Sam Celmer

About

Department/School/Division: Office of the Provost

Campus: Lakeshore

Years at Loyola: 3

What is your favorite thing about working at Loyola? My colleagues! I work with so many great people who not only put in so much effort for our students and faculty, but also have such care and consideration for their colleagues.

What is your most memorable achievement as a Loyola employee? My most memorable achievements are the moments I’ve been able to help another staff or faculty member solve something that’s been giving them trouble or causing them stress. To flip a situation in someone’s mind from hopeless to solved always feels great.

What does Loyola's mission mean to you? Loyola’s commitment to social justice and focus on cura personalis is very important to me. I’m glad to have been able to work on anti-racism initiatives at the university, and I also try to encourage others to establish work boundaries and make sure they are caring for themselves. It’s so easy to get wrapped up in the stress of daily tasks, but mental and physical well-being should always come first.

What motivates you to succeed each and every day? Once again, my colleagues! I want those I work with to know they are supported and to create a positive work environment.

Tell us how you show your Rambler pride: Enthusiastically sharing my pride in my colleagues, who work tirelessly to support the university and its mission. And wearing Rambler gear around the city, of course!

Tell us something most people at Loyola would be surprised to know about you: My academic background is in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies, specializing in genocide and crimes against humanity in the region. I spent a few months teaching English in Tver, Russia between college and graduate school, and I was lucky enough to participate in a research seminar at the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.