Saint Xavier University welcomed its new Provost, Dr. Saib Othman, on August 1. A Provost is a high-ranking university administrative officer who is responsible for the academic aspect of the university.
Othmam stated that his guiding principle, whether as an administrator or teacher is “What is the best course of action I can do to help our students?”
As provost, Othman is focused on the university’s programs, ensuring that, “they are reputable, strong academically, and that students would feel great about graduating from that program.” He stated.
“We always look at what our students are looking for, what fits into our mission as a Catholic institution with Mercy values, and how can we support our community? To me, the university should be ingrained in its community, which is something that I love about Saint Xavier. It’s always been here to serve its community.” He responded when asked about the university’s addition of programs, such as the Exercise Science program.
Othman recognizes the financial challenges students face by attending college and he intends to “prioritize our expenses to be directly in our instructional services to our students.”
He also sees the library as a “space that serves students best such as a learning commons.” As for the library, Othman wants it to be a space that serves students best, such as a learning commons.
Othman is also aware of how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected education as a whole.
Othman stated “You should always design yourself and services around your student needs, and we have different student populations. So for our undergraduates, we certainly would like them to come to campus because that’s a part of the value propositioned to them. They want to be on campus, they want to have that experience, and they want to have those interactions.”
He continued, “So I want to make sure we have a vibrant campus. Students will come in here, having the benefit of interacting with our faculty, our staff, their colleagues, so we’ll continue to do that.”
Othman hopes to bring the campus back to a pre-pandemic environment, but also acknowledges that students may have needs that take them away from campus.
He stated, “It’s important to look at our different populations and offer them what serves them best.”
“There isn’t really one formula that works for everybody and I think its important that we look at our populations and offer them what serves them best.” He continued.
His family is what inspired Othman to pursue a career in education. He received his Doctoral and Masters degrees in Mathematics from the University of Iowa.
Before coming to Saint Xavier, he worked at the University of Iowa’s research center, and a software company. Othman also worked at Aurora University, where he was a professor of Mathematics, and then moved on to become chair of the department of Mathematics, Dean for the College of Arts and Sciences and finally Dean of Graduate Studies.
He also served at Marian University before moving on to National Louis University.
Administrative positions were not considered part of Othman’s career goals. He was focused on teaching, but an opportunity presented itself to him at Aurora University. He considers himself to be very lucky for the direction his career has taken him.
Othman’s guiding principle, whether as an administrator or teacher is “What is the best course of action I can do to help our students?”