Today@Dal

For the student staff in the Registrar’s Office it might seem like a holiday elf arrived a bit early.

This month and at the end of each semester the 60+ students who work throughout the office are given exam survival packs by their full-time colleagues. As the semester comes to an end and the stress levels of students inch up with exams and project deadlines approaching a team in assembles packs with donated treats, snacks and motivational notes for each student.

“We hope that it helps them stay focused and maybe take a minute to relax while they’re working hard and studying” says John Mark Dawson, who coordinated the packs this year. “We work as a team throughout the year and this is one small way that we can show our appreciation to students during a busy and often stressful time.”

Throughout the school year student staff members work in all areas of the Registrar’s Office from the front counter where they help visitors connect with the resources they need to the file room, with the transfer credit team, in the processing unit where calls, emails and documents are processed and as part of the campus tour program.

“We’re very lucky to have a strong team of hard-working and dedicated student staff here in the Registrar’s Office.” says Beth Cann, Deputy Registrar. “They are valued employees and essential to the smooth operation of our office. We support them as best as we can during busier periods like exams and always look forward to welcoming them back to work in January.”

The exam packs are becoming a well-established tradition in the Registrar’s Office. What began as a day to bring homemade treats into the office more than 10 years ago has morphed into the treat bag program so that all student staff can participate.