New
officers in the Chancellor’s Student Advisory Board are (left to
right) Blaze Currie, vice chair for administration (Texas A&M University);
Rodrigo Coutino, chair (Texas A&M International University); and
Michael de Baca, vice chair for research and assessment (West Texas A&M
University).
(Corpus Christi)—Nearly 200 student affairs professionals from across the A&M System gathered at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi May 17-19 to discuss best practices and trends in the profession. Members of the newly elected Chancellor’s Student Advisory Board, typically the student body president from each campus and Health Science Center, also attended.
“One of the advantages of being part of a great system like ours is the opportunity for students and senior administrators to come together and discuss common problems, work out solutions and share information,” said Leo Sayavedra, vice chancellor for academic and student affairs. “To me, these symposia serve as a great reminder of why we do what we do.”
Student affairs professionals handle just about every aspect of campus life outside the classroom, including housing and residence life, student unions, student activities, counseling, career development, orientation, minority support services, and retention and assessment. Their rewards are found in watching students mature academically and socially.
“The best thing about working with students is to provide them with leadership opportunities and see how much they develop,” said H. Eliot Chenaux, vice president of student affairs at A&M-Corpus Christi.
Several presentations addressed student engagement in campus life, including using students to solve campus problems. Carlos Huerta, associate professor of political science at A&M-Corpus Christi and co-director of the university’s core curriculum programs, gave a keynote address on how building engagement among minority students contributes to their academic success.
“There are multiple reasons why engagement leads to success in the classroom,” Huerta said. “One has to do with the relationships students build. They are more likely to have friends to turn to when they need assistance. They are also more likely to approach their professors and support staff. Thus, they have a network to help them out. The student who is isolated does not have the support network.”
To cultivate engagement, Huerta said it is important to identify a few key professors who are willing to work with students. “Student affairs professionals have much to offer academic affairs in the goal of promoting student learning,” he said.
Skip Chisum, director of the student center at West Texas A&M University, believes that students can provide valuable insight into solving problems on campus.
“I think it’s important that we include student leaders and emerging leaders from all walks of campus life when we are attempting to solve problems,” Chisum said. “The information we gather from them must be put to use in some form or fashion. Students lose faith in the system when they feel like they just ‘went through the motions’ and their input went nowhere.”
Chisum thinks “the sky’s the limit” regarding the kinds of issues students can help address. At West Texas A&M, students have been involved in activities ranging from the increasing the student service fee to developing, creating a marketing plan for the university (as well as a marketing plan for a residence hall that will open this fall) and revising the annual campus life orientation.
Maximizing resources through partnerships with businesses is another important national trend, according to Robert Lovitt, executive vice president for finance and administration at A&M-Corpus Christi, who gave a presentation on the topic.
“Universities are being asked to do more with fewer resources,” Lovitt said. “If we can find a business partner who can provide the needed service, at levels as least as good as what the university is doing, it is worth exploring. In essence, what you seek is better service to your clients with a better financial return.”
Lovitt said A&M-Corpus Christi’s partnerships—with companies that provide food services, bookstore management and student housing—are the three most common at universities across the country.
Chancellor
McTeer meets with members of his student advisory board during the symposium.
The members of the Chancellor's Student Advisory Board (CSAB), which was created in 1982 to give student leaders a forum for addressing student issues common to all campuses within the System, met with Chancellor McTeer at the symposium.
“The symposium was the time to debate, propose and comment on ideas and issues and create relationships between student government presidents,” said Rodrigo Coutino, CSAB chair and student body president at Texas A&M International University.
“We get together three times a year and it is our responsibility as leaders to make the most of that time.”
Coutino, a business major and native of Mexico who is the first international student to be elected CSAB chair, said the group meets twice a year, at the symposium and at the September meeting of the A&M System Board of Regents. The group also travels either to Austin or Washington, D.C., each year to meet with elected officials and learn about government functions. The Chancellor’s Century Council funds these events.
The best part of the symposium each year is the opportunity to share best practices, Chisum said. “One of the things I like best about working in higher education—and especially in Texas—is that there really is no trademark or copyright when it comes to using best practices. Our colleagues across the state love to share program ideas, solutions, information, resources and so forth, and that’s a great thing about the A&M System. We’re family.”
The 2007
symposium is scheduled for Prairie View A&M University. 