LSU has narrowed down three candidates to be the new Student Health Center director after an exhaustive search. Students have been a key part of the process, as several were invited to a student interview portion where they asked the potential new hires questions and got to know the candidates personally.
The students were then asked to complete a post-interview survey and explain which candidate they thought would be the best fit. The feedback was relayed to the hiring team and taken into consideration for their final decision.
Sarai Barmore, English major and rising junior, attended all three student interviews with the potential new hires. She felt confident LSU would take into consideration the student’s opinions on the candidates.
“I’m not just here to take classes,” Barmore said. “I’m a part of the LSU community. And so knowing that LSU values transparency and actually wants to hear from the people, from the students, it’s just great.”
Student Affairs Chief of Staff Emily Hester finds it incredibly important to hear students’ input when hiring such an important role. For the past five years, the Division of Student Affairs has included students as a part of all major searches, she said.
“We are here to support students in their success, and so it is vital to have students be part of the process to provide input for the decision makers in these searches for our university leaders,” Hester said.
The health center has been without a director since June 2024. Since the center falls under student affairs, Vice President Brandon Common has been interim director since January 2025, which is also when they started the search for the new director.
Barmore, who works in the parent and family programs under student affairs, said Common was looking over the student’s feedback diligently as he finalized a decision Friday.
The biggest concerns students have is how the director will balance the needs of students while following the policies and regulations framed by Our Lady of the Lake’s Catholic background.
OLOL has had an exclusive partnership with the university to staff the health center, as well as its athletic medical staff, since donating the largest gift in school history in 2022.
Students like Barmore worry that certain services will no longer be available because of OLOL’s religious morals.
Those services include sexual health, gynecological, suicide prevention and sexual transition counseling. All of these services have been controversial in the Catholic religion.
“I want the director to make sure that the students know that they come first no matter what, and that they’re still able to get the services that they need,” said Barmore.
The former health center director, Julie Hupperich, said the issue of OLOL’s Catholic affiliation was part of why she and the university parted ways. In an ongoing lawsuit, Hupperich is claiming she was wrongfully terminated after speaking out against the partnership between the public university and private Catholic hospital, which she saw as a violation between church and state.
According to Hester, the hiring committee is looking for a director that will place students of the utmost importance and creatively approach problem-solving. The director must also be committed to collaborating with other LSU offices and divisions to best support the students and their needs.
Newly-elected Student Government President Lavar Henderson was also present for the student interviews and represented the student body as a whole.
“Our university has such a strong commitment to listening to student voices that you don’t get at any other university,” said Henderson.
He believes the director that will thrive at LSU will be someone who brings fresh ideas and concrete plans for improvement.
LSU expects to make a decision by the beginning of next week on the new director.
