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Photo by Reed Hutchinson
UCLA Photographic Services
Al Aubin, winner of the 2004 Excellence in Service Award
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2004 excellence in service award
Nothing is beyond this counselor's reach
BY WENDY SODERBURG
UCLA Today Staff
Al Aubin, it seems, knows everyone. Or maybe it’s more accurate
to say everyone on campus seems to know Al Aubin.
A good number of them toasted Aubin last month at the first annual
Staff Honors Reception, where he received the UCLA Staff Assembly’s
2004 Excellence in Service Award. On the sun-drenched patio of the
Chancellor’s Residence, Chancellor Albert Carnesale presented
Aubin, senior associate director of counseling and campus relations
at the UCLA Career Center, with a certificate and a check for $5,000.
“Al is a talented counselor of students, but, at least as
important, he is a mentor to our counseling staff,” Carnesale
said. “He is being cited for his effectiveness in handling
the needs of a diverse campus community and is well-respected not
only on this campus, but throughout the UC system and beyond.”
Many at the reception vouched for that. Natasha Levy, a student
affairs officer in the Architecture and Urban Design Department,
recalled how Aubin helped her when she was a master’s student
looking for part-time counseling experience. “He’s accessible,
caring and really loves what he does,” she said. Jack Gibbons,
associate director of the Office of Residential Life, called Aubin
“an institutional landmark who goes above and beyond and is
involved with everything.”
As “landmarks” go, Aubin is refreshingly down-to-earth.
His office is filled with toy giraffes, which he uses as a counseling
tool: “Nothing is beyond your reach.” On a shelf is
an oversized wooden spool, a reminder of his childhood in Woonsocket,
a textile-mill town in Rhode Island. The majority of Woonsocket’s
large French population worked in the mills, including Aubin’s
mother, a union leader and social activist.
“When I came to California, I was fascinated by my identification
with Latinos,” said Aubin, the first to attend college in
his family. “Most of the people in Woonsocket worked in factories,
and very few supervisors were French. In L.A., I found similarities
with farm workers.”
Aubin began his career in the Graduate School of Education &
Information Studies’ Office of Student Services. Soon he was
recruited to work on two federally funded projects, one of which
dealt with developing leaders for urban education. “It opened
my eyes to many multicultural issues,” Aubin said.
He also worked in the Office of Experimental Education Programs
but left UCLA to work for a food broker, returning when a position
in Educational Career Services opened in 1981. That office later
merged with the placement center and is now called the UCLA Career
Center. Aubin became an administrator about 10 years ago but whenever
he needs “a fix,” he’ll counsel students. He’s
currently involved with the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee
on Disabilities as well as the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender
Resource Center. He’s also secretary/treasurer of the University
Credit Union and an active member of Staff Assembly.
“There are people who just sit in their offices when there
are so many opportunities on campus,” Aubin said. “Reach
out!”
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