- Gained contractual experience
- Established rapport with office personnel
- Attended staff meeting
- Brainstormed with Career Services
Reflection:
As you can tell from my list of activities, things have certainly picked up at MUW the last few weeks. I have been able to tell a total transformation in my role as the summer intern. During the month of June, I had no set hours that I was working at the W because of my crazy schedule of events here at MSU. Now that Orientation season is over, I have been able to reap the benefits that come with an internship. I have set blocks of time each DAY that I am able to go to the W and that has allowed for my supervisor to plan more activities or grant me more duties. Now that we both know each other's schedules each day, we are able to work together.
One of my main tasks this past week was to review contracts that Katie had drawn up for the 2012-2013 schedule of events. I have no previous experience working with contracts, so I jumped at this opportunity. My duty was to highlight specifications in the riders that had to be handled by MUW. For example, if an artist required a room temperature bottle of water, beef jerky, and only green M&Ms upon arrival for their event, I had to highlight that so Katie would know to have that prepared. This was an eye-opening experience. I read every contract from start to finish. Katie spent time with me explaining how contracts worked and what to look out for and how to negotiate with artists, agents, and companies. Although I definitely got the beginner's level of this feat, I am still grateful for the experience.
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| Katie is very organized in every aspect. This is the binder that keeps all the sacred contractual information. |
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| Lesson in contracts: no two are alike. Ever. |
I was so thankful for the opportunity to attend a staff meeting. Thanks to Katie, I was given the chance to sit at the table with them and listen to their discussions. There was no censorship just because of my presence, and I appreciated that. Flapp, the Director of Student Life, included me in all conversations, probed me during discussions, and caught me up to speed as if I were a new employee. I definitely appreciated being treated as one of the team instead of the observant intern who occasionally takes pictures for her blog.
When I was initially invited to attend the staff meeting, I got a few butterflies in my stomach. Immediately I began to wonder who all would be in there, would they accept me, did I need to have something prepared, but the moment I walked through Flapp's office door, I realized I could relax a little. The staff meeting was professional yet relaxed, heavy in topics but light in discussion. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I was immediately immersed in talks of budgets, events, new and upcoming initiatives taken by the staff members and how those were helping the student body, administrative expectations, and so-on and so-forth. At one point in the discussion, Flapp looked at me and said, "This is what you have to look forward to the rest of your life in Student Affairs". I couldn't have been more pleased. Every person in the room took turns brainstorming, asking for help, advising, and reporting. It was inspiring to see a setting where everyone had a voice. It was also inspirational to observe Flapp's administrative skills. Ever since I took Admin last spring semester, I have picked up on certain qualities of administrators and their style of leadership. I admire Flapp's style. Yes, he is the main voice of the office, but just from one staff meeting I can tell that he listens to every voice in that office, students and staff alike, before giving the ultimate say-so to the administrators.
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| Four people make up a staff meeting. I loved being a part of the roundtable discussion. |
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| Happy to be change agents for MUW! |
The staff meeting not only gave me the opportunity to learn about the issues that the Office of Student Life is facing, but it also put my foot in the door for establishing rapport with a few of the staff members that I had not yet met. After the meeting, I had relationships with both Flapp's Assistant, Amanda, and Towanda from Career Services. Amanda makes everything happen in the office. If you need a report pulled, she's got it. If you are locked out of your office, she has the key. If you need any information whatsoever, she's the person to get it from, so needless to say I was thankful to have her as a new friend in the office. Because I landed an internship at the Career Center at MSU this upcoming fall semester, I was especially pleased to be able to chat with Towanda on the topic. Later in the week, she called my office requesting my presence in her office on the fourth floor. Having no idea what she could want with me since Katie was out of the office that day, I became a little anxious. I was so pleased when she asked for my opinions regarding a new technological program they are trying to instill before the fall semester. I attended a conference call with her and the company's representative since I knew more about smartphone usage and was more in touch with the demographic. This was an exciting opportunity and I was so thrilled that she thought of having me there. She could have asked any of the countless student workers to help her out, but she chose me because she knew I was interning and she, as well as everyone else in the office, wanted to expose me to something that I may deal with during my professional career.
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| I happened to be the first to arrive one morning. Locked out. |
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| Just look at those smiles. This is an everyday visual outside of my office |
In closing, I would like to point out that just within a 2 week period I have come to love the Office of Student Life on a whole other level. I have seen the culture established between administration and the department. I have observed Flapp's administrative style. I have handled contracts and seen another side of student activities that I had not see before. I have been involved in the planning process for upcoming events that partner activities with career services, and, most importantly, I have made more connections with officemates. I am beginning to feel more and more included in everyday tasks, and I can only hope that my friendship with these people continues even after this month is over. I feel like I have just gotten started and it's already the home stretch. I cannot wait to see what the rest of this month holds for me to learn!
-Brooke Collins
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