Harry Titus, Ed.D., named vice president for student experience and dean of students

Harry Titus, Ed.D., has been promoted to vice president for student experience and dean of students at Lenoir-Rhyne University. The new role reflects the university’s growing emphasis on the full scope of students’ lives — inside and outside the classroom — and elevates that work to the executive level.

The promotion coincides with the transition from the Office of Student Life to the Office of Student Experience. The evolution is designed to support students’ academic, professional, personal and spiritual development in alignment with Lenoir-Rhyne’s mission and the university’s new strategic plan, “Shine Ever Brighter.”

Titus will continue to serve as dean of students, a role he has held for more than two years and one that keeps him closely engaged with students’ day-to-day experiences. As vice president, he will also serve on President Summer McGee’s cabinet, ensuring that the student experience has a consistent voice in institutional decision-making.

“Engaging with students in their everyday lives is the most meaningful part of my work,” Titus said. “This role allows me to continue that connection while also advocating at the cabinet level for the out-of-the-classroom experiences that are so formative during college.”

The Office of Student Experience reflects a broad, integrated approach to supporting students as they discover their sense of purpose and vocation — not only through their academic work, but through relationships, service, leadership and community engagement.

“We want to ask students, ‘What good do you want to do in the world?’ and then create opportunities — through programs, leadership development and support services — that help them pursue that purpose,” Titus said.

During the 2026 spring semester, Titus is leading a campuswide effort to reimagine the student experience model. He is working with his team in the Office of Student Experience, along with campus and community partners, to build meaningful, formative opportunities beyond the classroom. Additional details will be shared as plans take shape.

Although the Office of Student Experience now operates as a standalone division, collaboration remains central to its work.

“This is not about working in isolation,” Titus said. “The student experience is shaped by every part of the university, and our role is to partner across campus to ensure the student voice and experience are embedded in everything we do.”

Looking ahead, Titus said one of his primary goals is ensuring that every Lenoir-Rhyne student feels a sense of belonging and has the ability to thrive as they find their community and purpose at the university.

Recent initiatives offer a glimpse of that vision in action. In 2025, the university opened Bear Grove, a popular outdoor gathering space on the main quad designed to foster connection and community, and expanded Kate’s Cupboard, the campus food pantry, to better support student health and wellness through a dedicated, accessible space.

The expanded scope of the vice president role aligns closely with President McGee’s Shine Ever Brighter theme, which prioritizes excellence in every student experience as the university moves into the next phase of strategic implementation.

By elevating the student experience to the cabinet level, Lenoir-Rhyne underscores its commitment to educating the whole student and creating the conditions for a rich, meaningful and purpose-driven college experience.

The full strategic plan is available at www.lr.edu/strategic-plan.