Assistant Provost for Undergraduate Excellence and Student Success

Title:Assistant Provost for Undergraduate Excellence and Student Success

Division: Provost's Office

Department: Provost's Office

FLSA Status:Exempt

Salary Range:Annual Salary

EEO Job Group:1.1 C1

Position Summary

The Assistant Provost for Undergraduate Excellence and Student Success provides strategic leadership for institution-wide initiatives that advance undergraduate learning, persistence, timely degree completion, and a welcoming student experience. The role collaborates with academic and student affairs partners to design, implement, and assess high-impact practices; lead student academic success operations and services; and use data-informed decision-making to improve outcomes for all undergraduate students.

Duties/Responsibilities

• Provide vision, strategic planning, and operational leadership for academic student success initiatives aligned with institutional priorities.
  
  
• Design, implement, and continuously strengthen coordinated student success systems (e.g., advising, first-year experience, academic support, and research/honors experiences).
  
  
• Partner with deans, department chairs, faculty governance, and student affairs leaders to advance retention, persistence, progression, and graduation goals.
  
  
• Oversee campus-wide advising philosophy and practices; promote proactive and developmental advising; and support advising assessment and professional development.
  
  
• Guide first-year and transfer student experience efforts, including orientation-linked academic programming, learning communities, and common-course/student success seminar initiatives.
  
  
• Strengthen academic support and tutoring services through evidence-based practices, scalable delivery models, and targeted outreach to students at greatest risk.
  
  
• Provide leadership for accessibility and accommodation services to ensure compliance and a barrier-free learning environment in collaboration with academic units.
  
  
• Advance undergraduate research, honors, and other high-impact practices; expand access and participation; and reduce administrative and structural barriers to engagement.
  
  
• Establish and monitor key performance indicators; use data analytics to identify trends, evaluate interventions, and communicate progress to campus stakeholders.
  
  
• Develop and manage budgets for units within the portfolio; allocate resources strategically and ensure effective fiscal stewardship.
  
  
• Recruit, develop, supervise, and evaluate professional staff; foster a culture of collaboration, service excellence, and continuous improvement.
  
  
• Lead cross-functional committees and workgroups; support policy development and process redesign to improve the undergraduate experience.
  
  
• Represent the Provost's Office on institutional committees and in external partnerships relevant to student success and undergraduate education.
  
  
• Pursue and support grants and external funding opportunities related to student success and teaching and learning innovation, as appropriate.
  
  
• Perform other duties as assigned in support of the mission of Academic Affairs.

Required Knowledge and Skills

• Earned doctorate or terminal degree from an accredited institution.
  
  
• Progressively responsible leadership experience in higher education with demonstrated impact on undergraduate student success, retention, advising, academic support, or related areas.
  
  
• Demonstrated ability to lead collaboratively across academic units and to work effectively with faculty, staff, and students.
  
  
• Experience using data, assessment, and outcomes measures to guide decisions and evaluate program effectiveness.
  
  
• Knowledge of student success best practices and relevant compliance expectations (e.g., accessibility and accommodations) in higher education.
  
  
• Strong communication, facilitation, and change-management skills.

Preferred Knowledge and Skills

• Experience leading multiple functional areas within an academic affairs/student success portfolio (e.g., advising, first-year programs, tutoring/learning support, honors/undergraduate research, disability resources).
  
  
• Evidence of success implementing campus-wide student success frameworks (e.g., proactive advising models, early alert systems, guided pathways, or completion initiatives).
  
  
• Experience with budgeting, resource reallocation, and operational scaling of student success services.
  
  
• Record of scholarship, teaching, or professional engagement related to undergraduate education and student success.

Functional Requirements

• Remaining in a stationary position at a desk or workstation for extended periods of time for the majority of assigned duties.
  
  
• Physical access to meetings, presentations and events that occur at on-campus sites such as meeting rooms and at various sites throughout the local and regional community.
  
  
• Extensive physical movement during some events to oversee activities, to make presentations, and to interact with attendees.
  
  
• Ability to use computers and computer systems (hardware and software) to set up functions, to enter data, to retrieve and process information and to create documents.
  
  
• Retrieval of information from written documents and from computer-generated reports.
  
  
• Effective problem solving and achieving critical outcomes, even under demanding conditions such as multiple priorities and short-notice deadlines.
  
  
• The presentation of a consistently professional demeanor always, even in difficult, negative, frustrating, or legally sensitive situations such as when handling complaints from students, parents, staff, faculty, or members of the community.
  
  
• Clear and concise verbal and written communication skills, along with interpersonal communication skills appropriate to cultivating productive relationships.

Regular Work Hours/Travel Requirements

• This position is typically a full-time, 12-month administrative appointment.
  
  
• Standard office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm.
  
  
• Frequent irregular hours including weekends and nights required to support student-facing initiatives and campus events.
  
  
• The Assistant Provost is expected to maintain a visible presence on campus and participate in institutional committees and key academic calendar activities.

About USI

The University of Southern Indiana is a public higher education institution located on a beautiful1,400-acre campus in Evansville, IN. We offer employees exceptional benefits! Benefits for thisposition include:

• Affordable medical, dental, vision, life and short term and long-term disability insurance plans.
• Retirement plan where the University makes the total contribution equivalent to 11% of annual salary.
• Full tuition fee waiver for employees/75% for spouses and dependent children.
• Vacation and sick time
• Holiday pay
• Free access to Recreation, Fitness & Wellness Center.
• Access to on-campus University Health Center and Dental Hygiene Clinic.

For more information about the benefits that USI offers, please visit www.usi.edu/hr/benefits.

• Cover Letter
• CV

Search Committee Chair:

If you have questions about the open position, please contact Dr. Teri Beam, search committee chair, at tbeam1@usi.edu

Best Consideration Date:

For best consideration, please submit materials by April 26, 2026.

Pre-Employment Screening

A background check will be required for employment in this position.

Authorization to Work in the United States

USI will not sponsor an employment-related visa for this position.

Interview Accommodations

Persons with disabilities requiring accommodations in the application and interview process please contact the Associate Director of Human Resources, Constance Hermann, at cjhermann1@usi.edu or (812) 461-5363. Contacting the Associate Director of Human Resources is intended for use in seeking disability-related accommodations only. For general applicant inquiries, contact Human Resources at HumanRes@usi.edu or (812) 464-1815.

EEO Statement

USI is an Equal Opportunity Employer as to all protected groups, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities