Student HR team wins state, qualifies for regionals
Released: February 28, 2008
Hard work, determination and a will to be on top are just a few of the attributes University of Wisconsin-Whitewater human resource students possess. These characteristics shone through when UW-Whitewater students took first place at the HR games.
The HR Games were held at UW-Whitewater Feb. 22-23. Fifteen teams competed Friday evening and the top four teams advanced to play Saturday. The top four teams included two from UW-Eau Claire, one from UW-Madison and one from UW-Whitewater. In a win over UW-Madison, Katie VanBeek, Matt Perry and Tricia Wollerman, all seniors in the UW-Whitewater human resource program, won the state division and will go on to compete in April at the regional competition held in Omaha, Neb.
Every year thousands of students throughout the nation play the HR Games. The primary objective of the games is to promote the Professional in Human Resources (PHR) certification exam, showcase student members of the Society for Human Resource Management and their knowledge of human resources, and to increase interaction and networking among students and professionals.
"The HR games give each university or college an opportunity to showcase their students," said Jennifer Lowe, SHRM collegiate coordinator for Wisconsin. "It serves as another avenue for preparing for the PHR certification exam. Having passed the certification exam can make a student more marketable in their job search. We had 35 professional volunteers in attendance at the event that students could network with."
The student finalists found the extra training from their professors very helpful.
"A couple days before the competition Professor Werner ran us through a mock competition of the games,"said Wollerman.
"Dr. Werner and Dr. Wagner provided excellent material to use in preparation, but I feel what we learned from Dr. Pulich gave us the edge," added Perry.
"I am so proud of all of our students who participated in the HR Games competition," said Jon Werner, professor in human resources. "Two of our three teams did very well from a point total standpoint, and all three gained valuable knowledge which will prepare them to take the PHR exam later this year."
"The UW-Whitewater chapter of SHRM did an awesome job at planning this event," Lowe added. "The students planned a great conference with an energetic keynote speaker and many great topics for the breakout sessions. The event was very successful and it was great to see a UW-Whitewater team win the event."
- Keara Lahiff,lahiffkk25@uww.edu
