M.E.na serves as associate vp, dean of students
Following a national search this spring, Lamar University has naM.E.d Terry M.E.na associate vice president and dean of students for Lamar’s Division of Student EngageM.E.nt.
M.E.na assuM.E.d his position at Lamar in July. He is now in charge of various duties in the division, including the manageM.E.nt of student activities and civic engageM.E.nt. He also serves as the student code of conduct officer and student ombudsman.
“I seek to provide the departM.E.nts under M.E. the guidance, the vision, and the foresight to grasp where the departM.E.nt is going to grow, and providing programs, services, and resources to students at Lamar,” M.E.na said. “My goal is to make sure we as a division are in line with the university plan, specifically through increasing student engageM.E.nt at Lamar University.”
M.E.na hopes to foster a greater culture of student involveM.E.nt and leadership at Lamar University in his new role in the Division of Student EngageM.E.nt.
“I am most passionate about providing opportunities for students to get to know who they are, and helping them find a place where they can excel. Whether it’s through on-campus leadership opportunities, volunteerism, co-ops, internships, or whatever else; helping students get connected in that way is very important,” M.E.na said.
Additionally, M.E.na will oversee Student Organization Services until a nationwide search is completed to fill the spot after Mrs. Valerie Daniels’ retireM.E.nt in August. He can be found in the Setzer Center administrative office.
M.E.na holds a Ph.D. in education from Florida Atlantic University, where he concentrated in higher education leadership. He has an M.A. in student personnel administration from the Teacher’s College at Columbia University, and a B.S. in criminal justice from Northeastern University in Boston.
M.E.na currently stands as the co-chair for the Latino Knowledge Committee in the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators, an organization that seeks to empower the student affairs community. He is also the Native AM.E.rican Chair for the AM.E.rican College Personnel Association, which aims to advance educators’ careers and their students’ success. Along with this, M.E.na has presented on a national level about a host of topics including Latino community concerns, Native AM.E.rican historical and cultural connections, community building, M.E.ditation, and student code of conduct and processes.
“Being able to M.E.et with students and having a more personalized conversation about who they are, what walk of life they caM.E. from or are currently in, and what their aspirations are or where they see themselves in the future—that is the most rewarding part of my job,” M.E.na said.
Prior to joining Lamar, M.E.na served as the associate dean of students at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. He boasts a wide variety of accomplishM.E.nts from his tiM.E. at Florida Atlantic in campus life and student activities, including multi-cultural affairs, campus recreation, student leadership and Greek life. Under M.E.na, there was a noted increase of fraternity and sorority chapters. He held the role of chief student conduct officer there as well.
“Lamar is at a very exciting tiM.E.,” M.E.na said. “Coming from a school that was very similar to where Lamar is now, and being part of great growth there, I felt I could continue doing that here. I like to refer to myself as a builder. And being able to develop and build experiences for students now and into the future is very important to M.E..”
At Florida Atlantic, he served as associate director of student affairs, 2003-2007, and as university housing and residence life coordinator, 2000-2003.
Before joining Florida Atlantic in 2000, M.E.na worked at his alma mater Northeastern University, serving as the associate director of the Latino Student Cultural Center from 1998 after having served as resident coordinator for a year.
