by Frank Garza
In some ways, going virtual has made it easier for the Office for Law Student Affairs to meet with students, said Alan K. Haynes, J.D., Assistant Dean for Law Student Affairs.
Setting up meetings with students before could be difficult, especially if they lived outside San Antonio. Even if it’s just a conversation, Haynes will use Zoom instead of the phone to talk to the student.
“You get a better sense of what’s going on if you’re talking to someone you can actually see,” Haynes said. “You get a better sense of what it is you need to do. You can share your screen, you can share documents, which is easier especially if it’s related to registered student organizations.”
Even before COVID-19, Haynes used Calendly — an automated scheduling software — to set student appointments. After the pandemic hit, he worked with Felicia Cruz (B.A. ’12, M.A. ’14), Ph.D., Director of Online Learning and Curriculum Innovation, to set up a system through which students could reach him at any time.
“Even after we get back to normal, whatever that will be defined as, it’s going to be easy to connect with a student, even if they’re in Austin,” Haynes said.
