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Alumni Spotlight

Ellie Vavrova ’18

Recent graduate Ellie tells us about her experience working with the Serbian National Women’s Basketball team, her favourite thing about Quest campus—and what she could do without.

What is your Question?

How do competitive sporting events impact society?

You just finished your Keystone on the Olympics related to the time you spent with the Serbian National Women’s Basketball team…well done! What was your role with the team?

Thank you! My presentation didn’t entirely relate to my Question because I was looking at the economic impacts of the Olympics on the host city and country, but it was interesting to be a part of the whole Olympic experience. I got to talk with the Serbian National Women’s Basketball team about competing in the 2016 Olympics for the first time…they won bronze!

It was just a wonderful experience. I translated for them, made their daily schedules and worked first-hand with their team manager. I attended all their practices and games, and made sure everything ran smoothly. Some of them even follow me on Instagram.

Do you plan to continue your work with the Olympics?

I would like to work with either the Olympics or specifically for FIBA [International Basketball Federation] in event management. It would be so awesome to connect with some of the world’s top athletes!

Why did you choose Quest?

I chose Quest for its uniqueness. The classes, people, campus—you really can’t find this combo anywhere else in the world.

What was your favourite thing about campus? Least favourite?

I loved that everything was so close. I could wake up at 8:45 am if I had class at 9. My least favourite was all the hills!

You just graduated! What’s the plan now?

I’m going to chill for a bit. I’m planning on taking a three-week road trip down the West Coast to Mexico.

Over the summer, I plan to get into some internships to do my Experiential Learning with other basketball teams. My goal is to work at the IWBA [International Wheelchair Basketball Association] World Championships in Hamburg, Germany.

And then I hope to go to grad school for sports event management.

Staff Spotlight

Check-in with Quest Counsellor Julie Miller

Julie’s Top 5 Tips for Relieving Stress –

Be in the moment and tackle what’s in it.
Self-care! (Whatever that means to you: tend the cactus garden, go for sushi, or if you’re Julie, a wee 25 km run across Black Tusk.)
You know it’s coming…know what works for you. Plan ahead for stress.
Find your strengths.
Don’t compare yourself to others. When we do, we lose track of what makes us great.

Julie’s Top 3 SOS Tips (Supporting Other Students)

Advice not required. Be a good listener.
Remind people of their self-care.
Become a good referral service. Whether that be suggesting your friend take a yoga course or a seat in the (huge and comfy) counselling chair in Julie’s office—it’s not up to you to fix the woes of the world.

What Julie does for the Quest community: Supervises the health clinic, supervises the interns, counsels students, writes (policies and the Stall St. Journal)

What Julie does in fewer than 10 words: Makes sure health & wellness is a priority on campus

Busiest time of year for counselling services: November. Students are deep into Third Block with a long way to go before spring.

Question: How can sport impact body positivity? (Instead of, What does my body look like?, ask yourself, What am I capable of doing with my body?)

Favourite quote: You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, smarter than you think, and more beautiful than you could ever imagine.

Passion: Ultras. For those uninitiated, that’s any footrace longer than a marathon. Not necessarily racing for Julie, though. Sometimes it’s just a three-day adventure into the backcountry with a pal, 50 km at a time, and seeing where they end up!

Why Quest, Julie? I love working with university-age people. They are resilient. They are open to learning new tools. They are willing to make changes. At Quest, 60% of students have seen a counsellor. I think that’s a good sign that Quest students prioritize their mental health. With everyone living on campus, we are in a type of family system. We impact each other. We learn to support each other. We find out how to contribute our strengths and value the areas we can grow.