Departments Get New Leaders

Mark Adams took over as associate vice president for Information Resources on Dec. 1.

Two SHSU staff members recently took steps up from associate directors to become the heads of their departments.

Mark Adams and John Yarabeck have been named associate vice president for Information Resources and dean of students, respectively.

Adams, whose tenure in the position began Dec. 1, began his career at SHSU as a student assistant in Computer Services almost 17 years ago.

“He is a very dedicated and loyal staff member who strives for excellence in all his endeavors,” said vice president for Finance and Operations Jack Parker.

Receiving both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in computer science from SHSU, in 1991 and 1998 respectively, he continued to work in the department in various positions and was named associate director for Computer Services in 2001.

In his new position, Adams oversees the university's Computer Services and the University Mail Services.

Assisting former associate vice president for Information Resources Jim Stevens, who recently retired, for eight years (he was assistant director for Computer Services from 1998-2001), Adams said that the primary change in his job will be “assuming management of mail services, and accepting the responsibility that ‘The buck stops here!’

“As a native of Huntsville, SHSU has been a huge part of my family’s life, so I am excited and proud to accept a position that will allow me to represent the university,” he said, adding that he is also extremely proud of the fact that his grandmother, Audrey Guerrant, was the first woman to be named an SHSU distinguished alumni, in 1976.

Because of Adams’ strong belief in the service-oriented nature of Information Resources, one of his goals is to work with the university’s staff “to better listen to the community and understand the services they need to gain their education and do their jobs, and then to find ways to make those services available to them.

“The division of Information Resources has an incredibly talented staff, and I am looking forward to finding new opportunities to allow them to use those talents to help SHSU recruit and graduate more students and to help bring the recognition and respect to SHSU that it deserves,” Adams said.

“I look forward to the challenges of the technology world, and figuring out how to use it to help advance the university and better prepare it for the growth it is experiencing,” he said.

John Yarabeck, who has served as interim Dean of Students since July 2005, was officially named to the position Nov. 1.

It was through a strange set of circumstances that Yarabeck found his position as Dean of Students.

He had served as associate Dean of Students since 2003 but was leaving SHSU for a position in Chicago when at the last minute, his contract fell through.

At almost the exact same time at SHSU, former vice president for Student Services Thelma Douglass retired and then-Dean of Students Frank Parker stepped into her position as interim vice president, leaving Parker’s position open.

“I was without a job for about an hour,” Yarabeck said. “Sometimes doors open and doors shut very quickly.”

Having served as interim Dean of Students since July 2005, Yarabeck was officially named Dean of Students on Nov. 1.

As Dean of Students, he oversees the Dean of Students’ Office, which coordinates the crisis center, a communication network for students and their parents in the events of death or illness in the family; is responsible for student disciplinary measures; implements the co-curriculum transcript; sponsors special programming, such as Who’s Who, the Alpha Lambda Delta freshman honor society and Orange Keys, among others; and is the co-adviser for the Student Government Association.

Yarabeck received his bachelor’s degree in human development and family studies and his master’s degree in college student personnel administration from Colorado State University.

He is currently working to complete course work in SHSU’s educational administration doctoral program.
“It’s beyond my wildest dreams to be in this position,” Yarabeck said. “I never expected when I was in graduate school that I could become the dean of students at a major university.

“It’s really exciting,” he said. “It’s a wonderful opportunity.”

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SHSU Media Contact: Jennifer Gauntt
Dec. 1, 2006
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