Faces of Southeast Missouri: Pam Vargas

Pam Vargas has been a rule follower ever since she was a little girl. Growing up in South Bend, Ind., she says she feared both God and her parents, which kept her out of trouble, for the most part.

But if there was a way to work within a rule, she figured it out. Like the time her parents told her not to roller skate up the bumpy driveway, so she cleverly roller skated down the driveway, instead. Unfortunately, this action still resulted in a broken arm.

Today, as director of the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs at Southeast Missouri State University, following rules serves her well. In fact, compliance is a large part of her day job, and helping people find a way to accomplish their goals without getting into trouble is her specialty.

When faculty and staff need to secure funding for service, educational or scholarship projects, Vargas helps them submit the proposal or application. Once they have been granted money toward their projects, she makes sure the recipients use the money in the way it was intended.

“There’s no such thing as free money,” Vargas says. “There are strings attached, so you have to follow the rules. At best, you may not be reimbursed. At worst, you may be in trouble. I help people stay out of jail.”

Vargas has been successful at helping people follow the rules for more than 30 years. After graduating from Notre Dame University with her Master’s degree in business administration, she married Dr. Carlos Vargas. Together, they lived in Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania before landing in Cape Girardeau when her husband accepted the position as the president of Southeast Missouri State University in 2015.

“Southeast Missouri felt like coming home,” Vargas says. “The people and students are great. It’s Midwest with a touch of Southern hospitality.”

As first lady of the university, Vargas enjoys attending sporting events and productions at the River Campus, as well as taking tours with the Alumni Association. But her favorite part of campus life is getting to know people in different settings and making strong connections with them. Plus, as part of the presidency, she gets to live on campus, an experience she didn’t have during her own educational years.

“I worked two jobs while going to school and lived at home. I wish I would have gotten more involved in campus life,” says Vargas, who encourages students to find a club, activity, or way to participate, have fun and flourish in college. “I wouldn’t be where I am without getting an education. It was a life-changing experience for me.”

Sharing her story is one of the ways Vargas inspires change on campus, both through her work at the university and in her role as first lady. As an extroverted introvert, Vargas likes being around people, but is also OK being in the background. In her downtime, she likes to craft and be creative. She says doing something with her hands has been a good way to unwind.

And through dabbling in knitting, crocheting, drawing, painting and jewelry making, Vargas has found that when it comes to crafts, the rules don’t apply.