Join us as we catch up with three of Tri Delta’s Chapter Development Consultants (CDCs) as they finish their whirlwind two years on the road and head into the “real world.” From travel hacks to favorite comfort foods and transformative experiences, these young alumnae spill the beans on what it’s really like to be a CDC.
Shannon Bogardus, Delaware, Erin Magner, Brenau, and Emma Thom, Butler, Tri Delta’s three 2023-2024 Senior Chapter Development Consultants, reflect on their adventures on the road from the must-have items they pack in their suitcases and their go-to comfort foods in different regions to making countless balloon arches and spending the day in a police station (yikes!).
But it's not all fun and games. These young alumnae share insights into their role as growth agents for our collegiate chapters, dispel myths about chapter visits and highlight their greatest accomplishments in empowering and establishing Tri Delta chapters across the country.
As they prepare to bid farewell to theirt ime on Tri Delta’s staff, Shannon, Erin and Emma reflect on the friendships they've forged, the lessons they've learned, and the invaluable experiences that have shaped them. They are ready to tackle whatever comes next—armed with the lessons learned from their time on the road and the beginning of their lifetime membership in Tri Delta.
Hello, everyone, and welcome back to another episode of our Let's Talk Tri Delta podcast. I'm Lexi Leggs, and I am Tri Delta's Program Development Specialist, and I'm also joined by...
Meredith Davies, Tri Delta's Philanthropy Specialist. And we are so excited to be back here today, and we are joined by three very special guests. We are ... have Emma Thom, Butler, Shannon Bogardus, Delaware, and Erin Magner, Brenau, all senior chapter development consultants, also known as CDCs. The CDC role is a role that is held by a group of 10 to 12 recent college graduates who have demonstrated exceptional leadership both on their campuses and within their Tri Delta chapters.
This position is both demanding and rewarding as our CDCs commit to a full year of traveling to Tri Delta collegiate chapters. And our senior CDCs, which we have here today, commit to a second year.
Their main role is to offer peer-to-peer support to our collegiate officers, facilitate workshops, help with chapter finances, recruitment, leadership development, and provide assistance with any other needs the chapters might have during their visits.
And Lexi, you were a CDC, too, from the CDC class of 2018 to 2019. During your time as a CDC, you traveled to 14 chapters, established a chapter, our chapter at Temple University. And now you find yourself back at Tri Delta As Tri Delta’s program development specialist where you work on key Tri Delta programs like BodyImage3D, AAUW, Start Smart, and CLC. CLC, which is right around the corner.
Yes, it is. And that is so true. And Meredith, you were also a CDC and during your time, you traveled to 21 chapters. You also helped establish and continue to support our chapter at Sacred Heart University. And you couldn't stay away because even after finishing your senior CDC role, you returned back to Tri Delta to, you felt called to support our Foundation as our philanthropy specialist. You have assisted in creating the Young Alumnae Giving Program, which might I say, I have gotten the chance to be a part of some of your young alumnae events here in the DFW area. And I'm so impressed by a lot of the work that you do with the foundation and creating that Friendship Society.
You also support Tri Delta's annual scholarship processes and assist with our partnership with St. Jude as well.
Yes, thanks, Lexi. Enough about thus. We could go on and on and on, but we have three amazing guests that we are here to talk with today. So welcome, Shannon, Erin, and Emma. We're so happy to have you today.
Yes, we are so excited to learn more about how your year has gone and just to catch up with you all. So Emma, would you like to start off by just introducing yourself and letting us know who you are?
Yeah, for sure. So my name's Emma. I graduated from the Delta Lambda chapter at Butler University. I served as the director of philanthropy for my first officer position and then served as CCP for three semesters, which was a blast. I first wanted to apply to be CDC like all the way back my sophomore year when we had a consultant named Kirby come visit the chapter so nice like full circle moment now that it's my last year in the role.
Shannon, you’re next.
Yes, thank you so much for having us. Shout out Lexi, I'm actually at Temple right now consulting. So another full circle moment for all of us today.
I recognize where you were. I was like, I saw you, I'm like, I know I've been there. I know.
