Beth McCuskey

As the vice provost for student life at Purdue University, Beth McCuskey serves as the senior student affairs officer, overseeing a broad range of departments dedicated to supporting student success. In this role, she has been charged with "emphasizing the lifelong benefit of an educational experience through environments, culture, people and programs."

Particular initiatives include leading Purdue Moves--Housing, a bold presidential initiative that will house half of Purdue's undergraduates on campus. Her division is also developing a campus-wide student leadership initiative; creating a student employment model that links the entire chain of employment--from applications to learning outcomes; and developing new strategies to link arts and STEM.

McCuskey joined Purdue as the associate vice president for housing and food services in November 2010. Her prior administrative appointments included serving as the executive director of residence life, dining services and the Wyoming Union at the University of Wyoming, and various administrative roles in the Housing & Residence Life department at West Virginia University.

McCuskey has a bachelor's degree in economics, a master's degree in higher education, a master's degree in industrial and labor relations, and an Ed.D. in higher education leadership—all from West Virginia University. Her dissertation, completed in 2003, examined perspectives of and implications for the future of the collegiate housing profession. She has served as a faculty member for the Association of College and University Housing Officers-International's (ACUHO-I's) Chief Housing Officer Training Institute and National Housing Training Institute and helped to conceptualize the AIMHO College, an institute for new housing professionals in the intermountain region. She has been active in NASPA and ACUHO-I, previously serving as chair of the ACUHO-I Foundation board of trustees and as a member of the editorial board for the Journal of College and University Student Housing. She has published several articles and co-edited a book, Foundations: Strategies for the Future of Collegiate Housing, published by ACUHO-I in 2006. She is currently serving as president elect of ACUHO-I, an elected position that will culminate with serving as president in 2017.