This is the second story in a three-part series profiling the candidates for vice president for student affairs. Duke President Nan Keohane said she will choose the next vice president by the middle of next week.
Larry Moneta has not quite decided if he'll accept a position at Duke. But some people are awfully excited about the possibility that he might become the University's next vice president for student affairs.
Members of the vice presidential search committee actively encouraged the University of Pennsylvania's associate vice president for campus services to apply for Duke's top student affairs position, but Moneta said he remains happy in Philadelphia and, if offered, he will have to get the OK from his family before he decides to commit to Duke.
If the University of Massachusetts alumnus does join the Duke administration, his appointment could signify a major shift in the philosophy and direction of Student Affairs. For almost four years, Moneta has specialized in the business side of Penn's student affairs division, overseeing an estimated $100 million budget.
Moneta, who has served as an organizational consultant to over a dozen colleges and universities, said he will want to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of Duke's student affairs division.
"One of my goals would be to integrate student services together so that things appear as seamless as possible," he said.
Moneta, who describes himself as a situational leader, said he is an advocate of seeking input and discussion but is very wary of falling into "analysis paralysis."
"One of the hardest things to do is to say when discussion should end," he said. "But people want to feel like we're moving somewhere on an issue and not just talking about moving forward."
Michael Bassik, president of Penn's student government, said that while Moneta is not very well-known on campus, he has been a strong behind-the-scenes advocate for students and is very receptive to input and ideas.
"He's really one of those guys that if we have issues or problems, we know he's one of the guys who can help us out," said Bassik, a senior. "If you bring something to him, he helps out immediately. He loves students putting things on his plate."
Duke's struggle with alcohol will undoubtedly be one of the more prominent areas in which Moneta will be expected to make significant headway quickly.
"Success comes in very small steps. There are always those who will fail-those who drink irresponsibly and binge drink," Moneta said. "I want to make sure we have very strong safety nets to catch those who fail.... The most important thing to me is that no one dies."
In addition to making sure the University has adequate safety nets, Moneta said he will look at social norms programs which, rather than discourage binge drinking, advocate promoting drinking in moderation or not at all.
In the same vein, Moneta said he wants to begin trying to offer non-alcoholic alternatives. But he acknowledges that devising such programs is easier said than done.
"We can't sit here and advocate for more social alternatives without providing resources for these safe alternatives," Moneta said.
Moneta would like to start by investigating University's social space allocation policy, among other things. Space allocation and residential life are issues that Moneta has had to confront at Penn. For the past three years, Moneta has been involved in a number of university initiatives, including directing financial operations of the school's $380 million dormitory and dining renovation plan.
"I've been known to be pretty creative with finding social space," Moneta said. "I've turned parking spaces into dance floors."
Before joining Penn's administration in 1992, Moneta, who holds a Doctorate of Education, worked at the University of Massachusetts as the school's associate director of housing services where he helped develop the centers for Latino, African-American, Native American and Asian students.
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