Meet Sean Barrett. Western student, Communication Studies major, Spanish and Psychology minor, and senior preparing for graduation in just a few short weeks.
Barrett came to Western with the intent to study Molecular Biology, but finds himself in a completely different place than he started. After experiencing a huge loss within his family during his sophomore year, Barrett had trouble focusing on school. “It really knocked me out of the learning mentality for some time,” he explains. “I basically zombified my way through sophomore year not really knowing what to do until I took Comm. 220 (Communication Theory) that spring quarter.” This introductory Communication Studies class sparked something in Barrett that really helped him get back into the groove of things academically. “After so much emotional and mental stress of my loss, I could not handle the huge demand from the math and sciences. I took molecular biology in high school and it really clicked with me and got me excited about learning. Fortunately, I found my new home in communication studies.”
A wrench was thrown in his biology plans, but this is one of those situations where one might say everything happens for a reason. “I applied [to the Communication Studies Department] a year after taking Comm. 220 and got in after my first try. During my fourth year, I really got involved with the department. I was asked to TA for a professor and help build a new Communication Studies based GUR class, I became this year’s leading Comm. Ambassador, and I am one of my favorite professor’s research assistants as well. Due to being so heavily involved with the department, I know I made the right choice,” he says.
It is not uncommon for students to arrive at college with one plan and leave having followed an entirely different one. Barrett finds satisfaction in his choice of major, drawing connections between the Comm. Department and his original intended major, Molecular Biology. “Although the Communication Department is not about biology and molecules, it does have a lot of critical systematic thinking that truly drives my passion for learning similar to biology. Communication itself, especially on a global scale, is like trying to understand a living body on a molecular level. You have to pay attention to so many tiny aspects while also keeping the bigger picture in mind. There are different groups of similar people, like organs in a body, and each organ is made of individual cells with all sorts of different things going on. There are mutations, deaths, births, cycles, inputs, and outputs. It all comes down to balancing the larger picture with its smaller pieces.”
Barrett’s involvement with Communication Studies doesn’t just stop at his passion to learn and his appreciation for the students and faculty in the department. After talking to Dr. Karen Stout, the head of the Communication Ambassador program at the time, Sean was able to fill the position for a third ambassador. “The Communication Ambassadors represent the face of the department both on and off campus at all sorts of events. We table each day of the Info Fair at the start of the year to inform anyone who walks by rather they be freshmen, returning students, strangers, squirrels, whoever and whatever,” he jokes. “Being a Communication Ambassador involves a lot of presentation and being a positive impact on the department, Western’s campus, and those we speak to when we present. The position requires a strong level of professionalism, positivity, self-motivation, and prioritizing.”
Barrett describes some of the tasks Comm. Ambassadors take on, “I went to Whatcom Community College during fall quarter to explain what the department means and has to offer for any students looking to transfer to Western in the future. Ambassadors also have to give presentations on campus to mostly lower level communication classes and tell students about both the minor, major, and how to get into them and the requirements for each. We also have to keep the course list of classes up to date if any changes are made. To me, being a Communication Ambassador means taking care of those who are a part of the department the best I can. I want to do my best to help the department achieve its best.”
Barrett was also part of a couple clubs on campus before his family loss complicated things. “I was very involved with Western’s Glee Club and Western’s Judo Club my freshmen year of college and even the first part of my sophomore year as well. The time I spent in Glee Club was enough to last me a very long time. Club meetings, rehearsals, performances, movie nights, bonfires, birthday parties, summer get-togethers, and late night chats. The friends I made are still to this day, almost five years later, some of the best friends I have ever had in my whole life,” he shares
When Barrett isn’t busy with school work and his role as a Comm. Ambassador, he likes to play video games, go swimming and biking, binge watch anime, talk to new people, and he is also the lighting director for a touring musical called Evil Dead the Musical. “We travel to mostly Oregon, Canada, and within Washington but we have performed in Utah and Oklahoma as well. The theater job is full of the greatest people I know who I love with all my heart. It usually pushes me out of my comfort zone since I actually perform in a couple other shows and that requires what some would call ‘singing’ and ‘dancing’. Although I do both those things terribly and feel really uncomfortable on stage, I have gained new experiences and levels of excitement that I did not expect to find. I get to travel, see new people, and continue a relationship with a group I love being around. I feel valued, cared for, and inspired by those people,” Barrett says.
As graduation approaches, Barrett anticipates taking some time off before applying to grad school. “I will be taking a year off to not only build up some money and violently chuck some at financial loans, but I will also be taking a breather from school and take care of myself for a while. It took me an extra year to finish my undergraduate career and I am in need of a mental, emotional, and physical recuperation period,” he explains. Barrett can’t wait to have a job and not have to come home and think about homework and other responsibilities for a while. His plans then include studying for grad school exams (GREs) and working on getting letters of recommendation, applications, and looking for schools with graduate programs he likes. When looking ahead at what job he might like to have, Barrett reflects on how much his professors have impacted his life. As of now, my dream job would be that which most of my professors fear the most. Being a professor. The most inspirational, caring, and hardworking people I know are professors and the amount of respect and love I have for those who have taught me over these five years at Western has made me really consider being a professor as well. I want to teach subjects that excite me and I want to help students the same way that my professors helped me.”
Barrett has truly enjoyed his time spent at Western. “I feel comfortable here and I feel like I am at home when I go to class, walk across campus, or just sit and do homework in some tiny isolated dungeon for hours on end and walk home at some unholy hour of the night. Western has a type of beauty that one can both see and sense that many universities do not have. Western does a lot when it comes to building a proactive, productive, and positive atmosphere for many different people no matter the role they play on campus, their identities, and their ideologies,” he explains.
As a senior on his way to the graduation stage, Barrett has a lot of experience under his belt. When asked if he had any advice for students at Western and incoming freshman, he responded, “I’d say be kind to your professors, classmates, and those you interact with during your college career at Western. I know it is a little cliché, but personally it is a small world and it’s an even smaller campus; therefore there is even smaller reason to fill it with negative attitudes, selfish behavior, and harmful words. Stay open minded. There will be a lot of alternative views and different people you will come across and it is important to be patient, mindful, and respectful even if they do not correlate with you. Just because they are different, it does not necessarily mean they are wrong. I would also say try and find what fulfills you as a person. Try not be in such a rush to get your degree and to fly off to a job and start building a career or a family or a whatever. Take the time to find what you enjoy and revel in it. Take the time to find good friends to spend your next several years with. College is the last social milestone for many people and it is an invaluable resource that can help people find out who they are, a resource that can help show how the world works, how to care for yourself others, and what you can do in the world.”