Aspen Walker: Leaving a mark on campus rec

When Aspen Walker came to Utah State University as a first-year student, she wasn’t sure what path she wanted to pursue. 

Born in Wyoming, Walker grew up moving around, living in Utah, Alaska, Australia and Canada. Walker first toured USU during her ninth-grade year of high school, and it piqued her interest.

“My senior year, I came back, and it just felt like home. It felt like such a good community, and it’s so pretty,” Walker said. “I had applied to a bunch of other schools. I was pretty set on going to school in Oregon, and then I just felt like I should go here.” 

Walker spent a year and a half in school before she decided what she wanted to study. 

“I hate the pressure that school puts on you to pick a major,” Walker said. “I think it’s so frustrating because a lot of people will get so far in because they just force themselves to choose, and then they end up switching.”

Walker declared a major in communication studies spring semester of her sophomore year after taking some communications classes and feeling like it would be a perfect fit. 

As she has pursued her degree and gotten involved in different areas, Walker said she’s grown significantly.

“I think I would say I’m almost a completely different person from freshman year to now,” she said. “I feel like college forces a lot of growth out of you in the best way.”

Part of her growth came from dealing with setbacks during college. Walker was initially pursuing a minor in hotel management but had to drop it after some of the requirements were changed.

“But now that I’m so heavily involved in marketing and I’ve had a marketing internship as well, I love that direction,” Walker said. “I think it pairs really well with communications, and I think that opens a lot of doors.”

Walker will graduate with minors in marketing and marketing design and is sometimes known as “Campus Rec’s Marketing Guru.”

Walker works as the marketing assistant for USU Campus Recreation, running their social media pages and co-hosting “The Rec Room” podcast, offering a behind-the-scenes look at campus rec. She has also worked as a campus rec camp counselor and at the ARC. 

“I think campus rec is slept on,” Walker said. “It’s just such a good way to get active and be involved. Campus rec also has a ton of activities and events going on all the time, and I think it’s a great way to know people and show face, and it’s just a really fun environment.”

Walker said getting involved is the biggest piece of advice she would give to someone in college.

“Utah State has such a good community to give if you want to tap into it, and there’s so much here to serve you,” Walker said. “I have been super involved in tons of different things in my time here, and I think you should always put your eggs in multiple baskets and spread yourself out.” 

Walker said while getting involved in extracurriculars in high school can feel like more of a competition for resume boosters, that’s not the case in college.

“It’s really just you getting involved for yourself and for your own growth and your own excitement, and I think that’s so important to learn about,” Walker said. 

Walker also encourages students to use jobs as a way to take advantage of opportunities.

“Something I wish I did was find better jobs that served my personality,” Walker said. “I found out that a group fitness instructor would have been so fun for me. I wish I knew about that. I wish I got certified and kind of went that route. I feel like there’s a lot of opportunity for you to find something that you really enjoy and open a new door, especially in college when there’s so many other things going on.”

Walker credits her parents as her biggest support throughout her college career. Her mother Michelle Walker said she admires the way Aspen takes things head-on. 

“Aspen has always forged her own path,” Michelle said. “She’s always known herself, which is so impressive. A lot of people don’t know themselves, and she’s been pretty confident in finding her way and doing it her way.”

Michelle said her daughter is a natural leader.

“She just has this magnanimous personality, and she can just bring incredible light and positivity to a situation,” Michelle said. “She just is a natural force.”

Aspen plans to continue leaning into her passions.

“As for more long-term goals, I hope to work my way up in marketing or truly just find a job that I’m passionate about and care about but that can also sustain me,” Aspen said. “And maybe eventually move out of Utah.”

After she graduates in May, Aspen will be working as a business development and operations intern with the Utah Jazz and Utah Hockey Club in Salt Lake City. She is also getting married this summer.

“I’m just really excited to see how she’s going to make her mark in people’s lives around her,” Michelle said.