Daniel Maxwell (Syracuse ’86) was honored with the Pillar of the Profession Award by the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA). He currently serves as Associate Vice Chancellor/Associate Vice President for Student Affairs at the University of Houston system.
Each year, NASPA awards the Pillar of the Profession to distinguished individuals who have served as leaders, teachers, and scholars in student affairs and higher education. The award recognizes those who have created a lasting impact on the institutions and organizations at which they have worked, leaving a legacy of extraordinary service and demonstrated sustained, lifetime professional distinction in the field of student affairs and higher education.
“Dan has been at the forefront of creating a campus environment that promotes student learning and personal development,” said Richard Walker, Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Services, University of Houston.
Maxwell is a dedicated Sigma Alpha Epsilon volunteer, currently serving on the Expansion Advisory Committee and previously on the Risk Management Committee and as a Chapter Advisor at IUPUI (Indiana Iota-Pi). For his dedication to the Fraternity, Maxwell has been awarded the Order of Lion, Order of Minerva and the Merit Key.
Editors Note: The excerpt below originally ran in an article on The Signal newspaper and was written by Brandon Peñan. To read the article in its entirety, please click here.
Dear Faculty, Staff and Students:
I am pleased to announce that Dr. Daniel M. Maxwell has agreed to serve as the Interim Vice President for Student Affairs, effective Monday, Aug. 6. This will follow the Aug. 3 retirement of Dr. Darlene Biggers, who has served the university with care and commitment for over 23 years.
Dr. Maxwell, who has held several progressively responsible positions in student affairs, is the current Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs in the University of Houston System (UH System), as well as Associate Vice President for Student Affairs for the University of Houston (UH). He has held both positions for the past 6 1/2 years.
Dr. Maxwell has experience in collaborative leadership, strategic vision, integrative organization and administrative oversight of campus-wide programs, services and operations at UH.
He currently provides executive administrative support for the division and administrative oversight for Student Housing and Residential Life, University Career Services, Urban Experience Program, Strategic Planning and Assessment, Marketing and Communication, Student Success Initiatives, Academic and Faculty Collaborations, Advancement, Emergency Management, UH Sugar Land, UH Katy, and Division Committees.
Throughout his professional career, Dr. Maxwell has many accomplishments. At UH he served as the co-liaison for John Gardner’s Foundations of Excellence, working to improve the retention and success of first year and transfer students.
Dr. Maxwell was appointed to the UH System’s Houston Guided Pathways to Success initiative, which also supports the retention and college completion of first year and transfer students. Through his keen leadership skills, Dr. Maxwell oversaw the development and implementation of a five-year strategic plan for his division.
Dr. Maxwell earned a doctoral degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs with a minor in Philanthropic Studies from the School of Education at Indiana University in Indiana. His other academic attainments include a Master of Science in Education, with an emphasis in Higher Education Leadership from the University of Miami in Florida and a Bachelor of Science in Personnel and Industrial Relations from Syracuse University in New York.
We are pleased to have Dr. Maxwell join the leadership team at UH-Clear Lake and confident that he will play a significant role in how we are framing the university’s direction as a leading institution in the 21st century.
Please join me in welcoming Dr. Maxwell to the University of Houston-Clear Lake.
Sincerely,
Ira K. Blake, Ph.D.
President