Provost and Senior Vice President Jayanth Banavar has appointed Doneka Scott as the new vice provost of undergraduate education and student success.

As part of the move, the Division of Undergraduate Studies will be renamed the Division of Undergraduate Education and Student Success, tying it closer to one of President Michael Schill’s top UO priorities. Scott, who had served as the associate vice provost of student success and the associate dean for undergraduate studies at UO for nearly three years, will take on the new job in February.

“Doneka has been tireless in her efforts to improve how we serve undergraduate students–both in terms of academic advising and guiding them toward a meaningful career,” Banavar said. “In this new role, she will be responsible for overseeing many important programs that allow our students to be successful. I am looking forward to her leadership in ensuring very positive experiences for our students.”

At UO, Scott has implemented new strategies to increase four-year graduation rates. She has led efforts to eliminate barriers that impede students from graduating on time, improved student access to campus resources and developed a blueprint to improve the approach to advising to include more of a focus on finding a meaningful career path for students.

In her new role, Scott will oversee the functions of the former Division of Undergraduate Studies, along with managing advising at the soon-to-open Willie and Donald Tykeson Hall. She will also develop and implement a comprehensive first-year student experience plan for the UO, coordinate efforts to improve academic support for students, and handle development and fundraising efforts.

“I am very excited to continue to work with an amazing group of professionals to bolster the success of University of Oregon students,” Scott said. “The university’s investment in student success and the implementation of many best practices to support student retention and graduation efforts will make a notable difference for our students.”

Scott came to the UO in 2016 from the University of Minnesota with a background in student access and retention initiatives, and her career there was a mix of both faculty and administrative roles. She served as special assistant to the vice provost and dean for undergraduate education, and was also an assistant professor in the department of Pharmaceutical Care and Health Systems in the College of Pharmacy.

She previously served as the university’s assistant vice provost for equity and diversity; executive director of the Office of Student Learning, Assessment and Research; director of the Office of Teaching, Learning and Assessment; and director of Student Development for Professional Education.

Scott has a master’s degree in higher and post-secondary education and a doctorate in pharmacy, both from the University of Michigan.

Banavar also made changes to another division, the Office of International Affairs. It will now be called the Division of Global Engagement. With the renaming, Banavar said Dennis Galvan, who was vice provost for international affairs, will be the dean and vice provost of the new division.

Galvan also previously served as interim dean of the former Division of Undergraduate Studies.

He has established several new goals for the new global engagement division, including creating new ways to recruit and retain international students, boosting the number of UO students who participate in study abroad programs, and expanding international grants, gifts and contracts.

Galvan has been in charge of international affairs for seven years. He is professor of both international studies and political science.

For more information about Banavar’s announcement, visit the provost’s website.

—By David Austin, University Communications