Recently, I sat down with Dr. Kent Smith, the new president of Langston University, to talk about the first eight months of his presidency.
ML: President Smith, under your administration, how will Langston University change and how will it stay the same?
KS: Good question. I think we’re still figuring it out. Part of the challenge for someone in an administrative position is reaching a delicate balance between, on the one hand, coming in and getting a lay of the land and, on the other, turning things around. Another part of the challenge is knowing how long to wait before you make some of the tweaks.
Some of the focal points that I’ve been having a lot of conversations about with faculty, staff, and students are enhancing customer service with students, focusing on the student as the customer, including them first in every decision that we make, and stronger utilization of technology to make us more efficient. Fundraising is a critical piece as well. And then there’s the marketing and branding of the institution. To my knowledge, we’ve never had a strategic marketing plan. We’re now very close to having one. By the end of February, we’ll have a three- to five-year strategic plan for the university from a marketing and branding standpoint.
ML: What unique skills and gifts do you bring to Langston University?
KS: I’d like to believe that I’m a people person. I’d like to believe that one of my unique traits is the ability to build bridges between departments and people: people inside the university, people outside the university. If I’m good at that, I believe it’s going to help the university be successful in all phases: fundraising, enhancing the image, making us more accessible to students, more presentable to current students, and more desirable to potential students.
ML: After about eight months on the job, what do you see as Langston’s greatest strengths? What are Langston’s greatest challenges?
