Academic Advisor, University College
Rhonda Curbo was nominated by Lavonda Evans for P.R.O.P.S. Recognition. Lavonda said, “Rhonda is a god-send for admins; whether assisting in helping MA students prepare for thesis or working on FYE course to ensure their experience is a great one; she goes above and beyond to ensure things flow smoothly as possible. The A-State community is blessed to have Rhonda as a part of the team!”
P.R.O.P.S. subcommittee members Kelsey DeFord, Cathy Naylor, and Madeline Ragland spoke with Rhonda to learn more about her and her experience at A-State. Curbo is currently an Academic Advisor at University College. And has served A-State for 22 years.
What do you like most about A-State?
The family type environment; it seems to keep me here for many, many years.
What do you wish everyone knew about your job on campus?
Well, it’s not my job in particular. I don’t stand out. My whole office does the same thing. So it’s not like I stand out above any of them. But, we probably do more than most people know. Well, for one thing, we do just about anything they come in and ask us to do. We help all first-year students, we help all students who are in academic distress, and we process the early alerts. So, we try to actually be in touch with those students. And that’s before they are ever on a suspension or probation list. So to me, that’s the most important part to me is getting a hold of them, keeping them off of suspension.
But we do so much more than that. We register students. That's what I've been doing all day, just registering students. We work student orientation. And then when people call here, we often wind up taking care of something that's not even supposed to be done in this office. Because we can, we don't want to push them over. And all of the transfer students come through us too, as well as the exploratory students. So we really wind up doing just whatever we're asked to do. And we all pitch in and just get it done.
It is a lot of networking and connecting them with the right people. So a lot of the times, it might seem like we’re passing them off, but we’re passing them to people who are much more experienced in those areas than we. But, we don’t just say here, let me transfer you. You know, we find the best solution for them.
What is your favorite hobby?
I like to read and I like to sew. It would be hard to pick between those two. But, I’m better at reading than I am sewing.
What is your favorite genre to read?
Right now, my very favorite is Appalachian. And magical realism, but that kind of changes over time. I just find the early life of the Appalachian Mountains, when they were settled, the things that they [settlers] brought here, their music, and things that they have in their culture. Everything is artistic to them, even their gardens. Quilts are art to them, and I just find it really fascinating. And then most of those stories have some kind of fairy or ghost or something going on that makes them a little bit more interesting.
If you could travel anywhere, where would it be?
Well, it wouldn’t be out of the country like most people are gonna think. It would probably be the Rocky Mountains. My mom’s buried there, and every summer was spent there from the time I can remember until my mom died, so it would probably be there.
If you could describe yourself in one sentence…
(laughs) I cannot do that. Maybe just say I’m fun-loving and like to help people. I like to keep people laughing.
Cathy: What I know about you is your reputation with Halloween costumes…
Well, the contests I get my students to be in. Now I just dress up to entertain people. And usually for about two weeks, I'm somebody different every day. And I'm all in it. I do the competitions just for my kids so they can have some fun. We have a lot of fun so I’m not surprised that you know about my Halloween costumes.
What is the best advice you've ever received?
I would say probably the absolute one that has stuck with me the longest… I got it from my grandmother when I was 16. She wrote it in a card and I still have it. She says. “Keep on smiling and spread your love around because that’s what life is all about.” And that's the one. It might not be the best I've got, but that's the one that has lived here in my heart for a long time now. It's not professional advice, but I think it works well in the profession.
If you could have a different job or career, what would it be and why?
Probably an actress. Halloween costumes, you know. That’s probably what I would be.
