Weber State College Comment, January 1986, page 5 Family life affects quality of work ow the each the areas of emphasis of the information on how the For more the family and workplace affect other is just one of skills by working in groups or in individual homes,” she said. In addition, Dr. Bauman said they currently have an extensive, if not complete, library and those wishing information can call the college at (801) family and the workplace affect newly each other, call the Family & Education Institute at (801) established Family and Education Intitute at the college. Dr. Donna C. Bauman, director of the institute, said that the college is out to help parents, employers and professionals increase their family-oriented skills by providing information, seminars and faculty expertise. One of the main areas of concern, Dr. Bauman said, was in helping businesses and industry realize that how the family functions affects the quality of an employee's performance. “Women in particular are affected because of the stress of moving into the working world,” she said. Stress at home can cause the employee to take extra sick leave, have a higher rate of absenteeism, and experience lack of concentration at work, and all that affects output and ability, she said. Dr. Bauman noted, “Utah women are entering the workforce faster than any other state, and husbands, for the most part, are not taking over any of the women’s roles. That causes stress and we're looking at how we can help dual career families.” She said that many local businesses have shown an interest in working with the college to offer family seminars for their employees. “We'd also like to assist first-time parents through parent education programs. We like to give them parenting 626-7115 626-7115. athers. of have the to and we coordinate with a Uae ae Nils f aR aa j ; Baa #e Tred families, H , He aA g | ie wt \ f > 1, Maa ) Ne, I = a WSC _ psychologist said. Dr. William S. Rybicki of the counseling center said that most men What they should do is stretch the work cycle out past the 55 year are afraid of and don’t want to develop however, are reluctant to adapt their roles to fill some of the void created when the mother leaves the home. retirement age in order to develop deeper relationships along the way. to have to take and I'm ing the The a job, the man has to be willing some of those responsibilities not just talking about vacuumfront room.” that said counselor WSC fatherhood provides the best avenue for a man to develop his emotional relationships, and that such development benefits both the man and the child. “Somehow men have to get out of He said, “The assumption has been the idea that work and achievement are that the woman’s role can change, but the man’s does not, but you can’t have the changes in one without changes in ‘the definition of success,” he said. Dr. Rybicki explained that the emo- the other.” He continued, “If you want the wife tion, for a wide variety of family information.” She said that in the future they hope to establish satellite centers in selected schools and at other community locations to make access to the information easier. “We are a community college,” she said, “and we should have everything possible for them.” She continued, “Some people feel like life is out of control and for them life is reduced to mere survival. But it can be an awful lot better than that. It can be a celebration. We're offering the resources so people will know how to Dr. Bauman said in the future the family institute hopes to begin a “Parents Time-Out” workshop for athome parents with children. The seminars will give participants a chance to do something creative in the presence of other adults and in the absence of children. She said, “I’m not saying we're the only place that can help, but as a child and family studies department we can focus on family areas.” Dr. Bauman said that ‘+e center is “not out begging for money, but we are looking for funds that will help us develop quality programs.” She added, “We already have certain aspects of these ideas in place, but full development takes time.” Males tend to box-in their lives, centering on careers until they retire and then focusing on relationships. less the feeling side of fatherhood, but he said that, with the evolving nature of the family unit, change is imperative. “Tf women are becoming more work oriented, then men have to become more emotional,” Dr. Rybicki said. Most men avoid those kinds of changes, he said, and it will almost have to be a life or death issue for them to do it. “Men don’t want to give up that power,” he said. He noted that, because of the women’s movement, men are allowing and even encouraging their wives to have careers or jobs of their own. Men, — lot of people make it a celebration.” achievement oriented and more emotional if they want to succeed with their information on campus, physical ed, health, educa- future become request have a nice collection of family topics Dads should focus more on family ties will and relating to a particular problem or concern in their family. She said, “We get people who call up and ask, for example, if we have any information on sibling rivalry. We ‘tional side of relationships is tough work and in order to develop that emotional side men have to be willing to give up something in the achievement area. He said, “The traditional father sees himself more as an_ authoritative figure, but he should develop his own capacity to be emotional in constructive ways, something as basic as knowing how to listen.” That, he said, will bring deeper love between the father and child and encourage more individuality. “The child and family benefit when tthe father is capable of being an emotional provider,” he said.” Dr. Rybicki noted that the changing nature of many jobs is making it possiible for men to vary their work hours or location of work so they can spend extra time with their children, and he suggested that men might look at slowing their careers in order to focus more on the family. “They have to realize that life is not all achievement,” he said. The counselor, who works with men in fatherhood workshops, said that males tend to “box-in” their lives, centering on careers until they retire and then focusing on relationships. What they should do, he noted, is stretch the achievement work cycle out past the 55-year retirement age in order to develop deeper relationships along the way. “It takes a little longer,” he said, “but men need to see that they can do the emotional and achievement at the same time.” Dr. Rybicki said that as men continue to live longer and have more time after retirement they are more likely to work on emotional ties and encourage their sons to do the same. Over time that will have a positive influence on men as a whole, he said. “There needs to be a consistent caretaker in the home, but I’m not assuming that needs to be the woman. The ideal is to have them both, but that’s far from a reality,” he said.