Rio Grande Hires Retention Specialist

RIO GRANDE, Ohio – The University of Rio Grande and Rio Grande Community College has announced the hire of Dean Crawford as Recruitment and Retention Specialist.

The newly formed position is designed to increase student engagement and persistence throughout their entire Rio Grande experience. The position reports to the Dean of Enrollment Management and will provide a retention focus to all planning, coordination and implementation of recruitment and enrollment initiatives.

“I am very excited to join the Rio Grande family and serve as a student advocate,” Crawford said. “I see this position as a student voice within the administration. My goal is to alleviate the stresses of student life as best as possible, and make the transition to college, and from semester to semester easier.”

Crawford, 26, previously worked at Ohio University Southern’s Proctorville Center, where he served as Assistant to the Director. His experience at the Proctorville Center also included time as a Recruitment Coordinator and Administrative Assistant.

The Arabia, Ohio native has a Master’s Degree in Public Administration and baccalaureate in Organizational Communication from Ohio University.

Crawford maintains an open-door policy with students in his office, room 116 within the Rhodes Student Center located on the Rio Grande campus. But he hopes to spend much of his time mingling with students throughout campus.

“I need to really see what’s going on with students and what their concerns are,” Crawford said. “I plan to be out where the students are on campus, and make trips to the Meigs Center and McArthur Center.”

Founded in 1876 and nestled in the beautiful rolling hills of southeastern Ohio, Rio Grande serves as an oasis of learning, innovation and technology. The 190-acre residential campus strikes a balance of liberal arts and experiential learning to prepare students for successful lives as responsible citizens in a culturally diverse, global community. An epicenter of cultural enrichment, Rio offers students a nurturing environment focused on the needs of the individual with a student-faculty ratio of 16:1 and a plethora of extracurricular activities ranging from Student Senate to Greek life, and intercollegiate athletics.