Tim Blair

North Carolina State University

I want to start by saying that it is an honor to be a candidate for the President Elect position. SEAHO as an organization and the people of SEAHO have played a major role in my professional career. I would value the opportunity to give back as the President of this wonderful Association. I have served for the past 4 years as a member of the SEAHO Governing Council as the North Carolina State Representative and as the Educational Programs Chair. On a state level, I have served in multiple leadership roles in North Carolina Housing Officers, including President.

It is a very exciting time for SEAHO. We are nearing the end of our current strategic plan (2009-2014) and just now starting the cycle of updating the strategic plan. Using the information gathered from the upcoming membership survey, we will be assessing the current strategic initiatives and setting the stage to ensure that SEAHO is a valuable, dynamic, and fiscally solid organization as we move into the new decade. In this context, one of my goals would be to ensure that this strategic planning process is transparent. It is critical that the strategic initiatives that are developed be shared with the membership, whether that be through the SEAHO website or regular updates to the membership, so that everyone can contribute to our success.

A second goal is to continue to use technology to best serve the members of the organization. Under the Website Task Force (led by Ryan Rushing and Ryan Winget), we have made tremendous strides in developing a useful and user-friendly website. We need to continue to develop the site so that it continues to meet the needs of our members. I would like to focus on getting the SEAHO Report back on a regular publication cycle through the website in order to facilitate the sharing of information, providing a venue to update what is happening on individual campuses, and offer the opportunity for our members to submit articles and research for publication.

And finally, I want to continue to provide the opportunities for professional development, networking, and involvement. I realize that these ideals come directly from the mission of SEAHO, so it would be difficult for a leader of SEAHO not to include this as an outcome of their presidency. With this being the inaugural year under the regional hosting model, it is imperative for SEAHO to assess and design the conference experience to ensure that the ideals set forth in our mission statement continue to thrive.

Katrina Pawvluk and the other members of the planning committee have learned a great deal that has been passed along and incorporated by the team working with the 2014 conference in Louisville. As we work to select the next round of host sites, this type of learning and sharing will only lead to stronger and stronger conferences. But a conference is only as strong as the participants that attend. I would like to continue to engage CHOs to boost their participation in SEAHO. I would work to reach out to other institutions who have not attended or their engagement has lapsed in a concerted effort to bring them to SEAHO and ensure that we are truly representing the rich diversity of institutions that we have in the region. It is time to look at other ways to provide these opportunities beyond just the annual conference through the use of on-line discussions, on-line video presentations, and webinars.

SEAHO has been an important part of my 20-plus years as a Housing Professional. I have grown not only from the professional development offerings, but from the opportunities to work with a number of phenomenal Housing professionals who have made it a point to give back to the SEAHO organization. It is no wonder that SEAHO continues to be one of the strongest regions in ACUHO-I. I hope to be able to be part of the tradition that is tasked to take care of Two-Step and the Cromag.

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Tom Kane

Appalachian State University

It is with great enthusiasm that I announce my interest in the position of SEAHO President-Elect. For the past thirty-four years I have committed my time and energy to the housing field in order to create a profession we can all be proud of for its service to our residents. In our respective positions we all play a critical role in advancing our profession. We can and should share our knowledge across our region, the country and ultimately the world as we provide residential experiences that impact our students daily. Having served with SWACUHO, UMR-ACUHO, WACUHO, and ACUHO-I, I know what a significant impact SEAHO has on our profession. I would like the opportunity to lead this organization, which has played such and important role in my life.

I have been associated with SEAHO since 1987. I have attended seventeen SEAHO conferences where I have presented sessions, led discussions and served in many different roles. I have held leadership positions on the host committee three times, served as the Florida Rep on the Governing Council, served on and chaired the Program Committee and was instrumental in the creation of SEAHO Regional Entry Level Institute. In 2004 I was the recipient of the Charles W. Beene Memorial Award for my service to SEAHO. For the past three years I have been serving as the Vice Chair for the Regional Cabinet of the ACUHO-I Foundation working to connect SEAHO and ACUHO-I in a meaningful way.

