On Friday, one of my closest colleagues and a dear friend retired from the University she’s called home for the last 20 years. An executive assistant in our office, she was and will remain a key part of my life, always lending an ear or a shoulder when necessary and providing me with a keen sense of what’s best for my life and insights into what I simply cannot control.
Over the last three years, Margaret has proven to be selfless and loyal, thoughtful and strong, a problem solver and a true logistical champion. She is also the most recent in a long list of administrative assistants who have helped shape me and lead me, both personally and professionally, in the best direction possible.
Years ago, in my junior year of college, I took a job working for the executive assistant to the dean in the Office of Communication, Information, and Media at The Ball State University. Her name was Patricia Armstrong and, from my vantage point, neither the office nor the college itself, could have functioned without her at the helm. A mother, a grandmother, and an experienced administrative assistant, Pat knew everything about everything and served not just as a mentor but as a surrogate parent for the two years I worked under her as a student assistant.
For me, Pat was the epitome of the woman I wanted to be. She was tough. She was compassionate. She was organized beyond my wildest dreams and she knew how to keep a secret. She flawlessly managed the lives of the dean and associate dean, two of the busiest members of the academy, and she did it all with a level of calm that indicated she’d already seen it all.
In the time we worked together, Pat taught me everything I needed to know about working with and for academics who are much smarter and far more important than I will ever be. I learned how to respect their schedules, their time, and their boundaries. I also learned how to file records, follow a task list, abide by a deadline, and maintain a budget. Sure, I still made coffee, ran mail across campus, and compiled countless packets for the deans’ meetings, but even these seemingly menial tasks humbled me as a person and completely prepared me for the work I do now.
But perhaps the greatest gift Pat ever gave me was in the form of an annual report she handed to me one day that she said needed editing.
“This doesn’t read very well,” she said. “A graduate assistant wrote this draft, but the dean thinks the introduction needs some cleaning up. Would you mind making a few edits?”
“Sure,” I said, and I took it home that night. The next day, I returned with a completely rewritten introduction for her review.
“I rewrote it entirely,” I said to her as I placed the introduction on her desk.
She read it over and congratulated me on my initiative. “It’s what you would have done,” I said.
She smiled and encouraged me to talk to the dean about rewriting the entire report for a fee. I did just that and he agreed. We published the report less than three weeks later and soon thereafter, Pat left for a planned three-week European vacation while I managed the office in her absence.
It was summer and I had already graduated with my bachelor’s degree in journalism. At that point, I was only working in the office until my lease ended in August when Rod and I were set to leave Muncie and move to South Bend. In that time, the dean was in the process of deciding on graduate assistants for the coming year. Since I had already rewritten his annual report that was initially drafted by his previous graduate assistant, he asked me if I wanted the job.
“Kate, I don’t want to do this,” he said, pointing to the pile of resumes on his desk. “If I pay for graduate school, will you work as my graduate assistant?”
I thought about it for 24 hours and happily accepted the next day. When Pat returned from her trip, I told her the good news and she couldn’t have been happier or more supportive. Since then, I’ve always known, my future and my professional life began the day I met her.
From my experience working for Pat, I learned that the responsibilities of a good administrative assistant involve much more than clerical work. In addition to maintaining schedules, arranging meetings, making copies, and running errands, administrative assistants also act as gatekeepers, bookkeepers, archivists, support systems, confidants, and therapists. They often know more about an organization’s structure and the dynamics between the people running it than those of us who are technically “in charge.”
Not only are they accountable for the day-to-day operations of an office, they’re also responsible for learning and complying with a given staff’s likes, dislikes, good moods, bad moods, dietary restrictions and preferences, familial obligations, and overall mental health.
They know how to stroke an oversized ego when necessary and act as human barricades should the need arise. They also say yes as often as possible and answer “no” only if it’s on behalf of those they’re responsible for looking after. They take care of “us.” They are committed to “us.” They love “us.”
Following my friend Margaret’s heartfelt, thoughtful speech at her retirement party, which included anecdotes about her time with us in the office and her love for her children and husband, there were few dry eyes in the room. Finally, she looked at me, we embraced, and I found myself sobbing, and I mean full-blown funeral sobbing, in her arms. I told her I loved her and I thanked her, and it was then I realized I wasn’t just thanking her, I was thanking all of the administrative assistants who, like her, have gotten me through some of my darkest times, walked alongside me celebrating some of my biggest accomplishments, and become some of my most beloved friends.
Had it not been for Pat, an executive assistant taking a chance on a then blurry-eyed, oblivious, absentminded, know-it-all 20-year-old who, at the time, could barely answer the phone, I simply would not be where I am today. And if it weren’t for Margaret, I wouldn’t have the consideration or love I have for the people I’m so unbelievably fortunate to work with now.
They’re called support staff for a reason because, without them, who else would hold us up? So thank you, Pat, and thank you, Margaret, and thank you Amber, Nancy, Missy, and Ginger, and all the administrative assistants who have held me up when I needed it most. I’m grateful to you all for teaching me, listening to me, going above and beyond for me and helping me every step of the way. I promise to have your back for life because Lord knows you’ve always had mine.
