By Stephanie McAlpine, NIRSA Championship Series Committee Chair
Many of my NIRSA colleagues are aware that I have an almost two-year-old daughter, Ellie, and that my husband Chris McAlpine is a fellow campus recreation professional at neighboring institution UT Dallas. My year as the NIRSA Championship Series Chair has so far been defined by balancing my Chair responsibilities with my growing daughter’s constant needs and demands.
I’ve often wondered if the education and experiences of collegiate recreation professionals helps us as parents—and I’m starting to think that might be the case.
I find myself frequently drawing comparisons between parenting and the work Chris and I do with active college students.
21-month-old Ellie McAlpine.First off, “Bed time is forfeit time!” My officiating experience has already proven to be very valuable as our sweet daughter has learned the art of negotiation. My husband and I have quickly fallen back on one of our intramural sport colleague’s favorite sayings: “Game time is forfeit time!” We’re not sure if we’re just blessed with an excellent sleeper, or if our enforcement of the rule is what’s allowed us the luxury of a good night’s sleep for most of the past two years. Either way, timeliness and rule enforcement are essential for everyone to learn—and Ellie is already ahead of most college freshmen.
My husband and I have spent numerous years teaching sport club officers to divide and conquer the duties of organizing practices, planning travel, fundraising, and the numerous other duties that are part of successfully running an organization. Every year at training, I encourage officers to use their resources and develop a plan utilizing the strengths of each of the officers.
My husband and I initially found ourselves overwhelmed with the responsibilities of work, parenting, volunteering with NIRSA, and don’t even mention doing laundry. I’ve realized since that the exact same wisdom I attempt to share with sport club officers has allowed us to stay afloat as first-time parents. We are thankful to be able to raise our daughter together, and I am grateful for my husband’s continual support through the process.
Chris McAlpine, Ellie McAlpine, and NIRSA volunteers at the 2014 NIRSA Region IV Soccer Championships at UT Dallas.Finally, many of us campus recreation professionals take pride in our ability to serve as role models for the next generation. Every year, we engage our students on campus and encourage them to be active. I realize that not everyone reading this is a parent, but I believe that our profession is full of confident, selfless educators who embrace in loco parentis in their daily interactions with future doctors, leaders, teachers, politicians, and problem solvers.
I am grateful there are so many willing mentors within our field, and I’m confident in our ability to challenge and motivate future generations. You can compare our colleagues who have mastered the ability to balance parenting and a successful career in campus recreation to many things, but as a favor to them all, let’s steer clear of helicopter parents!
I believe that each new year as parents and college administrators will bring with it both challenges and rewards. As professionals, we need to remember that we play an active, and important role in shaping the next generation—so let’s make sure to do our best as leaders in collegiate recreation!
