Monroe Gorden Jr., who currently serves as associate vice chancellor for administration in UCLA Student Affairs, will become interim vice chancellor of student affairs, effective July 1, following the retirement of Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Janina Montero, UCLA Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Scott Waugh announced Wednesday. Also at that time, Associate Vice Chancellor Youlonda Copeland-Morgan will become vice provost for enrollment management and report directly to Waugh to better align undergraduate enrollment plans with academic and financial plans.
As student affairs’ chief administrative officer, Gorden supervises the departments of the registrar; student loan services and collections; the career center; the offices for ADA/504 compliance and students with disabilities; grants and program development; and student affairs development, technology center and information technology. He also manages the administrative components of the Office of Student Affairs, including budget and compliance.
“Monroe is a versatile and innovative leader,” Waugh said in announcing the changes. “He has maintained student affairs’ budget stability during turbulent times and has increased the division’s administrative efficiency through projects such as the consolidation of IT services. He has managed a wide range of initiatives on topics such as health insurance and graduate student career services, and he chaired a campuswide committee to develop our Bruins for Life program.”
Before joining student affairs as chief administrative and financial officer in 2006, Gorden was manager of legal contracting at United Healthcare and assistant general counsel at Tenet Healthcare. He earned an B.A. in political science from UCLA and a J.D. degree from Pepperdine University School of Law.
“I am confident that Monroe’s keen analytic abilities, knowledge of UCLA and student affairs, and strong systemwide relationships will ensure his success as interim vice chancellor,” Waugh said. “At my request, and to ensure continuity in student affairs services and programs, Monroe has agreed to serve for two years.”
Since joining UCLA as associate vice chancellor for enrollment management in 2011, Copeland-Morgan has restructured and reinvigorated the university’s outreach, admissions and financial aid efforts in order to make them more strategic.
“We have exceeded our goals for non-resident student enrollment, and increased admissions and enrollment of students from underrepresented ethnic minority groups,” Waugh said. Under her leadership, UCLA implemented a first-rate branding and communication strategy, improved communication with prospective students and their families nationally and around the globe, established stronger ties with Los Angeles-area schools and created a collaborative with the Los Angeles Unified School District that benefits students, teachers, school staff and UCLA. “Her efforts have strengthened our pipelines for transfer students from California community colleges and raised vital scholarship funds,” Waugh said.
Copeland-Morgan came to UCLA from Syracuse University, where she was associate vice president of enrollment management. A nationally recognized expert in enrollment management, she is on faculty at USC’s Rossier Center for Enrollment Research, Policy, and Practice, and held leadership roles in enrollment management at Syracuse University, Harvey Mudd College and Occidental College.
Her term as chair of the board of trustees of the College Board spawned a wave of initiatives focused on equity and diversity. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Loyola Marymount University and an M.B.A. from the University of La Verne.
To read the entire announcement, go here.