Yes, the red definitely gave it away too in the background. About me, I'm an alumna from the University of Delaware. I studied communication and political science with minors in law in Spanish. During my time undergrad, I served as chapter president my sophomore year, and then I served as VP recruitment for the Panhellenic side of things at University of Delaware. Looking at consulting this year, especially as a senior consultant, predominantly finance, recruitment and leadership have been my main focus areas. I just did my numbers the other day and we've all consulted with over 4 ,000 individuals from undergraduate officers, collegiate officers, advisors, FSA staff, and anybody else within that mixture of leadership. So it's definitely shaped me into who I am today and I'm so excited to round out this year, but I'll let Erin take it away.
Hi, I'm Erin. I am also a senior chapter development consultant. Right now, I'm chilling at the Denison house in Ohio. I went to Denison last year. I'm currently establishing a chapter myself at Kenyon College. Super exciting. It's been a really rewarding experience. I graduated from Brenau, Alpha Epsilon. And I was also CCP for three semesters. I was VPME and I was just called to be in this role because something I love about Tri Delta is our growth structure and our growth model and seeing women just become better versions of themselves. And I was like, what better way to do that than as a consultant?
Absolutely agreed. And Erin, I actually visited Brenau during my time on the road and I will say that was one of my favorite chapters to visit even for you all being small your sisterhood is something that I thought was just so genuine and authentic so excited to see full circle that you're not here and that we are all having that experience together so we kind of want to jump into a quick rapid fire to get to know you all a little bit better they're a little CDC style so some specific questions about traveling things like that but feel free to share out and Meredith I don't know if we want to bounce off of these or just kind of go all the way through. Whoever would like to share first um what is your favorite food that you've tried in a new city?
I've got this one I went to Ottawa, Canada, and they showed me beaver tails which when they told me that I was like la real beaver tail? No it's basically just fried dough with a bunch of sugar and toppings on it which of course is delicious but I think about them sometime.
I had a very fulfilling experience when I went to UC Davis and they had an In-N-Out Burger there, literally like less than half a mile from the chapter house. I had it for the first time at training and my life changed. It's honestly not that good. I just literally love hamburgers and the animal fries. I think about it probably every other day. So I'm really excited to go back to the West Coast and get it In-N-Out. And it's my favorite thing ever.
Shannon's our In-N-Out Queen all day every day. I say one of my favorite places was Bagel Deli in Oxford, Ohio. They have like over a hundred different like bagel sandwiches on their menu and I love a good bagel It's one of my go-to like airport food. So that was probably one of my favorite spots.
Oh I love bagels. Good. Okay, favorite airline. Big question.
I'm a Delta girl through and through. Loyalist.
Interesting.
I'm also a Delta girl.
Okay, Shannon, what are you? I was going to say, I'm an American Airlines girl through and through. I used to be, I used to be United, but then they broke my luggage and they didn't give me any sort of compensation for it. Then I was pre-approved for American Airlines credit card which includes the lounge benefits last year so naturally I had to accept that and it's fabulous and it's one of my favorite things going to the airport is sitting in the lounge so I'm American Airlines through and through.
Awesome. What was your favorite snack on the road or is your favorite snack?
You're still good basic like ginger cookie on the flight. But while I'm in airports, back to the bagels like bagel and coffee is my go-to airport snack. I'm very easy please.
I'm a big fruit snacks girl, especially considering my flights are at like 4am in the mornings, I have to have just like a little bit of energy but I don't want to drink soda that early. So I always pack like extra fruit snacks in my carry-on plus they’re light. I think I go through like three packs when I'm sitting on the plane.
I always go for dried mango. You can get like a 10-pound bag of them at Costco and I just shove that thing in my backpack and that'll last me the whole time.
She's resourceful. That's very smart. Um, what is your favorite officer roller officer team to work with?
I think the member experience team for me. I just doing so much recruitment. They're always the ones who I would say have the most energy that you can feed off of. They also are the type of people who love different things like design. But I think they're the most lively group, I would say as a member experience team.
