The recently resigned dean, Jonathan Poullard, was an administrator who, in the words of one campus official, elevated “the office of student life to where it is now.” His professionalism and work with student organizations were praised by many others, and his efforts to build dialogue and facilitate civil discourse will no doubt be a significant part of his legacy. Still, concerns remain about his time as dean.

Poullard stood behind former chancellor Robert Birgeneau’s controversial description of the 2011 Occupy Cal protests. When UCPD officers beat demonstrators standing by Sproul Hall, Birgeneau defended the police action. His grounds were that the students linking arms qualified as “not nonviolent civil disobedience.” Poullard, the dean of students and thereby accountable for ensuring student safety and well-being, agreed with Birgeneau’s wrong-headed characterization.

For whomever the search committee taps as the next dean of students, one of his or her primary obligations should be to publicly take on the issue of student protests. The dean should lean into the tension and work with students to address the basis of student civil disobedience and why calls for peaceful demonstration cannot be answered with acts of police violence.

The new dean will also need to bridge the gap between UC President Janet Napolitano and students concerned about her previous roles as the Secretary of Homeland Security and governor of Arizona.  While the dean of students’ job isn not to coordinate public relations for the UC president, it should be a priority to ensure that the UC Office of the President hears the concerns of the Berkeley student community and is able to work on addressing them.

The same also goes for making sure Berkeley’s new chancellor, Nicholas Dirks, is able to effectively communicate his vision for the campus to the student body. Dirks’ proposals of fireside chats with students and increasing administrative transparency are important, and the next dean of students must take on a key role in working with the ASUC to secure the necessary reforms.

The search committee, as Graduate Assembly President Max Gee put it, wants to give students “a voice along every step of the way.” The candidate the committee ultimately decide upon should as well.

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The search committee is made up of 11 student, faculty and staff representatives, including ASUC President DeeJay Pepito, and is chaired by Anne De Luca, associate vice chancellor for admissions and enrollment.

The student forum drew about 20 students who voiced the importance of having a dean of students who is accessible and transparent, according to Austin Pritzkat, Pepito’s chief of staff.

Students said they wanted a dean who would actively participate with students and implement an open-door policy by holding informal meetings with students.

After a November 2011 Occupy Cal protest, Poullard agreed with former UC Berkeley chancellor Robert Birgeneau that students linking arms to prevent police from entering an encampment was not “nonviolent civil disobedience.” In response, students at the meeting expressed concerns that the new dean must understand the rationale behind student protest.

Graduate Assembly President Max Gee, who also sits on the committee, said that he and Pepito will attend all search committee meetings to “make sure the priorities of the undergraduate students are met.”

“The search has just begun, and students will have a voice along every step of the way,” Gee said.

Other search committee members were also present at the student forum. David Robinson, associate campus counsel and a member of the committee, said the feedback about what the students at the forum said they wanted and what was discussed at the committee meetings were very similar.

“The dean of students needs to be someone who has communication skills and an ability to really listen to what the student priorities are,” Robinson said. “The dean needs to engage with students and student leadership as partners.”

According to De Luca, the committee discussed looking for someone who understands the unique dynamics of a public institution like UC Berkeley and who is committed to the type of diversity found in the campus community.

Currently, David Surratt is serving as the interim dean of students and will continue to do so until a replacement is found.

The committee, which has only had one meeting so far on Sept. 25, is in the early stages of finding that replacement. De Luca said there is no deadline and hopes to have finalists on campus to meet with different stakeholder groups by early February.

“Our next step is to review the draft of the position profile, and once it is approved, to begin to advertise the position,” De Luca said. “The committee will then focus on sharing the news of the position and encouraging applications from student affairs professionals nationwide.”

Jane Nho covers student government. Contact her at jnho@dailycal.org.

Correction(s):
A previous version of this article incorrectly identified Anne DeLuca as associate vice chancellor for admissions and enrollment and acting director of undergraduate admissions. In fact, DeLuca is only the associate vice chancellor for admissions and enrollment.

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