Katherine: Welcome to the Transfer Talks Podcast. My name is Katherine Lawlor. I serve as the Transfer Jacks Coordinator at Northern Arizona University, and I'll have my guest introduce themselves.

Traci: Hi everyone, I'm Traci Gleason. I currently serve as the director of the Office of Inclusion, Multicultural, and LGBTQIA plus services here at NAU. I'm originally from Saint Michaels, Arizona which is located on the Navajo reservation. But I've lived a majority of my life in Flagstaff and have worked here at NAU for quite a number of years. I have a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from Stanford University and a Master’s in Administration in Organizational Leadership from here at NAU. When I was an undergrad, I spent a couple years at my initial institution and had an opportunity to apply and get accepted to Stanford University. So, after those, that those two years, I decided to transfer to Stanford. 

Katherine: Well, as we begin, what have you enjoyed about the NAU environment as you've worked here?

Traci: Well, as a staff member, I feel like what I really like about NAU is the people. So, I believe our community is pretty friendly and welcoming, and open to others. In fact, a couple years ago, I had a colleague from another higher education institution that was visiting and came to campus. And I showed them around and we're walking around campus. And one of the things she said to me after the tour that I did with her of campus, she said “It was really neat” because we ran into so many different people that I knew and that she actually knew a few people as we were walking through campus. And so, she felt like even though the university can seem kind of large and big and expansive, especially given the distance from like North campus to South campus here at NAU, that it felt very intimate and friendly and open and welcoming. And so, for the, for me, it's just really kind of felt like home for the most part. 

Katherine: Well, as we talk about your transfer experience, what was your initial experience during those first two years at your first institution?

Traci: It was um, it was ok. You know in the sense that when I was in high school, although I know I was a high-achieving student, I didn’t really know where I wanted to go and what I wanted to do. I was first-generation, you know, one of the first in my family to go to college. And so, it was really hard during that time to figure out where I belonged and where I wanted to be. So, I kind of went with what was really the closest and the easiest thing for me to do. When I arrived at my initial institution, I felt a little out of place in a lot of ways. I had an older friend on campus who tried to show me around a little bit, show me how to do things even simple things like this is how you use your meal plan and here is how you sign up for classes and that type of thing. But outside of like having those small interactions with a few people that I knew, I felt really disconnected from the campus. I didn't really know a whole lot about the resources. I didn't have anybody like reaching out to me at that time. And so, it really felt to me, like I was really there to do one thing. It was to go to class, to do my coursework, to go you know take care of myself as best as I could. And then go back to my room and you know I didn't really know at that point in time about how to connect with community or how to get involved on campus. And I don't feel like in retrospect that I really had anybody reaching out to me. 

Katherine: Well, when you think about transitioning to your new university during that first semester, so, what did you enjoy about that experience?

Traci: Well, interestingly enough you know when I transferred to Stanford, I felt like I connected like right away, immediately. And really what it came down to was that there was a service office on campus. It was, at the time when I was there, called the American Indian Program Office. And being a woman of Indigenous heritage, you know I was identified as a member of the community to the administration that ran that office. And they had some initiatives that they coordinated out of their office where they tried to connect with incoming students as quickly as possible. So even prior to arriving on campus and making that drive and trip out to California, you know, I had received phone calls. I had received letters. I was invited to be a part of what they called the Native American Orientation Experience, which was a four-day early orientation initiative at Stanford. So got out there early, before all the other new students showed up, and met with a small community of other Indigenous students that went to school there. Met the staff and faculty that were Indigenous as well, and so like from the moment that I was on campus I felt like I had a community. One of my earliest memories that I think was always really impactful to me and was even when I was moving into my residence hall. As I was walking up to, to the building, there was a table outside and there was staff that were at the table. And as soon as I walked up, they were, they knew who I was. They, they knew I was Traci and they greeted me as Traci. And they said you know welcome and here's all your information. And so, they did the work like prior to my arrival to ensure that I was acknowledged and recognized, and welcomed. And so immediately, I found I felt comfortable, and I found community. 

Katherine: That sounds very inviting. Well, what is a piece of advice that you would like to give to incoming transfer students?

Traci: Well, when I think about when I first went to college as an incoming freshman, again for me as a first-gen student with not a whole lot of people in my family that could help guide my transition into higher education, I felt very unsure of myself, right? And I didn't, again, I didn't know resources, I didn't know who to talk to. And so the biggest piece of advice that I would give to a transfer student is, although you've had that experience of starting at an institution, like my story, you know, your new institution could be very different. Look for those opportunities to connect with others, seek out the resources that are available to you. And if we even think about you know, why we're even sitting here talking right now, like here at NAU, we have our Transfer and Online Connections Office, which is I think very unique, and it's something that was very much needed here at NAU. And so, it's a really great opportunity for new transfer students to again find community. Like how do you connect? How do you get involved? How do you get engaged? How do you find the people? Your people, right? The people that are going to be there for you to ensure that you're successful and moving towards accomplishing your goals. I think, I think that's really important to try to find your place as quickly as possible. 

Katherine: That makes sense to me, even as a transfer student myself. I didn't have a department to go to, to talk to specifically about my transfer experience. Other than that initial transfer credit process, so. All right. What types of programs or departments, people you want to give a shout-out to, really helped you through that transition to your new university? 