I would say probably tied between member experience and operations, because I love a good recruitment visit. But especially as a senior CDC, I've done a lot of work with chapters that have lost membership through resignation, so lots of budget, budget updates, finance things, which I feel like I've gotten really good at. So probably a tie between the two though.
This one is kind of interesting because I used to never really think about it much, but I really love the community relations team. I think there's so much creativity in the scope of things that you can plan for that. And they're always so willing to do literally, I will throw spaghetti at them and they're like, yeah, let's do it. Let's go. I love that.
I was gonna say we love that. We love the chapter programming and development team too.
We love, don't worry, we love you all.
Right. Now everybody might or might not have this one, but what is your travel comfort item, anything you have to bring with you on the road?
I am like oh, go ahead, Erin.
Okay. On my first trip ever, I went to Hobby Lobby and I bought a bearded dragon squishmallow and he comes with me everywhere. He's the perfect little neck pillow on the plane. Perfect for cuddling at night. I need him, what can you say?
I have a giant sweater that's really long and I basically use it as a blanket Here I am. I mean I wear it in the office all the time in Dallas because the air conditioning so cold and so then I just started bringing it on planes with me and it's probably like my most used item of all time.
This is going to be very not as genuine as the others, but I love my personalized mouse pad. I have to have a full set up during my meetings, especially from on the plane and I'm trying to get work done. I have to have my little mouse pad. It fits my mouse perfectly, it fits a coffee next to it and my agenda for the day. So it's like my number one comfort item in order to get work done. I have to have it or it just feels off the entire day. I feel like those are so like indicative of each of our personalities.
That's so true.
Those are very different things. I love that you all found your thing, that's wonderful. What was your favorite, or what is your favorite region to visit for whatever reason?
I'm gonna cheat and say the Canada region, just because I don't really travel outside of the country that much, and they were just so nice and welcoming. And I got to just explore, and I love to explore.
I would say this year region 9, especially this spring semester. I’m only on the West Coast, and so it’s really fun to work with chapters on a recurring basis. I’m at Washington State right now. This is going to be my fifth visit with them this year. So it's fun to kind of have that continuity.
Similarly, I think for the continuity aspect, I've been mostly in region 1 this semester. It's been really fulfilling to continue to work with a lot of the chapters that I've worked with in the past, especially who have some other like internal and external issues going on. You don't always get to see a lot of the goals and the solutions that you come up with chapters like at that end component when you're a consultant. So I think this year especially being in Region 1 has been super super fulfilling to continuously work with a lot of the chapters that I worked with last year.
That is such a good point. I do think that the rapport you have with your chapters definitely helps in your role and it's not as easy to be rewarding if you can't see the work that you've done but being able to go back and visit. That's definitely true. What is your most memorable chapter gift?
I would say my second visit ever, last year as a first-year consultant, I went to the Beta chapter at St. Lawrence and I love drinking Earl Grey tea. Like that's one of my go-tos. I drink it all day, every day. And at the end of my visit, they made me this whole cute little basket with like tea, a mug from the university and then like a little claw clip from this boutique that we'd gone to. And I bought my sister one, but I didn't buy myself one. I was like, that was just so cute. So it was my second visit ever too. So it was fun to like already see that connection with collegians.
This is one, it wasn't a gift to me, it was a gift to somebody else. But when I was consulting at Boston, they are a much smaller chapter, and they're the type of chapter whose members are always willing to show up for each other and I tell everyone I'm like if you need to look at one chapter as like a role model it is Boston our founding chapter and I was there with Carter this year during their formal recruitment process and at the end we all had shared just like stories and different memories with each other and at the end all of the exec team brought out this adorable photo that Carter took like a selfie with all of them with within like the very quick chapter recruitment turnaround time of like 12 hours and they all signed our names and like their favorite memory or something that was really fulfilling to Carter when she left everyone was crying it was really really wholesome um and it's something that just stood out to me was such an amazing weekend.
That's so cute.
I'm gonna do a cop-out answer and say that a lot of chapters at chapter will do like little love notes to each other, which I think is great. And sometimes they'll write a note that's like, shout out to Erin our CDC for being here. And if you've ever given me a note, even if it's on like a scrap of torn up notebook paper, I still keep them. They're all in a folder. I'm going to frame them or something. Same!
