What is a Dean of Students?

Typically, Chief Student Affairs Officers (Vice Presidents and/or Deans) oversee student life outside of the classroom; that involves things like athletics, campus police, career development, civic engagement, counseling and health center operations, dining, diversity and global inclusion, international student support, emergency response, event management, Greek life, housing, religious and spiritual life, residence life, student activities, student conduct, and the student union. So, in addition to overseeing the staff who work in all of those areas, I think it is essential that the Dean spends time with students because the Dean and/or Vice President serves as the advocate for student life to the president and trustees of the institution.

College campuses, like all communities, face challenges. People get hurt, opinions are challenged, disagreements occur, and there is always a need for more funding (and that is true on every college campus, even those with billion dollar endowments don’t spend all the money they want to spend on the college experience for their students). Additionally, a lot of what we do on a college campus is challenged by those outside of the academy. That being said, nothing is worse than the 3 a.m. phone call from Campus Police; time stops in those seconds until I know that the student is or will be okay.

Compassion, a sense of humor, and these abilities: to make quick decisions, to influence and inspire others, and to juggle 12 things at once, and finally, a true love of college students and college campuses!

The hours: It is a 24/7 job and a demanding profession. On a residential campus, students are on campus 365 days a year, and it is very common to get called at 2 a.m. and every other hour of the day. Additionally, meetings and work happens in campus offices during “normal” hours, Monday through Friday, but students are active in their co-curricular activities at night and on the weekends. A good Dean of Students needs to be a visible campus leader and on-campus a lot!

Someone who enjoys new challenges everyday, who is OK not knowing what will happen from hour to hour, and who loves helping young people discover who they are and who they want to be. Education happens in the classroom, but a lot of time and education also happens outside of the classroom, successful leaders in these positions appreciate those spur-of-the-moment-conversations that happen at 11 p.m. when a student or group of students are struggling with an issue and want guidance from their dean.

That’s easy: It is working with students every day. It’s watching them transform from their first year to graduation day and knowing that, in some small way, I contributed to some of that growth and development. It’s the students who call me a mentor, who say I changed their lives, who say that I helped them to be a better people, and the alum who keep in touch by calling me when they get engaged, inviting me to their weddings, and sharing professional accomplishments.