2022 December

New Year, New Interim Assistant Dean for USI’s College of Liberal Arts

by Aubrey Swart '22

As the University of Southern Indiana transitions into the new year, the College of Liberal Arts also transitions in leadership as Dr. Trent Engbers, the current Interim Assistant Dean, steps down to take a sabbatical and Dr. Kristalyn Shefveland steps up to take on the role. Dr. Engbers will step down from his role as Interim Assistant Dean of the College of Liberal Arts at the conclusion of the Fall 2022 semester and begin his sabbatical at the end of December, starting his new year off in Israel. Dr. Shefveland has been selected to succeed Dr. Engbers in his role and she is set to begin at the start of the Spring 2023 semester.

“There are a number of things that I have really enjoyed about being a Dean for the College of Liberal Arts,” Dr. Engbers reflected. “The first thing I would say is that I am a part of a great team. I really enjoy the colleagues that I’ve had in the Dean’s Office… it’s just a good group of people to work with and that makes coming to work really rewarding.” Other aspects of the position he recalled enjoying, were having the opportunity to support faculty members in ways that set them up for success and being involved in important decisions with the goal of hopefully improving the lives of the university’s students and faculty.

To prepare for the transition, Dr. Shefveland and Dr. Engbers have been meeting frequently to go over the responsibilities of the Interim Assistant Dean. “She’s really well positioned to be successful,” Dr. Engbers shared. “She brings a lot into the role, and I think she was a good pick in terms of hopefully carrying forward some of the positive momentum that I bring to the job. If I had to give her advice, it would be to try to listen to people, be kind, work hard, don’t take yourself too seriously, and try to put the student first in every choice that you make.”

Ultimately, Dr. Shefveland is excited for the opportunity to serve the College of Liberal Arts and her colleagues as Interim Assistant Dean. “I believe that service is remarkably important to our profession and to that end I have been very active on college, university, and community committees throughout the region in my 12 years at USI,” Dr. Shefveland explained. “I have also served as an executive officer in the American Society for Ethnohistory for many years and very much look forward to bringing my experience to the Dean’s Office and learning more about how to help my colleagues and our college work towards a better future.”

Liberal Arts staff take the reins in record-breaking scholarship fundraiser

The Administrative Assistants & Associates (AA&A) organization held their annual online fundraising auction last month. Under the leadership of Julie Minnette, Senior Administrative Associate for the College of Liberal Arts and Co-President of the AA&A, items were collected, photographed, and listed online for the USI community to engage in friendly bidding wars to help raise money for two (2) student scholarships.

The online auction began in 2014 as the main fundraiser for the AA&A organization to continue to aid students in need. Past fundraisers have included the making and sales of apple butter, bake sales on campus, tiered sales fundraisers among members, and local restaurant give-back nights. The online auction is a much more efficient way for the organization to raise funds; this format has raised more than completing multiple fundraisers a year since it began. While the items and number of items change yearly, the AA&A auction is quickly becoming an event that people across campus look forward to in the fall.

Carol Blair, Senior Administrative Assistant for the Social Work department and newcomer to USI, was instrumental in securing several of the 45 items up for bid. She credits her involvement in the PTA and other charitable organizations for her success. “I have always had a passion for helping others, and when Julie [Minnette] told me that the proceeds from the auction would be used for a student that is having a financial hardship, I was in,” says Carol. “I know what it is like to face financial difficulties, so this was just a small way to help that would help a student in a big way.” The AA&A organization would like to thank all of those who donated items, collected donations, helped with pricing, and photographing items for the website, and to those who participated in the bidding. Julie Minnette said, “This was a fun experience for me. I was able to see how it all works and see the bidding first-hand! We hope to increase participation across campus with donations and donors in the years to come.”

This year the auction raised an all-time high of $1,607 which goes directly into the endowment fund to help provide 2-3 scholarships each year. Students can become eligible to receive this – and many other - scholarship by clicking on the AwardSpring icon through MyUSI to complete an application. Applications must be submitted by January 30, 2023, to be eligible for the 2023-2024 academic year.

Donors do not have to wait until next year to contribute to the AA&A Scholarship fund! Charitable gifts can be made to the USI Foundation for the USI Administrative Assistants & Associates Scholarship Endowment. Gifts can be made securely online at www.usi.edu/onlinegiving. Select “other” under Your Gift Designation and then type “Admin Asst./Assoc. Scholarship Endow.” in the Comments box.

The AA&A started in 1969 and is considered the oldest active organization on campus to date. One of the main purposes of the Administrative Assistants and Associates (AA&A) organization is to maintain a scholarship fund for eligible USI undergraduate students. For more information, please visit www.USI.edu/administrative-assistants-and-associates.