Lasell is full of unsung heroes and under the radar superstars. Rob Harrington is one of the many that falls into this group of incredible people. Many know him as the Area Coordinator of the Forest, West and Rockwell residence halls on campus but underneath the job description, Rob falls into the category of the best Lasell has to offer. Whether it’s being there to counsel a student through a difficult time or working on his personal novel or bettering his knowledge of Russian pop music, he never stops testing the limits of the world’s creative promise.
Rob has been a part of residential life since his undergrad at Bridgewater State. He climbed up the ranks during his graduate years at Suffolk where he studied Higher Education Administration and in his past two (going on three) years at Lasell he has become a beacon of support for all students he comes in contact with.
When asked about personal heroes and inspirations, Rob gave an unexpected but rather remarkable answer. He has no heroes. No one inspiration. Instead he gathers bits and pieces of incredible people, doing incredible things and while he does admire them, he never tries to replicate them. Rob believes in the making of one’s own path: which can be a challenging thing, but builds a level of independence that is hard to shake.
This has led him to become who he is today. In his free time when he’s not focused on supporting his staff of ten R.A.’s he’s working on a personal novel. This project has been in the works for the past ten years, starting when he was just fifteen years old. The level of dedication and openness to morphing this brainchild is admirable to say the least. He draws inspiration from the greats who created fantastical worlds before him, such as J.R.R. Tolkien.
Yet with all the coolness that is Rob Harrington’s life, the best part of him is his ability to be invested in the people around him. He values the lives of the people he is surrounded by, and it shows in his respect that we all come from a different background with different beliefs.
If anything proves this, it is how he described listening to his favorite music which yes, happens to be Russian pop. He’s often asked by others why he’s listening to music he can’t understand. No, Rob doesn’t speak fluent Russian, but he knows that understanding is more than words. Music has this incredibly ability to help the listener feel something, even if the words are in a different tongue.
Thank you, Rob Harrington, for being open to the world and what it has to offer. And for teaching those around you to do the same.