And This Is Why I Love My Job

“Krissy, you have made this past year our own version of a small Disney World. We have been on multiple rides constantly going up and down throughout the semester. It has been surrounded by plenty noise, chaos, and laughter. There have been days where it seems like the villain is chasing after us. But then, our princess in sequins and leopard print steps in to save the day. Like our very own live-in fairy godmother, you have taken care of us when we need it the most. We were all so excited to meet your Prince Charming and know that he will give you the happily ever after you deserve in Florida. It has been an absolutely magical year working with you and we know that this is not the end of the story of our halls and Krissy.”

During the department’s closing banquet, there was a moment where a member of each staff gave an address to their RD. The above quote is what one of my students wrote for me. To say that this is one of the sweetest, most authentic and amazing moments of my career is an understatement.

This is why I went into Student Affairs. In this moment I knew that I’d made a positive impact on people. And I knew my hard work had not gone unnoticed.

It’s going to be really hard to say good-bye.

Friday Five: Conference Hangover Edition

So I just got back from NASPA, which is an international conference for people who are in the field of Student Affairs. Approximately 4,500 of us professionals (and graduate and undergraduate students) flocked to Phoenix, Arizona for four days of learning and connecting. And it. Was. Awesome. I’m still synthesizing and internalizing a lot of what I learned from the conference but here are five lessons that are sticking out to me at this moment. (It’s important to note that I am distracted by the MSU-LIU game as I write this, so these are in no way the most important or deepest lessons I’ve learned, rather they’re the ones I’m remembering for the purpose of this entry.)

• New Social Justice terms: “intersectionality” and “micro-aggressions”. I’ve heard these words once or twice, but I really got to delve deeper this past week, for which I’m grateful. I discovered there’s a lot of educating to be done on my part when it comes to being an advocate and ally to marginalized populations. It’s a rough realization to have, but I’m excited to learn.
• Another area for further research and learning lays in the topic of size-ism and gender bias. I attended an interesting session about legal implications of these topics and what it means for the field and I’m definitely intrigued. As a plus size woman and someone who wants to help society to be more welcoming and understanding, the issue of size-ism is one that I feel could play a large role in my life and work to come.
• All day workshops are the shit. I had the privilege of participating in a pre-conference reflective writing workshop and I’m so glad I invested the time and energy into it. The leaders were well-spoken and inspirational, the other participants were fun and sweet and I learned a lot about writing and my professional self and voice. It was an incredible experience.
• “This I Believe” essays and statements are big in the field right now. I’ve penned a couple because I thought they were good writing exercises. It turns out–professionals think they’re fabulous ways to help students self-actualize. Good to know I’m ahead of the curve on this trend.
• Empowerment happens through education. This was reiterated time and again throughout the week from John Legend’s opening keynote to the final workshops of the conference. We need to make sure we’re doing all we can to help people succeed from kindergarten through college (if they so choose to attend) and give people the support and resources they need in order to persist and achieve. While this sounds advocate-y, I know how powerful education is and what it does for society and the individuals in it and so I walked away from NASPA inspired to encourage, support and fight for education for all. This lesson, to me, is priceless.

Sunday School: the Spring Break is Finally Here Edition

Ah, Spring Break. A time to breathe, relax and at least attempt to find some semblance of rejuvenation. I feel like my blood pressure has gone down considerably since I closed my halls Friday evening. It’s so quiet…so…so blissful. Right now I don’t have a care in the world. I have maybe three tasks on my to-do list for this week. I can sleep in a bit, have my TV on while I work in my office (since my office is connected to my apartment) and truly breathe a little this week. I really don’t know what to do with myself after coming off a month jam-packed with urgent projects and meeting-filled days and weeks. This is a problem I’ll gladly take after the stress of the semester so far. But enough about that–onward to my lessons of the week:

• So I made the big leap and turned in my letter of resignation this past week. But what comes after the big jump, you ask? Let me tell you: for this girl it means a LOT of tears and long, whining monologues to friends and loved ones about how bloody scared I am. While in one respect I feel free and excited about this new step in my journey there’s a whole other part of my brain going “holy fucking shit–are you crazy?!?” This part of my brain is worried about things like a paycheck and using my Masters Degree and having health insurance, which…yes. I am very concerned about. Hence, the tears and insecurity. Deep down, though, I know that this is the right move all around. I’m just hoping that I can continue to march forth and get over this overly emotional, insecure period of things.
• In completely unrelated news, I bake a mean cupcake. And my students agree as 70 or more flocked to my apartment on Leap Day to share in some home baked sweets. It. Was. Awesome. But it leads to my next Aha Moment…
• Never mention a boyfriend or partner unless you’re willing to play 120 questions with students. Because they will want to know everything. And then they’ll ask if they can Skype with him. And demand to meet him. (I feel bad if Scott ever comes to visit me now…)
• I’m on a huge makeup kick right now. In the past few weeks I’ve acquired at least 8 new lipsticks and glosses. I’m not entirely sure why I feel like I need so much new stuff for my mouth…maybe my subconscious is trying to tell me to pay more attention to my voice? Hmm. I don’t know. Anyway, so I have a lot of new lip stuff…and today I made the mistake of stepping into Sephora to play with their makeup and ended up splurging on a gorgeous smokey eye trio from Lorac. I’m really reallyyyyyyy excited to play with it! I’m also in total lust with their Ooh La Lace palette and may indulge in it once I return from my trip because I really can’t resist smoky, sultry colors and anything swathed in lace. I’m a sucker for it.
• (I feel it important to note that now that I’m on the Sephora site, I’m finding even more things I want. A lot. I’m both annoyed and amused with myself right now.)
• I’m admitting this next confession to you all in full confidence. We have a circle of silence among us, right? You’re not going to judge me or go gossiping to your friends about me, right? Ok then. I’ve purchased a couple of songs from the Nickelodeon show Victorious. I really didn’t want to like the show, but it’s like Glee meets Lizzie McGuire so really I had no hope. I’m absolutely addicted to “Take a Hint” from the latest episode and I’ll openly admit that I’ve rocked out to it no less than six times in the past day and a half. Please don’t tell anyone.
• On Thursday I’m heading to Phoenix, Arizona for a student affairs conference. If you’re not in the field this probably sounds super-boring. But if you’re a higher ed nerd like me, you’ll be stoked and can probably imagine how holy-bloody-hell-ohmygod-super-excited I am! EXCLAMATION POINTS!! Seriously, I am beyond stoked for this conference and have been talking about it since October, so I’m pretty glad it’s almost here. My loves of learning and meeting new friends will be kindled for nearly a week. That makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
• Also exciting? Pouring over the conference guide about all the sessions. John Legend giving the opening keynote? Lieutenant Dan Choi doing a session? Approximately 309483 workshops about development, purpose and creativity? YES PLEASE!!! I’m at the point where I can’t even be on the conference page because I get too excited to do anything else and then I get really hyper and can’t focus. Talking about it right now means I likely won’t sleep for a couple more hours because I get so excited. It’s going to be a good week!

Day 21: Educate Me!

On this, the 21st day of December, the Reverb Broad’s prompt asks me “If you returned (or went, if you’ve never been) to college to study anything you want, what would you major in, and why?”

I never thought I’d get my Master’s Degree. It wasn’t a life goal. It wasn’t on my radar throughout my undergraduate career. A higher degree was never something I thought I wanted or needed.

And then I went out into the “real world” with a Bachelor’s in Public Relations. And wide-eyed, open-hearted, Disney-loving me quickly realized that the PR degree I’d worked so hard for was for nothing because the PR world is cut-throat, aggressive and money-grubbing–three things I am not. I had no idea what to do. So I moved away from the UP (because that’s what anyone who wants to have a career of any kind needs to do) and took the first job offer I got–as a Leasing Agent at a Section 8 property in the state capital.

