Jared Tippets

Vice President for Student Affairs

  • Cedar City UT UNITED STATES

Vice President for Student Affairs | Higher Education Consultant & Speaker | Author | Co-host of the ASCEND Podcast

Contact

Biography

Jared Tippets is the vice president for student affairs at Southern Utah University. In this role he is responsible for student retention and completion. Tippets is committed to supporting all students as they learn to become successful and effective leaders on campus and in the community.

Tippets views student services as a partner to academics. He strives to find meaningful ways to connect a student’s experiences in the classroom with their lives outside of the classroom. He oversees a variety of resources and services at SUU such as career services, tutoring, testing, counseling, academic advising, financial aid and student support services.

His professional career has been spent focusing on retention, completion, and student success efforts on both the academic affairs and student affairs side of the academy. Prior to SUU, Tippets worked at Purdue University, the University of Kentucky, the University of Missouri-Columbia, and Utah Valley University.

Tippets earned a bachelor’s degree in management information systems from Utah State University and a master’s degree in higher education administration from the University of Missouri-Columbia. He has a Ph.D. in higher education administration from the University of Kentucky where his dissertation topic was about organizational change in higher education.

Spotlight

2 min

SUU Retention Rate Increases by Double-Digits

First-year student retention rates at Southern Utah University have increased a dramatic 15.6% over the past four years, according to new data released by the University. This year the University saw 74% of first-year, full time students return for a second year, a record high for the institution. “This is a remarkable achievement and something we celebrate as a team at SUU,” said Southern Utah University President Scott L Wyatt. “We all share in the success – faculty, staff and especially our students.” As colleges and universities across the U.S. struggle to keep first-year students enrolled and in the classroom, SUU has dedicated countless hours and resources to solving the retention puzzle.  “Increasing retention rates takes the work of the entire University community,” said Dr. Jared Tippets, vice president for student affairs at SUU. “Our student’s mission is to graduate and oftentimes they overcome difficult obstacles to achieve that goal. I’m proud of their increased persistence.” Beginning in 2015, Dr. Tippets and his team began pinpointing the key connections required for students to be successful in school, specifically focused on first-year students returning. The team distilled their retention strategy into the ASCEND model: affordability, support, culture, engagement, nudged, and data. This strategy was used to rethink and restructure the orientation program, campus engagement, and academic advising. Once first-year retention was solid, the team turned its attention to sophomore students to increase retention rates and enhance the second year experience. Through those efforts, SUU created the SOAR (success through opportunities, activities, and resources) program. The program focuses on nine core competencies: communication skills, teamwork/collaboration, leadership, creativity and problem solving, professional development, information technology, intercultural perspective, career management, and financial management. And relies heavily on completion ACES, mentors assigned to each student to help smooth the transition into their sophomore year.  Through both programs, SUU students receive many opportunities to grow and succeed not just as students, but as people. The university’s commitment to enhancing the undergraduate experience sets students on an upward trajectory, leading to personal growth, civic responsibility, and professional excellence.

Jared Tippets

2 min

Solving the Retention Puzzle - Keeping Students Enrolled in Higher Education

Colleges and universities around the country are struggling to keep first-year students engaged and enrolled year after year. Only 61% of first-year students who started in 2015 returned to the same institution in 2016, according to a report from the National Student Clearinghouse. However, Southern Utah University has not only found a way to increase its first-year student retention, but continues to build momentum and excitement across campus. In just two years, from 2015-2017, the University went from a stagnant 64% retention rate to 71%, a record high for the institution. The change didn’t happen overnight and took a team of dedicated professionals countless hours to figure out how to stop the declining numbers that dropped from 69% to 64% from 2008-2015. Starting the process, Vice President for Student Affairs at Southern Utah University, Dr. Jared Tippets, began calling students to figure out why they left SUU. “We found that they were struggling with finances, sense of belonging, schedules, stress, roommates, employment the list goes on and on. After years of trying everything outlined in the literature, and still experiencing stagnant and declining retention rates, it was clear we had to try something different.” Enlisting the help of Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs at SUU, Dr. Eric Kirby, the two went back to the drawing board. “The feedback we received fueled a complete overhaul of our onboarding process, first-year experience, advising model, financial assistance, and peer-mentoring program,” said Kirby. “We shifted our thinking, adjusted our approach, and adopted a new paradigm.” The pair distilled their retention strategy into their ASCEND model: Affordability, Support, Culture, Engagement, Nudges, and Data. This strategy was used to rethink and restructure the orientation program, campus engagement, and academic advising. Dr. Jared Tippets and Dr. Eric Kirby are both committed to supporting all students as they learn to become successful and effective leaders on campus and in the community. They are available for an interview, simply visit their profiles. Source:

