What is the Office of the Dean of Students?
The Office of the Dean of Students is committed to helping students reach their fullest potential. Our office provides a variety of student support services along with opportunities for leadership experience, diverse student work environments, engaging programming and specialized resources.
Mission Statement
The Dean of Students Office enriches the lives of the SU community through innovative programming, support services, training, and life skills development to prepare students to contribute to their community and world.
Vision Statement
Be a place where students come to seek support, have their voices heard, and learn to be accountable members of their community.
Values
- Education
- Personal development (Growth)
- Creative problem solving
- Respect
- Fairness
- Equity
- Innovation
- Ethical decision making
- Advocacy
- Inclusivity
- Diversity
- Collaboration
- Creativity
- Awareness
- Personal responsibility
Dr. Sue O’Driscoll | Associate Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students
sodrisco09@dandick.net | 540-545-7399
Cooley Hall, Room 201
Dean of Students Staff
Dahlia Ashford | Assistant Dean for Inclusion, Diversity, & Leadership
dashford@dandick.net | 540-665-4595
Brandt Student Center, Room 113
Joseph Cooper | Student Conduct and Community Standards Coordinator
jcooper18@dandick.net | 540-678-4462
Cooley Hall, Room 206
Student of Concern
Fellow students, family members, faculty and staff can play an invaluable role in helping students who are in distress. Your expression of interest, concern, and compassion is an important factor toward a student seeking the assistance they need. A student of concern is any student who is displaying behaviors that may get in the way of a student’s ability to be successful in the University environment.
CARE Team
The mission of the CARE Team is to coordinate the support services of Shenandoah University in order to provide assistance to students that may be experiencing some potentially harmful or disturbing behaviors and promote academic success and safety through an appropriate, timely, and caring response.
CARE Team Goals
- Provide a safe physical environment for members of the university community.
- Provide a safe emotional environment for the university community.
- Promote peace of mind for friends and family of the university community.
Restorative Justice
Restorative practices are offered through the Dean of Students office. These practices help to identify and repair harms that have impacted others in the community.
Types of practices include facilitated dialogue, restorative conferences, and restorative circles.
Restorative practices can be assigned as an alternative resolution in the conduct process in some cases.
Mediations services can also be provided to help address conflicts.
Restorative practices and mediation services can be scheduled by contacting the Associate Vice President of Student Affairs and Dean of Students, Sue O’Driscoll at sodrisco09@dandick.net
Sexual Misconduct
Shenandoah University affirms the rights of its students, faculty and staff to live, work and study in an environment free from sexual misconduct. Sexual misconduct includes but is not limited to non-consensual sexual contact, non-consensual sexual intercourse, sexual harassment, relationship violence, sexual exploitation and stalking.
Report an incident of sexual misconduct to SU’s Title IX Coordinator, Peter Kronemeyer; phone: 540-665-4921, e-mail: pkroneme@dandick.net or nosexualmisconduct@dandick.net
- Shenandoah’s Stance on Sexual Misconduct
- Shenandoah’s Sexual Misconduct Policy
- Sexual Misconduct: Reducing Risks
- Sexual Misconduct: How to Help Yourself
- Sexual Misconduct: How to Help Someone Else
- Reporting Sexual Misconduct
- Sexual Misconduct Reporting Form
- Sexual Misconduct On & Off Campus Resources
- Shenandoah’s Non-discrimination Clause
- Student Affairs Policies
- Consent is Sexy brochure
- Title IX Resource Guide
Step Up
Step UP! Bystander Empowerment Training is a pro-social bystander intervention program that increases motivation to help others and brings awareness to personal surroundings. It helps members of the SU community understand that it’s okay to do something as indirect as making a phone call or notifying another person in a situation involving things like alcohol, discrimination, or sexual misconduct.
[Not Just] Women’s Center
The mission of the [Not Just] Women’s Center (NJWC) is to provide an overall safe, inviting and inclusive environment for all students. Students can expect confidential peer support and information regarding healthy sexuality, healthy relationships, the importance of consent, tools for survivors, positive body image, being an active bystander and ways to prevent sexual assault.
Safe Zone
Safe Zone is a network of people who seek to affirm and support sexual and gender diversity. Safe Zone members are working to create a community that understands and honors the value of each unique individual. Safe Zone workshop participants receive Safe Zone stickers to openly display as a symbol they are allies who can provide support and resources to LGBTQ+ students, faculty, staff and campus visitors.
Educational Programs for Conduct Violations
Judicial Educator
The Judicial Educator consists of 24 educational presentations designed to educate students who are involved in conduct issues. Before receiving credit for completing a module, the student must take a test and achieve a passing score.
Educational topics include:
- Academic Integrity
- Alcohol Use/Abuse (2 different versions)
- Anger Management
- Bystander Education
- Campus Safety
- Civility and Respect
- Community Living
- Conflict Management
- Damage and Vandalism
- Dating Violence & Date Rape
- Decision-Making (2 different versions)
- Diversity
- Fire Safety
- Healthy Relationships
- College and COVID-19
- Hygiene and Cleanliness
- Marijuana
- Off-Campus Living
- Online Citizenship
- Peer Harassment
- Roommate Issues
- Smoking
BASICS (Brief Alcohol Screening and Intervention for College Students)
BASICS is designed to help students make better alcohol-use decisions based on a clear understanding of the genuine risks associated with problem drinking, enhanced motivation to change, and the development of skills to moderate drinking. The program is conducted over the course of two brief interviews that prompt students to change their drinking patterns. The program’s style is empathetic, non-confrontational or non-judgmental, and aims to:
- Help you explore your alcohol use in a non-judgmental setting
- Explore roadblocks that could hinder your reduction in alcohol use
- Reduce alcohol consumption and its adverse consequences
- Promote healthier choices among young adults
- Provide important information and coping skills for risk reduction.
Students may be assigned to BASICS as a conduct sanction for alcohol violations.
BASICS also has a cannabis based program (CASICS) which is similar to the alcohol version. Students found responsible for a marijuana violation may be assigned to the CASICS cannabis program.
Marijuana 101
Marijuana 101 is an online marijuana education course. This course may be assigned to students who are in violation of a marijuana offense.
Marijuana 101 uses educational and motivational strategies to engage students in building awareness of the physical, social, and health effects that marijuana has, as well as the legal consequences associated with its use, while providing students with tools for making changes.