Allie Giro (right) has spent more than 10 years at DELTA. Photo by Katie Harris.
Lead Program Coordinator Allie Giro has always enjoyed working with others. Throughout her professional career, she’s sustained her penchant for people in a variety of roles.
Originally from Miami, Giro received a bachelor’s of arts in social psychology from Florida Atlantic University with an interest in social work. After working in the insurance industry, she supported a family business in an administrative role that blended marketing and networking. Giro later relocated to North Carolina and worked for NC State’s Cooperative Education Program before joining DELTA in 2008.
This year, her journey to connect with people will continue on the coast when she and her husband, Ted, relocate. As they seize the opportunity to spend more time in their ideal beach climate, Giro will leave her position at DELTA in late February. She hopes to work closely with people in her new community.
“I’ve been doing a lot of work with people in [addiction] recovery… leading groups of people who support each other. That’s what I feel I’m being led toward,” she says.
Giro has her experiences at DELTA to build upon during this transition and beyond.
“The things that I’ve learned here can transfer into other areas of my life professionally. Whatever I do end up doing, I definitely have been able to grow.”
How would you describe your position to someone unfamiliar with DELTA?
Giro considers her position to be two-fold, balancing project coordination and training responsibilities as she works with DELTA team members to develop and deliver the curriculum for DELTA Workshops.
“I do the program coordination for all of our training –– planning meetings, getting everybody organized and on-task in terms of the curriculum. In that sense, it’s kind of like a project coordination role.”
This process extends to Summer Shorts, DELTA’s week-long training series in instructional technologies held each August. Giro is the project lead for Summer Shorts, which encompasses each aspect of her role; she not only plans the series for months in advance –– keeping track of registrations, designing the website and organizing the schedule –– but leads workshops and engages with faculty. She considers Summer Shorts one of her favorite experiences at DELTA.
“I feel like it’s a nice example of a culmination of all the stuff I do at DELTA. To work on something for four or five months and see it all come together in that week is kind of neat. And of course it’s a major team effort,” she says, referring to her colleagues from the Instructional Technology Training (ITT) team.
Giro feels fortunate to lead workshops on topics that particularly interest her such as Zoom, organizing one’s G Suite, and student engagement.
What are your day-to-day responsibilities?
“Every day is different,” says Giro. “I coordinate the delivery of the workshops in terms of logistics, making sure that the training team has what they need to deliver workshops and training opportunities.”
DELTA also offers custom workshops for departments and offices across the university. Giro serves as the liaison between the client and DELTA, matching their needs to our skilled technicians.
After sessions have completed, Giro works with ITT to reflect on feedback from attendees and revise workshops accordingly to ensure that DELTA’s training is the best it can be.
What is your area of expertise?
The planning side of Giro’s position appeals to the part of her personality that loves to organize, which she considers her expertise.
Outside of work, you might find her reorganizing clothing displays or helping friends tidy their homes. At work, she juggles training logistics and helps faculty find tools to streamline workflows, like optimizing their Gmail or Google Drive.
“[I provide] ways that you can take away some of the anxiety of being overwhelmed. Those are the kinds of things that I enjoy.”
Giro is also skilled in understanding faculty needs. When faculty need help grasping technologies like Zoom and G Suite or engaging their students, she’s ready to meet them at their skill level.
“Some faculty are very intimidated by technology in general. I feel good when I see people who are starting off with that hesitancy, but I can show them how to do something and they understand it so that when they leave, they feel confident and it’s not as hard as they thought it would be.”
What makes your job special?
“I work with some really great people, and it means a lot,” says Giro. “DELTA is a place where people are truly passionate about what they’re doing. I feel like that’s a big part of what helps an organization stay positive.”
Giro credits NC State’s Pathways Leadership Program in aiding her own professional development and helping her develop valuable leadership skills.
“That was definitely a great opportunity to grow in terms of leadership and confidence,” she says. “It helps you figure out who you are in a professional culture. At the end of the day, you can be in any role and be a good leader.”
In 2018, Giro received NC State’s Pride of the Wolfpack Award in part for her inclusive, transparent and collaborative leadership in DELTA projects.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
“Reading is my haven. Give me a beach chair and umbrella, a cooler full of water and my kindle and I’m good for like six hours,” says Giro. Her favorite genres to read include crime thrillers and historical nonfiction.
Crafting is also a passion of Giro’s. She loves to make T-shirts, cards, tote bags and more as gifts for others or fun items to keep.
In the evenings, Giro likes to volunteer with a recovery support group, talking with people who need advice and a listening ear. She hopes to continue this type of work in a larger capacity after her move to the coast.
“I find it really fulfilling, and it’s a really good way to give back,” she says.
At home, Giro spends time with her husband and their two dogs, Kadie and Quinn. They look forward to spending time as a family and taking advantage of all the shore has to offer.
“We’re super excited to have the beach life again. We plan on spending a lot of time on the water.”
