Human & Organizational Resources

My entire graduate experience has built upon itself as I have enhanced my human and organizational resources competency. In each of my experiences, I have had at least one staff member I have supervised while learning how to navigate relationships with my own supervisor. As a graduate assistant in the Office of Disability Services, I had the pleasure of supervising a team of four clerical assistants who served in a role previously filled by one, full-time secretary. Now, as Interim Assistant Director of Student-Athlete Services, I supervise one graduate assistant in the Human Movement, Sport, and Leisure program, as well as an undergraduate practicum student who is also one of my advisees.

Throughout these experiences I have learned a lot about the differences and similarities between being an advisor and a supervisor. In general, I am a supervisor who prefers to give challenge (likely because that is how I like to work). In each of these supervision opportunities, I have learned how to better read a student to determine if he or she needs additional support and information. This acquired knowledge ultimately culminated in monthly meetings and the creation of a handbook for the clerical assistants in Disability Services. This skill also allowed me to work better with those I supervise now.

One challenge I have overcome in Student-Athlete Services is supervising a graduate assistant who is the same age as me, has a very different work style than my own, and has had quite a bit of change in supervision throughout her experience at Bowling Green State University. Through working with this employee, I learned the importance of authenticity in my supervision style. By being direct and authentic, I am able to have more meaningful conversations with this employee to ensure we have the same end-goal in mind.

An additional opportunity I had to develop my Human and Organizational Resources Competency was as a Greek House Director to the women of Kappa Delta, Beta Mu Chapter. In my first year of graduate study, I served as a live-in house director for the chapter house of 15 women. This opportunity provided a chance to hone my crisis and facility management skills while also building relationships with the women of the executive board and the chapter. In this role I served as the on call house director for three weeks throughout the school year, which involved responding to crisis calls, conducting safety checks throughout all Greek Units, and being alert and present if an issue arose.