Words of Wisdom Help New Dean Find Balance
Scattered on the desk in Laura Jolly’s office are a small collection of polished stones, neither hidden nor obvious to a visitor, but which serve as reminders to the new dean of the College of Family and Consumer Sciences.
Jolly shared three of the stones with students attending the annual two-day meeting of Leadership FACS and explained how the words engraved on them—Focus, Believe, Laugh—help her maintain balance.
“Focus on what’s important and focus on where you can make a difference,” she told the 20-plus students who attended the retreat. “Believe in yourself. Believe in others and support them. And, act on your beliefs. Laugh. Life is too short. You have to enjoy what you’re doing. Life is so busy that if you’re not careful busy schedules can crowd out the ability to laugh and to be effective.”
Jolly also told the students about a small collection of toys—ranging from a Slinky to a Barrel of Monkeys—sitting in a basket behind her desk.
“They’re a constant in my office,” she says. “They can serve as an icebreaker when a student stops by, but they are also a reminder that a balanced life includes time away from responsibilities.”
As she begins juggling the many roles that come with being both FACS dean and associate director for Cooperative Extension and the Georgia Experiment Stations, finding time outside of work is more of a challenge.
Jolly’s appointment was announced June 26 and she officially began her tenure as the sixth dean of the College of Family and Consumer Sciences on Aug. 15. During the six weeks in between, however, she began meeting with college and university administrators and attending departmental retreats.
She will also attend more than 20 alumni events this fall. Already she’s spent a week on the road meeting alumni and friends in Jacksonville, Fla., Savannah and St. Simons Island, as part of the “FACS Forward” tour. She also has participated in her first South Campus Tailgate, shared tacos with younger alumni and attended a high tea event in Atlanta.
Of course, there’s also the work involved with running a college with more than 1,500 students, 70-plus faculty, about 100 professional and support staff, and an annual operating budget that tops $8.5 million.
But rather than being intimidated, the Mississippi native, who has been on the faculty of three land-grant universities, is eager to translate her 25 years of leadership experiences into her new position as dean.
“I enjoy seeing the big picture,” she says. “I enjoy seeing how different people and programs fit together to make a difference for families and communities and that’s a lot of what the dean’s position entails.” And when considering the current status of the College of Family and Consumer Sciences, Jolly says she finds it particularly exciting to contemplate the “tremendous potential” that can be found in the mix of programs, subject areas and the college’s supportive alumni base.
Jolly’s path to the dean’s office began fairly traditionally. As one of three children, she grew up in a town of about 2,500 in the Mississippi Delta where her father was a rural mail carrier and her mother worked at various times as a county Extension agent, a high school home economics teacher and a chemistry teacher at a community college. With her parents’ support, Jolly earned her bachelor’s degree in home economics at the University of Mississippi at Oxford.
Recognizing her potential, Jolly’s undergraduate professors arranged for her to meet some of the faculty of Oklahoma State University.
“One of my professors invited me to attend the International Textile and Apparel Association meeting in New Orleans,” she recalls. “While we were there we had lunch with department members from OSU. I was just enjoying meeting these interesting people. I had no idea that my professor had arranged for this meeting with the goal of OSU considering me for its graduate program.”
Jolly uses the story as an example of the pivotal role faculty can play in the lives of their students.
“One of the things I want students to understand is how incredibly helpful their professors can be to their future,” she says. “Attending graduate school would not have been my next step if that faculty member hadn’t arranged for me to attend that professional meeting and to meet the OSU faculty.”
After earning her master’s degree at OSU, Jolly accepted a one-year teaching appointment at Texas Tech University, an experience that offered the opportunity to experience academic life without the commitment that comes with a tenure-track appointment.
“That was a turning point for me,” she says. “I was the new kid on the block. I got to see how the organization works and what it’s like to be a faculty member.”
Jolly returned to OSU, earned her PhD and joined the faculty for the next 12 years.
In 1995, Jolly left OSU to head the Department of Interior Design, Merchandising and Textiles at the University of Kentucky, a position she held for six years.
“My experience at Kentucky required me to look at more of what’s for the good of the whole,” she says. “It’s very different when you’re responsible for recruiting and promoting new faculty members and managing the budget.”
Jolly’s move to Kentucky meant that all the family—husband, David, and children Katherine and Will—practiced their juggling skills.
“For a variety of reasons, my husband’s career required him to spend most of each week in Tennessee,” she says.
After managing the intricacies of a commuter marriage for six years, Jolly accepted an offer of a senior faculty position at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville in 2001.
“My experience at UT has led to one of my passions: Getting faculty involved in leadership,” she says. “I know there are those who say participating in university governance takes away from their teaching, research and outreach responsibilities. That’s never been my experience. For me, it’s been very energizing. It allows you to get out of your office and to interact with faculty from other parts of the campus.”
Although Jolly was approached about administrative positions almost as soon as she moved to UT, she and David were committed to staying in Tennessee until their children had completed high school– an event which occurred in May when their youngest child, Will, graduated.
Will’s matriculation as a freshman at the University of Tennessee has heightened Jolly’s sensitivity to the struggles many new students face.
“We make a lot of assumptions about what new students know and understand,” she says. “But we do know that if students don’t connect with college life they aren’t going to stay. FACS has a long-time reputation for being attuned to our students, but I want us to find even more ways to be sensitive to how we communicate and support them.”
While students are one area of Jolly’s responsibilities as dean, equally important are the college’s alumni and friends.
“We have a responsibility to keep our alumni informed and engaged,” she says. “They chose FACS and invested four years or more with us. They’re our family and we need to stay in touch.”
As state support for higher education continues to decline, Jolly is also acutely aware of the need to grow the college’s endowment and to carefully consider how funds are allocated.
“FACS had a banner year in fund raising last year, so at this point I’m looking at how I can support and augment our current development plans,” she says. “Obtaining a new building continues to be at the top of our list, but we’ll refine our development plans as we continue to assess our needs.”
Two areas that Jolly already knows she wants to enhance are increasing the college’s grant dollars and growing the number of FACS Extension agents in the state.
“Our faculty do a tremendous job bringing in grant dollars, but they want to do even more,” she says. “One of my immediate goals is to hire a grants coordinator to provide our faculty more support in this area.”
In regards to FACS Extension agents, Jolly noted that there are too few currently serving the state’s 159 counties.
“By talking with our agents, our Extension faculty and our stakeholders, I want us to gain an even better sense of the needs of the state and to use those needs as a powerful selling point for getting support so we can do more for Georgia,” she says.
Jolly seems to thrive on the fast pace and tight schedule that defines her days as dean, but she’s quick to note that balance continues to be a priority.
“My comments to the students at Leadership FACS weren’t platitudes,” she says. “I’m very focused on learning as much about the college as I can, as quickly as I can. But I enjoy meeting new people and going new places, so I have found this series of FACS Forward receptions very energizing, and I’ve had lots of opportunities to laugh with new acquaintances” she says. “We’ve had a few late nights, but I believe in the abilities and skills of my new colleagues to help me prioritize my energy.”
Focus, Believe, Laugh. The new dean of the College of Family and Consumer Sciences seems to be keeping her balance and moving the college forward.
