New MTSU Student Success Administrator to Build on Equity Efforts for At-Risk Students

Walter Tarver is ready to make an impact at Middle Tennessee State University. As the newest associate vice provost of Student Success, he is in the perfect position to do just that, assuming an integral role in supporting the university’s efforts to ensure entering students stay on track to earning their degrees.

Tarver’s first time on campus was the day he interviewed, and he could tell that MTSU, though twice as large as the college he worked at, felt like a close-knit family.

“I definitely felt that family environment, and it’s tough to get that feeling when there are 20,000 students walking around,” said Tarver, who is joining MTSU from Stockton University in New Jersey and fills the role previously held by the recently retired Vincent Windrow.

“We are very fortunate to have Walter Tarver in this position,” said Richard Sluder, vice provost of Student Success and dean of University College. “He has a proven track record, is committed to this work, and his experience will be invaluable in further advancing programs that are already high performing. His work will benefit our students.”

The position Tarver finds himself in has several goals, which include increasing retention and graduation rates and closing the equity gap in educational outcomes for underserved and at-risk students. Tarver says he’s up for the task because he has been in similar situations many of these students find themselves in today.

“Students sometimes think we just popped up on campus in these positions,” Tarver said. “I think as professionals we need to tell our stories as well. Not all of our journeys are paved smoothly, and many of us come from the same backgrounds as our students.”

Tarver himself is a first-generation college student, so he’s no stranger to hard work. He knows that this job is not easy and comes with long hours, but he’s OK with that. Like many others who work in education, he feels that what he is doing is not just a career, but a mission.

“I have a passion for this, and it started before I even realized it,” Tarver said, recounting his days as a student working in the career development office. “It’s been a winding path to get to this point, but it’s been my destiny to do this type of work.”

In fact, when Tarver and his wife, Corrinne, relocated for her job as the athletic director and gymnastics coach at Fisk University, he had been considering a career in the private sector and wasn’t looking to get back into higher education.

That all changed when he heard about the open position at MTSU.

“If I had to describe what I wanted to do in higher ed, this would be it,” he said. “It really ties everything together with my experience and what I wish to do with the rest of my professional life.”

Reach Tarver at Walter.Tarver@mtsu.edu. For more information about the MTSU Office of Student Success, visit https://www.mtsu.edu/studentsuccess/index.php.