Madeline Nickerson
Contributing Writer
Mary Courtney Finn (C ’26) is a new Student Life employee, working to assist student organizations and helping with various events across campus.
Currently, Finn works alongside Assistant Dean of Greek Life and Student Involvement Nancy Seiters and Assistant Director of Student Involvement Maya Quick, on the main floor of the Bishops Commons. Finn holds the title of Post-Baccalaureate Fellow For Student Engagement & Well-Being.
For Finn, Sewanee wasn’t the immediate love-at-first-sight story, but after a while, Finn discovered that it was the perfect school for her. When she was a sophomore, Finn’s parents moved to Monteagle and post-graduation she planned to look for jobs in the area. Finn joked that she “loved it so much [she] couldn’t leave.” Upon graduation last semester, she was offered the job by Dean Campbell within Student Life. Finn said she “viewed it as an extension of a lot of the things [she] had done as a student.”
While she was a student, Finn was Greek Council president, and participated in numerous other leadership roles. To Finn, taking the job was a way to continue the various activities she was involved with as a student and to continue to make more improvements. Working in the office of Student Life has allowed her to see more of the behind-the-scenes of pursuits she was previously involved with. This also allowed her to shift from serving as a volunteer in student organizations to working a full-time job.
According to Finn, Student Life includes extra-curriculars such as Greek Life, the Tiger Entertainment Board and every other student organization. In fact, Finn thinks “most all students at some point or another during their time at Sewanee have interacted with student involvement.” Student Life and Finn’s goal through these roles is to connect with the students organizations within the school, especially when it comes to events. Student Life connects student organizations with each other, helping them to collaborate. Finn hopes the department can “continue the theme of collaborating with other organizations,” because there is “a lot more power in numbers.”
A large portion of Finn’s role revolves around analyzing data from the student body. According to Finn, Student Life’s goal is to “give students the best student experience,” which is done through examining various data to find potential points for improvement. Seiters said that, through this data, they also try to bolster the areas that they find already thriving within campus. She said that Finn contributes to “a lot of data collection and assessment and policy renewal.” Seiters spoke very highly of Finn when asked how she was handling these responsibilities.
When asked about advice she might give to current students, Finn said that she believes any person in the school would be willing to help a student. Finn’s perspective is that while the alumni can be great for connecting people to jobs and opportunities, the staff can be just as helpful. Finn also noted that all three people currently working in the office of Student Life are Sewanee graduates. She said, “It’s very fun to have an office of alums and people who liked it so much they had to come back,” just like Finn herself.