Amber Williams
Senior Vice Provost for Student Success & Chief Honors Officer
Amber Williams is a transformational leader and practitioner-scholar who pioneered a strategic paradigm shift in higher education by moving away from traditional deficit-framing toward a personalized, strengths-based ecosystem. Since joining the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in 2020, she has championed a leadership model that views the university as a catalyst for human flourishing, ensuring that every student’s unique potential is recognized and nurtured by their environment.
Architecting the future of education
Williams is the visionary behind first-of-their-kind initiatives that bridge the gap between academic rigor and life readiness.
She pioneered the New Vol Experience, a comprehensive one-year onboarding journey for all incoming students, and the Vol Success Teams model, ensuring every scholar is mentored by a dedicated trio of professionals.
Her commitment to diverse student pathways is further reflected in the personalized Veterans Impact Program, designed to help veteran scholars transition seamlessly to college life, and Rocky Top Scholars, a new program dedicated to supporting flagship, UT Pledge, and UT Promise scholarship recipients with the tools needed to excel at UT.
The launch of Vol Edge, a platform that immerses students in the life skills and experiential learning needed to transition confidently from campus to career, is a direct reflection of Williams’s dedication to student success post-undergraduate life.
A legacy of student flourishing
Under Williams’s leadership, UT has emerged as the national gold standard for student outcomes.
By grounding her strategy in the principles of the PASS Project’s Ecological Validation and in Martin Seligman’s PERMA framework for well-being, she fostered an environment in which academic success is inseparable from personal growth. This vision resulted in:
- Record-Breaking Retention: Undergraduate retention has reached 92.4 percent, significantly outperforming national benchmarks.
- A Historic Ten-Point Surge: Graduation rates have increased by 10 percent, reflecting her commitment to ensuring that every Volunteer reaches the finish line.
- Sustained Career Readiness: A 90 percent or higher positive career outcome rate has been maintained for six consecutive years, ensuring students are prepared for the workforce or advanced degrees.
- National Recognition: In 2022, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville received the Don Clifton Strengths for Students Award for transforming campus culture by prioritizing student strengths.
- National Excellence: In 2025, the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) named the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, one of five finalists for its inaugural Excellence in Student Success Award, recognizing the university’s comprehensive and data-driven approach.
- National Honors Distinction: The University Honors program was ranked eighth nationally by College Transitions in 2026. Williams led a strategic revamp of the program, implementing an interdisciplinary, solution-oriented curriculum rooted in design thinking and workforce development for Gen Z and Gen Alpha.
National influence and academic foundation
A sought-after expert and keynote speaker, Williams’s work has led UT to host the 2024 Student Success Conference for over 200 institutions.
She is a contributing author to ASCEND to Higher Retention Rates and a member of the Association of Governing Boards (AGB) Institute for Aspiring College and University Presidents.
Prior to her tenure at Tennessee, Williams served as a pivotal enrollment manager at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, where she was most recognized for enrolling the largest and most academically qualified first-year class in Nebraska history.
It was during her time as the Founding Director of the Nebraska College Preparatory Academy that she honed her transition from deficit-framing to strengths-based work, creating a blueprint for student empowerment that continues to guide her leadership today.
Her work remains a testament to the power of moving obstacles so the next generation of leaders can soar.
Education: EdD educational leadership & policy, University of Nebraska–Lincoln; master’s in leadership education, University of Nebraska–Lincoln; bachelor’s in communication studies, University of Kansas.
CliftonStrengths: Relator, Arranger, Responsibility, Strategic, Ideation.
Success Studio: A conversation with Dr. Williams
Success Studio is a virtual space where higher education professionals come together for candid, practical conversations about scholar success. It is a place to share what is working, learn from what is not, and strengthen ideas alongside others committed to helping scholars persist, belong, and thrive.
Upcoming Success Studio Dates:
- Wednesday, November 4, 2026 at 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Featured media
Listen to and watch Dr. Williams in conversation with national higher education leaders. Episodes play on this page, and each entry links to the host platform.
Leading with Strengths: Amber Williams on Strengths as a Mindset Shift for Student Development
Gallup, Leading with Strengths ·
Dr. Amber Williams joins Gallup CEO Jon Clifton to discuss how CliftonStrengths is embedded across the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, campus and how strengths-based development shapes student learning, engagement, and leadership practice. The conversation also highlights how strengths-based frameworks inform institutional strategy and student development outcomes.