To say that this job was a learning experience would be a vast understatement.

What I realized, amid the piles of paperwork, budding ulcers and prematurely greying hair I was getting from my job, was that I got excited talking to people about college and higher purposes. And I began to think that this was something that I could perhaps do as a profession. And a nationally ranked, very popular university was just down the street with a higher education program. And I didn’t need to take the GRE to apply. (That was more of a deciding factor than some will realize–I loathe standardized tests.)

And thus? I applied to this highly ranked, well-respected program. And I was accepted! And then I went on a two-year roller coaster of a journey that challenged me more than I ever thought possible. I worked my ass off, wrote more papers than I thought was possible, did more research than ever before, bled for my assistantship, tore my hair out learning about statistics (numbers and figures make me want to throw up), learned a new system of citations (APA? Uuugh.), made some of the best friends I could ever imagine, cultivated a pride in my Big Ten school that I never thought existed and earned a Master’s Degree that I am so proud of.

I didn’t consider a Master’s not because I didn’t think I could do it. Rather, I thought I didn’t need one to be the best version of myself or chase my dreams. What I realized during the application process and then relearned time and again throughout my time at Michigan State was that being open to new experiences and learning new things would help me to cultivate my best self, which would only help me to better serve others. So now, even though I can put an “MA” at the end of my name, it doesn’t mean that I’m done with the whole school thing. I may get a PhD or an EdD in higher education some day. Or I could get another Master’s in a completely different field–perhaps creative writing or life coaching. Pursuing my Master’s didn’t complete my educational journey. Rather, it opened up my destiny to many new paths and glittering opportunities. So now I’m Krissy P, MA and Lifelong Learner.

Weathering it

Blustery. Puddly. Drab. Dreary. Chilly. Today is one of those days where you know it’s going to be a challenge to get through just by looking out the window. The view from my office showed students scurrying from building to building huddled under umbrellas as ever-growing puddles collected relentless raindrops. Days like today do nothing for my productivity level.

Normally I adore days like today. I find them to be inspiring; they remind me to slow down and relax. Usually I get an urge to brew a large cup of tea, light a couple of candles and settle down with a big book. Sadly that urge is a luxury I can’t afford at this time of the year as it’s crazy-busy and my to-do list stretches for at least three pages at this point. Instead of feeling inspired by the gray skies, I grew stressed and found myself grumbling as I wrestled with my umbrella while trudging across campus. I hated how spongy the ground was, making my boots sink deep into the dirt. I hated how unrelenting the rain was. And I especially hated how freaking cold the wind was, its vicious strength nearly breaking my umbrella more than once during a four-minute walk.

I began to ponder m life here in podunk Minnesota. How did I get here? Why am I here? If I hate the chilly weather so much why do I stay? If the winters are truly something that I’m beginning to dread then why stick around? The answers to all of these questions are the same: my job. While I am not living in my dream location (that would be London…or at least a big US city), my job makes it easier to weather the climate and schizophrenic seasons. One positive interaction with a student has the power to make the gray-ness of any rough day disappear. Not every day is a holiday or a joy. But there are enough great moments to make the cold, the winds, the snow, the bitterness of this plains state minor enough for me to handle, persevere and carry on.

On my way back home I saw two students crouching down in the middle of the sidewalk. I recognized one as a woman I’d grown close to. She saw me and began beaming as she explained that they were on a mission to save the worms. Both students began giggling; I was charmed. There, in the middle of my campus, on one of the drabbest days I found my inspiration. Her energy and enthusiasm for such a small thing prodded me to keep going. While I’d rather settle down with a warm drink and some good music, I’ll instead persevere. Because it’s all worth it. No matter how dark it sometimes gets here, it always ends up being worth it. That’s why I love my job. And my life.