Kelsi Allen currently works as the graduate assistant for the Student Engagement Office at AU. After finishing her undergraduate work in AU’s School of Theology, Allen decided to pursue her Masters of Divinity through AU. Allen also works as the programming assistant at Stripped Love in Anderson, Indiana.
What is your position at AU and what does it involve?
“I am the graduate assistant for Student Engagement. The job involves working with and leading the students directly responsible for planning and leading student activities, events, intramural sports and campus clubs and organizations. So basically, I oversee CAB, IMs and club leadership. It’s a lot of fun and it’s a lot of people skills.”
What is your favorite thing about your position here at AU?
“This is an easy question to answer. My favorite part is and always has been the students that I get to work with in this role. I may be biased, but I truly believe I get to work with the best of the best. I am amazed at the creativity, the flexibility and the hard work my students put into making this campus a home and a community. The hilarious stories and team bonding experiences that we get from failed events or mishaps is a close second.”
Which event from last semester was your favorite and why?
“My favorite event from last semester was the Color 5K. We had a large turnout from the student body and throwing the color powder on the participants and ourselves was just a lot of fun.”
What are some potential plans for events to look forward to next semester?
“Obviously, everything is tentative and will have to be met with great flexibility as we are not sure what the future holds in this weird new world we are living in. However, my teams have worked really hard to find creative ways to safely bring back some of our staple spring events and IM sports. A COVID-19 edition of our beloved AU Ninja Warrior is in the works, as well as some other fun new events.”
What are some other things students should look forward to going into the spring?
“In my planning conversations with other departments across campus, I have been impressed with the commitment and creativity to find ways to still be a community and engage with the student body. Everyone is finding new ways to connect and support the students in their circles. Despite the fact that we are looking at a dark winter, we as faculty and staff are still committed to serving the students to the very best of our abilities. No matter what the winter holds, we are still AU.”
What is your favorite thing about AU?
“My favorite thing about AU is the intentional community and the relationships that we have here. I truly feel known. As a student, I personally know all of my professors and can come to them for advice or guidance on work because they have taken the time to get to know me. As a staff member, I am amazed at some of the ways my colleagues and my students have encouraged and supported me over the years.”
Considering you are a student yourself, what advice do you have for fellow students at AU?
“My advice is to plug into the groups and activities on campus, now more than ever. We need community, we need laughter, we need breaks from work and we need joy in our lives, especially in this weird and hard season. My teams of students are working very hard to find creative and safe ways to make these opportunities available to the student body. So my advice is to take the risk, put yourselves out there, let yourselves be seen and have some fun—whether that’s attending a new CAB event, joining a new club or trying out a new IM sport. These are the things and the moments you will remember about your time here at AU.”