After midterms ended March 9, Gail Belokur, a seventh-semester drama major, said she was eager to unwind during the college’s weeklong break. But as a student, mother of three and administrative assistant for both the English and politics departments, Belokur did not spend the entire week relaxing.

“I worked Tuesday through Thursday … and I spent most of my time over break doing work for [my] nonprofit arts organization in Candor,” Belokur said. “[But] I forced myself not to do any schoolwork for [a few] days.”

Belokur, who has worked at the college since 2004, left SUNY–Cortland about one semester short of graduation in 1987 and spent seven years as the drama director at a high school in her hometown of Candor, N.Y.

When a friend and Ithaca College alumna encouraged her to finish her degree, she decided to pursue theater — specifically, stage management and directing — at the college.

“I had always thought about theater as a career, but it wasn’t the ‘practical’ choice,” she said. “But [over time] I realized a professional career in theater was really where my heart was.”

A relative of former college president Howard Dillingham, Belokur said she spent many summers in Ithaca with her grandmother, Betty King. While in Ithaca, she also saw productions at the Dillingham Center, the first of which, she said, she remembers vividly.

“[It was] the first night that I really saw live theater,” she said.

Belokur is now the assistant director for the Department of Theatre Arts’ production of “The Count of Monte Cristo,” which opens April 26. She said the show is giving her confidence toward a future in theater.

“It’s affirming to me a lot of things that I have, intuitively, done right,” she said.

In August 2006, Belokur was awarded the JJ Staff Scholar Award for her hard work. The award, established in 1997 in honor of late college president James J. Whalen, awards $200 to staff members who are also enrolled in a degree program at the college. Belokur said winning the award was a sign of support for what she is doing.

A self-proclaimed “queen of to-do lists,” Belokur said the positive work atmosphere at the office and at the college helps keep her focused.

“I’m really fortunate in that I’ve always been able to see the big picture and details at the same time,” she said.

Belokur said one of the hardest parts about returning to the classroom is walking into a room with people 20 years younger. But, she said, the theater students have eased her transition.

Steve TenEyck, assistant professor and chair of the Department of Theatre Arts and Belokur’s adviser, said her maturity and focus will help her succeed in the theater business.

“She’s not your traditional student,” he said. “[But] she has the skills [and] is gaining the skills, and she has tremendous determination.”

Claire Gleitman, associate professor and chair of the English department, said Belokur helps with everything from scheduling to compiling course material and is always reliable.

“What I like to say about Gail is that what she does for the department goes beyond the things that are expected [of her],” Gleitman said.

Belokur, who will graduate in December, said she plans to go to graduate school for directing and stage management and hopes to pursue a career in those areas. She said she would like a position that would allow her to continue working in educational theater, ideally for nine months of the year. The other three months, she said, she hopes to work as a freelance director in the professional theater industry.

The key to balancing a career with family life­ — Belokur is married with three children ages 12, 15 and 17 — is prioritizing her schedule, she said. But to succeed now and in the future, she said, she will have to remember her own advice.

“I never go anywhere without my planner,” she said.