Dear UConn Colleagues,
I am pleased to announce the appointment of David Ouimette to Senior Executive Director of Student Success.
In this expanded role, David will provide strategic leadership for a broad and integrated portfolio focused on advancing student success from access and transition through persistence and graduation. His areas of responsibility include:
· First Year Experience and Programs
· Learning Communities
· Innovation Zone and Makerspace
· Academic Support Services (Academic Achievement Center, Q Center, and Writing Center)
· Center for Access & Postsecondary Success (CAPS)
· UConn’s First-Generation Student Success Initiative
David is a nationally recognized leader in student success with more than 35 years of service to UConn. He founded the Office of First Year Programs, a comprehensive and enduring framework of courses, initiatives, and co-curricular experiences that support students during one of the most critical transitions of their academic journey. Central to this work is a nationally recognized peer education model that continues to define and strengthen the first-year experience at UConn.
Throughout his career, David has led transformative initiatives that enhance student access, engagement, and success. His leadership in the creation of Learning Communities as a high-impact practice at UConn led to a vital system that helps students build meaningful connections, explore academic interests, and engage deeply with the university from their first semester. His promotion of holistic and equitable student success also led to the creation, launch, and growth of UConn Connects, Success360, and the UConn Innovation Zone, and he has been a driving force behind the institutional awareness and support for first-generation students.
David’s leadership has consistently emphasized collaboration across academic and student affairs, resulting in innovative, scalable programs that improve outcomes for diverse student populations. As Senior Executive Director of Student Success, David will continue this work while focusing on aligning and strengthening student support strategies across first-year initiatives, academic support and skill-building, innovation and experiential learning spaces, college access and transition programs, and first-generation student success efforts. His leadership will ensure that students experience coordinated, intentional, and inclusive support at every stage of their academic journey.
Please join me in congratulating David on this well-deserved appointment.
Sincerely,
Tadarrayl M. Starke, Ed.D.
Vice Provost for Student Success
University of Connecticut
For more information, contact: UConn Provost's Office at provost@uconn.edu