Renée Zettle-Sterling
Full Professor, Grand Valley State University
Challenge: Editing and idea development
My working relationship with Renée is in a league of its own. We have collaborated for years and through our working together, she has become one of my dearest friends. When Renée was the President of The Society of North American Goldsmiths, she asked me to join the Board of Directors, which I did. While we were serving together, I helped Renée write countless letters to membership, I wrote fundraising letters, and we worked on a wide range of organizational and strategic tasks together.
I also began editing a variety of school documents for Renée who is a Professor of Jewelry and Metalsmithing at Grand Valley State University. I have advised her and edited sabbatical applications, syllabi, course descriptions, etc.
Renée has also enlisted my help as some of her students have gone on to apply for graduate school which made me feel like I had adopted these young women and I became incredibly invested in their successes..
Of course, I have to mention writing our book, CAST: Art and Objects Made Using Humanity’s Most Transformational Process. Writing CAST was the most intense professional endeavor I’ve ever taken on and working with Renée was a pleasure. Those four years were scary, thrilling, and an incredible amount of work but I’ve never been prouder of anything and Renée has become like a sister to me.
Renée’s Testimonial
In one way or another, all of us who know Jen have sought out her talent and knowledge regarding professional development. I cannot tell you how thrilled I was when she told me that she wanted to start a professional development consulting business. WOW! This decision made absolute sense. For years, she has helped everyone from students applying to graduate schools to individuals looking for help with a strongly worded letter to grant writing for organizations. She helps others succeed in their professional lives, and now it is time that she takes this incredible talent for helping others and makes it official.
Honestly, I don't even know where to start regarding my professional relationship with Jen and the innumerable ways in which she has helped my career grow. We have a long, varied, productive, and successful working relationship. In 2012, I became President of the Society of North American Goldsmiths (SNAG), and a year later, I appointed Jen to the Board of Directors. She was an invaluable resource to the organization and to me. While I was President, she was my sounding board. She also helped me write my conference remarks, Board meeting remarks, and compelling letters to the membership during a very trying time for the organization. She helped staff set up a website, organized Google drive so that the organization had some system of institutional memory moving forward, and helped the Executive Director write grants. Whenever you turned around, Jen made progressive and essential suggestions and changes.
When we completed our service to SNAG, we engaged in a four-year long project writing a book on the topic close to both of our hearts… casting. Initially, the book was going to be about casting in the field of jewelry but grew to include casting throughout history and in various fields. It grew to be a 450+ page award-winning book. You get to know someone when you are working closely on a project of this magnitude and a project that we both saw as likely being the most important legacy we will leave behind. We always joke that most people would have liked each other less after a grueling four years, but it forged a stronger friendship. Jen is amazing to work with. She is strategic, gives 110% to whatever the task is at hand, and does not back down from what can seem like an impossible job. Jen constantly blew me away with her ability to see down the path and look critically at the big picture. She also can tell if something is "squishy in the middle," our words for an idea that felt undefined. If an idea felt vague or without much merit, she would immediately work to fix it and asked all the critical questions to solidify it.
After the book went to print, we started the process of promoting the book through book signings and presentations. Don't even get me started on how excellent Jen is at putting together an informative, humorous, badass Powerpoint presentation! She also has a keen eye for design, images, and the inherent meaning of images and objects.
Over the years, Jen has also helped me in my academic life as a Grand Valley State University professor. Where to even begin with her role in this aspect of my professional life? I could go on and on but I will keep it short for the reader's sake. She has helped me write sabbatical proposals, professor/promotion applications, cover letters, grant proposals, and more. Jen can look at your materials, infantile to fully formed, and find the core or heart of what you are attempting to express and help you tell a compelling story about why you should receive these professional successes. Unsurprisingly, I have been awarded everything Jen has ever helped me work toward. Jen doesn't just fix these things for you but works with you and teaches through refining your materials. Through working with Jen, I have become a much better writer, developed vital critical thinking skills, and gained confidence in myself in all aspects of my professional life.
Jen also helped several of my students with their graduate school applications. She helped them fine-tune their images, organize their thoughts, write a solid entry letter, and develop a strong resume. Both ended up in graduate schools and have since graduated and are practicing professionals in their fields.
She recently reviewed my syllabus for a new course I am proposing to teach next semester. As usual, she found all the squishy bits, fleshed out what was working, and suggested how to break up the material presented during the semester.
My favorite thing about working with Jen is her enthusiasm for your work and materials; she genuinely wants to see you succeed. She is not afraid to tell you the truth about what you are working on and is not shy about giving meaningful feedback. Jen is brilliant, but it is never about her or her ego; it is always about the big picture and what you are attempting to do. Her focus and organizational skills are legendary, and so is her success rate with everyone she helps.
