Story 54 - Jan Kauffman
Jan Kauffman has profoundly impacted multiple generations of NHRI students, both counselors and counselees (mentors and mentees). Starting as a part-time business manager/fundraiser in 1985, Jan gradually added new leadership responsibilities to her job description. With the increase in Dr. Dodge’s classes, it became apparent that he could not continue to advise the three longitudinal projects he had guided for so many years. Therefore, Jan assumed those duties, dividing “New” and “Old” Childs Project into two distinct projects: Childs and Pre-Teen. Jan also assumed the title of Associate Director, then Interim Director, and was ultimately named Director before retiring in 2008.
Jan is fondly remembered for her positive energy, infectious smile, unmistakable laugh and genuine commitment to helping others. You could find her supporting a mentor in her office which often turned into conversations filled with curiosity, wonder and growth.
Surrounded by love and laughter
Dr. Dodge, Jan, Greg Greder, Janet Ames at 1986 NHRI Annual Recognition Day
“The most loving thing that I ever got was a note from Maggie Diers’ mother. After Maggie graduated. I got a note in the mail from her mother, saying:
‘We sent Maggie to the university for an education. And you taught her a way of life.’
And it was the most touching thing I ever got from anybody. The note was addressed to both Galen and I. I said Galen, ‘I want you to read this’ and it brought tears to his eyes. And we both were just so moved by it. It was very, very touching. It meant Maggie had gone home to Fremont and talked to her parents about NHRI and our programs.”
Before retiring, Jan gave an interview for the College of Education and Human Sciences Alumni newsletter in the Summer of 2008. An excerpt of the interview is below.
When Jan Kauffman went to work as business manager for the Nebraska Human Resources Institute in 1985, she expected to be raising money and balancing the books. But after three weeks, maybe more like two, she realized she had found her calling. Looking back, she says, the exceptional students at NHRI won her heart.
"This isn't a job for me; it never has been. It is a way of life. I am so passionate about it. I believe so deeply about helping young people find their paths. I don't know how anything could be more important," said Kauffman.
"I have always deep down believed this," she said in an interview. "I honestly believe in the capacity of human beings to make a difference in their schools, their families, their communities, their states, their country, and their world."
Throughout her years with the institute, Kauffman has committed herself to helping college students gain a deeper understanding of themselves and of their strengths, talents, and abilities. Her efforts have been rewarded as she has watched these students become leaders on campus and go on to productive lives of professional excellence and community service.
The key to helping young people discover themselves, she says, is asking the right questions. They have the answers inside of themselves, and the answers are theirs and theirs alone. She has prided herself in being open, authentic, honest, and caring with her students.
Students in NHRI, whom Kauffman affectionately calls "my kids," are energetic, positive, authentic, altruistic, and humble. They possess a strong sense of mission and purpose. And many give up other interests and opportunities to take on the three-year volunteer commitment.
"They give you hope for the future," she said, proudly reporting that nine members of Innocents are NHRI students, as are the incoming presidents of both Innocents and Mortar Board honor societies. Others have been fraternity and sorority presidents and officers and presidents of ASUN. Kauffman will miss not only her work with the students, but also her role as teacher.
Lessons Learned at NHRI
By Jan Kauffman, 2008
Relationships with others are the most important part of life.
Students who are stressed and worried need someone they trust to simply listen without giving advice.
People will succeed every time if you believe in them and give them opportunities to express their talents and strengths in meaningful ways.
Every human being wants to be significant and successful.
The simplest interactions with others can have the most profound effect on their lives if done consistently over time.
One of NHRI’s identified shortcomings was lack of research validating the program’s impact. Another was the absence of documentation of NHRI’s history, philosophy, techniques, and principles. Jan Kauffman was the only person who had been involved long enough to be able to write the story of NHRI in such a way that it could be produced for future use.
During the fall of 2000, the Woods Charitable Fund approved a one-year grant for $19,000. The grant provided funding to hire a graduate assistant to advise the three longitudinal projects, thereby freeing Kauffman’s time to develop training handbooks for new counselors, project co-chairs and staff advisers and to develop informational brochures for schools and for new junior counselors’ parents. Once in place, these materials would be used internally by program participants and would provide a safety net for the program’s continuity. Completing the project has also become the first step to putting an effective marketing plan into place.
