Q & A with Dr. Rod Jonas

Dr. Rod Jonas started his career as a basketball coach and now serves as our Dean of the Liffrig Family School of Education and Behavioral Sciences. Hear from Dr. Jonas about the lessons he learned as a coach that translate to the work he is doing today.

Q: What drew you to the University of Mary?

A: At the time, I was assistant basketball coach at North Dakota State University. I really wanted to get into higher ed in an administrative role. I was pursuing a PhD – I thought it would give me other opportunities. Eventually, I wanted to move away from coaching, and I thought coming to Mary was an opportunity to do that. I was hired as the physical education program director and head basketball coach. Eventually an opportunity opened as the student teaching program director on campus, so I took that position. Then I was named a chair of the department of education, and then in 2010, I became dean of the school. I think the Lord had a plan for me here at the University of Mary.

Q: Being a program director, coach, and finishing your doctorate sounds busy. How did you balance it all?

A: Well, that was also a time in my life when I had small children, so that was difficult, too. People often talk about work-life balance, but I've never believed in that concept, because I don't think it works. I, along with my wife and family, have always tried to integrate my family life with my work life, because I don't think that you can put either in a silo. For example, when the team took road trips, our kids went with us on the bus. We tried to make my work life part of our family life, so that's one way I dealt with that.

The other way is that I multi-task pretty well. I think coaching teaches you that you must be able to do several things at once, and I think in my administrative role, the same is true – you must learn to balance a lot of different things, but you also have to rely on other people to do the work with you.

Q: What other skills from your time as a coach have translated to your role as dean?

A: I have a leadership style that lends itself to building teams, and I think we've done that here. I've built a very strong team of faculty and a leadership team that can help us all do the work that we do in our school.

We've done a really good job of hiring the right people who are a good fit not only for our mission as an institution, but also for our school. What we tend to look for when building our team are people who would be good teammates, and who worry more about what is best for our school and our programs than themselves, and I’m proud of that.

Q: What are some of your hobbies?

A: Well, everyone who works with me knows I love hunting. I really don't take time off, except during the fall when I take some extra time off on weekends to go on hunting trips. I have two hunting dogs, Koda and Turbo, who is currently an eight-month-old pup. I've trained all my dogs for hunting.

I teach the junior level course for our Emerging Leaders Academy. This past spring, when I got Turbo, he was just eight weeks old, and I brought him into my Emerging Leaders Academy class. He's our mascot now. He was seven pounds when they met him, and this fall when I brought him in, he was 44 pounds. They were so excited to see him.

Q: What makes you excited to come to work in the morning?

A: Making a difference. I think we're all put on this earth for such a very short time. God has a plan when this is all over, but while we're here, we have to make a difference in the lives of those we touch. I think it's very important that we understand that.

Most importantly, I think people have to feel they make a difference. So not only is it important for me to make a difference, but I hope to help our faculty understand the value and importance of making a difference in our students’ lives. When I retire, I’ll know that I've made a difference.

To this day, I have students and graduates who consistently stay in contact with me, and I think that's what I'm most proud of, the difference I've made in the lives of our faculty and our students, and only they can tell you what that difference is. I hope I've helped them become the people that God intended them to become.

Q: What’s your vision for the future of the Liffrig Family School of Education and Behavioral Sciences?

A: We will continue to develop quality programs that can make a difference in the lives of the students that we serve; that’s our number one priority. Additionally, we will continue to find ways to help our current programs grow not only in quality, but also in enrollment, which is vital to the health of our school and the University of Mary as a whole.