Adviser gives insight

By Fabi Sanchez
Reporter
I heard you were new to Crowder.

Yes I am. I just celebrated my one year anniversary.

Why did you decide to come work at Crowder?

Well Crowder has been in my family for a really long time. My dad worked here for over 20 years. I always refer to Crowder as sort of a sibling. I’ve grown up on the campus. I came here and played softball. I love to come back and help students have the same experience that I had.

Do you have a lot of family?

Oh yes! I have kind of a blended family. I have 2 brothers, 2 sisters from different sides of the family, and I have lots of cousins. They have all been involved with Crowder at some point.

What made you decide to become a councilor?

I changed my major a lot, as many students do. I thought I wanted to be a teacher and then I didn’t think I wanted to be a teacher. Then I thought I wanted to do business, but I didn’t really want to do business. When I was a junior at my 4 year, I went to go see my career services advisor. She gave me a few personality tests. It came up that I really like to work with people and that I liked problem solving. We then looked at a couple career options and I thought “Those all sound fun, but I wish I had your job. “After that I got a job at a community college in Springfield and I loved working with students. What I was doing there was more on the advising side and it was so fun to just to see their first steps just like mine. I helped them through things I had struggled with.

Do you have a favorite quote?

Oh dear. It’s not really a quote but I’m a big music person as you can tell. And one of my favorite Lines is from a John Lennon song “Beautiful Boy, Darling Boy”. He had written it for his son. It say “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans” and I think that is just beautiful. So often we forget or focus on our goals, which is great, but we forget to focus on what’s right in front of us right now. I always try to keep that in mind. Especially working here, you see a lot of students that are coming in stressed and they’ve got finals. You just have to put it in perspective. Do your best but calm down and distress.

If you had to describe yourself in 3 words, what would they be?

I would say silly, loving, and I don’t know. That’s a tough one. I don’t know! You can choose between compassionate and awkward.

Do you have any hobbies?

I still try and play sports every now and then. I mainly try to focus on slow pitch now instead of fast pitch. And I definitely feel my age coming into effect. I love music so I love going to concerts. I have a large family, I have 13 nieces and nephews, so I love spending time with the kids. I don’t have any kids yet, so I play with them. We have fun and then I give them back when they’re being ornery. I watch a lot of TV and movies, but that’s about it.
What are some of the biggest challenges in your position?
Helping students who are struggling. The ones who have had some trouble and they are trying to work their way back. I enjoy being encouraging and helping them develop a plan. It is hard when people are suffering academically or they’ve lost financial support.

What would you say is your most significant accomplishment?

As a student when I was here we made it to nationals in softball my freshman year. Only 16 teams make it there, so that was a huge accomplishment. As an advisor it’d just be the little things. I enjoy it when students come by and tell me they love all of their courses. That’s why I’m here! It may not seem like much of an accomplishment, but it’s really great to hear that students are doing well.
Do you have any future goals for yourself?
I’m working on my master’s degree right now and I should graduate in May. I’m hoping that’s the end of school for a while. As far as my job, I really love what I’m doing and that’s all you can really ask for.

Who is your role model and why?

It’s hard to pick just one. I would probably say my grandparents and I don’t think I can pick just one. Have great qualities that are different from one another. My grandpa had multiple sclerosis and he passed away a few years ago. He never ever complained about it. I’m a big complainer and sometimes I have to check myself and ask myself if it is really worth getting upset about. I should always be thankful for what I have. My grandfather was a very compassionate person who helped a lot of people less fortunate than him. He is a person I aspire to be like.

What is your spirit animal?

Oh man! I’ve never really thought about it! My spirit animal is probably a Cockatoo. It’s funky, it’s out there, a little bit weird, and silly looking. It’s a bird so it can be free! I am all of those things.

Do you selfie?

I don’t! I am not a selfier! I am a groupier though! That sounds really weird but I take a lot of selfies with other people, but I rarely ever take selfies alone.

What did you want to be when you were little?

A barefoot water-skier. That is exactly what I wanted to be. Well, it was between that and a water skied meteorologist. Those two things I was pretty sure of. Even though I had never waterskied in my life! I thought it looked pretty easy. I realized pretty quick that should not be my job. I thought about meteorology for a while, because of my fascination with weather and thunderstorms. Tornados started hitting and that was the end of that.

What do you do best?

I would say Listening. I really try to hear individual’s stories and struggles. I try to see the unique sides to people and not just see them as another student.

How do you determine or evaluate success?

It’s different for every person. I think it is whether your meet your goals or not. Also what you expect out of yourself. If it makes you proud at the end of the day, you succeeded.

What is something that is interesting about you?

I’m not that interesting! My favorite color is tie-dye and some people don’t believe it’s a color, but it is! My husband gets so mad and says it isn’t a color, but it is. I can also sing every Beatles song by heart. I know every single word.

Would you consider yourself a people person?

I would definitely consider myself as a people person. That’s why I love what I do here!