August 2021
LETTER FROM LYN
Dear Team,
The invention of a truly novel thing is rare. To create something no one else has been able to conceptualize, to consider a possibility no other human being has envisioned is such a singular occurrence that it inspires awe and even bafflement. But when novel ideas leap into headlines, they typically come with a back story--details about years of dedicated and often quiet research, usually involving fits and starts and aborted theories, as well as the contributions of numerous other thinkers along the way. 

Did you know, for example, that Charles Darwin was in a race to publish his The Origin of Species ahead of the work of the comparatively unknown scientist Alfred Wallace? And neither was developing his theory in isolation. Darwin’s publication did indeed provide a lens his contemporaries and successors could use to help make sense of new discoveries in the natural world, but he was not the only person thinking about the possibilities at the time. Great ideas are often the fruit of numerous tendrils of thought that have been slowly reaching out over time in pursuit of answers. That doesn’t diminish individual contributions or brilliance. Instead, it testifies to what human beings can accomplish, what they can conceptualize when many minds bend toward finding answers to common puzzles. 

We have a puzzle here at ISU. It’s not a Puzzle (capital P) like evolution, for example, or a Covid vaccine, climate change, or sustainable energy, but scale isn’t everything. Our puzzle is how to help a higher number of people attempting college at Idaho State stay and succeed. And for every one of those individuals attempting to gain a greater measure of self-determination by attaining a degree, solving this puzzle is--on a personal scale--hugely important. 

So we’re bending our minds toward this puzzle. This is happening on a number of fronts, but I’d like to highlight just one today: we are working to build a robust, comprehensively supportive experience for our first-year students. We are brainstorming the new, the novel, the “haven’t tried it this way before” ideas to transform our first-year students’ experience, but, in the meantime, we’re gathering all of those people who are united in making that happen and sharing what we know. Sari Byerly, the sponsor of our efforts in this regard, has gathered an advisory board with the idea of connecting the good things that are already in process around campus and identifying what is missing, what we need to be doing. This team is in pursuit of great ideas, and I can hardly wait to see what that collaboration produces in the coming year. 

Just because I think you should know just how many people or departments on campus are thinking hard about first-year student success, I’m going to share the membership of this board with you. Do you have a great idea about how we can help our first-year students succeed? Let us know. Your idea may be the piece we need in order to solve this puzzle.

Roar, Bengals--together!

Lyn

First Year Experience Advisory Board
Bobby Arteaga - Assistant Director, University Housing
Brooke Bolinger - Director, Office of New Student Orientation
Ches Barnes - Executive Director, Student Programs and Services, University Programs ISU Idaho Falls
Kirsti Beck - Administrative Assistant, Veteran Student Services Center 
Sari Byerly - Assistant Vice President, Student Affairs, Access and Outreach Programs
Craig Chatriand - Assistant Vice President, Student Affairs, and Dean of Students 
Dianna Cowell - Management Assistant, Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs
Val Davids - Assistant Coordinator, Student Leadership & Engagement Center
James DiSanza - Chair/Professor, Department of Communication, Media & Persuasion & ROAR 1199 Coordinator
Reinalyn Echon - Program Coordinator, TRIO Student Support Services & TRIO McNair Scholars Program
Amber Greening - Senior Career Advisor & Bengal STEP Coordinator
Cindy Hill - Interim Vice Provost, Academic Affairs
Lethaniel Loley - Coordinator, Native American Student Services
Annik Martin - Senior Lecturer, Department of Mathematics & Statistics
Osciel Salazar - Associate Director, College Assistance Migrant Program
Aaron Todd - Associate Director, Office of Academic Advising
Robert Watkins - Associate Professor, Department of English & Philosophy
CELEBRATING THE GOOD STUFF
"Leadership is not about being in charge, it's about taking care of those in our charge." - Simon Sinek, Apple News
August Feature Service of the Month: Pond Student Union
Pull up a chair and make yourself at home.
Many of you know a great deal about our Idaho State student unions because you have drawn upon our space, equipment, and staffing for your events. Students and staff who are not utilizing the facilities for events, often grab a meal, conduct business at the Lookout Credit Union, pick up papers at the Copy Center, or ship packages at the Mail Center. It feels like we are an open book—the doors are literally open at all hours of day, Monday-Sunday. And, as union staff, sometimes we assume that this means you know everything about what we do.
 
However, there is more to the Unions than the sum total of our spaces and services, and you may have already begun to pick up on that. For example, have you noticed the repetitive use of the word “unions”? Many people do not know that Union facilities include the atrium of the Rendezvous and the Bennion Student Union on the Idaho Falls Campus. While the Pocatello staff manage both the Pond Student Union and the Rendezvous atrium, the Idaho Falls campus has a staff that operates the Bennion, paralleling the services and opportunities for our Idaho Falls campus. Read More
Seeing students through the pandemic
Click the READ MORE link to learn about a new tool that enables ISU students living out of the state to access mental health services, how our Student Care & Assistance program and Career Center services helped connect students to emergency assistance and jobs even in the face of the 2020 Covid-19 challenges.
Making sure they know what you do
Student Affairs professionals help students succeed. It’s just that simple. Let’s keep our students and colleagues aware of how our services impact students’ lives. Tell your stories, share your opportunities, and showcase your services. Submit your content to our clickable forms at Student Affairs Communication Outlets, and we’ll get out the word.
EVENTS
Survivors of Suicide Loss Support Group - Updated Meeting Information
Losing a loved one to suicide can be a profoundly painful and isolating experience. The complexity of the emotions can feel overwhelming, and survivors often struggle to know who to talk to for fear others won't understand. Counseling and Testing Service offers a group for survivors of suicide loss to connect with others who have suffered the loss of a loved one to suicide. This group will meet from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. via Zoom on the dates below. This support group is open to students, staff and faculty.

Upcoming date: August 12. 
Student Affairs | isu.edu/studentaffairs