There's a bright spot in the U.S. employment picture: the health-care industry.

Health-care employers added 17,000 jobs in November, and they've been adding an average 27,000 jobs a month since December 2010, according to the most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics report.

That's the good news. The bad news is nearly 10,000 health-care workers have lost jobs since August; there were 136 mass layoffs in that time period.

"Finding work in health-care is definitely getting easier, but the stiff competition means you'll need more than credentials to land those jobs," says Stephanie Roberson Barnard, a communications consultant who specializes in training medical professionals to speak and write clearly and effectively.

"Check any online job-hunting Web site for science, technical, pharmaceutical, biotech and medical jobs and you'll find one common requirement: 'excellent communication skills,'" she and co-author Deborah St. James write in their new book, Listen. Write. Present: The Elements for Communicating Science and Technology (Yale University Press; 2012), www.ListenWritePresent.com.

Unfortunately, the science-rich education required for health-care professionals leaves little room for learning how to craft a message for a particular audience, be it an email or a PowerPoint presentation. And that's essential not only for getting jobs, but for keeping them and winning promotions, Barnard says.

She and St. James, deputy director of publications and communications for a North Carolina biotech company, offer these tips for getting your message across:

• Plan: Take time to get to know your clients, colleagues and co-workers. Establish rapport and cultivate a collaborative relationship by finding out about others' interests (check out the pictures in their offices for clues) and inquiring about them. If you have never been to their offices, look them up on Google or their company's Web site. Always keep your personal conversations light and professional.

• Listen: Smile, nod, and acknowledge the speaker - and mean it. Really focus on what the person is saying and not just on the words. Truly effective communication requires your full attention. It's better to spend a few minutes concentrating on the other person's message during a conversation than wasting time trying to remember what he or she said because you were trying to do something else. It's okay to write or type notes as long as you ask permission first.

• Present: Practice. Practice. Practice. Need we say more? Of all the tips we offer, practicing is perhaps the most important one. People in our audiences often suggest that it's possible to over practice. They claim that too much practicing makes a talk appear staged. We have found that the "stiff" presenters are the ones who haven't practiced. They're so busy trying to remember what they're going to say, they can't tune into the audience or deviate from their slides. In contrast, the speakers who have mastered their content seem to glide about the room, exuding just the right amount of enthusiasm.

• Meet: Respect people's time by presenting materials simply. The biggest complaint people have about meetings is that they last too long. For this reason, presenting your ideas in a simple, concise fashion will give you the advantage of appearing focused and prepared. Remember, never compromise content for simplicity.

• Serve: Be kind to others. It costs nothing and requires no skill. Your kind words, good deed, or thoughtful gift may even launch a cascade of positive gestures among others. A recent study by researchers from the University of California San Diego and Harvard University suggests that cooperative behavior spreads among people. This ripple effect can have a wonderful positive impact on the corporate culture of your organization.

"Good leaders must learn to communicate not only within their field of expertise but also to reach people outside their field of authority, influence and passion," Barnard says. "With proper training and practice anyone can become a better communicator."

About Stephanie Roberson Barnard

Stephanie Roberson Barnard has trained thousands of pharmaceutical industry professionals on how to be more effective speakers, writers and communicators. She has also coached hundreds of health-care professionals on presentation skills for FDA hearings, CFO reports and scientific speaker programs, as well as national and international congresses. Her clients include AstraZeneca, Bayer Corporation, WL Gore, and Boehringer Ingelheim. This is her second Yale Press book collaboration with Deborah St. James.

About Deborah St. James

Deborah St. James is Deputy Director of Publications and Scientific Communications at Grifols. She has worked in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry for more than 20 years. Prior to her current position, she was Bayer Corporation's senior manager for national sales training in the pharmaceutical division. She is a former college English instructor and Senior Editor of Better Health magazine.

Legislation Boosts Enrollment;
Increases Agricultural Exposure to Urban Communities

CHICAGO - February 6, 2012. As part of his commitment to strengthening education in Illinois, Governor Pat Quinn today visited Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences (CHSAS) to discuss recently adopted legislation that will allow more students in urban areas to pursue opportunities in Illinois' vital agricultural economy.

"One of Illinois' biggest economic engines is our mighty agriculture," Governor Quinn said. "Our urban students and those who live in rural communities should have the educational opportunities to prepare them for jobs in an industry that keeps food on our tables and makes our state more competitive in the global economy."

The Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences is a public magnet school that was opened by the Chicago Public Schools in 1985 with the goal of bringing agricultural education to urban students. The 72-acre campus includes a 40-acre working farm that allows students to get hands-on experience as well as summer internships in agricultural-related fields, which leads to many entering college to pursue agricultural and food science fields. Students are selected for the school via a lottery that chooses 150 students out roughly 1,000 applicants each year for the freshman class.

