A coordinator for the Center for Global Education untangles the logistical knots facing international students trying to come to the U.S. to study. 

Dining Services staff members transport food to students who are either on the go, in quarantine, or in isolation. 

And a Ladd Library staffer manages low-touch routines at the library.

Whether students are feeling down, or need help getting their feet back on the ground, they get the support they need from 乐播传媒 staff, whose work helps position students for success in their work with the equally devoted 乐播传媒 faculty.

Here is our sixth and final installment of portraits of 乐播传媒 staff members, as well as stories in their own words about how they have responded to the needs of our students during a time of crisis. Totaling 21 staffers, from 19 different college offices, these 乐播传媒 people rise to the challenge when students need somebody 鈥� not just anybody.

Todd McCollough and Richard Kelly

Todd McCollough is the college鈥檚 quarantine and isolation manager, handling direct contact between various offices 鈥� Student Life, Facility Services, and Dining Services 鈥� and students in quarantine or isolation. Richard Kelly is a catering shift leader for Dining Services, handling meal delivery for students in isolation and other catering needs.

The two of us have more than 80 years of combined experience in the restaurant and hospitality industry. We try to pass that knowledge and caring onto the students here at 乐播传媒 through the meals we package and deliver to them.

During COVID, it鈥檚 all about stocking, restocking, and restocking again. Students are not allowed to eat in Commons. All their meals were boxed for them to take outside or back to their rooms to eat.

Some students have been unable to leave campus for well over a year due to the pandemic. Whatever we can do to help them feel at home, through meals, snacks, service, and friendliness 鈥� providing that constancy 鈥� is so important during this difficult time in their lives. They need something they can count on.

Shelley Palmer

A global education coordinator for the Center for Global Education, Shelley Palmer is one of the first people at 乐播传媒 to get to know international students after they鈥檙e admitted. She also supports students who engage in off-campus study each year 鈥� once in the hundreds, now a few dozen during the pandemic.

Much of my work is to help provide international students with the government documents and guidance necessary for them to obtain an F-1 student visa and enter the U.S., many of them for the very first time. 

My relationship with them extends across their careers at 乐播传媒, sorting through the ins and outs of all the issues related to their F-1 visa status, right through the post-graduation work process and beyond. It鈥檚 wonderful to have these long-term relationships.

COVID-19 has hampered what would normally make entry to the U.S. a fairly smooth experience for international students. Many of our international students who intended to join the Class of 2024 last fall chose to defer their matriculation. For our students, the anxiety caused by these challenges is hard to overstate.

I work with the team here, including Darren Gallant and David Das, the director and assistant director of the Center for Global Education, and Associate Dean for International Student Programs James Reese. 

My work includes supporting off-campus study, too, though many off-campus programs have been suspended during the pandemic. David and Darren are constantly finding alternate options for students who are trying to have the experience. But sometimes it just doesn鈥檛 work out. 

We normally have more than 100 students participate in off-campus study in both the fall and winter semesters. Last fall there were 17 studying off campus, and this semester there are 19. It鈥檚 a stunning contrast, for sure.  

Brenda Reynolds

Brenda Reynolds is head of access services for Ladd Library, managing the circulation of materials, borrowing from Colby and Bowdoin and within the state of Maine, and helping students access library resources, including reserves and controlling spaces

We took out half the chairs in the library because of COVID-19, to reduce density. Because of COVID, the library is more of a locked-down space than an open space.

We have a copy of everything that a faculty member requires for a course. That used to be mostly physical copies, but during COVID it鈥檚 all scanned or digitized.

Students miss being at the library. At 乐播传媒, the library is a hangout place. Since we removed some of the chairs, they have to wear their masks, and it鈥檚 just a very different vibe for them.

This year, students come in mostly because they鈥檙e solely looking for something, or just to study. It鈥檚 like it might be at other libraries! 

And we miss having the students hanging out. At 乐播传媒, the library is one of the places that a first-year student who hadn鈥檛 joined a club or activity yet, and hadn鈥檛 really gotten into coursework yet, could come here and meet other people.

A College Store coordinator helps students safely purchase what they require to succeed on campus.

