Nearly every Colgate student has excitedly walked into the mailroom, eagerly anticipating their Amazon shipment or a surprise care package. Often, students pay little mind to what is really going on behind the scenes, as student employees and members of the local community work together to ensure each student can receive packages at such a convenient location. Junior Shenice Mobley is one member of the team at the mailroom and has been working there since she was a first-year. She explained why she chose to work in the mailroom.

“When I came to Colgate in 2020, I noticed there weren’t many available jobs on the job portal that I could apply for. I emailed asking if I had to pay if I didn’t have a work-study job and someone emailed me back telling me about a temporary mailroom position from […] 4:30-7:00 p.m. for some days during the week. I have been working with the mailroom ever since then. When I got hired, I honestly just took whatever job was open at the time. I never thought about leaving because of the relationship I’ve built with my coworkers. Plus I enjoy scanning my own packages out.”

Despite the job being somewhat of a shot in the dark for Mobley, she and many other students have ended up enjoying the job. Junior Natalie Rong, who has worked in the mailroom since she was a first year, explained the fun aspects of working there. 

“It’s a great job — it’s genuinely a great job. [The staff] are pretty close […] and are really nice: we get along, we have inside jokes. It’s fun because they get to know student gossip. I really enjoy the job because I always see people that I know come in and out of the mailroom which is something I like because I’m outgoing and sociable. It’s a good role for me, I’d say.”

Mobley has also had fun experiences with her coworkers from the local community, Brian, Patti and Diane. 

“I think my favorite memory would be when Brian scared Patti and Diane with a scarf that was packaged and hanging out [of] the box like a spider and they both screamed. I fell over on the floor laughing. Another memory would probably be when I had Patti and Brian trying out different Snapchat filters that made them look crazy. That day was hilarious because of their reaction to the filters because they didn’t know what to expect.”

Sophomore Sophia Lopez began working in the mailroom this year. She reflected on the great community in the mailroom.

“Just last week, I was seeking advice from the full-time [mailroom] workers on where to find a mechanic around here, and they pointed me in the right direction. They made sure I was going somewhere that was trustworthy, which proves their kindness towards the students here. As for working with the students here, I enjoy working alongside Shenice [Mobley] and Natalie [Rong], and others because there is so much variety in the staff here. We are all from different grades, different cities and have different perspectives on life at Colgate. It’s nice to be in a diverse environment at work, especially on a campus that lacks diversity,“ Lopez said. 

Despite the fun, caring community that is found in the mailroom, there is omnipresent pressure from other students who expect their packages to be ready for pickup right as they arrive at the mailroom. Rong explained this unrealistic expectation that she and the other employees face.

“I will say that people underestimate the mailroom and they have this expectation that…as soon as their package comes it’s gonna instantly be there. I feel like there’s not enough […] recognition that it is busy and we’re short staffed so it takes patience. That’s something that I think about sometimes just because I feel like we work as hard as we can to get everyone’s packages scanned but at the end of the day if we’re short-staffed [then] what can we do?”

So, next time you’re eagerly anticipating your package or heading over to the mailroom to pick it up, remember all that goes into ensuring you get your mail and the faces behind the process.