Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I grew up in Innisfail, where I spent many summers working at an asparagus farm and as a museum interpreter. After high school, I moved to Edmonton to attend the University of Alberta and joined a computational chemistry lab group. My professional background has always been aligning technology solutions within the educational sector. During the peak of COVID, I worked at a government non-profit program (Alberta Computers for Schools) where we refurbished and donated computers to Indigenous communities and low-income families. As all the classes shifted online during the pandemic, we wanted to make sure that every student who couldn't afford computers could continue with their education. Then I worked at the Edmonton Public School Board. My first role was working on the security and emergency preparedness side. Then, I worked in their IT department as a Programmer Analyst on the financial side.
After my contract at EPSB ended, I was at a crossroads. Either move back to Innisfail for a job at a post-secondary in a nearby city, or stay in Edmonton, or start a brand-new adventure in Lethbridge. While hiking in Banff, I joked to my friend that I just needed a sign on what to do next. On our drive home, she woke me up and said, “It’s your sign! There’s your sign and its huge!” while pointing to a massive ULethbridge billboard on the side of the highway. Two days later, I was offered the position, and I said yes with no hesitation.
I’d only visited Lethbridge once before moving here. After a hiking trip to Waterton in 2022, my friend and I were too tired to drive back to Edmonton so we stayed in Lethbridge. We wandered around the campus and we joked about how we saw more wildlife at ULethbridge than in Waterton. I remember being especially drawn to the beautiful views from UHall, I never imagined I’d be working here two years later.
How long have you been at ULethbridge and what do you do here?
I started working here in January, 2024. Currently, a big part of my role is helping with the new CRM/Admission implementation which is part of the Future Systems and Processes (FSP) project. I am one of the three “Slate Captains” who are helping with building and configuring the system that will be used for student recruitment and applications. It’s exciting and rewarding to contribute and work alongside such talented colleagues on a project that will support and have a long-term impact on the staff and students’ experience.
Outside of this project, I manage the CRM Recruit system and I'm an administrator for the ChatbotAI on the Future Students website. I also build data reports to help support strategic enrolment management regarding recruitment goals. I’ve been fortunate to have an amazing manager (Kari Sackney) who has involved me in a variety of projects, including assisting with the automated Chatbot implementation and enhancing the Future Students webpages.
What's the best part of your job?
My favourite part is cheering for students as they walk up the hill during convocation; I don’t personally know many graduates, but I often get emotional during this part. I can’t help but think about the different backgrounds and experiences each student had when they first started and the challenges they’ve overcome before finally walking up the hill in their regalia — whether that’s financial stress, heartbreaks, mental health challenges, exam stress and all other struggles they faced during their academic journey. It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day tasks and sometimes not see how it’s influencing the bigger picture. Although my role is not student facing, it feels rewarding to be part of the bigger picture that makes this happen, because everything we do ties back to the students.
What do you enjoy doing outside of work?
I do competitive Olympic weightlifting training with the IX club and I love stargazing, foraging, Wing Wednesdays, cheering for the Oilers, cooking and spending time with my dog ADDIE (acronym for: Analyze, Design, Develop, Implement, Evaluate). I love going on outdoor adventures (especially backcountry) and will be going on an eight-day backpacking trip at the West Coast Trail this summer.
The past two summers, I’ve been dedicating my weekends to helping a wonderful friend I met here with her new asparagus farm and driving her tractor. We built an asparagus picker machine together from scratch last year! She’s a brand-new farmer and this is only our third harvest season. It’s an ongoing learning process. I always tell people that moving to Lethbridge has felt magical, because a lot of the dots from my past started to connect. I never thought that my very specific asparagus knowledge from childhood would become valuable and handy again.