Name: Mel Blewitt
Graduated: Honours English Literature, 2013
Hometown: Hamilton, ON
How did you get involved in Housing Services?
I first started working in Housing as a Residence Ambassador when I was living in Village 1 in Spring 2010. I loved working in Housing and would later be a Don at UW Place, Ron Eydt Village (my first-year residence!), and Mackenzie King Village.
What inspired you to apply?
When I graduated, I knew I wanted to continue in student affairs. An old colleague recommended me for the Coordinator, Desk Services position where I would be overseeing the Front Desk Assistants in residence. I’ve had the privilege of working with this amazing team of student staff for the past three years and am currently the program’s manager.
What’s your favourite part of your job?
Working with an incredibly talented and engaged team of student staff who are all incredibly talented in their own right and who work hard every day to improve our residents’ experience. I also love playing a role in giving residents the same great experience I had in my first year!
What are your goals for the term?
This term I’m focusing on helping my staff members with their personal and professional development, increasing our student staff’s interactions with residents, and finally getting a handle on my procrastination of less interesting tasks!
What are your daily responsibilities and tasks?
I supervise two full-time staff and 63 part-time student staff. I also oversee the program’s budget, health and safety, a long-term plan, and I work with other areas of the department to provide our residents with the best experience we can.
How can someone get involved in Housing or the Desk Services team?
Housing has a ton of jobs and volunteer opportunities for students to get involved in and you can find them on our website. Desk Services in particular will be hiring Front Desk Assistants for Fall 2017 and Winter 2018 beginning in January of next year – keep an eye out on Leads!
Are there any events or activities held by Housing or Desk Services throughout the year?
Housing regularly runs large- and small-scale events for all of our residents. Desk Services likes to run passive programming like BINGO through the desks!
Are you involved in anything on/off campus?
In addition to my work within Housing, I am a Student Leadership Program facilitator with the SSO so you can regularly find me facilitating cool workshops in South Campus Hall!
What’s your motto?
It’s more of a quote to live by: “Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you. Spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life.” – Amy Poehler
What advice would you give a student looking to take on a leadership role?
Do it. Apply early; apply often. If you don’t get it at first then learn and grow and try again. Talk to the leaders you see around you and ask them how they got started. When I was a second-year student without a lot of experience on campus, applying to be a Don was intimidating, but getting involved as a student leader in Housing was the best thing I could have done for myself. There are so many opportunities on this campus for people who want to get involved and the jobs you do and people you meet have the potential to change your life even more than your degree.
Can you give us a funny story about a time with DSMT or when you were a student here?
It would figure that when I’m put on the spot I can’t think of a funny story. Honestly, I think all my favourite memories of being a student involve being up late. In first year, I remember sitting on the V1 rooftop, wrapped in blankets at 3 a.m. and watching a meteor shower; I remember midnight snowballs fights at UWP as a study break when everyone was stressed about exams; I remember that point during an all-nighter in the SLC when your writing stops making sense and suddenly everything is funny and it’s time for a coffee break. I can’t tell you what was so funny in those moments but I can tell you that I laughed so hard until my stomach hurt.
You recently changed roles within DSMT, can you describe a challenge you have faced within your new role and how you have overcome it?
Definitely one of the hardest transitions for me in moving into this role has been letting go of doing things myself and delegating them to my staff instead. The hands-on work is some of what I find the most rewarding and so letting it go in favor of higher level planning has been difficult. I’m also a little bit of a control freak, so I like having ownership over the work my area puts out. Luckily, I had the ability to hire my two full-time staff members, and they are two of the best people I’ve ever worked with. I know that work I delegate to them will always be handled with the same care I’d do it with myself, and it makes it so much easier to let go.
Do you have a major interest/hobby/something you collect or obsess about?
I’m a big DIY-er so I love learning how to build/make new things – over the couple years I’ve been brewing my own beer and learning woodworking! I also collect ticket stubs (I always write on the back of movie tickets who I saw the movie with) and beer caps (for a piece of wall art).