Staff Appreciation celebrates unity
Kylie Gilliams
Issue date: 2/20/09 Section: Features
Students and staff members loaded plates high with macaroni and cheese, falafel and cookies and gathered around confetti-sprinkled tables at the Staff Appreciation Potluck in Boren Lounge on Feb. 11.
Staff from Housekeeping, Dining, Landscape & Grounds and other departments as well as students from all corners of the community attended the potluck. Guilford employs 273 full- and part-time non-faculty staff in 48 departments. The event is designed as a way for students to meet, talk to and show their appreciation to the staff who were able to come.
"The meaning of this event is to appreciate a part of the Guilford community that too often gets overlooked," said junior Alyzza Callahan, project coordinator of Project Community, which organized the potluck. "Before winter break, 20 staff people were cut. It's really important to acknowledge the fact that we're not being completely true to our so-called Quaker values that the school sticks to, and we need to be mindful of our actions and how they affect everyone."
Senior Natan Harel, who put together Project Community's first staff appreciation event in the spring of 2007, believes that it's also a time for staff to get to see a side of students that they may not normally.
"The whole purpose is to have a day where the other side of students can come out and show that no matter how hard we make it on housekeeping and maintenance, it's a chance to show that we do appreciate their hard work," said Harel.
Many staff have had to clean up messes and repair vandalism done by students. This can be frustrating and can create a negative perception of the student body as a whole.
"In the past here, students have done some major damage," said Steve Meade, who works for Facilities. "You assume that everyone is involved and they're not. For the most part, the students are really great."
Additionally, the potluck was a chance for staff and students alike to get to know each other on a personal level.
Staff from Housekeeping, Dining, Landscape & Grounds and other departments as well as students from all corners of the community attended the potluck. Guilford employs 273 full- and part-time non-faculty staff in 48 departments. The event is designed as a way for students to meet, talk to and show their appreciation to the staff who were able to come.
"The meaning of this event is to appreciate a part of the Guilford community that too often gets overlooked," said junior Alyzza Callahan, project coordinator of Project Community, which organized the potluck. "Before winter break, 20 staff people were cut. It's really important to acknowledge the fact that we're not being completely true to our so-called Quaker values that the school sticks to, and we need to be mindful of our actions and how they affect everyone."
Senior Natan Harel, who put together Project Community's first staff appreciation event in the spring of 2007, believes that it's also a time for staff to get to see a side of students that they may not normally.
"The whole purpose is to have a day where the other side of students can come out and show that no matter how hard we make it on housekeeping and maintenance, it's a chance to show that we do appreciate their hard work," said Harel.
Many staff have had to clean up messes and repair vandalism done by students. This can be frustrating and can create a negative perception of the student body as a whole.
"In the past here, students have done some major damage," said Steve Meade, who works for Facilities. "You assume that everyone is involved and they're not. For the most part, the students are really great."
Additionally, the potluck was a chance for staff and students alike to get to know each other on a personal level.
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