UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Kelly Griffith has been named interim director of the University-wide Penn State Chaiken Center for Student Success, formerly the Student Success Center, housed in the Penn State Office of Undergraduate Education. Griffith also will continue to serve in her original role as director of the Office for Summer Session.
Griffith steps into the interim role in place of Denise Poole, who started as the first director of the Chaiken Center for Student Success in 2019. Poole will move to the University of Pennsylvania as a senior associate athletic director.
“The Penn State Chaiken Center for Student Success will greatly benefit from Kelly’s prior experience working with Complete Penn State, developing student success programs, and advancing diversity, equity and belonging initiatives,” said Kathy Bieschke, senior vice provost. “We look forward to her leadership in an office that offers so many opportunities to Penn Staters across the University.”
Griffith began her career at Penn State in 2006 as a residence hall coordinator, working with first-year students in East Halls. Over a decade in Residence Life, she advanced to senior assistant director, where she managed diversity initiatives, the co-curricular learning plan, and strategic planning for the department.
In 2016, Griffith became the director of the Office for Summer Session, overseeing programs such as the Learning Edge Academic Program (LEAP) and the Student Transitional Experiences Program (STEP), along with summer marketing efforts and the summer budget model. She also has been involved in developing the Summer Success Scholarship and has served on several key committees, including those focused on enrollment management and strategic planning.
Griffith holds a master's degree in counseling with a focus on student personnel services in higher education from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, earned in 2006, and a doctorate in educational theory and policy from Penn State earned in 2017. Her research focused on college preparation in rural high schools in western New York.
In addition to her administrative roles, Griffith was an adjunct instructor in Penn State’s master’s in higher education program from 2018 to 2022 and currently serves on various University committees. She also advises several student organizations, including the Mu Eta chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc. and the Black Emotions Advocate Team (The B.E.A.T.).
“Denise has done exceptional work as the inaugural director of the Chaiken Center for Student Success and has hired an accomplished and committed staff,” Griffith said. “I look forward to supporting the good work that is being done and helping the center through the leadership transition.”
The Penn State Chaiken Center for Student Success in Undergraduate Education provides completion support to all Penn State undergraduate students through the Complete Penn State scholarship program and targeted support to first-generation Penn State students through the First-Generation Celebration Day each fall, the First-Gen Student Support Summit each spring, and the work of the First-Gen Forward Advisory Council. In addition to collaborations with offices supporting first-generation students across the university, the center advises two first-gen student organizations at the University Park campus, First Gen Advocates and the Eta Psi Chapter of the Tri-Alpha Honor Society, and recently launched an Academic Life Coaching program in partnership with Penn State Learning, World Campus-Academic Development, Student Disability Resources, Student Care and Advocacy, Adult Learner Programs and Services, the Sokolov-Miller Family Financial and Life Skills Center, Division of Undergraduate Studies, and the Journey Success Center. With the generous support of the Chaikens, the center plans to begin a peer coaching program in the next phases of the Academic Life Coaching program.
“We are proud of the progress we’ve made during the early years of the Chaiken Center for Student Success,” said Melissa Johnson, associate vice provost and associate dean of Undergraduate Education. “The center continues to support students who are close to completing their degree but are experiencing hardships and champions first-generation students at Penn State. Denise and her staff have been tireless advocates for our students, and we are delighted to have Kelly lead the center in pursuit of its mission.”
The Chaiken Center for Student Success is part of Penn State Undergraduate Education.