About Us

Vacant

The Administrative Assistant for the Office of Student Life is a:

• Receptionist for all telephone and email communications to the department.
• Auxiliary support-person to Ami and Michael.
• Resource for Western students.
• Point of contact for faculty, staff, administrators, students, and family members to receive behavioral or safety concerns regarding students.

Case Manager/Conduct Officer

LaQuae joined the Office of Student Life in October of 2024. Prior to joining the Office of Student Life Team, LaQuae spent five years in Residence Life at Western Washington University as a Resident Director (2021-2024) and Assistant Resident Director (2019-2021). Before that, LaQuae earned MA in Interpersonal and Health Communication from the University of Georgia and a BA in Organizational Communication from George Fox University. 

• Residence Life Conduct Hearing Officer (2019-2024) 
• Student Conduct Appeals Board (2020-2024) 
• Husch Blackwell Title IX Hearing Officer Certified (2023) 
• Affinity Housing Summer Work Group (2023)
• TIX Education Specialists LLC Title IX Hearing Officer Trained (2022) 
• Inclusion Assistant Summer Work Group (2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023)
• Pride Housing Committee (2019-2022)
• Residence Life Accessibility Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee (2019-2020) 
• Menal Health First Aid Certified (2019)
• The role of depression and anxiety in managing roommate conflicts. Paper accepted for presentation at the National Communication Association annual conference, November 2019, Baltimore, Maryland.. Paper accepted for presentation at the National Communication Association annual conference, November 2019, Baltimore, Maryland.
• Forgiveness among roommates: Identifying predictors and transitional influences. Paper presented at the International Communication Association annual conference, May 2019, Washington D.C., USA
• Role play in a model community to practice challenging prejudice. Paper co-presented at Georgia Communication Association annual conference, February, 2018, Columbus, Georgia
• Silence in conflict: the impact of the silent treatment on relational satisfaction among college roommates. Paper presented at the Northwest Communication Association annual conference, April 2017, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
• Exploring the role of forgiveness and facework in college roommate conflict management strategies. Paper presented at the Northwest Communication Association annual conference, April 2016, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho 

The Case Manager/Conduct Officer for the Office of Student Life is a:

• resource and liaison for Western students.
• primary point of contact and liaison for faculty, staff, administrators, students, and family members to receive behavioral or safety concerns regarding students.
• active member of the Student Care/Concern Team and assisting in coordinating multi-department response to behavioral or safety concerns involving students.
• conduct officer for administering the Student Conduct Code.
• one-on-one advisor to students to assist in their understanding of institutional policies and processes (including academic grievances, incomplete grade contracts, and general petitions).
• case manager for students experiencing significant difficulties, sharing guidance regarding University and community services.

Dean of Student Life

michael.sledge@wwu.edu

Michael is responsible for providing operational leadership, strategic vision, and direction for the offices of Student Life, Basic Needs, Student Engagement, and Off-Campus Living, as well as:

• Serving as a resource and liaison for students, parents, faculty and staff to assist students in crisis;
• Strategic planning for basic needs efforts on behalf of Enrollment & Student Services including work with our Resource Navigator on short-term emergency housing and case management; liaison with Washington Student Achievement Council on state efforts to support basic needs; and coordinate work among institutional stakeholders on food insecurity. 
• Facilitating the efforts of the Student Care/Concern Team, a cross-disciplinary group of Western professionals including leadership from Student Health Center, Counseling Center, Residence Life, Disability Access Center, Prevention & Wellness Services & University Police;  
• Facilitating the efforts of the Violence/Sexual Violence Consult Team, a cross-disciplinary group of Western professionals including members from CASAS, Civil Rights and Title IX Compliance, & Residence Life; 
• Overseeing the student conduct process at Western including serving as the Dean’s designee in many student conduct appeals, and orienting appeals board members and facilitating appeals board meetings for suspension/expulsion level violations of the Student Conduct Code; 
• Supervising the Office of Student Life. 
• Help lead institutional efforts on threat assessment, bias response, and state/federal requirements regarding hazing and Clery Act compliance.

Michael began serving in the Office of Student Life in October 2012. Since then, he has worked with the Dean of Students’ Unit’s Cultural Competency work through 2020, supervised a Garrett Lee Smith suicide prevention grant, led a full revision of the Student Conduct Code in 2016, and created strong relationships with faculty in working to support students. 

Michael is a member of NASPA and ASCA. He has previously worked as the Assistant Director for Residential and Dining Services (2008-2012) at the Evergreen State College, and before that worked at Western in several roles including the University Residences Conduct Officer (2001-2008), Orientation Coordinator in New Student Services/Family Outreach (1999-2001) and Resident Director (1996-1999). Before that, he graduated from the University of Iowa with an MA in Higher Education Administration and a BA in English. 

Professional Involvement

Michael’s professional involvement at Western and elsewhere has included the following:  

• Member, Washington State Postsecondary Basic Needs Work Advisory Task Force, 2021-23
• NaBITA Behavioral Intervention Teams Standards & Best Practices, August 2 & 3, 2022
• ATIXA Title IX Hearing Officer and Decision-Maker training, August 8 & 9, 2022
• Husch Blackwell Annual Title IX Training for Coordinators, Investigators and Title IX Team Members, September 2020 & September 2023
• Member, Structural Equity and Bias Response Team, August 2020 – present
• Member, President’s Council on Equity, Identity & Social Justice, 2019-20
• Washington State Government-to-Government training, Governor’s Office of Indian Affairs, July 9, 2019
• Certified QPR (Question Persuade Refer) Suicide Prevention Gatekeeper Instructor, November 2017 – November 2020
• Coalition for Academic Integrity, fall 2012 – present
• Division Assessment Resource Team, fall 2012 – present
• Emergency Management Committee, fall 2012 – present. Training includes FEMA Emergency Management Institute IS-100, 200, 300, & 800
• Sexual Misconduct Institute, Association for Student Conduct Administration, March 26-28, 2018
• Supporting Survivors/Being Trauma-Informed, Karen Burke, DVSAS, October 2, 2017
• A Trauma-Informed Approach to Working with LGBTQ Survivors of Sexual Violence, Northwest Network training, winter 2016
• Investigation of Sexual Misconduct & Adjudication, & Title IX Overview, D Stafford & Associates, spring 2016
• NaBITA Advanced Violence/Risk Assessment, summer 2016
• ASCA (Association for Student Conduct Administration) Investigator Training, May 7, 2015
• Campus Accountability and Safety Act: Implications for Student Conduct Practice, Association for Student Conduct Administration, April 12, 2015
• Steering Committee Member, Campus Community Coalition, Bellingham-Western Washington University, 2007 – 2009, & 2012 – 2016
• Bellingham-Whatcom County Commission Against Domestic Violence, August 2002 – December 2006 & November 2012 – November 2014
• Washington State Higher Education Conference on Sexual Assault Prevention and Response, Council of Presidents, October 30, 2014
• Campus Title IX Investigator Training – NCHERM.ORG, University of Puget Sound, WA July 30-31, 2012
• Co-presenter, Assessing Barriers for Transgender/Gender Non-conforming Students, NASPA Annual Conference, March 12, 2012

Office of Student Life staff regularly review professional ethical guidelines and best practices, and are regularly evaluated through performance reviews.