Specialists in the Registrar鈥檚 Office manage a torrent of academic records that help track a student鈥檚 career through 乐播传媒.

And a member of the Campus Safety staff ferries students to places in Lewiston-Auburn in his role as a shuttle driver.

Whether students are feeling down, or need help getting their feet back on the ground, they get the support they need from 乐播传媒 staff, whose work helps position students for success in their work with the equally devoted 乐播传媒 faculty.

Each week for the next three weeks, we鈥檒l continue to share portraits of 乐播传媒 staff members as well as stories in their own words about how they have responded to the needs of our students during a time of crisis. Totaling 21 staffers, from 19 different college offices, these 乐播传媒 people rise to the challenge when students need somebody 鈥� not just anybody.

Judith Ayugi

As the interim office coordinator for the 乐播传媒 College Store, located in Kalperis Hall on Campus Avenue, Judith Ayugi helps the store run smoothly so students get what they need to succeed inside and outside of the classroom.

In the past, the 乐播传媒 College Store has been open to the broader Lewiston community and any campus visitors, such as prospective students and families, alumni, and 乐播传媒 parents.

But the pandemic forced us to narrow our in-store service to only students and the 乐播传媒 community to reduce the risk of contagion. Like all other 乐播传媒 buildings, the College Store has been open only to employees and students in 2020鈥�21.

In addition, we as staff branched out to working remotely while ensuring that we were still able to meet student needs in a timely manner.

Creativity, innovation, and flexibility have been our watchwords. We鈥檝e added masks and PPE bundles to .

We tweaked the store layout to allow for physical distancing. Rather than students browsinge for textbooks, they give us the course code for what they鈥檙e looking for and we hand them the material over the counter. With some students doing remote learning this year, we鈥檝e been mailing textbooks to them. 

With Post & Print, we added curbside pickup, especially for deliveries to departments. And we try to take orders in any fashion 鈥� email, online, phone 鈥� to meet our customers鈥� needs, safely.

Deia Christner and Jan Perrault

In the Registrar鈥檚 Office, Deia Christner is a service specialist and Jan Perreault a records specialist. As their titles imply, they help bring order to a torrent of academic records generated by a college: course schedules and grades, classroom scheduling, enrollment data, questions from all corners of the 乐播传媒 community, including transcript requests from alumni.

We have not been able to open our doors for students to simply walk in and ask questions. We do most of our work from our homes, interacting with students through email and phone, coming into the office a couple of times a week to take care of some work that we can鈥檛 do from home.

Last fall was a learning experience for everyone. We are amazed at how everyone at 乐播传媒 came together to make things work during a time when so many things were uncertain. The students did a great job at adapting to all the changes too! 

Mostly, students needed our help and support to understand the new module system. Under the modules, instead of taking four semester-long courses, students took two courses 鈥� meeting twice as many hours each week 鈥� for half the semester, then two more courses for the second half. There were more email exchanges than normal, but we were able to get through it. 

Due to the pandemic, we鈥檝e made it possible for students to fill out more of their forms electronically, rather than by handing in hard copies. We鈥檙e making information more accessible and our processes easier to complete. So, that鈥檚 been one good thing. 

We鈥檙e always happy to answer questions and give support wherever we can. We really miss working with students in the office. We are hoping that things return to normal soon!

Rick McQueeney

Rick McQueeney is behind the wheel most days as a 乐播传媒 Bobcat Express driver, helping students access places and services off campus as they need, from medical appointments to shopping excursions.

In the shuttle, some students like to talk, and others less so. It’s like everywhere else in this world: Everybody has their own comfort zone of reaching out. I’ve talked to students from every continent, but Antarctica!

It’s amazing what they’ve gone through and how they’ve gotten here. I learned that some students from Lithuania or Estonia got to 乐播传媒 through China. Wow, what a trip!

Sometimes they just want somebody to talk to. We’re not really in a position of authority, so we’re just someone they can share concerns with or look to for advice or an opinion. 

My wife and I have gardens at home, and I brought in garden produce for students to use in their cooking. I had a gentleman from Pakistan that was complaining about not having any hot peppers. I love hot peppers! I brought him home-canned peppers and some very hot peppers that my wife and I had grown over the summer for him to use.

