Blue Devil of the Week: Taking Action to Help Others

“I feel as though I’m here to create community and serve those that are going to go save the planet. My job is to help coordinate meetings and events that can be fun and welcoming, but I also try to mentor students to help them focus on larger issues and creating connections with people within clubs and organizations within the Nicholas School. I’ve come to the understanding that being a professional meeting planner is why I’m here. It’s important to me and fundamental to who I am.

I work with every diversity and inclusion group at Nicholas and coordinate closely with student groups because sometimes there may not be a lot we can do about diversity in a room, but we have everything to do with inclusion.

Through Nicholas’ Team Matthew, students, faculty and staff are undertaking an amazing effort to partner with the Boys & Girls Club of Lumberton to give school supplies and other donations to support those who were impacted by Hurricane Matthew and the flooding it caused. A bunch of us were tired of thinking about helping others and decided to start doing something. That’s how you change things. You stop talking and start doing.

In recent years, I’ve never enjoyed my work at Duke more because it truly integrates who I am. It’s such an honor to work with others who are incredibly outward looking, caring, thoughtful and motivated to impact our relationship with our environment and people around us. I have never loved my job more than right now. I just feel so fortunate.”

Nancy Kelly
Director of conference and special events, Nicholas School of the Environment
14 years at Duke

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