Vice President for University Advancement Mindy Spencer has left Eastern for a new opportunity, and the responsibilities of several other faculty leadership positions have temporarily been adjusted to compensate for the change.
Spencer officially departed Eastern on March 27 to fill the position of senior vice president for advancement at Lindenwood University beginning April 6.
“Lindenwood approached me with a position that was phenomenal. They made a great offer. My family and I talked about it and decided it was a great move for us,” Spencer said during a phone interview.
Spencer said leaving the team she built as VPUA at Eastern was a hard decision.
“Part of the job in advancement is building relationships, and that’s what makes it hard when you move on to a different role,” Spencer said. “You’re not just leaving the institution, you’re leaving your team.”
As of now, Vice President for Student Affairs Anne Flaherty will fill in Spencer’s position as an interim VPUA while still retaining her current position, Flaherty wrote in an email.
Flaherty was unavailable for further comment.
“The team that I built is one of the best advancement teams I’ve had the pleasure of working with, and I really think Anne is going to enjoy working with them,” Spencer said.
Spencer said Flaherty will fill the position until the university can start a search for a permanent VPUA after the university’s hiring freeze.
“The timing of me leaving with a hiring freeze was not ideal, so they had to go down this path,” Spencer said. “I know that President Gatrell had plans in place for how other responsibilities that Anne tackled would be handled.”
The plan for Flaherty to take over the VPUA role has left some of her current responsibilities as VPSA to be taken over by other faculty.
One of these faculty members is John Blue, the current executive director of the office of belonging, access and engagement.
According to Blue, one of Flaherty’s responsibilities that he has taken on is the role of interim dean of students. Blue officially took over the role as of April 1.
Blue said some of the areas he will now oversee in this position include the office of leadership and engagement, the office of fraternity and sorority life, career services and student legal services.
Blue still retains his current position overseeing the EIU Center for Gender and Sexual Diversity.
“It’s a lot because I’m trying to catch up on some of the responsibilities I had before these were added, but I have a good team of people that I’m working with,” Blue said.
Because Blue will have additional duties, the program coordinator of the office of belonging, access and engagement, Luis Paniagua, is taking on some of Blue’s responsibilities as executive director.
“My position didn’t really change. I’m just taking on more responsibilities, like the cultural house reservations. I’m still overseeing some student organizations like Pride, Strong MAN and LASO,” Paniagua said.
According to Blue, agreeing to take on these additional responsibilities comes with a monthly stipend of roughly $800 to $1,000.
Blue said a new VPUA should be hired by June 2027 because the search for one will begin in January 2027.
In addition, Executive Director of Health and Counseling Services Eric Davidson will also be taking on Flaherty’s responsibilities in student auxiliary services to “help support Flaherty during this time.”
In an email, Davidson wrote that these responsibilities include overseeing and providing support and assistance to housing and dining, campus recreation, the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union and health and counseling services, in addition to his role as executive director.
“I will also assist Dr. Flaherty with other projects and assignments that she needs assistance with,” Davidson wrote.
Despite additional responsibilities being taken on, Davidson wrote he enjoyed the opportunity to work with his colleagues in new ways and learn more about other departments.
Andrea Jimenez can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].
