TO: All Employees
FR: Gerald L. Jones, J.D., Vice President for Student Affairs
December 1, 2023
It is my pleasure to announce that Dr. Sarah Ellison has accepted the position of Associate Vice President for Student Affairs overseeing the Student Access and Success team. She will begin her new role on Monday, January 8, 2024.
Dr. Ellison comes to Sonoma State University with a wealth of experience and a diverse professional background in university leadership, retention strategy, student success program design, community outreach, professional advising, and career counseling. Her career, most recently at University of Kentucky, demonstrates her dedication to serving underrepresented minority students and first-generation college students. As the first woman in her family to complete bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees, she understands how powerful the college experience and a college education can be in changing the lives of individuals, families, and communities.
As Associate Vice President for Student Affairs, Dr. Ellison will oversee the CAASE departments (including EOP, Dream Center, Seawolf Scholars, Disability Services for Students, Military & Veteran Resource Center, and TRiO Student Support Services), the Advising & Transfer Center, Student Success & Retention Programs (including the Male Success Initiative, California Promise, and the Career Center) and Pre-Collegiate Programs.
Sarah has a B.S. in Organizational Management from the University of La Verne and an M.S. in Career Counseling and an Ed.D in Higher Education Leadership from Walden University.
I’d like to thank Erik Dickson for his hard work and dedicated stewardship of the Student Access & Success team for the past 15 months as well as his willingness to ease the transition by staying in his current interim AVP role until the end of the calendar year. Effective January 1, Erik will return to his position as Executive Director of Associated Students.
Dr. Sarah Ellison