Students at Work

Whether watching over labs and library rooms or working in admissions, students are finding experience, authority and a little pocket change without even leaving campus.Students hold proctor positions on campus in a variety of settings, from helping students on the pottery wheel in ceramics to ensuring that the WPEA broadcast runs smoothly to monitoring students’ safety in the gym. Students also work in the Admissions Office, in a variety of tasks from sending out mail to pairing students for Experience Exeter.Some positions are, as Senior Oishi Banerjee said, “pretty laid back.” Banerjee started working as music library proctor two years ago to make some pocket money on her own, and says she enjoys the relaxed attitude of the workplace. “I think the music library proctor is the one of the easier proctoring jobs,” Banerjee said. “It’s pretty laid back—no one really comes here for a party. I personally get to do homework and sometimes I sing while proctoring.”According to Senior Victor Hunt, who proctors the weight room on Saturdays and Sundays, others can be much more demanding. “I make money, and also do it because Coach Sweet, the person in charge, is cool.” Coach Sweet struck his interest in the job last spring. “It’s a really enjoyable job because I earn the money doing things I need to do, such as working out and doing homework,” Hunt said. The previous month, Hunt got certified for CPR, a “lifelong valuable experience.” But Hunt admits, “the job is quite demanding because it requires you to do a lot, and also requires one to be very vigilant of his surroundings. For example, at any moment, a person could drop a weight on his foot, and I would have to help him, or perform CPR in worst cases. There are more responsibilities entailed in the job than most people think.”But between these two ends range experiences that students value as part of their growth.Lower Chris Vazan proctors the Church and started working after talking with Ms. Safford because he loved being in the Church. “The setting is peaceful and quiet. It’s great to be able to work in solitude, while sharing a snack with people who often cook in the Church kitchen,” Vazan said. “There are no prerequisites to the job other than dedication and discipline. I would recommend others to get a job as well; it’s a good experience!”For senior Sarah Chisholm, proctoring is a good opportunity to experience the commitment of a job, without having to go far off-campus. “I think it’s a great way to let students have some more responsibility, have some more experience with actually doing a job, and, because I am a head proctor, have experience working with other people,” Chisholm said.”Chisholm thinks her time as ceramics proctor has offered a good opportunity for experience in new positions. “I have to make sure students are behaving in the studio as a proctor, and I am also helping them out,” Chisholm said. “It’s being an authority figure in the studio, which is interesting—I think it builds character.”Senior Nathan Ko works as a proctor in the Church on Wednesdays, the music building on Saturdays, and the computer science lab on Sundays. As with most students, proctoring serves as a medium to earn money for Ko. With a cap on maximum hours of work per week for students, Ko works “the maximum [of] 6 hours...exactly the maximum, with minimum wage.” He began his job by contacting the respective staff in charge of each location through the Human Resources Center. “It was a real step by step procedure that was easy to follow, although long,” Ko said.In addition to proctoring, students take on jobs at the Admissions office year-round. Day student upper Eric Jordan worked in admissions over the summer, and believes that it was a positive experience. “During the summer in admissions we did a lot of tours, and if we didn’t have any tours to do we went over to the old Davis library and did paperwork to send out to prospective students,” Jordan said. “When we aren’t doing those things, we help out the Secretary Ms. Waleryszak. It’s a lot of fun.”Chisholm believes that the experience of working as a highschooler is beneficial to all students.“I definitely think it is a good experience for us to have jobs,” Chisholm said. “I don’t know how many students here ever work, but it’s a good thing, to be held accountable for your job.”