Dr. Laura Boren became the Vice President of Student Affairs at the beginning of this semester. Her appointment came in the wake of the departure of former vice president Rusty Jergins, who vacated the post after an internal Texas A&M University System investigation last fall.

Boren sat down with JTAC News to share her story, and her hopes for the future of Tarleton State University.

Before scoring the job at Tarleton after being nominated for the position by a friend, Boren worked at Northeastern State University in Oklahoma as the Vice President of Student Affairs for eight years. Although the quaint town of Stephenville can be a shock to some, Boren is no stranger to small towns. Prior to living in Stephenville, Boren, along with her daughter, son, and husband, lived in a small town between Fayetteville and Tulsa called Tahlequah, where Northeastern State is located.

Lured in by an atmosphere of contagious warmth, as she described it, Boren found Tarleton to be an undeniable force of kindness that made her want to prance through the gates and never look back.

“The first thing I saw was the purple banners that said ‘Student Focused,’” said Boren. “Seeing the environment of the campus and the students walking around… I just instantly had this gut instinct. For a university to say that students are a priority and to be so mission driven, I just knew instantly that this was going to be the place for me. I left here and called my husband and said ‘I’m going to be really disappointed if I don’t get an offer because we need to move here.’ There’s a spirit about this place that you instantly connect with.”

As for what brought her to working with student life, Boren explained, “You could call it a ‘God thing’ or ‘serendipity’”. When Boren was an undergrad she was involved in a multitude of different activities – Greek life, student programming board, ambassador – but it wasn’t until a job came up after graduating and working elsewhere that she applied for the spot on a whim – one that introduced her to her passion for student affairs.

It’s been less than three months since Boren has arrived, and she said that the move to Tarleton could not be going any better.

“It’s been a very easy transition,” Boren said. “The students are amazing, the faculty and staff have welcomed me with open arms. I couldn’t have asked for an easier move-in being the new kid on the block.”

During her interview with JTAC News, Boren shared her plans for the future of Tarleton.

“My main goal is to be a transformative leader,” said Boren. “I think for me it’s moving beyond the checklist of accomplishments to really wanting to influence students and colleagues to learn how to be more than just themselves. I want to be that change agent that really helps people figure out how to collaborate and work together; I want to help them find their potential within and learn how to elevate other people in the process.”