President and Mrs. Gerald Turner host a dinner for the members of the Board of Trustees during each of their quarterly sessions, and students are selected each February to attend this event known as “Dining with Decision Makers.” This year’s event was held Thursday in DeGolyer Library.
The dinner “is an opportunity for trustees and students to interact and learn from one another,” said Thomas Kincaid, Student Member of the Board of Trustees.
“Dining with decision makers is a valuable event for both students and board members. I left the event proud to be a Mustang,” sophomore student Laura Mendenhall said in an e-mail interview.
The board oversees all operations of the institution from student and legal affairs to buildings and finances. “We have a very active and committed board,” said Kincaid.
Approximately three-fourths of the board attends the dinner, and around 30 students attend. Students mingle with trustees and their spouses before the dinner begins. During the dinner, a panel of four students speaks of their experiences at SMU. This year, SMU seniors Eileen Jones, Alicia Hills and Jason Shyung, and second year law student Erik Nikravan spoke. Kincaid provided closing comments.
This year, students did not host specific board members, according to Mendenhall. Instead, students mingled with the trustees and then sat at tables with more than one trustee.
Mendenhall sat with Caren Prothro, SMU Vice President Leon Bennet, Bishop Scott Jones and his wife, student representative to the board Erica Crocker, and other students chosen to attend like herself.
“Leon Bennett, who is essentially SMU’s attorney, gave me some great insight into the kind of law a university has to deal with,” Mendenhall said. Bennett is the vice president for legal affairs and government relations. Bishop Jones is with the Kansas area United Methodist Church. Prothro is a civic and philanthropic leader, according to the Board of Trustees Web site.
Of the 30 students who attend, 10 receive automatic invitations. The speakers, student representatives to the board, student body president, student body vice president, and student body secretary are among those automatic invitations. For the remaining 20 openings, 60 students applied this year. The application process included submitting a one-page resume, a brief description of why they would like to attend and what they could bring to the dinner, and a five-minute interview conducted by the student representatives to the board. Although all of the students were qualified, “we want a mix of students with different perspectives,” Kincaid said.
Mendenhall participated in this year’s event because she said, “A friend of mine participated last year and found it a very valuable experience.” Mendenhall is a resident assistant and spends a lot of time in the Student Activities Center. “I represent a valid cross-section of SMU’s campus. Additionally, I am interested in the rationale behind the board’s decisions,” Mendenhall said.
Douglas Hill applied to attend the dinner because he had “read about some of the members of the Board of Trustees, and it seemed like a great opportunity to meet some spectacular people.” Hill is a member of Student Foundation and the graphics editor for Hilltopics.
“It was a good opportunity to spend time with the people who shape the direction of our university,” Hill said.
Kincaid is an ex-officio member of the Board of Trustees. He acts to provide the student prospective, and is “a young face at the table,” according to Kincaid. The Student Member of the Board of Trustees works for the University, not the students; therefore, that individual must “look at the long-term interest of the University,” said Kincaid.
The 42 members of the Board of Trustees meet quarterly on a Thursday and Friday. On Thursday, the board breaks up into committees, and on Friday, the board meets as a whole.
To prepare for the dinner, students attended a short mandatory meeting to go over what to wear, when to come and what is appropriate at the dinner, according to Kincaid. Students were also asked to send a thank-you note to the trustee they dined with.