Jan is credited with the creation of the original “New Counselor Manual” in 2001, with Cora Johnson, Amy Vyhlidal, Sarah Wirth, Val Johnson, Mary Lou Retzlaff. Original funding support for this project came from Woods Charitable Fund.
“In preparing for the 75th Anniversary Celebration, hundreds of articles and pictures were discovered of former mentors, mentees and board members - all saved by Jan. Her distinctive handwriting can be found on many of these items. Because of Jan’s dedication, many of the images and articles you have enjoyed in our 75 Stories are a result of the many hours and care she spent preserving our program’s history. Students wrote her notes, invited her to their graduation and wedding ceremonies.
I have saved every letter and note she gave to me; usually on Mary Engelbreit stationary. She was extremely thoughtful and genuinely interested in her students’ lives. I imagine many of her students kept her notes.”
Members of the 75th Anniversary Committee spoke with Jan in a phone interview in July 2024. Their interview brought to life some of the many memories created throughout her years. The following quotes shared from that interview help describe who she was and her impact on NHRI. For many of us in NHRI, Jan brought the pioneering words and concepts of our founders to life, transforming them from history into living principles, ripple by ripple.
Jan’s Reflections
“The thing about our class that was important, we took our concepts, concepts that were tried and true, and we taught students in the class to apply what we were learning. On the first night of class, I’d stand up and say, if you don’t use this, we might as well go home right now. When you’re doctors and lawyers and teachers and parents, I want to hear how you apply this to your lives, and to the lives of those close in your life. I want to know how you’re raising your kids. And I do hear from former counselors who tell me how they’ve taught their kids about hot buttons. I just sit there every time I hear that, and I just want to cry, it’s so nice.”
“Just don’t lose sight of why you’re doing this. NHRI is a relationship, not an activity. And, because it’s about a relationship, it’s entirely different than an activity. Yes, you do it through activities. But that’s just the vehicle that we use to create. The bottom line is the relationship is what matters. That’s why we had overnight retreats. I used to say in my class, we won’t know for 10 to 15 years whether or not this is effective. If you are talking about people’s strengths and so forth, then I’ll know I was effective. And I hope you always remember where you learned this so you can tell others about it”
Thank you, Jan. You made in a difference.
“After I had been away from Lincoln and NHRI for over 15 years, Jan was one of my first contacts when I began my time as principal at Lincoln High. She scheduled an appointment to meet the new principal and to share about NHRI and its role at Lincoln High with the LDP project. It didn’t take me very long to realize that NHRI had definitely maintained its original roots and also grown and flourished while I was gone and Jan was the main driver of that growth.”
“One never knows when and how certain persons will come into our lives nor how they influence the forks on our journeys. Jan came into my life in the 80’s and I am forever grateful for her popping into Dr. Dodge’s office. Whether through advice with my JC or letting me pilot the NHRI curriculum in my NWU, leadership class or helping setup the NHRI research goals and steps with Dr. John Creswell—Jan was always “spot on” and intuitive. Her impact and influence on NHRI excelling in spite of major challenges over 75 years are an attestment to her abilities and empowering others.
Past, present and future NHRI participants largely have the generative opportunity because of foundational leaders such as Jan. Thank you very much, Jan Kauffman. ”
“Jan taught me to see the world through a different lens and empowered me to find my voice to lift others up. Because of her, I gained the confidence to truly understand others and help them recognize their own potential.”
“I chose the word “legacy”, because I can think of no greater word to describe the impact Jan Kauffman has made on this organization. As a former Teenage Project counselor, I can attest that her legacy lives not in the bricks and mortar of NHRI, but in the people involved. Jan Kauffman’s legacy lives in the heart of every current and former counselor. While I am certain that each of us could point to a different story of how Jan has made a difference, I believe one thing has been similar through all of her years and through all of her relationships with students: she makes each and every person feel special. As my friend Brad Heinrichs says, ‘It’s impossible to walk away from her office without feeling like a million bucks!’ Because of the individualized attention she has given to each of her NHRI counselors, hundreds, if not thousands, of people now have an ignited passion to do the same for others.”
