A Thanksgiving Tribute: Westminster Features Just a Few of the College’s 120+ Super Staff Members

During this season of thanksgiving, Westminster is celebrating its many staff members!

You know the workforce idioms: Go the extra mile. Burn the midnight oil. All hands on deck. Nose to the grindstone. At Westminster, more than 120 full-time staff members help “land the plane” each day so our students have a fantastic educational journey ― and the College is so thankful for their hard work. From self-proclaimed desk jockeys to those who serve your coffee, get to know just a few WestMO dynamos who make a big impact at our small college, each and every day.

Smit Rana
Web Master, Department of Marketing and
Strategic Communications

1. Where are you from originally? I am from a city called Vadodara, in the westernmost state of India called Gujarat. Fun Fact: Alcohol is banned in my state.
2. What is the funniest thing that has happened to you at Westminster? Filming TikToks with Alex Parnia and getting him to say things like “fire drip” and “no cap.” Seeing him doing the Hot to Go dance was the funniest moment so far.
3. What is your favorite spot on campus? The Dining Hall. Nothing beats food, especially when its all-you-can-eat and you’re hungry from staring at a screen for four hours straight.
4. What is your favorite way to spend a Saturday? Starting with some shopping in the first half, some chilling at the beach in the second half, having a nice and hot dinner, and ending the day relaxing on the couch, watching a movie or playing games.
5. What is something about you that nobody else knows? I was once ranked among the top 1,000 players in Asia in a strategic card game. I like using my superpower of shuffling cards.

Alex Parnia
Director of Museum Operations (Interim)
America’s National Churchill Museum

1. Where are you from originally? Tehran, Iran.
2. What is the funniest thing that has happened to you at Westminster? I was asked by the marketing department to do a video about the Museum for Gen Z, and I did not know what the cue cards meant. Now the posting has had more 30,000 hits, and my kids are jealous of my TikTok success.
3. What is your favorite spot on campus? The garden by the Museum. It’s a great place to sit on a bench and contemplate life.
4. What is your favorite way to spend a Saturday? Have a hearty breakfast at Fulton Diner and go for a long walk along the creek behind the campus.
5. What is something about you that nobody else knows? When I was a kid, I spent my summers in my grandfather’s palace in a remote area of Iran.

Dulcie Rosales-Foster ’24
Coordinator of the Office of Intercultural Engagement

1. Where are you from originally? Taos, New Mexico.
2. What do you like most about Westminster? The faculty really care about their students and take time out of their day to support and advocate for them.
3. What is your favorite spot on campus? The bridge between the baseball field and Stinson Creek Trail.
4. What is your favorite way to spend a Saturday? Grabbing coffee, hiking or thrifting, and then working on a crafting project or playing video games in the evening while watching a movie.
5. What is something about you that nobody else knows? I speak four languages, and I can tap dance!

Larry Walling
Night Shift Supervisor, Custodial Services

1. Where are you from originally? Park Hills, Missouri.
2. What do you like most about Westminster? The people I work with.
3. What is your favorite spot on campus? The fountain.
4. What is your favorite way to spend a Saturday? With my family: my mom and dad.
5. What is something about you that nobody else knows? I always wanted to be a stunt man.

Kathy Renner
Electronic Access and Resources Staff
Reeves Library

1. Where are you from originally? I was born near Elmo, Kansas, population 75 and decreasing. I went to high school in Abilene Kansas: Ike Eisenhower’s home town ― the presidential library is located there.
2. What do you like most about Westminster? I like meeting all of the different students and faculty. Early on in my years at Westminster, I worked with students and faculty setting up computers and projectors so that they could do presentations. Now I see fewer students because so much is done online.
3. What is your favorite spot on campus? The library, of course!
4. What is your favorite way to spend a Saturday? I like spending time with my family. Some live a little far away, so I don’t see them as often, but the family members who live in town, I see weekly and sometimes daily.
5. What is something about you that nobody else knows? I was an Atkins Pest Control person. I did the first spraying for bugs after I sold the plan and then after becoming pregnant, I crawled under houses to check for termites and sold termite plans.