Student Life seeks replacement for Harrigan

Although three important leaders have announced their exits from Student Affairs over the… Although three important leaders have announced their exits from Student Affairs over the course of the last week, Jack Daniel says he is done making major changes to the department.

“I won’t be making any more fundamental structural, personnel or policy changes,” the vice provost of undergraduate studies and dean of students said, repeating the message several times throughout an interview yesterday morning.

One day after Associate Dean of Student Affairs and Director of Student Life Birney Harrigan announced that she will leave Pitt at the end of October, Daniel said he had already begun speaking with all the “major people” in Student Life about their priorities in finding her replacement.

Both Harrigan and Daniel came to Student Affairs with academic backgrounds, but Daniel said Harrigan’s replacement would probably be “more of an experienced person, experienced in student affairs, as opposed to an academic,” who understands theory but lacks experience.

“What you’ve got to do is not just get a professional who’s a good administrator; you’ve got to get a professional who understands students,” Daniel said, adding that both he and Harrigan value an understanding of “student development theory.”

“I’m not going to rush into [finding a replacement], but at the same time, I’m not going to have status-quo delay,” he said. Student leaders will likely be involved in the application process, possibly meeting candidates and consulting with Daniel, he said.

“We will not lose momentum,” Daniel added, saying that he would wager his “professional reputation that there will be no slowdown.”

Once Harrigan has left, Daniel will have some Student Life leaders report directly to him; Terry Lucas, the general manager of The Pitt News, is one of those people, Daniel added.

Even with leaders reporting directly to him, however, Daniel has no intention of micromanaging, he said.

Not only does Daniel have no intentions to make changes, he said, but he also emphasized that “there are people who are absolutely essential to Student Life.” Daniel cited as examples of such people Greek adviser Chris Meaner, Student Life adviser Sara Dadlani, Student Government Board and Telefact adviser Joyce Giangarlo, Student Volunteer Outreach adviser Terry Milani, Pitt Program Council adviser Tom Misuraca, William Pitt Union manager Chris Chergi and Lucas.

“If you asked me to list some of the people who I feel are essential to Student Life, they would be some of those people,” Daniel said.

Explaining that he doesn’t believe it is his role to make major changes in Student Affairs at this point, Daniel said he now must focus on “stability and enhancement.”

The only area in which he foresees possible changes, he said, would involve continued work in distributing the recently increased student activities fee.

Daniel indicated that he hopes to maintain the staff structure within his office.

“I’m trying to make the whole of Student Affairs such a positive enterprise that they want to stay here,” he said, adding that when people are as qualified as those in Student Affairs, they receive many other job offers.

“Over half of them have already gone on to what they perceive to be better professional opportunities,” Daniel said, citing Maria Cedeno, Michele Scott Taylor and Harrigan as examples of successful employees who have or will move on from Student Affairs.

Daniel added that Harrigan could “easily become the vice provost of academic affairs and dean of students anywhere,” if she chose to pursue such a position.