Deanna (Dee) Bailey outside the Parking and Transit Services office at Skytop.
Deanna (Dee) Bailey, associate director of field operations and events for Parking and Transit Services, has trouble remembering which act appeared at the Dome during Thanksgiving weekend in 1990. 鈥淚 know it was a huge concert,鈥� Bailey recalls. 鈥淎nd it was my first Dome event, and I’m like, 鈥極h my God.鈥�”
Fittingly, Bailey鈥檚 first experience with 38,000 people was New Kids on the Block.
鈥淔or my first time, it was overwhelming,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t was just car after car, and I was like, 鈥極h my gosh, this is never going to stop.鈥�”
Bailey first started working for 黑料不打烊 in 1986 in Food Services, cooking in Haven Hall. After leaving the University briefly while working for the Scotsman Press in 黑料不打烊, she returned and worked part time as an overnight parking enforcement officer. 鈥淪o I wrote tickets at night,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 think it was, like, three days a week.鈥�
Bailey was eventually hired full time in July 1990. The University had an agreement with Crouse Hospital so nurses parked at Manley lot back then. 鈥淎nd that’s when I got the outer gate job,鈥� she says. 鈥淪o I used to get here at six in the morning, park all the nurses, and then I’d go to the gate and work my regular shift.鈥�
Since becoming full time, Bailey has worked almost every field position in Parking and Transit Services and practically every large event. She laughs when thinking back about how things have changed over the years, like when Penn State used to be a regular visitor to the Dome. 鈥淵ou should have seen the cars up here at Skytop. And we didn’t even have the room that we have now,鈥� she jokes. 鈥淪o we were getting very creative.鈥�
The huge crowds are a perk of the job for Bailey. 鈥淚t’s just fun. I really enjoy the events. I love meeting people. I walk around the lots up here,鈥� she says. 鈥淭his is normally where I work, up at Skytop for football.鈥�
Joe Carfi, director of Parking and Transit Services, says he considers Bailey to be the public face of parking. 鈥淚 mean she’s really a pillar, as far as I’m concerned,鈥� he says. 鈥淭here is a genuineness about her that I think that people pick up on really quickly, and I think that speaks volumes.鈥�
Even with her decades of experience, Bailey approaches her work with enthusiasm. Tony Callisto, senior vice president and chief law enforcement officer, admires her dedication. 鈥淲ith nearly 30 years of service to the 黑料不打烊 community, Dee Bailey has the wide-eyed vision of excellence and excitement toward her work and service, as if it were her first day on the job every day,鈥� he says.
While Bailey has extensive institutional knowledge, Callisto says she is always willing to try something new and innovate. 鈥淥ne of the most impressive, successful efforts was improving the guest experience for events at the Chancellor鈥檚 house, when Dee led in the development, execution and on-site management of a plan to offer valet parking,鈥� he says.
Bailey鈥檚 day-to-day activities center mainly on helping people, either her staff or customers. She coordinates and leads daily field operations for parking and manages all event parking on campus. Additionally, she works with local bus companies and coordinates bus orders for Dome events.
鈥淒ee鈥檚 expertise in planning for, and direct management of, major events, with tens of thousands of people coming to campus, is often unnoticed because of the lack of problems experienced by those arriving and parking,鈥� Callisto says.
Bailey also manages parking requests for events happening in parallel to Dome events by writing up instructions for booth attendants. 鈥淚 review all the events that are happening on campus during the game, where they’re supposed to park, where to direct them,鈥� she explains. 鈥淎nd then anybody that has a special request鈥搈aybe there’s a professor that reached out and needs parking for Thursday night because he’s teaching.鈥�
Students, faculty and staff with accessibility issues can also rely on Bailey. Callisto calls Bailey鈥檚 approach 鈥渟olution oriented.鈥�
鈥淚 don’t like to just say no,鈥� Bailey says. 鈥淵ou don’t realize how many departments are also having events. So that’s the biggest challenge鈥攋ust trying to take care of everybody so that everybody’s happy.鈥�
Bailey is passionate about her work. 鈥淎ctually, I used to feel guilty for taking games off,鈥� she says. 鈥淩eally, my life was around Dome events.鈥� She credits Carfi with helping her attain more work-life balance. 鈥淗e’s made me look at things a little differently about taking time off, and we’ll be okay without you.鈥�
Carfi says Bailey鈥檚 greatest strength is how she works with people. When difficult situations arise鈥攍ike not having enough room for a group to park鈥攖he trust, understanding and mutual respect she has fostered with departments on campus help things run smoothly. 鈥淪he brings so much,鈥� says Carfi. 鈥淎mong the most obvious is the experience, the relationships.鈥�
Bailey鈥檚 favorite part of her job is working with the campus community. 鈥淚’ve established a lot of relationships with other departments, and I know there’s more out there to establish,鈥� she says. 鈥淏ecause not everybody communicates their events, and it’s one of my goals to get people to call us. We’ll help you. We’re not going to say no.鈥�
Bailey works in all weather, from driving rain to bitter cold. Carfi recalled a specific example of her tenacity: 鈥淚t was probably a game, it was one of the football games where it was just鈥t just rained all day and all night, and Dee was out there with those people getting drenched,鈥� he says.
Bailey has a unique perspective about dealing with bad weather. 鈥淵ou can be miserable or you can say, 鈥楬ey, let’s see who I’m going to meet today,鈥欌€� she says.
Callisto believes Bailey鈥檚 affability is a key attribute to her success. 鈥淒ee loves what she does, loves the people she works with and supervises, loves the students, faculty, staff and visitors, and loves 黑料不打烊,鈥� he says. 鈥淪he truly bleeds Orange, and her excellent work is the outcome!鈥�
