Violet the cat oversees her human's remote workstation. (Photo by Laura Stevens, Office of Research and Innovation)
From DIY desks (cardboard, anyone?) to furry four-legged “co-workers,” many NC State employees are making the best of working remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Scroll through the gallery below for a peek into the lives of some of the university’s remote workforce. (Click on the thumbnail images to open the full-screen view and read the first-person captions).
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“Flannel, my WFH co-worker, is very needy and requires that I hold her like a baby during Zoom meetings! She likes to sleep on the job.” (Kaitlyn Runion, College of Veterinary Medicine)
“My home office with my assistant laying out in the backyard.” (Patrice McCalla-Debnam, College of Sciences/Biological Resources Facility)
“My cat, Violet, likes to help me work, but she hasn’t quite figured out how to use the computer.” (Laura Stevens, Office of Research and Innovation)
“Price-competitive stand-up desk. Storage area underneath. When seated, the laptop monitor used is only 17 inches but an overall good arrangement. Main drawback is proximity to fridge that can impact the waistline.” (Victor Veliadis, PowerAmerica/Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering)
“My office break to witness a volcano blow.” (Jennifer Viets, College of Natural Resources)
“While checking in on my seniors who were to graduate this May, Brandon’s mom snapped this picture from his home. So while this is not my home office, a cute photo of how we remain united as a Wolfpack!” (Jennifer Piercy, Department of Paper Science and Engineering)
“Cat-o-therapy at work.” (Larisa Slark, Office of Research and Innovation)
“My office mate, Hazel, carries the middle name Alexandra, in homage to Alexander Residence Hall. A group of Caldwell Fellows along with students from Puebla, Mexico, were in the midst of our summer program (half in North Carolina, half in Mexico) when a wee kitten was discovered at the door of Alexander. Now she lives with me. And yes, she is bilingual.” (Janice Odom, Caldwell Fellows Program)
“The home office, with Zoom calls on the laptop.” (Darren Ley, DELTA)
“This is our family dog and at-home co-worker, Millie. She interrupts my work day to beg for an early dinner each and every day. She’s also game for a good tummy-scratching.” (Amy Malasky, Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid)
“My parrotlet Yoda loves to hang out with me while I am working. He mimics the sound my keyboard or mouse makes.” (Seyma Bennett Shabbir, Department of Mathematics)
“Leading the juniors in ChE 312 using Zoom and Moodle.” (Phil Westmoreland, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering)
“My daughter and I enjoying a lunch break on a warm day.” (Brian Vigna, Industry Expansion Services)
“My home supervisor, Elvis, drops in to make sure I don’t have too much bacon to get the job done. When I’m slammed, he is always happy to share the load getting the bacon back down to a manageable size. He has also offered to mentor me through any steak or cat food overages.” (Margaret Hudacko, Engineering Information Technology)
“Meet Roxy! She is by my side listening in to every Zoom meeting and has insisted on taking over checking on the pool chemicals.” (Catherine O’Kane, Wellness and Recreation)
“My co-worker Amber helping me get work done.” (Erin Daniels Heiser, Wellness and Recreation)
“This is my new co-worker named Bandit! Each morning he sits and works with me while I start my day. He loves to join meetings and voice his opinions frequently.” (Riley Hutchison, Poole College of Management/Jenkins MBA)
“My assistant, Max, helping me get through the day!” (Jeff Baynham, Advancement Services)
“Outsourcing to this little wolf.” (Emily Anderson, Prevention Services)
“My workplace at home and my son (Vishnu, 2 years old), who has been my naughty co-worker for the last six weeks. At times when I am focused on work, things can go weird, like in this picture, he is trying to stand up but accidentally hit his head on my computer.” (Pandiyarajan Chinnayan Kannan, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering)
“Leo, ready for his next Zoom call. This is actually my boyfriend’s cat; my cat is very work adverse and avoids my work area at all costs.” (Janice Sitzes, McKimmon Center for Extension and Continuing Education)
“This is Lily; she is my work from home wellness coach. I tried to tell her ‘just one more email’ … but she was not having it. She demanded that I stand, move and get the dust off my throwing shoulder.” (Eric Syty, Office of International Services)
“My home office and the office-mate, Coco.” (Lingjuan Wang Li, Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering)
“This is a photo of my suPURRRvisor Luna; she is sending congratulatory emails to all of the international graduates of 2020.” (Eric Syty, Office of International Services)
“My work from home space is my former sewing station. The sewing machine has been relocated to the kitchen table so that I can continue making fabric face coverings, but you can still see some sewing tools mixed in with my office setup (including my serger and button collection as well as measuring tape, seam ripper and sewing scissors). My only co-workers are Mutt and Jeff, the tiny toy dinosaurs under my monitor who I brought home from my campus office. I’m looking forward to returning to campus and my more comfortable desk chair than the one seen here, a family heirloom made by my great-grandfather, intended for periodic use rather than all-day sitting.” (Mary Hauser, Gregg Museum of Art and Design)
“My cat Nugget loves when I work from home. Most of the day she is on or around my computer, waiting for work to stop and play to begin.” (Jackie Iadicicco, College of Veterinary Medicine Lab Animal Resources)
“Giving a lecture for ECE 759 from the kitchen table.” (Greg Bottomley, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering)
“54-inch stand-up ‘desk,’ week nine COVID-19.” (Mark Megalos, Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources)
“This is my 10-year old cat (named Wedgie) who has self-promoted himself to my new assistant. He’s getting paid hourly in treats.” (Carolin Lehmann, ASSIST Center/Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering)
“My cat, Sir Purr, who is annoyed that his personal space is now constantly invaded.” (Lauren Liston, Graduate School)
“My 1-year old son, Logan, and I remote working in the bonus room of our family home.” (Dave Herpy, 4-H Youth Development)
“Sticking to the [stay at home] rule.” (Larisa Slark, Office of Research and Innovation)
“We are a team of five people and are currently working across multiples time zones to bring quality math formative assessments to middle grades students nationally and internationally (our research-based software is called Math Mapper and is in the background of our Zoom meeting photo). Our lead developer was visiting family in Seoul earlier this year around the time the COVID-19 outbreak started and has not been able to return to the States dues to travel restrictions. To manage our workflow we meet at a scrum session each week, and this is a photo from a recent meeting.” (Meetal Shah, Department of STEM Education)
“View from my lap, keeping kids entertained on the left, and research and office hours on the right.” (Erin Krupa, Department of STEM Education)
