Senior Management Major Sam Paulson is a friendly, outgoing Gustie Greeter, a member of the SAE Fraternity and a varsity basketball player.
If this doesn’t make him stand out from a crowd, one other thing will for sure: Sam’s height. “My height is my most defining characteristic; I am the tallest person on campus, six feet and nine inches. It has it pros and cons, but it made me more outgoing — especially when I am in big crowds. I am kind of a spectacle and need to be chill and just roll with it. I have heard all the tall jokes there are, but my height is great for concerts; people get super jealous,” Sam said.
Sam was recruited by Division I and Division II schools to play basketball, but he chose to come to Gustavus. “St. Peter is a lot like my home town, Waseca. I love the rural area, and the town is super supportive of the College. My friends from home and my parents are able to come to a lot of my games,” Sam said.
He has played on the Gustavus Men’s Basketball team all throughout college and thinks it is interesting to see how a team interacts on different levels. “Each year has a different feel, but I think this has been our most successful year since I have been at Gustavus. We are hoping to take the Playoff Championship,” Sam said.
Sam has been a Greeter for the past two years, and has been one of the most influential decisions he has made. His friends encouraged him to apply and told him he would be good at it. Sam was only involved in basketball at that time and was not sure if he could handle anything else on top of it. He decided to take a chance, applied and received a Greeter spot.
I got really nervous because I didn’t know a lot of the people, but it sparked my desire to get involved more,” Sam said.
During his first year as a Greeter, Sam met Dave Christians,who was helping start the SAE fraternity and asked him to join. “It was a really great decision. I met a whole different group of people,”Sam said.
His management major was chosen at the beginning of his junior year because he was not allowed to start classes until he declared one. “I like working in teams, and I wanted something broad; I was between management and communication. Management, I see it like The Office, being like Michael Scott, but not as dumb,” Sam said.
As Sam’s final semester at Gustavus is just starting, he is not spending too much time planning out the future, but focusing on the present. “Maybe when it gets closer to spring I will worry more than about what I will do after I graduate. I haven’t worried much about it. I will figure it out after I graduate because Gustavus has been such a good experience I want to [soak] it up in the next four months,” Sam said. He is continuing to seek out new experiences, including trying out for track in the spring.
“I am going out for track in the spring; I ran cross country in high school, and I am excited to see what happens,” Sam said. “The main reason I am joining track is to get to meet more people and to get to know them. I want to make a positive impact, whether that is being a friend or just helping someone out,” Sam said.