No matter where you go and what you do, you will likely have a leader of some sort — a president, an administrator, a teacher, a coach, etc.
While approaching one’s leaders may seem intimidating or daunting, we believe it's important for students to feel comfortable reaching out to their leaders when a problem, issue or question arises.
“It may be easy to be intimidated by leaders and administrators, especially those oftentimes up in front of students every day,” Provost Jewerl Maxwell said. “However, I believe all it takes for students is asking a leader’s opinion, schedule, thoughts, etc.”
At Taylor, we have an array of administrators, including Maxwell, who work hard to accommodate the needs of students.
It’s easy to complain about campus issues and concerns to our friends and family; however, if we don’t bring these up to administrators, change may not occur.
You may have seen the flyers posted by the Rev. Gregory Dyson, who is vice president for spiritual life & intercultural leadership and is Taylor University’s campus pastor. The posters say, “Let’s do tea,” inviting students to schedule a time to meet with him to ask questions and get to know him better.
Dyson’s willingness to speak with students displays his openness and desire to hear the thoughts and ideas of students.
Junior Sydnee Follett is a chapel coordinator who works closely with Dyson. She admires and appreciates his ability and desire to honor student values and opinions when planning chapel services.
“There's a lot of follow through with Greg when he's talking to students about their input or when students ask questions because he wants them to feel seen and heard,” Follett said. “He's very personal so that's important to him.”
While leaders like Dyson are very open to student input, students may find the act of approaching them to be a difficult or daunting task.
“Some advice I would give is for students to be bold in their approaching of leaders,” Maxwell said. “So many administrators and leaders want to converse with students, because students make Taylor what it is.”
Maxwell encourages students to politely and genuinely contact administrators and leaders, along with program assistants, with any questions or concerns they may have.
While many administrators have busy schedules, Maxwell trusts that they will make an effort to carve out time to speak with students.
“Our leaders and administration are some of the most open and willing people I have experienced in higher education, and I am sure they welcome student engagement and genuine conversation regarding lots of topics,” Maxwell said.
