Posted 4:17 p.m. Sunday, April 7, 2024
Former student employees reflect on their time at UWL
By Jamie Henk, University Centers communications specialist
National Student Employment Week is April 7-13 — a chance to celebrate the many student employees, past and present, who contribute to the success of UWL.
We interviewed five former University Centers employees to learn more about their student employment experience.
While everyone’s experience is unique, many jobs in University Centers are people-focused, involving frequent interaction with students and colleagues. In fact, each of the five former students we interviewed mentioned the people as one of their favorite parts of the job.
“I remember coming in and being just a newbie,” says Mark Moralez, a University Event Support (now Audio Visual Lighting Services) student from 2015 to 2019. “I can still name that whole first initial staff team – there were about 10 of them. How they all messed with each other. I am still friends with all of them on social media. Different bosses, coworkers. It was a really wholesome environment to work in.“
Spencer Contreras, who worked as a graphic designer in the COVE Graphics Garage from January 2017 to December of that year, shared a similar experience.
“It was my final year in college,” Contreras says. “At that point, you kind of already have your friend group and stuff. Maybe you'll meet new people in classes. But it was nice to meet people from different areas of school, especially later in school. I was able to meet people from completely different parts of the university, so I think I like that a lot, just in general.”
Ellen Kurth, who was part of the set-up crew for Valhalla and The Bluffs from 2016 to 2019, said: “It helped me meet more people (during college). Then after college, working with people and working with people who have different ways of problem solving and thinking.”
Chandler Sullivan was also on The Bluffs set-up crew, from 2018 to 2020. Sullivan said: “It definitely was a highlight of the job to be able to just work with other people my age and hang out with them for that time being, but also get to know them. And then, you know, you just realized, ‘Oh! We're all doing this together.’ ”
While working with their peers, students gain experience with interpersonal relationships and being part of a team.
Kelsi Faust, a University Centers admin student from 2015 to 2018, remembers growing close to her co-workers and supervisor.
“Even though we weren't necessarily best friends outside of work, they became really close friends at work,” Faust says. “And that was just really nice, and actually, I'm still friends with Tricia (Aleckson). She went from being my boss and a mentor, (to someone) I now consider a friend. She was at my wedding.”
Faust isn’t the only one who became close with her supervisor. Kurth says her boss, Gary Ellis, was a welcoming face who was always willing to listen.
“He was always very open and accepting,” Kurth says. “He would tell us that if we had nowhere to go for Thanksgiving, we were always welcome at his house.” Chandler echoed a similar sentiment.
“Gary, he's just such a genuinely nice person. But on top of that, he really set the tone for how a supervisor should be treating you — just making sure that everyone got equal time on shifts, and that if we were unhappy about something, we could come and talk to him and be open about it. He just always cared about who you are personally and how work is going, which I think is great. It really helped us be a better team.”
While supervisors can make or break your job experience, they can also help you outside of work. Faust noticed the work her colleagues did each day, which made her curious about a career in higher education. Aleckson, her supervisor, sent her to the right people to discuss a career in higher education.
“I spoke to Tricia about my interest, and she did not necessarily have a master's degree in higher education, so she connected me with Michael [Slevin] because he did have his master's degree,” Faust says. “We met, and he spoke about the route he went, what he would do differently if he were to do it again. His advice and suggestions made me decide that I wanted to go into higher education. So Tricia definitely helped mentor me and give me a hand off on what I wanted to do with my career.”
Ultimately, Faust earned her doctorate in education, and she is now an adjunct professor for Caroll University and UW-Milwaukee, and academic advisor for public health and nutrition students at UWM.
Faust is not the only one to pursue an advanced degree. Moralez is currently a PhD student, studying educational leadership and policy analysis. Being involved on campus allowed Mark to meet people who remain in his personal network today.
“I met a lot of people just through being involved, always being in Cartwright and the Union,” Moralez says. “I was able to network and build connections. I still hold true that being involved on campus is so important to the college experience.”
Student employment can also offer beneficial experiences in your chosen career path. Contreras, who is currently working as a graphic designer, said: “It's a good real-world experience. At least (with)graphic design, it can be challenging, especially in college before you have a degree, to find a job doing graphic design in any real, serious way outside of your own personal projects.”
When asked what advice they would give to current students considering working on campus, every interviewee highly recommended the experience.
Learn more about student employment opportunities with University Centers.
And whether or not you plan to work on campus, consider making University Centers part of your college experience.