RADFORD – Radford University recently welcomed to campus purchasing professionals from across the region for the Virginia Association of Governmental Purchasing (VAGP) regional conference.  

During the day-long conference, VAGP members participated in professional development workshops presented by RU faculty.  Elizabeth Jamison, RU’s director of  The Leadership Development Center offered leadership training, management associate professor Albert “Brac” Smith  offered a motivational program, management assistant professor Vernard Harrington presented a workshop about conflict resolution and Ellen Taylor, director of continuing and extended education presented a program about time management.

College of Science and Technology interim dean Joe Chase and Melissa Chase conducted a workshop on communication using Anthony F. Gregoric’s mind styles self assessment instrument and the popular toy Legos.  Teams were asked to use Legos to build pieces of a tower that would support a ball on top of the tower and allow the same ball to roll underneath it.  Throughout the exercise, the groups were held to strict rules for verbal and nonverbal communication.  The result was not a successfully built tower, but a lesson in individual communication styles.

Conference participants come from across Southwestern Virginia.  This was the third time RU hosted the conference.