Nationally Recognized Education Leader Monique L. Snowden Named SVC for Strategic Enrollment and Student Success

Sent: April 28, 2021

Dear Lynx Community,

I am pleased to announce that we have selected Monique L. Snowden, PhD, as Senior Vice Chancellor for Strategic Enrollment and Student Success, effective July 1. Monique is an enrollment and student success strategist who brings 30 years of strong and varied experience attracting and supporting diverse student populations. Over the course of her 25-year career in higher education, she has served in key academic and student affairs administrator positions at Texas A&M University, Northwestern University, and most recently Fielding Graduate University, a private nonprofit institution in Santa Barbara, Calif.

In this new role, Monique will collaborate with members of the CU Denver community to imagine, develop, and drive the optimal student experience from pre-enrollment through graduation. She will join our Cabinet and report to newly announced Provost  Constancio Nakuma with a dotted line to me. Constancio had the pleasure of meeting with Monique virtually and shares my strong enthusiasm for her appointment.

During the search process, Monique was a standout candidate on several fronts. She has a breadth and depth of experience across and within key university functional areas, including enrollment and student success technologies and analytics. She has led and supported the development, implementation, and assessment of strategic enrollment plans and strategies for on-campus and online undergraduate, graduate, professional, and continuing education. Additionally, she brings a student-centered and equity-advancing approach to recruiting, retaining, and graduating diverse student and learner populations.

Monique began her impressive career as a business analyst and consultant for a global technology solutions and services firm where she honed her skills at leading global and cross-functional matrix teams. Entering the higher education realm in 1997, she has led innovative change initiatives for public and private universities, with specific expertise in leveraging technology, data, and analytics for organizational success. She is also the former assistant dean of enrollment management at Northwestern University School of Professional Studies and the founding director of enrollment research and technology at Texas A&M University.

Monique is a national leader, speaker, and author on strategic enrollment management; founding and former editorial board member of the Strategic Enrollment Management Quarterly journal; and currently serves on the editorial board of College & University journal. She is an American Council on Education (ACE) Council of Fellows board member, teaching faculty for the University of Southern California Equity Institutes, and an elected commissioner on the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) Senior Colleges and University Commission.

She is a first-generation college student who earned an associate of arts degree before transferring to Texas A&M University, where she subsequently earned her bachelor’s of business administration in business analysis. She went on at Texas A&M to receive a master's of science in management information systems and a PhD in organizational communication. She proudly proclaims and frames her educational and professional journey as a “transfer student success story,” an experience she shares with many of our students.

I would like to extend my sincerest thanks to Alana Jones, who has served in an interim capacity for this role since July 2020 and continued several responsibilities in the Office of International Affairs during that time. A member of the CU Denver community for nearly nine years, Alana has demonstrated courageous leadership over the last year, and her fierce dedication to student success aided us tremendously during the transition period. 

To the many members of this position’s search committee, including co-chairs Ronald Ramirez, PhD, Associate Dean, Faculty Director, and Associate Professor of the Business School, and Jennifer Sobanet, Senior Vice Chancellor for Administration and Finance, I am incredibly grateful for your time and strong efforts in selecting such an outstanding individual to serve in this role. 

Please join me in welcoming Monique to CU Denver this summer and thanking Alana for her service.

Michelle Marks
Chancellor
@MarksMichelleA