Steve Petkas is Retiring

Thirty-seven years can go by more quickly than you would think.

As many of you know, Steve Petkas is retiring at the end of July after 37 years in the Department of Resident Life. I sat down virtually with him recently to talk about his time with the Department and what he’s looking forward to in retirement.

As you can imagine, a lot has happened in the 37 years Steve has been in the Department of Resident Life. Some themes from our conversation were the importance of committing to our community development mission and thriving in the midst of challenge and chaos. These topics go hand in hand.

One of Steve’s fondest memories was a moment during the first “Olympics of the Mind” conference. It was an all hands on deck affair with Pat Mielke and Deb Grandner playing the roles of trash attendants in Mickey Mouse-like gloves wielding trash sticks and garbage bag with a huge amount of light heartedness and fun. It’s these types of moments that Steve has appreciated most,

“the willingness we have always demonstrated to roll up our sleeves and get our hands dirty doing whatever labors are required of us.”

Steve recalled the “work hard, play hard” nature of ’95-’01 that included sing-a-longs, line dances, and the Macarena. “These ‘let your hair down

affairs’ [showed] our unity in fierce

commitment to the mission, borne of the difficult experiences in the lean years of ’90-’94 during which occupancy plummeted, budgets and staff lines were slashed, and well-developed programs ditched as we labored in a survival mindset. One never looks forward to mining the upsides of difficult times, but one of them is a commitment to team that is bred by few other experiences.”

As the commitment to team was forged in lean times, a different staff bond was formed in the wake of loss. “My recollections would be incomplete without recalling times in which we came together and mourned the deaths of dear friends in our ranks and families. The

authenticity that arises from the pain of grief bonds us as perhaps does

no other sentiment. Such memories cannot be characterized so much as fond as they are profound, and recalling them can still summon tears. Our times in shared grief have been our most intimate, uninhibited, and soul-wrenchingly honest moments together. They are the massive counterweight to our joys, and thankfully, far more the exception.” As we come out of the current challenges we are experiencing due to the pandemic, Steve advises that

we re-commit to our community building mission and remember that community is enhanced by

in-person interactions. In doing so he encourages us to take time to understand each of our struggles along with student struggles and grapple with the true nature of risk that carries no promise of assurances, and commit to promoting the value of being present and engaged. And for those who need it, he hopes we will make space to support our staff members who conclude that they need to make different professional choices in the wake of such an unprecedented year.

To our newest staff members Steve says, “Engage deliberately with people in the 10-15 year cohort to learn from their experiences, history, perspectives, insights. Ask what has made them stay. Be proactive and

learn what you need to know to

adapt and how your ideas can be adapted to support your emerging impulse to contribute.”

To our 10-15 year staff, or our “could be lifers”, when faced with choice to leave or not he asks you to reflect on the question “What keeps me here?” (Are you here by default, is the

Thanks for your 37 years of dedication and commitment to the development of UMD students and staff. You will be missed, Steve!

reason intuitive and just feels right, is it a conscious choice?) Thirty-seven years can go by more quickly than you would think.

In his 37 years, Steve’s appreciation for the phrase, “The journey is the destination” has become more intricate. His grasp of the multifaceted dilemmas we confront as resident life staff is much stronger then in his earlier years. In his time at UMD, he has learned to embrace the chaos and challenge and will miss being directly involved in these things as he instead becomes an observer. The learning Steve has experienced has been profound, enlightening, challenging, but also enjoyable.

As a man of action, Steve is approaching retirement with some uncertainty. What will be the next adventure? How will he feed his desire for challenge and solving the messy problems? However, he is certain that he will enjoy having more free time for working out, the challenge of the hunt and time in nature, work on his fiction writing, and catching up with friends. When Steve returns for a visit in 3, 5, 7 years, you can look forward to new stories of his adventures in retirement.

By Jennifer Lindstrom

...One never looks forward to mining the upsides of difficult times, but one of them is a commitment to team that is bred by few other experiences.

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