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“Staff are the foundation of �԰�����.”

These powerful words were spoken by Alfred Rodriguez, registrar, at the opening remarks of �԰�����’s inaugural Growing TUgether: Staff Development Day. And he’s not wrong: At about 750 strong, staff are involved in every nook and cranny at the University.

The �԰����� Staff Engagement Committee aims to advocate for each of these staff members, promoting their needs and interests to the administration. Looking to help the staff improve professional development skills, TSEC members such as Rodriguez spent seven months planning Growing TUgether: Staff Development Day, organized entirely by staff, for staff, and held on July 17. More than 150 staff members attended, doubling TSEC’s goal, according to TSEC president Trey Dunn.

"​We felt staff could use an opportunity to network with each other and strengthen skills that would benefit them in their current position and their career,” Dunn explains. “​Our goal was to have 60 to 100 participants for the first year​, and were thrilled with a final turnout of over 150 staff members.”

Completely free and held at �԰�����, the event opened with remarks from �԰����� President Danny Anderson, who spoke about staff being on the front lines of the rapidly changing landscape of higher education. Staff members then broke off into workshops, pausing midway for a keynote luncheon. The day ended with a happy hour and resource fair, where staff could put faces to names and learn about the different benefits available to staff members around campus.

For Esther Kim, assistant director for orientation programs, the chance to network with other staff members and learn from them encouraged her to attend the event. “It allowed us to be in community and learn with and from one another about topics that are tangible for our everyday work in our offices or departments,” she says.

Those topics ranged from productivity tools to training on University software, with workshops including areas such as time management, email communication, meeting effectiveness, Google Drive usage, and TLEARN training.

Lupita Puente, an administrative assistant for the Department of Human Communication and Theatre and a staff member at �԰����� for 34 years, says her schedule is particularly heavy during the school year. That’s why the time management session was her favorite. “Attending [the] session helped me think about my time, where it goes, where I can get more of it, and how to improve it,” she says.

After the time management session and other morning workshops, Tess Coody-Anders ’93, vice president for Strategic Communications and Marketing, gave the keynote luncheon, titled “Finding Meaning and Purpose: Work and Identity.” Her talk focused on aligning personal values to the work one does to find meaning in a job. Working at a university, she says, already makes finding purpose a little easier.

“No matter what the job function, we share an inspiring purpose,” she explains. “We don’t make widgets or sell toys; we actively shape and change young lives forever at �԰�����.”

At the end of Coody-Anders’ remarks, she echoed Rodriguez’s sentiments from earlier in the day:

“There is no �԰����� as we know it without the contributions of staff,” she says. “From the people who maintain our laboratories and residence halls, to those who collect revenue and distribute aid, to those who recruit and house students for our amazing faculty to educate, staff are involved in every aspect of this University."