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Steven Girardot has been selected as vice provost for Undergraduate Education (VPUE) at ɫ����. Girardot has served as interim in the position since May 2021. The VPUE is responsible for overseeing and executing on programs that support and advance the quality and relevance of undergraduate education and the academic success of undergraduate students.

VPUE reporting units include Academic Engagement Programs, Pre-Graduate and Pre-Professional Advising, Tutoring and Academic Support, Retention and Graduation Initiatives (which includes First-Generation Student Programs), Undergraduate Advising and Transition, the Career Center (joint report to the vice provost for Graduate and Postdoctoral Education), the Honors Program, and the Center for Serve-Learn-Sustain.

“For more than 15 years, Steven has held leadership positions supporting students at Tech,” said Steve McLaughlin, provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs. “He has a track record of cross-campus collaborations to advance high-impact practices, academic transition, and student success. Steven is committed to excellence in undergraduate education and to providing resources needed to empower all undergraduates to realize its benefits,” he said.

The year 2022 marks 30 years since Girardot began his Yellow Jacket connection as a first-year chemical engineering student. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering in 1997 and a Master of Science in Chemistry in 2000, both from ɫ����. He then earned a Master of Public Health in Epidemiology as well as a doctorate in chemistry from Emory University in 2006.

Girardot has held positions at ɫ����’s Center for Education Integrating Science, Mathematics, and Computing, and the Center for Teaching and Learning. In 2007, he was selected as the director of the Office of Success Programs in the Division of Student Affairs, and, since 2012, he has served as the assistant and then associate vice provost for Undergraduate Education. He served concurrently as acting executive director of the Career Center during a leadership transition from 2018 to 2020, where he oversaw a significant restructuring of the center.  

Girardot has also made extensive service contributions at the Institute level and in support of faculty governance, leading several committees, task forces, and working groups. He has chaired or co-chaired Tech’s Complete College ɫ���� (CCG) initiative since 2011, and his work has led to significant increases in graduation and retention rates over the past decade. The CCG leadership team was recognized in 2017 with the University System of ɫ���� (USG)’s Service Excellence Award. He also established the foundation for many of Tech’s academic success programs, and helped oversee changes to the academic calendar and final exam structure. Most recently, he has worked with the Office of International Education and Enrollment Management to launch the Institute’s first-year semester abroad program, piloted in 2021 at ɫ����-Lorraine.

“It is a privilege to be selected to serve as our next vice provost for Undergraduate Education, leading the Office of Undergraduate Education and working with students, staff, and faculty across the Institute to advance educational excellence and student success,” said Girardot. “As I move into this role, I am excited to embrace the full meaning of education. This means developing the ‘whole student’ — both inside and outside of the classroom — as well as advancing our goals around diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, which are fundamental to our mission and vision.”

He is an active contributor to the state and national dialogue on student success and undergraduate education. Girardot has presented extensively on topics related to student success and transition. He currently serves on the advisory board for the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition. He is former president of the North American Association of Summer Sessions, for which he won an Outstanding Service Award.

“We are grateful to the faculty, staff, and students who generously gave their time to serve on the search committee for this position,” said McLaughlin. “My special thanks to Mitchell L.R. Walker II, professor and associate chair for Graduate Programs, School of Aerospace Engineering, for serving as chair.”