On the right path

Brandon Manning, MS ’21 steers college students toward success

As he gained more experience, he also felt the urge to gain more education, which led him to the student affairs administration graduate program at Binghamton University. He was especially drawn to courses focusing on research methods that challenged his existing perceptions of the field.

“In student affairs, you gain so many transferrable skills and, honestly, the program at

Brandon Manning, MS ’21, has made it his mission to help students find a way to succeed.

As a resident assistant at SUNY Potsdam, he learned that he enjoyed making a difference in the lives of the students he was working with. And while he originally had aspirations to work in the music field, he soon realized that his calling was in student affairs.

“The reason I went into student affairs was because I wanted to be the kind of person I needed while I was in college,” Manning says.

Manning served as a residence hall director at both Potsdam and SUNY Cortland before moving on to a position as a student rights and responsibilities coordinator at SUNY Broome Community College.

Binghamton set me up for success,” he says. “Whether it’s research or student development in general, this program prepared me to serve as a collaborative leader helping me refine my abilities to better serve my students and campus.”

Manning also credits Binghamton’s program with teaching him how to pivot quickly to address the individual needs of college students, which was especially helpful when he became an associate director of student conduct at Columbia University. His approach was to find ways to turn behavioral or academic violations into learning experiences for students.

“I would talk with the students about critically thinking in the moment and creating action plans to deter their behavior and learn from their experience,” he says.

Now a senior associate director of advising and academic success at Columbia Business School, Manning encourages others to consider the field of student affairs.

“One thing I always talk about with my colleagues is to send the elevator back down for someone else to join you,” Manning says. “Advise them about what they can do to get to your level and then surpass you. That way you help advance each other.” — Anthony

Borrelli