Public relations leaders and those in related professions encouraged corporate America to adopt new actions to restore corporate trust at a Public Relations Coalition meeting held in January at the College at Florham. The coalition will publish a position paper that will expand on the collective views expressed.

An informal group consisting of leaders of public relations and related organizations, the coalition meets periodically to discuss common interests. The 19-member coalition, of which the University’s Corporate Communications Institute is a member, has been active since early 1999. The January meeting, attended by more than 50 senior professionals, was the first with extensive representation and a single focus, “Trust: Models for Action.”

At the two-day conference, the group challenged corporate America to take more formal and highly structured approaches to regenerate trust on the part of their key constituencies. It called on corporate leaders of the United States to:

• Articulate a set of ethical principles that are closely connected to their core business processes and supported with deep management commitment and enterprise-wide discipline. These principals should balance the interests of all stakeholders, ensure investors receive full and timely information about the company and compensate all employees in accord with their contributions to the company’s success.

• Create a process for transparency and disclosure that is appropriate for their companies and industries in both current and future operations. This process should include a senior oversight committee, “culture” audits and consistent messaging.

• Make trust and ethics a board-level, corporate-governance issue and establish a formal system of measuring trust that encompasses all parts of their organizations.

For details on the summit, go to http://inside.fdu.edu/prpt/corporatetrust.html.

The School of Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Management is sponsoring its Annual Scholarship Benefit Dinner on Saturday, March 8, at 6:30 p.m. at Dolce Hamilton Park, Florham Park, N.J.

The dinner’s purpose is to showcase talents of the school’s students in culinary arts and service while generating needed funds for scholarships. The event will feature a silent auction and many other highlights, including a wine and food pairing related to the unique menu.

For information and the special rate for FDU faculty and staff call Richard Wisch, director, hotel/restaurant/tourism management (Metro/Flor), at 201-692-7271.

In December, accounting students from Randolph (N.J.) High School who participate in the Middle College Program, visited the Metropolitan Campus for a day. Associate Provost Joseph Kiernan, economics/finance (Metro), and Assistant Provost for Campus Life Richard Panicucci, quantitative analysis (Metro), met with the students and presented an overview of the Samuel J. Silberman College of Business Administration. The students then attended an accounting class taught by Henry Fuentes, accounting, New College (Flor). They ended the day with an orientation visit to the Weiner Library, where they heard a presentation about library research by Mitchell Weiss, librarian, Weiner Library (Metro).

In February and March, faculty teaching in New College’s Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies Program are presenting a series of seminars that address aspects of globalization from both economic and social perspectives. Sixteen teachers from eight of New College’s Middle College New Jersey high schools — Bergenfield, Bound Brook, Clifton, Cresskill, Fort Lee, Leonia, Ridgefield Park and Wallington — are participating in the series. Each teacher will earn professional development credit as a result of their attendance.

The School of Engineering and Engineering Technology has formed a partnership with Paterson Public Schools for a Saturday Engineering Enrichment Program to help prepare students for studying technical subjects. Last semester, high-achieving pre-engineering students from three innovative Paterson (N.J.) High School Academies — Paterson and NASA Together For High Expectations and Results (PANTHER); Metro Paterson Academy for Communicators and Technology (MPACT); and Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) — participated in this program, held on the Metropolitan Campus.

Left photo: Final preparations before outdoor testing. Center photo: Outdoor testing. Right photo: Saturday program coordinator, Melvin Lewis, coordinator, engineering technology (Metro), lectured on basic model airplane design.

Edwin Duroy, state district superintendent, Paterson School System, and John Sico, assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction, have made the Saturday Engineering Enrichment Program possible. Duroy said, “The Paterson Public School District is proud to add Fairleigh Dickinson University to our roster of educational partners. We are delighted to be part of their excellent engineering program. The hands-on approach to engineering will enhance our students’ interest in the subject.”

Alfredo Tan, director, engineering/engineering technology (Metro), and Melvin Lewis, engineering technology and coordinator, engineering technology (Metro), helped with the program.

The Career Management Center and the School of Nursing and Allied Health will be holding a Nursing and Allied Health Career Fair on Monday, March 10, from noon to 2 p.m. in the Lobby of Dickinson Hall.

Wroxton College will host a Contemporary Legal Issues seminar, run by New College of General and Continuing Studies, from March 28 through April 4. Legal issues relevant to the workplace, including workplace violence, social and privacy issues, the troublesome employee, harassment and various hiring and termination issues, will be discussed with a comparison of United States and United Kingdom law.

Co-faciliators for the seminar are William “Pat” Schuber, administrative science (Metro) and former three-term Bergen County executive, and Steven Adler, partner and head of the employment law department of Cole, Schotz, Misel, Forman & Leonard, P.A. Adler’s area of expertise is employment law litigation.

The three-credit graduate course can also be taken for three undergraduate credits or on a noncredit audit basis. For further information contact Schuber at 201-692-7174 or schuber@fdu.edu.

February 2003

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Flor =
College at Florham, Madison, N.J.

Metro =
Metropolitan Campus, Teaneck, N.J.

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