ASCEND Podcast: New Vol Experience (Engagement)
Tippets Kirby ·
Dr. Williams discusses UT’s New Vol Experience with Dr. Jared Tippets and Dr. Eric Kirby, focusing on first-year student transition, belonging, and structured engagement strategies. The episode explores how sustained onboarding supports retention and student success through intentional design across the academic year.
ASCEND Podcast: Vol Success Teams
Tippets Kirby ·
Dr. Williams joins co-host Dr. Jared Tippets to share how UT implemented Vol Success Teams, a cross-functional support model that transformed advising and engagement for first-year and transfer scholars.
She is also a contributing author to ASCEND to Higher Retention Rates, Vol. 3, published in July 2025 by Tippets Kirby, a collection of practical retention and completion strategies from higher education experts across the country. Her chapter draws on UT’s two signature programs, Vol Success Teams and the First-Year Experience.
Inside Higher Ed: The Key with Chancellor Donde Plowman
Inside Higher Ed, The Key ·
Dr. Williams joins Chancellor Donde Plowman on The Key podcast to discuss UT’s strengths-based approach to student success. The conversation highlights how institutions can align academic and personal development to improve retention and career readiness.
Talkin’ Tennessee with Yvoncca, part 1
Talkin’ Tennessee with Yvoncca ·
Dr. Williams traces her path through higher education, from becoming the youngest admissions director in the nation to leading student success at UT. She reflects on her work in recruitment and access, and on the relationships that have supported a trailblazing career.
Talkin’ Tennessee with Yvoncca, part 2
Talkin’ Tennessee with Yvoncca ·
Dr. Williams describes how UT is redefining student success, including deploying the CliftonStrengths assessment so students can build on their own capabilities and confidence. She also shares her approach to reshaping orientation into a year-long experience that fosters a nurturing, inclusive environment.
Dr. Josie and the Podcast: Little Giants, Big World of Gen Alpha
Josie Ahlquist ·
Dr. Williams joins a panel discussing Gen Alpha and the future of higher education. The conversation explores how emerging generations will shape institutional expectations around learning, flexibility, and student engagement.
ASCEND Podcast: Increasing Retention and Student Success
Tippets Kirby ·
Dr. Williams joins co-hosts Jared Tippets and Eric Kirby to discuss foundational strategies for improving retention and student success, emphasizing cross-campus collaboration and personalized student support systems that help institutions scale impact.
Recorded forums, webcasts, and publications
These sessions and articles are hosted on the publisher’s platform. Some recordings ask you to register before they play.
The Chronicle of Higher Education Virtual Forum: What Today’s Students Can Teach Colleges
The Chronicle of Higher Education · October 2025
Gen Z expects more from a campus experience than previous classes did. Dr. Williams joins other higher education leaders in a panel discussion on how today’s students want to build authentic, meaningful connections with peers and faculty alike, on a campus that supports healthy lifestyles.
Cracking the Retention Code: How Data and AI Are Helping Shape Student Success
Inside Higher Ed webcast · December 2024
This webcast, featuring Dr. Williams, examines why students do not retain, including concerns about cost, well-being, and a lack of awareness of the resources available to them.
It also considers strategies that support retention, from academic support and wraparound services to applications of artificial intelligence that can flag at-risk students in need of intervention.
Inside Higher Ed: A New Recipe for Success
Inside Higher Ed · article
UT has revamped its approach to student success by combining academic, personal, and career support through initiatives like Vol Success Teams and a new advising model. In this article, co-authored by Chancellor Donde Plowman and Dr. Williams, a holistic strategy emphasizes tailored support, mentorship, and career readiness, helping students thrive from enrollment through graduation.
The Chronicle of Higher Education: Beating the ‘Sophomore Slump’
The Chronicle of Higher Education · virtual forum
Watch “The Student-Success Journey: Beating the ‘Sophomore Slump,’” featuring Dr. Williams, where panelists discussed the financial concerns, social life, basic needs, and academic advising that all play a part in the sophomore experience.
The Chronicle of Higher Education: Supporting Student Success, Tools and Strategies
The Chronicle of Higher Education · virtual forum
Watch “Supporting Student Success: Tools and Strategies,” the first part of a Virtual Forum series featuring Dr. Williams, exploring the strategies and systems colleges use to support student needs, including AI-powered chatbots and data analytics.
NEXT Office Hour: Gen Z and Student Success
NEXT Office Hour · recording
Watch “Gen Z and Student Success” as Dr. Williams and other higher education leaders examine what is going on with students, how to address a transactional mindset about college, and the skills students will need for the future as colleges look to boost enrollment demand.