Since the last Eastern Michigan University dean of students retired in July 2025, the Provost Office has been maintaining the office while the university conducted a search to find the right candidate to fill the position.
The job description for the dean of students is listed as follows: “Provides leadership and management of several offices that plan, develop, and administer the non-academic and co-curricular aspects of the student experience that engage and advance student development, learning, student retention, and success at Eastern Michigan University.”
The dean of students handles student conduct in disciplinary matters, behavioral concerns, violations of the student conduct code, and other non-academic student issues. In some cases, EMU's Department of Public Safety will refer issues to the dean of students instead of pursuing charges.
Jeanette Zalba, one of the final candidates for the dean of students position, has served as the director of Housing and Residence Life at EMU since 2015. She received her bachelor's degree in Earth science from Northern Michigan University before earning her master's in higher education and student affairs from Indiana University. In 2023, she received her doctorate in educational leadership from EMU.
Before returning to Michigan, Zalba worked at the University of Buffalo in residential life, campus living and organizational development. She has been working in higher education student affairs since 2001.
Zalba described the dean of students as a catch-all position to provide student support.
“In many ways, the dean of students should be all-knowing to help students get where they need to be or to provide good dialogue to talk about where students are," Zalba said. "You also need to have a reasonable knowledge of what different offices do, so you know where to go.”
Zalba said that the EMU dean of students also serves as the director of student conduct, along with heading up student case management.
After over a decade in her current position, Zalba said, “I love working at EMU. I love working with our students. I love the opportunities that are here for our students … I've been a great leader in housing, and I want to expand for myself; I want to learn something new. It would be nice to do something different. I believe that I have been a leader in other ways on campus, and it would be nice to have someone else give a fresh perspective on housing as well.”
Recognizing that if she were to become the dean of students, she would be regularly working with student issues, she commented that the two biggest problems that EMU students are facing right now are emotional stress and financial challenges.
“Research is telling us that students are facing a lot of emotional stress —not just mental health issues, but it’s just a really hard time to be 19 right now," Zalba said. "You’re thinking about your future, thinking about getting a job, and thinking about if ICE is going to show up, or students of color wondering if their identity could make them the victim of violence." (In recent months, students in Ypsilanti have worried due to several local incidents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, known as ICE.)
Zalba also mentioned financial challenges faced by many college students.
"College is very expensive, and we have a lot of students in the residence halls who have to step out and stop back in," Zalba said. "They’ll say to me, ‘I can’t afford to come this winter, so I need to save up enough money to come back in the fall.'"
She also mentioned that students are find themselves worried or uneasy if they are unsure what they want to do in the future.
“It’s okay not to have your path set," Zalba said. "The amount of times that you change your career is going to be more than your parents would have, and much more than your grandparents would have.”
She encouraged students to explore their options and see what will be the best fit for them.
With these issues in mind, Zalba’s first goal as the dean of students would be to provide clarity about what the office does so that students are aware of how they can access services.
“I want to spend time telling people about the office; when in doubt, come see us,” Zalba said.
With decades of experience, Zalba has seen what student success looks like, in and out of the classroom.
“I think college is transformative, and it can transform in different ways for different people," Zalba said.
"I would like to think that ... college is when you separate yourself from your parents and your family to figure out what your own opinion is, what your approach to the world is, and what you want to contribute to that world. It’s important that students get to know who they are on their own and find independence in life … It's a place where people do really find who they are and commit to who they are and who they want to be. Hopefully, you can start a dream about who you want to become,” she told The Echo. She emphasized the importance of critical thinking skills and learning to be skeptical, both in academics and in life.
When asked what message she would like to give students, she said, “I think my career has been spent showing care for students. That care might not look like you expect. That care might look like writing rules for our community or showing up when there's a fire in Westview. EMU is a place that shows care for their students. That sense of care is really important for building our community. Once the dean of students and office gets in place, come check out the office. Come check out the people and ask us questions. I hope that students not only get to know faculty, but also get to know their administrators and see the opportunities available to them.”
Editor's note: The Eastern Echo is covering the final candidates for Eastern Michigan University's dean of students position. This is one of four stories about each of the final candidates. To read about candidates Aura Cazares, Matthew Gregory and Renee' T. Watson, click the corresponding links.
