Gen and Jan Plan

Posted by: Dory Streett (dstreett@colby.edu) on Wed, January 31, 2007, 3:04 p.m.

With the end of Jan Plan yesterday, Lunder House has lost a staff member – sort of. We’ve been lucky for the last month in having a student, Genevieve Triganne, use her Jan Plan to serve as an intern in our office. Gen is a junior who is considering a career in admissions some day. She was no stranger to us, though, since she works for us during the regular academic year as well. In fact, if you’ve ever called our office, chances are good that she was the friendly and efficient voice at the other end of the line who answered your call.

In the summer, we hire a group of students to do a variety of things for us, including manning the reception desk, handling mailings, and most important of all, giving tours to the hordes of prospective students and their families who visit our beautiful campus. Gen spent the summer with us in ’06, and I’ve been reading about her in various applications this winter. In the section that asks applicants to describe their reasons for applying to Colby, Gen has been mentioned a number of times as being the student’s tour guide over the summer. Her enthusiasm and stories about her time at Colby have helped students picture themselves as a part of the College.

One of the greatest things about Gen is that she’s good at pretty much anything we ask her to do, and she’s saved us numerous times in Lunder. Need an extra tour guide at the last minute? She’ll do it. Swamped with data entry? She is a pro. 1,000 piece mailing that needs to go out tomorrow? Gen plugs in her iPod and gets the job done. She’s amazing.

But wait: there’s more! This History major came to us from Westminster School in Connecticut, but she’s one of Colby’s international students, hailing from Pointe-Claire, Quebec, just outside of Montreal. While she has spent Jan Plan learning about all facets of admissions at a liberal arts college, she’d actually like to work at a boarding school similar to Westminster, where she can also supervise a residence hall and act as a coach.

And here’s where Gen is perhaps best known on campus: in front of the net when the women’s hockey team takes the ice. A tri-captain this year, Gen has had some monumental games this year, including two that were back-to-back early in the season where she had 71 saves and was named NESCAC Women’s Hockey Player of the Week for her efforts. In the second of those games against Bowdoin, she had 21 saves in the third period and overtime, resulting in a 4-4 tie in a game where the Mules were out-shot by a 42-14 margin.

Here’s the good news: although Jan Plan is over and the students are on a short break before beginning the second semester next week, Gen’s not going anywhere. Her internship is over, but she’s still here, answering your calls, saving goals and saving the day.

Thanks Gen!