What is your routine for the first few hours of your day?
I'm an avid Peloton rider, so my day usually starts with a short ride of 15-20 minutes. Then it's off to the kid races with breakfast, lunch packing, and getting out the door. When I get to the office, I grab a cup of coffee if I didn't stop on the way in for a coffee and a bagel, and then check my calendar and read through the previous night’s emails.
What is the last thing you read, watched, or listened to that changed your perspective?
I've had the wonderful opportunity through my professional development goals over the last two years to attend Disney Institutes. Currently, I'm reading one of the books I received as a part of the most recent institute I attended on leadership excellence; the book is Be Our Guest, which I've read before from a different lens, not as a Disney enthusiast and not as someone in an educational setting. I ran across a section talking about how people enter the Magic Kingdom Park in Orlando. It's organized like a movie theatre: ticketing, turnstiles, a lobby, advertisements for future experiences or movies, and fresh popcorn. It's all about the picture you paint that creates the experience. When I think about the work I do in recruitment and selection, my colleagues are relying on me to paint the picture through our marketing and advertisements to draw students to the RA role. I am also relying on our current RAs to talk about their experiences and provide a screening of sorts for the role itself. I thought it was a really creative way to look at the work I do and who the key players are day-to-day.
What is one piece of advice you wish you had received earlier in your career?
I learned that "no" is a full and complete sentence. I spent the better part of the first 10 years of my career saying “yes” to almost everything: every person, every experience, every exception people were asking of me. My previous experiences both in and out of housing, being a parent, and my current experience working in a fairly nuanced world of selection and training means that the word “no” can be heard quite often. It might be budget, it might be capacity, it might be scheduling, or it might be the priorities of the department or the university. I used to think that saying "no" meant that there was something wrong with me as a professional, and now I know that it doesn't and sometimes it's necessary.
What is your favorite campus dining hall meal?
I'm a lover of dining hall chicken tenders and mashed potatoes. And it could be at any dining hall at any school I've worked at. Add a side salad, Coke Zero or Sweet Tea, and some soft-serve ice cream, and honestly, it's a dream. Double bonus that I didn't have to cook it.
What is something that someone has done for you lately for which you were most grateful?
It's not work related, but for my birthday in April my partner asked me what I wanted, and I told them a night in a hotel room alone with silence (unless I wanted noise) and 24 full hours where I didn't have to make a single decision involving anyone else. With such a busy schedule between work, my partner working on their certificate, and managing family tasks, it can be a lot. So, a full night away where I had no responsibilities and only had to worry about me was absolutely glorious.
What was your favorite class from your days as a student? How do you still use the lessons or knowledge from it today?
Outside of classes related to my master’s degree, my undergrad was in mass communications, specifically audio production, where we were required to take a voice and diction class. I use the techniques learned in that class almost daily in public speaking. Also, it made me a really good storyteller, which is what I'm well known for on campus.
What tool (real or metaphorical) does every campus housing pro need to know how to use, and when was the last time you used it?
A measuring tape: I used one last week on a trip to make sure my kiddo was tall enough for a new ride at our favorite theme park.
What is your favorite tradition from any campus where you have worked?
I've worked at two universities that have cardboard boat races as a staple part of their celebratory weeks of events. It was always so interesting to see what the students came up with and how they did (or didn't) float with someone in the boat and what they would use as paddles because they also had to be made primarily out of cardboard. I worked at a mainly engineering school for four years, and every year it was one of the neatest things to see just what they would come up with.
What ACUHO-I event or resource did you utilize recently? What was the situation?
I do a lot of reading on the Open Forum discussion board. I haven't had a significant opportunity to contribute to the things others have proposed, but it has given me a lot of ideas for things in my role that have been really helpful.
What hobby would you pursue if time and money were no object?
I'm a self-proclaimed Disney enthusiast. Every vacation right now . . . that's where you'll find me. I'd love to visit every park in the world; Tokyo Disney Sea is on my bucket list, as is Disneyland Paris.
What song do you count on to hype you up to start the day or help you celebrate at the end of a long one?
“Ready for It?” by Taylor Swift. I can honestly go for anything with a beat, and this song has been my absolute jam lately.
Deb Padgett is the program manager for resident assistant recruitment, selection, and training at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.