I鈥檝e really missed meeting students who go into the community through the Harward Center. I really got to know some of them. I’m still in contact with some; I like to see what they’re doing now.

I can say out of all this, the one thing about working here at 乐播传媒 and meeting these students is, they’ve renewed my faith in what the future’s going to be like.

A staffer at the Harward Center takes a less-is-more approach to helping students with their community-engaged work.

A learning center coordinator finds creative ways to help students find tutoring opportunities when they鈥檙e feeling vulnerable. 

And a staffer brings young-alum insights to his work at the COVID-19 Testing Center, as well as  support for students who just want to talk.

Whether students are feeling down, or need help getting their feet back on the ground, they get the support they need from 乐播传媒 staff, whose work helps position students for success in their work with the equally devoted 乐播传媒 faculty.

Each week for the next three weeks, we鈥檒l continue to share portraits of 乐播传媒 staff members as well as stories in their own words about how they have responded to the needs of our students during a time of crisis. Totaling 21 staffers, from 19 different college offices, these 乐播传媒 people rise to the challenge when students need somebody 鈥� not just anybody.

Ellen Alcorn

Ellen Alcorn works with faculty and students as associate director of community-engaged learning at the Harward Center for Community Partnerships and director of the center鈥檚 Bonner Leader Program.

Last fall, I taught a First-Year Seminar, 鈥淩econsidering the American Dream,鈥� remotely. Four of the students in my class were in China, unable to get here due to visa restrictions. 

The experience gave me a window into the academic experience of our students and faculty during this year鈥檚 module format. The pace is fast and the workload is intense, on both sides. I learned a lot about how to make Zoom get-togethers more dynamic with music, breakout rooms, polls, and interactive screens such as Jamboard and Padlet.

I realize that students need more flexibility and informal support than usual, so I鈥檝e tried to bring that understanding into my daily work at the Harward Center this semester.

For so many reasons, this has been such an exhausting year for many of our students. They are 鈥� as we all are 鈥� Zoom-fatigued. In the programs I direct, I’ve taken a less-is-more approach, shortening Zoom meetings and adjusting my own expectations to some degree.

I like to go where the energy is, and that鈥檚 truer this year than ever with students. What will be life-giving and generative for students? What community-engaged projects will enrich their academic lives, or allow them to explore issues of interest to them?

A spirit of listening, and trying to respond to their interests and concerns, is more important this year than ever.

Eric Dyer

As student support coordinator for Writing at 乐播传媒 and the Academic Resource Commons, Eric Dyer helps provide student-focused peer tutoring and other academic support.

One of my jobs is to have answers to the question 鈥淲ith tutors being remote, how do I find a tutor?鈥� 

We learned last semester what works: having a tutor visit a class, usually by Zoom, and say, 鈥淗i, I’m a tutor. There are lots of other tutors. Here’s how you access tutors.鈥�

We have roughly 100 student peer educators. While some do in-person work here in Ladd, physically distanced from students, the vast majority of tutoring happens on Zoom now.  

Remote tutoring is convenient in one sense. Tutors and students can talk for a long time without having to be in the same room, where that doesn’t necessarily work so well this year. 

What is a huge challenge is just getting students to make the extra mouse clicks on a website to connect with that tutor online. It seems like it鈥檚 a bit more of a barrier than we expected, much more of a barrier than simply saying, 鈥淗ey, walk into Ladd Library, make a hard left and, there are the tutors.鈥�

I don’t think it’s a secret that the fast pace of coursework in the modular calendar this year can feel overwhelming to students. Many feel extremely vulnerable to falling irreparably behind in the space of a day or two. When a student needs our help, they need it now, not tomorrow, and perhaps not even this evening, as opposed to this afternoon. 

We try to be flexible and responsive, not just sticking to our schedule and saying, 鈥淲ell, economics tutoring is tomorrow night. So come back then,鈥� but figuring out a way to find an economics tutor right then and there, if a student needs that. It鈥檚 important to meet that student vulnerability. 

