Academic Affairs Home About RUBY Team

Building an Ecosystem of Student Success

The Academic Affairs RUBY team was established in 2018 to encourage collaboration across campus, foster a culture of shared accountability and celebrate progress. A team comprising representatives from Student Success, Faculty Success, Institutional Research, Strategic Enrollment, Academic Innovation, Undergraduate and Graduate Studies, Student Affairs and Academic Strategic Communications, as well as the Office of the Provost and Senior Executive Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, meets regularly to review and prioritize strategies and tactics to address student retention and completion, as well as scalability of successful models.

Impact

25%

increase

in first-year retention

94%

increase

in four-year graduation

30%

increase

in degrees awarded annually

1

year faster

average time to degree, from 5.2 to 4.2 years

$4.9M

in student savings by reducing time to degree

Critical Success Factors

RUBY’s success stems from a shared commitment to collaboration, transparency and continuous improvement. The following elements form the foundation of its data-informed approach to student success:

Buy-in across all levels

From senior leadership to front-line staff, the RUBY model thrives because everyone has a voice. Collaboration across Academic Affairs ensures that strategies are both well-informed and broadly supported.

Data literacy that drives action

The team goes beyond collecting data — it translates information into insights that shape decisions. Building data fluency across departments empowers all stakeholders to act with confidence and precision.

Standardized tools and transparent dashboards

Through the creation of shared dashboards and a standardized approach to data collection, RUBY promotes consistency in data use and fosters trust in the metrics that guide campuswide strategies.

Tailored solutions, not templates

Recognizing that no single approach meets every student’s needs, the team customizes interventions and continuously refines practices based on real-time outcomes.

Progress monitoring and celebration

Each milestone — no matter how small — is an opportunity to acknowledge growth, recalibrate and sustain momentum toward broader institutional goals.

Targeted success coaching

By using data to identify students with the greatest need for support, RUBY helps direct coaching and outreach where they can have the most meaningful impact.

A culture of innovation and learning

RUBY encourages experimentation, recognizing that not every idea will succeed — but every effort contributes to collective learning. Embracing risk as part of progress has helped the university scale what works and rethink what doesn’t.