Vargas looks to enhance student success as top priority for Southeast's future

Every university president brings his or her own skillset to their university, leading to different leadership tactics and top priorities. For President Carlos Vargas, his top priority is to enhance student success at Southeast Missouri State University.

Vargas said that should be the ultimate goal for any educational institution, and one way to do so is to enhance academic offerings. He already has started doing this at Southeast by initiating the creation of a degree in drone technology in the Department of Polytechnic Studies.

"We need to strengthen the academics at the university," Vargas said. "And that doesn't mean that academics at this point are not strong. It just means that we need to continue to strengthen academics because other institutions are doing the same thing. If we don't strengthen or continue to strengthen academics, we are going to lose our relevance and that's not something that we can afford to do."

Vargas said one of the ways he tries to stay student-focused is to meet with students on campus. He said his executive staff tries to make sure Vargas meets with at least one student group each week.

"I want to make sure that everybody here, and me, know and recognize that I need to continue to interact with students," Vargas said. "And they don't have to only be student government, it can be anybody. They can be athletic teams, they can be student government, they can be any of the student organizations that we have, fraternities. I've met with international students, I've met with minority students. I want to meet with as many different groups of students as possible."

Vargas added they don't have to be pre-established groups, and mentioned he has had lunch with students who invite him on many occasions. He said it is important students see him as approachable and accessible.

Another top priority for Vargas is to promote institutional pride, as well as the brand of the university.

"I think we need to promote pride because of the achievements of the university," Vargas said. "It just so happens that the brand that we are promoting is one that reminds students and others in the community that anybody has the ability to do things if you have the will to do them."

Vargas said when he talks to prospective and incoming students, he makes sure to remind them they have come to Southeast to get an education, and the university is here to be their partner in that journey.

"We alone can't make you successful," Vargas said. "You need to have the will to become successful. That sort of builds into and fits in with our branding at this point. The idea here is to promote pride in the sense that I want the students that are walking around the campus to walk feeling happy about the fact that they are at an institution that is helping them become better citizens and better human beings."

Vargas added this idea does not just apply to Southeast students, but for the Southeast community at large. He said one of his goals is to form or enhance relationships Southeast has with outside entities.

"I want to make sure we strengthen the visibility of the institution at the state level, that we strengthen it also at the federal level and just, in general, in the higher education community," Vargas said. "That part, I think, is important."

Vargas said he hopes to work more with the City of Cape Girardeau, nearby community colleges and local K-12 schools. He said these relationships, along with those with businesses and alumni allow the institution to grow and better serve both the students and community.

Vargas said another one of his top priorities going into next year is to support and integrate athletics more effectively into the fabric of Southeast.

"Athletics is an area that can be a very effective recruitment tool," Vargas said. "Athletics promotes pride in an institution, and we see that in many other universities. So I think we need to take advantage of our athletic programs and strengthen them and support them."

Vargas added the university needs to find answers for how to make students aware of athletic achievements and to be more supportive of them. He said student-athletes play differently when they have a lot of people cheering them on.

"The president has the opportunity to be a catalyst in promoting that conversation with the academic side of the house -- with the provost, with the deans, with the department chairs," Vargas said. "You're not necessarily forcing people to attend events just for the sake of attending events, but to give them an opportunity to feel proud of what our teams are doing is one way of doing it. And, like they say, winning is important. We, right now, are at a state where there is a lot of energy in the athletics area. In some cases we're rebuilding, in some cases we're really achieving significant milestones."

Vargas said with all of these goals, there is not a single way to approach them. He said the university needs to develop multi-pronged approaches to tackle the issues in many different ways. He also said these changes will take time, but he hopes they leave a lasting effect.

"At the end, I would like to feel like I made a difference, a measurable difference," Vargas said. "That I was able to contribute to enhance the university's reputation and image as a first-class institution of higher learning."