Eric Viera ’18

Eric Viera ’18 is one of three Post-Baccalaureate Fellows for Residence Life and Testing, along with Max Gardner ’20 and Ariel Lam ’20. They were hired to provide additional staff support for the COVID-19 Testing Center, located in Underhill Arena, and for programs for Residence Life and Health Education.

The fall semester was a difficult adjustment for students, to say the least. For us, it was important to recognize that the pandemic affected each student differently. Comprehending the nuanced differences in experience and emotions across the student body has been essential to how we have supported them.

Our job in the Testing Center is mainly to ensure that no students miss tests without adequate reason. In the case of missed tests, we initially went straight to disciplining the student; however, as the semester progressed, we began to realize that no one was going out of their way to miss tests. 

So we tried to create a positive feedback loop: rewarding students for testing rather than focusing on punishing for missing tests.

Another job is to support students who are in-room quarantine through the contact-tracing program, delivering care packages and letting them know that we are open and available to help them in any way possible. It wasn鈥檛 long ago that the three of us were 乐播传媒 students, it is easy for us to put ourselves in their shoes and do little things to help them through this challenging period.

Students seem to be seeking a lot more guidance from staff this year. That鈥檚 not an outlandish notion because our COVID-19 protocols limit who they can associate with on a daily basis. 

So our door in Chase Hall is always open for students if they want just to talk and take their minds off being a student during a global pandemic.

A groundskeeper helps to create and maintain outdoor spaces for students. A laboratory assistant prepares instruction and instruments for students as she fills their once-bustling environment with background music. 

A financial aid counselor works with students and their families to alleviate stress. And an associate multifaith chaplain provides students with opportunities for spiritual reflection and social action.

Whether students are feeling down, or need help getting their feet back on the ground, they get the support they need from 乐播传媒 staff, whose work helps position students for success in their work with the equally talented and devoted 乐播传媒 faculty.

Each week for the next four weeks, we鈥檒l continue to share three or four portraits of 乐播传媒 staff members who have responded to the needs of our students during a time of crisis. Totaling 21 staffers, from 19 different college offices, these 乐播传媒 people rise to the challenge when students need somebody 鈥� not just anybody.

Lorna Clark

An assistant in instruction in the Department of Chemistry, Lorna Clark works closely with students, setting up laboratory experiments and training students on how to use various instruments.

Assistants in instruction spend a lot of time helping students learn techniques and methods in the laboratory. Being close by is a big part of the job, but that became a challenge when we had to physically distance in the lab. I鈥檓 here to help, but the guidelines mean I can鈥檛 be right beside them to help them with an instrument or an experiment as I normally would. 

That meant the bar got raised quite a bit for students. They really needed to understand what they were doing when they came into the lab. To help with that, our faculty, Jen [Koviach-C么t茅] and Andrew [Kennedy], made videos of every single laboratory experiment we were doing. By watching the videos, students could see exactly what they were coming into the lab to do.

To physically distance, we went from 24 students down to 11 in the lab. Under ordinary circumstances, students feed off each other 鈥� they really work with each other to figure things out. When we went to 11, with everybody spaced out, that became very challenging. 

With just 11 students physically distanced, it also got quiet in the lab, almost unsettling. I missed all the chatter. So we started playing music, not as a distraction, but more as background so it just wasn’t dead silence. It helps students just relax.

I鈥檓 usually smiling behind my mask. I think about how I believe in science, how I鈥檓 just so thankful that soon we鈥檒l be out of this mess because of science. There鈥檒l be a time where it will be back to somewhat normal, and I can鈥檛 wait.

Raymond Clothier

As the Associate Multifaith Chaplain, Raymond Clothier works with students to plan activities that create space for conversation, art, reflection, and social action. He also meets with students, faculty, and staff for private conversation and spiritual care.  

Realizing that big group meetings would no longer be possible, I envisioned a new program called Thresholds that offers small groups of students ways to find belonging and community at transitional points in their college careers.

The groups have themes, like 鈥淭elescope,鈥� about personal history and identity; 鈥淗orizons,鈥� about integrating new experiences into your daily life; and 鈥淭ouchstones,鈥� to help students cultivate inner peace.

