It was 1 a.m. and there was a pounding rainstorm outside. Following a Bod Blast movie night, Dawn Shew was on the highway back to Lawrence with her 8-month-old daughter when her moment of clarity came.

After two years, Shew, director of student activities and Greek life, has decided to step down from her position at Washburn and return to the University of Kansas.

“The choice for me to leave Washburn has more to do with my personal life than it does my work life,” said Shew.

Chief among her reasons for leaving were the odd hours required as director of student and Greek life. She said she has never had a job where she held normal hours, and the academic advising situation offered to her by KU will provide just that.

Before coming to Washburn, Shew held a position at KU for four years. However, the opportunity to get more involved in student life was a huge draw to Washburn.

“I was attracted to the opportunity to diversify my experiences,” said Shew. “I loved the people when I came here, I loved the students. I’m sad to leave [Washburn].”

While the decision to leave was clearly made in the best interests of her family, Shew said that while her time here may have been brief, she’s very proud of what she accomplished.

Her proudest achievement was that SAGL got a better grasp on what student organizations needed. Also, the three WSGA administrations she supervised stayed under budget, and restructuring was done in the SAGL office to better serve students needs.

“I hope the next director gets as much support as I did,” said Shew.