It’s all about caring for students.

“Students are my why. They are the reason why I do what I do,” said Khalilah Doss, the newest member of the Middle Tennessee State University President’s Cabinet as vice president of student affairs and dean of students.

It has been a whirlwind first four months on the job for Doss, 44, a native of Kingston, Jamaica, now living in Murfreesboro, coming to MTSU from the University of Southern Indiana in Evansville, where she was vice president of student affairs.

Following a national search, the MTSU Board of Trustees approved the appointment of Doss over the summer to replace Sarah Sudak, who stepped into the position on an interim basis for the 2023-24 academic year before retiring.

In her roles, Doss guides 11 Student Affairs departments, five Student Involvement and Leadership departments and, as dean of students, oversees the Office of Student Care and Conduct.

“It’s been a great experience, engaging with our students and learning more about MTSU in a more intimate way,” Doss said. “It’s been a great journey thus far.” She added there was not really a learning curve, “just a very nuanced experience, in learning different personality types and a different campus culture.”

President Sidney A. McPhee praised his newest administrator when he introduced her at student receptions on the True Blue Tour, MTSU’s three-state, 13-city venture to recruit new undergraduate and transfer students this fall. 

Michai Mosby of Memphis, who is in his second term as Student Government Association president, said “Dr. Doss has set an inspiring example of what it means to lead with heart and purpose. She is frequently seen attending campus events, meeting students where they are and fostering a welcoming and inclusive environment.

 “… Her ability to connect with students on a personal level demonstrates her genuine interest in our experiences and aspirations. Her approachability, enthusiasm and proactive leadership have already made a lasting impression. She is truly a champion for student success. We are fortunate to have her at the helm during this pivotal time.”

Why MTSU now?

“This opportunity found me,” said Doss, who was approached by a search firm to consider the opening.  “There was alignment. My faith leads me to believe this was pre-planned. … I had been on my (USI-Evansville) campus for five years, with amazing students and colleagues and an amazing president. I was thriving and happy, I value this, as my psychological health and safety are more important than anything else, and USI provided that.

“I decided to do my research (about MTSU). I started to feel at ease with the uncertainty that comes with the unknown of a new chapter. It was refreshing to see that both campuses functioned similarly, as there is a commitment to centering students, after my interviews with the campus community, this was affirmed for me. I felt that I would be successful here, and that this was where I needed to be.

“Thus far, MTSU has provided me with a plethora of opportunities to engage with our phenomenal student body, to engage with faculty who are the best in their field and staff who are as well.”

Identifying challenges

Doss shared three challenges facing MTSU and all universities: the safety, welfare and mental health of students, the looming enrollment cliff (demographic decline in number of traditional-age college students) and resources to support students.

Student support and mental health have taken on an even more heightened role this academic year. By Nov. 1, Doss and the MTSU community had experienced the loss of three students’ lives, two by car accidents and an on-campus suicide. The wife and mother of a teenager and preteen sons became a consoler and comforter to the MTSU community.

“Something I share with folks is that we can work our way out of pretty much anything,” she said. “Money and time can fix a lot of things — except the loss of a life.”

Committed to the health, well-being and safety of students, “the most precious resource we have on campus,” Doss said, adding, “mental health concerns on college campuses are real. Suicide is very real. Suicide ideation is very real and how students are supported is also very real. It’s not unique to MTSU. It’s across the world and the U.S.”

As for the enrollment challenges — reports indicating the U.S. will peak with 3.5 million high school graduates by 2025 and a decline in birth rates — Doss said “this is always going to be a challenge. The resources and the monies to support students are going to be a challenge at any institution you’re at.”

MTSU’s enrollment for fall was up 1.5% to just under 20,500 students.

Expectations include civility

A daily expectation for Doss is “to give the best of what I have every day. … When we’re engaging with students, I feel we ought to be emotionally connected to how we show up for students, as not doing so can negatively impact the most precious resource we have on campus, our students.

“When we engage with students — the brilliant, young adults that they are — my expectation is that we find ways to listen, and by proxy support them and meet them where they dream. That work is already being done here in multiple ways, I am just adding to it.

“To be clear, this doesn’t mean that we don’t hold students accountable for the things they do, but there has to be teaching embedded in the work that we do as well. Learning happens in a classroom.”

Another expectation is civility and respect for people.

“We may feel differently about topics and life, but we all feel and deserve to be treated in a dignified way, with respect and civility, Doss said. That’s my expectation and my non-negotiable.”

Doss’s office is in KUC Room 212. She can be reached by calling 615-898-2440 or by email at Khalilah.Doss@mtsu.edu.

— Randy Weiler (Randy.Weiler@mtsu.edu)