Same! Erin, I started this journal that like my travel log is what I've been calling it of likewise, even if it's a tiny little scrap paper or if someone just wrote a heart or something on one of my manuals, I'll tear it up and I'll put it in the little journal because it's the most fulfilling thing to go back to.
Yeah, I like to scrapbook. And so I specifically have a folder in my suitcase that has all my little notes, gifts, cards. It's so fun to look at.
I wish I had all of these ideas.
Why does this job turn us all into scrapbookers? I really believe that we could ask any person who was a field consultant at any point, you know, a CDC, we've all either got a scrapbook or a pile or a box. I just moved and realized how much stuff I had had and I was only physically on the road for one year and I every hotel room key I kept every key every note I kept confetti from CLC I mean I had it all and I didn't get rid of any of it because it's all just sentimental just we can't help it just.
I kept every boarding pass I have and I'm like I'm gonna have to make some sort of like sculpture with these cuz why do I have like crusty boarding passes in my closet?
A printed boarding pass. That is a, that is a hot take in itself right there.
Vintage
Also, I have to, I'm too paranoid in the airport, especially I have Xfinity and the cellular is horrible. So my heart starts racing if I'm in the middle of nowhere and I can't load my app to get my boarding pass. It's happened before. Well, now I print everything because I'm paranoid.
And now I'm going to be paranoid. Thanks. Do you all have a thing that you do on the road that makes your life feel a little bit more stable like you have a little bit more control What's your thing?
I am not someone that packs light. Like I fully take advantage of like the checked suitcase and the carry-on suitcase. I have like all of my full size, like facial care, my pillow. I have to have like a solid morning and night routine, especially if I'm going from the East Coast to the West Coast because that time change just gets you so bad, especially when your flight's out like four in the morning.
I keep a pillowcase, my own personal like wash cloths, and... things like that. And then I have a little, UC Davis gave me a little baby cow thing that I sleep with and I bring it with me everywhere I go because it feels like home and it brings me joy. But yeah, I think things that just make it feel like home or that you're not super, super far away.
I just make sure to call my parents at least once a week. They're my biggest friends. supporters. They are my ride-or-dies, so, you know, and I'm sure every time I come home, I'm like, when are you quitting so that you could be here forever? So they're just always there to like make my day better.
Guys, and Emma, I was gonna go back to that because you said about your pillow. I thought that's what you were gonna mention about your comfort item, 'cause I distinctly remember you telling me about the pillow that you travel with. So. whatever keeps us stable and sane I just love that I thought that was so unique gotta use that full suitcase. What is your on-the-road collection what are you all as you go to your chapters you kind of already touched on that but what do you you grab every time you visit a school?
I always try and find a like little sticker that you put on your laptop either in the shape of the state that I'm in or some like I identification with the city. Everywhere I go, usually it's like a little mom and pop papery type shop. And I always try and find a little sticker that says where I was for that week.
I take a picture in every airport I go to, which is fun. And then I also take pictures with like the entrance of like the university or college sign that I go to. um so that I like have a fun little memory of all the cool spots.
I told you I have my boarding passes, even some rental cars if I go to chapter to chapter I kept those pieces of paper like I've got receipts.
This is a very well documented group. What was your item Lexi? What did you collect?
I was also going to say mine was stickers. So I actually really liked to collect mugs, personally, but I don't know if you all had the same situation, but a few returning CDCs gave us advice before we started working and one of them was like, "Do not collect mugs, they're very heavy.” So I decided to go with something that was light and so I did stickers and I put them all in this giant gallon water bottle that unfortunately I lost when I moved to Texas. I have no idea where it was, but I had some really cute stickers on there. So that was mine.
I know.
It'll come back to you when you need it the most. I'm such a believer.
Right
One day it's just gonna show up and it'll be, again, a full circle moment.
I need it back. What was yours, Mere?
