Kendal Washington White Q&A

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR Discourse on Women’s History Month matters

BY JT THORPE

@JT_Thorpe_

What’s up, Wildcats?

e Daily Wildcat had some sta changes over winter break, so as this semester’s Editor-inChief, I’m excited to introduce our rst special edition of 2022!

Since the pandemic began, the Wildcat has had to cut down its weekly production of print editions, which is why we only do about three a semester now.

I thought it was about time we began utilizing our semiregular production of themed special editions to feature bigger issues or subjects that can a ect anyone and everyone in our community.

While thinking about what sort of editions we might want to produce over the next handful of months, I landed on the idea of featuring Women’s History Month during March.

Despite the fact that women make up roughly half the human population, our society still lacks accurate female representation in so many areas.

It’s wild to me that it’s 2022 and men still have higher salaries than women in the same eld. Even in a female-dominated workforce like education, male teachers make around 10 to 13% more than female teachers, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

Women make up only 34.3% of tenured faculty at the University of Arizona, which is almost a 6% increase from a decade ago, according to the university’s statistics — as mentioned by Daily Wildcat news reporter Vic Verbalitis on page 9.

Featuring some of the amazing women in our community and highlighting current issues give our reporters and opinion columnists enough room to run wild with a wide range of ideas and a variety of speci c topics to focus on.

Some of the stories you can nd in this edition include: a Q&A with one of the top basketball coaches in the country, a heartwarming feature on one of Tucson’s all-female mariachi groups, an opinion piece the Equal Rights Amendment and a great amount of advice from UA professors for any women considering a career in STEM.

We want to report on what matters to you, not just in print, but through our daily online content as well. While we truly can’t highlight everything under the sun, I promise we will try our best.

If you have any ideas or suggestions for topics to feature, please reach out to me or one of our speci c desk editors. Our email addresses are at the bottom of page 4.

Bear Down and Go ‘Cats,

JT Thorpe

Editor-in-Chief

ADMIN SPOTLIGHT

Get to know the UA’s Dean of Students

BY JT THORPE

@JT_Thorpe_

While President Dr. Robert C. Robbins is the face of the University of Arizona, there are dozens of other people who help keep the school running. With the surplus of university-labeled emails, it can be easy to feel disconnected from the administration and forget the faces behind the names.

To help close this gap, the Daily Wildcat sat down with Dean of Students and Vice Provost for Campus Life Kendal Washington White to get to know her better.

What sort of mentors did you have growing up?

I’ve never had a singular person. I’ve always been around people, men and women, who you could pick things from — information and wisdom. So I’ve had quite a few people throughout my life; I still do. I try to get wisdom from as many people as I can. I also get it from students as well. I really appreciate meeting with students. … It’s important for me as the Dean of Students to want to know what’s happening. I want to hear what’s happening and what’s going well for students. … Everybody has di erent ways of experiencing the university. … We’re here because of you, to provide you all with the best experience we can give and o er.

What was your favorite subject in grade school?

In high school, it was history. It’s fascinating when you think about how this country evolved, and about how little women could do for a long time. And we still have a long way to go, but history is so exciting for me. I love the Greeks and the Romans. I love “The Odyssey.” I think that reading is great.

What are your favorite books and subjects to read?

Right now I’m reading “ e Other Black Girl.” It’s ction, but everyone said it was good, so we’ll see. I read a lot of di erent things. I’ve been reading a lot about incarceration or the woes of the world. ere’s a lot going on in our country, and we have to educate ourselves. So I’ve been spending a lot of time reading about inequities. ere are so many things, but the more you learn about it, the better you can advocate.

You’ve worked for the UA for 27 years, what is your favorite place to go on campus?

I really like the turtle pond. at’s really cool. I didn’t know about it until I was 10 years in. When I was the director of the New Start summer program, that’s how I learned about the pond. We would take our class over there for a break.

What do you do when you’re not at work?

I love hanging out with [my sons]. ey moved back right before the pandemic hit. … It’s been great to have them at home. … Having my sons home has been wonderful. We’re hanging out with each other, going to the movies.

As someone who lived across the country before settling here, why Tucson?

Arizona is beautiful. Tucson is beautiful. … The beauty of being Black in Tucson is there is no certain place in Tucson where all the Black people are. … We’re everywhere, which is a good thing. The con to that is if you really want to be near and with Black folks in Tucson, it’s tough. You have to make an effort to reach out. … The thing that I love the most about Tucson is the fact that you can just be who you are. … It’s such a welcoming community.

KATE EWING | THE DAILY WILDCAT

THE DEAN OF STUDENTS and Vice Provost for Campus Life Kendal Washington White sits in her office by a name plaque that reads “women work wonders,” on Thursday, Feb. 10.