For some students, working at the Carolina Union means more than just a paycheck – it’s where they’ve built friendships, developed skills, and become part of a community. As they prepare to graduate, some of our longest-serving student employees are clocking out one final time. In this monthly series, they reflect on their years behind the Welcome Desk, setting up tables in the Pit, creating viral social media moments, supporting the leadership development of their fellow Tar Heels, and so much more. Here they tell us about the memories that will stay with them long after they turn in their name tags.
The Carolina Union is certainly more than a building, but it has also been more than a place to work for me.
Coming into college, I knew that I wanted to get a part-time job as soon as I got on campus. The structure, the chance to meet new people, and the skills it would provide me were important.
Boy, was I right.
I started working at the Union as an Operations Assistant in Event Services. If you’ve walked past The Pit in the middle of the day, the chances you have seen me, or one of my coworkers, lugging tables to and from the Union are high. It was this job, though, that has given me some of the best gifts that I could have ever asked for.
I get asked a lot: “Why are you still there?” It isn’t super common for people in college to stay at the same job for more than a year. I’ve always had the same response…
“The people.”
Working in a college town is probably one of the best things a freshman can do for themselves. I made my best friends from the Union. I got an up close (and sometimes ugly) look at the nuances of college life, from stressed out seniors applying to jobs, juniors studying for the LSAT, or countless talks about the internship search. I knew which places on Franklin Street to go to, what the best classes to take were, and other things. It’s sorta like having your own campus guide.
Now, as a senior, I get to repay that to underclassmen, creating those connections, but also preparing them for the real world.
I learned how to deal with changing demands in a fast-paced environment. Meeting with hundreds, if not thousands, of clients these past three years has taught me a lot about what it means to interact with others. Challenging moments have taught me just as much as the pleasant ones, helping shape me into a better people-person.
I also learned how to move up in leadership. What was once the first real interview I had as a freshman led to a promotion as an Operations Lead, where I routinely interview new hires, contribute to important promotion decisions, and have developed strong connections with senior-level staff.
Two years ago, I started another position in the Union, as a Communications Assistant this time. I have worked on numerous social media posts and campaigns (yes, I came up with the idea of using inflatables for events), edited videos, and gained firsthand experience with hard skills that will directly transfer to my career.
And while hard skills matter, soft skills are often overlooked, but the way I work is all thanks to those long nights in the Great Hall.
As senior year keeps trucking along, and I go through many of my first “lasts” on campus, I think a lot about how much I have grown, and how a lot of that growth has been because of the experiences I have had in the Carolina Union.
By Maylon Rawls, Event Services Operations Lead & Communications & Creative Services Communications Assistant