If elected my focus would be:

1. To work with the Governing Council to continue the work with the Strategic Plan.

2. To evaluate the results of the Membership Survey with the Governing Council and to implement revisions and changes to better serve the membership.

3. To monitor the work of the various Chairs and committees and hold those in leadership roles accountable for serving the membership. I would strive to be collaborative and dependable in all that I did and I would appreciate your support.

Sincerely,

Tom Kane

Appalachian State University

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Richard Swearingen

University of Tennessee, Knoxville

I am honored to be nominated for the position of President Elect for SEAHO.  Beginning with my first SEAHO conference as a new professional in 2000, SEAHO has been the home base for my professional development.  Through involvement with SEAHO, I have been able to grow professionally and develop a network of contacts across the region, but more importantly I have been able to nurture real friendships with others across the Southeast that I would have missed out on without involvement.  That, to me, is the true value of SEAHO – the organization’s ability to connect us not only as professionals, but to also help us build lasting relationships through our shared experiences serving students.   I would be thrilled to continue to give back to this community of professionals and friends through service at the executive level.

I have worked in student housing at a number of institutions in the region including a small public liberal arts school, (Georgia College & State University, 1999-2001), large SEC schools (Louisiana State University, 2001-2004; University of Tennessee, Knoxville 2012 to present), and a mid-sized regional school (East Tennessee State University, 2004-1012).   My experience at such a wide range of institutions has helped me develop an appreciation for and an enjoyment of the deep complexity that goes into a well-run housing operation.  I’ve had the opportunity to work on both the developmental, residence life side of student housing as well as the operational, administrative side.  That balanced experience has helped me to fully understand both the transformational and the transactional roles that inform the work we do for our students and our campuses.

My involvement in SEAHO began with Paul Jahr at the start of my housing career when he encouraged me to not only do quality work at my own university, but to also get involved with my profession in some meaningful way.  In those early years, I followed Paul’s guidance by presenting through SEAHO and through my state organizations at every opportunity, and by participating in (which is a humble way to say winning) case study competitions at SEAHO conferences in 2000 and 2002.  I continued that development through participation in NHTI in 2004.  When I returned to my home state to work at ETSU, I was thrilled at the opportunity to get involved with the SEAHO Governing Council by serving as Tennessee’s State Representative from 2005-2008.

By far the most meaningful and rewarding professional service experience I’ve had was serving as Co-Chair for the 2012 SEAHO Conference in Chattanooga.  It was an opportunity for me to showcase my hometown, to engage with and help lead an amazing team of professionals from across the TACUHO region, and to really celebrate my love and appreciation for SEAHO through the I Heart SEAHO theme of the conference.  While exhausting, the experience of hosting a conference helped to cement my commitment to this organization and to confirm that I wanted to continue my involvement and leadership within SEAHO.

If selected for the President Elect position, I would be committed to the continuation and further development of the good work already laid out by previous leadership through the SEAHO Strategic Plan.  I would like to see the organization continue to strengthen its relationship with our corporate partners and to explore ways to continue to make our partnership with exhibitors and vendors a mutual benefit.  I am committed and passionate about expanding our outreach and support for graduate and new professionals within the organization and exploring ways to connect new talent and new ideas into the SEAHO leadership pipeline.  Finally, I’m encouraged by SEAHO’s continued growth and financial health over the past several years, and would like to explore ways to better engage the broad membership of SEAHO in the dialogue about funding and fiscal planning in order to demystify much of what goes on with the finances for the organization. 

More than anything else, I want to see SEAHO continue to be a community where professional relationships and genuine friendships are built.  I absolutely believe that this connectedness with each other is what makes our region such a fantastic place work, and is why SEAHO as an organization continues to thrive at leadership within the student housing profession.  Ultimately, it is these opportunities to connect where we are best able to improve upon the services we offer to our campuses and most importantly to our students.