Traci: Like I mentioned already, you know, there was the American Indian program office at Stanford that reached out before I even arrived on campus. And so, so it's offices like that you know that are really designed to serve, I think, unique student populations particularly, underserved populations or underrepresented populations, that I think can really make a huge difference in a individual's transfer experience. And so, so it was definitely the American Indian Program Office. Like I said, when I walked up to my residence hall, they knew who I was, and it was a very different residential experience for me. At my previous institution, I don't think I ever spoke to my RA, and I don't really feel like they ever knocked on my door to say hello or to check in outside of maybe the first-floor meeting that you had when you first moved in just so you learn all the rules and those types of things. And so, the residential experience, living experience at Stanford, I think was significant as well because it created a smaller pocket of individuals that you connected with pretty frequently on day-to-day, week-to-week because they tried to create a very intimate experience. So outside of like how else you might get involved on campus, at least with your residential living experience, you had community and you had people. And there was in addition to Resident Assistants, there were Community Assistants, individuals that were there to really serve as like what you would call Peer Mentors now, to help you with your transition, to help you learn about the campus, to show you things that you might not have learned about when you were looking at the institution. And so, so those were two of the biggest I think services or offices or initiatives that Stanford that really helped me connect. And then over time, it just seemed to, like a world of opportunities opened up over time. 

Katherine: Great. Well, what do you think when it comes to your values and your various identities, how did that play into your decision-making process when you thought about your major and career?

Traci: So, I was definitely one of those individuals that kept changing my mind in terms of like what I wanted to do, and what I wanted to be, and how I was going to get there. And I'm going to reference again, you know, that first-generation identity and not really having that family support or someone that, you know, paved the path before you to help you understand like how a major might connect to a career or how certain experiences you can have in college might help you develop the skills that could help you figure out, you know, what it is you want to do and what you want to be. And so, as I continued, you know, that path of trying to figure out what it is that I want to do, I think the value that stood, stuck with me the most was really that, that desire to help others and that desire to give back to others, that desire to kind of reach behind me and pull others, you know, forward with me because there was so much that I felt that I learned in college, in my higher education experience, that I wanted to provide that for others. Interestingly enough, you know, when I was at Stanford, I had an opportunity to get involved as I guess what we would say is a student leader in some level, some capacity. I was asked to work with Orientation at Stanford University. At that point in time, it was a student-run initiative on campus, so they hired student coordinators, they would hire student staff, you know, to work with the Orientation Office, to plan and coordinate the next year's Orientation. So pretty quickly, after my first quarter at Stanford, I got connected with the Director of the American Indian Program Office and he really encouraged me to apply to be the Native American Orientation Student Coordinator. I mentioned how, you know impactful, that, that particular event was for me, or program was for me. So, he encouraged me to apply to serve in that role and I think luckily, was hired because up to that point, I don't think I hadn't had any real work experience outside of like working in fast-food industry or something like that. And so, it was again that encouragement from somebody else. Like somebody seeing something in you and saying, hey, here's this really great opportunity for you to engage with us in a different way to help you help others, right? And so, I was able to be a part of the Orientation Experience at Stanford for my last two years there. I got an Office Assistant Position in the, in American Indian program Office as well. And so, I was working in the office environment, and it didn't really dawn on me at that point in time, like the impact and the influence of being a student worker on-campus, in terms of like how it was going to influence, what I was going to do in the future. And so, so being an Office Assistant, being a Student Orientation Coordinator, living in a theme house, which is the Casa Zapata, the Mexican American-themed house at Stanford. Those experiences and actually really influenced me to think about, how I could continue to do this work, you know, after I graduated. I joke with like my kids and people that learn about the work that I do that I went to college, and I never left. And sometimes I think about that too, is like wow you know I've been in a higher education environment since I was 18 years old in some fashion. And I really believe that the college environment, higher education, the work that we do in Student Affairs to support students, the many, many, many opportunities are available for a college student to really learn, grow, identify, you know their passions, their values, really think about who they are, and make a plan forward is extremely important. And so that's really kind of what's brought me into this particular field. But back then at that moment time, I didn't know that. You know, when it came to getting close to graduation, I didn't have any real like prospects at that point in time. And I wasn't worried about it at the moment, but it should probably, you know, after graduation, half a year or so of me sort of just kind of trying to figure things out, to get connected with that job opportunity at a university and research, that kind of like put me into working in the college environment sort of as an option, right? And then it was really having an opportunity to step into Student Affairs, that set my path and that's kind of where I, that's where I am, and that's what's really led me to my current role. So ultimately, it comes down to wanting to help others and knowing and understanding the value of higher education and the significant impact it can have on earth individuals’ life, future, can kind of just change the world type of thing. And particularly for first-generation college students, I think underrepresented student populations, it can be life changing. 

Katherine: Absolutely, well this is our last fun question. So, do you have a favorite place to eat in Flagstaff or favorite places?

Traci: So, I feel like I have many favorite places to eat in Flagstaff, so. And it keeps changing. I think my current favorite place is Kokiyo around San Francisco, so Korean food restaurant. That's one of my favorite places to eat at the moment, that is somewhat affordable, not too expensive. And of course, you know just really enjoying the various types of foods that you can find in Flagstaff, but I would say Kokiyo. 

Katherine: Awesome. Well, thank you so much for sharing your story today. I really appreciate you being here on the Transfer Talks Podcast. 

Traci: Thank you.