Meet the vice provosts: Godfrey seeks more collaboration

“I was reminded about the degree to which someone in this role can have an effect on the quality of the student experience,” he said. “It’s always gratifying, though sobering.”

Godfrey officially assumed the new position this week, after an internal search process.

This isn’t his first stint in what was formerly called the Office of Student Affairs and now will be called the Office of Student Life. He came to the University in 1981 as director of financial aid. Two years later he became an assistant vice president in student affairs and remained in that position until five years ago, when he moved over to the Office of Development, where he worked to create scholarships for undergraduates.

Godfrey’s whole career, in fact, has been about services for students. Born in Seattle but raised in numerous cities around the country, he earned a bachelor’s in psychology and a master’s in counseling and student life at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma.

Noting that he had mentors in student life who encouraged him to get into the field, Godfrey said, “I decided early on that I wanted to spend my days on a college campus and I was particularly interested in student development, especially issues of equity, access and diversity. So it was altogether intentional that I took this career path.”

Prior to the UW, he held student life positions at Penn State University and California State University at Long Beach.

Godfrey sees his unit as being divided into two kinds of services. One group of offices provides support for students as they get into and through the system that is the University: admissions, registration, financial aid, disability services, and so on. “They work to ensure that education is possible and accessible for students,” Godfrey said. “Done correctly these services can make all the difference in the world.”

The other group of services deals with life beyond the classroom: career exploration, counseling, student government, and so on — services that speak to the need to “educate the whole person,” Godfrey said.

Although he believes that the UW has been doing an excellent job in both areas, Godfrey sees this as a transitional time, thanks to the reorganization initiated by Provost Phyllis Wise that moved his unit under her office and changed his position title from vice president to vice provost. He calls the change “absolutely the right move,” saying it will bring him closer to other units providing related student services.

“The challenge before us will be to work with our colleagues to reposition student life at the core of the student experience and to build stronger collaborations with other units, such as the Office of Minority Affairs, the Office of Undergraduate Academic Affairs and the Graduate School,” Godfrey said. “The more integration we have, the more responsive we can be to students’ developmental needs.”

In his nine months as interim vice president, Godfrey has already set up several work groups to consider ways to enhance the student experience.

One group is working on a pilot program for residential Freshman Interest Groups. The idea would be to get a group of freshmen with a common interest to live in the same area of a residence hall, so that they could share their interest both in and outside the classroom. The pilot program, if approved, would begin with four or five FIGs of 20 to 25 students. If they went well, the program could be expanded.

A second group is looking at the Student Conduct Code from a philosophical standpoint. Up to now, Godfrey said, they’ve had an enforcement orientation. “We’d like to do more around citizenship education and ethics, and also get more students involved in the judicial process,” he said.

A third group is looking at the area of health and wellness. Godfrey said this area has been somewhat fragmented, with many different groups doing programs in many different areas. “We’re looking at ways to coordinate our efforts — not just in education but also focusing on environmental and behavioral factors,” he said.

Godfrey is looking forward to working closely with his counterpart in undergraduate academic affairs, Ed Taylor, who also assumed his position this week, and to that end would be “very pleased” if some or all of student life offices are moved to Mary Gates — a change that Provost Wise has been interested in making.

And he’ll continue working closely with students. “It’s very important in this position to be out there with students,” he said. “I have standing meetings with ASUW leaders. What’s most important is that you don’t speak for the students, but you ensure that there’s a place for them in the process.”

Which is why he got into this line of work in the first place. Said Godfrey, “It’s very satisfying because I’m helping to ensure access to higher education, addressing issues of equity and diversity, and I’m surrounded by professional colleagues who are so committed to serving students.”