Lum helps school as student aide
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In order to try out a new path, senior Sydney Lum dedicates her fourth period to helping staff and students in the school office as part of a class. Lum undertook the position of an office aide based on a whim she had.
Despite it being her first year being an aide, Lum has learned some core skills adjusting to the daily responsibilities of her work in the office.
“I learned that it takes patience to do most of the work here,” Lum said. “If you don’t have patience, then you can’t really be an [aide].”
Her motivation to dedicate her time to aiding the office was guided by her desire to do more hands-on work. As a result, she wishes to gather more knowledge of what it is like to work in an office after her senior year ends. Lum has considered a career in an office setting but is still unsure.
“[I do this] so I can have experience for the future,” Lum said. “If I get a job [in this field], I can learn how to file things.”
As an office aide, she has a limited set of routine tasks she performs every day. However, she often collaborates with different staff members to better the school in many ways.
“[My tasks are] taking summons and helping out teachers,” Lum said. “[For example], Ms. Kim will request [that I] help her do computer work or ask [the office] if they have vanilla folders. I help and give them to her.”
Along with gaining new skills, Lum also befriended more students who are also office aides, such as senior Jesse Fan. This has caused her friendship with Fan to immensely grow since the start of the year.
“When I first met him and came here, I was [thinking], ‘Okay, you’re kind of weird,’” Lum said. “But then, later on, I learned that he’s pretty cool, and I like working with him.”
Besides that, Lam simply applied to be an office aide just for the joy of the craft. The stoles, cords, and college application benefits did not factor into her decision.
“I don’t really care about [those things],” Lum said. “I just want to know [what it is like] being an [aide] and how to do things.”
Lum’s high school experience has inspired her to consider actually interning during college to expand her horizons past senior year.
