What’s amazing about the newly renovated Shain Library is that the Academic Resource Center (ARC) is now more accessible than ever for students. When I first started working at the ARC at the beginning of this semester, we were located in the Plex, above Harris Refectory, a temporary location which was a less recognizable location than Conn's main library. Needless to say, I love the new space! We are located in a beautiful glass office on the second floor. There are so many white boards, desks and study spaces at the students' disposal.

I work a night shift at the front desk of the ARC and ever since being relocated to the library, so many more students come into the ARC and collaborate on work and get academic assistance. From my seat at the front desk, I can watch the scenes unfold: Groups come in to collaborate on projects together, friends meet up for homework and students come in for appointments with the ARC counselors (who, by the way, are amazing and informative). There's a social element, too: As students study, they update each other on their lives and classes.  It makes me happy to see the ARC so active and constantly moving, even at night.

The best part about my job is the interactions I have with the visitors who come through our glass doors. No matter if they'e requesting a form to request a tutor or a form to sign up as a tutor themselves, I enjoy every second of getting to meet new faces. A student once came in and we just started talking about social complexities. I had never even met him before, yet here we were, having a discussion about contentious subjects. Working at the ARC is a thrill because it is a vehicle for exposing me to the eclectic students here on this campus; it's like I'm making up for lost time.