story | Daryl Yang, Guest Writer
When we think of college, we often remember our community of professors and classmates. Yet, there is another group of people integral to our college experience who we may forget about as we celebrate the four years we have spent at Yale-NUS. They are usually referred to in the singular: the Administration.
I have had the pleasure of working with many of our administrative staff over the past four years. Some of them – especially Sara Amjad and D Dangaran – have been mentors to me as they guided me through the challenges of leading The G Spot and my personal struggles as both a student and a student activist. Others – like my colleagues at Public Affairs and the President’s Office – have become close friends and some of my biggest pillars of support at this college.
This is a message of gratitude to and celebration of this group of people, who are usually invisible and oftentimes misunderstood. This might simply be “just a job” to many of you but I have witnessed how you have shed sweat and tears for us, and proudly consider yourselves part of our Yale-NUS family. Yale-NUS is a community of learning and I — along with my classmates — have learnt many important life lessons from many of you.
Thank you for caring for us as your children and your friends. Thank you for taking the extra mile for this college because you believe in the values of our community. Many times, you can retreat behind the cold covers of the bureaucracy but you choose not to. Thank you for being patient and understanding when you felt you feel misunderstood and maligned because some of us were upset, frustrated and angry at “the Administration” for this or that reason.
We appreciate all that you have done for us over these four years and I am immensely grateful to those of you whom I have had the fortune to call my friends and mentors. Our graduation is a celebration for us as much as it is for you too.
The views expressed here are the author’s own. The Octant welcomes all voices in the community. Email submissions to: yncoctant@gmail.com