Ryan Smith, assistant director of Student Activities, now oversees the operations of the Student Activities Board, a duty previously held by Pat Bristor, associate dean of students. 

This new role is a result of realigning responsibilities within the Student Services office after staffing changes occurred over the summer. Smith has assumed leadership as the head of SAB while Bristor acts as the interim dean of students.

“This semester is going to be our transition period,” Smith said.

Previous to the shift to this new responsibility, Smith was planning large events for the upcoming semester and focused on growing the social media presence for SAB. His move to this new role caused many of his past projects to be slowed for the time being.  

“These changes were not what we were expecting for the semester,” he said.

Smith is no stranger to change, as he has shifted from a graduate assistantship, to assistant director, to this new responsibility in just two years.

“It has been transition after transition for me,” he said. 

This role comes with a plethora of new responsibilities for Smith, including taking leadership on event promotions, overseeing weekly campus-wide emails and care packages, as well as balancing some of his past responsibilities, such as maintaining the student services website and social media accounts.

“I’m always up for a challenge,” Smith said.

Though overseeing SAB was an unexpected opportunity for Smith, he has proactively coordinated with the current president to bring some new ideas to the organization in the upcoming school year.

Annalise Cardish, senior nursing major, acts as the president of SAB and has worked closely with both Bristor and Smith during her involvement in the organization. In her role, Cardish said she acts as the gatekeeper between SAB and staff, consistently communicating with organization committee members and finding common ground amongst them.

Bristor attended the first SAB meeting of the semester to announce to members that Smith will now be overseeing her former role, but she will still be available as a resource for those within the organization.

“We of course are going to miss her,” Cardish said. “But we are also excited to have [Smith] as one of our new point people. We are excited for the future direction of SAB.” 

This future direction includes having student members assume more advanced roles in the planning of campus events, as well as getting faculty and staff more involved in student activities. 

“[The changes] are on a by-trial basis,” Smith said. “We’re going to try them out … if we mess up we are going to learn from our mistakes.”

Other planned changes for the school year include a focus on hosting more local events and featuring student performers as musicians.

As it currently stands, many SAB outings occur in Pittsburgh and beyond the local area. Both Cardish and Smith advocated to bring events closer to campus this school year.

“I think our school can do a lot more to support Greene County,” Cardish said. 

Though the shift to Smith’s new role is still recent, he said he feels comfortable with the responsibility because of his past experience working closely with the organization and Cardish. Both are excited for this new opportunity and what it may bring. 

“I think SAB is taking this change in a positive way,” Cardish said. “We’re all trying to make the best of it and see what growth we can get out of it.”