Throughout the past academic year and into the start of the next, the NIU College of Business has published to its news site several articles that were separately written by two graduate assistants: Sam Serpe, GA in the college’s Impact Lab, and Michaela Dudek, GA in the MBA Programs Office. Each has done a phenomenal job in their respective roles. NIU College of Business Director of Marketing Michelle De Jean had the pleasure of working with Dudek and Serpe providing editorial guidance. It’s a genuine delight for De Jean now to go beyond publishing their work to showcasing these two talented individuals.
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Sam Serpe, 2L, NIU College of Law, B.A. journalism ’20. Hometown: McHenry, Illinois.
De Jean: So, journalism and law. How did you come to join the College of Business? And may I say it’s a genuine delight that you’re here.
Serpe: Thanks! It’s been great! One of the most striking things about my time here is that I came to my role as a total outsider. I finished the undergraduate program at NIU, but I was a journalism student, and now my graduate studies happen over at Swen Parson Hall. I hadn’t actually stepped foot in Barsema Hall (home to the NIU College of Business) until my first day of work! Graduate Assistant positions are very desirable. I knew I would accept any available opening on campus, even if it wasn’t in law. And did I luck out. I was interested in the position because while my law experience was going to be different, I knew my undergraduate experience in journalism and communications gave me the skills I needed to be successful in this role. Given how intertwined business and law are I figured maybe I’d pick up a thing or two about the business world by being here.
De Jean: Any culture shock?
Serpe: No, but it was an adjustment. There was a lot I had to pick up on when I started. But what stood out to me is how accommodating and patient the faculty and staff are — they’re here to help even if you aren’t their student, or a business student at all. They truly see your success as their success, too.
De Jean: Where do you hold your graduate assistantship in the college? And please also describe your range of duties.
Serpe: I work in the Office of the Dean as the digital marketing graduate assistant. I focus primarily on the IMPACT Lab, which houses a suite of college-level programs for all business majors. They include IGNITE! internships, the college’s ethics program (BELIEF), the Experiential Learning Center (ELC), Business Passport, and a hands-on course for freshmen and sophomores called Business in Action (BIA). I am responsible for writing articles about each of these programs. I’ve also had a chance to experiment, which is fun. Last fall, the Dean’s Office tried a new approach for the dean to communicate internally with the college. I filmed NIU College of Business Dean Rajagopalan in what amounted to a biweekly video newsletter. I also edited each video before its release. Beyond this, I also administer the Instagram account for the IMPACT Lab, which involves creating and posting content. And I’ve assisted with the delivery of Wednesday Night Wisdom, an online speaker series that first launched when COVID-19 initially hit and has proven to be very successful since. I also work with university-approved graphic templates to design and create promotional graphics for the online pages I manage.
De Jean: That’s a lot, and you’re a full-time graduate level law student on top of it. Your undergraduate journalism degree must come in handy. As a writer, have you been immersed in any of the stories you’ve written? This used to be referred to as “gumshoe reporting” — being on the ground where the story’s unfolding.
Serpe: Yes, I have. In fact, I’ve had a lot of on–the–ground immersion with my stories. I’ve attended several of our ELC and BIA final presentations. That’s when student teams give their end of semester final deliverable report to the client they’ve worked with for the entire semester. The teams present their report live and face to face, in as professional a manner as a group of consultants would. I’ve also visited two local DeKalb area businesses to meet their staff and learn about the work of their IGNITE! interns. I’ve interviewed a third business owner online.
De Jean: Just for background, please describe the IGNITE! program.
Serpe: The IGNITE! program is a collaboration between the College of Business and mission-driven local area businesses. The college has an abundance of talented students and matches the business need with the best business student for the internship.
De Jean: That’s very cool. So, with all of this, you’ve seen a great deal. Can you describe which of any of these situations has been the most meaningful to you personally? And if you don’t mind sharing, why.
Serpe: Almost all the events and experiences I’ve attended have been fantastic. The energy of College of Business students is off the charts. You can really tell that they buy into their instructors and buy into the culture at Barsema Hall. You will always see students hanging out and helping each other study in the atrium. That’s special to see students embracing a culture of lifting each other up and playing to each other’s strengths. If I had to pick one event, though, it’d be the graduation receptions the College of Business puts on for students. I graduated in the Class of 2020 for undergraduates, so because of COVID-19, there wasn’t much fanfare for us at the time, to say the least. To see this community rebound from the pandemic and see a complete celebration of these students, all of whom have fought through a challenging set of years and come out on top, is quite a sight. I’m glad to be a part of it.
