Barbara Henley has been named NIU’s acting vice president for student affairs.

Henley, who assumed her new position on Aug. 8, served as NIU’s associate vice president for student affairs since July 1988 after a year as assistant vice president. The promotion makes her NIU’s highest-ranking female administrator.

A native of Chicago, Henley said she will “continue to work on improving the climate for minority students” at NIU, as well as “build and strengthen relations with other areas of the university, especially academic affairs and the communities from which our students come.”

NIU President John La Tourette said the national search for a permanent student affairs vice president will begin in early September. The search will include the establishment of a representative search committee as called for by NIU’s new constitution.

“Dr. Henley and I have shared our expectations about developments in the (student affairs) division, and I’m confident that she will play a very proactive role in advancing the agenda of the division,” LaTourette said.

Henley replaced Jon Dalton, who served for five years in NIU’s student affairs division. Dalton began as student affairs vice president at Florida State University in Tallahassee on Aug. 15.

In a farewell interview in the Aug. 9 issue of The Northern Star, Dalton called NIU’s racial and ethnic diversity “a real asset to the university” and said this diversity must be addressed to effectively reach all students.

Dalton said Henley, as his successor, must attempt to make NIU “more aware of the fact that there are (racially) different students coming.”

Henley said she would like to “broaden the thinking” of the NIU community. NIU should continue to offer student programs and services that “help to develop the whole person academically, personally, socially, culturally and physically,” she said.