This month’s staff member in the spotlight is Luke Norton, a Communications Generalist for OVPUE. We asked him a few questions and here’s what he had to say:
What is your name and what do you do; how long have you worked here in OVPUE?
My name is Luke Christopher Norton and I’m a communications generalist working in IT, Communications & Marketing. I’ve worked here in OVPUE for just under a month.
What three traits define you?
I’d have to say determination, reliability and organization. I tend to view one of the most important aspects of any job as the ability to make the work of those around you easier, so I feel driven to do so.
What would you do (for a career) if you weren’t doing this?
I’d be a sportswriter. I have previous experience from both college and a postgraduate internship in Oregon covering sports such as college football, men’s and women’s college basketball, track and field, professional soccer and Major League Baseball.
I love traveling to new cities and seeing how sports and local teams fit into the culture of the area. Oregon is the track capital of the United States and athletes from the area have a highly dedicated following across the state. I had the privilege of telling a few of those stories during the summer of 2022.
If you could learn to do anything, what would it be?
I’d like to learn more about hiking. I wasn’t quite able to do enough of that growing up but would love to do more in the next few years.
What challenging thing has happened (to) for you, and what did you gain from it?
I initially didn’t get into IU out of high school and had to really dedicate myself to academics in my final year of high school and throughout college to get where I am now, having earned an undergraduate degree.
How do you define success?
Success is about as subjective as it gets outside of established metrics. I try to define success as fulfillment, that I personally set out to do the work to make something happen. If I’m happy with the work I put forth at the end of the day, I’d call that success.
What do you do in your spare time?
I keep up with sports by sitting down to read a few stories in national and local outlets here and there. Sometimes I have the grave misfortune of watching Big Ten men’s basketball.
What is a favorite book, movie, and/or tv show that had an impact on you?
I hate to be cliché, but I was named after Luke Skywalker so it quite literally has to be the original Star Wars film.
Where would you like to go on a dream vacation?
Sorry to repeat myself, but I completely fell in love with the Pacific Northwest during my time living in Portland and would love to return soon to explore the forests, the coastline, mountains and all the towns I didn’t get a chance to see. It’s a peaceful place with an incredible amount of natural beauty that changed my life for the better.
What is your favorite thing about working at OVPUE?
I absolutely love working with the people we do, everyone works together to make things run smoothly and it’s a joy to go into work everyday.
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