I had fun working with two of our Multifaith Fellows who dreamed up an online meeting based on the 鈥溾�� popularized by The New York Times. I don鈥檛 know if any of the students fell in love, but they felt less alone. I also attached a ping pong net to the conference room table belonging to our colleagues at the Harward Center next door, but please don鈥檛 tell them.

This year, I鈥檝e learned how surprisingly difficult it is for first-year students to make friends. That is especially true with masks and COVID restrictions, but it contributes to the loneliness that many college students feel every year. 乐播传媒 staff do a remarkable job of offering programming, but the way we live today 鈥� always looking down at our phones 鈥� keeps people from looking up to see others. 

It鈥檚 not cheery to say, I have noticed more sadness and a general lack of joy. Maybe springtime and traditional events, like senior thesis bindings, will help bring back some joy. If not, there is ping pong in the Harward Center conference room.

Nina Hicks

Nina Hicks is a student financial services counselor in the Office of Student Financial Services. She helps students and families navigate the process of applying for financial aid, loans, and understanding their account statements and payment options.

Like many staff members, I鈥檝e been working remotely during the pandemic. That has meant a big increase in email and phone conversations, especially during the school year.

At the same time, many students and their families are, very understandably, under a lot of stress, both financially and emotionally. 

For me and my colleagues at Student Financial Services, it means being extra focused on being available to quickly respond to inquiries, and offer assistance, as much as we are able. It means building relationships based on trust and, hopefully, helping to alleviate some of the stress they are feeling.

Our 乐播传媒 students and families have been wonderful throughout this entire pandemic challenge. My SFS colleagues and I look forward to our continued work with our 乐播传媒 community as we all work through these unusual and challenging times.

Timothy Kivus

Timothy Kivus and his fellow groundskeepers with Facility Services have helped 乐播传媒 provide more outdoor opportunities for students, either by setting up furniture or clearing snow from Garcelon Field, a space that he 鈥� and 乐播传媒 students 鈥� have dubbed 鈥淕arcelon Beach.鈥�

Garcelon Field is nearly a year-round space. Students eat there, play sports here, and have fun at night there. I enjoy watching the students on Garcelon Field. I鈥檓 so glad that they can be out here.

That鈥檚 what we鈥檙e doing: Helping the increased need for outside life during the pandemic. We鈥檝e added more outside seating, for hanging out and eating. We鈥檝e added more under-canopy seating. I think students have really enjoyed these opportunities. 

But some things have changed, such as the maintenance underneath the Library Arcade, where students often eat. With to-go dining in throwaway containers, there鈥檚 been more outside trash, and that鈥檚 now a really big factor on campus.  

When we plow Garcelon Field 鈥� it has a turf surface 鈥� we use three vehicles. I use a pickup truck with a plastic blade to push the snow to the edge. The Bobcat skid-steer grabs the snow and pushes it through the gate. The loaders grab the snow and pile it on the edge.

During the last 10 years, we鈥檝e noticed that it鈥檚 a lot better to plow it every storm than it is to wait to let it build up before plowing it. Luckily, this was a very mild winter, and so it was easy to take care of.

A technology support specialist creates safe ways for students to solve their computer problems. A technical director for theater and dance finds a surprising way to provide offstage guidance.

And an associate director at the Center for Purposeful Work and her colleagues respond to the pandemic by doubling down, being even 鈥渕ore engaged, more intentional, more thoughtful, more 辫耻谤辫辞蝉别蹿耻濒.鈥�

Whether students are feeling down, or need help getting their feet back on the ground, they get the support they need from the 乐播传媒 staff, whose work helps position students for success in their work with the equally talented and devoted 乐播传媒 faculty.

Each week for the next five weeks, we鈥檒l continue to share three portraits of 乐播传媒 staff members who have responded to the needs of our students during a time of crisis. Totaling 21 staffers, from 19 different college offices, these 乐播传媒 people rise to the challenge when students need somebody 鈥� not just anybody.

Keith Hord

A technology support specialist at the Help Desk in Ladd Library, Keith Hord manages 25 students who work in-person and remotely to triage and answer technology questions from the entire campus community.

