The contract of Pamela Mirabelli, current fraternity and sorority affairs coordinator, is set to expire June 30. Mirabelli, who was brought on as a one-year replacement for former fraternity and sorority affairs coordinator John Stout, will not have her contract with the College renewed.
Leaders of the Greek community, including Daniel Gaughan, president of the Inter-Greek Council (IGC), and Meghan Bermudez, president of the Panhellenic Association, said they have been overlooked and left out of the search for Mirabelli's replacement thus far.
"I do not feel the College has been sensitive to the needs of the Greek community in finding Mirabelli's replacement," Bermudez said. "At this time, two weeks before the end of the semester, the Greek community has been presented with no possible candidates for the position."
According to Tim Asher, associate director of the Office of Student Activities, the decision has been made to revert to the original qualifications for the position, including "a master's degree in college student personnel administration, higher education administration or a related field and a minimum of one to two years post-master's degree professional experience." Asher added that "previous experience advising Greek chapters and a commitment to diversity goes without saying."
Asher said the vacant position will be publicized through a few online higher education job Web sites beginning the week of April 30. From there, a pool of five to 10 candidates will be identified, then narrowed down to three to four through phone interviews. After a reference check, these candidates will be meeting with what Asher referred to as a "selection committee," comprised of "students, faculty/staff chapter advisors, other faculty and/or staff the position most closely interacts with, staff from the Office of Human Resources (and) the Vice President of Student Life" in addition to Asher himself. Asher said he will make the final decision based on input from the aforementioned parties.
He said he had been in communication with Gaughan regarding the search for Mirabelli's replacement. "I have already spoken to (Gaughan) and informed him that I would like him or his designee to serve on the committee," Asher said. "I hope to identify a second student and the remainder of the selection committee soon."
Gaughan, however, said any communication with the Office of Student Activities has occurred from his own initiative. "The administration has not sought our input at all during the process," Gaughan said. "I have had to initiate all conversation on the topic to try and figure out what direction the administration was taking."
"The Panhellenic Council has not been incorporated at all in the search for a replacement for this position," Bermudez said.
Asher emphasized his "great respect" for the College's Greek community in an e-mail interview. "(They) are among the most identifiable and spirited group of students at (the College)," Asher said. "This search is very important to me." Asher added that he is "excited to be able to provide some of our Greek student members the opportunity to participate in the selection process for the position."
Gaughan and Bermudez rated Mirabelli's performance as the fraternity and sorority affairs coordinator as "very good" and "excellent," respectively. In an April 11 article in The Signal, Gaughan responded to a letter that was sent through IGC advocating keeping Mirabelli in her position. Gaughan said 24 out of 27 chapters had signed the letter.
"Reasons given for not signing were lack of experience, too close of ties to this Greek community and showing favoritism towards certain chapters," Gaughan said.
Bermudez acknowledged these ties, saying they "could not be classified as anything other than close." She added that "while one could argue these facts hinder her ability to do her job as the Greek advisor, it could also be argued that they are an asset."
"Mirabelli understands what it means to be Greek on this campus, which I can see only as a positive," Bermudez said.
"I would like to see the most qualified and knowledgeable person hold this position on our campus," Bermudez said. "However, if this is not possible, I would like to see Mirabelli remain in this position."
