Student Affairs appoints Tucker, Solomon to leading roles in SU Office of Student AssistanceMay 14, 2009Carol K. Masiclatclkim@syr.edu
The Division of Student Affairs has announced new roles for Seth A. Tucker, director of the Office of Student Assistance and Crisis Support and Management, and Sarah Solomon, assistant director and case manager. Tucker and Solomon provide a wide variety of helping services, crisis responses and administrative referrals to students. Students can reach the office by calling 443-4357 (443-HELP) or by visiting Room 306 in Steele Hall.
When the Division of Student Affairs completed its reorganization in 2008, it realigned existing resources to form the Office of Student Assistance. This unit serves as a central, helping resource for all Syracuse University students. The office is the principal nexus for the University’s case management system that supports students in distress. Particular services include institutional coordination of support for students experiencing life difficulties, investigating and responding to faculty and staff concerns for student welfare, procedural advising for those facing conduct violations, emergency loans and coordination of medical leaves. Additionally, staff members coordinate Student Affairs’ response to student crises. They lead Student Affairs in connecting students in mental health crises with the appropriate institutional response. Staff members also develop safety and education initiatives in collaboration with the Department of Public Safety and other units.
Because much of the office’s work connects to the Counseling Center, Health Services, R.A.P.E. Center and related units, it is housed in Student Affairs’ Health and Wellness portfolio. However, it works closely with colleagues throughout Student Affairs, across the University, locally and nationally.
Tucker, previously the director of the former Dean of Students Office, reports to Associate Vice President Rebecca Stefan Dayton and works closely with Senior Vice President and Dean of Student Affairs Thomas V. Wolfe. Tucker supervises the Office of Student Assistance and Crisis Support and Management’s daily operations, staff and budget; develops and updates division-wide policies and protocols; and is the liaison between SU and the national Student Affairs Leadership Council. He is part of the Health and Wellness portfolio’s leadership team and a member of the University’s Critical Incident Response Committee. In a student crisis, Tucker is the principal coordinator for the senior vice president and dean of student affairs’ response.
Solomon, who was previously student outreach coordinator in the former Dean of Students Office, provides comprehensive services and support, including referrals to SU or outside resources for students who are suffering with medical emergencies, personal or family crises, as victims of crime or other types of distress. As a case manager, Solomon provides students with a variety of interventions, referrals and follow-up services. She is the liaison connecting schools and colleges, health care and mental health providers, staff and families with students who require such resources. She supports the development of campus-wide wellness collaborations and supervises the department’s graduate assistant.
For more information, or to access the services provided by the Office of Student Assistance and Crisis Support and Management, call (315) 443-4357.