I asked for T-shirts from every single chapter that I visited. I'm like, what T-shirt do you have in your back closet? I don't care how old it is. I want a shirt that says your chapter on it. And I really got a T-shirt that says your chapter on it. One, I think, from pretty much every chapter I visited. And I'm still doing that now with facilitating. If I go to a new chapter and I'm facilitating there, I'm like, and I do now have two full boxes of T-shirts. It's really not a good situation. But I mean, what can I do? I need to like get, I need to make one of those quilts. I think, I think that's the only solution. Like have like University of Nebraska 2015 DHOP. Like I wasn't I was in high school still when that shirt was made but I have it and I have a shirt from Nebraska and Nebraska was a new state and so it's all very sentimental. I can't help it.
I love that. Okay I think we're gonna switch over for some hot topics and things that people really want to know about the CDC role and that we want to know from your experience. So starting off strong because I did not do this out of did you all decide to come back on for a senior CDC year or even more so what made you decide to take on the role in the first place?
Kind of like I said earlier my chapter how to CDC my sophomore year and I was just like super into the idea of it and then my director of first-year experience from when I was a new member, her name is Brittany Potts, she was a consultant the year before I joined the team. And then Butler had a new house be built and there was a big housing campaign. So I worked really closely with some executive staff, my senior year while I was president and just felt like everything clicked. So that's kind of why I decided to apply. And then I wanted to do a second year because it was already really rewarding my first year when I would go back to a chapter for a second time and already see some of that growth. And so specifically when I decided to do a second year, I asked Val, our supervisor, like specifically if I could go back to like a list of these chapters so we could kind of continue that improvement. So that's been really cool to see.
One of the things that really made me want to be a CDC other than the growth aspect that I love is that, like you said, Lexi, I come from a pretty small chapter. So our consultant was from, I think, LSU, and I literally love her to death. She's awesome. But regardless, she would say some things and be like, what are you talking about? So I have no clue what that applies to us. So it's like, well, maybe I should go and be like, a little chapter consultant. So that's kind of my was my mindset going in. And of course, I've been to like every size of chapter since then, it's not, you know, we all were like, Oh, my chapter is so different, but we're all the same, let's be real. And I'll give you like a flowery version and then a normal version. So why I wanted to stay on for a second year. First off, you match retirement when you do a second year as consulting, and I wasn't going to pass that up. So if anyone's thinking of staying on for a second year being a consultant, know that they have those benefits. And the flowery reason is just that I fell in love with it. I mean, I didn't expect to like it as much as I did, but everyone I meet is so cool. Well, I feel like I have-- a trillion billion crazy stories from the road that like at a party, I'm like, "Oh, well, what about this thing that I did?" So it's just, it's the best.
Yeah, I second all of that being from an emerging chapter too. I think one of the things that really resonated with what brought us to, or University of Delaware to where we were today was having so much extra help and having consultants. And I really wanted to be that extra support, that mentor, some individual where you don't always understand what someone might be going through. You can still have someone to talk to about some of those learning spaces and areas of growth with chapter members. And for me, that's something that I really wanted to provide for members. And then being on a second year, I had to take some unexpected time off when I was only about two visits into the year. And during that time, time off like my family was going through a bunch of stuff but at the same time I really just wanted to get back on the road, meet new people, experience new places and having that extenuating time was something where not that I didn't feel that I wasn't getting my job done but I felt like I could do more with it and that's what kind of brought me into doing an additional year is kind of making up for that lost time and being able to remain a powerhouse. powerhouse and being a growth consultant, essentially, for some of those other chapters that maybe I didn't get to see.
Yeah, that's so awesome. I love all of that. It's practical.
Go ahead, I'm sorry.
Practical and, and cute and fun reasons. I love it. We’ve got both.
Absolutely. I also really like the common theme of the growth. Obviously, we've said growth and development a lot. It's a very prominent aspect of Tri Delta’s founding. And to be able to be those growth agents for your chapters, I know from personal experience is very impactful too.
This is a question we need to ask you for all of our collegians out there. Why should chapters get a visit from a CDC? How does it benefit them? Yeah, what's in it for the chapter to work with you?
