Troy University’s Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Dr. Lance Tatum, is among 22 chief academic officers from universities throughout the country to participate in the American Association of State Colleges and Universities’ (AASCU) Student Success Institute.

Launched in 2020, the Student Success Institute (SSI) is a leadership development program aimed at supporting provosts to more effectively lead and implement the type of transformational change necessary to meet the evolving needs of today’s increasingly diverse student body. The program is supported by a $1.6 million grant from Ascendium Education Group.

SSI will provide the most current and relevant expertise on promising practices in student success, leadership, data and assessment, teaching and learning, and equity. Throughout the seven-month, hybrid program, fellows will have the opportunity to build a strong and supportive network of peers, learn from leading experts in the field, and develop critical skills for facilitating change on their campuses.

Including the inaugural “Design Cohort,” SSI includes 41 provosts, all from AASCU member institutions, across 24 states and the Bahamas, that collectively enroll nearly 300,000 students.

“We are delighted to welcome the second cohort of provosts to this highly engaging program,” said Terry Brown, AASCU’s vice president of academic innovation and transformation.  “The institute offers not only access to the most promising practices and approaches to student success but also a strong, supportive community of peers who are on a leadership journey together.”

Dr. Tatum, a TROY alumnus, was appointed as Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs in 2019, after serving in the role on an interim basis. As the University’s chief academic officer, he is responsible for the creation and implementation of the academic priorities and for the allocation of resources to support those priorities.

“I am excited about my selection for the Student Success Institute,” Dr. Tatum said. “This program serves as a wonderful opportunity to learn from and get to know other Chief Academic Officers from peer ASSCU institutions around the country and how they are addressing retention and graduate rates, as well as student success in general.”

Dr. Tatum has more than 24 years of experience in higher education, including the past 20 years with TROY. Prior to this appointment, Dr. Tatum served in a variety of administrative roles for the University, including Vice Chancellor for the Montgomery Campus, Vice Chancellor for Global Campus, Dean for the College of Education and Department Chair for the Department of Kinesiology and Health Promotion.

After earning both his bachelor’s (1988) and master’s (1989) degrees in education from then-Troy State University, Dr. Tatum earned his Doctor of Philosophy (1993) in education from Florida State University. He joined the University’s full-time faculty in 1998 as an assistant professor after having served as an assistant professor and head coach at Gordon College in Barnesville, GA., and currently holds the rank of professor.

The American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) is a Washington, D.C.-based higher education association of nearly 400 public colleges, universities, and systems whose members share a learning- and teaching-centered culture, a historic commitment to underserved student populations, and a dedication to research and creativity that advances their regions’ economic progress and cultural development.