Like so many businesses and operations everywhere, the pandemic has forced the Help Desk to develop no-touch services. So when someone brings their computer or phone or other device to the Help Desk, we can help them with software issues without touching the device. All they need to do is plug a single cord into the computer and we can control it in a safe environment. 

We鈥檝e also created and support a virtual desktop infrastructure for our 乐播传媒 clients. VDI allows students to gain remote access to a computer 鈥� one that might have special, proprietary software 鈥� without needing to physically visit a computer lab. 

With users interacting with us in different ways, we鈥檝e tried to simplify what can be complicated steps for some technology solutions, creating easy-to-follow instructions to expand and evolve our self-service experience.

Effective customer service means you have to meet your client鈥檚 expectations. Before the pandemic, folks expected that they would just stop by the Help Desk and wait in line if necessary. That鈥檚 not safe in a pandemic, so we鈥檝e educated our users to expect that they鈥檒l need to make appointments with us. We鈥檙e also offering more remote support so they don’t need to physically come to the Help Desk at all.

Justin Moriarity

Technical director for the theater and dance departments, Justin Moriarity taught his first theater course at 乐播传媒 during the fall semester, on stage management.

A year ago, on Friday, March 13, we got word that 乐播传媒 would move to remote learning due to the pandemic.

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We returned in the fall to a 鈥宯ew鈥� 鈥寃orld 鈥� where鈥� 鈥�16鈥� 鈥宲eople鈥� 鈥寃ill鈥� 鈥宐e鈥� 鈥宱ur鈥� 鈥宯ew鈥� 鈥宮ax鈥� 鈥宑apacity鈥� 鈥宨n鈥� 鈥孏annett,鈥� 鈥寃here鈥� 鈥宎ir鈥� 鈥宖ist鈥� 鈥宐umps鈥� 鈥宺eplace鈥宒 鈥宼he鈥� 鈥宭ong鈥� 鈥宧eld鈥� 鈥宔mbraces. So it was even more important to do what we do best. Treat鈥� 鈥宔ach student鈥� 鈥宎s鈥� 鈥宎n鈥� 鈥宨ndividual鈥�. Look for鈥� 鈥寃ays鈥� 鈥宼o鈥� 鈥宧elp them succeed, but also encourage鈥� 鈥宼hem鈥� 鈥宼o鈥� step鈥� 鈥宱ut鈥� 鈥宱f鈥� 鈥宼heir鈥� 鈥宑omfort鈥� 鈥寊ones鈥� 鈥宎nd鈥� 鈥宖ail鈥� 鈥宐rilliantly.鈥� 

鈥學ith limited opportunities for in-person performance during the pandemic, I鈥檝e looked 鈥宖or鈥� 鈥宨nnovative ways鈥� to help students 鈥宎pply鈥� 鈥宻ome鈥� 鈥宱f鈥� 鈥宼he鈥� 鈥宑oncepts鈥� 鈥宼o鈥� 鈥宼heir鈥� 鈥宨ndividual鈥� 鈥寃ork鈥� 鈥宎nd鈥� 鈥宲ersonal鈥� 鈥宨nterests.鈥� 鈥�

One example was in October, when two students in 鈥宮y course, 鈥淪tage鈥� Management for the Performing Arts,鈥� were an integral part of a public protest on the Coram Terrace 鈥� a 乐播传媒 place that actually served as a venue for public theater long ago.

Because ideas about power, privilege, and difference are built into this course, as well as anti-racist theater practice, we as a class referenced the student protest and connected it to the specific course content we were studying, event production, along with the larger role that artists play in social movements. 

,鈥� from Broadway for Black Lives Matter, in which Frank Leon Roberts references the role artists play and how we are geared for this type of organizing and presentation of thoughts and ideas. 