I would say recruitment hacks is the first thing that comes to mind. Like the different like just hacks and tips and little specific nuances that a lot of people don't always know or even were like on boarded with is something that has been a very common misconception and or area that I've tried to troubleshoot with the majority of the campuses, regardless of how strong you are in regards to recruiting as the chapter, both formally and informally, there's always going to be something that you don't know, even if it's just like staying up until three o 'clock in the morning while chapter members are kind of losing it a little bit from lack of sleep and being able to help them push through and submit those lists and even understanding what a flex list is and having someone explain that to them instead of trying to troubleshoot for two and a half hours. The little hacks that come along within small little tips and tricks.
I think learning about Tri Delta resources is huge at my visits, especially with things like My Tri Delta being new just this past year and then the office new officer structure happening during COVID for that transition. A lot of officers I meet with are completely new to things like the Resource Library, LEADDDer .org. And so that's always helpful. But then even chapters who are doing like amazing operationally can always benefit from like some fine tuning and like how to be more creative and engage with the chapter. So I feel like whatever chapter I go to, whether it's like SOS, we're on probation. probation and we need to help doing all these terms or we're operating perfectly to the T now we just want to have like more fun sisterhood events that's something that a consultant can help you with.
Definitely, Emma. I think like a good term for it is kind of a “reset.” I think you get a few of those throughout the year definitely. CLC is one of them where you like come together and figure out what you want to do but I think a consultant is great because it makes everyone get to together and think, okay, especially that's the middle of the year, where are we going? How are we doing on these goals? And then how do you reach those goals? Sometimes it feels like you're just speaking into the void of Tri Delta, like, can I do XYZ? So I think it's been really helpful for collegians to look someone in the eyes and be like, I don't know how to do this and this, and then get the answers immediately. It's just, I think that's really helpful.
Absolutely so you heard it here first. If you're a collegiate officer listening here if any of those things sound like things you might need assistance with you can request a CDC visit through your chapter volunteers but of course the benefits stretch far and wide. Curious from this group what do you think is your greatest accomplishment as a CDC? I need some like thinking music in the background.
I've worked with a lot of chapters that are either navigating through probation or like recently coming out of probation. Some of them also have some big membership gaps on their roster due to retention and so it's been really rewarding working with some of those chapters and seeing how they've grown not just like statistically on paper like okay all over your percentages on your RFM report went up but then also just seeing how members interact with each other and so I think that's one of my greatest accomplishments is helping officers kind of see their potential and empower them to make those changes on their own.
I feel like I have to say establishing Kenyon. I mean, it's been great. I've just been trucking here by myself, but I've met so many incredible people. There's, there were four women that reached out that were really the spearheads on their campus for this and they're incredible. And it's just, they almost are like trying to do too much. I feel like they want to jump headfirst into Tri Delta. They love everything about it and it's really heartwarming because I know. a lot of times you go as a consultant and sometimes it can just be like all the problems, but it's really awesome to go somewhere and it's just like just so much new hope and there's no problems. It's just excitement, which is just really refreshing.
I think for me, I've worked with one specific campus that's sticks out to me and they had a really tough recruitment overall. There were a lot of just like instabilities and things that just kept kind of popping up that resulted in a lot of like backlash from the university. And so being on that campus at the time as a more seasoned second year consultant, I was able to go in and kind of plead the case for Panhellenic on their behalf as to why Greek life is something that can really be a transformative experience for students. Not only does it teach you about sisterhood, morale, and values, you also learn so many different things when it comes to leadership, personal finance, financial literacy, credit, like all of these other things that you may not necessarily have access to, whether it be your major or your background, where you come from, the university itself. And so being able to really just advocate for not only our organization, but the other nine organizations that were on that campus as a leader was probably one of the most significant experiences for me. Absolutely, and I'm a believer in small wins. But that was a really big one for me, and I'm very proud of it.
