What surprising job have you had in the past?

My first job on campus was in the athletics department doing everything from screening prospective student-athletes to cleaning out the gym lockers at Henry Crown over the summers. Never once did it cross my mind that I could/would have a career in sports.

What would you want to be doing if not your current profession?

Working on US domestic policies that help this country be more equitable for all people who live here.

What do you hate that everyone else loves?

Seinfeld.

What do you love that everyone else hates?

I don’t know if people actually hate them as much as they enjoy bashing them, but I love reading romance novels. Besides the books being fun, the women who write them are brilliant and fierce, so no one should be surprised to discover that there are UChicago alumnae who write for the genre (or protagonists who are UChicago alums!).

What was the last book you recommended to a friend?

I was in Florence recently, so Irving Stone’s The Agony and the Ecstasy—a biographical novel about Michelangelo’s life. Without that book there’s no way I would have appreciated the Duomo or David as they should be admired. I started tearing up when I saw them in person.

What person, alive or dead, would you want to write your life story?

Erik Larson would not only make me sound more interesting but would do a great job talking about key moments in the world. We’re now Twitter friends after I posted my enthusiasm about The Devil in the White City becoming a movie. (Another Keanu Reeves/UChicago connection!)

What’s your least useful talent?

I can usually predict which movie previews will be horror films in the first one to two seconds.

Tell us the best piece of advice you’ve received—or the worst.

Worst piece of advice I’ve received in my career was to put my head down and keep working rather than be vocal when a situation isn’t right. I did the opposite, which actually didn’t change the situation, but helped me build my confidence.

What advice would you give to a brand-new Maroon?

Stay connected to the University because you’ll inevitably find something of interest or value to you. Skim the emails, attend alumni events, read the Magazine, whatever that connection point might be. Through the years I guarantee that you’ll be thankful you were engaged.

What’s your most vivid UChicago memory in two sentences or less?

Dancing Brazilian samba, Colombian cumbia, Bolivian caporales, and Latin hip-hop routines at I-House for our Hispanic RSO’s cultural show with a dozen friends from the College and graduate divisions. A packed hall with family, dormmates, and other school friends cheering us on was the best feeling.