KIRTLAND - After a trouble-free birth, the infant Men's Resource Center at Lakeland Community College is growing faster than expected.

"If we had (had) 20 enrollments for the first quarter, we would have been happy," said Jim Shelley, the center's coordinator. When more than four times that number signed up, he knew the college was onto something. "We are off to a good start and plan to expand into new areas," Shelley said.

The center is a clearinghouse for information and education, ranging from job training to the social and legal ramifications of divorce.

Lakeland opened a Women's Center six years ago to meet the changing needs of women. The goal of the new center is to tailor workshops and classes to meet the gender-specific needs of men, Shelley said. "Traditionally, men have either not sought help or have not known where to go to get it, Shelley said, adding that men in transition -- between jobs, careers, or in changing relationships -- can also benefit from classes, workshops and speakers.

So far, the average age of men participating is 45, which is a little higher than expected. The reason, Shelley suspects, is that during the first quarter, most of the center's offerings were geared to job and career changes in this decade of layoffs.

The center, which Lakeland officials believe is the first of its kind on a college campus, was an attempt to fill a void. "We are pioneers," Shelley said, adding that a few other colleges had called to ask for advice on how to start a similar program.

Aging, divorce and layoffs affect both sexes, but men and women have different ways of dealing with the changes at home and on the job. To help men gain skills, improve relationships or themselves, or just try something new for fun, the center offers a wide range of classes and workshops."We want to offer classes of general interest, but we are also looking at some new areas," Shelley said, adding that offerings will always include men's health and parenting programs.

Shelley said a dire need had also been found and was being addressed: Many men still want to be good parents following a divorce and need support and advice.

There was so much interest in the Child Custody and Fathers' Rights workshop held last Monday that it will be offered again.

"A lot of men we are seeing have experienced midlife difficulties," Shelley said, adding that problems may include feeling undervalued at work or at home.

Dan Porter, Lake County Catholic Social Services supervisor of counseling services, said the center and programs like the custody and rights seminar fill a void. "From what I've seen, there is a great need for programs like this, he said.

David Laughlin, Painesville attorney whose practice includes family law, agreed. "I think it's a good topic for the men's center. Many men are quite interested in the topics of custody and visitation. They want to be active parents, not check writers," said Laughlin, who was a panelist for the custody and rights seminar. "There is a lot of confusion, and [men] have a lot of questions," he said, adding that he could answer some of the legal ones, while others were referred to social service agencies.

Other recent offerings have included "World War II: A Living History," "Start Your Own Full/Part-Time Business from Scratch" and "Tae Kwon Do: For Dad and Me." Upcoming workshops or classes include "Alternative Medicine for Men," April 28; "The Art of Simple Living," May 3; "Personal Computers for Beginners," May 16 and May 23; "Wine Appreciation," April 23, 30, and May 7; and "Earning an Accredited College Degree Via Your PC," May 15 or June 6.

For more information call the center at 975-4747.
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KIRTLAND - The seven men clustered in the conference room at Lakeland Community College could have started their own manufacturing business with the wealth of experience and knowledge between them.

There was a physicist, a manufacturing manager, a mechanical draftsman, a high-tech marketing professional, engineer/financial planner, salesman and teacher/machinist/chemical salesman. Each man was middle-aged, brimming with experience, knowledge and a strong work ethic. And each man was looking for a job.

The setting was the weekly Job Shop gathering. The seven men had come for the speaker's insights and encouragement, as well as to access resources and find camaraderie with others in the same situation. For two of the men, it was a first-time visit. Jim Shelley, director of the resource center, welcomed them to the club. "We hope to provide a place where you can come and rub elbows with others in a similar situation," Shelley told the group.

Even the speaker had tasted the bitter reality of midlife unemployment. Thomas Vandermeulen, a counselor at Lakeland, became a middle-aged, unemployed male when his 25-year job with a New York community college became a victim of downsizing.

