Mary George Opperman, vice president for human resources, also noted that organizations in Ithaca welcome new volunteers, serving in whatever capacity they can offer. "You can do it in really big ways the way Tom and Maureen do it or really little ways," she said. "It doesn't matter because anything you do makes you feel really good."

In addition to the sense of satisfaction that comes from helping others, volunteerism helps expand social networks and combats the feeling of isolation, she said. "During difficult times … you have to work really hard not to feel isolated and volunteering is a way to do that."

Opperman advised staff to develop and present thoughtful plans for how they will fulfill their job responsibilities if they want to ask their supervisor for time off to volunteer during normal work hours. Both she and LiVigne noted that the United Way has recently set up a Web page, http://www.uwtc.org/index.php?pr=Volunteer, that matches volunteers' interests with community needs. "There are so many places to volunteer. … If you reach out, there's always a hand that reaches back," Opperman said.