May, 2021 | Georgia Southern University - Student Affairs E-Newsletter
Student Affairs Connection
Message from the VP- Dr. Shay Little
Can you believe it? It is May 2021! As I reflect on the past year, I recall the days being long, but it sure has flown right by! At the beginning of the year during our welcome back sessions with each department, I shared with you one of my favorite movie quotes from Hope Floats. “Beginnings are usually scary, endings are usually sad, but it's what's in the middle that counts the most. So, when you find yourself at the beginning, just give hope a chance to float up, and it will."

I see hope floating all around our Georgia Southern community due to your thoughtful and engaging work this past year. You tackled the challenge of modified programming and engagement with new health and safety guidelines. You showed that we can champion an intentional, engaging student experience even when we are not in the same room physically. In August, I asked you to be fiscally responsible and think about how to streamline our programs given our continuous budget adjustments. You met this challenge. I also asked you to embrace the dissonance of different opinions, genuine dialogue, and student led demonstrations. You were present for open forums and student demonstrations. I reminded you of our call to live out the Students First focus to all that we do. You continued to champion the Students First mindset as you kept the whole student in mind in all your work.
 
I hope that as we watch our graduates cross the stage in the coming week that you can take a deep breath and exhale, feeling relaxed and a sense of accomplishment. You made this year a memorable one for our students while following our health and safety guidelines. 
 
I am also very appreciative of our student affairs family for what you have done to help one of our own, Dr. Melanie Miller. In just a few days, we raised more than $2,250 in funds to assist the family of Dr. Miller. Please keep her, and her family, in your thoughts and prayers as they navigate through these challenging times. Although we do not know when she will be back on campus, I know you are all keeping her in mind and are ready to help once we learn more about what we can do for Dr. Miller and her family.
 
Thank you for an amazing year! I appreciate all you do. I hope to see many of you at our Division of Student Affairs End-of-Year Celebration on May 18th from 1-3pm on the Armstrong Campus Waters Health Professions Academic Building Room 160.
(Don’t forget to RSVP:  SA End-of-Year Celebration RSVP Form)
New Faces
Please welcome to the Armstrong/Liberty TRIO Student Support Services Team, the new Administrative Assistant, Aireal Rountree-Rogers. Aireal received a Bachelor of Health Science from Armstrong State University and is currently pursuing her Master of Arts degree in Professional Communication and Leadership at Georgia Southern University. 
The Office of Student Activities is excited to welcome Student Services Coordinator, Coleman Bailey to the OSA team! Coleman will be working with registered student organizations, including the University Programming Board, and will work to provide new and exciting engagement opportunities to the Statesboro campus community!
Professional Development Workshop Series
Professionals Track (Grad students are welcome to attend if space is available)

  1. 5/19, 2:00 - 3:30 pm via Zoom: Finance Bootcamp with Meghan Newell from Northwestern Mutual (*all attendees will receive a free comprehensive financial report unique to their finances) (Register HERE)
  2. 5/27, 3:00 - 4:00 pm via Zoom: Mortgage Mastermind with Monty Felts from CrossCountry Mortgage (Register HERE) Click this LINK to learn about this session! 
  3. 6/9, 2:00 - 3:30 pm via Zoom: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion with Ryan Moguel from the Office of Multicultural Affairs (Register HERE)  

Other sessions are being scheduled for June and July, be on the lookout for the following sessions

  1. Roundtable with Associate Vice President Lisa Sweany on Programming for the Fall (Sign up to get notified about this session when scheduled HERE)   
  2. Fitness and Nutrition (Sign up to get notified about this session when scheduled HERE)
Office of Career & Professional Development
This survey captures information regarding how new Georgia Southern graduates fare in their careers within six months of graduation. The semesterly initiative provides clear, concise, and consistent data on the outcomes associated with a college education. Outcomes include:
  1. types of employment—full or part-time, contract, freelance, etc
  2. additional education, e.g., accepted to graduate or professional school
  3. still seeking either employment or further education
  4. starting salary for those employed full time. Please encourage graduating students to participate! 
City of Statesboro Summer Internship Program: Georgia Southern has partnered with the city of Statesboro to provide summer internships for undergraduate and graduate students. The internships will be an extension of the classroom, allowing students to apply the knowledge they’ve gained on marketing, public health, public administration, pre-health professions, accounting, finance, engineering or computing.
Familiar Face
Amy Taulbee is the Associate Director of Employer Relations and Experiential Learning at the Office of Career and Professional Development. Her role is to oversee the Employer Relations and Experiential Learning sides of the office and support her team members in things such as employer recruiting, career events, and much more!

Amy said her favorite thing about working in student affairs is the opportunity to help students, and make a difference in their lives. "Specifically seeing a student's hard work result in an opportunity to be rewarded with an experience or career and ultimately seeing them succeed and potentially open more doors for future Georgia Southern students," Amy said.

Outside of the office, Amy is a lifelong Georgia Bulldogs fan at heart, and loves watching any other sports her daughters play. Amy said despite her organization and planning methods in the office, she is actually a thrill seeker at heart, who loves fast cars, rollercoasters, motorcycles and real crime shows/podcasts.  
Success Spotlight
Dr. Urkovia Andrews has been selected as the recipient of the 2021 National Society for Experiential Education (NSEE) Outstanding Experiential Education Research award. This award recognizes published research in the past 2 years that makes important contributions to our understanding of experiential education. Congratulations Dr. Andrews!
Student Wellness & Health Promotion
Wellness Ambassador Recruitment
  • Become a Nationally-Certified Peer Educator
  • Develop leadership skills for effective collaboration, communication, and compromise 
  • Make a positive difference in your own life and the lives of others
  • Build your resume
  • Create original campaigns
Georgia Southern is gearing up to welcome students back to campus and need your help to help welcome them back to campus. University Housing is recruiting Operation Move-In Volunteers for both the Armstrong and Statesboro campuses on August 6 and 7. You can learn more and sign up online at: https://auxiliary.georgiasouthern.edu/housing/operation-move-in-information/volunteer-for-omi/
Have colleague you think deserves recognition for what they are doing in and outside the workplace?

Nominate them here and have their actions shared with the rest of the staff!
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