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PRESIDENT JENNY COYLE HAS BIG PLANS TO BUILD UP PACIFIC UNIVERSITY

In some ways, Jenny Coyle is a new face on campus this year, joining the hundreds of new students and faculty.

But then again, the university’s new president has been all along: She is an alumna, not to mention a parent of two Boxer students, a professor, and the dean for the College of Optometry, and on July 1, she became the 18th President of Pacific University—and her presence has been immediate and seemingly everywhere.

In the first week of school alone, President Coyle has been seen elbow-to-elbow with students at the U.C. lunch room, cheering on the sidelines at the Pacific University men’s soccer team, and smiling through countless meetings with faculty, staff, students, and alumni. In a recent interview with The Pacifc Index, President Coyle expressed her determination to create personal relationships within Pacific’s community—and, if that goal sounds a bit effusive and elusive, she also has committed to creating huge major changes in the physical make-up of the campus. That is, President Coyle is determined to upgrade the buildings on campus.

A Glimpse Into President’s Coyle office—and her goals

President Coyle’s office perches on the fourth floor of Marsh Hall and overlooks the campus courtyard. Her office is welcoming, with pictures of her family spread across her desk and a light maple wooden bookshelf lining the entire right-hand wall. The opposite wall is window-filled, with a view that captures the heart of the university—and when not watching the activity below, Coyle finds herself mingling in that crowd almost every day.

Throughout our interview, President Coyle was engaged, and a radiant smile rarely left her face. Although her plan for Pacific is extended, she narrowed the conversation to her top three goals:  improving and investing in accessibility; improving and investing the fine and theatrical arts programs; and improving and investing the science facilities.

“I think accessibility is so important because it’s a basic need,” President Coyle said passionately. She added, “so everything that I can do to help with accessibility is definitely going to be a priority.”

Throughout the interview, she reiterated that improving accessibility is rightfully on the top priority list—and explained that the task is not as simple as adding elevators and ramps to every building but is complicated by trying to preserve the campus history. Washburn hall, for example, would require an additional attached building to add an elevator. Still, she is eager to fix urgent and essential problems as fast as possible—and reassured that she has already met with Facilities to address the issue.

Other buildings, like the Stoller Center, need to be enhanced. With the steady population of student-athletes at Pacific, the population is ultimately outgrowing the facilities.

“But none of those things will happen in a year or two; those will take hundreds of millions of dollars,” Coyle explained. “It is my goal to find partners who want to invest and have the same dream as us and a lot of fundraising ahead of us.”

President Coyle explained how priorities might shift depending on the urgency and the space usage—and from what she hears from students, faculty, and staff; those who use those spaces daily. She underscores that communication and strong personal relationships are essential in improving the university—and certainly, in the first weeks of her tenure, President Coyle has put action behind those words, like recent sightings in the lunch room visiting with students to understand better what they find passion in on campus and how she can help improve their experiences.

And, President Coyle also is relying on her own first-hand experiences as a student, a parent of Boxer students and a dean. “I had the advantage that I have been here for 30 years, so I saw what we were focused on in the given time, and I saw that we haven’t put much into fine arts or theatrical arts yet,” explained President Coyle. “Or science, we’ve been doing some upgrades, and some lovely things have happened, but we are at a point where we could do more; it’s time. It’s been a long time.”

What Community and Personal Relationships Mean to President Coyle

President Coyle refers to herself as a storyteller. Particularly, she says, her job is to listen to the stories from the faculty, from students, and from the community at large—and, in turn, tell those stories to inspire donors to support the university’s growth and goals.

“I am a relational person, and that motivates me, and that’s how I develop and hear the stories that help me understand problems that we have,” passionately spoke President Coyle. “If I understand what would happen in space or what’s been happening even though we didn’t have the space, and what could happen even more if we made a change. Understanding: that’s how you convince a potential owner to invest in your dream and be a partner in that dream. So, I can only hear those stories or find out what people love or think they need if people are comfortable talking to me.”

When talking about community and building relationships, her face lit up. President Coyle started listing off students’ names and passions, from upcoming choir concerts to science posters presented.

“Right now,” she continued, “it is me finding out what people think is important, what they love about Pacific and what we need to preserve, what people think needs to change, from facilities to structure, organization, and culture, so I need to hear that.” She beamed, “I am not the one who teaches in the art building or the science building; I need to hear from people that actually live and use it and what they think is important, and that’s how we set priorities.”

President Coyle added that she is a “yes, and. . .” person, referencing the popular improv technique in which a person responds positively to any suggestion and tries to build on that idea. There are so many talented people at Pacific University with good ideas, she extolled—and added that she believes there is always room for more expansion on an idea that can help improve the university.

“I want to see our students and faculty shine in the ways they enjoy,” exclaimed Coyle. “I want to be able to see those moments because I know that’s why you are here, so that’s really important to me, to see what everybody’s bliss is and share their story.” — Emily Rutkowski

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WHO IS PRESIDENT COYLE?
Favorite ice cream flavor: Cherry Vanilla . Absolutely love it.
Favorite vacation spot: New Orleans
Favorite dinner: I love Indian cuisine
First concert: Sha Na Na. I know none of you have probably heard of them. I think I was 8 years old. 
Favorite season: Fall. I love the colors, the smells, and the weather, and I like to cook for American Thanksgiving.
First job: Dairy Queen. I can make the swirl on the soft serve. 
Favorite hobbies: New Orleans Saints Football, digging in the dirt and planting things, binging shows on Netflix.
Writer

Major: Journalism

Hometown: Mesa, Arizona

Hobbies: soccer, track, being outside, hiking, writing

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