President Serna offered his first session of office hours for students on Thursday, Sept. 9, 2022.
“When I began my tenure here on July 1, I promised that the campus community (and I include myself in that category, of course) would embark on a honest and shared assessment of where Winthrop is currently and of our aspirations,” Serna said. “Who better to have those conversations with than students, who are essential to our work here?”
The office hours are strictly for Winthrop students as faculty and staff will have the opportunity to share their concerns and ideas during meetings, conferences and the website.
“Office hours have long been a way for college students to get face time with their professors and having the same opportunity with campus leadership simply makes sense,” Serna said. “I’ve felt that my past expectations of leadership are straight forward: authenticity, honesty, transparency, communication – and I believe students likely value those as well.”
These office hours are held on select dates throughout the semester during common time. Students are able to sign up for office hours on the Winthrop website and can “expect to have 15 minutes of one-on-one time in a relaxed environment,” Serna said.
“I believe the president’s decision to hold office hours will have a positive impact on student involvement and morale,” English graduate student Stephanie Martin said. “With my involvement with The Anthology and the writing center, I could see myself utilizing the president’s office hours in instances where I and my peers feel unheard as students.”
Before coming to the president’s office hours, Serna asks that students sign up in advance via the form on the Winthrop website. This allows the president to prepare and gather any information that the students may need.
“If I had to guess, I’d say students see a lot of change happening around campus and probably have questions about that and maybe they are curious about who I am as well as my thoughts on different topics,” Serna said.
If students are not able to meet with President Serna during office hours, they are able to connect with him through “Ask Me Anything About…” sessions in the Digs lobby. Each session will be focused on a specific theme and students are able to ask President Serna questions on these topics.
These sessions will be available on Sept. 15, Oct. 20 and Nov. 17 during common time.
“I’m just excited to meet students and really get to know this community in a new way,” Serna said. “I’d also add that outside of office hours, students should definitely feel free to say hello when they see me on campus, and Lauren as well, and to use the question and suggestion form on my website if face-to-face meeting or on zoom is not their preference.”
President Serna and his wife, Lauren, are excited to be involved and meet Winthrop students.
“I truly want to get to know as many students as possible!” Serna said. “I know my wife, Lauren, is excited to get involved on campus as well.”
