COVID 19 Closeup: Michele O’Keefe
COVID-19 Closeup
Subject: Michele O’Keefe, Niagara College’s associate director of athletics and recreation.
What would you be doing right now in you role at Niagara College if the pandemic hadn’t hit? Once the pandemic moved us to work from home, we had a few adjustments to make. The virtual athletic banquet and moving our recreational fitness activities to online are a couple of examples. Our teams, coaches and athletes have been meeting virtually. No doubt it’s a challenge but they are rising to the occasion. So if we were on campus, we’d be finishing off the year, taking a break and starting to plan for next year. And this week (June 15-19) is convocation and it would have been in the gym. We also usually have a few high school graduation ceremonies in our gym. We had started to work on a new on-boarding project for athletes. We want to ensure they start the school year off with a strong understanding of the support system in place for them to ensure their success.
What are you doing now in relation to your job at Niagara College? Since we’ve been working from home, like everyone else, there have been many, many, many video conference meetings. We had the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association and Canadian Colleges Athletic Association annual general meetings on Zoom, we’ve had coaches meetings on Zoom, we have our staff meetings on Zoom, we have college management meetings on Teams and our return to campus working group calls on Teams. These are plentiful and ongoing. We’re continuing to work on our on-boarding project for athletes. I’ve recruited Jon Ravn from our men’s basketball team to ensure we have the perspective of the athlete included. We are aiming to still have the on-boarding happen but we will do it virtually instead of in person. Dutch VandenBerg and I with a few of our colleagues started a Zoom speaker series for our Niagara College community. We’ve had 11 episodes with the final one set for Tuesday, June 23. The common theme was sport and/or broadcast. We had amazing speakers including Bart Yabsley (president of Sportsnet), Kayla Grey (TSN), Doug Smith (Toronto Star and Niagara alumnus) to name but a few. People have been so generous with their time and willingness to share with our community. We’re looking forward to starting up again at the end of the summer.
What is the biggest obstacle to doing your job during the pandemic? I’m a relatively social person so personally, I find it difficult not to meet in person and to have every day conversation with colleagues at the college. It’s been relatively easier to schedule video meetings.
What do you miss the most about the pre-pandemic world of collegiate sports in Ontario? It’s always great to see our OCAA colleagues in person at the annual meetings. We held the meetings on Zoom. While it isn’t ideal, a video call is much better than a conference call.
What do you miss the least about the pre-pandemic world of collegiate sports in Ontario? There isn’t anything that I don’t miss. Collegiate sport, and sport in general, serve a role in the community and without it, life is dull. We need sport to spice it up.
What is the biggest thing wrong with collegiate sports in Ontario? There is always room for improvement. I’ve been selected as the women’s basketball convenor for the upcoming season. Without any competition in the fall, we’re working to schedule conversations with our stakeholders to review our basketball delivery in the OCAA and see where we can improve. It’s so vitally important to keep evolving.
Is there an easy way to fix the problem? Nothing worth doing is easy, otherwise someone else would have done it.
Is there a hard way to fix the problem? The worst thing we can do, pandemic or not, is do nothing. In order for us to improve, we have to consistently review and stay open minded.
What would be one suggestion to make collegiate sports in Ontario better? It’s too early to say. Once we have a couple of conversations with our stakeholders, I think we will come up with creative and strategic ways to improve.
Has the pandemic changed how you will approach your role at Niagara College in the future? I don’t think so. I’ve always been a collaborative person and will continue to do so. We need to make sure we set our selves up for success on the other side of the pandemic and that can’t be done in isolation.
What is the first thing you are going to do when life returns to normal? Find a well-distanced patio for a nice meal with friends and family.
What daily activity do you miss the most? Walking around campus.
What guilty pleasure do you miss the most? My guilty pleasures (food) have been amplified during the pandemic and have not gone away. Unfortunately…
What is your favourite outfit to wear around the house if you are working from home? Yoga pants, of course!
What do you do to replace the time spent involved in doing all the extra parts of doing your job at Niagara? I’m still on the FIBA and FIBA Americas boards. In the Americas, we started a Zoom speaker series for future female leaders. It has been a seven-week series and has been a great success.
Are you most likely to be a hunk, chunk, drunk or sasquatch when the pandemic ends? I will definitely be chunky.
What is the worst habit you have picked up during the pandemic? I have had absolutely no willpower when it comes to junk food. Absolutely none. I figured I would pick my battles during self isolation and battling junk food didn’t rate.
What is the best habit you have picked up during the pandemic? I got a puppy near the start of the pandemic. I would say my best new habit is being slightly less self-centred. Only slightly.
What is something good about yourself you have discovered during the pandemic? I’m not sure I’ve discovered anything good. Perhaps I’ve practised pivoting when barriers are thrown up?
What is something bad about yourself you have discovered during the pandemic? Back to the topic of junk food. It’s something I already knew. I have no willpower to say no or to not feed into my predilection of eating poorly.
