Juliana, class of 2009, is in the Philadelphia suburbs, working as an IT project manager for University of the Sciences in Philadelphia.
Anything going on in life right now that’s especially awesome, bearing in mind that simply surviving is really pretty damned awesome right now?
I’m doing a huge project with a small, scrappy team that’s amazingly creative and supportive; we make space for each other to deal with tough life stuff and take time off. Working in this environment would be awful with unsupportive or unsympathetic colleagues, or consultants who’re just phoning it in– I’m so fortunate that work is a space where I can focus on problems I *can* solve and helping others do the same.
What do you remember best about your days as a GA? Any funny/crazy stories you can share?
One day there wasn’t much to do and Jeanne and I asked #mattbeth if we could explore the GSLIS attic over what was then the ITD office– there was a trap door and we were curious. He said yes, and we found a bunch of old storage media and other expected papers, but then we also found… the Jaeger hat! I don’t know if this is still floating around, but it had a spinner on it that said whose turn it was to buy the Jaeger, and all the GAs of the time posed with it. Jill, Matt, or Karla may still have photos.
Look what I found! –Jen:
Do you find yourself using Team Awesome skills in your current life?
Absolutely! The fun, empathetic approach to tech support has been vital in later support work, and it’s something I try to bring to my current leadership role. As a project manager I can help set a tone for a project, and I try to make it one that’s fun and that empowers users to gain knowledge of the system. For that matter, this approach is great for helping raise my nephews– toddlers can get frustrated easily and it’s good to remind them that we can have fun trying to figure out how to get a toy working or do other basic troubleshooting.
What was your favorite class or instructor when you were in school? I had such a good time in Kate McDowell’s YA fantasy class– we had a great time discussing the literature, even if it’s not skills I use that often professionally. I definitely use the texts and readers’ advisory knowledge for friends and their children though!
Any regrets such as a class you wish you had taken, a club you should have joined, an event you weren’t able to go to, etc.?
I had time to do a lot and don’t have any big regrets. Though I really loved tabling with ALA for the undergrad sexual health info fair the one time someone organized that– people were so happy and surprised the library had resources about sexuality, and I’d love to have done more to make that kind of information more accessible.
Favorite meme?
This is a tough one! I think one of my all-time favorites is the “i lik the bred” cow poem meme.https://annleckie.tumblr.com/post/155862925211/my-name-is-cow-masterpost
Would you rather fight 100 duck-sized horses, or one horse-sized duck?
Assuming the horses are not trained for battle, I think 100 duck sized horses would scare pretty easily. Ducks can be pretty aggressive!
Cat or dog or ???
I have a cat, pictured, since she’s a much better fit for someone who’s normally out a lot. I love dogs too and would definitely foster one right now if I didn’t have a cat who very much needs to be an only pet!