Jared TippetsEric Kirby

Social

Industry Expertise

Education/Learning
Management Consulting
Research
Program Development

Areas of Expertise

Retention of First Year College Students
Diversity & Inclusion in Higher Education
Student Involvement in Higher Education
Organizational Change in Higher Education
Management Systems
Student Retention
Student Affairs
Student Success
Leadership
Higher Education Administration
Higher Education Student Retention
Student Mental Health in Higher Education

Education

University of Kentucky

Ph.D.

Higher Education Administration

University of Missouri-Columbia

M.A.

Higher Education Administration

Utah State University

B.A.

Business Information Systems

Affiliations

  • CSRDE: Consortium for Student Retention Data Exchange
  • NASPA: Student Affairs Professionals in Higher Education
  • Penguin Random House National Advisory Board for Common Reading Programs

Media Appearances

SUU Ranked as Best 4-Year Public University for Student Satisfaction in the Nation

SUU News  online

2024-08-30

“SUU is extremely proud to have the highest SVS among public 4-year universities,” said Jared Tippets, SUU Vice President of Student Affairs. “We believe we have something special here at SUU, and the students have confirmed this with their response to the SVS.This achievement underscores and validates our unwavering commitment to putting our students' experience and satisfaction at the forefront of everything we do. It is a testament to the dedication, care, and concern that our amazing faculty and staff have for our students.”

View More

Ascend Podcast

Jared Tippets and Eric Kirby  online

2024-08-01

Are you ready to ASCEND to new possibilities? In this podcast, Dr. Jared Tippets and Dr. Eric Kirby outline why a focus on retention and completion is so important, why previous retention efforts have not always worked, and discuss how we can successfully "ASCEND" to these great expectations. In each episode, we will share innovative ideas, creative initiatives, and best practices and strategies that campuses have used to achieve amazing results. This podcast has intentionally been produced in a quick-tip, bite-sized format where the listener can quickly find ideas, initiatives, and solutions that can be tried on campus today.

View More

Jared Tippets | The Interview

GoodCourse  online

2024-01-01

Kitty Hadaway, Co-Host of The Interview, spoke to Jared Tippets, Vice President (VP) for Student Affairs at Southern Utah University (SUU) about how to increase student retention and increase engagement by meeting them on their own terms.

View More

Show All +

Event Appearances

The Student-Success Journey: Beating the ‘Sophomore Slump’ (Panelist)

August 2024 | The Chronicle of Higher Education  Virtual Forum

Rethinking and Rebuilding Student Support (Panelist)

September 2020 | The Chronicle of Higher Education  Virtual Forum

Articles

Changing the Way we do Things Around Here: Strategies Presidents use for Creating Organizational Change in Higher Education

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Tippets, J.N.

2011
As society changes, so must higher education. Therefore, colleges and universities and the presidents leading them must adapt to survive in today’s highly competitive marketplace. What must an institution do to stay abreast of the changes? Once the necessary changes are identified, what processes are used by a president of a college or university to go about deliberately creating change on campus? By understanding how to create planned change, leaders within higher education will be able to better ensure that their institutions remain relevant in today’s rapidly changing environment.

View more

Courses

UNIV 1050 College Student Success

This course focuses on student success through systematic exploration of values and skills. It is designed to help launch students' university careers successfully.

Powered by