In January, one of the most influential administrative positions became vacant when Dean Soncia Reagins-Lilly retired from her positions as both the vice president of student affairs and the dean of students. The vice president for student affairs liaises between student voices and administration by communicating student concerns and facilitating joint solutions.
Now that the position is vacant, the UT administration is currently undergoing a nationwide search to find someone to fill the role of the vice president of student affairs. Students should be involved in this search and directly express issues that need to be addressed. While an interim currently holds the position, it’s essential that UT students play a role in deciding who will be permanently chosen, given that the vice president of student affairs works specifically to help students.
UT should create a student committee to further facilitate student-body involvement in the decision.
Since Dean Reagins-Lilly’s appointment in 2016, student life has greatly changed. Issues like food insecurity and the worsening housing crisis have been acknowledged and are being addressed by administration. One of UT and Dean Reagins-Lilly’s most successful student programs is UT Outpost, a service that fights food insecurity by providing free food to UT students in need. While helpful, it’s still not enough to address the underlying issue: inaccessibility to affordable grocery stores.
“West Campus is really sectored into income brackets, and the farther back and down you go, you’ll notice a disproportionate marginalization of lower-income students,” said Dat Duong, public health junior and co-director of Student Government’s Food Security Agency. “That creates a big accessibility issue when it comes to food because there are no grocery stores.”
As a member of SG, Duong worked to help implement the pilot grocery shuttle that will take students in West Campus to nearby grocery stores. While this service is set to launch March 7, Duong considers it to be only a temporary fix to student inaccessibility — a problem that has affected 37.7% of UT students.
“The shuttle program, for now, is a step because there’s nothing like that so far,” Duong said.
By advising the candidates of specific solutions we want to see, students can ensure that the incoming administration will meet our needs and take steps to improve our campus.
Another prevalent issue voiced by students is the unaffordable and complicated housing market. While UT cannot control West Campus real estate, other ways exist, such as the Office of the Dean of Students’ Legal Services for Students can provide advice and housing transparency to its students.
Whether it’s partnering with housing organizations in Austin or providing more reliable transportation to farther out and more affordable housing, student consultation can better allow UT’s administration to be more present for its students during this crisis.
More than anything, students want to voice concerns directly to administration. The new vice president must be an available and open-minded resource for all students, not just the few executive and elected student representatives.
“Dean Lilly really revolutionized the way we handle Student Affairs at UT,” said Corinne Floyd, Plan II and advanced human development and family sciences senior who is president of UT’s Senate of College Councils. “Her passion has always been advocating for students and really building up and helping develop students into stronger leaders and individuals.”
Furthermore, UT’s graduate population is more than four times smaller than the undergraduate body. This position, however, affects the lives of all students, regardless of year in college.
“It is difficult for graduate students to find a sense of individualism,” said Dana Sheinhaus, president of the Graduate Student Assembly and Ph.D. student in pharmacology and toxicology. “Having somewhat of a graduate student center is something that the Graduate Student Assembly is currently exploring and would like to receive support on going forward.”
Given that the vice president of student affairs acts as a liaison between all student voices and administration, students could be disproportionately affected if that liaison places more of an emphasis on administrative allegiance than student needs.
“Our whole lives at UT are impacted by this decision,” said Alesandra Baca, an informatics senior and president of the Informatics Council. “Who better to hear it from than the students that are here right now?”
Despite numerous attempts, the University was unavailable for comment.
Whoever UT hires to fill the vice president of student affairs position will heavily impact student life. The University should create a student committee to address our voices and concerns now — not after they have already chosen someone who does not immediately confront the issues affecting us most.
Lack is a dance and Plan II sophomore from San Angelo, Texas.
