Jared Tippets 
Vice President for Student Affairs | Southern Utah University
Cedar City, UT, UNITED STATES
Specializing in student retention, organizational changes, and administration in higher education
Spotlight
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.
Media
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Industry Expertise (4)
Education/Learning
Management Consulting
Research
Program Development
Areas of Expertise (12)
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 (3)
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 (3)
- CSRDE: Consortium for Student Retention Data Exchange
- NASPA: Student Affairs Professionals in Higher Education
- Penguin Random House National Advisory Board for Common Reading Programs
Links (3)
Media Appearances (11)
SUU Earns National Recognition as College of Distinction
SUU News online
2019-07-30
“Being recognized by Colleges of Distinction is an honor,” said Jared Tippets, vice president for student affairs at SUU. “As we strive to create an environment that focuses on the student experience, giving each student an individualized education based on their personal and professional goals, this validates our efforts and highlights our success.”
Southern Utah University develops ASCEND model, increases student retention to institution high
St George News online
2018-07-22
“We started calling students to figure out why they left SUU,” Dr. Jared Tippets, Southern Utah University’s vice president for student affairs, said in a press release from the university. “We found that they were struggling with finances, sense of belonging, schedules, stress, roommates, employment – the list goes on and on.”
How this college raised freshman retention 7 points in 2 years
EAB online
2018-06-18
Colleges and universities are struggling to retain the first-year students who arrive on campus. Only 61% of first-year students who started in 2015 returned to their starting institution in 2016, according to a report from the National Student Clearinghouse.
Increasing Diversity and Inclusion at Southern Utah University
Color Magazine online
2018-01-31
After months of interviews with highly-qualified candidates from all corners of the US, Southern Utah University announced the new Assistant to the President for Diversity and Inclusion: Dr. Schvalla Rivera. In her previous role, Dr. Rivera served as the Dean of Students at Western Nebraska Community College.
Regents establish working group on student mental health
Utah System of Higher Education online
2016-12-23
Jared Tippets, from Southern Utah University, provided important context, “While our campuses may see some of the immediate signs related to student mental health, this is more than a higher education issue. We need to work closely with our partners in K-12, the community, and health care providers to address this issue.”
SUU rises to overcome past housing challenges
The Spectrum online
2016-08-27
Officials don’t foresee housing as a major problem in the future; Treanor said she is optimistic that this will most likely be the last year of extreme growth for awhile. With an emphasis on bringing in quality students, not quantity, she said the numbers will ultimately even out.
“Our growth will not be as stratospheric as it has been in the last two years,” Treanor explained. “We don’t want to put the brakes on growth, but we want steady and sustainable growth that doesn’t cause famine to the community.”
Tippets agreed, adding that small additions will suffice.
SUU President to LGBT students, faculty: "We want you to feel safe"
The Spectrum online
2016-03-14
Numerous students urged the administration to attend an Allies on Campus training session on the proper use of gender pronouns. Wyatt and his cabinet agreed to participate in hopes that it would set an example for other faculty, staff and students to partake in the training.
Vice President for Student Affairs Jared Tippets said the administration is working to re-shape the new student orientation to better welcome minority students, including LGBT members.
Southern Utah University ranks ‘Best in the West’ 10 years running
Cedar City News online
2015-08-13
The Princeton Review, in its recently released collegiate survey, “2016 Best Colleges: Region by Region,” identified Southern Utah University at the top tier of colleges and universities across the nation by region.
“Over the past year, SUU has spent a significant amount of time and resources to improve our educational experience for our undergraduates,” Jared Tippets, SUU vice president of student affairs, said. “We strive to create meaningful out-of-class learning experiences, provide world-class faculty to educate in the classroom, and surround our students with supportive academic advisors.”
SUU inaugurates student government for the next year
News Leader online
2015-04-17
In a packed living room of the Sharwan Smith Student Center, Southern Utah University held a ceremony Friday honoring this year’s student government members and a swearing in for the new members to take office in the 2015-2016 academic year.
As student officials passed trinkets and bits of advice to their new counterparts, SUU Vice President for Student Services Jared Tippets reflected upon his time serving in student government while in college and thanked the outgoing executive student council for service to the school and time spent in office.
Purdue merger aims at student success rates
USA Today online
2014-05-19
Several of Purdue University’s core administrative units soon will be more closely aligned, a plan that seeks to increase opportunities for students while streamlining the university’s administrative functions.
Jared Tippets, dean of student success, said collaborations between departments will be better able to take place. “We have worked closely with many departments over the years, but I’m confident that this new organizational structure will increase synergies and improve our quality of service to students and the faculty,” Tippets said.
The Sophomore Slump
New York Times print
2013-11-01
Purdue University recently announced its fourth sophomore-only “learning community.” Starting next fall, 20 second-year students interested in statistics will live together, take classes together and work on a full-year research project, and earn a $9,400 stipend. (The other communities focus on leadership and science and technology research.)
“Sophomores struggle with academic engagement, and a learning community allows a student to explore a topic out of the classroom with faculty members,” says Jared Tippets, Purdue’s director of Student Success.
Articles (1)
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.
Courses (1)
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.
