Western Oregon Journal

Issue date: 10/26/07 Section: Headlines

Patrick Moser has worked at Western for over a decade. [Click to enlarge]

Q. How long have you been working at WOU?

A. I've been working at Western as a professional for 11 years, but before that I was a student here. I've lived in Monmouth for the last 16 years.

What exactly do you do at Western?

My business card says, "Assistant Director / Facilities and Operations." I do a number of different things in the residence halls: I supervise and oversee the Residential Service Center; I coordinate the Fire Life Safety Program, the Quality of Life Survey, and Summer Conferences held on campus. I also advise the Residence Hall Peer Judicial Board and supervise the Hall Hosts. I basically do a potpourri of catch-all things.

What's the worst thing that ever happened to you at Western?

It's not the worst, but it's the most embarrassing. When I was a student here, they had a scavenger hunt during homecoming, and whoever found the item would get this really cool prize. They would print clues in the paper, and I would go around campus looking for the clue. One night, I was convinced that the item was located outside the Natural Science Building by the metal sculpture. I looked down and kind of got blinded by the lights, and I fell into the natural science pond. I had algae everywhere.

What jobs have you held prior to working at WOU?

Mostly just high school jobs. I worked at Pietro's Pizza, the Olive Garden, Budget Rent-a-Car, and as a night Auditor for Comfort Suites-that was interesting.

What was interesting about your job at Comfort Suites?

My shift was from 11 p.m. to nine in the morning. I worked pretty much by myself. One interesting thing I learned is that the price per night that the hotel gives you is always negotiable. I was supposed to quote people at $79, but was authorized to go as low as $49. I also had the worst supervisor in my entire life, but for some reason he liked me. I actually learned everything I needed to know about how not to supervise people.

Can you tell me about your Circus Music CD?

In the past, I have done a lot of different programming for the campus, and I always enjoy putting themes to things. A couple summers ago, we were coming up with the theme for the summer conference schedule. I've always suggested that we should have a circus theme, and I finally convinced my staff to go with it. Everybody got really excited and one of my staff members downloaded an entire CD of circus music off of i-Tunes. As a young boy, my career aspiration was to be a circus ringmaster-I'd practice in my living room.

Continued...

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