Institute names Stein new dean

John Stein, interim Dean of Students and director of Success Programs, has been named Dean of Students. Stein was named interim dean in February and took over in March when Dean Gail DiSabitino left for Clemson. The initial search to find a new dean did not yield anyone. During the summer, Stein put his name in the hat as a candidate for the position. When the search was restarted in the fall, it was an internal search instead of a national search. From that internal search, Stein was named as the only finalist.

"The whole process, starting with taking over as interim dean in March, has been a real learning process. It allowed me to learn the historical significance of the Dean's position," Stein said.

The Dean of Students was started 85 years ago, and in that time only four deans have held the position.

"The process has given me a better understanding of what the Dean's position entails here at Tech. It allowed me to work with the staff and get to know their strengths and talents and to see how I work with the team. That is rare to be able to do that. Normally you inherit a staff and you have no idea the strengths of the people or how you will get along with them," Stein said.

After Stein was named as a finalist, he met with 17 different groups on campus, from student leaders to faculty to administrators.

"Having 17 interviews allowed me to understand what expectations are out there about the office and the Dean himself. It was a very good time to assess and learn and think about the possibility of being Dean. What I found is that I got more and more excited about being Dean and the process went along," Stein said.

Now that Stein has been named Dean of Students, he is ready to move forward in his role.

"From here it's a matter of networking out to groups of students and individual students. At Sarah Lawrence, I started a program called Freshman 15, where every year I invited 15 freshmen to come in and meet with me at the beginning of the year. The program allowed me to interact with normal students. The dean usually interacts with student leaders and students with crises, but there are a lot of students that fall in the middle who have needs, as well. The program allowed me to get to know those students and get their feedback. I am looking to start something similar here, so students should not be surprised if they get an email from me," Stein said.

According to Stein, he will still be learning things as he moves forward in his role.

"Just because I have been here for four years does not mean that I know everything that is going on. Internal to the Dean's office, I will be looking at the structure of the office to see if it meets students needs or should be tweaked," Stein said.

Stein has long-term goals, as well. "To find my long-term goals, I started by looking back at the other deans. The previous deans over time realized there was a group of students whose needs were not being met. Dean Fields did a lot for the Greeks. Dean Griffin created the emergency fund program where if students were low on money, they could request an emergency loan. Dean Dull put a plan into place for the integration of Tech in the 1960s. Dean DiSabitino focused on the needs of women at Tech. Right now, I do not have a population in front of me, but I am sure over time I will see areas where needs aren't being met. When that happens, I will work to meet those needs," Stein said.

According to Stein, a main thing is to look for new ways to help students.

"It is hard to predict what is over the horizon five years from now. We need to be open about new technologies or services that could help meet the needs of students and not only rely on old methods," Stein said.

When his time at Tech is all said and done, Stein hopes to have made an impact in a specific area of campus.

"I would like my legacy to be building a bridge between the academic side of life with that of student affairs. It means working very closely with faculty and collaborating for the sake of students. The more we can talk to them, the better we can help the students. I also want to continue to build on the overall quality of the experience here at Tech," Stein said.

Stein wants to make students aware of the services that students can receive by going to the Dean of Students office. "In terms of the office, this is a place where students can come and talk about their experiences, good and bad. If there is a crisis, they can come here to find a support group for them. I see the dean's office as a clearing house. We don't always know everything, but we know everyone on campus and can find someone who can help the students. When in doubt, start with the dean's office," Stein said.

According to Stein, he enjoys talking with the students, which is the main reason he took the job.

"My hope is that over time students will find ways to introduce themselves to me. I like to have students come in and talk. They don't need to have a problem. I am very interested in learning from them and hearing from them. In the early days, the primary goal was the students. It does not just happen like that anymore because of so many other commitments, but you have to make it happen. The dean's office is here for all of the students," Stein said.

Several students said they were interested in learning more about Stein and his new position.

"I don't know much about him or the position, but I'd be interested in finding out," said Neerav Patel, a first year Mechanical Engineering student.

"I don't know much about him but I do know that the dean of students is responsible for helping students out," said Mark DeJesus, a fourth year Computer Science major.