One by one the men shared their personal horror stories of downsizing: Jim lost his job after 25 years with the same company; Ted, despite a bachelor's in physics and years of expereince as a technical writer and sales/support professional, hasn't been able to find a job in four years. He's living on withdrawals from his Individual Retirement Account (IRA). Steve had been laid off 18 months when he found another job. Just one day away from making his probation period, he was laid off again. Nine months later, he's still looking for a job.

It could be a depressing atmosphere, but Vandermeulen challenges the men to see the opportunity in their situation and take some risks. "You need to take more risks than you have," he tells them. "Safety doesn't take you anywhere. It's only in taking risks that you grow, change."

The center itself is somewhat of a risk and certainly a departure from the traditional college-based employment center, which tend to favor female students. While Lakeland does have a Women's Center, the Men's Resource Center is a separate entity devoted exclusively to the career-change needs of men. Although it is based in Lakeland's "A" building, the center is open to students and non-students alike. Shelley says only 20 percent of the participants are Lakeland students.

"It is open to one and all," Shelley said. "Generally, most of our programs are oriented to the community and most programs are directed toward non-students. All of them are designed with the needs of men in mind."

The center offers a series of seminars, workshops and assessment sessions to help men learn about career options, gain new job search skills and break a new career path. Every Monday morning, the center hosts a guest speaker, which is followed by a networking and support group.

During the week, the center provides access to computers, the Internet, fax machines, copy machines, job listings, career assessment and exploration tools, career guidance workshops, athletic facilities and other resources. "The only thing we don't do is job placement," Shelley said. "We don't actively seek job leads, but we do have some that people send us."

The fee is very nominal -- $22 per quarter ($29 after March 28). Copies are only 3 cents. But Shelley said the most valuable part of the service is that it gives men a place to escape to and conduct a job search beyond the pressures and noises of home. There are even small rooms with telephones that a job seeker can reserve for calling leads.

The resource center was started in May 1996. The idea originated with Merry Ring, director of Lakeland's Women's Center.

Shelley's prior job had been in marketing for a private-sector firm, but he'd also developed a vocational program at Hill House, a human services agency on University Circle. "I wanted to get back to helping people and to get back to the job of facilitating positive transitions for people," he said. "I was attracted to this because it was an opportunity to develop a pioneer program, something that had never been done."

Shelley said services separate from the Women's Center were needed because men have a different set of career needs and challenges. "Most of the job-development related programs at women centers are geared toward helping women enter the work force," Shelley said. "Most of the programs we offer are career maintenance. Most of the men we see here have work experience, but they have either suffered a job loss or hope to change careers."

Shelley said most of the men who come to the center are in their middle years. "The average age is 45," he said. "We generally see men in the 30-to-60 range." A major life event or change often triggers the client's search for help. "Our typical client is somebody who is experiencing a midlife difficulty of one form or another," Shelley said.

The transitions that bring them to the Men's Resource Center include job loss, divorce, problems with teen-age children or career reassessment. "They reach a point where they're not where they thought they'd be when they projected their career trajectory," he said. "They've put their heart and soul into work for 20 years, then begin to encounter problems at home from teen-age children. They realize that work is not the end all they thought it was."

Shelley said relationship problems with a teen-age child can make a man realize that being a good provider does not equate to being a good father. And after doing the same job for 20 years, a man may feel burned out and start to wonder if there isn't more to life than bringing home a paycheck.

"The first day our workshop meets we go around the room and ask them why they are there," Shelley said. "It's amazing how often the word 'creative' comes up. Many of the men say they want to find something that's more creative and will make better use of their skills."

Shelley said middle-aged men also are faced with job insecurity. "Some men in their 50s are not sure they will make it to retirement," he said.

The resource center helps men consider other career options and guides them through the process of doing a job search. One of the participants, who did not want to be identified, said he is conducting his second job search in five years. In just that short period, resume requirements have changed significantly due to scanning software used by personnel departments. The resource center is helping him re-tool his resume and teach him about the importance of networking as he begins his search again.

