FEATURE STORIES

Aug. 10, 2006

By Sara Dehn
UW-RF Public Affairs

There are many things that take place in the residence halls daily, such as cleaning rooms, checking guests in and out, doing laundry and other odds and ends. They all seem to just magically be done by the time players and staff get back to their rooms. Just shy of putting mints on pillows, the residence hall workers are the ones who make it all happen.

Emilee Driscoll is the Housing Coordinator for the duration of the Kansas City Chiefs Summer Training Camp. What that means exactly is that she helps manage Grimm, McMillan, and Parker residence halls on campus. These are the halls in which the Chiefs players, coaches, family and guests, staff and media reside throughout camp. Driscoll basically acts as a liaison between UW-River Falls and the Kansas City Chiefs organization. She describes her position as being kind of like a hotel management job.

Driscoll, a UW-RF student, is here two weeks before camp begins, getting things ready for everyone who will stay. She is also on campus almost a week after camp concludes, making sure things are in ship shape for the 2006-07 school year.

During camp, Driscoll doesn't know the definition of nine-to-five. Her typical day is about 12 hours long with occasional breaks. She starts off the morning by being in the office at 6 a.m. She mainly runs reports during this time: looks at daily logs, makes sure all requests have been appeased and goes over any problems with rooms/guests.

She then speaks with Chiefs administration, the mail staff and takes care of all new requests that guests might have. Anytime anyone new checks into the halls, like players' families and friends, Driscoll needs to be there. The rest of her day is spent doing pretty much whatever the Chiefs staff needs her to do. Sometimes she makes it out to Ramer Field Sports Complex to take in a practice. Driscoll is usually working in the residence halls until about 6 p.m.

After being the housing coordinator last summer, Driscoll loved it so much she decided to apply for the position again. The favorite part of her job is getting to be around the Chiefs staff, who she said are very nice. "We're like a little family," said Driscoll, who lives on the same floor as the Chiefs female administrative staff, "We all leave everything in the bathroom: make-up, hairspray, toothbrushes. It's a very trusting environment."

The only thing that has changed about Driscoll's position from last year, is that people recognize her more: "People know you so they ask you for more things. You have more tasks to do and more responsibilities, but it's nice that they feel confident that you can help. And they trust me, which makes me feel helpful."

Besides Driscoll, there is a staff of 23 students, headed by Paul Stratton, who make everything happen in the residence halls. They clean, make beds, do laundry and set up rooms so they are ready each day for everyone already staying, and for new guests that arrive. They also accommodate to every request that any player, coach or media person has.

Behind the scenes, all of the residence hall workers work extremely hard at what they do, and are part of the reason that training camp goes off without a hitch. They are enthusiastic, dedicated and to most, they are indispensable.