To鈥� 鈥宲ut鈥� 鈥宨t鈥� 鈥寁ery鈥� 鈥宻imply,鈥� 鈥孖鈥� 鈥宼ry鈥� 鈥宼o鈥� 鈥宮eet鈥� 鈥宻tudents鈥� 鈥寃here鈥� 鈥宼hey鈥� 鈥宎re鈥� 鈥宎nd鈥� 鈥宺espect鈥� 鈥宎nd鈥� 鈥宧onor鈥� 鈥宼he鈥� 鈥宬nowledge鈥� 鈥宼hey鈥� 鈥宐ring鈥� 鈥宼o鈥� 鈥宼he鈥� 鈥寃ork.鈥� 鈥孖鈥屸�檓 a 鈥実uide鈥� 鈥宱n鈥� 鈥宼he鈥� 鈥宻ide鈥�, 鈥宎s鈥� 鈥宱pposed鈥� 鈥宼o鈥� 鈥宼he鈥� 鈥宻age鈥� 鈥宱n鈥� 鈥宻tage鈥�, 鈥宱ffer鈥宨ng 鈥寃hatever鈥� 鈥宔xpertise鈥� 鈥宎long鈥� 鈥宼he鈥� 鈥宩ourney.鈥� 鈥孖t鈥� 鈥宯ever鈥� 鈥実ets鈥� 鈥宱ld鈥� 鈥宎nd鈥� 鈥宨s鈥� 鈥宎lways鈥� 鈥宺ewarding.鈥� 鈥�

Hoi Ning Ngai

Hoi Ning Ngai is wearing two 乐播传媒 hats these days. She鈥檚 an associate director for employer engagement and business advising for the 乐播传媒 Center for Purposeful Work, and also an interim associate dean with the Office of Intercultural Education.

Our motto at Purposeful Work throughout the pandemic has been, 鈥淲e鈥檙e here for you.鈥� But that鈥檚 always been our motto. We’ve always been responsive to students and their needs, so the pandemic has simply pushed us to be more ourselves than ever before 鈥� more engaged, more intentional, more thoughtful, more purposeful.

Last March, as soon as we learned that 乐播传媒 would move to remote learning, we pivoted everything we did, from in-person to virtual platforms. In some ways, it鈥檚 been a boon. 

Students who are off campus for whatever reason have better access to us and our programs, and we鈥檝e been able to 鈥渂ring to campus鈥� alumni and employers for panels and information sessions without the challenges of travel, time, and cost. We鈥檝e recorded the majority of our programs and placed them on our website for convenient, password-protected access to 乐播传媒 students.

For individual student appointments, we鈥檝e leaned on Zoom for virtual meetings and, to the degree that the weather permits, the outdoors for in-person meetings. I鈥檒l always remember sitting with a student on the porch at Canham House, our headquarters, as freezing rain came down around us last fall. (I鈥檓 pretty weather resilient, but that was my last in-person appointment of the semester!)

I鈥檝e had great Zoom conversations with first-year 乐播传媒 students from China, Pakistan, and other faraway places. I mean, community is community. Even across the screen, we can create that 鈥� at least some of that. 

Students have been doing their best to navigate the new way of life at 乐播传媒 in 2020鈥�21. That said, they鈥檙e simply worn out and Zoomed out 鈥� as all of us are. Their inboxes are overrun, their eyes are strained, all of their days blend together. This isn鈥檛 the college life they signed up for. 

We鈥檙e helping students craft their COVID resilience stories to share with interviewers for internships and jobs.

There are no perfect solutions to any of these challenges, especially when we鈥檙e all experiencing them. What we can do is inject levity when possible, acknowledge the need for rest, listen as students tell us about their struggles, be as responsive as we can be, and connect students to internal and external resources as appropriate. 

As our students look ahead to opportunities where they can hone in on what feels purposeful to them, we鈥檙e helping them craft their COVID resilience stories to share with interviewers for internships and jobs. Interviewers always ask us to talk about how we’ve dealt with unexpected situations 鈥� if the pandemic isn鈥檛 the best example, I’m not sure what is. 

And that’s what we need to help students focus on: The world continues to turn, so they need to show how they鈥檝e faced ongoing uncertainty with critical reflection and thoughtful action. In so many ways, students have been resilient 鈥� we need to help them see and highlight that resilience.

A college psychotherapist helps students understand that it鈥檚 OK not to be OK. A Post & Print supervisor helps make sure each arriving package gets to the right students. A COVID-19 contact tracing director helps students feel comfortable in the face of quarantine.

