On April 10, University of Oregon President John Karl Scholz sent out an email statement addressed to the UO community regarding the university’s selection of Derek Kindle as UO’s Vice President of Enrollment Management.
Kindle, who currently serves as Vice Provost of Enrollment Management at University of Wisconsin-Madison, hails from a small town in North Carolina. Kindle earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Howard University in Washington, D.C.
Kindle’s tenure at UO will begin on June 30. He is succeeding Roger Thompson, who held the position until July 19, 2024.
“(Howard University is) also where I entered the enrollment profession, working in several units,” Kindle said in an email statement to the Daily Emerald. “I spent nearly 16 years in Washington, D.C., at my alma mater before moving to Madison, Wisconsin, in 2016, where I first served as director of student financial aid before becoming the vice provost for enrollment management in 2020,” Kindle said.
According to Kindle, his roles include working with the Student Services and Enrollment Management team, the UO campus and community partners to support students.
“Our team’s goal is to attract the most talented students in Oregon and beyond and to provide them with support services that complement their academic and student experience,” Kindle said.
The statement sent by Scholz detailed Kindle’s previous achievements at UW-Madison, which included increasing prospective student applications by 68% and raising roughly $93.5 million for diversity recruitment endeavors.
Kindle said that some of his current goals for his time at UO are working on “key” parts of UO’s Oregon Rising plan.
“I believe the University of Oregon is well-positioned to achieve this plan, which will not only strengthen the experience for students but also benefit the entire campus community and Eugene,” Kindle said.
According to Kindle, the biggest challenge he will face when beginning his new position is adapting to a new environment and a new part of the country.
“I have been to Eugene only twice and for very short periods, and I know that there’s quite a bit to learn and experience about living in the Pacific Northwest, Oregon and Eugene in particular,” Kindle said. “I’ll also be learning a new campus, its culture and customs, the way it does business and the people who get that business done every day.”
Carol Stabile, dean of the Robert D. Clark Honors College, who was a member of the search committee that hired Kindle, said that Kindle’s enthusiasm and expertise in supporting student success was evident during the search process.
“Kindle’s experiences in enrollment management at University of Wisconsin and Howard University have given him wide-ranging insight into recruiting, enrolling, retaining and graduating undergraduate students,” Stabile said. “I know we are all eager to welcome him to campus this summer and begin our work together.”
