By W. Nathan Youngblood, NURAP President, 2017-2019
When The RAPUp asked me to reflect on my time in NURAP, I jumped at the opportunity. NURAP has been a huge part of my professional life and I was grateful to have the chance to give my thoughts on the last 6 years. However, once I started thinking about what I was going to write, the more difficult it became. What aspect of my NURAP experience do I focus on? Should I center on the friendships that I made and the professional relation-ships that were forged? Should I highlight the growth of the NURAP community or the new ideas and innovations that NURAP has helped to introduce? Perhaps I should reflect on the increasing workload and responsibilities that the RA community has grappled with over the last few years and how that same community has met that challenge head on.
I certainly could brag about unbelievable quality of the RAs, GOs, GCFAs, FAs, and all the other dedicated individuals who work tirelessly towards the shared goal of facilitating the exceptional research, innovation, and education that defines Northwestern. I would want to say how proud I am of NURAP, its members, and the service that it provides. Finding the right words would be difficult though. Of course, I would have no problem expressing my excitement for the future of NU-RAP. How could I not? The group that will continue serving is truly exceptional.
Perhaps at the very least, I should say how thankful I am to have been a part of it all. So with that in mind, thank you to the Steering Committee, the ad hoc members, and the all the countless individuals who have put their time, effort, and creativity into making NURAP what is today. I will always be grateful for all that NURAP has given me and I am so thrilled to see what NURAP and its leaders come up with next.