Elizabeth Cantwell, who will become the first woman to lead the WSU System when she takes office April 1, spoke to the Evergreen about her hopes and goals for the university.
Communication and listening sessions
Cantwell said she does not have a full list of what she will do upon taking office in April. She plans to host several listening sessions with around 50 students at each session to help her understand what students need.
“I don’t know what they are yet, but typically, I like to run the listening sessions around three or four common questions,” Cantwell said.
Sydney Lyman, Utah State University Student Association vice president of student outreach, said Cantwell is usually accessible through scheduled meetings.
“She appeared and was a judge at one of our engineering Lego nights, which was pretty heavily promoted on her social media,” Lyman said.
Other student leaders at Utah State University said they had issues communicating with Cantwell. Abraham Rodriguez, former student body president, told Utah State’s student paper, the Utah Statesman, that he felt unseen and unheard by Cantwell when he was student body president.
“Cantwell came in with a uniquely strong leadership style. She knew what she wanted and didn’t let others get in her way,” Rodriguez said. “With this being said, her ‘student facing approach’ at the beginning of her presidency was deceiving. Student leadership meetings with her felt short, one-sided and insignificant. There was an apparent power dynamic that left students feeling unseen.”
Members of the editorial board of the Utah Statesman said Cantwell is typically guarded by university marketing and communications staff.
WSU Greek System
WSU is home to 60 recognized fraternities and sororities compared to Utah State University’s six houses. Cantwell said she intends to meet with the leaders of each house twice a year.
“I would expect to be meeting with Greek life early and I’m not talking about the administrative side, I am talking about the student leadership side,” she said. “Where I come from, Greek life is intimately associated with service. So the question I start with in meeting with student leaders in Greek life is, How-LR and what is your service orientation and how can I help you in that service?”
Cantwell said she does not know much about the Greek system at WSU but plans to learn more.
WSU Research
Cantwell intends to bring her experience in the research field to the WSU presidency.
“The research experience, in my mind, is very much the same as doing a co-op or an internship. It gives you real world experience,” she said. “I think I have that and can bring that perspective of alternative ways of thinking about internships and co-ops that utilize the research capacity that our faculty brings here.”
Cantwell has worked for several national laboratories and federal agencies, such as NASA and the Department of Defense. Before serving as USU president, she was the senior vice president of Research and Innovation at Arizona State University.
Living in Pullman
Cantwell said she will be living in Pullman for the first part of her time as WSU president.
“What I’ve talked with the Regents about is I need to get here and live in the president’s house, and it could take a year or two to really get the sense of Pullman,” Cantwell said. “So I will be traveling a lot no matter where I live, but my intention right now is to stay here in Pullman.”
