Melissa Vito’s contributions to the University of Arizona are well known and vast. Student engagement, access to important health and wellness services, and career readiness are a major tenet of Melissa’s legacy over her distinguished career. Along the way, she has met, inspired and mentored countless students and colleagues. Keeping the UA relentlessly future focused, she developed the vision for a centralized space for student services, which focuses on holistic learning and elevating the student experience with a state-of-the-art facility. It is a direct result of Melissa's imagination and innovative spirit that the collaboration for the new Student Success District (pictured below) took form.
Together, the Division of Student Affairs Enrollment Management, Academic Success & Student Achievement, and the University of Arizona Libraries, have created a campus within a campus feel, full of inviting spaces where students can study, collaborate, exercise, relax, and utilize services that enable their success. This campus core will represent a fundamentally different and better understanding of our modern students. It will connect students, from the second they set foot on campus, to the services, programs, and places proven to help them graduate and develop career readiness. With a comprehensive student approach, the district will wrap intellectual, emotional, and physical well-being into a single, unbroken experience. Like modern corporate campuses, students will be able to move from group meetings in expanded tech-enabled collaboration spaces, to tutoring sessions, to a favorite workout class with ease. You can read more about the planned Student Success District here.
To recognize the legacy that Melissa Vito has had at the University of Arizona, we invite you to make a gift to the Student Success District in her honor. This District was truly inspired and driven by Melissa and would not be in motion without her leadership and desire to continue to move the University of Arizona forward in a way that enhances the student experience for every Wildcat.
Under Melissa’s leadership, the THINK TANK, innovative student academic support, opened in 2008.
She leads a division of 4,000 employees – more than half of whom are students.
According to a Gallup poll, 76% of graduates believe the UA was the perfect school for people like them (thanks to Melissa!)
Melissa created the 100% engagement initiative, an innovative way to ensure all students are successful post college.
UAOnline, established by Melissa’s vision, is in the top 15% of online bachelors’ programs according to US News and World Report.
Melissa has worked to reshape the 21st century experience for students, making the UA the first Adobe Creative Campus in the west.