Administrative appointments target student support

April 23, 2008

<img src="/files/u16/Patel-Evans_Safalismall.jpg" alt="Safali Patel-Evans" hspace="5" vspace="5" width="110" height="150" align="right"><img src="/files/u16/Montoya_Georgeana_8618asmall.jpg" alt="Georgeana Montoya" hspace="5" vspace="5" width="110" height="150" align="right"><img src="/files/u16/Calleroz_Misty_01asmall.jpg" alt="Mistalene Calleroz White" hspace="5" vspace="5" width="110" height="150" align="right">Effective April 1, three University Student Initiative administrators have been appointed to new roles to bolster support for students.<separator></separator>The new roles are:<separator></separator>• Mistalene Calleroz White has been appointed dean of student affairs at ASU’s Tempe campus.<separator></separator>• Georgeana Montoya, who had served as interim dean since 2007, will oversee the ASU student experience as the new dean of student affairs at the Downtown Phoenix campus.<separator></separator>• Safali Patel-Evans has been named assistant vice president and chief of staff for University Student Initiatives.<separator></separator>All three administrators will report to James Rund, ASU’s vice president of University Student Initiatives.<separator></separator>As dean of student affairs at the Tempe campus, Calleroz White will ensure the university provides a welcoming, engaging experience for all students.<separator></separator>“Mistalene’s experience in guiding and engaging students will serve students well,” Rund says. “Her commitment to excellence and access will ensure that student success and engagement is central to students’ ASU experience.”<separator></separator>Since 2005, Calleroz White has served as assistant vice president for University Student Initiatives. She also has held positions in student affairs and served as a policy analyst for the Arizona Board of Regents.<separator></separator>“This is a great opportunity to work directly with students as we move forward as the New American University,” Calleroz White says. “All students should connect in a meaningful way with their university, both inside and outside of the classroom. I look forward to student affairs taking an integral role in that connection.”<separator></separator>Calleroz White received her master’s degree in higher education, in addition to her doctoral degree in educational leadership and policy studies, from ASU.<separator></separator>Montoya’s position as dean of student affairs at the Downtown Phoenix campus will involve helping students cultivate new traditions and enjoy the dynamic, urban student experience at the newest ASU campus.<separator></separator>“Georgie has been involved from the very beginning in the conceptualization and development of student services downtown,” Rund says.<separator></separator>“She is uniquely qualified to serve as the dean of students there, and will play an important role in developing programs and services that positively shape the student experience.”<separator></separator>“I look forward to new challenges and opportunities as we build upon a stimulating learning environment at the Downtown Phoenix campus,” Montoya says. “I will strive to ensure that our students have the most integrated experience possible through community engagement both downtown and across the university, creating a world-class ASU experience focused on excellence, access and impact.”<separator></separator>As the campus grows with the addition of Taylor Place, the new student housing facility in downtown Phoenix, Montoya will work to ensure that students have state-of-the art living and learning environments, resources and facilities available to them.<separator></separator>“We’re so embedded in our community, and we consider the entire downtown community as our campus,” Montoya says. “This enables us to be engaged and connected in a unique way with the downtown Phoenix area, and our students benefit from that.”<separator></separator>Montoya came to the new Downtown Phoenix campus as director for Student Affairs in 2006. She was appointed interim dean for student affairs this past August. In her position as dean, she is responsible for creating holistic student experiences, resulting in student success, learning and development.<separator></separator>Montoya began her career at ASU in 1993 and has worked in various roles within Intercollegiate Athletics and Residential Life. She earned her master’s degree in higher education and her doctoral degree in higher and adult education from ASU in 2001.<separator></separator>As assistant vice president and chief of staff, Patel-Evans will be responsible for advancing strategic priorities in USI.<separator></separator>“The university has ambitious goals to move forward, and we need the 900-plus staff in USI focused on the same objective: student success,” Rund says. “Safali’s past experience in the W. P. Carey School of Business and within student affairs will serve us well as we advance our agenda of developing and educating our rapidly growing student body.”<separator></separator>Before this appointment, Patel-Evans served as assistant to the vice president in University Student Initiatives. Evans began her career at ASU in 1995 and has worked in residential life, the Memorial Union, undergraduate admissions and the W. P. Carey School of Business. She earned her master’s degree in higher education from ASU.<separator></separator>“I look forward to moving the university forward as we further develop the student experience,” Patel-Evans says. “There has never been a more exciting time to be an ASU student.”