Aaron Johnson – General Assignment Reporter
The Senior Leadership Team at Southern Connecticut State University is comprised of individuals whose only concern is making Southern a better university inside and outside of the classroom.
“The great part of working in a college environment is that it is so dynamic,” said Dr. Tracy Tyree. “Every year a group is coming in that is new, fresh, and exciting and a group is graduating, ready to take on the challenges of the world ahead of them.”
Tyree, the vice president for student affairs, is in her first year at Southern like many of her colleagues. Robert Stamp, vice president for institutional advancement said that although he is new, the energy and excitement that Southern displayed was very strong.
“I haven’t been here for a long time, so I don’t know what to compare it to, said Stamp. “But I can say that the energy when I first started on campus with the events, you could feel the energy. Not only with students but faculty and staff also.”
Pamela Lassiter, director of diversity and equity said she agrees with Stamp that although the tenure of the staff has been brief, the energy and excitement is evident.
“It’s interesting to have 50 percent of the leadership team all being less than two months old. The upside is however, that we bring a great deal of excitement and we’re longing for success,” said Lassiter.
The Senior Leadership Team works together as a group — in conjuncture with the University president Mary A. Papazian — to make progress at Southern. New additions to the group include: Tyree, Stamp, Lassiter, Chief Information Officer Pablo Molina, and Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences Steven Breese.
“Bob Stamp and I started the same day, so that’s about three weeks,” said Lassiter. “But Southern is a very interesting place. It is very dynamic, growing, a lot of school spirit, and student engagement and that’s what you like to see.”
The biggest challenge for many of the members of the Senior Leadership Team often comes from having so many possibilities and making sure that sustainable change is made, not instant fleeting change.
“The ways that we can impact students is so great. Students are always changing so our work is never done,” said Tyree.
The Senior Leadership Team works in different areas around campus, but they all agree that the goal is to create and maintain lasting change for the betterment of the entire university.
“Change doesn’t happen overnight, particularly sustainable change,” said Tyree. “Things that we are going to do to really impact the lives of students are incremental and they take time, building on success after success. The president is always telling me that it is a marathon, not a sprint and it is the truth.”
Although there are many challenges that come with the positions of the Senior Leadership Team, the rewards are almost endless.
“What we do is raise money,” said Stamp. “To be able to interact with people that want to make a difference at this university and be the person that wants to help [students] there.”
Tyree said that the reward for her is to try and recreate the kind of undergraduate college experience that she enjoyed both in the classroom and in a social way.
“The reason I chose this profession was because I had such an incredible undergraduate experience myself,” said Tyree. “It has always been my passion to create the best environment and experiences for other students.”
