The Office of Undergraduate Education is pleased to welcome Maria O’Connell, MSU’s fourth University Innovation Alliance (UIA) Fellow and Undergrad Ed’s new Student Success Strategic Initiatives manager. As a UIA Fellow, Maria represents MSU in a consortium of fellows from 17 other institutions. Together they identify projects and opportunities to advance UIA’s goal of increasing graduation rates for students of color, first-generation students and low-income students.
Originally from Ecuador, Maria earned her master’s in social work from MSU and returns to Michigan after serving as a clinical assistant professor in the School of Social Work at the University of Colorado - Colorado Springs. She brings with her a passion for supporting student success that stretches back to her own experiences as a first-generation undergraduate college student.
“If we truly want to see more students graduate with their undergraduate degree,” says Maria, “we need to collaborate across institutions. UIA Fellows work together and discuss not only successes, but also the things that are not going as well, and we share experiences and collaborate.”
UIA Fellows are rising mid-level professionals who serve in the position for one to three years, fostering a dynamic relationship between those just starting and those finishing their fellowship who guide and mentor the others. Fellows bring their group concepts back to their colleges and work to apply them there, then take what they learn back to the other fellows, creating a network of support.
MSU’s rich history of UIA fellows include Chastity D. Gaither, PhD; Renata Opoczynski, Ph.D., assistant provost for Undergraduate Student Success; and Amy Martin, Ph.D., assistant dean for Student Success Strategy.
As Undergrad Ed’s Student Success Strategic Initiatives Manager, Maria also devotes a significant amount of her time to the Spartan Undergraduate Experience Strategy, led by former UIA fellow Amy Martin that aims to fulfill the goals set out in the MSU Success Strategic Plan and reach the 2030 goal of an 86% graduation rate by closing opportunity gaps.
“With her varied higher education background and wealth of experience as an advisor, mentor, and instructor, I am so excited to have Maria here to push forward and maintain our momentum on the Spartan Undergraduate Experience Strategy, and helping MSU map our activities, build bridges, discover synergies, and understand the gaps in our efforts to support our students on their path to graduation,” says Martin. “Combined with her work as a UIA fellow, I’m looking forward to the innovative approaches to this work she can help introduce and steward.”
With aims to reduce barriers for every student and support holistic success, this strategic initiative campus-wide initiatives and creates common platforms of activities in alignment with resent research, best practices, and literature for internal and external stakeholders. Supporting this work, Maria is focused on implementing the five opportunity areas for student success identified by the strategy guide:
- Self-Discovery of Purpose:
- Developing and identifying core values; academic aspirations; and meaningful personally, culturally, and socially valuable goals.
- Educational Success (learning & academic):
- Learning effectively through the acquisition of intentionally designed educational outcomes, using academic support services, experiencing culturally relevant curriculum, and effectively navigating academic policies.
- Developing Sense of Belonging:
- Feeling connected to campus community including feeling safe, respected, accepted, and valued.
- Contributing to an Empowered Community:
- Learning to engage respectfully across differences to promote trust, respect, empathy, and an interdependent learning culture characterized by hope.
- Developing Wellbeing:
- Developing fulfillment and stability regarding physical and mental health, social connections, cultural affinity, finances, and other basic needs that allow people to progress toward their goals.
Maria looks forward to listening and learning in her new roles, continuing her life’s work supporting student success, which she defines as “essential for creating an environment where students can not only learn and graduate, but truly thrive.”
Learn more about the Spartan Undergraduate Experience Strategy.