UNIVERSITY IN SEARCH OF RESIDENCE LIFE DIRECTOR

The cast of characters continues to change in Southeast Missouri State University's student affairs division.

School officials thought they had found a new director of residence life and went so far as to put out a press release announcing the hiring several weeks ago.

But Robert J. Hetzel, who came to Southeast from a job as residence hall director for the University of Northern Colorado, spent only a couple of days on campus. He ended up turning down the job.

"I was extremely frustrated," said SueAnn Strom, Southeast's vice president of student affairs.

Strom said Monday that the search process will continue with the hope of hiring a permanent residence life director by January.

In the meantime, Rodger Chisman, who heads student financial services, is filling in as interim director of the residence hall system.

The university hasn't had a permanent director since Paul Carr resigned in February.

Denise Davidson left as associate director of residence life in August to take a position as assistant dean and director of residence life for Lycoming College, a small, private, liberal-arts school in Williamsport, Pa.

Also within the student affairs division, the school recently hired Loren John Rullman as director of the University Center, replacing Bob Beodeker, who resigned earlier this year.

The head of the university's campus assistance center, Linda Rabold, left a few weeks ago to take an administrative position with Missouri Southern University. To fill that void, the director of the school's health and counseling center, Judy St. John, was given the added duty of running the assistance center.

Davidson, who spent five years at Southeast, said Monday that there had been a lack of coordination of residence hall operations at the university. She said some student affairs employees, who had been on staff before university President Kala Stroup and the new administration took over, felt they were the target of criticism.

Under Stroup, the school unofficially relaxed its policy of requiring freshmen and sophomore students to live on campus. "We were told essentially not to heavily enforce it," said Davidson.

But within the past year, the university has gone back to more strict enforcement of the policy, Davidson said. "It it those kinds of inconsistencies that concerned a number of people, including myself," she said.

Davidson said her concerns weren't the only reason for her leaving. She said she also felt it was time to move on.

Strom, who had sought a vice presidency at Oakland University in Michigan earlier this year, said the public shouldn't be alarmed by the personnel moves. "I think rather than being alarmed, they should be excited by the changes they are seeing," Strom said.

Strom said the university hired a new food-services company to run the campus dining centers and made some repairs and improvements to campus residence halls this summer, and further improvements are planned. About 1,800 students live on campus.

"Overall, we are trying to better hear what students are saying and develop plans to address the concerns of deferred maintenance and, unfortunately, years of neglect."

Strom said change can be difficult for some employees. "Some people don't want to change."

Jason Crowell, Student Government president, said: "There has been a little concern about the massive turnover that there has been in residence life, but change is healthy, too. And I don't think the student body has suffered as a result of the turnover."