Reflections

It took some convincing to get the entire full-time team on board. We definitely were breaking new ground as we removed many restrictions that had been placed on students for as long as we've had students. The results have been outstanding. Each student was given a specific job to do. First we re-evaluated what the students were responsible to do. Each full-time employee who had a student assistant was asked to review their responsibilities and consider what things a student could be doing. They were then encouraged to pass these things on to their student assistants. For the front desk employees, we divided their duties among each of them, creating e Lead and Co-Lead position and the rest would specialize in different tasks. For instance, in stead of having all students focus on the directory, we assigned one student to be the directory student. In doing this we were able to add 2 additional positions to our student team and this Fall we will be adding one more. 

 

We had our plan, now we had to make it work. Each full-time employee was instructed to meet with their student assistants one-on-one on a regular basis to follow-up on projects and create a platform for better communication. As I oversee the front desk function, I was tasked to meet with a large number of students. It took some getting used to at first, but as it became a regular, these have become the highlight of my position. I have been able to recognize so many talents among our hourly employees and have been able to play more to their strengths. Additionally, we have become more efficient as we communicate and provide each student with a mentor.

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The icing on the cake is our regular training meetings. These have become self-sustainable. The lead and co-lead students are in charge of planning for the meeting, facilitating the meeting, giving assignments, reserving the room, creating the agenda, and managing content. I attend to supervise the function, add announcements and observe. I have seen these students help those who are struggling, train their coworkers, grow as a team and even become friends. It is a completely different work environment.

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This project has guided me in becoming a better leader and a more knowledgeable supervisor. In completing this project I learned that often times people won't share their opinions unless given a safe platform to do so. This platform was created in both the training meetings and regular one-on-ones. The best aspect of this project is that it has been able to provide a lasting effect on these student employee's lives. They feel they are of greater worth at work and they are more prepared to enter the workforce and contributing greatly. 

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