Kaitlyn FitzHenry Staff Spotlight Interview
Kaitlyn FitzHenry has been both a student employee and an active member at Campus Rec for almost three years now. Kaitlyn is a face you will see often, from the Admin suite to the Volleyball courts, she is always around and has a smile to share. Originally from Bend, coming to school in Portland was an easy and affordable choice. As it turns out, she is happy to have found that PSU also meets her academic needs. To continue prioritizing her wellbeing, physical and mental health in college, it was a natural choice for Kaitlyn to find work at the Rec. She began in the FLASH Program as an Office Assistant, and was quickly promoted to the Lead and Student Coordinator positions. After graduating PSU in 2027, Kaitlyn plans to pursue a masters degree in both Psychology and Criminology with possible aspirations to go to medical school to become a Psychiatrist.
Social justice and advocating for justice system change is very important to Kaitlyn’s life. She strives to create better support networks for people who have been or are currently oppressed by and stuck in the system. Kaitlyn is specifically interested in working with young people because, “a lot of these kids, they have a lot of ability to change. And the reasons that they usually offend are due to lack of supports.” Kaitlyn brings this passion in the workplace where she has learned lots of new technical skills, as well as continuing to develop conflict resolution, delegation, and leadership abilities that will be relevant to any pathway she pursues.
Kaitlyn’s personal values align with several Campus Rec values. One of those that has stuck with Kaitlyn as she has moved up is Integrity. She says, “I definitely made a lot of mistakes when learning my new position as business services student coordinator. I made mistakes that involved a lot of people with the accounts and money. It was a learning curve to not be very good at something that is so important.” Another value that is important to Kaitlyn is Inclusion, “I try to commit to inclusion in all aspects of my life, but especially through the event planning and student employee recognition week last year. It was cool to include people that I never get to see here, like ODP or Group X and Personal Trainers.”
A position like this that was a favorite for Kaitlyn was her time serving on the Staff Council, where she helped plan the End of Year Recognition Banquet and was even awarded the “Key Contributor” award by PSU for being a standout in her area of work! One of Kaitlyn’s favorite parts of her job is planning events in different areas of the Rec. She says, “I like doing the reports and seeing what positions are open, or getting that head start of who the new employees are. I like seeing our general numbers, it's cool to see how much of an impact we have.” As we know organizing efforts for others is an area where Kaitlyn excels, outside of the Rec she shows these qualities while serving as a Resident Advisor this year.
When she’s not working Kailyn spends spare time playing Volleyball, both drop-in and Rec Club, as well as doing plenty of DIY crafts. She also has been interested in joining Intramural Basketball recently. Kaitlyn’s advice for Campus Rec staff is, “Don't be afraid to take on multiple positions or get involved more within the rec center. There's always opportunities, leadership opportunities, or opportunities for professional development or growth in your own area. Positions are flexible, so take advantage of it.”
With all of Kaitlyn’s experience in learning new things and jumping into opportunities she reminds us, “getting involved with communities is important, it's hard to do and is especially intimidating, but the earlier on in the year that you try to involve yourself the better, because everyone else is also trying to figure out their community. So, try things out!”