AN INTERVIEW WITH KELLY LYNCH
This month, I sat down with the COM-P’s student affairs staff member, Kelly Lynch, who is much beloved by the student body. Most of the students get to know Kelly very well early in their first year. Kelly recently celebrated her 10th year anniversary, and she will soon begin her new position as the Coordinator of Alumni Services and Student Engagement. Let’s check in with Kelly and find out more about her.
LISA YANEZ: Where were you born and raised?
KELLY LYNCH: I was born in Upland, California and spent most of my life there. We did move around to Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, back to California, back to Arizona.
LISA YANEZ: How long have you been in Arizona this time?
KELLY LYNCH: Right after I graduated from college, I moved to California, and I stayed there for about three years, and then I moved back to Arizona. I’ve been in Arizona…the final time being back since 1985.
LISA YANEZ: I know this is always an exciting topic for you. What is your alma mater?
KELLY LYNCH: The University of Arizona.
LISA YANEZ: Tell us a little bit about your path of choosing that school or if there was another school that was of interest prior to the University of Arizona.
KELLY LYNCH: My friends that were at UA encouraged me to go there. It was probably one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I always envisioned college of having that college atmosphere and having everything right there. That’s what U of A provided. It was a home for me. I really enjoyed the atmosphere, number one. I enjoyed the students that were there. Made lifelong friends through classes and the sorority and cheerleading. I think one of my favorite memories is of Dr. Robert Burns who was also Father Robert Burns. I worked in the Humanities Classics and Religious Studies department, and he also worked there. He was just one of the nicest, kindest, most gentle men I’ve known besides my father and Dr. Charlton.
LISA YANEZ: What was your path getting to the College of Medicine in Phoenix?
KELLY LYNCH: When I graduated from UA, I did not go into teaching right away. I was offered a job with the airlines, and it was supposed to be at a summer job, three months long, and it ended up being almost 10 years. We lived in California at the time and had two children there and then moved back here. I was pregnant with Brett. When I came back and after I had Brett, I decided to go back into teaching, and so I started subbing. Even though my degree was in secondary education, I was subbing mainly in the elementary school where my children attended. I was a substitute teacher for 15 years and taught after-school courses as well for the students. I taught the cheerleaders in sixth grade and I also taught sign choir. We had a sign language choir for children, grades K through six.
LISA YANEZ: Tell us more about signing. How did you get into signing? Is it something that you started as a child?
KELLY LYNCH: Back then, you could use sign language as your language requirement, and very few schools provided that opportunity. A lot of schools didn’t recognize it as a language. I took sign language at UA, and I just loved it. I just think it’s a beautiful language.
LISA YANEZ: Are you still involved doing signing?
KELLY LYNCH: I’m in an adult sign language choir. It’s called Hands of Joy Sign Choir. We meet every Wednesday. We’ve performed all over Arizona. We’ve performed in California too. We’ve performed at the Diamondbacks games. We’ve done the national anthem there.
LISA YANEZ: That’s awesome. I love that. When you were teaching the younger kids, how did you get to the College of Medicine?
KELLY LYNCH: Actually, my youngest was going into junior high, and subbing was great. I felt like a staff member there—that I was one of the teachers—that I was very fortunate the staff treated me that way. With subbing, you don’t have any benefits. I had spent 15 years subbing but with no benefits. I wanted to get a job that had benefits. I had looked and applied to two jobs at the same time, and one was the College of Medicine student affairs, and it was part-time admin assistant. I worked for a lot of departments. I was also the family/community medicine coordinator. I also worked for faculty development. Anyway, I worked for a lot of departments—[which] gave me a lot of experience—then just started transitioning more into working with students on their schedules, their schedule changes, and then their records. Transitioning into a four-year school needed an assistant registrar. I was very fortunate to get that position.
LISA YANEZ: Tell us more about your new position.
KELLY LYNCH: The main focus is to communicate with our alumni. Our first class graduated in 2011, and there really hasn’t been much communication with our graduates up to this point. We need to improve on that communication. I’ve personally been communicating with graduates. They’ll tell me about their residencies. They’ll tell me about their fellowships, and now they’re out in the field practicing. It’s really important for me and for this campus to keep the connection with the alumni.