De Jean: I’m happy for you to have been very much part of it. The Class of 2020 is an amazing class who went through a great deal. And now before you know it, you’ll graduate with a law degree. How do you think you might use the skills from this experience as you go forward?
Serpe: While a lot of my current design and content creation work doesn’t directly translate into law, I think getting to go through the creative process when it comes to content creation — that’s something I believe will be helpful if I go into intellectual property law. It’s easy for lawyers to gather round and discuss the theory of what legal issues arise from the creative process: Is someone’s work copyrightable? Are they making sure to only incorporate others’ work with permission? But I’d imagine a lot of those same individuals don’t do a lot of “creative process” work and don’t get as good of a sense of it in practice. If I go into that field, I can empathize with clients better — I’ve been a creator, too. I know how important the value of one’s own work is.
De Jean: Has anything surprised you about the area you work in? About the college overall?
Serpe: Anyone who’s ever seen a movie about college knows the dean’s office is seen as this scary place students go when they’ve bent the rules. But that’s not how the dean’s office at the College of Business is at all. The culture of supporting each other and playing to the strengths of your team at Barsema Hall absolutely, 100% starts at the dean’s office. Staff are behind the students all the way, and they’re committed to ensuring that students succeed. This is the best environment I’ve ever worked in, far and away. I’m going to hate graduating because I’m going to hate leaving here most of all.
De Jean: Let’s take that question and direct it inward. How would you say you’ve grown from your role?
Serpe: Coming out of the undergraduate program, I was a journalism student uncomfortable with and nervous about interviewing others, which is generally not a recipe for success. I wanted to make sure I was asking good questions and coming across as personable, and it’s tough to do that when you’re so worried about doing so that you avoid interviews altogether. Sitting down with students and College of Business clients has gotten me over that discomfort. I realized that people really want to tell you their story. You don’t have to worry so much about “getting it out of them.” If you’re being yourself and being attentive as an interviewer, you’ll get along great with people you meet.
De Jean: You have mastered your nerves in that regard, Sam. I never would have guessed. I’d also say nervousness means you really care; many of us experience this same thing you described and like you have learned how to manage it. I’m also curious about what else you have learned from your student experience in general. Put another way, what’s something you wish you knew when you were a brand-new NIU student?
Serpe: Take advantage of every opportunity to step outside your comfort zone. I would say 90% of the opportunities I’ve gotten in my time here came about as a result of taking a leap. Your experiences will be so much more enriching if you try new things. Take electives in other areas; you’ll pick up new skills that’ll help you in ways you didn’t expect. Get to know people with different experiences than yours — you’ll each learn insights you never would have come to on your own. And above all, never stop believing in yourself.
De Jean: Nice. And a nice segue to this question: What’s your personal measure for success?
Serpe: The common answers to success are about your output, both qualitative and quantitative. Are you putting out a lot of work? Is that work high quality? Of course, it’s important to do both, but I think an element to success that doesn’t get talked about enough is the energy you bring. I really think it’s so important to keep a positive attitude even when things go wrong or not as expected. Keeping a good vibe, creating and feeding into a culture of positivity to me sets truly successful people apart.
De Jean: With those measures for success in mind, what lights you up? What causes you to hit the ground running in the morning?
Serpe: Going off success, I think my key driver is to understand the impact you can have on others, no matter how small you might think it is. My goal, my mantra is to leave people better than I found them. If I cross paths with someone during my day, even if it’s for just a moment, I want them to part ways with me in a better mood than I came across them in. And when you’re a positive force for others, they’re a positive force for you. If you’re always making an effort to pick people up, there’s going to be someone there to pick you up when you need it, too. That’s something I’ve experienced here over and over again, and something that makes this environment so special.
De Jean: Thank you, Sam, for all your great work and for this conversation. It’s been a joy. And it’s fun for me to wrap our conversation up with this question: How do you envision some of what your brilliant career will look like? It’s going to be outstanding; I’ve no doubt.
Serpe: Should there ever be an opportunity for me to use my degree path to help students here with their ideas, I’d feel like I’d be helping this community even more. As importantly, I’ve really rediscovered my love for content creation in my time here. I’m confident that I have a variety of skills that will help me in my law career. Yet should I feel the call to do it, I can see jumping back into design and content creation. I’m incredibly thankful for the opportunities I’ve gotten at the College of Business, and I feel as though they’ve opened so many more options up for me in the future.
by Michelle De Jean, director of marketing, NIU College of Business, in collaboration with Sam Serpe, graduate assistant for the Impact Lab in the NIU College of Business, with editorial oversight provided by Michael Mackey, editor in chief, NIU Institutional Communications.
