HOUGHTON - Michigan Technological University is realigning programs and support services in its Educational Opportunities department in a move administrators said will bring Tech's diversity initiatives more front and center and reaffirms the university's commitment to diversity.
"We are taking programs where a solid foundation has been laid and basically ramping up our support and really creating a new level of awareness and really reaffirming our commitment to all the students that we serve," said Les Cook, vice president for student affairs.
Through the changes, Tech will create a new outreach and multicultural affairs center that will provide services for all students including ethnic minorities, women and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students, according to a press release from the university.
Some programs in Michigan Tech's Department of Educational Opportunity will be incorporated into the new center, which will report to Student Life, part of the Division of Student Affairs. Shalini Suryanarayana, who has headed Educational Opportunity, will be the new center's director.
Other current Educational Opportunity programs will move to different sections of Student Affairs or other University departments. Summer Youth and other K-12 outreach programs will become part of Enrollment Services. Teacher training and conference services will become part of the Department of Cognitive and Learning Sciences in the College of Sciences and Arts. ExSEL (Excelling in Science and Engineering Learning) will operate under the COMPASS program (Center for Orientation, Mentoring, Parents and Academic Student Success) as part of Student Life.
"Realigning academic support services under Student Life and student recruitment efforts under Enrollment Services makes good sense," Cook said. "The new structure will enable us to expand our diversity efforts, to align similar functions and to create new synergies without duplicating efforts. It promises exciting new opportunities for supporting our multicultural students and ensuring their success."
Michigan Tech President Glenn Mroz said the move is congruent with Tech's Diversity Framework, a plan that describes the actions that must be taken over the coming years to achieve diversity.
"It is critical that we promote the simple notion that we and our students are best served by a climate that celebrates the diversity of people and thought," he said. "It's critical for individuals, our university and our country. The time is now to meld many of the core activities of educational opportunity into student affairs, so that we can focus our resources - talent and money - on building a student population that reflects the diversity of our country and the world."
In conjunction with the restructuring, Cook announced several other appointments and staffing changes. Theresa Jacques, who has been serving as interim registrar, will become registrar. Senior Associate Director of Financial Aid Bill Roberts will become director of financial aid and Director of Financial Aid Tim Malette will become budget analyst for student affairs and senior accounts manager for financial aid.
Susan Liebau will remain director of ExSEL and will become associate director of COMPASS. Kerri Sleeman will continue as director of COMPASS and assume additional responsibilities as associate director of housing facilities. Associate Director of Student Activities Jared Johnson will become director of student activities, a position he has been acting as over the past months.
Cook said some "behind the scenes" departments in the administration building will move to the former UPPCO building.
"Those will move and then student service departments will be moving into the administration building," he said, noting the building will keep its administration offices, but also be "a one-stop shop for students services."
Layla Aslani can be reached at laslani@ mininggazette.com.
