The Desk at Hemingway
Written by Anni Lopez
The Instructors of Residence Life (IRLs) are an integral part of the experience at IAA. To get a deeper dive into what goes into being an IRL and getting a perspective from the other side of the desk, The Interlochen Times spoke with the staff at one of the dorm buildings, Hemingway.
Everyone has their own stories on how they ended up at IAA, although many of their stories share similarities.
Haley Estes is the Residence Hall Coordinator at Hemingway and explained, “I started working camp here in 2019, and kept coming back. I fell in love with Interlochen, so I applied and here I am. It's my third year here, and I love it.”
For IRL Cai Steen, they similarly had been an instructor at camp over summer, saying “I really loved the environment, so I chose to look at the positions open for academy.”
IRL Reese Windjack commented, “I had worked in public schools in Florida, and spent the last seven years working camp life. I had a colleague call, and (they) told me I would love it here. And so I ended up here, and I am so glad that I did.”
Senior IRL Robert Pease had been working in an office for the last three years in London, but was looking for a change back in the U.S. Robert said, “I read the job and was like, wow, this is a crazy good fit. It felt like they were looking for me, you know what I mean?”
Chels Castellanos, IRL, explained, "My best friend saw the job posting and was like, hey, this sounds perfect for you. It was hard being out of the classroom, and during that initial conversion at the beginning of the year, [President] Trey Devey had talked about moving your ladder to a different wall, but still using your degrees. I was like, that's exactly what I needed to hear today.”
Hemingway is a dorm housing mostly juniors and first year seniors. All the IRLs shared that that is what makes the student life experience at Hemingway so special. Haley summarized everyone's words, saying, “One of my favorite parts here is the conversations we have had. You [seniors] are about ready to go off to college, spread your wings, and fly into the real world.”
“We get to have a lot of fun working with students who are all grateful to be here, and that's why I like it here,” added Reese.
Furthermore, outside of just the students at Hemingway, they all explained the shared respect for their colleagues. They work well together.
Robert encapsulated it perfectly, saying, “They're kind of the best. They're wonderful, they're great to be here, and great to be around.”
Chels explained that on one hand, "Living at work is really hard, balancing social life and work,” but on the other hand she “really likes getting to help [students] adjust to a new environment and get ready for college.” She also added, “I like to look and see you guys interact and be able to hear you practicing while at the desk.”
“I like to get to see you guys accomplish different things. The fact that you guys are able to dedicate so much time to your art form is truly amazing,” Cai explained. When asked specifically about Hemingway, they added, “I like the size of the building. We are able to dedicate so much time to our specific demographic of students.”
While Reese does not enjoy the snow here, he says one of his favorite parts of IAA is acceptance: “I feel like we do a good job at accepting students for who they are. You know, every week you're not going to have your room clean. You're allowed to make mistakes here, and having the ability to make mistakes is an important part of learning.”
IRLs at Interlochen are special. They help the students here transition into independent living, help achieve our arts goals, and teach students so much. We would like to thank them for all they do, and for being a guide in the last years before going to the next phase of our lives.
As Reese eloquently put it, “There’s still magic to be had here. There's still things to learn. I used to always tell my seniors, it's not over 'til it's over. You still have opportunities to create music, create art, to be inspired by people.”