GPI - Sam Collette, Coordinator of Community Standards & Student Support

Adrien Gobin / THE GATEPOST

By Bella Grimaldi Asst. News Editor What is your academic and professional background? I went to Framingham State. I graduated in 2022. My bachelor's is in fashion design, and I have a minor in sociology. While I was here, I was an RA for three years. I was an orientation leader for two - just very involved on campus. And so I liked my fashion stuff, but I like my student involvement stuff a little bit more. And then I have a master's degree in higher education from UMass Amherst. What brought you to Framingham State? When I was 18, what brought me to Framingham State was that I was looking for a school where students were really hard-working, and they came from a background similar to mine. Where they wanted to earn their way and really make their own impact. And then what brought me back here was I was looking for jobs and I was thinking about my professional values and searching, and searching, and searching. I enjoyed my time at UMass, but I just thought the school was much too large, and I remembered feeling like Framingham State really felt like home. I was thinking about what I wanted to get back in my professional work. I saw there was an opening here as the administrative assistant in the Dean of Students Office, and I talked to Dr. Meg Nowak, and she said, “Oh my gosh! Definitely apply for this.” And I got really excited. So I did that for eight months, and then I came back here into the position that I'm in now. But coming back here has been really excellent. It's called the “fRAMily” and I feel like it is that through-and-through. So I feel like that was just so apparent to me, both at 18 and then thinking about professionally - I really wanted a community that felt like home, that felt engaged, that really supported students holistically, not just thinking about them as a number. I really wanted to be at a university that supported me as a student and that I got to support students as a professional. What is your favorite part of your role? My favorite part of my role, currently, is some of the programming that I get to do. I mean, student conduct is challenging. I have a lot of challenging conversations every single day where students are often getting told information that they really don't want to be told. When I get to do programming like the SHAPE resource fair, being able to positively engage with students and teach them about policies, hopefully before they need to use them, it is really excellent. So right now, I'm teaching students about the medical amnesty policy … but to be able to share that information with students and engage them in a way that will hopefully make them safer in the future. And I can see the gears turn like, “Oh, that policy makes sense. I could see how maybe I would use that or tell a friend about that.” It's really exciting to see that reaction. What are some of your hobbies? My biggest hobbies are reading romance novels and going to fitness classes. I'm also a fitness instructor. Occasionally, I substitute teach fitness classes, and I love dancing. If I'm not doing student conduct, I'm probably reading Emily Henry, or dancing at the gym. What is your favorite memory as a student? I honestly think one of the things that I look back at most fondly is when I was 18 and it was my freshman year. I had just gone through all of the RA process stuff. It was so stressful, and it was a really competitive process. It was even more competitive than it is now to become an RA here. I was so scared. I was like, “I'm a first-year student. I don't know if I'm going to get it,” and I think one of my favorite memories is opening up the envelope and seeing, “Congratulations! You were picked as an RA!” Because it felt like it really kick-started a lot of the joy that I had here - being an RA and being involved in the community. But it also kick-started - as I look back now - my journey as a student affairs professional. What advice do you have for students at Framingham State? The biggest advice I think I could give a student right now is to know policies. Even if you think that you're not going to use them, even if you think you're the most stellar community member who would never do anything wrong. I encourage students to know the policies because they might know a friend or a peer who is not making a good choice. I think to hear encouragement of how to use policies or how to engage in the community in a safe way from a peer is so much more meaningful.