Nominations and Confirmations June 2018
This past academic year was brutal on a lot of fronts. Things really got painful at the end of the year when 3 beloved colleagues announced they are leaving. Another who is even closer is likely to end too. This got me to thinking about whether I wanted to slog on amidst so much bullshit. And that led to applying to different jobs.
One of them was still in higher education and involved directing the women's and gender studies' programs throughout the UW system. No word on that, but I'm proud of how assertively I handled the application process.
The other (so far at least) was as a trainer in a corporate setting. As a friend put it, this company is basically the empire of their field. They have a reputation for hiring trainers fresh out of college who in turn leave the company pretty quickly. I liked the thought of teaching something so even though the position didn't call for teaching or corporate experience, I applied anyway since I actually have both. I got an email within a few hours saying they were interested and wanted to set up a phone interview. I had to take an online personality test, sign up for a 2 hr online assessment, and have a 30 minute phone interview.
I took the personality test a few days ago. I actually enjoyed the interview. The interviewer was a trainer who's been in the role for 15 years. She has 2 kids and a spouse in higher ed. I liked a lot of what I heard but I inwardly balked at the thought that someone with 15 years of experience who lives very close to the facility describes herself as having a very busy life. I doubted whether it was worth taking the online skills assessment (that involves a webcam, mirror, and calculator!). I canceled the online assessment this morning with a lot of confident but a few twinges of doubt that I did the right thing.
Then later this morning I procrastinated by exploring friends of friends on Facebook and stumbled upon the outside field rep I worked with at Viracon, JJ. It swept me back to my days in international business when I described myself as "JJ's Asia bitch" because I had so little autonomy or agency in the role. JJ got all the support and accolades. I got all the paperwork and filing.
And finally, I got an email seeking nominations for Latino community leaders in Rockford for an award offered by the YWCA. I immediately thought of a student who's minoring in French and went to Paris with me in January. She is high achieving, a student athlete, serves in leadership roles in student organizations, participates in numerous others, built homes for Habitat for Humanity during spring break, holds down a part-time job, AND handles a lot of caregiving for her family.
I filled out the nomination form and got to the part where it costs $65/person to attend the awards banquet. I'm pretty sure RU paid for some people to go last year. I just emailed Spanish professors, the director of student life, the dean of students, the VP of academic affairs, and her advisor to make a case for the university nominating her (rather than just me) and paying for a corporate table for 8 people to go.
And THAT'S when I knew ditching the corporate option was indeed a VERY good decision. I'm sure I could be supportive of colleagues and eventually become a mentor at that company, but I doubt it would have the same resonance as helping a young Mexican-American woman get the recognition she deserves for overcoming some incredible obstacles and being an amazing, inspiring human.
One of them was still in higher education and involved directing the women's and gender studies' programs throughout the UW system. No word on that, but I'm proud of how assertively I handled the application process.
The other (so far at least) was as a trainer in a corporate setting. As a friend put it, this company is basically the empire of their field. They have a reputation for hiring trainers fresh out of college who in turn leave the company pretty quickly. I liked the thought of teaching something so even though the position didn't call for teaching or corporate experience, I applied anyway since I actually have both. I got an email within a few hours saying they were interested and wanted to set up a phone interview. I had to take an online personality test, sign up for a 2 hr online assessment, and have a 30 minute phone interview.
I took the personality test a few days ago. I actually enjoyed the interview. The interviewer was a trainer who's been in the role for 15 years. She has 2 kids and a spouse in higher ed. I liked a lot of what I heard but I inwardly balked at the thought that someone with 15 years of experience who lives very close to the facility describes herself as having a very busy life. I doubted whether it was worth taking the online skills assessment (that involves a webcam, mirror, and calculator!). I canceled the online assessment this morning with a lot of confident but a few twinges of doubt that I did the right thing.
Then later this morning I procrastinated by exploring friends of friends on Facebook and stumbled upon the outside field rep I worked with at Viracon, JJ. It swept me back to my days in international business when I described myself as "JJ's Asia bitch" because I had so little autonomy or agency in the role. JJ got all the support and accolades. I got all the paperwork and filing.
And finally, I got an email seeking nominations for Latino community leaders in Rockford for an award offered by the YWCA. I immediately thought of a student who's minoring in French and went to Paris with me in January. She is high achieving, a student athlete, serves in leadership roles in student organizations, participates in numerous others, built homes for Habitat for Humanity during spring break, holds down a part-time job, AND handles a lot of caregiving for her family.
I filled out the nomination form and got to the part where it costs $65/person to attend the awards banquet. I'm pretty sure RU paid for some people to go last year. I just emailed Spanish professors, the director of student life, the dean of students, the VP of academic affairs, and her advisor to make a case for the university nominating her (rather than just me) and paying for a corporate table for 8 people to go.
And THAT'S when I knew ditching the corporate option was indeed a VERY good decision. I'm sure I could be supportive of colleagues and eventually become a mentor at that company, but I doubt it would have the same resonance as helping a young Mexican-American woman get the recognition she deserves for overcoming some incredible obstacles and being an amazing, inspiring human.
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