You all should be so proud of everything you've done. I mean, these are incredible things you accomplished and you're two years out of college. I mean this job I think does really remarkable things for the women who take on this role. I mean, I can't imagine who I would be if I hadn't done it. So it's so wonderful to hear that it continues to be such a transformative experience for all the women who graduate and want to keep going. I feel like sometimes people think we're crazy to keep wanting to do Tri Delta, but we love it. And here we are. And speaking of crazy, I want to know the craziest, weirdest thing that happened to you. Mine was that I always felt like I ended up in a first aid situation. Like I kept having to give people band-aids or like take someone to the doctor. What is your crazy not-in-the-job description thing that happened to you in this role?
The amount of balloon arches I have made in the two years where I need for Tri Delta is unmatched and honestly like now when I have a recruitment visit, I volunteer because I feel like I'm just so good at this at this point. And it's just a great time to also talk with like, general members like non officers. So yeah, I feel like I'm a balloon arch connoisseur at this point.
The other senior CDCs know something was in the air last year. Every chapter I went to something bonkers happened. But I would say probably the most bonkers thing. I won't get into the whole story, but I did spend the day in a police station, not arrested. (laughing) Just there to support another member that was going through some things. And I remember sending a Snapchat to our, like consultant group chat, like, in the police station.
Like, so unhinged.
It's so true. it's so true. I've also likewise been into some other spaces that were just like not in the job description at all, whether it be on campus or off campus. I think, and this is kind of in the job description, but I definitely just did it to myself when I was traveling from Illinois to Wisconsin, which is very close, like geographically very, very close, and it's very convenient to get there. And I couldn't check my bag because I was two minutes, like, like closer from being 45 minutes early. And this was at three o 'clock in the morning. So I was already just in a mood and hangry and not about to step on a plane. I could not get in the flight until nine p .m. that evening when I had to rebook everything. And the more I thought about it when I actually got to Wisconsin, they were telling me they were like, Shannon, you know, it would have been faster for you to just get in a car and drive up here, instead of waiting in the state of Illinois for my rescheduled flight that day. And it was like a horrible travel day. And now I get to the airport literally three hours beforehand, because I'm so paranoid about my check bag. But that was one of the things that definitely sticks out to me. And every time I'm trying to plan and troubleshoot my travel day schedule,
I always have that fun memory in mind.
Wow, this role just puts us all into some very interesting predicaments. I think I'm like sitting here trying to rack my brain because it's been five to six years since mine. And I think my first semester, there were a lot of crazy wildfires in the Pacific Northwest. And so my very first visit by myself, my flight was canceled completely because the visibility was low, so I had to stay in a hotel in Seattle by myself. But then while I was visiting chapters in the PNW, I had to wear a mask. So this was pre-COVID, but I had to wear a mask because breathing in the air was so dangerous, and that's something that is very unfamiliar to me as a Chicagoan. We don't have wildfires, so. But also, Shannon, I feel bad that you were stuck in a Chicago airport. I do apologize for that. Question. What are you thinking that you're going to miss the most about this role when you are done?
I'm going to miss Erin and Emma and texting them at like hours of the night that I know no one else is awake but they are. No, I'm going to miss the team and the people that I work with like 100%. These two especially have just been like my ride or die throughout this entire year. So I'm going to miss our weekly chats and emergency check-ins.
Yeah, it's always nice to have an impromptu FaceTime at like 9 p.m. of like, okay, this is what is blowing up at this chapter, thoughts, ideas. That's definitely been super helpful. But then also too, it's nice to talk with like the whole CDC team, but then also with like Shannon and Erin, because they've done a second year. And so they're also familiar with like all the things that we had to do last year as well. So definitely going to miss that.
Yeah, I'm also gonna miss you guys but you also can't get rid of me so like don't forget like if I text you at 9 p.m. like I'm still here um yeah just you guys and then everyone that I've met I feel like we have so many incredible collegians that it's like I could name 20 different incredible people that they like told me what they do but I'm just like, that's incredible. I know one of them, Mandy Chick was, she's a professional race car driver. She was on the cover of the magazine and now I brag to everyone. It's like, I know a race car driver. So just like, it's crazy the people you meet.