Senate Bill 1226, sponsored by Sen. Ed Maloney (D-Chicago) and Rep. Bill Cunningham (D-Chicago) changes the enrollment cap for the Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences from 600 to 720 students and requires that 50% of enrollment reside within a 2.5 mile radius of the school, which is located on a 72-acre campus on the far South Side.

As highlighted by Governor Quinn in his State of the State Address, Illinois exports rose 30 percent in 2010 and the state is on track to double its exports by 2014. In 2010, Illinois' farm economy had total cash receipts of $15 billion, supporting for tens of thousands of jobs. Agriculture exports alone supported nearly 50,000 jobs in 2010.

Here is information about Senator Grassley's schedule this week in Washington.  The Senate is in session.

·         Senator Grassley will meet during the week with Iowans from Iowa City, Coralville and North Liberty, the Iowa Association of School Boards, the National Child Support Enforcement Association, the National Federation of the Blind of Iowa, Job Corps, the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, the American Wind Energy Association, the National Association of FSA County Office Employees, the University of Iowa and the Iowa State University Colleges of Engineering, Habitat for Humanity, and the Iowa State Education Association.

·         Senator Grassley will meet with an Iowa family visiting Washington from New Hampton.

·         Senator Grassley will be a guest on public affairs programs hosted by Cindy Kohlmann on KDTH Radio in Dubuque, Scott Voorhees on KFAB Radio in Omaha, and Mike Savage on KBUR Radio in Burlington.  He also will be a guest on AgriTalk, an agriculture-focused public affairs program that airs live on 13 radio stations in Iowa.

·         On Monday, February 6, at 3:30 p.m. (ET), Senator Grassley will meet with community leaders and city officials traveling to Washington with the Iowa City, Coralville and North Liberty Chamber of Commerce to discuss economic development initiatives and other public policy matters.

·         On Tuesday, February 7, at 10 a.m. (ET), there is a Budget Committee hearing on the outlook for U.S. monetary and fiscal policy.  Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will testify.  Senator Grassley is a senior member of the committee.

·         On Tuesday, February 7, at 3 p.m. (ET), Senator Grassley will participate in a business meeting of the Senate Finance Committee on the Highway Investment, Job Creation and Economic Growth Act of 2012.

·         On Tuesday, February 7, at 4:30 p.m. (ET), Senator Grassley will meet with Major General Timothy Orr of the Iowa National Guard regarding the Iowa impact of the Air Force budget reduction recommendations announced Friday, which would retire the 21 F-16 fighter aircraft assigned to the 124^th Fighter Squadron, Iowa Air National Guard in Des Moines.  Senator Grassley has expressed concerns about the Air Force strategy of targeting the Guard for cuts, as the Guard is more cost effective for missions such as a fighter squadron than Active Duty, and Guard pilots tend to be more experienced since they stay in the service over a long period of time.  On Thursday, February 9, at 1:30 p.m., Senator Grassley will host a meeting for the Iowa congressional delegation with Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley to discuss the recommendations.

·         On Wednesday, February 8, at 12:30 p.m. (ET), Senator Grassley will speak at a Capitol Hill event of the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America.  CADCA is the leading national drug abuse prevention organization representing more than 5,000 community anti-drug coalitions in the country and focusing on local, targeted solutions to prevent drug abuse.  Senator Grassley founded the FIT Coalition in Iowa more than 15 years ago.  FIT stands for Face It Together.  The organization, today part of the Iowa Drug-Free Partnership, networks employers, schools, parents and community-based organizations to help address local substance abuse problems.

·         On Thursday, February 9, at 10 a.m. (ET), Senator Grassley will participate in the weekly business meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee.  The committee is scheduled to take action on legislation sponsored by Senators Grassley, Dick Durbin of Illinois, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, John Cornyn of Texas, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, and Chuck Schumer of New York.  Senator Grassley's bill, S.1945, would permit the broadcast and televising of Supreme Court proceedings.  It builds on sunshine legislation Senator Grassley has sponsored for more than 10 years to grant federal judges the authority to allow cameras in other federal courtrooms.  Over the years, Senator Grassley has successfully pressed the Supreme Court to release audio recordings of its proceedings.  The court did so in 2000 in the Bush v. Gore case, and last year the court began releasing audio at the end of each week.  In 1947, the Supreme Court said that what transpires in the courtroom is public property.  In Iowa, there has been broadcast coverage of state-level courts for more than 30 years, including online archived streams in recent years.  The federal-level Southern District Court in Iowa is part of a three-year pilot program to evaluate the impact of cameras in courtrooms.

Jordan Catholic School Celebrates Student Appreciation Day during Catholic Schools Week with Pajama Day.  Mrs. Lavell said, "Don't you want to go to school here?!"

From Left: Art Teacher Mrs. Jacqui Dodson, 4th grader Megan Tanghe, and 4th grade teacher Mrs. Karen Lavell.