As the day winds down across the University of Tennessee campus and offices close their doors, a new initiative, Student Success Express, is just beginning. Designed to provide students with a convenient after-hours option for support and resources, this program marks an exciting step toward enhancing student success beyond traditional office hours. 

It’s here where staff and departments across the Division of Student Success (DSS) come together to offer support, answer questions, and provide resources to help UT student scholars thrive.  

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Make the most of Winter Mini Term by tapping into the many resources designed to help you succeed! This condensed semester is the perfect opportunity to focus on a course, sharpen your skills, or get ahead in your academic journey.

Take advantage of academic support services, from tutoring and study tools to time management workshops, and explore online resources tailored for quick-paced learning. Staying organized and proactive is key—create a study plan, connect with your instructors, and lean on peers for motivation.

With the right tools and mindset, you can turn Winter Mini Term into a major success!

Dream Weaver 

After three decades of dedicated service, Stephanie Kit leaves behind a legacy of impact, mentorship, and success. While people, projects, and spaces evolved over the years, her mission never wavered—connect students with dream careers.  

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The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and Undergraduate Research & Fellowships are proud to announce that Avery Noe has been named as a finalist for the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship.

Noe, a Chancellor’s Honors Scholar, is a senior musicology and history student and is minoring in music theory and applied music.

The Rhodes Scholarship is a fully funded postgraduate award that allows its recipients to study at the University of Oxford in England. If she wins the award, Noe plans to study Musicology and Modern History.

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“When you change the metric from percentage to people, the prospect suddenly becomes more real.”    

– Amber Williams, Vice Provost for Student Success 

What’s the secret to success? Often you’ll hear it’s a combination of embracing risk, resiliency, or thinking outside the box. All true of course. But it can also be about simplicity—a streamlined process executed well that leads to a better outcome. And in the case of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville’s, impressive growth of retention and graduation rates over the past five years—simplicity, strategic partnerships, and a dedicated community of caring turned out to be a winning recipe for success.   

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The keynote panel “Leading with the Head and the Heart” welcomed a conversation around utilizing data to demonstrate values and increase student success. The three panelists, all college and university presidents, emphasized the benefits of collaborating qualitative and quantitative data to better visualize student populations.   

A value-first approach to student success revitalizes how higher education supports all demographics of students. Valerie Kinloch, president of Johnson C. Smith University, said “When I think of value, I always start with [the questions of] ‘Who are our students and where are our students from? Where are the communities our students are coming to us from?’” 

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The University of Tennessee, Knoxville’s, Vice Provost for Student Success Amber Williams and Vice Chancellor for Student Life Frank Cuevas were moderator and featured speaker, respectively, for the panel “Aligning Student and Institutional Definitions of Success.”

Sharing the stage with Brianne Frazier, director of student engagement and success at Arizona State University Online, Jessie Wang, assistant dean of student success and access at East Tennessee State University, and Sharon Duffy, assistant vice president for student success at Emerson College, the panel discussed the results of a survey by TimelyCare stating “three in five college students define success by their GPA.” 

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The final day of the annual Student Success US Conference kicked off with a keynote discussion moderated by Vice Provost for Student Success Amber Williams. 

The session, “The State of Higher Education: Adapting to Evolving Barriers to Success,” examined findings from a study conducted by the Lumina Foundation and Gallup titled “State of Higher Education.” The study measures “the attitude of U.S. adults without a college degree toward education beyond high school.”  

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The University of Tennessee, Knoxville hosted distinguished author, professor, and social scientist Arthur Brooks as a guest virtual speaker on day two of the Student Success US Conference 2024. 

UT Provost John Zomchick served as moderator for the conversation, “The Intersection of Happiness and Success: A Conversation with Arthur Brooks.” The discussion explored the how universities can generate positive environments through value efforts and understanding how social trends affect student well-being.

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The University of Tennessee, Knoxville hosted the annual Student Success US Conference in partnership with Inside Higher Ed and Times Higher Education. The three-day event, which ran October 28-30, brought together higher education professionals from around the country to discuss student success and how to approach the evolving landscape of higher education.

Shortly after opening the conference alongside Inside Higher Ed’s Sara Custer, UT Chancellor Donde Plowman was a featured speaker during “Presidential Panel: Leading with Integrity and Intention” alongside guest speakers Jonathan Koppell, president of Montclair State University, and Harry Williams, president and Chief Executive Officer of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund.

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