Senior Vice President Kawanna Leggett, Ed.D., of Student Affairs started LMU this past summer. Below is a conversation with SVP Leggett as she reflects on her first semester at LMU.
What is your favorite spot on LMU’s campus?
KL: The bluff looking out over Los Angeles is one of my favorite spots on campus. This spot provides an opportunity to have deep reflection and put things into perspective.
What is one of your favorite things about LMU so far?
KL: My favorite thing about LMU has been the sense of community. The students are awesome and when I see students walking around campus, they recognize me. I find everyone to be very welcoming, especially our students, and that has meant a lot to me. It’s helping me build relationships and really have a sense of pride in this community.
What is something people would be surprised to learn about you?
KL: Being an only child, I’m naturally an introvert. I get re-energized by being out and about, but I also enjoy my downtime.
You’ve been here a couple of months now, what’s one word you would use to describe the LMU community?
KL: The word I would use is inspiring. I think the pandemic has certainly been a challenging time for everyone in so many ways, especially for those in our community who have been on the front lines of managing the campus. I felt this at my previous positions as we were trying to build community through the pandemic and since coming to LMU, I have a renewed excitement for my work with students. It’s been a wonderful and positive experience so far, I really love LMU and the community here.
What do you want the campus to know about the Division of Student Affairs?
KL: The Division of Student Affairs is a dedicated team that is here to support students in both their best and worst moments. This team has a major impact on student success and retention and our ultimate goal is to know a student’s story and provide whatever support they need to succeed here at LMU.
How does the work of Student Affairs align with the university’s mission?
KL: I think various units and departments across Student Affairs speak to each of the pieces of the university mission. We have the Pam Rector Center for Service and Action that works hand in hand with helping students engage in the service of faith and promotion of justice. Each semester we enroll new students at the university in our Orientation 1000/2000 courses where we onboard students to the university, teaching them our Ignatian values and helping them to understand how faith plays a role in their journey on the bluff and after they graduate. Our residential community embodies what it means to educate the whole person from a student’s perspective living in a residence hall, engaging with our faculty who live in residence, and learning how they can relate to other students as they learn what it means to be a member of our community. These are just a few examples; I could go to every unit and see how it emphasizes each component of the mission.
What are your priorities for the next 2-3 years?
KL: My vision for Student Affairs is to become a national leader by setting high standards of student success and retention and transforming students through a dynamic integration of curricular and co-curricular experiences.
To accomplish that vision, some of my priorities include:
- Building a comprehensive student health and wellness model for all students that creates a unified approach that expands access to resources, opportunities, and services that prioritize student wellness and well-being;
- Renewing our residential student experience as a core component of an LMU experience through robust programs, processes, and support for all students equitably;
- Advancing our service and action model of community-engaged learning by deepening our partnership with Academic Affairs and Mission and Ministry;
- Strengthen partnerships, learning opportunities, support networks, resources and staffing dedicated to the success of historically marginalized and international students;
- Rallying our community around increasing student engagement at student performances and Athletics sporting events to inspire school spirit in LMU pride;
- And, overall, as a division we are in a heavy recruitment season, we’ve had a large focus on staffing and onboarding as we have some major staffing positions to fill to do this work.
What are new initiatives you’ve been working on?
KL: Some of the new initiatives our team has already been working on are:
- Expanding our mental health resources to include the introduction of TimelyCare, telehealth therapy for all students (undergraduate and graduate);
- Recruiting a new medical director who will create a unified approach to health and wellness for all students and oversee both Student Health Services and Student Psychological Services;
- And creating a new outdoor and adventure program under Campus Recreation that expands opportunities for students to get out and explore all that the L.A. area has to offer. This includes recruiting a new assistant director position to oversee the program.
How do you approach collaborating with students?
KL: My priority has been getting to know students and establishing relationships across the university. I want to know students by their names and stories. So, I’ve made it a priority to attend activities, events, and games to meet students and get to know them. This has also helped me find alignment and moments to better support the student body. I want to identify what students’ priorities are and what they are craving to have as part of the campus community, so we can identify what our shared priorities are.
How do you practice cura personalis?
KL: One of my biggest priorities is to have a healthy and thriving Student Affairs staff so they can better support our students. For me, it’s about being intentional in finding ways to create professional development opportunities, looking at job titles and equity in work across the division, and transparent communication through our:
- Monthly divisional meetings;
- Fall Convocation, which was held in September;
- Staff EXP committee, which creates intentional moments for our staff to connect over coffee or at The Loft on Fridays. They are making great strides in bringing our community back together and showcasing their work;
- Meetings with Management Team members and this month I’m expanding into meeting with individual departments during their staff meetings;
- Staff newsletter, to highlight our staff and their accomplishments;
- And our newest edition is the Student Affairs Pillar Awards, which we will present at the end of each academic year to Student Affairs staff who best exemplify the core pillars of our student experience.
How can the LMU community connect with you?
KL: One of the coolest things about this experience of being new at LMU is creating a digital presence that helps communicate what I’m doing and connect with the entire community, because I may not have the opportunity to meet with everyone individually on campus. I encourage you to connect and follow me:
- Twitter: @SVP_DrK
- Instagram: @DrKawannaLMU
Staff, faculty, and students can also sign-up to meet one-on-one with me during my bi-weekly Community Connections.
Do you have anything coming up in the next few months that you’re looking forward to?
KL: I’m launching my online radio show on Nov. 1, from 6-7 p.m. called “Our Music, Our Stories,” on our KLMU online radio station. This will be an opportunity to connect with staff, faculty, and students by celebrating each other through music.
I want to create a build-up to our campus sporting events and showcase our Lion Pride, so I’m working on ways to create some spirit rallies by partnering with Athletics to celebrate our sports teams and our community. You may also see me handing out Lion Pride cards to any students who are wearing gear from other universities, this is to help spread pride in our campus community and each card is redeemable for a Lion Pride T-shirt from my office.
I’m also really looking forward to welcoming back our Lion parents and families for Family Weekend on Feb. 16-19, during the spring semester.