Establishing a flourishing student life program at a university is one of the most important aspects in ensuring students succeed and stay interested in pursuing their studies and extracurriculars. The job of the Student Life Director is a major behind-the-scenes element of a successful and engaged student body within a university. 

At Colorado Mesa University, (CMU) the job had been held by Shanae Mundee for years. In early March, Mundee made a transition from the Director of Student Life to a position as CMU’s Assistant Athletic Director, a move that left the Student Life Office in need of a new director. Vice President of Student Services Jody Diers is in charge of the resulting transition, and spoke on their rapid response to fill Mundee’s position.

“This was an immediate move. I know that April and May are really busy in Student Life, [and] I can’t be over there to help all the time, so I needed an interim [director],” Diers said. “I called a couple of people who have done it in the past and they were too busy, so I called one last person and he said yes. His name is Trey Downey–he is [the new] interim director of Student Life.”

Aside from seeing Student Life through the remaining weeks of the school year, Downey currently works at Central High School as the coordinator for its student government and STEM programs. 

“He comes [to CMU] after he’s done with his responsibilities [at Central High School],” Diers said. “He puts in at least three to four hours a day here, so he is putting in long hours.” 

In preparation for Downey’s interim contract ending with the Spring 2023 semester, the hiring process for the new director is already underway.  

Diers said the school is, “Looking for somebody with administrative skills, we want a strong leader, we want someone who students will feel comfortable to approach, we want someone with bounding energy, someone relatable, and an out-of-the-box thinker who gets things done […] The biggest thing a Student Life director can do, is get students engaged.”

Diers explained how critical these qualities are, as studies have shown that an active student life program for students to take advantage of leads to higher graduation rates. This is an aspect of the school CMU seeks to improve, with a current graduation rate of 34.3%. 

The hiring process for the new Director of Student Life has already narrowed their decision down to officially hiring Downey, or another candidate, Deborah Brackley. CMU students and faculty were invited to attend and provide their feedback on presentations by the two candidates on April 26 and 28. After each candidate’s 20-minute presentation, there were 15 minutes set aside for a Q&A.

In their presentations, candidates were instructed to answer the question, “In what three ways do you, the candidate, plan on increasing student engagement with an overall goal of retention? What metrics will you use to measure success?”

In the future, candidates will additionally undergo multiple interviews with a hiring committee and CMU’s Associated Student Government. As of this publication, The Criterion was unable to obtain an exact timeline of when the new Director of Student Life will be selected and announced.