Robert Pearl Starks

Robert Pearl Starks

Location: phoenix, arizona

About me

As Vice President of Product Development, I lead cross-functional teams of designers, developers, QA testers and product stakeholders to develop, launch, and improve products customers need and love. 

Previously, I've worked in a variety of leadership roles in education / learning & professional development. Through my experience, I've become accustomed to working across departmental silos and with various stakeholders (executives, end-users, faculty, staff, students / learners, alumni, parents, regulatory agencies, partners and employers) to facilitate collaboration and advance common goals. In my previous roles, I've advocated for student needs and driven organizational change that helped educators do their best work, students thrive in their careers, and employers connect with quality talent.

Despite different contexts, a common theme in my career journey has been to do work that contributes to a mission which improves people's lives. It's also always been important for me to work with an organization whose values align with my own. I'm a listener, empathizer, customer advocate, servant leader, and lifelong learner. I'm never satisfied with status quo, I constantly strive for "better," and I'm driven by genuine curiosity to solve complex problems.

“Work to become; not to acquire.” -Elbert Hubbard

Interests

social media, career development, training, higher education, web 2.0/3.0, career services, leadership, marketing

Skills

social media, marketing, training, consulting, management, strategic planning

Activity

Has the University System Failed? Watch this snippet of the intellectual debate and offer your own opinion on the points made by both sides.


Has the University System Failed? by FORAtv

Thomas Edison State College President Dr. George Pruitt said that some of the regulations that are being proposed for higher education are not rational. Does he have some good points regarding State Authorization, the non-linear pattern of today's adult learner and the impact of this reality on completion rates?

Janelle Applequist, a Ph.D. Candidate of The Pennsylvania State University's College of Communications shares how she uses her personal experience to inform her research and instruction. By describing her personal history with the field of health care, she talks about the ways in which academia can privilege individual voices and stories, but from an even larger scale, how sharing your story can be an applicable skill for any field, experience, or personal relationship. Could opening up and sharing a bit of your personal story with students make them feel more connected?  What are the implications for engagement, retention, learning outcomes?>>>

Which of the following experiential learning opportunities mentioned in the course does your institution implement (Service Learning, Internships, Externships, Co-ops, Interdisciplinary Projects, Work-Study), and how would you evaluate the success of each?
Identify at least one new event programming idea you learned in the course that you would like to see your institution implement (Job Skills Olympics, Job Fairs, Networking Mixers, Industry/Alumni Speakers, Intern/Extern/Volunteer Fairs). How do you believe this would improve graduate employment outcomes?
Does your institution currently consider how enrollment management plans impact employment rates, or is there often a discrepancy between the goals of admissions and the goals of career services? How would you recommend this gap be closed, and/or what strategies has your organization successfully implemented?
Does your institution’s career services department assess student employability skills and barriers to success prior to offering interventions? If so, what assessment is used and how are interventions applied? If not, how does the staff personalize interventions to ensure that the best approach is applied to each student?
Identify additional strategies that your institution already uses to improve relations with students, employers, alumni, or the community.
What are some new opportunities for improved partnerships you believe your institution should adopt to move forward?
Share ways in which your institution views employment rates in a systemic, institutional way? How do you believe each department works together to improve employment rates, or what would you recommend be done?

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