New Dean’s Council

By Samantha Cavanagh

Staff Writer

The Dean’s Advisory Council is a new student body that is part of a “large student engagement initiative” led by Dean of Students Michael Berthel.

The council consists of seven undergraduate and graduate students who were recommended to Berthel by their success coaches and enrollment service counselors because they are involved in various aspects of student life on campus, such as athletics or Greek Life. Alyssa Curzio, JP Cruz, Gianni Niamani Theobbles, Kendall Purdy, Maxwell Cohen, Louis Copertino, and Michael Licata make up the council.

Berthel will look to the advisory council for feedback on how to better student life on campus. He meets with his advisory council once to twice a month, and they discuss a different topic at each meeting, including ideas for future plans on campus, what is currently working well for students, and what could be improved for students. The goal is to ensure that students have a positive experience on campus.

“I firmly believe that a dean of students should be constantly hearing directly from students, and through all of my initiatives this semester, I plan on doing just that,” Berthel said.

His advisory council will tie together the “Ask the Dean” events and his new “Lunch with the Dean” series. At both “Ask the Dean” and “Lunch with the Dean” Berthel said he will get feedback about different aspects of student life from different students. Once he gets this feedback, he will meet with his advisory council, and discuss how to incorporate that feedback to enhance life on campus for students.

Students can expect to see more of the “You Asked, We Listened” emails coming out this semester, Berthel said. “These emails are a direct result of feedback from my student engagement programs and the Deans Advisory Council. Relaunching the End Zone was a suggestion from the council and we have already made quick changes at their suggestion,” he said.

“I am loving these new programs, interacting with students is the best part of my job,” Berthel said.

Berthel hopes that students will continue to connect with him his through his Instagram page @DeanBerthel_LIU. “This is all about reaching students and I am going to keep at it until I reach everyone.”