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It fits the definition of a perfect job
In a year full of change and transition, we also have gained two new secretaries and a new attendance officer. After several months of working at their job, they have found a way to make it all run smoothly for the others and the rest of the school.
Our two alumni, Mandy Orton and Jane Anderson are the new part time secretaries at NS. Orton and Anderson each work about a 22-23 hour work week. Anderson comes in on Mondays and Wednesdays and Fridays for half a day, while Orton comes in on Tuesdays and Thursdays for a full day, and the other half of Fridays. Our attendance officer, Tori Hansen, works everyday, or roughly 6 hours a week.
Mandy Orton
Mandy Orton is the new part time secretary at NS. After attending NS through her high school years, Orton grew to love the school. A few years after her class graduation, she decided that she wanted to return to the school.
Only a few months before the new school year, Orton moved back to Sanpete, had a week old baby, signed a contract to build a house, and then got laid off from her previous job. This was hard on both herself and her husband.
“We said that unless the perfect job came up, I would stay home for a while and take care of our baby,” Orton said. “Then this job came up and I was like, ‘That fits the definition of a perfect job.’”
Orton loves what she does. She loves interacting with people, especially the students. Throughout her own high school career, the secretaries made a huge impact on her, especially Brenda Aagard. Those experiences gave Orton the desire to make an impact on a students life, and being a secretary seems like a really good way to do so.
Everyone struggles at some point in their life, whether it’s just one day or a longer period of time. Orton realizes this and treats those she comes in contact with accordingly.
“I always think, ‘Well you’ve had bad days too,’” Orton said. “I don’t know what’s happened in their day. It would be easy for me to snap back at all the people that snap at me, but I just think they’re having a hard time.”
Jane Anderson
Jane Anderson is the second part time secretary and an alumni at NS. Being an office aid for most of her senior year, she grew to love the job of a secretary and knew that’s where she wanted to be.
“I love everything that that job represents,” said Anderson, “and that’s why I really wanted to take it in the first place, because I absolutely loved the office when I was a student.”
As a TA in the office, Anderson gained a super close friendship with the secretaries and they made a huge influence on her life. All she wants is to return that favor to another student.
“Maybe that friendship is what helps get them through a hard day,” said Anderson. “[Melanie] was like my best friend my senior year, and I just want to be able to offer that to some other kid.”
Since Anderson only works roughly 22 hours per week at the high school, she has other jobs to fill her time. One of those jobs is working in the Snow College Registrar’s office. Working in the two jobs brings out a different opportunity that Anderson wouldn’t have otherwise, which the high school students benefit from.
“Kids come into the office at the high school needing stuff for Snow and I can help them,” said Anderson.
Anderson loves to stay busy and always needs something to do to keep her hands moving. Working as much as she does brings a form of satisfaction into her life.
“I am the happiest and I function the best when I’m super busy,” Anderson said.
Tori Hansen
Tori Hansen is the new attendance officer at NS. She has worked with the district in Fountain Green for many years prior to her new position at the high school. Hansen has always loved the high school aged kids.
“The kids are my favorite part,” said Hansen.
Hansen does a pretty good job at keeping her home life and her work life separate. However, there are still days where going home doesn’t take everything from school away.
“Depending on what we had to do with some kids,” said Hansen, “sometimes I take that home, and sometimes I take that personal.”
Hansen’s responsibility at work is to keep kids in class and to make sure they behave the rules. She doesn’t want her job to be getting kids in trouble—that is her least favorite part about the position she is in.
“I don’t like being the bad guy,” said Hansen. “I don’t like having to punish kids. I don’t like getting them in trouble. I don’t like having to be the one that has to be hard on them, but we have to be.”
Someone has to take on these roles of this position, and although it isn’t Hansen’s favorite thing to do, she will do it to the extent she has to.
“I just wish kids would all be good so I didn’t have to be the bad guy,” said Hansen. “I just want to help the kids and when I think that we’re not helping them, then I have a hard time with that.”
