<eparture of former Director of Campus Activities T. Todd Masman, the Dean of Students Office has set out once again to fill the position. Sophomore Associate Dean of Students Julie Thornton is leading the search. She will be joined by a team of students, faculty, and staff members. Representing the students are Rose Schuchat ‘11 and Emily Cogsdill ‘11, appointed by the CSA, a student to be named from the International Students Programs office, and Max Davidson ’10 representing the Office of Campus Activities.
Comprising the faculty and staff portion of the search team are Mike Hendel from the Career Center, Tammy Anderson in the Deans Office, Mikki Showers from Physical Education, Athletics and Recreation (P.E.A.R.), Joy Esboldt from the Office of Intercultural Life and a student yet to be named from Residential Life.
The search advisory group will begin meeting this Tuesday to “get things rolling” regarding the search, said Thorton. She hopes the position will be filled quickly. “Ideally, we want someone in place probably the beginning of Spring Term,” she said. This is, however, “tricky,” she said, because vacancies for positions in higher education typically begin during the summer.
“But,” she said, “the one thing we have going for us is that we have a position where a lot of other positions are being cut right now.”
The position was posted in mid-December to various higher education periodicals and websites, in an effort run by Human Resources. The ads were run for 30 days, meaning that the classifieds are currently in the midst of expiring.
Approximately 30 to 35 resumes were received from hopeful applicants, and “we keep getting more every day,” said Thornton.
Once the committee convenes, the group will attempt to determine the applicants that “really rise to the top.”
“Everyone will review resumes,” said Thornton. “It’s not just me making the decisions—the folks doing it with me are familiar with [Carleton].” This communal aspect is particularly important because, as Thornton said, “I’ve only been here for a few weeks.”
As a new face at Carleton, Thorton also had her own additions and suggestions for the Office of Campus Activities to keep in mind throughout the selection process. “This is a pretty quiet office, and usually Campus Activities has a lot of activity: foot traffic, people hanging out. The only things I’ve seen are people coming in to buy bus tickets.”
“We have a lots of campus organizations that could use support, and we have [Campus Activities] programming assistants that are a vital group. But there’s still a lot more that other students and organizations could gain.”
All in all, “this is a huge opportunity,” said Thornton. She also noted that as the final applicants come to campus, students will play a role in the interviewing process.