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SOUTHEAST ALUMNA AND PHILANTHROPIST HAS BEEN SERVING AS VICE PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF REGENTS SINCE FEB. 20

 10 ARROW • week of April 3 - 9, 2013

BOARD of Regents has new vice presidentRETURN

ALUMNI DAY FEATURES FIVE ALUMNIThe Department of Mass Media hosted Alumni Day to educate soon-to-be graduates on the job market. Read the story at southeastArrow.com.+

Kendra Neely-Martin appointed as vice president of Board of RegentsANDREA GILS COPY EDITOR

Kendra Neely-Martin, a philanthropist and alumna of Southeast Missouri State University, has served as vice presi-dent of Southeast’s Board of Regents since Feb. 20.

She was appointed to the board in November 2011 by Mis-souri Gov. Jay Nixon. The members of the board volunteer their time to make sure the university is as healthy and vital as possible, according to Neely-Martin.

It has the power and authority to change and enforce rules and regulations pertaining student conduct and suspend or expel students for disobedience to the rules. It can appoint and dismiss all officers and teachers and make other decisions pertaining to Southeast’s management.

The Board of Regents carries out an evaluation every two years, where they assess needs and leadership roles. The vice president position is a two-year commitment.

Neely-Martin said her responsibilities and commitment to the university as a vice president remain the same as her for-mer position as a board member. She said that as a regent, she still has to make sure that Southeast is successful, that Dr. Ken-neth W. Dobbins, president of the university, is successful and that the school is functioning well. As a vice president, Neely-Martin has to be available if board president Doyle Privett is unavailable and also provide support to Dobbins as needed.

“I’m very excited to have the opportunity,” Neely-Mar-tin said. “I’m confident in my leadership and in the skills and resources that I bring to fill in the regent’s role.”

Neely-Martin said her objective as vice president of the Board of Regents is to move Southeast forward to stay ahead of the curve in relation to the education in the state of Missouri.

“We want to continue to be the school of first choice. … We want to make sure that the academic programs that we offer are solid and that the students are successful,” Neely-Martin said.

As a board member, Neely-Martin said she has had some tremendous opportunities to make decisions about the future of the university, including housing and expansions,

capital assessment, revitalization of the campus and adding amenities.

Thinking ahead, Neely-Martin said she would be hono-red to become the president of the Board of Regents but said it will depend on the reappointment of Doyle. If that presidency position becomes open, elections for that office and the vice president position would take place.

“I would be honored to have the opportunity to submit my name for the advancement as president. I think that it’s a tre-mendous honor to have the opportunity to represent a school like Southeast and to have your input valued by the univer-sity,” Neely-Martin said. “That role is a very critical role in rela-tion to the supporting of the president and ensuring that the university is functioning at the highest level, so it would be a tremendous honor but not a guaranteed honor.”

Neely-Martin said that the board members would have conversations to decide on who would lead the board best, given the need of the university.

There have been many changes since Neely-Martin obtai-ned her bachelor of science in business administration at Southeast in 1994, she said. She mentioned changes in space and technology, the reputation of the Harrison College of Business, which has grown, and the campus itself.

“It’s not the same Southeast when it comes to structure when I attended, but the same beautiful experience is still here,” Neely-Martin said.

She also said that she is proud of the student organizations

that build leadership skills and that she was happy to see they were still intact, such as Student Government Association.

Neely-Martin has served on multiple committees cente-red in diversity and educational experiences in Campus Life and SGA, and in Delta Sigma Theta, a sorority she has been a member of for 22 years.

She also referred to Southeast’s growth in terms of diversity and international student population as “amazing.”

“Being an alum and being away from Southeast for seve-ral years I just have an increased appreciation for higher edu-cation,” Neely-Martin said. “Overall, when it comes to higher education, the more stable you are, the higher the quality of education the students receive, and more importantly, there is an increased opportunity for graduates.”

Besides devoting time to Southeast’s Board of Regents, Neely-Martin said she spends countless hours with members of the St. Louis community.

”In order to make a difference we have to make sure we reach as far and wide as we can as individuals to impact lives and change the process, and especially for the underserved and disenfranchised, that we create a voice,” Neely-Martin said.

Neely-Martin is the chair of the educational development for the St. Louis Metropolitan Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta and works as a pharmaceutical sales specialist for AstraZeneca. She oversees the Delta Academy, a national pro-gram created to provide health and wellness training as well as instill the values necessary to build a solid community, astra-zeneca-us.com stated in a press release.

Neely-Martin’s contributions were recognized with the Jefferson Award for Public Service, a national award that recognizes community service, which she received in 2011.

Helping the disenfranchised, selling pharmaceuticals, ser-ving in Delta Sigma Theta and serving on the Board of Regents provide Neely-Martin a chance to work with people with diverse backgrounds.

“To continue to become a more global environment as a place to study is high on my list and I think Southeast should keep this pace of growth and inclusion,” Neely-Martin said.

“I’m very excited to have the opportunity. I’m confident in my leadership and in the skills and resources that I bring to fill in the regent’s role.” Kendra Neely-Martin