It doesn't go away all. It really doesn't. Like these are connections that you have forever. My CDC team, group chat, we still text, I will say weekly at least. And we are nearly three years removed. And I still talk to everyone about everything. They're like, okay, Meredith, you're the one who's still there. What's going on? How are things? Can you help me find this? This has changed in a resource. Can you tell me what's different about slating now? I don't even work in member experience. I really can't help you. I know what you know. But it doesn't go away. So, like, hold on to it because you can. And it's, I mean, we're the only people who have done the job. So you've got to find those people out in the world. Um, okay, since we're doing sappy stuff now, what advice do you have for Tri Delta collegians who think that they want to be a consultant?
I say just like put yourself out there and go for it. Full send. Like I knew I really wanted to be a CDC but I was so nervous because like well how many people are gonna apply like I don't know if I'm gonna get it or not. Just like full send. I mean the worst thing that happened is you don't get the job and you get to practice being interviewed by like other Tri Deltas and like women in leadership that are amazing and awesome and use it as like a network opportunity. So I think I would definitely tell them that and then if they then get hired like put yourself out of your comfort zone, eat meals with people and like just get excited, make connections because the more you interact with collegians, the more comfortable they're gonna feel with you and the more information you're then gonna be able to get from them to then help them improve their chapter. So definitely push yourself to get involved.
Definitely, I think there's a million reasons that people can come up with not to apply, but there's also a million reasons and more to apply that they don't even recognize yet. I always say that I feel like I could do any job in the world after this job. It's prepared me for everything. And I just, I think, you can't even put into words how much this changes you. And I just think it's something that you should experience. And you have your whole life to go to grad school, work a nine to five job at the office, you have your whole life to go to grad school, work a nine to five job at the office. You only have this time to travel the United States and Canada and meet all these awesome people.
It's so true. I think one of the biggest things that I have learned from this role particularly is being able to be comfortable with yourself and comfortable with just like being alone and that's okay and I think that's something that a lot of people don't even grasp. throughout their entire lives. It's something, it's a skill to be learned. It's something that you can learn day to day. And being able to take that, especially being young and in your 20s where you should be living your life and just experiencing new things, being comfortable with being uncomfortable is literally the biggest piece of advice and the biggest top notch skill to have once you leave that safe space of college. And I will take everything, every single experience and lesson with it every single day.
I love that. That was my saying, always going through my first year as a consultant was just get comfortable with the uncomfortable. So I'm glad that you mentioned that. Clearly, you all have had a wealth of experiences. You all have so much to offer. You're talented. You have skills as leaders. You've given so much to Tri Delta. Hopefully you've gotten a lot of that back in return in this role. I'm just curious what comes next for you after this chapter.
I personally would love to continue consulting. I don't know exactly where that's going to be just yet. As well as business school, that's something that's on the horizons for me after I have my little retirement party May 15th. I'm going to be studying for the GMAT, which I'm very nervous, but excited about and starting to make that pivot towards my long-term career. But at the same time, I could wake up tomorrow and decide I want to move to Japan or something, knowing me. So a little bit of the unknown, but some more big picture items after I spend the summer at the Jersey Shore.
Go ahead, Emma. Yeah so kind of similar to Shannon, no like concrete plans as of now wanting to do something with like educational programming or event planning. Kind of similar in line would also love to continue working with like young women in leadership whether that is like on a campus within Greek life or eventually be an advisor for Tri Delta. So that's definitely something that in this role I feel like I've gotten a lot more exposure to what lifetime membership in Tri Delta looks like and so I'm excited to explore that even when I'm not working for them anymore.
Right now, God willing, I am going back to my original career path doing a 180 turn and I'm going to be working in the costume department for an upcoming movie in Atlanta.
in May. So that'll be really exciting. It's a little stressful because it's not like a stable job quote unquote. But I just I was like, you know what, you need to nut up and like do what you love. So we're going to see how that goes.
Lovely. Well, I cannot wait to see where you all go from here. And all the time that we've had with you and staff has been so amazing. Like I said, your impact with Tri Delta has been felt through and through. So I just appreciate having you all here, sharing more about what it's like to be on the road as a CDC. I also want to give a thank you to everybody here in podcast land.
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Yes, thank you all so much. Until next time, Delta Love.