March 19, 2008

Meet Jenny Bergman

Jenny Bergman

“The affinity people have for OWU is amazing,” she says. Bergman witnesses the devotion people have to Ohio Wesleyan in her daily work with alumni and volunteers. Her responsibilities include working with the faculty/staff campaign as well as the class giving program.

“Basically, I do volunteer fundraising management,” says Bergman. I visit with volunteers and make sure they have what they need. It’s also important to keep them connected to the University. We’re really focused on reunion years right now since Alumni Weekend is just around the corner.”

Bergman says that for her, there is no such thing as a typical day. “Every day is different, but the most important thing I do is cultivate and maintain relationships,” she says. “I make sure volunteers are headed in the right direction and that they know I’m here to help them.”

After graduating from Ohio State with a degree in political science, Bergman began her career at the American Cancer Society in an event planning/fundraising position. “It was a great job and the experience I got at such a young age was wonderful, but because I had such a great college experience, I was eager to return to higher education. The liberal arts setting at Ohio Wesleyan intrigued me because it is different than what I experienced.”

Bergman has never regretted her decision to work at Ohio Wesleyan.

“Mowry is a wonderful place to work because I can interact with students, faculty, and staff on a daily basis,” she says. But the best part of Bergman’s job is keeping in touch with alumni. “I really enjoy alumni from the older classes. They are just awesome. And the affinity and passion they have for Ohio Wesleyan is contagious.”

Since Bergman is not an OWU alumna, she was initially a little worried about how she would be received by alumni. “Ohio Wesleyan is a very close-knit community, and that was an adjustment for me coming from OSU,” she says. “But the alumni I’ve worked with have really embraced me.”

Though she attended one of the largest universities in the country, a strong sense of community is important to Bergman. She is one of six children and says she is very close to her family. “I also have a really solid group of friends in central Ohio,” says Bergman. “I spend lot of time with them and in the summer we do a lot of camping and boating.”

Beyond her social interests, Bergman claims to be boring. “I am addicted to reality television,” she admits. But when pressed to name something unique about herself, she laughs and says, “I hate feet. It doesn’t bother me to see feet, and I can touch baby feet or my own feet. But I absolutely hate to touch or be touched by other people’s feet.”

Fortunately for Bergman, touching feet is not part of her job. But she does expect to take a lot of flack for making her phobia public. “I’m sure I’ll get teased a lot,” she grins. “But that’s OK.”

– Ericka Kurtz