Posted August 30, 2012 by Sarah Stroud

Back to School

It is back-to-school time. Are you feeling like you have gone from zero to 100 in 24 hours? It always seems like it just surprises us every year. When you go from around 24,000 people in your building in five days to more than 70,000 the following week, it is a wake up call for everyone.

The beginning of the year is always a great time. You see the new and returning faces, and everyone is excited. But as operations and programming professionals, we are on edge during this week, too, wondering how the building will hold up to the influx and how the programs will be received.

You’ve trained your staff, you have had your final meetings, and now we are off and running. Were you prepared?

As a new professionals, what has been your biggest surprise so far with the first week of classes or Welcome Week?

For those seasoned professionals, what has made this year different than the others?

Welcome back, everyone!

Filed Under: Daily Operations

Sarah Stroud is the Assistant Director, Administration and Support at University of North Carolina–Charlotte.

Sarah Stroud has been at the University of North Carolina–Charlotte since 2007. In her current position as assistant director, administration and support services, she oversees student employee hiring, onboarding, and training; union assessment; and social media. Prior to her current role, she oversaw the transition process during construction of the student union, which opened in 2009. Most recently, Sarah has served as the2011 conference co-chair for Region 5. In her “free” time, she can be found out at the ball fields watching her three new step-daughters play. She was married in August 2011.

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Comments

We switched to semesters this year, and personally I am working with a new group of staff members in a different area than where I was last year. All of that made for an exciting new opening, seeing the "same" events from a different perspective, and helping and being helped by different people, many of whom saw our opening pace for the first time. Now that we're in the midst of it, the switch from quarters doesn't see, to have brought the pain and drama that some might have anticipated!

Jeff Pelletier
pelletier.12@osu.edu

Comment posted 08/30/2012 9:57 AM