51 | theTYPEAhippie Podcast | ChiCast: Higher Ed and a Recipe for Success (Rochelle Woods, PhD)

Rochelle and I were Wolverines at the University of Michigan at similar times and we also worked (on different things) while in Ann Arbor, MI at the Office of Academic Multicultural Initiatives. We recently reconnected about all of the things and it is clear that Dr Woods' passion for students is contagious and genuine. You will be inspired by the work she is doing at The Ohio State University and may even decide to connect with your community in a tangible and meaningful way.

Rochelle L Woods has invested over 15 years successfully leading programs and initiatives improving post-secondary access and success of high school and college students who face significant economic and educational disadvantages.  Dr Woods is currently the Director of the Young Scholars Program in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion at The Ohio State University. In this role, she leads a staff of 15 in providing high-quality programming, pre-college advising, mentoring, professional development and academic support to improve pre-college preparation of high school students and the retention and degree completion of college students who are academically talented, first-generation students demonstrating high financial need from nine of the largest urban school districts in Ohio. The Young Scholars Program, under Dr Woods’ leadership, was recognized as a significant contributor in narrowing the graduation gap between Black and White students at OSU as noted in a report released by the Education Trust in March, 2016.

Previously, Dr Woods’ served as the Assistant Director of the Office of Academic Multicultural Initiatives University of Michigan and Program Director for Leaders and Best, a retention program that provided holistic support to economically and educationally disadvantaged first and second year undergraduate students to promote academic success and professional development. Under her leadership, the six-year graduation rate for African-American program participants was 94%, higher than the university’s rate for all students. She has presented, researched and published on higher education, focusing on issues of retention, racial climate and educational attainment of underrepresented racial groups. She served as Research Associate at the Center for Science Education at EDC in Newton, MA and as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center on Race and Social Problems at University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Woods holds a B.A. in Sociology from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Sociology from University of Michigan.

To connect with the Young Scholars Program:

* Website: https://odi.osu.edu/ysp/