Bett Schlemmer is a Regional Administrator for DSHS in King County and a 2007 graduate of the Executive MPA program.
Why did you choose to apply to the Evans School of Public Affairs Executive MPA program?
“I didn’t want to be obsolete in the workforce. I wanted to keep up with the times. After attending some Cascade Executive Programs’ courses in 2005, I realized how they were adding value to my work product so decided to apply to the Executive MPA program and was accepted. What I like most about the program is how it built upon my formal education in administration.”
What was your academic and professional background prior to entering the Executive MPA program?
“I have a Diploma in Nursing, an Associate in Liberal Arts, a Bachelor’s in Nursing, and a Master’s in Nursing Administration (UW). My performance in these academic programs got me inducted into Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society and Sigma Theta Tau National Nursing Honor Society. I was pleased when my article about my graduate thesis topic was published in ’89 in Nursing Management, a trade nursing journal.”
I’ve been a registered nurse since 1978 and seen and been a part of many changes in the health care industry. I have worked adult critical care, oncology, medical-surgical nursing, home health, and long term care. I have worked in different states in for-profit, non-profit and government entities.
I had the great prospect in my career to be a independent contractor at the forefront of registry nursing in the late 80’s and early 90’s. Bringing on that industry in WA provided me with the tribute to be an editor of a small national magazine about the nursing registry industry.
Since 1991, I’ve worked for the state of Washington regulating nursing homes, boarding homes, and/or adult family homes. My present work is Regional Administrator of regulation in these settings in King County, WA.”
What was the most inspirational or motivational thing you learned during program, and how have you used it in your work?
“This is hard to answer because I gained value from each program course and have applied it in some way or form. If I had to narrow it down, it would be strategic leadership, strategic policy analysis, and strategic communication.
- ‘Know your audience.’ - Michael Shadow, UW Executive MPA instructor. Any action I take whether 1:1, group interaction, written correspondence, presentations, I take out the time to know my audience and never set out to be the hero of my actions.
- I use [Professor] Pat Dobel’s article ‘A Note on Mapping: Understanding Who Can Influence Your Success’ to understand relationships in structuring operations and setting direction.
- I use [John] Kotter’s book Leading Change to lead change and am a firm believer of change coalitions.
- You can’t leave this program without learning something from David Harrison about intergovernmental relationships, flexibility in approach and accountability, and [Eugene] Bardach’s policy analysis framework. His teachings are useful today, having to respond to a budget shortfall.
- I use [Professor] Steve Smith’s teachings about public-private partnerships and hybridity. His teachings also are useful today, having to think in terms of mixed public and private service delivery to respond to a budget shortfall.”
What is the most useful skill or tool you learned in the Executive MPA program, and how have you applied it at work?
“Value-stream mapping—I use it a lot to improve operational processes.”
How has being a part of the Evans School network benefited you in your career?
“As an EMPA graduate, I have an outstanding strategic leadership model to rely on the rest of my career life, whatever path I choose. I am a member of an extraordinary global family of strategic leaders. This network is open, accessible, value-added; in itself, invaluable.”
How has your participation in the program influenced your career and helped you meet your goals?
“As a nurse I am skilled in critical thinking and analysis and, now as an EMPA graduate, I am skilled in strategic leadership, strategic communication, and strategic policy analysis.”
If you were to use one phrase or sentence to describe the Evans School Executive MPA program, what would it be?
“Analytical Strategic Leadership Training”
What advice do you have for someone who is considering applying to the Executive MPA program?
“Be yourself. Have fun. Be open to hear from your professors how you need to improve. The classroom is a work environment away from work. Come ready to critically and strategically think; be open to new ways to analyze.”