Always Giving More

“Reggie is such a big personality. He has the ability to garner trust and credibility with people from all walks of life immediately with that big personality.”

More.

This one simple word arose again and again when people across campus were asked about Reginald Blaylock, the outgoing associate vice president for student services in the Division of Student Affairs.

More personality, more passion for students, more zest for life, more compassion for fellow humans, more Aztec spirit — these phrases and countless others were just some of the ways Blaylock was described.

While he has worked for the last 12 years in the Division of Student Affairs, many across campus recognize him for his involvement in welcoming new student athletes, New Student and Family Convocation, teaching graduate courses in the College of Education, and especially his years as co-host of the annual Staff Awards recognition event each fall.

“Not a week goes by that I don’t get stopped by someone calling me ‘the guy from staff awards,’” Blaylock said. “Every time I get stopped it surprises me that people remember me. I’m just up there having a good time and trying to make it fun. I guess that makes an impression.”

Blaylock has worked at the university for 27 years and is a triple alumnus of SDSU, having earned his bachelor and master’s degrees in public administration and his doctorate in educational leadership with an emphasis in post-secondary education on the Mesa.

On June 1, Blaylock will take on his new role as vice president for Student Affairs at San Jose State University. As he prepares for his new position, individuals across campus have reflected on the impact he has made during his time at SDSU.

Growing into more

Blaylock’s time as an Aztec began in the early 1980s as an undergraduate public administration major and offensive guard on the SDSU football team. His goal to originally attend college on a band scholarship – as a trombone player – was overshadowed by his power and athletic prowess on the football field. His ability to rack up quarterback sacks in high school attracted the attention of college recruiters. Of the schools he visited, Blaylock felt most at home at San Diego State. 

He made his mark on the field in a different kind of uniform than originally planned, but indelibly stayed in the minds of those in the athletic department via his personality and charisma.

“He’s always had a gift for giving a great speech, whether it be on the sidelines of the field, or in front of a dinner crowd,” said Jim Herrick, assistant vice president of alumni engagement. Herrick has known Blaylock for more than 30 years and was one of Blaylock’s first co-workers, hiring him in 1988 after the then-athletic director, Fred Miller, saw Blaylock speak at a football banquet.

Herrick noted that Blaylock was a good hire at the time, but he has grown to become an invaluable asset to the university far beyond what anyone could have anticipated.

“In his time at SDSU he’s become so much more. He’s grown from a good speaker, to a truly spellbinding orator, as well as a mature administrator, and an incredible listener,” Herrick said. “You didn’t have to listen when you were on the football team in 1985, but being a great listener is one of the most valuable skills a successful person can have and Reggie has that and so much more."

More opportunities for students

Following his eight years of work as an assistant, and then associate athletic director, Blaylock led the Aztec Athletic Foundation as its executive director for three years. As his years at the university increased, so did his innate talent to quickly connect with people.

From 1999 to 2003, Blaylock used that talent as the director of student recruitment, school relations and outreach.

“Reggie is such a big personality. He has the ability to garner trust and credibility with people from all walks of life immediately with that big personality,” said Sandra Cook, associate vice president for enrollment management. “Parents trust their students to him. Students know he genuinely cares about their well being and success. He has been the best ambassador for SDSU's recruiting initiatives because of these traits.”

Blaylock’s ability to reach students and support their success bolstered the growth and success of the Division of Student Affairs’ Educational Opportunity Program and Ethnic Affairs office, which he directed from 2003 through 2009. SDSU’s EOP program is the largest in the California State University system with more than 4,000 students.

“Students, particularly first generation or at-risk students, could not have a better advocate than Reggie,” said Eric Rivera, vice president for student affairs. “Reggie is passionate about advocating for students and supporting their success. He has pushed for ways to give students more opportunities to be successful at the university and that success is evident in many ways, but particularly through the size and success of EOP.”

Beverly Warren, Blaylock’s successor as the director of EOP, described Reggie as a light of hope, a voice to the unheard and someone that is treasured by many stretching far beyond the borders of the SDSU campus.

“The optimism that Reggie has imparted to EOP students has always been with a consistent message that although they may have come from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds, although they may have grown up in a single parent home, although they themselves may be single parents, and although they may have experienced homelessness, poverty, and other hardships they are more than their circumstances,” Warren said.

More places to make a difference

Since 2010, Blaylock has served in the administration of the Division of Student Affairs, most recently as the associate vice president for Student Services, overseeing nine departments including Student Disability Services, Counseling & Psychological Services and the International Student Center. When asked how he felt the university has changed since he first arrived in 1983, Blaylock said, without hesitation, one word: “more.”

“There is just so much more available to students now — more avenues through which they can afford to attend college, more opportunities to be successful once they’re here, more chances to get connected to the right programs and people to support their success, more ways they can grow and change,” Blaylock said. “As an example, when I was a student and we talked about exchange programs, we were talking about partner schools on the East Coast of the United States. Now when we talk about exchange, we’re talking about sending students to partner universities around the world. That’s a huge difference.”

In addition to overseeing departments, Blaylock has been serving on 10 university-wide committees and chairing committees tasked with recruitment and retention of underrepresented students, improving the campus climate for people of varying abilities, and coordinating efforts to assist students who find themselves faced with homelessness or food insecurity. Since 2010, Blaylock has also taught students in the Postsecondary Educational Leadership program in the College of Education.

Marilee Bresciani Ludvik, program coordinator, said Blaylock was asked to teach because of his knowledge of leadership and organizational change theory, and his ability to apply that theory to create transformational student success.

“Reggie has that 30,000-foot picture of how leadership can positively and negatively impact student success. That is a rare, rare ability to have,” Ludvik said. “Our students speak of his ability to make them feel incredibly empowered as individual leaders, as well as empowered to impact their organizations to foster student success. They also note that Reggie makes them feel seen for who they are now, as well as who they are becoming as people and professionals.”

People make the experience more impactful