Jean Kim lived among students in the LLCs, held monthly dinners to help the student body connect with the administration, worked to implement enrollment initiatives, such as Enroll Idaho and UIdaho Bound, and a er two years serving as the University of Idaho vice provost of student a airs, her favorite part of living on the Palouse is still the students. Kim, who will not be returning to the university in the fall, said interacting with students and working with her colleagues are among the things she’ll miss.
“I generally enjoy our students here,” Kim said. “I nd our students to be very engaged, down-to-earth, caring, respectful and just really easy to (work) with.”
Kim rst assumed the role of UI vice provost in 2014. She accepted the position of vice president of student a airs at Pur- chase College, or SUNY Purchase, one of the 64 universities that compose the State University of New York (SUNY) network, in late spring.
“It’s a similar role and actually, that’s been my work for the last 30 odd years, managing and leading student affairs divisions,” Kim said.
Before UI, Kim worked at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, where she lived close to her family on the east coast. Now, she said she’s returning to her roots.
“My family is still on the east coast, my mom is in Rhode Island, my older daughter is in Manhattan, and my younger daugh- ter is in Boston,” Kim said. “I’m essentially going back and rejoining important people in my life.”
Kim said she wasn’t looking for a dif- ferent position, but she had been think- ing about moving closer to her family in the coming years. When she received a call from a search consultant about the opening at SUNY Purchase, she decided to seize the opportunity.
“I wanted to be closer to my family, so the timing was sort of miraculous,” Kim said. “I wasn’t looking, it happened sooner than I had anticipated, but I responded to an opportunity that presented itself and it’s an opportunity to assess the division out there and bring me closer to my family.”
Provost and Executive Vice President,
John Wiencek, said that while he’s sad to see Kim leave, he understands her reasons behind the move.
“I wish her well,” Wiencek said. “I think it’s a great t for her and it makes a lot of sense, the way she explained her rationale.”
When Kim rst assumed the position of vice provost in 2014 she had big shoes to ll. She was to assume half of the responsibilities of former Vice Provost of Student A airs and Dean of Students, Bruce Pitman, whose role was divided into two separate positions following his retirement from his 40-year- long career with UI.
“I was following a person, the former vice provost and dean of students, who had been here for something like 40-some odd years,” Kim said. “I thought it would be an interesting challenge and also, the university was looking to improve and enhance enrollment, which I was excited about.”
Despite the challenge of settling into a new university, Kim said she enjoyed working with students and colleagues to implement new enrollment initiatives. Shortly after, Kim also temporarily took over dean of students responsibilities following the resignation of Craig Chatriand in 2015.
“I felt like the folks in the dean of stu- dents area and the division of student a airs as a whole were really welcoming and excited about, you know, moving to a different stage of institutional growth,” Kim said. “Then, shortly after I got here, we lost the Dean of Students that was here, Craig Chatriand, then I did dean of students work and vice provost work, so it was an exciting time.”
Wiencek said he and the administration are grateful for the work that Kim put in during that time as well as the efforts she made to increase enrollment and connect with students while at the university.
“She’s added a lot of value to the team,” Wiencek said. “She did a lot of work in the rst six months she was here — we’re fortunate to have had her and we’re sorry to see her go.”
Wiencek said an interim vice provost will be announced within the next week. Weincek said a search for a new vice provost of student a airs will be conducted in the coming weeks, but the administration is considering hiring internally for a more permanent solution.
Corrin Bond
can be reached
at [email protected] or on Twitter @CorrBond