Editorial Board encourages interaction with staff

Editorial Board encourages interaction with staff

As students, we can all bond over the fact that Wake Forest is a rigorous school.

The courses are laborious, the social life reflects the pressure of the school and living in close quarters among people who are equally intelligent, driven and well-rounded can be demanding. 

Yet midway through our semester when we are slammed with tests and papers, roommate relationships start to get testy and Spring Break is just far enough away to make us pessimistic, it’s important to recognize those who help us succeed each and everyday at Wake Forest — even when we don’t realize it.

In looking at our Wake Forest experiences, students often define their time here as being impacted by professors and faculty, friends, clubs, sports and other extracurricular activities. While all these aspects of campus are important, we often overlook those who work hard and tirelessly for us — campus workers such as those who work in the P.O.D., Zicks, Subway, Starbucks, the Pit, the janitorial staff, Campus Facilities and in other positions around campus that serve various student needs.

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We often do not appreciate the work they put in — each day members of the janitorial staff clean our dorms, academic buildings and other administrative buildings on campus. Employees work in the Upper Quad P.O.D. and Subway 24 hours a day, seven days a week dealing with students at late hours of the night.

It takes a lot of work from a lot of different people to operate a campus of this size, and often times students neglect to realize how much of an impact these people have on our everyday lives.

Some students have taken steps to get to know various campus employees on a personal level, introducing themselves and building a relationship that goes beyond “thank you for swiping me into the Pit.”

We as the Editorial Board of the Old Gold & Black believe this attitude towards those employees on campus should permeate throughout campus.

Within our own operations, the Editorial Board has gotten close to the janitor, Odi, who cleans the upper floors of Benson. Despite the mess she cleans everyday, not one day has passed where she hasn’t greeted everyone in the office with a smile, calling us her “niños” and “niñas.” During the tough weeks and countless hours we spend on the paper, seeing her smiling face is what keeps many of us in the office optimistic and happy during the week.

Because of our relationship with her, along with many other campus staff, we find it crucially important that students treat these employees with respect and kindness and to be grateful for what they do for the Wake Forest community.

As a call to action, we encourage students to each take five minutes out of each of their days and choose a campus staff member they interact with regularly to thank and give an extra sense of appreciation for all that they do on campus.

It does not have to be a big gesture, but each student at Wake Forest should show their gratitude and appreciation to all of those who work and better the lives of the students of Wake Forest.

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