When head RA junior Matt O’Sullivan pulled into the Simpson Residence parking lot for the first time this semester, he saw his first task was to find the owner of the huge truck that had obnoxiously taken the new house director’s spot.
But, to O’Sullivan’s surprise, the owner of the F-250 truck actually was the new house director: Hillsdale native Peggy Wilson.
“The guys think its just really cool that I have this big truck,” Wilson said. “And they want to use it for the [homecoming] float and I’m like, ‘ok, works for me.’”
Wilson, who raised three boys and a girl, said that when her boys were growing up there were always young men hanging out around her house, so the transition to living in Simpson was not as hard or shocking as people might think.
When Wilson interviewed for the job, Dean of Men Aaron Petersen saw right away that she had motherly instincts, which he said was an asset for the position of house director.
“She has excellent temperament for managing young men with high energy and spirit,” Petersen said.
These motherly instincts come not only from raising her own four children, but also from the job Wilson had as a supervisor at the manor for the past 16 years.
“Her experience at the manor showed that she had good instincts in managing young adults in difficult situations,” Petersen said.
After the manor closed last year, Wilson planned on taking the summer off work. It was an ad for a house director spot that changed Wilson’s mind.
“I saw the ad and thought ‘hey, that’s something I could do,’” Wilson said. “I wanted a new experience and I thought it would be an interesting next step working with college kids.”
Wilson originally applied for the Kappa house director opening, but her experience with raising young men made her perfect for Simpson, which was also in need of a house director, Petersen said.
As house director of Simpson, Wilson is responsible for 176 men. She said there is no way she could do it without the help of her 17 resident assistants.
“The RA’s do such a great job and are so respectful,” Wilson said, “They always ask if I need any help. They know how everything works, so they’ve really helped make things run smoothly.”
Simpson residents said that her style was very different from the last house director’s.
“Sue went for a fear factor [approach],” head RA senior Garrett Holt said. “Wilson is very self-governing. She is America.”
Holt explained that Wilson has an very easy-going attitude and is very flexible to work with.
“She works great with the RA team. She really trusts us and lets us make plans,” Holt said.
However, the change of house directors has not changed Simpson’s energetic atmosphere.
“We’re still up to shenanigans,” Holt said. “We still have our dorm raids and she’s really cool about it. She just pops her head out and laughs and makes sure it’s safe. She’s awesome.”
Wilson said that she enjoys the liveliness of the dorm and likes that the guys are always trying to include everyone in activities like their Fight Club bible study and dodgeball.
“It seems like they’ve always got something going on and they’re always trying to include all the guys,” Wilson said. “And I love the amount of school spirit.”
Wilson also gets in on the spirit by bringing her granddaughter, five-year-old Alicia, to the home football games. Feeling inspired, Alicia joined the cheerleaders on the sidelines during the tense game against Cal-Pa.
Alicia visits Wilson on Wednesdays in Simpson and “waves to everyone very enthusiastically,” Holt said.
O’Sullivan predicted that she’ll have superstar status around the dorm pretty soon.
Wilson said she’s enjoyed her experience so far and she looks forward to many years as the house director of Simpson.
“We’ve had great feedback,” said Associate Dean of Men Jeffery Rogers. “Sue had big shoes to fill, but Peggy came with her own.”
Wilson has certainly not hesitated to apply her own unique leadership style.
“She automatically got all the guys’ respect at our first meeting,” Holt said with a smile. “She told us she wasn’t afraid to hit us with her truck if she had to. She’ll keep order.”