Today's Update: Friday, July 19, 2024
July 19, 2024
Dear Student Life team,
Happy High Five Friday.
We’re just about a month away from Move-In and Welcome Week and I know we are all busy getting ready for the start of the new academic year. Take a deep breath, and here we go Bucks)!
It’s good to be back to giving High Fives, and I’ll start with one to Housing and Residence Education (HRE) as they work through housing assignment notifications, and a special call-out to Katie Girouard, Christy Blessing, Gabi Bockelman and Jason Holbrook for their work on various aspects of Orientation.
High Five to the HRE team as well for continuing to roll out aspects of their residential curriculum. The newest addition is the Buckeye Blueprint, to be used by live-in staff to plan and outline what they hope students will learn by living in their communities. High Five also to Robbyn Ireland and Katie Girouard for serving as resources and support to the student team members in their main office. And High Five to the Lincoln Tower 950 student team members who serve as the first point of contact for many of our students and their families, especially this summer. In one afternoon, they had more than 200 phone calls with questions on room changes, new contracts, deadlines, roommates and more.
And the HRE team offers a High Five to Leah Hall of Human Resources, saying, “She often goes above and beyond and often exceeds our expectations. She is awesome!”
Also in Human Resources, High Five to Hina Nisar for helping a partner strategize and think through some important decisions.
There have been SO many people who have been instrumental in helping with Orientation. A staff member who attended one of the sessions nominates Adam Specht of Parent and Family Relations for a High Five, impressed with how he “carefully explained how parents can stay informed using Buckeye Family Connection, putting it in relatable terms,” calling Adam “an engaging speaker who helped parents feel at ease.”
Josh Bodnar and the BuckID team get High Fives for their work on the Medical Center’s BuckID go-live this week. Special High Fives to Nathan Bidwell who installed the equipment in the late afternoon/early evening last Friday so it was ready to go on Monday. High Fives as well to Spencer Litzenberger and Tyler Wynkoop for being onsite at the Med Center for several days during the transition, and to Mike Koren of Student Life Technology Services for his support throughout this process.
High Five to Jeremy Gabis for being so thoughtful about space and talking through options for various spaces with a colleague recently.
Buckeye Careers has a new teammate just starting. High Fives to Paul Newell and Kristen Hill for going above and beyond to make sure the office was clean and ready for him on his first day.
High Five to Gabe Simms with University Catering for a last-minute assist with moving some items across campus. His willingness to help his colleagues in a time of need was extremely admirable.
This week Counseling and Consultation Service held the bi-annual Community Provider Open House, an event where off-campus clinicians come here to learn about support services and to further develop relationships to enhance mental health support for students. The day was a huge success and included several presentations to the providers. High Fives to the planning committee of Amy Young, Jennifer Lang, Anna Kelly, Stephanie Fowler, Monica Clagg and Kyler Apgar. Brandi Burton, Ashley Cooley, Jennifer Lang and Shawn Lucas get High Fives for providing a presentation on care management services. High Fives as well to the panel on campus resources, including Brendan Greisberger, Janele Bayless, Mackenzie Hogan, Sheila Westendorf, Molly R. Hegarty, Madalyn Lyons, Courtney McCrary, Jackie von Spiegel, Caroline Omolesky and Meredith Hilke. And High Fives to Shivani Edwards, I-Shan Yang, Cheryl James, Bansari Thakkar and Jing Wen Ong for their presentation on “Ethical Considerations for Effective Mental Health Treatment with International Students in Higher Education.”
Finally, you shouldn’t wonder if we make a difference in the lives of our students. We do!! The Center for the Study of Student Life administers the Graduation Survey every semester, asking new grads about their experiences as a Buckeye. One of the questions is "Which faculty member or university administrator had the most significant influence on you during your student experience?" 50 members of our team were specifically mentioned. High Fives to Felix Alonso, Rena Bankston, Paul Bellini, James Berry, Will Cangialosi, Seneca Crump, Teri Cugliari, Dave DeAngelo, Chrisse Edmunds, Frida Gillespie, Adrienne Gladish, Danny Glassmann, Darreon Greer, Brendan Greisberger, Megan Haddock, Hunter Hartwig, Brandon Horton, Ahmed Hosni, Rebecca Kapusta, Kathryn Krajnak, James MacGregor, Charity Martin-King, Julius Mayo, Erin McAlhaney, Caitlyn McCandless, Benjamin McKinley, Mitchell Miceli, Emily Murphy, Peter Oduwole, Brooke Olson, Shana Parker, John Price, Michaela Pullen-Kellogg, Pasha Sergeev, Cassie Smith, Zach Snyder, Lauren Rose Strand, Tracy Stuck, Ali Talcott, Krista Talstein, Nancy Thompson, Kellie Uhrig, Katie Urban, Cristina Vega, Mercedes Wallace, Leah Wheeler, Candyce Williams and Tyler Wynkoop.
Have a Scarlet and Great weekend!
Melissa S. Shivers, PhD
Senior Vice President for Student Life
The Ohio State University