On Tuesday, Sept. 13, a group of student leaders met with Dr. Frank E. Ross, the new Vice President of Student Life, during a meet and greet held in the Golden Eagles. The meet and greet was organized in order to have an open dialogue between Ross and student leaders of various school organizations. It also served as an opportunity for Ross to listen to the concerns of NEIU students, as well as introduce his own ideas for the Division of Student Life.
Ross’ experience boasts major involvement in student affairs. He comes to us from the University of North Texas at Dallas where he served as Associate Provost for Student Success and Dean of Students, prior to that he served as Assistant Vice Chancellor for the Division of Student Life at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis for 11 years.
The meeting at Golden Eagle was only the first of many ways Ross plans to open the lines of communication with students. He also sat down with us at the Independent and shared some of his ideas and addressed some of the issues that arose at the Golden Eagle meet and greet.
He stressed that his main efforts at NEIU will be dedicated to enriching the lives of NEIU students in order to, “enhance student life and the quality of student life. ” One concept that he put into use before the meet and greet was the “good idea icon,” which is on the NEIU Division of Student Life website. The good idea icon is a way for all students, as well as faculty, staff and community members, to share their ideas and thoughts directly with Ross. The relationship between the everyday student and administration members is usually minimal and Ross wants to assure that there is no uneasiness on the part of any student who wants to express their concerns. So far, the icon has already received two dozen emails, which is a positive sign that the NEIU community wants to be heard. Most of all Ross said, “I want people to know that I don’t just sit up in the administration building and go to meetings all day. I want to actively work to enhance the quality of student life. ” In the same realm the Division of Student Life has a Twitter and Facebook account that students and faculty are encouraged to use. Students will be informed as to what functions will be attended by the Division of Student Life.
One suggestion that came about at the meet and greet was the use of a face to face forum between Ross’ office and students, which he hopes to implement. The division still needs feedback from students as to when to hold the forums, yet Ross said he will be available for students whenever he is needed. The Division of Student Life plans to see these forums held at least once a semester and will announce in a timely manner in order to draw a significant amount of attendees.
It is not easy to get everyone to share their thoughts and concerns. For this reason Ross has a few plans he hopes to put into place to aid students. Ross will be put- ting together an advisory board of students that will help answer questions and advise him as to what student’s need. Ross will be using what he calls a student pulse survey every few months to find out student concerns. He stressed that it is important for him to know what the student body is doing. “I want to find out from students what’s important to them. What programs and services on this campus and activities will help them be successful,” Ross said. Surveys usually seem to be something students fill out and never hear back on what purpose they served. Ross, however, is planning to make use of those surveys and ensure that students see an immediate response.
Another of Ross’ goals for this semester is a space audit for department offices. “It’s important to maximize the space to support students,” he said. This will be a way to ensure that the division of student life is organized in the most efficient way. There are offices dedicated to student life throughout the school, the space audit will ensure that offices are put where they would be more effective and not secluded in basements.
One issue of interest that was brought up at the meet and greet was the idea of a “residential component” to the campus. NEIU is known as a commuter campus and to transition to offering a residential facility is significant. According to Ross, in order to have any kind of residential facility constructed or implemented there must be research conducted first. Any kind of residential facility will have to be in accordance to what is needed by students. A few aspects would have to be analyzed, including where students live, distance traveled to the campus, amount of time spent at the campus and how a residential component would enhance the quality of student life.
“The research is really clear that the more students are involved in their college experience the more they’re successful,” Ross said. In order to DO that, Ross believes it’s necessary to get students involved right from the beginning. The Divi– sion of Student Life will look into what all other departments do in order to fulfill the needs of new students, not only freshmen but transfer students as well. “You need to hit students right when they come to cam- pus,” said Ross. Students will need to be- come aware of what activities are available to them.
In keeping with the NEIU motto “Learn in the city, lead in the world,” Ross plans to make sure that involvement is not only within the university but in enhancing civic engagement. One thing that attracted him to NEIU is the university’s commitment to issues of social justice and making a difference in the community. To encourage students, Ross plans to an acknowledgement of students from NEIU who are leading in their community, com- ing up in 2012. There are already students doing great things in the community, students he called our “best kept secrets,” who he believes should be acknowledged and celebrated.
Ross had a choice to make when joining the NEIU community and he said that the people at NEIU made his decision easy. “The people are absolutely amazing here,” and he wanted to become part of a faculty and staff that was committed to the success of their students, which NEIU exemplified.
For more information on the Division of Student Life visit http://www. neiu.edu/~stulife/. Students are ALSO encouraged to visit his Facebook page VP for Student Life Ross and follow him on Twitter @VP_Ross.