Whether students are feeling down, or need help getting their feet back on the ground, they get the support they need among the 乐播传媒 staff, whose work helps position students for success in their work with the equally talented and devoted 乐播传媒 faculty.

Each week for the next six weeks, we鈥檒l share three portraits of 乐播传媒 staff members who鈥檝e responded to the needs of our students during a time of crisis. Totaling 21 staffers, from 19 different college offices, these 乐播传媒 people rise to the challenge when students need somebody 鈥� not just anybody.聽

Tonya Bailey-Curry

A licensed clinical social worker, Tonya Bailey-Curry works as a staff therapist for the college鈥檚 Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS). She recognizes that students are coping with two pandemics: COVID-19 and white supremacy.

One of the things that stands out for me most as I reflect on my work with students, especially last semester, is how emotionally dysregulating it can be to try and navigate life in the midst of two pandemics: one being COVID and the other, white supremacy, which reached heights impossible to ignore.  

Working with BIPOC students who I may racially identify with has provided an opportunity to allow them to hopefully feel a sense of comfort while addressing fears that I relate to, as well. 

Lessons learned from the prior year: We have to continue to meet students where they are at. We will continue to remind them that it is OK not to be OK, and continue to hold space for them as they process what that means for their life. Also, I like to remind students that they 鈥� not I 鈥� are the experts in their lives. My role is to walk alongside them and hopefully provide them with some useful tools along their journey.

Lastly, we at CAPS always try to elevate the importance of students using their voices, in all aspects of their lives, including their experience in therapy.  Often students are spoken for and not with. The decisions made thereafter may be with great intention but result in harmful impact, so self-advocacy is essential. If there was ever a time for student voice, it鈥檚 now 鈥� people are listening, we’re listening.

I feel blessed to work with a team of providers who work closely, with great commitment, to support all our students.

Bobby Bosse

Bobby Bosse is supervisor of Mail & Package Services. He oversees the “Post” aspect of Post & Print and manages the facility鈥檚 student employees as they process every package that comes in and out of 乐播传媒.

Things were new for us right off the bat last September: We operated entirely outside, under two tents, for the first month, the busiest time of year. 

That way, we were able to keep maximum distance between us and students, making sure there was no needless exposure by being inside.

Students are staying on campus more and, instead of going off campus to Walmart or Shaw’s to get groceries or other little items, they鈥檙e ordering online. Last fall we saw a lot more grocery and food orders coming from places like Amazon Pantry and Thrive. 

Honestly, they鈥檙e ordering everything: beef jerky, cans of soups, ramen 鈥� just anything you can think of, they will order it all. We’re also seeing an uptick in toiletries coming in as well, most notably razors, from Dollar Shave Club and Harry’s. 乐播传媒 has teamed up with Central Maine Medical Center to make prescription deliveries here so students who used to go to a local pharmacy can come pick up all their prescriptions here.

The trend has continued this winter. During the first 10 days of the semester, we processed and handed out 7,517 packages. Last year during the first 14 days, we handed out 5,398 packages. That鈥檚 nearly a 40 percent increase in a short period of time.

Before leaving campus for winter break, 乐播传媒 asked all students to pack up their rooms in case the college didn’t reopen and their belongings had to be shipped home. Thankfully it didn’t come to that, but we had to be prepared. All students were given three large boxes along with preprinted labels with shipping information about them. This was a completely new project for us, but it went incredibly well.

Ben Walker

A certified athletic trainer with Sports Medicine in the Department of Athletics, Ben Walker transitioned to a new role during Summer 2020 as director of Student-Facing Contact Tracing.

The contact tracing team helps our students stay healthy and safe by ensuring that we are having thorough conversations with students who have tested positive for COVID-19. 

Our goal is to accurately identify students who meet the CDC’s definition of a close contact. By doing this, we help limit the potential spread of COVID-19 and help keep our campus and local community safe. 

Students have lots of stressors in their lives, especially in the last year. The added stress of finding out that you have tested positive or have been a close contact does not make things any easier. The most important trait of a contact tracer is the ability to make a student feel comfortable. We are in the business of delivering un-welcomed news 鈥� sometimes before a student has even gotten out of bed.