The recent grad advisor list helps our current students connect with the alumni as well. The student engagement—that’s the part where I’m really going to work on with third…fourth years in connecting with the alumni…especially in their fourth year. Having the alumni give advice on where they went for their away rotations. Where they went for their interview? How many places did they interview? Hopefully…they can help students in their travel. That’s my goal.
LISA YANEZ: That sounds really exciting. Now, tell us a moment that you’re personally most proud of.
KELLY LYNCH: Not so much a moment, but I think I’m most proud of my four children, and I’m proud of my marriage, 33 years. Of course, my granddaughter, Olivia, holds a special place in my heart.
LISA YANEZ: What are some of the moments or things that you’re most proud of professionally?
KELLY LYNCH: Basically, my relationship with students. I’ve been here 10 years, and I’ve never had one student be rude or disrespectful. I admire what they are doing and everything they have to go through and everything they accomplish outside of med school. How they give back to the community. They’re really, really good people that I’m proud to be associated with.
LISA YANEZ: When you’re away from here, what do you do to relax or find balance? What are some of the things that you find that refresh your batteries?
KELLY LYNCH: I love to dance. I love Zumba and hip-hop. I have season tickets to the U of A football games. I go down for all the U of A football games. That’s another thing to relax. Just spending time with my family. Of course, spending time with Olivia, my granddaughter.
LISA YANEZ: What do you find that you’re most passionate about?
KELLY LYNCH: Professionally, I’m passionate about helping students. Med school can be challenging, and I feel if I can help in any little way to make the experience a little bit easier for them, then I’m passionate about helping them. I’m also very proud of how the recent grad advisor list has sky rocketed and how it’s really helping students. It started out innocently and very small, and now it’s growing, and the capabilities of helping students is increasing as well. Last year when I asked the fourth year students if they wanted to be on that list, I got 100% participation.
LISA YANEZ: If given a chance, what would you tell your 28-year-old self if you knew what you know now?
KELLY LYNCH: That’s a hard question. I’ve always tried to treat people the way I want to be treated. I think I was very fortunate to learn that at a young age. That’s stayed with me. I think at 28, you worry about a lot of stuff, and I think looking back now, I wouldn’t have worried so much.
LISA YANEZ: Absolutely. I agree with you. This one is the flip side. Where do you see yourself in 10 years? What’s in store?
KELLY LYNCH: I’d like to be retired in 10 years. You never know. I have a lot of energy, and, again, I love working with students. I could say I’d like to be retired but if this job keeps me young, I may stay.
LISA YANEZ: What are your plans after retirement?
KELLY LYNCH: A lot of travel. Again, spending more time with, hopefully, more than one grandchild and just more family. I’m very fortunate—I have a lot of friends and just spend more time with friends as well.
LISA YANEZ: Do you have any final thoughts or favorite quotes or personal mantras?
KELLY LYNCH: Yes. Everything happens for a reason. It’s my motto or mantra. I’ve seen it in so many lives. Even though you may be going through a difficult time, when you get through that situation, you look back and think, “Okay, this happened for a reason.” Maybe you became stronger. Maybe it opened your eyes to something that you just hadn’t seen. Also, it really helped in working with students saying that everything happens for a reason. They do come back and say, “Yes, you know, that is so true. It did happen. I didn’t realize why it happened then but I realize why now.” I think that’s helped a lot of students, and it’s helped me personally.
LISA YANEZ: Anything else that you can think of that you’d like the students to know? If you were to say, “Hey! Students!” and you had an open mic. What would you say?
KELLY LYNCH: Students are my lifeline. That’s the part of my job that I love the most…the student contact. I love learning about them personally—about their goals, their dreams, their visions. I love seeing them go through the four-year process. One of the things I think I’m most proud of with our students is that they’ve always wanted to help their, as I call it, younger brothers and sisters, the students that are below their class levels. I would say tap into best resources, and your best resources are the people who’ve just done what you’re about to do.
LISA YANEZ: Is there anything else you’d like to add?
KELLY LYNCH: Bear down!
LISA YANEZ: Bear down! That’s right! Thank you so much, Kelly.
Lisa Yanez is the Assistant Director, Curricular Programs in the Department of Academic Affairs at The University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix. She earned her Master of Business Administration degree at Roosevelt University in Chicago, Illinois. Lisa successfully defended her dissertation recently and will graduate in May 2017 with a Doctor of Education at Arizona State University. Her dissertation research focused on active engagement in medical education.