Posts Tagged ‘Director’

College Begins Search For New Assistant Director of Student Activities And Greek Life

Writing on the Mall has confirmed that Allison Toney will be leaving her position at the end of July.

This means that Marietta College will have its fourth Assistant Director of Student Activities and Greek Life in four years.

Toney revealed her plans in an e-mail to the leaders of all the greek houses and councils on campus. In the letter, which was obtained by Writing on the Mall, she says, “I decided to leave to get back closer to home and it was more personal than professional reasons for leaving.”

When reached for comment, she says, “I really enjoyed working with everyone this past year! You all are some great students and I know you will continue to do good things in the future!”

Toney was hired by Marietta College last summer to replace Tara Kurilchick.  Kurilchick had dual-roles for the college (Residence Life and Student Activities) during the search to fill the Assistant Director position after Lynne Miller left in 2008 for the University of Pittsburgh.  Miller replaced Melissa Liptak in 2006 after Liptak accepted a position with Kent State.

David Travis, the Director of Student Activities and Student Life, says that this is to be expected.  He says that the Assistant Director position is considered and entry-level position.  Because of this, he continues on to say, “It is not uncommon for entry level positions to be held from 1 to 3 years. With this said my goal is to create a working environment that is welcoming for any staff member. This environment needs to allow for a staff member to be challenged and grow professionally.”

Travis will take over the duties of Assistant Director while a search to fill the position begins.  Candidates will be interviewed by a panel of students, faculty, and staff has been formed.  Interviews will begin in July on a rolling basis.

If you were curious to the job requirements, Travis sent along a copy of the job description.

The primary responsibility of this position, as part of the Student Activities & Greek Life department, is to provide leadership to the Greek community by developing and implementing programs and activities that strengthen and enhance Greek Life at Marietta College.  This includes serving as advisor to Interfraternity Council, Panhellenic Council, and Greek Council.  The Assistant Director will also provide academic support, counseling and educational programming for all Greek organizations.

Additional responsibilities include partnering with students, student organizations, faculty, and staff in coordinating community service projects.

Duties and responsibilities are organized around two areas:  Management and Programming.

Also of note, a Master’s degree in Higher Education is not being required for the position. Emphasis is also placed on Greek Affiliation.

A Bachelor’s degree is required while a Master’s degree in College Student Personnel, Higher Education Administration or related field is preferred. Prior Greek Life experience (chapter consultant, graduate assistant with Greek Life responsibilities, etc.) is strongly preferred.  Affiliation with a Greek Letter organization is highly desirable. Must possess well developed communication/interpersonal, organization, planning and programming skills.

Writing on the Mall asked several campus leaders for comment.  Brendan George, president of Interfraternity Council, and Josh Maxwell, president of Student Senate, had the following to say.

Ms. Toney’s vacancy will mark the fourth Greek Adviser that MC seniors have experienced.  This means that something is either very wrong with the Greek population at MC or something needs to be done with the position from an administrative standpoint.  Why is it so difficult to keep someone in the position?  Looking at Andrews, Bruce Peterson is really the only one that I see that has stayed with the overall department of Student Life for an extended period of time.  Vickers is gone, Travis is still relatively new, and Pastoor has yet to impress the collegiate population.  It is, as far as it’s personnel is concerned, a very new department.  Now Allison Toney, a woman that showed such promise early in her career here, is leaving as well.  The phenomenon warrants investigation.

~ Brendan George, President of Interfraternity Council

Allison’s departure marks a growing trend in the Assistant Director of Student Activities and Greek Life position of very low retention.  It’s currently suffering the Harry Potter “Defense Against the Darks” curse, because we can’t seem to keep them past a year.  I wonder if maybe this is an appropriate time figure out why this keeps happening, before we set out to hire a replacement.

One of the biggest criteria I will be looking for in a replacement will be the candidate’s willingness and commitment to a multi-year stay at Marietta.  I feel that if the Student Life wishes to continue helping Greek Life grow and develop, it needs to have a staff member that can bring continuity to the table.

~ Josh Maxwell, President of Student Senate

Travis also had the following to say about Toney

Marietta College is sad to see her leaving us. I believe Allison contributed much to the College, its students and the Office of Student Activities and Greek Life. I believe her passion is supporting students and helping them achieve their goals.

~ David Travis, Director of Student Activities and Greek Life

Student Speak Out to Let Students Get it All Out

Tired and frustrated with how things are at Marietta College?  Now’s your chance to have your voice heard and hear from the administrators themselves how your problem can be addressed.

Wednesday, November 18th at 7 PM in the McDonough Auditorium is your chance.  A panel of administrators will hear your problems and respond to them.  The heavy hitters will be there, including President Jean Scott, VP of Administration and Finance Dan Bryant, Director of Dining Services Walter Miller, Director of Career Center Hilles Hughes, Director of Residence Life Bruce Peterson, Director of Athletics Larry Hiser, Director of Physical Plant Fred Smith, Chief Information Officer Administrative Computing John Davis, Director of Student Financial Services Kevin Lamb, Provost and Dean of the College Dr. Rita Kipp, and Chief of Campus Police Dave Valkinburg.

Can’t make it?  No Problem.  Writing on the Mall will take your questions to the meeting and ask them for you!  Just leave a comment here on the blog with your question, or leave a comment on our Facebook page, or tweet at us @writeonthemall.  We’ll take all the questions we receive and report back with the answers.

Quick Hits: Parking, Lofts, and Air Conditioners

Air Conditioners

Just a reminder that if you are looking to have an air conditioner in your room, the deadline for approval is August 1st.  You can find the form here.  You need a letter from your physician proving that you have a valid excuse to need one, such as allergies, asthma, or many other medical problems.  Air conditioners must be between 6,000 and 8,000 BTU, and have an EEF rating of 8.5 or higher.  Your account will be charged $115 for the added expense of electricity for your room.

Trust me, if your dorm is not air conditioned, and you can get approval to have one, it is worth it.  While this summer may be relatively cool for the area, the Fall could prove to be quite warm.  Also, the Spring can sometimes warm up pretty quickly, so always good to have a cool place to go home to.

Lofting

Also, for those of you looking to build a loft in your room, there’s a form for that also.  You can find it here.  A plan of your loft’s construction must be approved by the Director of Residence Life, then be inspected by Physical Plant upon completion.  The form must be turned in, and then you’re good to go.

The big thing to remember with lofts is that the wood must be coated or dipped with a flame retardant, and that the loft has to be no more than 38 inches off the ceiling.  Full requirements are included in the provided link.

Parking

If you’re bringing a car to campus and are an upperclassmen, remember to use the Park Admin system to purchase your parking pass for the 09-10 school year.  The price is the same as always, at $45, and is good through the end of the Spring semester of 2010.

Freshmen have a lot of restrictions to fight through to get a parking pass now, and have already jumped through all the hoops to get one by now.  You can’t get a freshman parking pass through the Park Admin system, so contact CPS if you’re curious to see if you qualify and if there are any passes still available.