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Chancellor-elect Mike Haynie stressed student engagement and maintaining an on-campus presence when he spoke at Monday evening’s Student Government Association meeting.

Haynie’s appearance is part of SGA’s Assembly Speaker Series, which included Syracuse Mayor Sharon Owens last week, and Chancellor Kent Syverud will join next week.

Amid what he portrayed as a “demographic flip” in higher education, Haynie emphasized the role his administration will have moving forward in attracting and retaining students despite dwindling numbers in SU’s applicant pool.

This demographic change, Haynie said, includes a 20% total reduction in high school graduates seeking a college education and a 35% decrease in applications from the Northeast — a region that is geographically pertinent for SU.

Additionally, the chancellor-elect pointed to “political attacks” on higher education as a cause for the decrease in demand for college. He also cited broader critiques on the “values” of higher education, including what some have called a lack of return on investment.

“Over the course of the last five years, there’s no American institution where trust of the American public has declined at a faster rate than U.S. higher ed,” Haynie said. “All of those things conspire to set up some real challenges for all institutions of higher education.”

The effort to revitalize the value of a college education for prospective high school applicants requires the help of students, alongside SU administration, Haynie said.

“The best way we navigate those challenges is to be competitive, and to be competitive means delivering to all of you world-class academic experiences and world-class student experiences,” Haynie said.

In an interview with The Daily Orange, Haynie said he will maintain a good relationship with SGA by being transparent. He said his “door will be open” to student government leaders and any issues will be brought to his attention within 48 hours.

“That level of engagement and transparency really does become the foundation of a positive relationship moving forward,” Haynie said.

As he moves into his chancellorship, Haynie said he needs to “get a better handle” of what issues students find meaningful or lower the cost of attendance at SU.

After hearing from a student that outlets at the Whitman School of Management — the school where he currently serves as executive dean — did not have power, Haynie told attendees he found that 150 outlets indeed did not work. Affirming his commitment to helping students hands-on, Haynie ensured the issues brought to him will be dealt with.

“I want to understand how the leadership has been working on those issues in the past,” Haynie said. “Then, you know, it’s a matter of how do we get to a solution? 
How do we get to a good place?”

Attending open forums, such as Monday’s, is part of what Haynie said he will do to improve his engagement with students. During the meeting, he asked students where they’re from and why they chose to attend SU. Last Thursday, he attended SGA’s executive debate.

Haynie said he is making it a point to help students feel like they belong.

“I’m trying to be out with students at every opportunity,” Haynie told The D.O. “You only get that insight from spending time talking to students. You don’t get it from sitting behind your desk all day, answering emails. And that’s why I want the entire leadership team at the university to make a commitment to be out and with and among and engaging with students.”

The chancellor-elect fielded about a half dozen questions from student attendees at Monday’s meeting, including questions from an Interfraternity Council fraternity president and assembly members regarding his plans to engage with students and student organizations.

Grant Harriott, president of SU’s chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha, asked Haynie what fraternities and sororities can do to work with him in order “to thrive” in light of several Greek life organizations coming under investigation in recent months.

Haynie said he hopes to “build bridges” between Greek Life organizations and “people outside the system.” Pointing to a recent dinner with fraternity Lambda Chi Alpha, Haynie said that moments like these build connections as well as “knock down myths and misconceptions and win hearts and minds.”

Another issue facing higher education is the swelling cost of attendance, mentioned by student Leandra Hernandez, who asked about Haynie and SU leadership’s plan for distributing merit-based aid and scholarships.

In response, Haynie said, based on his role as vice chancellor, students who transferred out of Whitman fell into “two categories.” The first group, Haynie said, were those who did not “find their people.” But more prominently, he said, were high-achieving students who left Whitman for colleges in the Ivy League and other elite institutions because of a lack of financial incentive rewarding strong performance.

To combat this, Haynie created scholarships targeting students that could be at risk of transferring. The result was a 95% retention rate for recipients — a model he said he seeks to expand across the university.

Grace Elford, a sophomore at the Newhouse School of Public Communications who bantered with Haynie over their respective Pennsylvania football teams of choice, asked the incoming chancellor about how he plans to interact with student organizations to meet their needs.

“I use this word proximity,” Haynie said. “I’m going to go out and meet as many students as I possibly can.”

Haynie said he’d be available whenever he can and be present at events big or small, from sporting events to violin recitals.

“You invite me, I will come,” Haynie said.

Other business:

• Voting for SGA’s 70th assembly is underway this week, including elections for president, executive vice president, comptroller and assembly members for SU’s home colleges. Voting is open until Friday.
• SGA passed a resolution recognizing outgoing Chancellor Kent Syverud for his 12 years of service at SU in anticipation of his remarks to the assembly next Monday.
• Assembly members voted on advanced semester allocations for various student organizations following a closed-door executive session.

Published on March 31, 2026 at 12:50 am