By Raechel Kepner

Throughout my career, first in Residential Education and now in Residential Facilities, I have been presented with opportunities that felt overwhelming and, at times, intimidating. If you are a lover of personality tests, my Myers-Briggs type is ISTJ, and it explains a lot about how I approach things in life. As an ISTJ, I have the tendency to take the safe route and stay in the areas that I can control or feel most comfortable in. The feeling of the unknown always made me nervous. 

Over the years of my career, I have had to challenge myself to get outside of my ISTJ way of thinking to continue to grow. One lesson I often think about when facing a challenge is something I learned in graduate school: be willing to say "yes"!

During graduate school, I took a class taught by Dr. Kenneth Stoner (J.C.'s dad!), who taught me a lesson that has stayed with me: be willing to say "yes" when opportunities arise. In the class, Dr. Stoner talked about how many opportunities he pursued began because someone asked him to take on a small role, and he said “yes”. After taking on these smaller roles, he talked about how he then began saying “yes” to other opportunities that were presented to him which furthered his career and expanded his ability to serve within the field.

Thinking about my journey so far, there were times that I wish I had said “yes” to opportunities, particularly when I was still new to the field. I look back and realize that my fear of the unknown overshadowed the lesson I was taught in graduate school. When looking for my first mid-level role, I started with the mindset of, “Yes, I think I can do that!” versus sticking with the things that I felt comfortable with. I recognized that saying “yes” also showed my team and department that I was a team player and was willing to help when needed. 

When I decided that I wanted to take my next step in a Senior-level role, the job I was considering seemed well outside of the student affairs comfort bubble that I was in. I talked with many people before I chose to submit my application because I was finding it difficult to picture myself in a different field. After encouragement and reminding myself that sometimes you just must be willing to say “yes” to trying new things, I submitted my application and ended up with the position. In my role now, I am constantly challenged to say “yes” to things that are unfamiliar to me but are helping me to grow and be able to better support others in the way that I have been supported.

One of my most recent moments of saying “yes” brings me back to my current role as SWACUHO Treasurer. When I originally was looking at positions within SWACUHO, I was only considering a few that were comfortable to me. It wasn’t until Dr. (J.C.) Stoner reached out to me and asked me to look at the Treasurer position that I even considered the idea of being in the role. I was a bit intimidated by the position description and all the pieces that came with it, and I almost decided that I was not going to run. After talking with my supervisor, Henry Moreno, and getting advice and some confidence boosting (thanks, Henry!), I did some reflection about my experiences and remembered that if I didn’t say “yes” to the opportunity to run, I would most likely regret it. 

It’s funny that even though it has been over twenty years since I had a class with Dr. Kenneth Stoner, his lessons (and his son) continue to help me grow in my career and the ability to give back to the Housing field. I hope that you too will be willing to say “yes” to the opportunities that come your way, even if it makes you feel uncomfortable initially. You never know where it might lead or how your experience could help you serve the field!

Raechel Kepner
Associate Director - Housing Facilities Services at Texas State University