This year has been full of unexpected twists and turns and has required our student employees to adapt in unexpected ways. Now, more than ever, they have stepped up to the plate to do what must be done.

This year, during National Student Employment Week #DePaulNSEW2021, we’d like to take a minute to acknowledge and thank all the student employees who have continued to work on campus this past year to keep DePaul’s essential services running. Here are just a few examples:

As a Front Desk Receptionist in the Housing Department, Sid Maurya has regular contact with students living in the residence halls while he checks their IDs and enforces housing policies. However, with the masks and Plexiglass partitions, Sid is able to complete his job safely. 

“Thankfully, DePaul Housing Operations has been able to successfully carry out in-person work by taking proper precautionary measures and making a safe work environment for its employees.”

As a lab specialist in the Idea Realization Lab, Meg plays a key role in developing and conducting equipment training and authorization sessions. She also hosts craft workshops for students and visitors to the Makerspace. In addition to her normal responsibilities, Meg helped the alumni relations team this year by making custom masks for DePaul alumni.

“Working on campus gave me a sense of normalcy that I needed this year. I was excited to see my coworkers again. Even though the campus overall was quiet, I had great interactions with the building staff and other student employees.”

Ally West has been working in Membership Services and as an Entrance Attendant at The Ray for a year and a half now. She helps with membership sign up and providing information to patrons as well as checking people in and checking out equipment. Cleaning responsibilities have also been added to Ally’s role due to COVID-19.

“I transferred to DePaul at the start of my Junior year, so I have been so thankful to be working at the Ray because it has given me on-campus experience that I would not have gotten otherwise during the pandemic. Our student employees and professional staff are just amazing and I don’t know what I would have done without those friends and community at The Ray.”

At The Ray, Rachel Stansberry works as an Entrance Attendant and a Fitness Floor Supervisor. Though she started there as a freshman, she moved into her current roles after the first pandemic-related shutdown of the facility. Part of her job is to make sure the patrons of The Ray are following COVID-19 policies, like reminding them to wear their masks properly.

“I’ve found that working on campus this past year has been refreshing. It provides me with a social life that I am unable to achieve elsewhere during a pandemic, so it was definitely nice to be able to talk to people in person again. While at times it can be stressful because of the random closures or new policies, I am glad I have been able to work in the past year.”

Hector has been working as a Facilities Assistant in the Housing Department for two years now for which he facilitates residence hall move-ins by providing residents their keys once they move in. Due to the pandemic, move-ins were contactless this year for residents who needed to quarantine. For Hector’s team, this meant appointment-only move-ins and key pick-ups with masks and social distancing.

“I feel safe working on campus with all of the measures that are in place for safety and having some sense of community on campus with the team.”