If you’ve walked into Farrell Hall in the last five years chances are you’ve been warmly greeted by Ben Morgan, the Gund Institute’s office manager. His duties run the gamut from keeping the coffee stocked to troubleshooting technology and so much more. When something goes wrong, Ben is often the first phone call. We sat down to learn more about the man who does it all. 

This interview has been lightly edited for clarity. 

Tell us a little bit about your path prior to coming to Gund?

I have done a lot of weird, different things over my life. I started working in my teens doing random jobs. I worked on a farms a few times throughout my life. I did a lot of yard and landscaping work for a good chunk of my teen years and then my college years. I worked with horses for a while. I was a personal trainer.

 I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do in undergrad, so I studied philosophy, which is kind of embarrassing to admit. After that, I was a writing tutor for a time there, which was a really big part of my life. I think back on it and reflect that it was some of the best work in my life. 

I really, really, really wanted to be a writer. I got into an English program for a master's degree, but I decided against it. For some reason I had this thing in my heart against being a teacher. So naturally I ended up being an English teacher and teacher trainer in Mongolia through Peace Corps, which was another defining experience in my life. 

When I got this job, I remember, in my interview they asked me why I wanted it, and I realized at that moment that I was like, ‘Oh, I actually really like helping people,’ and that is big part of this job. 

We joke all the time that the office would fall apart without you. Give us a snapshot of what your role looks like?

I make sure everything runs as smoothly as it can. That includes actual building stuff, like are the toilets working, and coordinating with staff if repairs are needed. Other things I do are calendar stuff, including managing Taylor’s calendar. Everybody talks to me about what room they need if they need a room.

I think the biggest thing is making sure that people have what they need to do their work. And I feel like most of the time we can do that, and I think that's a pretty big driving force for most of what I do. 

What do you find fulfilling about working at the Gund?

Absolutely helping people. Being able to have someone come to me and be like, ‘I have to run this really complex program, but I don't have the funds for a computer. Do you have something we can do?’ And I'm like, ‘Yes, I do. I have exactly what you need; take this.’

The kindness that I'm able to like show people in the Gund is because the people of Gund are kind people who have shown it to me. I am a product of everybody else.

When you’re not working, what do you like to do?

I'm really into fitness. I used to do quite a bit of martial arts stuff back in the day, so I try to keep up that when I can. I started doing a lot more drawing again. I play a lot of Magic the Gathering, and I do a lot of D&D (Dungeons & Dragons). Most of my writing is for D&D now, which has been a wonderfully freeing experience. I play a lot of video games. I'm super into role playing games. My wife, Cailey, and I, we just like spending time together, doing whatever, going hiking, climbing.

I think that a lot of people here at Gund read me as a much more outgoing person than I actually am. I actually really like being by myself or with small groups of people. 

Bonus: You organize lots of the food here at the Gund, including pizza after GundxChanges. What is your favorite pizza from Leonardo’s?

Gosh, my favorite pizza from Leonardo's. Well, there's so many, as I'm sure our entire community is aware. It’s funny you ask what my favorite one is because I never have a good answer for what my favorite of anything is. I'm so much better at figuring out what I don't like. Ever since I was a kid, I’ve subscribed to this philosophical argument that was like, if you can't figure out what something is, figure out what it is not, and then you will find the truth. And I think that unfortunately stuck in my brain as a philosophy undergrad.

Anyway, that was an aside. Favorite Leonardo's pizza. I'm going to have to probably go with Maine Potato. It’s so tasty. It's got onion, it's got potatoes, it's got cheese, and it has bacon bits, and it's delicious.