Editor’s note: Beyond the Call is a section in Around the O Workplace that highlights the exceptional work of UO employees during COVID-19. Each story features an interview with one employee, in his or her own words, with light editing for clarity and length only.
Sky Seymour
Assistant Director in the Office of Admissions
How long have you worked at the UO?
I started working at U of O in late 2005, so about 15 years.
Tell us about your work:
It's facilitation of data. I think that's the best way to put it. It's figuring out the tools and software we have and then how the data works in between there to try and pull something out that meets the needs of the people using the data. I do a lot of interaction with departmental partners in terms of giving them reports. It's data in, data out and it's all the in between. It’s a lot of fun in its own way.
How has your work changed during COVID-19?
I think in a lot of ways it hasn't had a large impact in the small sense that my job is very data driven. My boss will ask me to write a report and the difference between me doing that in my office or doing it in my home is very minimal. I would say some impacts that I've experienced have been for big projects and not being able to sit around with people and just talk things over a whiteboard.
Other than that, I've got a 3-year-old daughter at home. My office interruptions used to be people randomly coming up to my door, but now it's just my daughter coming in and asking for a hug. In terms of a life quality, there's a lot of pluses to it for me being able to be home.
What is keeping you motivated during this challenging time?
One obviously is my daughter. She’s a huge part of it. I want to be able to tell her I put 100 percent in at the end of the day, so nothing about this has changed that.
I feel like I work with a really great supervisor and I like the team I work with. Even before, I had nights where I would stay at the office till midnight because something wasn't working right and if it didn't get fixed soon it was going to be bad. I'm like, “I’m in it. I'm just going to get it done,” and nothing about that has changed for me. I still feel that sense of responsibility. I'm doing something that I like to do and I'm working with people that appreciate the work I do and I don't want to let them down.
Sky is a part of the Office of Admissions.
Do you know someone who has gone beyond the call? Nominate a UO employee.