Chancellor McKinney poses with members of his student advisory board.
(Prairie View)—Nearly 200 people from across The Texas A&M University System attended the student affairs symposium, hosted this year by Prairie View A&M University.
“A Sporting Good Time on the Hill,” provided the opportunity for attendees to connect with colleagues from around the A&M System, to share information about the challenges facing the System in higher education and to work together to address them.
There was a wide variety of events held during the three-day event, including breakaway sessions led by Prairie View faculty and staff on issues such as customer service, research and sponsored program opportunities, and stress management.
This Systemwide student affairs symposium has grown significantly since its inception in 1990, when it was established, in part, as a way for student affairs staff members from member universities to get to know one another. The symposium, which is managed by the host campus’ senior student affairs officer, changes venue each year in a rotation across all System campuses, and is currently in its second rotation cycle.
“When the South Texas schools joined the System in 1989, they had the expectation that that they would be part of a strong family,” said Verna Dewees, assistant vice chancellor in the System’s academic affairs office. “They wanted to meet their counterparts from other schools and learn what it meant to be a part of a larger, more diverse System.”
Prairie View A&M hosted this year’s symposium, which had the theme “A Sporting Good Time on the Hill.”
The Chancellor’s Student Advisory Board (CSAB) had its spring meeting during the symposium, and elected new officers and set goals for the upcoming year.
New officers are Thomas Bingham, chair (Texas A&M-Kingsville); James Cortez, vice chair for administrative affairs (Texas A&M-International); Brady Black, vice chair for research (Texas A&M University); and Tonya Domokos, secretary (Texas A&M-Texarkana).
The CSAB, which currently is comprised of two student representatives from each member university and the Health Science Center, was created in 1982 to provide a forum for addressing Systemwide student issues and to serve as a voice for student issues across the campuses within the System.
“This committee has a voice. What we say really is considered,” said Crystal Lopez, a representative from Texas A&M-Kingsville. “We also learn a lot from other schools. You can talk about problems at your campus and see what others are doing. I like the idea of speaking on the students’ behalf and changing things in higher education.”
“Though the members of this board only have one year together, we hope to make a huge impact for the students of this great System,” said Bingham, newly elected CSAB chair. Goals for the upcoming year include:
Cassidy Daniel, student regent from West Texas A&M University, also participated in the CSAB meetings. She told CSAB members she wanted to be better informed about student issues around the System and serve as a voice for students at Board of Regents meetings.
About 200 student affairs professionals from across the A&M System attended the symposium.
During their meeting, the CSAB also met with Chancellor Michael D. McKinney. “None of us is as smart as all of us,” he told them, explaining why he valued their opinions.
McKinney said it was important for them to not only have their own ideas, but to be willing to express them. He also asked for their input on the creation of a System Diversity Council.
“To provide the best advice possible, each member of the CSAB will be going back to their respective institution to assess student opinion and need. From there the Board will meet to formulate a formal recommendation to Chancellor McKinney,” Bingham said.
The new chairman said he is looking forward to more interaction with the chancellor during the year. “He continues to take amazing strides in supporting the mission of the Chancellor’s Student Advisory Board and utilizing it to ensure that student interests and concerns are met,” Bingham said.
Texas A&M International University in Laredo will host the 2008 Student Affairs Symposium. 