Dr. Tony Lombard named new director for Office of Student Conduct
Dr. Tony Lombard wants his office to be a place where students feel comfortable to come and talk with him. The new director for the Office of Student Conduct has more than a decade of experience mentoring and counseling teens and young adults.
Originally from Mobile, Alabama, Lombard initially enrolled at University of Alabama in the 1980s, but transferred to Lee University, which at the time operated under the name Lee College. Before graduating, Lombard left the university. However, he returned in 2008 to complete his undergraduate education.
“It took me 30 years to get an undergrad and four and a half to get the master’s and doctoral degrees. So I guess I dialed in a lot better. I was married with kids then, so that was the difference,” Lombard said. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Christian ministries, a master’s degree in counseling, marriage and family therapy, and a doctorate degree in clinical mental health with a counseling emphasis.
Dr. Tony Lombard. Photo by senior reporter Charlie Boothe.
Lombard’s experience with counseling started when he was still going through his master’s program. He worked with an organization called OnPoint, where he counseled at-risk kids in high school. On Point worked with schools in Hamilton County, Bradley County and Cleveland systems. At Bradley High School, Lombard worked for a program called Graduate On Point. As part of this program, he would take sophomores with the 50 lowest GPAs and were not likely to graduate. He would work with them all through to their senior year with counseling and tutoring.
Of the first group of 50 students Lombard worked with, 47 graduated on time. Two students graduated with honors. The next year, the program saw even more success with 49 students graduating. Lombard worked with On Point for more than 10 years before leaving the program in June 2023 to accept a new position as the director of student conduct at Lee University. Lombard values his experience working with students and hopes it will be beneficial to him during his time at Lee.
“I really think the students I dealt with and the situations I saw really plays into how I approach this particular job,” said Lombard.
One of the biggest takeaways of Lombard’s experience with the OnPoint organization was finding the “why” behind students’ actions. He holds onto the idea a person may do a bad thing, but that does not make them a bad person.
The Guitar
Lombard hung some of his own memorabilia in his office to personalize things. One of the items is a 1956 Gibson Les Paul Special his father purchased at age 15. His father went on to travel and play at churches throughout the south.
“I want to know the why. Why did that happen? Why did you manifest like that? What caused you to come to the point where you did that? What's going on in your life? And not just the why, but we want to go beyond that. How do we restore you? How do we get you back to a place where you can be a vital part of the Lee community… I'm 100% confident that this is where everybody should be,” said Lombard.
Lombard is hoping to have these kinds of restorative conversations with students at Lee, but recognizes it’s a two-way street. While Lombard will be more than willing to talk to students, he hopes students will be willing to talk with him about more than just the discipline. When students feel comfortable and feel like they are able to talk about the underlying causes, Lombard says, he is better able to help them.
The Office of Student Conduct and Support is located in room 306 of the Higginbotham Administration Budling.
