In his newly appointed position as director of student programs, R. Darrell Peterson said he is looking to lead his department in creating more student leadership positions on campus and in being an advocate for students against policies that may hinder their programming and events.
"We want to take a broad approach toward leadership," Peterson said. "Sometimes the scope can be limited to what's going on with student organizations, but our view will be much broader. We want to examine what leadership means, for all students are leaders in some way."
Peterson said that sometimes it was necessary for student programming to serve as an advocate for student opportunities. "The University works in a certain way and policies are established, and I see a big part of our role is advocating for the impact that will have on students and student groups," he said. "There may be a policy that's written in good spirits, but it might provide a hindrance or roadblock for a group to do an event or activity."
Most recently the director of student programming at the University of California-Davis, Peterson brings years of experience to his position. Before his time in California, he received his PhD at Iowa State and worked at the University of Nebraska at Omaha in multicultural programming and student activities. "That was a big step for me," Peterson said. "I had never been to the Midwest, never been on an airplane, never left the East coast - so that was huge."
Peterson feels that from what he's observed of the student mentality at BC, the creation of more leadership opportunities would come as a welcome addition. "I've found that the students here are very involved and very engaged," he said. "But we need to create more opportunities to fine tune those skills and provide more experience for students before they leave BC."
Peterson said he foresees a series of workshops, retreats, and conferences to be helpful in fostering his vision of increased leadership development and training.
He said that constant feedback from students as to what they needed or thought would be effective was necessary.
Peterson said one of the biggest challenges facing the SPO right now is establishing its identity as an individual department since its split with the Office of the Dean for Student Development. "Part of my position is promoting the department as its own stand alone entity," he said. "I want to spread the word about the department. I'm starting to examine everything we do to make sure we're meeting the needs of students and managing our resources as effectively as possible.
Budgeting, Peterson said, has been a critical topic in his assessment of the SPO's current functioning. "The budget is always an issue," he said. "If you just look at what's going on nationally, we need to make sure money is being spent in an efficient way so we can continue to provide services and support for students."
Because of the nature of most of his goals, Peterson said that visibility is vital. "I think visibility is important not only in the office but on campus, as well," he said. "I want to engage students in meetings or just in passing about what they're doing."
Just five days into his new position, Peterson has already met with several students to gain a sense of what is happening on campus and what students' needs are in regards to their organizations. Through these conversations, Peterson has already noted a few areas upon which SPO could stand to improve upon. "Some of the things I've heard are that students need better access to information and what's going on on campus," Peterson said. "Also, just more support for what they're doing and being an advocate for their needs."
In addition to visiting club meetings and talking with students in passing, Peterson said that the formation of a committee of student leaders would help him to stay closely in touch with what students were thinking. "I want to build a network of students who can provide some feedback for us and ideas as we go forward in establishing ourselves as a standalone department."
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