Advocating for Students,
All the Time
Vice Chancellor Marsha Lowery and the Division of Student Academic Success use a personal approach to help students thrive
When Marsha Lowery was the same age as many of the students she now works with as Rutgers University in Camden’s vice chancellor for student academic success, she experienced a striking and unsettling discovery: Not all of her fellow undergraduate students had access to the resources they needed to meet their basic needs.
“It really made me see the disparity between growing up in a middle-class family and the experience of someone who did not,” said Lowery, who is from the Philadelphia suburb of Haverford. “Some of my friends and peers couldn’t afford textbooks and weren’t able to complete all their assignments. They didn’t have access to SAT prep or exposure to foreign language or advance placement classes in high school—things that were more the norm for me or someone from my background. Obstacles like this can even keep students from graduating on time.”
It was this epiphany that pushed Lowery toward the professional path she has chosen: to positively impact the lives of young people in any way she can. Now in her eighth year at Rutgers–Camden, Lowery leads the Division of Student Academic Success, which oversees crucial programs and services that support the university’s students as they progress toward graduation and their future careers. In many cases, these careers have the potential to transform the lives of entire families and communities.
“As my world expanded, though I was not rich by any stretch, I realized that, comparatively, I lived in a space of privilege. It made me ask what it would be like if everyone had an even playing field. I feel very strongly that college is what breaks the cycle for many of us; if you can achieve success [in college], you are much more likely to have a better future for yourself, your family, and those around you.”
“I feel very strongly that college is what breaks the cycle for many of us; if you can achieve success [in college], you are much more likely to have a better future for yourself, your family, and those around you.”
Lowery’s focus on knocking down barriers led her to initial positions with the Philadelphia Youth Network, the city’s Women’s Resource Center, and Upward Bound (in the latter program, she worked with a student named Malcolm Kenyatta, who is now the Pennsylvania state representative for a North Philadelphia district).
She initially arrived at Rutgers–Camden in 2015 as director of the Educational Opportunity Fund, a statewide program that supports first-generation college students from educationally and economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Lowery became the university’s assistant chancellor for student academic success in late 2016, and was promoted to vice chancellor in February 2022.
A key priority for Lowery and her office’s 50+ full- and part-time staff members, success coaches, and peer tutors/coaches is to help close racial equity gaps in graduation rates among the student body. Lowery co-leads a strategic planning group (known informally as the “Data Nerds”) to address this and other challenges.
“We have so many opportunities here to close equity gaps for our students, since we’re an access-oriented institution,” Lowery said. (More than half of Rutgers–Camden students are first-generation college students, and more than 50 percent of the student body identifies as nonwhite, qualifying the school for Minority Serving Institution status.) “Our role is to ensure that all of our students are retained through graduation, but we do have a particular focus on historically underrepresented students to ensure they’re graduating at rates equal to their peers.”
Within Rutgers–Camden, the Division of Student Academic Success resides at the intersection of academic affairs and student affairs. “Most student success offices at universities are housed in either enrollment management or student affairs, but our place allows us to be highly collaborative across the board and not just serve a subset of student needs, but to truly serve the entire person,” Lowery said. “Success can be measured by many different statistics, whether it’s four-year graduation numbers or retention rate. But numbers don’t tell the whole story; they don’t always show the true impact we’re having.”
From the beginning, Rutgers–Camden places a high priority on acclimating new community members (including students) into the fabric of the school. In advance of the start of the 2023–2024 academic year, Student Academic Success partnered with the offices of enrollment management and student affairs on a number of enhancements to the school’s Scarlet Raptor Welcome student orientation.
“We’ve added success sessions to help students focus on what they need to know before they even set foot in a classroom,” Lowery said. “Things like how to advocate for oneself, available resources, and opportunities for engagement. We’ve also added sessions for parents and families as well. We know the obstacles our students face; they may be working full-time jobs or taking care of younger siblings, and if they have family responsibilities that don’t allow them to focus on being a student, it will be more difficult for them to find success here. So, in a proactive way, we’re having these conversations with parents so they can begin thinking about things they can do for their children—our students—so the students can fully focus on the college experience they want to have.”
In her role, Lowery frequently welcomes large groups of students or prospective students to campus; she describes these opportunities as one of the things she loves most about working at Rutgers–Camden.
“I tell them I wasn’t the greatest college student and didn’t have the highest GPA,” Lowery said. “But your possibilities are not limited because you might not meet some kind of expectation other people have decided they have for you. Your options are truly endless. It’s not anyone’s job here to define what you are capable of; you have to decide that for yourself and then you work toward that in whatever way you are most able.”
Student Academic Success:
A Closer Look
The Division of Student Academic Success is comprised of several important student-facing initiatives:
- Camden Fellows
- Center for Learning and Student Success (CLASS)
- Office of Disability Services
- Office of Retention
- Office of Scholar Development and Fellowship Advising
- Educational Opportunity Fund
- Mountainview/NJ-STEP
- Raptor Connect (EAB/Navigate)
- Student Success Coach Office
- TRiO Student Support Services
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Photography: Ron Downes Jr.
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