JEFF DUNN
News Editor
dunnja@plu.edu
“Its great to see your friends all the time. I live off-campus, so I don’t get to interact with students on-campus as much anymore, especially first-years and sophomores,” Nate Hansen, a senior this year, said. “You can see what gets them going and have those conversations you don’t often get to have.
Nate Hansen’s extroverted personality makes working at Old Main Market a breeze.
“I’ve had a couple on-campus jobs, I’ve been an RA, I’ve worked in the music hall as an usher and I’ve been a note-taker, but this has been one of my favorite on-campus jobs by far.”
Nate found his vocation as an Economics major with a Women’s and Gender Studies minor.
“I’m a feminist economist,” he said. He thinks the way the two disciplines intersect is very important to the world right now.
“A lot of the issues that face our world right now are deeply rooted in economic inequalities and some of those are deeply rooted in gender issues,” Hansen said. “I think the interplay of the two disciplines is really interesting, especially in developing countries.”
Focusing back on his job, I asked Hansen which drink he absolutely hates making for people.
“No! I love it when people order anything!” he responded, loud enough for his boss to hear from the other side of the market.
Besides his classes and on-campus work, Hansen also competes for PLU’s Track and Field team. He runs the 200 meter and said he’s “trying” to be a sprinter.
With all this on his plate, Hanson had to learn the hard lesson of time management.
“That’s something I learned in my first year. It’s something you’ll have to learn. Being a student-athlete and holding a job on campus teaches you a lot of skills you can use in your life outside of college.”
Hansen also took time in our interview to reflect on his years here at PLU.
“It’s crazy how the time flies, next thing you know you’re a senior, you wonder ‘what did I do that was meaningful to me and to other people?’”
I asked him why he loves his major, and he told me he loves the way others are inspired by Economics.
“Other than loving the subject material – when you meet people in your discipline that are really excited about what they do, it makes it so much more easy and a lot more fun, and that’s what I found in the Economics department. Get in contact with the professors. They’re more than willing to help you. Everyone’s really nice in the departments and it’s a great choice,” he said, not forgetting to add: “Pick it over science.”
