It is a rite of passage for students — and student-athletes, in particular — to complain about the parking services on the University of Colorado-Boulder campus.

New CU-Boulder chancellor Justin Schwartz is actually looking forward to those complaints returning in the next few weeks.

“I’m looking forward to everybody coming back,” Schwartz said in a recent interview with BuffZone. “There’s something special about the buzz on campus. That time when we all start complaining about traffic and parking again is actually wonderful.

“Imagine if they didn’t come back. We’ve kind of been through that (during COVID). Now we don’t have to imagine it. So, I look forward to the energy and the buzz that having the students back brings.”

And with that, Schwartz looks forward to the energy and buzz that comes from CU athletics being in full swing in the coming weeks.

Schwartz began his tenure as CU’s new chancellor on July 1, filling the shoes of the now-retired Phil DiStefano, who held that role for 15 years. Schwartz comes to CU from Penn State University, where he spent seven years, including the last two as executive vice president and provost.

A graduate of the University of Illinois — his time with the Illini briefly overlapped the time that CU athletic director Rick George was there — Schwartz has also worked at North Carolina State (2009-17), Florida State (1993-2009) and Illinois (1990-93).

As CU’s chancellor, Schwartz will not only be involved as an academic administrator, but in athletics, as well. DiStefano was in the Pac-12 Conference’s CEO group and was heavily involved with major decisions in CU athletics during his time as chancellor and Schwartz will do the same as the Buffaloes transition to the Big 12 Conference.

“It’s a campus issue. It’s CU-Boulder athletics and I will be taking on that role wholeheartedly,” he said. “It’s too important to the campus, both in terms of it’s a significant number of students, it’s high visibility, it’s a significant financial piece. It’s important, so yes, I’ll certainly be taking that lead role in working closely with Rick.”

Schwartz is a die-hard baseball fan, particularly of his beloved Chicago Cubs, and has seen big-time college athletics up close at his previous stops. At CU, he said he’ll continue to be a supporter of athletics, and especially the student-athletes.

“I’m a fan, but I’m also a fan of doing things the right way,” he said. “I’ve never ascribed to the win-at-all-cost (mentality). There have been plenty of examples of how not to do things. One of the things I truly appreciate about Rick and the coaches that I’ve met is that there’s no space between us on that. From the coaches I’ve talked to so far, the commitment to the individual student is prime.”

Speaking of prime, Schwartz includes football coach Deion Sanders in that. He’s been impressed with his first interactions with Coach Prime.

“I was truly impressed with how much he talked about individual players, by name,” Schwartz said. “It was great to meet him and I look forward to see him continue to help our student-athletes advance. I told him that I really appreciate the fact that he talks to them about the importance of excellence in everything you do, not just on the field, not just on game day, but that if you have that attitude across everything you do, then it becomes who you are.”

Developing students has always been important to Schwartz and he recognizes this is a pivotal time in college athletics, not just at CU.

Massive changes have occurred to the college athletics landscape in recent years, with money being a driving force in many decisions from conference realignment to name, image and likeness (NIL) legislation.

“I don’t think we’re in a stable position yet,” Schwartz said. “I think things are gonna continue to evolve. There’s just a lot happening and I don’t think one can really predict where it’s going to land.”

Schwartz plans to do his part, however, in making sure the student-athletes, particularly at CU, remain the focus.

“I think it really just requires us to be thoughtful and prognosticate the best we can and sort of make decisions that are driven, first and foremost, just like in any other space, by our mission, our vision and values,” he said. “I just hope that the different agencies across the country … factors in something more than just football or basketball; (that they) really keep in mind that the No. 1 goal of college sports is to support student-athletes.

“The student is here to succeed in both (athletics and academics) and our responsibility is to create situations, environments where they have the ability to do both. Big credit to our entire intercollegiate athletics office; we are succeeding in both.”

This spring, CU announced that the cumulative GPA of its student-athletes reached an all-time high, at 3.244. Coach Prime has helped the football team record the highest cumulative GPA in program history, hitting 3.0 for the first time.

“I think that’s a really important thing to keep in mind with all of the conversations around what’s happening in CU athletics that our student-athletes are killing it in the classroom,” Schwartz said.

Soon, Schwartz will get a chance to meet many of those student-athletes and the students, in general. And, of course, he’s looking forward to his introduction to a CU icon.

“I’m looking forward to meeting Ralphie,” he said of the Buffaloes’ live mascot. “I’m trying to figure out how and when to run with her and seeing things really get rolling.”