OPE: A New Perspective

For those of you not as familiar with my work as a Residence Hall Director at UW Oshkosh, we host a conference each year called the Oshkosh Placement Exchange. It brings individuals from colleges and universities from all over the country together to fill positions in the field of student affairs. The majority of the positions offered at the exchange are for graduate school assistantships as well as hall director-type jobs.

We have been hosting this conference for 29 years and I have been a part of the OPE as a candidate, employer and worker for...eight years. Granted, there are many at this university who have been involved with OPE for over 20 years, but I consider my experience somewhat considerable.

Last night, we had a training for all employees involved with the Oshkosh Placement Exchange. OPE is something that the Gruenhagen Conference Center and the Department of Residence Life take very seriously, and for good reason. It is an opportunity to showcase the university and both departments. For me, my reaction and anticipation for OPE has changed this year.

I have served at the chair of the Transportation Center for three years, and worked on it for five years. As I begin the transition out of student affairs and begin to think about the ministry, I do not look at OPE in the same way. This is not to say that I see no merit in OPE at all. I still appreciate the significance that OPE has for our campus. I simply feel like I do not have the same type of enthusiasm that I that I did when I was starting out as an RHD at UW Oshkosh.

Five years ago, OPE helped me get the job that I have today. I was in the trenches and competing against peers for positions. In the years since, I have fed into that energy and got pumped to see that experienced by others. I also got involved on a higher level as I became the supervisor for the Transportation Center. I went to planning meetings and saw first-hand what goes into planning for a conference of this magnitude. I am not supervisor anymore because it simply took up too much time.

Now, I see OPE as something where I play an important role, and that is where my enthusiasm comes. I am excited to be part of a team that puts this conference together. I appreciate playing a more subdued and behind the scenes role in the conference and do not get overly caught up in the craziness that can be OPE. I feel like Luke Skywalker when he first enters Jabba's palace in Return of the Jedi. Feelings controlled, purpose more focused, his role as a Jedi understood.

Only I can end an entry like this with a dorky statement like that ;).