In academia, summer brings with it some lulls punctuated by freshmen orientations, which are intense periods of advisement. During one of the lulls, the Sam Center Director, Ashley Pruitt, invited a motley group of SHSU staff, administrators, and faculty to share insights with her team of advisors.
The two-hour panelogue was educational and, at times, entertaining, including: Dusty Jones (Math); Keila Tyner (Family and Consumer Sciences); Michael Henderson (College of Arts and Media); Mark Tuttle (COBA); Brian Jordan (History); Dustin Gross (Chemistry); Jason Enia (Political Science and CHSS); and Mike Yawn (LEAP Center).
Pruitt, as always full of directed energy, offered various prompts for discussion:
- What led to your field?
- What led to your leadership role?
- How do you handle anxious or struggling students in your class?
- What academic mistake taught you the most?
- What’s something people assume about your field that isn’t necessarily true?
- What do you wish more people knew about your discipline?
- What are you currently learning that has nothing to do with your job?
- What’s your favorite area/component of your discipline?
- What’s the most memorable student success story you’ve witnessed?
- What’s a question you wish someone would ask you?
Thus, we learned that while Dusty Jones ended up in the Math world, he began as a “theatre kid.”
We learned that Jason Enia is sometimes greeted with sighs and groans when he tells people that he teaches political science.
We also learned that Keila Tyner spent about ten years in New York, working for high-end companies, a lead-in to her role as Assistant Chair of Fashion Merchandising.
Additional learning included the fact that Brian Jordan does not like a “turning point” conception of history…
…and Michael Henderson was brought to SHSU to teach animation, despite his prior training as a painter. In addition, marketing may be difficult for Henderson: there are numerous artists, and at least one serial killer, with the same name (I would like to see a Venn diagram of these individuals to see how far the circles diverged from one another…).
Beyond these interesting facts, the session gave the opportunity for advisors to meet some University leaders, and the opportunity for University leaders to meet advisors–the latter, it should be noted, are leaders on campus, too. They often have the first real interaction with our incoming students, and over the course of their college career, they develop meaningful relationships with the students. Their presence in students’ lives influence student retention and success….
…and that, in turn, leads to the success of the University.
Many thanks to Director Ashley Pruitt for putting together this panel and for investing in her staff.
Center for Law, Engagement, and Politics 