The latest episode of the Inside UMSL podcast featured a conversation with Honors College Dean Ed Munn Sanchez.
Around the Pierre Laclede Honors College at the University of Missouri–St. Louis, Dean Ed Munn Sanchez is known simply as “Ed” among faculty members and students alike.
“It’s very first name; it’s a very, very casual place,” Munn said. “No one calls me anything but ‘Ed.’ My office is attached to the student lounge, and the students can stick their heads in and talk to the dean whenever they want. That’s true for everybody. I think [the students] are surprised at that level of intimacy. We really think of them as junior colleagues.”
Munn joined host Nate Fleming on the latest episode of the Inside UMSL podcast to chat about the convivial, close-knit nature of the Honors College, as well as how UMSL’s Honors community empowers students through innovative classes, meaningful mentorship and unique opportunities, from internships to study abroad, that help them thrive on campus and beyond. In particular, he highlighted internship programs including the Pershing Fellows Summer Internship Program through the Pershing Charitable Trust and the Washington, D.C. internship program, which is supported by UMSL alumni. He also highlighted unique opportunities that the Honors College offers students on the UMSL campus, including the Opportunity Scholars Program, which offers full tuition reimbursement and room and board for first-generation students.
On the podcast, Munn also discussed leadership, including the examples of leaders he looks to in his own life, qualities that he believes make a strong leader and how he helps prepare students to become leaders. He’s all in on UMSL’s mission of transforming lives, which he believes is especially impactful for the university’s unique student body.
“I bought in from the moment I came here,” Munn said. “The transforming lives – it is so easy to think about that. It’s so easy for anyone to say. I’m sure many people talk about ‘we transform lives.’ But I’m just all in on that and have been from the beginning. I think it’s one of the most important roles an institution can play. I really like that mission.”
Hear more of the conversation between Munn and Fleming below:
