Professionalism at its finest

So I had a couple different posts that I wanted to write today. They were fun, lighthearted, and humorous...but I am not going to write about those right now. Those can wait until I'm in a little better mood.

I am going to write about how ABSOLUTELY EFFING RIDICULOUS it is that people of authority think they can talk down to students. I have done my time as a student, from community college through graduate school, and I really thought once I had that grown-up master's degree I would be treated with a little more of the respect that I deserve. I am professional person when I am at work, and I carry myself with professionalism. I pride myself on my professionalism. BUT NO. NO ONE CARES ABOUT THAT. Because I am 25 and look younger than that, people assume I am a student. And that, in itself, is not the insulting part. I don't mind looking young, and I don't mind people thinking that I am a student here (even though I haven't been a student at this community college for over 5 years now). I mind that when people who work here think that I am a student, they somehow think they have the god-given right to talk to me like I am a full blown ruh-tard. And if they talk to ME like that, I can only imagine how they talk to other students who have legitimate student-oriented questions.

Example: This morning when I arrived at work, our new campus director and one of his buddies were standing outside the first door to the office, discussing something that sounded pretty important. I said my "good mornings" and walked past to see if the two doors that I use were unlocked yet. They were not, so I walked back to the OTHER office door (not near the two men) and knocked to have my mom let me in. I do not have a key to this office. Pretty much no one has a key to this office. So knocking on the door is generally what us key-less folks do when we need to be let in. Keep in mind this is a good 20 minutes before the campus opens, and before my shift actually starts...because I feel that I should be at work BEFORE 10:00 am to ensure that everything is ready to go when students arrive to use the lab. Professional, no?

Anyway, the two men see me knocking and somehow feel it is their responsibility to figure out what I am doing knocking on the door 20 minutes before campus opens. The campus director has met me on more than one occasion...he should know who I am. But he doesn't. They ask (with a whole lot of attitude and a snarky tone) "Do you need to talk to someone in there, because campus doesn't open until 10 o'clock?" I respond with, "Yes, I am aware that campus doesn't open until 10, but I work here and I need to be let into the office so I can get the computer lab unlocked to be ready to go by 10."

Can you guess what they did after that? If you guessed that they laughed, apologized, and let me into the office...you guessed wrong.

They kind of rolled their eyes, and the man I didn't know said "Well I work here, too. And I don't know you." Did the campus director speak up on my behalf? Nope. Did he say "Oh right, you work in the computer lab, I can unlock that for you." Nope. They did not let me in. Instead, I had to wait outside until my mom came to the door to let me in. While they stood at a safe distance, assessing me. REALLY!? SERIOUSLY!? What gives them the right to make me feel 2 inches tall for doing my job???

Maybe I am being completely unprofessional by blogging about this. If that is the case, I hope someone will be honest enough to tell me and I will delete it immediately. But in the meantime, wtf?

WHO DOES THAT!? It's bad enough that they talked to me that way as an employee...but I guarantee if I was a student I would have walked away feeling a whole lot worse. Attitudes like that are what make students feel insecure and scared to attend, especially the large non-traditional population at a community college. And I don't blame them. No one wants to be talked down to, and I don't care if you are a campus director or the President of the United States...NOTHING gives you the right to talk down to someone you don't know. If anything, your high and mighty education should have shown you a tiny bit of professionalism that allows you to CARE about people's feelings.

Ugh. This rant really isn't about me, I promise. It is about being enlightened to how people in positions of authority treat people they see as "below" them. This isn't the first time it has happened to me as an employee of this community college, and I'm sure it won't be the last. But someone needs to stand up for our students if this is how they are talked to and treated on a daily basis. If this had happened to me as a student here 5 years ago, I can assure you that I would have definitely chosen a different school to attend. And that's saying something.