Family Leadership Council Invests in Student Experience

The FLC has given more than $1.8 million to the Division of Student Affairs since its creation in 2014, said Brett Barefoot, executive director for central development. Each year, the university's student affairs departments request funding for special projects, and council members determine which ones to support with their membership dues.

"When we launched the Family Leadership Council, we had 19 families from a handful of states," Barefoot said. "That year, we were able to allocate $45,500 to the Division of Student Affairs.

"This year, our 86 families representing 26 different states stepped up with record-breaking generosity."

The FLC funded 15 projects this year, including:

• $80,000 for Protocall, which provides 24/7 crisis support for students needing assistance from the University Counseling Center
• $70,000 to enable Student and Employee Health Services to update X-ray equipment for quicker, more accurate diagnoses
• $51,400 for renovations to Lester Hall, enabling the University Counseling Center to occupy the whole building, add new offices and equipment and expand services
• $28,500 for Career Center software that helps students connect with potential employers, research career opportunities and practice interview skills
• $10,500 for software to support Grove Grocery, the campus food pantry that this year provided 21,312 free meals to financially challenged students.

This funding enables the Counseling Center to continue to serve all students, even as the Ole Miss campus grows, said Dr. Juawice McCormick, the center's director. Protocall has enabled the staff to respond to more than 1,400 after-hours calls for help over the past year, she said.

"Since we have received support from FLC for this, we have increased our service delivery in this way by approximately 70% since implementing after-hours call support," McCormick said. "We went from a capacity to answer and respond to approximately 800 calls in 2022-23 to 1,423 after-hours calls in 2024-25. 

"Without the financial support of the Family Leadership Council, we would not be able to support students in this very important and timely way in the moments when help is most needed."

The Counseling Center also plans to begin renovations at Lester Hall later this summer to occupy unused areas of the building and make all the space more usable. The work will include a more comfortable waiting room, improved traffic flow and new videotaping capabilities for sessions.

"Without this incredible investment in services for our students, the University Counseling Center would not be able to maintain the level of service delivery we have developed," McCormick said. "FLC support has given us the opportunity to implement even higher quality counseling services and eliminate barriers to care. 

"We are very, very appreciative and very thankful for this amazing level of support."

John Edge, an FLC member from Olmito, Texas, said he and his wife, Felicia, have been impressed that the funding goes directly to student affairs projects. Their son, Lucas, is a journalism major.

"As the model for higher education has shifted to students having more free time, I believe it's very important to equally prioritize students' development – socially, physically and mentally – outside of academics," Edge said. "The projects and programs in place with student affairs support this reality, as balance, confidence and resilience are undefeated."

Besides helping enhance student experience, the council also serves as a resource for parents, said Michelle Slusher of Washington, D.C. She and her husband, Scott, became council members when their son, Charlie, enrolled as an English major.

"We love learning about what's going on at Ole Miss," Slusher said. "At the meeting, for example, it was exciting to learn that Ole Miss is leading the way among universities and research institutes in the area of artificial intelligence technology."

The FLC meets once per semester, hearing from campus leaders and touring new facilities. The members also gather in the Grove before two football games each fall.

To become council members, parents of Ole Miss students donate a minimum of $5,000 annually. To learn more about the council, contact Brett Barefoot at bmbarefo@olemiss.edu or 662-915-2711.

Top: Projects funded by the Ole Miss Family Leadership Council will help expand and improve crisis support and counseling services for all UM students. The council has invested more than $400,000 this year into special projects that elevate the student experience on campus. Photo by Thomas Graning/Ole Miss Digital Imaging Services