As Assistant Director of Student Engagement, Spencer Munson has made a significant impact. He played a key role in creating events such as Lake Day during Welcome Week and the Student Programming Board (SPB) Foodie Series and positively influencing the students he has mentored. Munson will be leaving Doane after Sept. 3.
Some favorite aspects of his role have been seeing the students he’s mentored shine on the public stage. He shared how he enjoyed watching students like alumni Krismar Williams or senior Myridean Lehman become great student leaders.
Reflecting on the state of student engagement in his 5 1/2 years at Doane, Munson has seen the natural ebb and flow of student organizations. When he joined campus after the pandemic, the University was down to 15 student organizations. It can be hard, he explained, for organizations to stay active when student leaders graduate or faculty advisors leave.
“The ones we really try to put a lot of effort into are those affinity groups. So, People for the Rights of Sexual Minorities (PRISM), Doane University Latino Student Association (DULSA), Black Student Association (BSA). Those are the ones I don’t ever want to die,” Munson said. Pushing organizations to stay active and getting student leaders to pass the torch is something he believes he could have done better at in retrospect.
Munson has long been passionate about building communities. “I got an art and English degree, and I found that the leadership experience that I had outside the classroom got me further in many ways than my degree,” Munson said. He shared that the skills students can develop in these roles, such as budgeting, delegation, public speaking, conflict resolution and teamwork, are really valuable.
“Plus, the community that you find is often super rewarding. I, of course, found basic community in my different academic departments, but some of my best friends were made in different student organizations that we had a passion for,” Munson said.
He advises that students should try to get out of their comfort zones.
Introducing students to the surrounding Crete community was another aspect of his job he took pride in. Showing students from out of state, or even from another country altogether, places they can have fun or hang out in Nebraska was important to him. “We’ve done the Great Creek Escape, the field trips that we do. This year, we’re going to take kids to Josh Johnson,” Munson said.
Students can see Josh Johnson for free at the Lied Performing Arts Center in Lincoln on Sept. 24. SPB Doane, spb@doane.edu, sent an email on August 24 with the registration link.
With the birth of his 4-month-old daughter, Ani Elizabeth Magnolia, Munson wanted to spend time with his family. “My wife is Cherokee, and Ani means a clan or family group within the tribe. And it also means strawberry. So it’s community and cuteness,” Munson said. He joked that he couldn’t choose just one name for his daughter, with Elizabeth being a nod to his grandmother and Magnolia after his favorite trees, inspired by the fact that his daughter was born on Earth Day.
When he came back from paternity leave, the timing felt right for Munson to step back and spend more time with his family.
“I think that Dr. Hughes is doing a lot of great things for the university, but I have to admit that when I came back from my paternity leave, and three of my favorite people on campus had their departments cut, I was bummed about that,” Munson said. “I think they’re such valuable assets to this community and I’m somebody that really holds a lot of passion about the liberal arts education.”
He wanted to spend the first few weeks of this fall semester helping with Welcome Week and setting the new Director of Campus Engagement, Karl Anderson, up for success. “He’s awesome,” Munson said, “and we have two and a half weeks in which I can help him transition and unload all the knowledge I know so that student organizations don’t fall by the wayside.”
Munson shared that the University is hoping to hire a new assistant director of Student Engagement before Labor Day. He also encourages students to connect with Anderson, their student organization advisors, and Community Directors (CDs) in his absence.
“I think there are a lot of people in our office who will step up and be great listeners and mentors,” Munson said.“The best part about the people in Higher Education is that they care a lot and want to be there. Even more specifically in Student Affairs, they are some of the most empathetic and wonderful people.”
After Doane, Munson aims to get more involved in his past part-time jobs, including DJing and selling rare records. His dream job is to open a record and wine bar with a friend.
He also shared that students can contact him on Instagram (@spencermunson) or via his personal email after he leaves. “Sometimes people quit, and there is information that’s lost, and then it hurts everybody. I’d rather someone reach out, and I can at least give a tidbit of information to make everybody’s life easier,” Munson said.
In his time at Doane Munson assisted with Glow Casino, SPB Foodie series, Foam Party, Club Craze and the Dine 09 Comedy Showcase. All photos from 2025 publications.
Photos by Lorraine Castaneda, Mackenzie Pike and Elenna Koenig | The Doane Owl
