Who is Ainsley Carry?

Ainsley Carry has been named vice president for student affairs. Carry comes to Auburn from Temple University, where he served as associate vice president for student affairs and dean of students.

Carry, who began his new position June 15, has an extensive background in student affairs and is a strong advocate for student leadership and personal development.

In his new role at Auburn, Carry will be responsible for the formulation, development, management and

delivery of services and programs to enhance the academic, physical and social welfare for the entire university student population. He will oversee the office of the dean of students, student government, student publications and media, career development services, campus recreation and sports, student organizations, Greek life, international student life, judicial affairs, student residence life, student orientation and retention, the parents' association,
student community services, the student recreation center, the university student center, Auburn University Medical Clinic and the student leadership institute.

With 17 years of experience as a college administrator, Carry has held positions at Southern Methodist University, the University of Arkansas, the University of Florida, and Temple University.

Here are a few insights into the newest African-American
administrator at Auburn.

What attracted you to Auburn?

"I came to Auburn for four reasons: leadership, students, rebuilding the division, and the Auburn Creed.

I believe in the leadership of this institution. What are they trying to do? What’s the Auburn academic mission? And based on what I’ve seen, the leadership of the university seems to be leadership that’s interested in service and outreach, making a difference to this state, and making a difference to Auburn students. That is very attractive to me and I can see it in the academic mission and in the student life mission, so the leadership of the institution was another thing that attracted me.

I think the second thing that attracted me was that this university, more than any other that I’ve worked with (I’ve worked with about four or five institutions), is very interested in student empowerment, student leadership and leadership development. The student government here is involved in critical decisions, they have a seat at the table, and their voice is heard. They have strong student organizations and a strong student culture. The students love this institution, so it is something that I was excited about. It’s a university that appears to allow students to be at the table, to participate in critical decision-making, and that’s impressive to me.

The third reason I was attracted to Auburn University is that student affairs has not had a vice president for student affairs in the past five or six years. It is exciting to be the vice president that brings it all back together. My background is in counseling and that is the core of my being; to work with people, collaborate, communicate, and struggle through some things. We have some stuff that we need to argue about, think about, and stay up all night about. I enjoy that type of 'stuff'. I believe this is the type of work that God designed me to do. To some people, this kind of work is exhausting, but this is what I was designed to do. I sit down with students at night, in the morning, and in the afternoon and I sit and I think, 'I’m being paid to do this right now. What a job!' About once a month, like maybe beginning this fall I’m going to grab pizza and I go to a different residence hall every week and just sit in the lobby with students, share some pizza, and I’ll ask them, 'What’s going on? What are you struggling with? What do you want to know more about? What do you wish Auburn did less of or more of?' I’ll just talk to students and every time I do that, I’ll realize again, that I get paid to do this. To me it’s the best job in the world and I can’t imagine anything else I’d rather be doing. The students are a strong part of my interest here and rebuilding this division is a challenge I’m really excited about.

The last reason is the Auburn Creed. I read it over and over again and it spoke to me. The principles in it are things I said to myself, 'could I stand in front of a bunch of alumni, parents, or students and say these words? Can I say that I believe in these things?' and it was clear I could say yes to every one of them. I felt like I wanted to work at a place where the university has a statement, which is not a code of conduct - something separate from that - something that elevates above the rules and regulations, a statement of our spirit, a statement of our behavior, a statement of our expectations of what we’re going to do in this world. To me, that’s what this creed does, and that’s why I’m so excited to be getting into this. I’m going to make the creed a feature in my office, and I will continue to find ways to promote the creed in the future."

Tell me about your family

"I’m married to my wife, Jessica and we have a 2-year-old daughter, Aliyah. My wife is from Augusta, Ga. and I’m from Florida, so the south is home. We really feel Alabama is home for us, and we’re very interested in being here for a very long time. We’ve got a lot of work to do and we’re excited about being here, so this is a place where I’m hoping to sit down and do some good things."

Having been at other SEC schools and a graduate of one of them, what do you look forward to?

"I am looking forward to football weekends. It’s going to be great being back in SEC competition;I think it’s the best conference for athletic competition."

What do you hope to bring to Auburn?

"We’re excited about everything that Auburn brings to the table. For me, those are the key things that I’m looking forward to getting involved in. My interest is to be the 'Vice President for Everything' at this university; for the students, the staff and the alums. I want to be there to support, see what the issues, needs, and concerns are, and see if we can help. Sometimes universities are very big places and we don’t know where to start. I’m hoping we can create a culture where if a student comes here, we help them figure it out."

If you’d like to contact Dr. Carry, his office is located in the
new Student Center at:

3248 Auburn University Student Center,
Auburn, AL 36849-5278
Phone: 334-844-8880
Ainsley.carry@auburn.edu
www.auburn.edu/studentaffairs/

Questions?
Contact Tanja Matthews '92 334.844.1113 email