National Winner |
Month: June 2010 |
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Advisor of the Month |
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| School: |
UNC Chapel Hill |
Region: |
SAACURH |
| Nominee: |
Justin Lukasewicz |
Nominator: |
Zachary Cole |
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| On-Campus Population: 7500 |
Chapter Size: 40 |
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| Please explain the outstanding contributions of the nominee during the month of nomination |
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Taking a delegation of nine college students to the 2010 NACURH conference can be a
daunting task. However, UNC-Chapel Hill’s conference adviser Justin Lukasewicz took on
each challenge with fortitude and confidence throughout the entire conference process.
The biggest praise that Justin deserves for his advisor role is for the grace and patience he
exhibited during the actual trip to San Diego. The delegation had intended to arrive a day
early to site-see but was de-railed once they missed their connecting flight, forcing them to
spend much of the night in an airport while the airline looked for their lost luggage. After a
brief four-hour sleep in a local hotel, the delegation then traveled to Atlanta and finally
reached their destination only hours before the conference started. However, even though
the airline lost his bag and was less than amiable at times, Justin’s unflappable nature turned
this moment into an opportunity for the group to bond through laughter instead of anger. His
ability to make the very best out of pretty unfortunate circumstances set the tone for the rest
of the conference.
Another major strength of Justin’s adviser role was his ability to achieve balance between
being a professional giving advice and allowing the delegation to do their own thing and
make the experience their own. For example, in early June Justin gave all delegates control
over what program they would present at the conference. He encouraged people with less
experience to work with a partner while making their presentation personalized. While the
delegates prepared their programs, Justin organized a time later in June where all the
delegates could practice their programs in front of a group of people. Justin recruited
Housing staff to provide valuable feedback. This resulted in three very successful programs,
including one Top 50 program. Another example of Justin displaying excellent balance were
his actions during the actual NACURH conference that took place from June 21st-June 24th.
After finally arriving in San Diego at the conference, Justin gathered everybody together to
share his expectations and provide some advice. He encouraged everybody to make the most
of the conference experience and represent UNC-Chapel Hill to the best of their abilities.
This included attending all of the programming sessions, networking with other schools and
taking advantage of the program entertainment that was offered. After acquiring this advice
the delegation was then encouraged to explore UCSD’s campus. At every dinner, where
everyone was able to come together, Justin took a genuine interest in each delegate’s
conference experiences. He encouraged everyone to discuss his or her favorite part of the
day and gave feedback when necessary. Justin successfully kept the delegation focused on
the point of the conference, balancing his sage advice with humor.
Justin’s dedication did not waver once the conference was over. Upon returning to UNC-
Chapel Hill, Justin encouraged the delegation to have one final meeting in order to discuss
what went well and what could be improved for next year. The input gathered from that
meeting is to be used to enhance the next delegation’s conference experience. In addition,
Justin came up with a raffle idea to hopefully finish the rest of the delegations fundraising so
that it would be fully paid. Justin’s professionalism, patience, and support were felt
throughout the month of June and NACURH delegations of the future will benefit from the
precedent he has set.
Word Count: 562
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