Kent L. Hubbell '67 has been reappointed to a second five-year term as Cornell's Robert W. and Elizabeth C. Staley Dean of Students.

The reappointment, announced by Vice President for Student and Academic Services Susan H. Murphy, is effective July 1. During his first term, Hubbell was involved in a variety of efforts in meeting the needs of students, including support services after Sept. 11, 2001, and helping to negotiate an agreement between the university and Redbud Woods protesters in July 2005.

His office's purview also has grown in the past five years to encompass the International Students and Scholars Office; the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Resource Center; New Student Programs; and the Carol Tatkon Center, and it will soon include the reorganized Off-Campus Housing Office.

Hubbell also oversees the Student Activities Office (which serves more than 800 student organizations), the Office of Student Support, Cornell United Religious Work, Fraternity and Sorority Affairs, and the student union, Willard Straight Hall. Hubbell views his job as largely collaborative, working with Campus Life, Gannett Health Services and the academic units of the university.

"My role is principally as an advocate for students on campus," Hubbell said. "I'm rewarded by interacting with students, and life at the university is a much greater thing than the simple sum of the courses students take. We're about helping students take advantage of all the things the university offers to enrich their lives."

Hubbell's office currently is overseeing renovations to Willard Straight Hall. Completed projects include the Cornell Ceramics Studio, the Browsing Library and the Fifth Floor Lounge. Planned projects are the specialized computer lab on the first floor for fine, applied and performing arts applications and student publications, and an Office of Student Support suite on the second floor.

A recent study by Hubbell's office includes a 10-point strategic plan that includes a focus on meeting the mental health needs of students and guiding their spiritual, moral and ethical development; improving programs and services for parents, graduate students and international students; and collaborations with academic units and the Residential Initiative.

"Kent has been an extraordinary dean of students these past five years," Murphy said. "He has earned the respect and admiration of all with whom he interacts. His concern for the health and welfare of our students is foremost in his work, and he has devoted much energy to helping faculty understand the needs of our students, supporting staff in their work and, most importantly, connecting directly with the students. He also brings a creative and energetic approach to his work with student leaders and challenges them to do their best."

Hubbell received his bachelor of architecture degree from Cornell in 1969, served in the Peace Corps and earned an M.F.A. in sculpture at Yale in 1973. He was a professor and chair of the architecture program at the University of Michigan for 18 years before joining the Cornell faculty in 1993. He chaired Cornell's Department of Architecture from 1993 to 1998, and he is currently a faculty fellow at the Carl Becker House.

His architectural work is in fabric structures. This spring he initiated a seminar series, "Audio Fanatics," which he described as "a test bed to offer a course in acoustics."