In terms of my own Professional Development I have a Masters in Sociology and another in Art Education. I am a NYS certified Art teacher, a certified yoga instructor, a WELCOA faculty member, & a trainer certified in the following industry specific courses: Bloodborne Pathogens, OSHA, Adult CPR, PROMOTE, & NYSP Defensive Driving. I am currently pursuing my CPLP from ASTD. I serve on multiple committees: Choking Prevention, Values, Archive & Record Storage, Wellness, Core Analysis, Art Expressions, & CQL Focus Panel. I regularly attend & present at the annual conferences for NYSATA, SHRM, NAEA, and NYSACRA. I originally went into the field due to my passion for teaching and human services. Of all the training I have received, both formal and informal, professional development workshops, seminars, webinars, and presentations, I do not believe any one is more significant than another. Life and work experience have also been crucial. All my prior development works hand in hand due to its broad scope. It is the reason that I can teach almost any class I am presented with and develop curriculum in areas that I may start off knowing very little about. In a given week I have gone from teaching skills enhancement courses like Change Management or Sensitivity to Handbook training to CPR to Hatha Yoga to Painting to Nutrition to Defensive Driving. When asked to add our Corporate Wellness to my roster, I was ready. Over the past few years, we have invested much time, effort and resources toward our Wellness Program, but given the nature of our community based services located in multiple locations, it has presented challenges to sustain the ideal model. We have utilized some creative ways to enrich and encourage participation in our initiatives which are free or low cost to staff and have resulted in very positive outcomes. A few of the most popular ideas to date include, a monthly healthful events calendar that is communicated through email along with a traditional visual display board, a Biggest Loser program for weight management, distribution of nutritional tips and educational materials as self-help resources, Walk Club with monthly rewards for participation, In-House gym available for staff along with on-site fitness classes, sponsorship for group participation in Weight Watcher's meetings, smoking cessation programs, Bring Your Lunch & Learn seminars and outside challenges, such as Team in Training, Fit by the 4th, & Action L.I. Our formal wellness reimbursement program titled Wellness Now! utilizes a combination of  preventative screening, activities, and education to receive immediate cash rewards. The items above in their entirety are a success because folks are participating. My view is singular in the sense that all initiatives flow through me, but I am supported by my co-workers at various levels because of the culture we have been able to create. For larger initiatives, like the Autism Speaks Walk, at Jones beach, our HR department worked together to assist me in assembling over 90 participants to join us. Our wellness program is one part of a holistic approach to talent management and development that allows our staff to provide the best supports to those we serve. Our success can be evidenced by the culture shift we have experienced Agency-wide. Our employees receive and expect regular health screenings and Wellness Fairs, food selected for both lunches and meetings has dramatically improved overall, and they share and seek out nutritional education. I am consistent and committed to constantly providing as much information and education related to all areas of wellness as I possibly can in addition to my regular job responsibilities. In my role as a trainer I often have a captive audience with which to share this agenda. It is my view that interventions must receive regular fuel. As each initiative is introduced it is very exciting and people are initially very involved. Over time, participation and motivation wane. It is significant to keep pumping energy into it to keep success and ultimately achievement afloat. We have seen the behavior and the culture change positively, but not the ROI. I believe it is due to the nature of the health insurance industry. Staff health and consciousness has improved, but the carrier changes annually and they are not invested in wellness initiatives due to the lack of benefit for them. Our CEO and top level executives are all committed to infusing wellness to their initiatives, and were the impetus behind our in-house gym and its open door policy. In fact, our CEO has a treadmill desk. Our benefits team regularly collects data to drive our health efforts and carefully created our in house program based on those facts as well as staff input. I have acted as a leader by role modeling healthful behaviors. I use our in-house gym at least 3 days a week, and can often be found walking here in town on work hours by our staff. I regularly voice my opinion, diplomatically, about food choices. I give tips to make motivating yourself to be active easy. I have done three half marathons this year; I had never done a race prior. I started as a walker. Starting this way made it easy for me to convince other people they could do it too. I captain most of our walk teams. My lunches are colorful and well behaved (from home). My best advice for wellness practitioners who are hoping to become leaders in the field is to get to know your staff and keep everything positive without being too pushy. We help to advance Wellness by trying anything and everything and then partnering with other companies to share are successes, failures, and ideas to always try to achieve better results. Right now we are working with Action L.I. & FREE to such ends. The biggest threats to Wellness are resources, motivation, the healthcare/health insurance industry, and the general pace and cultural infusion of the American lifestyle. Our plan is to keep going learning, motivating, and offering solutions with our limited, but dedicated resources.