OUR VIEW: Change is more than just words

In this election cycle, we’ve heard a lot about change. A buzzword of the Barack Obama campaign, nearly every other candidate has used the topic of change at one point or another. While change sounds nice, too often it’s little more than words. It’s one thing to preach of change, it’s an entirely different matter to enact change.

As a society, we love to hear stories of people who make a difference – people who inspire us to be better. We honor those Ghandis and Mother Teresas, but there are people closer to home who are making a big difference in small, perhaps largely unnoticed ways.

One of the great promoters of change at USU is Caroline Shugart, employee wellness coordinator. In the short time she has been at USU, about a year, Shugart has implemented changes most people will accomplish in an entire career.

With a title like employee wellness coordinator, one might expect the position to be a comfortable desk job that requires little beyond establishing a few fitness classes. But Shugart envisioned her job as much more than that. She saw it as an opportunity to help all people at USU change, be it faculty, staff or students.

Shugart implemented the Be Well program, which encompasses all aspects of life that lead to improved health. For years, students have complained about a lack of healthy food options on campus, but few did anything about it. Within months of being hired, Shugart worked with The Hub and the Marketplace to create healthty Be Well food options. A few tweaks in menu items and preparation methods made all the difference. Many whined about it; she made it happen.

Shugart expanded her Be Well options to Aggie Ice Cream, the Quad Side Cafe and even USU Catering Services.

She popularized the Aggie Walking Club, which is frequented by Joyce Albrecht, had signs posted around campus showing a leisurely walking route around campus, introduced Car Free Fridays, provided a personal trainer for employees, created a new spinning room from a closet in the Fieldhouse and developed an affordable fitness pass.

In a university system where bureaucracy and slow-moving plans can often reign supreme, how did she pull this off in such a short amount of time?

Shugart has an engaging enthusiasm about her work. It’s hard to spend more than five minutes with her without coming away feeling excited about whatever she’s excited about. She has a way of motivating others to improve an aspect of all our lives that is vitally important.

While she will likely be embarrassed by this praise, Shugart is a mover and a shaker. She speaks of change and then makes it happen. This attribute is found in nearly all successful people and while schools do a good job of providing education, too often this aspect of creating change is glossed over.

USU students and faculty should take a careful look at what Shugart and countless others like her have done and emulate it. Praise is also deserved by all the programs that have worked with Shugart to make USU a healthier place. Now that’s change we can believe in.