While middle-aged men face many career and personal challenges, getting them to come into the center for help is a tough job. Shelley said men steeped in the John Wayne macho image are both uncomfortable seeking help and don't know where to look. In the center's first few months of operation, most of the referrals were coming from a female acquaintances of men in crisis. "Now, it's about 90 percent directly from the men," he said.

Shelley said the resource center has seen a growth in the use of its services. During the first school year it was in operation, 1996-97, there were 240 men signed up for services. "Now, we accept an average of 200 sign-ups per quarter, except in summer session," he said.

For more information on Lakeland Community College's Men's Resource Center, call 440/975-4747. Job Shop participants can register at any time. The first session is free. "The first session is free, so any Monday morning they want to show up they can come in and try it," Shelley said. Registration for 10 weeks is $22, however, effective March 29 the rate goes to $29.
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KIRTLAND - The Men's Resource Center at Lakeland Community College is reaching out to male students and encouraging paternal relationships in two programs next week that will feature Bernard Franklin, vice president of the National Center for Fathering in Kansas.

Franklin, a former assistant dean at Kansas State University, is now president of Fathers in the Hood, an urban outreach program for the National Center for Fathering. In his role, Franklin gathers data about families and provides programs that encourage the father-child relationship. He also offers workshops on the higher educational level for the men he says are sometimes overlooked in college course development.

Jim Shelley, director of the Men's Resource Center said Franklin would present: "Teaching Education and Developing Men, The Missing Piece in Student Development Education." Shelley said the workshop is designed for students, faculty and professionals as well as college-bound men.

"The problems and issues male students have on campus are different than those of female students," Shelley said. "For the most part, male students have been overlooked. As social structure and gender roles change, male students process those changes differently. We are hoping to try [to] meet some of those needs of male students."

Shelley said the Men's Center is also providing a second program offered by the National Center for Fathering. The national center's mission is to inspire and equip men to be better fathers in response to a dramtic trend toward fatherlessness in America, said center director Ken Canfield. According to the center's statistics, more than 27 million children in the United States live apart from their father.

The center provides programs, resources, and seminars to help men develop their fathering skills.

The Lakeland program is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. April 21 in Mooreland Mansion. Tickets are $5 and reservations are required. Interested people can call the Men's Resource Center at (440) 975-4747. The second program is scheduled for April 22 in Painesville.
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      Community-College Official Urges a Helping Hand for the Endangered Male Student

By Erik Lords

Colleges should focus more attention on the falling graduation rates of male students and place a greater emphasis on helping them thrive academically, a speaker said Tuesday at the American Association of Community Colleges conference here.

James E. Shelley, director of the Men's Resource Center at Lakeland Community College in Kirtland, Ohio, said that only about 40 percent of students at two-year colleges are men.  Fewer men are attending college, he said, because more women are entering male-dominated fields, while male crossover into female-dominated areas, such as teaching and nursing, has been minimal.  Also, men and women have different learning styles, he said, and men are more likely to skip college to take high-paying jobs out of high school.

"Men are looking for a reason not to continue, while women are looking for a reason to proceed," he said.  "Bill Gates did the men in this country a great disservice by not graduating from college and becoming the richest man in the world."

Mr. Shelley said that his center, which opened in 1996, was the first of its kind in the nation.  It aims to increase the retention rate of male students at Lakeland, and serves about 600 of them a year, ranging in age from 18 to 70.  The program provides low-cost, 
noncredit programs of special interest to men, and sponsors a job-resource center that helps ease the transition from one job to another, and helps some men adjust to life after retirement.  

"The provider role that men are supposed to play in our society is so dominant that when men feel that they've failed as the provider, it sets off a domino effect of emotional issues in their lives," Mr. Shelley said.  "We need to take a holistic approach to helping them work through various problems, not just the academic ones."  To that end, the center offers courses like "First Aid for Resumes," "Focus on Fathering," "Getting Past Anger," and "Child Custody and Fathers' Rights."

National statistics show that men are far more violent and more likely to be emotionally disturbed than women are.  More research on male learning styles should be conducted, and other institutions should copy his center, Mr. Shelley said.

"We're not saying that men out-suffer women, but that men have a different set of problems," he said.