by GRACE HILSCHER
Tony Tyler is a name you may be familiar with if you find yourself on Drake’s Campus. Tyler seems to be all over the place organizing and attending events, answering questions, and even teaching an FYS, but what exactly is his role on campus?
He is the Assistant Dean of Students. The three main responsibilities of the job are to support the Student Life Center (SLC), work closely with violence prevention, and work closely to support the multi-cultural student organizations on campus. The job also includes general student support and crisis management.
Tyler says “the most consistent thing about [his] day-to-day is that everyday is different.” Typically his days include attending events and student organization’s meetings, and working with students.
He says “fundamentally my job is to rival, challenge, and support students. Challenge them in their learning development and growth, and support them in their learning development and growth, it is always a balance of those things.”
Tyler has been working at Drake University since 2011 and has been teaching a First-Year-Seminar (FYS) off and on since fall of 2012. His more recents FYS focused on the the #BlackLivesMatter movement and after the events of Autumn 2018 he switched the focus to the #PaintItBlack movement.
“My favorite thing about his class was that he was always energetic and ready to engage with students,” Madyson Sklar said. “My favorite thing about being his FYS PMAC was that he continues to update me about my students and always invites me to class for discussions. It made me feel included even after Welcome Weekend.”
Tyler plans on continuing to teach his FYS on the #PaintItBlackMovement and just submitted the paperwork to teach it in the Fall.
Currently, he is in the pursuit of his Doctorate of Educational Leadership. The majority of his free time is spent working on his dissertation. However, over winter break he likes to spend some time reading science fiction.
“I take a whole week and just read through an entire series.” He said. His most recent series was the Broken Earth Series.
On campus one of his favorite spots is the new Starbucks in Olmstead. He said one of his colleagues described it as the “living-room” of Drake and felt as though that was the perfect description. His go to drink is a Vanilla Latte with Soy, but recently has been enjoying the Honey Almond Milk Flat White.
When not on campus he spends time with his dog, a six-year-old black lab named Shep. Tyler adopted him from the ARL.
One of his favorite secret spots in Des Moines is the walking path in the Woodland Heights Cemetery.
“It has tons of hills, and big crypts,” Tyler said. “It has big obelisks and it is quiet and beautiful. People bring their dogs and it has huge paths paved with brick. It’s just wonderful.”
If you ever want to meet with Tony Tyler, whether to talk about dogs, get advice, or learn about student organizations his office can be found in Olmsted right by the Starbucks.
