Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Behind the Partnerships: Rita Wheeler

Photos and story by James Hill

By James Hill PCC’s Computer Information Systems (CIS) program relies on Rita Wheeler, a lead analyst for Standard Insurance Co., to keep it current and relevant in a fast-changing industry. Wheeler, who chairs the CIS advisory committee, helps ensure that the CIS curriculum reflects the current job market environment. When students have success on their first job out of the program, they have people like Wheeler to thank. The advisory committee is one of dozens of advisory groups that interact with PCC training programs in order keep the college connected to industry. The CIS advisory group is comprised of representatives from Freightliner, State of Oregon, Lutheran Community Services, Unitrin Insurance Companies, BPA, Standard Insurance and the program’s faculty members. Their input is used to evaluate classes to determine if there is an appropriate focus on specific skills, keeping in mind the need to encompass a broader scope as businesses become more global, ethnically mixed, and electronically connected to the world. Wheeler hails from Indiana, where she earned a business degree in Quantitative Business Analysis at Indiana University. She has worked at five different companies in five different states, from North Carolina to Minnesota. Standard Insurance, Portland-based, has 41 branches nationwide. Question: How long have you been at Standard Insurance Co. and what are some of the things you do?Answer: I’ve worked at Standard for more than seven years and have been in the industry for more than 20. I have had almost every title in the application development realm. Recently, I have been reviewing and customizing our software development process. The process guides us on what we do, how we do it and what deliverables we create. In addition to working on projects, I am a mentor.Q: How did you become part of the CIS advisory committee at PCC?A: I had volunteered to support the CASE (Creating Avenues of Success and Equity in advanced technology) program by speaking at CIS 100 (class) and participating in brown bags. I started teaching CIS 244 at PCC in January 2001. In the fall of 2002, Marty Murray (instructor in Computer Information Systems) and Barb VanAmerongen (division dean, Computer Technology and Real Estate) asked if I would chair the advisory board. I believe they thought I would be interested and qualified because of the breadth of my background and my facilitation skills. Q: What is the purpose of the advisory committee? A: The purpose of the committee is for individuals from the industry to advise the faculty on marketable skills that should be included in the curriculum. We want to advise faculty on course improvements to help students gain or improve employment opportunities and, or successfully move on to a four-year college. We have nine people on the committee representing industry and we also have representatives from the faculty. We try to have representatives from different industries and disciplines. In my opinion, the biggest challenge on the committee is trying to accomplish our goals within the limited meeting time available. Q: What is your favorite hobby or hobbies? A: I love watching Indiana University basketball. I am a Girl Scout leader for two troops. I also enjoy reading, walking and hiking. Q: How did you come to Portland? A: I came to visit my brother who lived here. It was on Labor Day 1995, and it was just beautiful. While I was here I picked up the newspaper to read the classifieds and there were pages and pages of computer jobs. I had been interested in the Pacific Northwest and since I love the outdoors, it seemed like a great opportunity. What really stood out for me about Portland and the Pacific Northwest was how green it is. Many of the places I have lived are either brown or white most of the time. Here I get green all year round.Q: Are you a computer enthusiast at home, too?A: No. Actually, I rarely use my computer at home.